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We say goodbye to our beloved Rhian in style, with speeches straight from the heart, and tears - of course

This was the excellent Moroccan restaurant where the in-house translators started the long goodbye to Rhian, without whom life will never be the same.

Sadly there was no entertainment of this kind ... but the food was top notch.

David and Nigel were feeling a bit gooey at the prospect of Rhian's imminent departure for Caledonia ... and it shows (we were manfully choking back the tears).

Paul adopts his by now famous pose for the camera, while Toby drifts off into an alternate reality and Rhian lights up the place with a smile.

I can almost hear that "Och nooooo"

You have to give the kid credit, she does "adorable" very well.

You can never keep a good translator down .... we lighten up and start to enjoy ourselves.

Wanna borrow my toothpick?

Paul indicates that the inner gourmet is more than satisfied with the Moroccan nosebag on offer.

A week or so later, and the entire Taalcentrum crew (past and present) gets into the act at Manzano .... a renowned tapas restaurant in downtown Hamster Jam

Mmm ... looks nice

The only snag is that we are half an hour early, so Nigel opted for a glass of anaesthetic ... excellent way to kill the time

Either they are all hiding under the table giggling like idiots, or they haven't arrived yet.

Ah ... they've arrived ... now where is the lady of the moment?

Fedde and Eline do some catching up ... and perhaps a little mutual industrial espionage?

Like a smiley that is wired for sound? Or perhaps something considerably less subtle?

Well, I don't know much, but I do know Fedde. There was no jiggery pokery of this sort going on, of that I'm sure.

No way Jose. More to the point, Eline is just not that sort of girl (and if she is, please don't tell me, I cherish my illusions).

The booze works its magic and loosens our tongues (I would like to apologize at this point for any embarrassing comments that I might have made)

And there she is - the star of the show!

David carefully kisses Rhian's ear .... must be a Scottish thing.

Paul abuses the privilege of being seated next to La Verhulst - I don't think she noticed, but she will when she sees this!

Where did all the chefs go? Probably taking a quick siesta.

The first round turns up - looks good.

There is a sudden pause in the conversation while we dig in.

Is it impolite to eat the last egg on the platter?

Two women who are leaving trails of emotional wreckage in their wake.

Although I think that Paul is handling it very well, don't you?

Anouk stands to give a speech, the rest of us scrabble in handbags and pockets for packets of Kleenex tissues

There she blows! Why is everyone laughing?

Rhian climbs to her feet grasping a 20-page document ... we sigh and reach for the booze

This woman has mastered the art of weeping and speeching at the same time - now if THAT is not sublime multitasking then I am buggered if I know what is.

AH - she slipped in a joke. Always goes down well. But leave them wanting more.

Sadness personified ....

We all feel a bit weepy

Apart from these three gigglers that is .... young people these days, REALLY! Where is the respect?

Anouk bites back the tears, but she's not fooling anyone.

More compliments and reminiscences .... its amazing how much of that you can accumulate when you work at the same company for more than five years.

The speech was definitely well received.

Matt hovers in the background, having been instructed to take over if (or when) Rhian loses it big time.

Rob goes gooey round the edges as Rhian heaps praise upon him

She didn't spare the rest of us either .... everyone got a mention.

Oops ... looks as thought the tear ducts are flooding again

Poor little bugger - take five Rhian

Yup, she sits down and Matt smoothly steps into the breach. What an excellent double act.

Matt finds reading a tear-stained speech more challenging that he had thought.

Rhian suddenly realizes that the time has arrived to drop an emotional bombshell on her roomies (a.k.a. fellow translators).

She jumps up and grabs the sodden speech, insisting that she had to read the bit about "Her Guys" personally. We brace ourselves, because nobody likes to see grown men cry ....

....but none of us would have had it any other way.

One for one she tells us how much she appreciates us. The feeling is entirely mutual of course. Ah, parting is such sweet sorrow.

Babette presents a bouquet and enjoys a giggle with Rhian

Paul tells one of his corny jokes (he knows thousands of them). Myrna is in stitches.

A serious moment while Maud shares some news with Fedde, Annelies and Diana. Her advice for staying cheerful in the face of adversity (and I have to say that I am in TOTAL agreement with her on this one) is:

Annelies and Nigel catch up on one another's gossip - always fun.

Paul tells us to watch the birdy, and we all assume the position.

We munch and chat, just your average Taalcentrum nosh up!

Flasher caught in the act.

Eline is looking a tad intense ... her blood alcohol level must be getting perilously low.

Amazing how we spend all day together and still enjoy one another's company in the evening!

These two are inseparable. Once a Taalcentrumite, always a Taalcentrumite

The last goodbye - but we've promised to keep in touch. We'll miss you Rhian, take care, and have a ball in Bonnie Wee.

May the Way rise up to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
The sun shine warm upon your face
The rains fall soft upon your karma
And, until we meet again,
May the Buddha hold you in the palm of his hand.