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Thursday, February 23, 2006

Barcelona tomorrow; Helsinki in June

Off to see wee Robbie and Nicky tomorrow in Barcelona! Its snowing in Cambridge today - not there!
Also got my dates and agenda - 9-11 June in Helsinki with Alex speaking at this: http://tadobatis.org/Helsinki_06/2006_Helsinki_agenda.html

Wednesday, February 22, 2006

The morning after...

Monday 4.45am alarm and the 5.34am train to Paris - brutal!
But at least I saw the Japanese boys (see blog for June) and had a fabulous langoustine/artichokes/dark chocolate truffles lunch with Bernard (see river swim photos September), my friend from the French PM's office. Rather good Italian red too. Then home eventually after an 18-hour day.

Wild weekend in London/Eritrea/Poland/NZ/Dresden

Alex came into town and here's the evidence:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/qa/101119519/
It was a weekend of great food, great company, strange late night conversation, and Chateau Neuf du Pape celebrating Tom/Maria's engagement, followed by delicious black Okocim beer, then sangria and beer at a Notting Hill party, then speaking Spanish to Venzuelans, then Moldovan, then a 4am hour-long 'blind date' phone call - then...well, Sunday lunchtime we had a long glorious lunch in a pub, at the end of which the lovely Mayna from Dresden grinned all over her face when I promised "we will never come back"...

Saturday, February 11, 2006

Cleshes for the Eshes


Next winter - only 10 months away!

OECD conference in a Vatican palace


The Insitut San Michele
- which was nice! Conference vdery pleasant lots of old and new friends, wonderful banquet in a private palazzo by the Palazzo Vienetzia - the outgoing Italian government knows how to treat its guests (even if it is re-elected)

Visit to the Vatican




Sunday morning, naturally - but it was free (last Sunday of the month) so the Italians were prctising rucking and mauling for the riigby the following week, nightmare queue just to see the most explicitly gay erotic roof ever - Michaelangelo had quite an eye for the boys!

Religion but no Prophet cartoons





Ave Maria, Moses, synagogue St Pete's
(lit a candle for my mum)

Capitol! Capitol!



Roman ice cream



Roman holiday




Monday, February 06, 2006

La Dolce Vita Roma 28-29 January

Pics to follow...even the Italians were impressed with the palaces that the government laid on for the OECD workshop!