travel: June 2008 Archives
I've been at the ICANN meeting in Paris for the last week and haven't had a chance to post here.
I'll be posting a few followup posts over on my domain blog over the next few days.
Suffice to say that some of the media coverage of the event has been more than a bit sensationalist!
I'm in Paris until Sunday afternoon, so I fully intend to take advantage of my remaining time here to do zero work!
I'll be posting a few followup posts over on my domain blog over the next few days.
Suffice to say that some of the media coverage of the event has been more than a bit sensationalist!
I'm in Paris until Sunday afternoon, so I fully intend to take advantage of my remaining time here to do zero work!
I've mentioned previously how "organised" I can be when travelling.
With each trip I seem to improve some things to the detriment of others.
This time round I have:
Of course the downside to being semi-organised in advance is that you tend to misplace things like your hotel booking confirmation. I'm staying in the Meridien Montparnasse, which is part of the Starwood group. I only found this out when I spent 10 minutes frantically searching my email for the hotel booking details!
Oddly enough I was in Paris at the same time last year for my aunt's wedding. Of course last year I also managed to get pick pocketed and end up with no cards or even the carpark ticket to retrieve my car! I've since learnt my lesson and now tend to leave a couple of my credit cards in the hotel safe. I also invested in an American Express card specifically to avail of their emergency replacement card service (they guarantee 24 hours!).
While I seem to have scheduled loads of meetings starting the afternoon I arrive, I still intend to get to the cinema at least once, so I've been perusing Allo Cine to see what's on. As tends to happen some films are released in France months before Ireland, while others lag months and sometimes even years behind. I had been hoping to see Asterix, but at this stage it's probably easier just to wait for the DVD release.
I suspect I'll arrive in Paris to discover I've forgotten something really dumb yet essential, like my phone charger, as there's no way that I can possibly be that organised!
With each trip I seem to improve some things to the detriment of others.
This time round I have:
- booked the hotel (4 months in advance!!)
- booked flights
- booked hotel in Dublin for night before
- organised loads of meetings
- brought business cards home (ie. so they are close to my suitcase and won't get forgotten)
Of course the downside to being semi-organised in advance is that you tend to misplace things like your hotel booking confirmation. I'm staying in the Meridien Montparnasse, which is part of the Starwood group. I only found this out when I spent 10 minutes frantically searching my email for the hotel booking details!
Oddly enough I was in Paris at the same time last year for my aunt's wedding. Of course last year I also managed to get pick pocketed and end up with no cards or even the carpark ticket to retrieve my car! I've since learnt my lesson and now tend to leave a couple of my credit cards in the hotel safe. I also invested in an American Express card specifically to avail of their emergency replacement card service (they guarantee 24 hours!).
While I seem to have scheduled loads of meetings starting the afternoon I arrive, I still intend to get to the cinema at least once, so I've been perusing Allo Cine to see what's on. As tends to happen some films are released in France months before Ireland, while others lag months and sometimes even years behind. I had been hoping to see Asterix, but at this stage it's probably easier just to wait for the DVD release.
I suspect I'll arrive in Paris to discover I've forgotten something really dumb yet essential, like my phone charger, as there's no way that I can possibly be that organised!
Image via Wikipedia
Of course I'm running an hour or two behind schedule, but it's a Saturday, so I should be forgiven!
I left a lot of Spanish and French books with my grandfather a few years ago, so I've really no idea what is actually there. I suspect there's plenty of Garcia Marquez and a few dictionaries, though I'm not 100% sure.
My task for next week will be getting my hands on more bookcases, as I've more or less filled all the ones I have and am currently living surrounded by boxes!
Image via Wikipedia
If anyone who is planning on attending wants to meet up do let me know. I've a few meetings organised, but there'll be plenty of opportunities to meet up.
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