On Friday 2 December, Flowstars from Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban packed their bags and headed off to Maropeng, in the Cradle of Humankind, for Flow’s much anticipated year-end staff event.
With lots of fun activities and a night in Maropeng’s luxurious boutique hotel to look forward to, it was time for everyone to let their hair down and celebrate 2011 in true Flow style.
After checking into our rooms and sipping drinks by the pool, we took a leisurely stroll to the Tumulus building for an afternoon of entertainment provided by each studio. We enjoyed special Flow-pink strawberry daiquiris and enjoyed the incredible views of the Cradle from the deck before heading inside. From hilarious Christmas-themed skits to cleverly adjusted song lyrics and an energetic version of charades, everyone was kept in high spirits.
After a swim in the hotel’s beautiful pool, we enjoyed a delicious dinner before heading into the lobby for a prize-giving ceremony. Each Flowstar received a certificate along with a bag of goodies. Afterwards, the chairs were cleared away and the dancing began.
Now would probably be a good time to mention the special cooler bags full of chilli vodka, vitaminwater and Berocca that accompanied us to Maropeng, all provided by Etana – thanks guys! What a party.
The next morning, we enjoyed a tasty breakfast before gathering around a table full of pink presents for a rowdy game of Yankee Swap. If you don’t know the rules for Yankee Swap, each person provides a gift (this year’s theme was “Think Pink”) and is allowed to open one from the pile in return OR appropriate the gift of someone else. Things got… interesting.
Each Flowstar was then invited to tour the Sterkfontein Caves, the Maropeng Visitor Centre, or both, before heading home. All in all, it was a truly wonderful weekend.
Thank you to Maropeng for having (putting up with) us! And, of course, BIG thanks must go to Tara and Tiffany for organising everything and spoiling all of us so much – a fitting end to an incredible year with Flow.
The Maropeng Boutique Hotel was a perfect retreat for the Flow year-end party. Image courtesy of Mildred Thabane
Flowstars (L-R) John Kazembe, Tshililo Ragimana and Neo Male enjoy the view from the deck of the Tumulus building. Image courtesy of Mildred Thabane
Everyone settles down for an afternoon of entertainment provided by each studio, including plays, songs and games. Image courtesy of Mildred Thabane
Collective Cow's entertainment slot consisted of an energetic version of charades, with brightly coloured (Collective) cow toys for each member of the winning team. Image courtesy of Mildred Thabane