Anglo Brazilian Society Garden Party September 10th 2011

The Anglo Brazilian Society summer Garden Party was held on Saturday September 10^th 2011 in Mr and Mrs Roger Whittely-Smith’s delightful gardens in Wimbledon. My wife and I had never been to one of these events before and so we were a little unsure what to expect, but we discovered that we need not have worried, as it was an extremely friendly group of interesting and interested people.

The first thing of course on entering the house was, as you might expect at anything which involves Brazil, is to be given a Caipirinha, chock block full of crushed ice, sugar, sliced lime and a really good dollop of Cachaça. This one had a really good dose of Cachaça, tasted delicious and set the scene for the eveing. The first person I chatted to was Michael Gabriel, the Chairman and helped by us meeting previously at a Brazilian Chamber event, the conversation flowed and I must admit that I am unable to remember much of what was said except that it was all very interesting and amusing.

We found ourselves chatting to a whole host of people, as we flowed out into the garden and then when it began to rain, flowed back into the house and then back into the garden again. During all this time we were all being followed by the kind gentleman with the huge jug of Caipirinha, who seemed to sense exactly the right moment to top up one’s glass, and the very friendly waitresses, who had a seemingly inexhaustible supply of delicious empadas, cochinas and pao de quiejo, amongst others.  They seemed to be everywhere all the time with full plates of the tasty food and like the Caipirinhas, we and everybody else was very served all night long.

All too soon the sun set and it became darker and darker, but just before total darkness, Michael called for some hush and said a few words of well-deserved thanks to Christine and Roger for hosting the Society and for Ellie and the team at the Brazilian Consulate for organising it all. It was now nearly 9 o’clock and everyone was leaving after a delightful relaxing evening, safe in the knowledge that the Anglo Brazilian Society was in strong and safe hands.

If you weren’t there, then make sure you go to the next party.. they really are excellent and well worth attending. Please also remember all the other cultural events that the Society puts on – musicals, Theatre trips and talks http://www.anglobraziliansociety.org/events.html   – it really is a very active group. Finally many thanks to everybody at the ABS for a great evening.