And the winner is ...

What happened before....

The academic part of the day ended around half past twelve. When we came out of the conference room we were greeted by two waiters, holding large platters containing glasses of white and red wine. In one corner of the room a large buffet had been set up with cold and warm dishes. On the cold end there was a selection of small bread rolls, poached salmon with cocktail or/and tartar sauce, smoked salmon, large chunks of melon coated in thin slices of Parma ham, a salad of cherry tomatoes and mini mozzarella balls, couscous, a potato salad, a mixed green salad and a cold pasta dish.

The sign by the door of the 'animal food kitchen' ('dierenkeuken' in Dutch)
at the Antwerp Zoo.

On the warm end were four dishes: two kinds of pasta, roasted deer and poached cod with leeks in a cream sauce. On the table on which in the morning the staff had been serving coffee and croissants a dessert buffet had been dressed. It contained a large collection of miniature cakes, cups and glasses, ranging from tiramisu and chocolate mousse to fruit salad and strawberries cakes, etc. Yummmmm …

The only negative points were the high tables and complete absence of chairs. Don’t you just hate these ‘walking’ lunches and dinners, where you have to squeeze with six or seven people around a tiny table with a mere 50 cm top? You just stand there, uncomfortably, wobbling from one foot onto the other, precariously shifting your food around on a miniature plate; with you elbows glued to you side, trying not to stick them in your neighbour’s ribs.

After the meal, the five winners of a little quiz that had been held during the academic session were announced. I almost dropped my glass of white wine when I heard my name being called, as I’m not in the habit of winning prizes. What did I get? A box containing 8 CD’s of classical music! Okay, call me a philistine, but I don’t like classical music; it has a depressing effect on me. When I offered the CD box to the people at my table, three of them immediately showed a keen interest.

My first instinct was to throw it in the air, letting the best man or woman win. It wouldn’t have been practical though considering the glasses and plates that were still sitting on the table. So I gave it to a colleague who had travelled all the way by train from the southern part of the country to attend the teambuilding day. The poor guy had left his home at half past five in the morning to get to Antwerp in time. And he wouldn’t be home before nine if he managed to catch the 4.30 train home. An effort that really deserved recognition and a small compensation; don't you think so?