October 22-26, 2007
Central America, Carribean

I've heard it said that traveling by chartered airplane is "a luxury", a little snobbish perhaps or even a little diva-ish (if that's a word). True, I will not say it isn't a luxury because there is no fighting with commercial airline passengers and we have two pilots catering to our needs. We also have free movement around the cabin. It is far from being an extravagant means of travel. At times it is necessary in order to get to where we need to go on time. I have written in past blog entries of trouble with the chartered planes: delays because of weather, delays because of mechanical problems, etc. We still deal with airports, security, customs, immigration, etc.

Why am I sharing this with you? This trip started out a bit rocky with a 6 hour departure delay because of mechanical problems. The solution: an alternate plane flying us to Mississippi where we would meet the original plane and fly onto Nassau. Now, a delay was not so bad because we were still in Provo and at home. But it also meant a later arrival into Nassau. A later arrival meant a very short and nearly sleepless night. It's at times like these that I gear up and prepare to be tired. It becomes a mental game with myself: "you may be tired but don't let it show. Smile, be pleasant and do your job well".

October 22, 2007
Nassau, Bahamas

The event in Nassau was a huge success. The venue was filled. In fact more tables and chairs needed to be added to accommodate everyone. SRC connected with the audience and the day was filled with a lot of interaction between the audience and SRC. I would guess over 350 attended and everyone really seemed to be engaged and gaining something.

Nassau is beautiful! Green and lush. As we drove from the to the airport I was amazed at the beauty of the ocean and the foliage. The road runs parallel to the ocean which is a beautiful blue/green as you can see from the picture (the view from my hotel room). Our driver told us that some tourists ask to stop on the side of the road so they can dip their toes in the water...some tourists have never seen the ocean and they can't wait to touch the water. I definitely want to return for some R&R.

October 23-24, 3007
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

We flew into Santo Domingo Monday night and I can't tell you how excited I was to get to the hotel and fall into bed. It was quite late when we arrived but the moon was high in the sky and very bright so it was easy to see some of the beauty of the ocean and palm trees. The hotel was right across the street from the ocean. These pictures were taken from my hotel room...not a bad view. At the airport we were met by our FranklinCovey hosts as well as two drivers, four body guards, at least two cameramen. I was not expecting that and tried to stay out of the line of sight of the cameras. We normally do not have this sort of entourage of people with us but our first events were with governments officials and they provided the transportation, etc. As we would drive to each location we also had a police escort which facilitated faster movement through the city. It also meant driving on the wrong side of the road a few times. I have learned to have faith in the drivers...they know the streets, they know how people drive and they won't crash.

We had a fairly easy morning which allowed for an extra hour of sleep and time in the fitness center. At the appointed hour we met in the executive lounge so SRC could be introduced to the President of the Congress. I have never experienced the "paparazzi" before but I think I have a pretty good idea of what famous people deal with on a daily basis. Cameras everywhere, taking pictures of your every mood. I tried to keep my "game face" hidden and smiled a lot never knowing quite where the cameras were pointed.

A meeting with the President of the Dominican Republic and the First Lady was our first official meeting of the day. The President of the Congress was our escort. We drove to the palace and were escorted into the President's office. I was impressed by the interior of the palace and also the offices. I was also very impressed by the President and First Lady...such personable people and they speak English very well. As we were sitting there I nearly had to pinch myself as reality set in: I was sitting in the office of the President of the Dominican Republic. Wow! That doesn't happen everyday.

From there we went to the House of Congress and met with leaders of the Senate and Legislature. We also had a session with the staff and managers of the different government departments equaling about 200 people. The final event hosted by the President of the Congress was with a larger group of about 400 made up of government and community officials. At the conclusion of this event we quickly drove to the LDS Institute Building where a group of Latter-day Saints were waiting for SRC. He stood after a long and very tiring day and spoke from the heart. He shared his testimony with this group and was incredibly moved by the spirit that emanated from everyone there. It was a great day!

At each location throughout the day we had the same cars, drivers, bodyguard and motorcycle police escort. As it turned out SRC had his car and I had mine. There were other passengers with us but we were in separate cars. It was comforting to see the familiar faces of Christian (bodyguard) and Alex (driver). As we exited each building I would look for their faces know that I was in the right place. I would also look for the familiar faces of SRC's bodyguard and driver and know he was in good hands. It was not easy saying good bye at the end of the day knowing I would not see them again.

The following day was equally great. Three presentations to three different groups: 800 people. All three groups were engaged and anxious to learn. Many asked great questions, some challenging but those are SRC's favorites. The AV techs were great and we all worked well together. That always makes my job easier.

SRC felt a profound spirit from each group. He had this overwhelming feeling that each person attending (all events both days) could move the country to greatness....each through a distinct contribution. On our way to the airport after the last event we drove by the LDS Temple. It is modeled after the St. Louis, MO temple. This is the first international temple I have seen during my travels. It is beautiful!
October 25-26, 2007
San Jose, Costa Rica

I have to say that I was looking forward to returning to Costa Rica. I loved it the first time and knew that my second trip would be just as great, if not better. I was also looking forward to the hotel. It was the same hotel as my first trip and I remember the bed...amazingly comfortable. My room was different but the bed was as comfortable as I remembered.

We did a lot of driving during the two days we were in Costa Rica which is not always the best but it gave me the opportunity to see a lot more. My companion for the two days was Luis and I thoroughly enjoyed working with him. We gave each other English and Spanish lessons. I did not feel intimidated asking questions or speaking in Spanish. Luis was a great help and a lot of fun. I was a bit sad saying good bye to him. I was also so impressed and appreciative of the staff or "back of office" as they called themselves...constantly behind the scenes making sure each event was a huge succes. They were so helpful and willing to assist with what I needed or asked.

The events during the two days were a success. Four presentations in two days totalling about 2,000 people. SRC did a fantastic job at each event and really hit a home run with the speeches. Each presentation topic or focus was different and I am continuously amazed at how he can customize each presentation. At the evening event on the 25th the FranklinCovey group surprised SRC with a Mariachi band singing Happy Birthday...in Spanish. It was awesome! Something he will not forget!

Overall it was a tremendous week. We traveled to three countries, SRC gave 12 presentations, met with the President of the Dominican Republic and enables greatness in about 4,000 people. Not bad for a weeks worth of work.

Europe
October 8-12, 2007

Moscow, Russia
October 9, 2007

Moscow in the fall…chilly and rainy. Nevertheless, we went to Red Square and took the pictures that you see below. SRC and I had an escort who also took some of these pictures. It was incredible to stand in Red Square and think of all that had taken place there.
















We flew into Moscow Monday afternoon which left time for a short tour to Red Square followed by a nice evening in the hotel. I did the healthy thing and went to the fitness center to run. I could have gone to sleep but then my night would have been even shorter than it was. I went to bed at 11:00 and woke up at about 3:00 and could not sleep any longer. With no English language channels on the TV except CNN and the BBC I was limited so, I did some work to get ready for the day.










The program was great! There were about 40 people at this program which meant a lot of interaction and questions. Three of the clients attending gave presentations in the afternoon which applied the principles that were being taught. It was very interesting to hear how the principles had been applied and success was and is the outcome.

The program ended and we were on our way to the airport. It may have been a nightmare but the afternoon quickly took a bad turn. SRC was being interviewed on our way to the airport when I received the call that the charter plane that had been scheduled could not get the permits to fly into Moscow. Let me re-phrase. The permits could be acquired but that would mean a 4 hour delay to our take-off and a 7 hour delay into Luxembourg. While I was on the phone the person interviewing SRC got out of the car to take the bus back to the hotel. She had been our translator…guiding the driver, etc. So, here I am on the phone driving to the airport and our driver does not speak English. Luckily, we had a solution in place before we even arrived at the airport but for a few minutes I thought I was going to have an out of body experience while tyring to remain calm, cool and collected. The plane was a good size and very nice inside. We also had our own flight attendant. What service! I had not eaten much all day so I was very excited when she asked if we wanted some food. As it was our arrival into Luxembourg was delayed by about 2 hours. At least we made it.

Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
October 10, 2007

What an amazing city! Very European and a lot like Belgium in my opinion. We stayed in a hotel that was very interesting to say the least. A very European experience. It had, at one point, been a block of houses but building was renovated into a hotel a few years ago. The ceilings were very high, the floor wood, and the furnishings very contemporary.

The event was held at a large, round building that is part of a school campus. A large room in the center surrounded by two stories of classrooms and a cafeteria. The building is part of a large block of buildings for Primary and Secondary schools. The audience was made up of about 350 participants. While in Luxembourg I learned that the city nearly doubles in size Monday thru Friday. People travel in from France, Germany and Belgium for their jobs. So some of the participants were from those countries. I also learned that there are three main languages spoken in Luxembourg: Luxembourgish, French and German. English is, of course, also spoken.

The day went very well and SRC did a fantastic job. I was also able to see my friends from Belgium…those I worked with on the Belgium event last year. It was very fun to see them again. Overall it was a great day! At the airport in Luxembourg we were met by our pilots for the short flight to Amsterdam. These pilots were awesome...meeting our needs and making sure we got to where we needed to go. Plus they were funny! Our flight to Amsterdam was short and we arrived in good time.

Haarlem, Netherlands
October 11, 2007

We drove from the airport to Haarlem. I did not see much of the city (it was dark when we arrived) but I did take a picture of this church which was right by our hotel. Amazing! I wanted to walk around the city but it was dark, it was late, and I would have had to walk by myself. The hotel was very clean and comfortable. It is actually part of the Best Western family of hotels.

The event was held at the Philharmonie (I don’t know if I spelled that correctly). It is a Symphony Hall with two main stages. Our event was held in the smaller of the two and it was beautiful. I would say there were probably 400 people attending and it was a great crowd. I was impressed by the organization of the event and the hosts themselves. SRC enjoyed the day as well which is always good.

After the event we quickly drove to an open field. That’s right an open field to board the helicopter. To get to the next location and event we needed to get there as quickly as possible and helicopter was the solution. It was AWESOME! What a way to see the country. I was amazed! The pictures do not do a good job in showing the beauty. Each city/town had a church and the farm houses were outlined by tall trees. I could see the well manicured lawns and fields, cows and sheep which looked very funny and a lot like larvae from where I was. Halfway into the flight we approached open water and I thought this has to be the city below or we are going to fly over this body of water and I cannot see what is beyond the cloud cover. There was a road, like a bridge, that we followed and I could soon see land on the other side. The interesting thing about this road: on one side is salt water and the other side is fresh water. Within another 15 minutes we landed in another field, loaded into a waiting car and drove to the venue.

The helicopter landed in a field right by this farmhouse.

Leeurwarden, Friesland, The Netherlands
October 11-12, 2007

The next set of events were held at CHN University. The emphasis of this university is hospitality so they have restaurants and a hotel right on campus. Nice! We were taken to our rooms, I freshened up a bit and we headed out to the first event. SRC was taken to a dinner for some Q&A with the attendees and I went to the main session to set up the AV. I was very impressed with the AV set up for each event. All of my requirements had been met, thanks to the event host and JB who arrived the day before to make sure everything was set up as it should be. The equipment had been tested so all I needed to do was plug my laptop in, test a DVD, etc and I was good to go. Plus the AV techs were helpful, fun, and good looking. Not a bad combination.

The main session of the night was the Leadership Program. I would guess that the room held about 350 people…nice size group. SRC did a great job and I had fun with the AV techs. I was wiped out by the end of night and could not wait to sleep. It was the shortest night of the trip. I think I got about 4 hours of sleep but felt pretty good considering.

The first event of the next day was a VIP breakfast. We first listened to three presentation on programs and efforts taking place to build a stronger community. SRC took about 30 minutes to share his thoughts and insights on what was shared. It was a good session. From there we rushed over to the main auditorium for the next event, also a community event but with a larger group and SRC teaching. He was on fire with this group talking about communities and family, mission statements, etc. It was great! At the conclusion I grabbed all of my gear and with the help of my personal AV assistant, Henk, nearly ran over to the last event with the staff and students of CHN. We got set up in record time and the session went well. It was in a more open area of the school so we drew a crowd.

Another helicopter ride, this time to the Amsterdam airport, proved to be equally as exciting as the day before. I was so tired and with the hum of the helicopter I found myself falling asleep but not deep enough that I missed any of the beautiful sites. After a quick change of clothes at the airport we boarded the plane and started our long journey home.

It was a great week! The events were tremendous and I met some amazing people but I am glad to be home!