BY LORNE ECKERSLEY
Advance staff
Ten visitors from the Gujarat region of India got a taste of Creston Valley hospitality on Sunday.
The group, which included an industrialist, two engineers, an auto parts manufacturer and tax accountant, and their wives, was hosted by the Creston Valley Rotary Club at a reception at Baillie-Grohman Estate Winery.
With incoming president Jason Truscott at the microphone and Michael Wigen and Jenny Truscott at the barbecues, the group clearly enjoyed the hospitality provided by both local Rotary clubs and the team of Cranbrook Rotarians that delivered them to Creston.
“This is completely new to us—we have not seen this way of cooking before,” said one couple as they stood to admire the chicken-covered grill.
The visitors included Jatin and Meena Bhatt (Rotary Club of Baroda Jawaharnagar), Shantu and Minaxi Vasava (Rotary Club of Balsar), Ramesh and Geeta Vaghasia (Rotary Club of Surat East), Dr. Ramjanam and Rama Singh, and Bipinchand and Vaishali Chhajed (Rotary Club of Vapi).
The group’s stay was short. After the singing of the Indian and Canadian anthems, introductions and lunch, the visitors were treated to a tour of the winery and then headed westward to their next destination.
“The Indians loved their brief time in the Creston Valley,” Jason Truscott said on Monday. The Cranbrook hosts were pretty blown-away too. They thought we were showing off with our astute attention to detail and tried, often, to catch us out on certain aspects they thought we missed, but we didn’t!”