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Gerry Amsden – Assistant Secretary, Anglo Foreign Lodges Association (AFLA), writes:

Having successfully organised a similar event in September 2021, the AFLA group took to the water again in June to cruise the Thames with lunch.

This time we used the ‘Millenium Diamond’ catamaran owned by City Cruises – a much larger, more spacious vessel; and took a group booking joining the general public.

The weather forecast was not good, suggesting we would have thundery outbreaks of rain.  I am pleased to say that this did not materialise and we instead enjoyed just sunny periods.

Support for this boat trip has been tremendous and we were by far the largest group on the boat – 68 adults and 7 children.

Six of the 16 Lodges in AFLA took part and included families (some with babies and children) and friends.

We were allocated an excellent seating area where we could all sit within close proximity of each other.

The staff were helpful and efficient, bringing round drinks, followed by a main course – a limited menu of chicken or vegetarian options – and dessert. Bearing in mind that they had to cater for over 120 people, the meal was well presented and tasted fine.

The trip lasted for one and a half hours, which seemed a little tight, but we had plenty of time to explore the upper deck while we glided past various landmarks from the London Eye and Houses of Parliament to the Tower of London, past the Shard and under Tower Bridge.

Having obtained a discount from City Cruises for Large Groups, we were able to recoup £605.60, which has been donated to the Masonic Charitable Foundation (MCF).

The Anglo Foreign Lodges Association has 16 member Lodges and now includes two Chapters in its group; and as the name suggests, there are members from overseas; in particular, America, Italy, Austria, Greece, Cyprus, Switzerland, France, Brazil, Holland and Turkey, as well as several others.

Every two years we organise a meeting from an overseas Lodge, hosted by one of the member Lodges. The meeting takes place in the Grand Temple at Freemasons’ Hall and there is a dinner afterwards with wives and partners, attracting around 200 – 300 people to the event.

Our last event was in 2024 when an Austrian Lodge, Hiram Lodge of Vienna, hosted by Reunion & Fellowship Lodge No 5625, gave a memorable and unusual demonstration ceremony of the Third Degree.

For more information on AFLA, please visit our website Anglo Foreign Lodges Association (afla.org.uk)

This article is part of the Arena Magazine Issue 58 – Summer 2025 edition.
Arena Magazine is the official online magazine of the London Freemasons – Metropolitan Grand Lodge and Metropolitan Grand Chapter of London.

Read more articles in Arena Issue 58 here.

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