A Travel Schedule, Part 2

In week 32, I will be attending Anticipation, the Montréal WorldCon.

My travel plans and preliminary schedule are as follows:

Flight to Montréal:Departure: Tuesday August 4 @ 15.20 hrs. with flight KL 0671;

• Arrival: Tuesday August 4 @ 16.35 hrs (flying time approx. 7.15 hrs.)

After clearing customs & immigration I'll be heading to the Best Western Europa for a full week (there was a CAN$ 80 per night special if I booked a full week, so why not...;-).

This gives me the Tuesday night and the Wednesday daytime for preparations, especially -- I hope -- to do some shopping for a special event.

Also, an 'unofficial' event: Pubcrawling with the Pros.

Last year, Jim Minz had the luminous idea to do a Microbrew Pubcrawl in Denver (actually two: one on the Wednesday before, and one on the Sunday afternoon). As it happened, only two people showed up on the Wednesday (Jim and me), but we had a great time, and tasted some great beers. Sunday we redid it with a nice group (Jim Minz, Jeremy Lassen, John Picacio, Chris Roberson, Allison Baker, John Picacio, Diana Rowland, Christian Dunn, George Mann, Mark Newton and a few others whom I can't recall right now) to great acclaim.

Montreal supposedly has Belgian type beers, so I think a repeat is in order.

So, the way things look right now, there will be two pubcrawls:

1. Wednesday evening August 5 from 8 PM onwards: where I will be waiting in the bar of the Hotel Delta Centre-Ville for the estimable Mr. Jim Minz to arrive, after which we set off;


2. Monday afternoon August 10 from 1 PM onwards: we gather in Le Fourquet Fourchette restaurant (which is located right in the Palais des Congrés), and from there we will set off;

Since we expect that the group on the Monday will be much larger, the Monday pubcrawl will be less extensive (we'll concentrate on a group of brewpubs which are within crawling distance) than the Wednesday evening one.

Anybody who wishes to join us, feel free to drop me an email at Jetse.deVries@gmail.com .

At Thursday the WordCon takes off, and -- so far -- I have the following items scheduled:--> Thursday August 6:

When: Thu 2:00 PM

Location: P-511A

Session ID: 345

Title: Translation Challenges

Description: What are the artistic and professional challenges faced by translators? How do they tackle translating between languages whosegrammars are incompatible?

Language: English

Track: Literature in English

Moderator: Kari Sperring

Duration: 1:30 hrs:min

All Participants: Jetse de Vries, Kari Sperring, Rani Graff, TomClegg, Fabio Fernandes, Eileen Gunn.

NB: Fábio Fernandes is still listed as a participant, but unfortunately he will not make it. Too bad: I was looking forward to meeting him, as well.

********************

When: Thu 5:00 PM

Location: P-518A

Session ID: 549

Title: Putting the World into Worldcon

Description: Our information about SF outside the English language isoften provided by (mediated by) Anglophone experts who have been tothe foreign land in question and brought back what interests them.Here, instead, we gather experts from SF/fantasy traditions outsideEnglish to tell us what we should look out for.

Language: English

Track: Literature in English

Moderator: Jetse de Vries

Duration: 1:30 hrs:min

All Participants: Aliza Ben Moha, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, Jetse de Vries, Stefan Krzywicki, Tara Oakes, Tore A. Hřie

NB: a handy map for the locations (which is available on the Anticipation website):

Furthermore, on Thursday evening -- as things stand now -- I will be having dinner with a few very good friends: Adam Rakunas and Daryl Gregory and his family in Au Pied de Cochon.

--> Friday August 7:

When: Fri 3:30 PM

Location: P-523A

Session ID: 1008

Title: Anatomy for Writers, Heroes and Tavern Brawlers.

Description: Author, karate instructor, fencer and first aid officerSean McMullen provides a tour of how the human body can and cannot bedamaged. Want to know where a hero can be punched without any effect?Worried about his vascular dilation? Curious about the real-lifeversion of Mr Spock's nerve pinch? Not sure whether a really longsword fight is three hours or seven seconds? Wondering why readers arelaughing because your hero has microsecond reactions? Come along andfind out in complete safety.
Language: English

Track: The Light Programme

Moderator: Sean McMullen

Duration: 1:30 hrs:min
All Participants: Jetse de Vries, Sean McMullen, Darlene Marshall, Kirsten Britain

NOTE: this should be great fun: I will be the wild barbarian who gets his arse kicked by the Master. Or maybe, maybe the unwashed barbarian can pull a quick one...

********************

When: Friday 7.00 PM

Location: Room 2231, Party Level, Hotel Delta Centre-Ville

Session ID: C2H5OH

Title: Angry Robot Launch Party.

Description: Launch party for new HarperCollins imprint Angry Robot. With introduction speech by Neil Gaiman. Drinks, drinks, drinks & snacks arranged by your Moderator who has a reputation (Interzone party, LACon IV; Pyr party, Denvention) to uphold. Wine aficionados will be attended to by connoissuer Adam Rakunas; beer lovers will be helped by The Flying Dutchman; there will even be soft drinks and mineral water for teetotallers. This is the party to be on the Friday night: don't miss it!

Language: English/Français/others/

Track: The Party Floor

Moderators: Jetse de Vries, Adam Rakunas (wine master)

Hosts: Marc Gasoigne & Lee Harris (Publishers/Editors)

Duration: ??:?? hrs:min (depending on when your 'Moderator' decides to call it quits, or when the booze runs out, or when the suite needs to be vacated: whichever comes first...;-)

Special Guests: Neil Gaiman & Mystery Guest, various Angry Robot authors

Note that Neil Gaiman, as Guest of Honour, has a very full schedule, so will make an appearance at 7 PM and give a short speech. If you want to see him, be early!

All Participants: everybody is invited!

Be often, drink early! (Or was it the other way around?)


--> Saturday August 8:

When: Sat 12:30 PM

Location: P-521A

Session ID: 1625

Title: Jetse de Vries--Kaffeeklatsch

Description: A chance to ask those burning questions.

Language: English

Track: Kaffeeklatsch

Moderator: (I'll be there: don't worry)

Duration: 1:00 hrs:min

All Participants: Jetse de Vries & all who wish to show up. Come by & ask anything you want!

********************

When: Sat 3:30 PM

Location: P-516AB

Session ID: 586

Title: How to Pitch Your Novel ... And How Not to

Description: You're an aspiring writer, you've run into an editor oragent in a bar. After buying them a drink, what's the next thing to do? Talk about your just-completed novel? Thrust the printout into their hands? Or ... something else? Some advice from those who know.

Language: English

Track: Literature in English

Moderator: Cathy Petrini

Duration: 1:30 hrs:min

All Participants: Cathy Petrini, Jetse de Vries, Mike Resnick, Sean Wallace, Ginjer Buchanan

--> Sunday August 9:

When: Sun 10:00 AM

Location: P-511CF

Session ID: 87

Title: When the Oil Runs Out

Description: Oil is a limited resource but is the basis of much ofour energy usage. What are we going to do as it becomes more expensiveand eventually runs out? Turn your bicycle into a dynamo to power yourphone or laptop?

Language: English

Track: Science and Space

Moderator: Jetse de Vries

Duration: 1:00 hrs:min

All Participants: Chuck Cady, Jetse de Vries, Paul Kincaid, MichčleLaframboise, Richard Lynch, Paolo Bacigalupi.

********************

When: Sun 12:00 PM

Location: Other

Session ID: 1527

Title: Jetse de Vries Signing

Description: Jetse de Vries Signing ehrm ... something.

Language: English

Track: Autographs

Moderator:

Duration: 12:30 hrs:min (this is what it literally says in the email I received from programming: I'll just assume that it's a typo and it'll take 00.30 hrs:min. Or they've mistaken me for J.K. Rowling...;-)

All Participants: Jetse de Vries

NOTE: from 8.00 PM onwards you have the Hugo Awards Ceremony, followed by the Hugo Losers Party (actually Hugo Nominees Party, but as a four-time loser 'Losers Party' just sounds better) and various other parties.

NB: I understand from Jim Minz that the Baen party will also be on the Sunday night. There will be -- as ever -- no lack of booze.

********************

-->Monday August 10:

The second pubcrawl.

Gasthering time: 1.00 PM

Gathering spot: Le Fourquet Fourchette restaurant (which is located right in the Palais des Congrés).

As Jim has something scheduled at 6.00 PM, we intend to return before that time.

It's also much better to do this before the Dead Dog party, as then you can actually taste the great beers Montréal has to offer. After that it's Dead Dog time, and all will be well...;-)

Then I'll be flying back home on Tuesday August 11:

Flight from Montréal:

• Departure: Tuesday August 11 @ 18.25 hrs. with flight KL 0671;
• Arrival: Wednesday August 12 @ 07.05 hrs (flying time approx. 6.40 hrs.)

No rest for the wicked, as then I need to finalise the Shine ToC, and reminisce about SF plans for the future. Next Con will be World Fantasy in San Jose.

EasterCon: LX 2009

I will be attending EasterCon in Bradford. I hope to see many of you there: both the ones I already know, and new people (happy to meet you!).

I will be on the following programme items:

Friday April 10:

SF music in popular culture : War of the Worlds to Rocky Horror
Fri 19:00 Hawthorn
Persephone Hazard (moderator)
Mike Cobley
Jetse de Vries
Neil Williamson

Sunday April 12:

"Near-future, optimistic SF": "Two impossibilities, or something we can pull off?"
Sun 19:00 Hawthorn
Jetse de Vries (moderator)
Chris Beckett
Jaine Fenn
Charlie Stross
Tony Ballantyne

"Writers, artists and fans discuss their musical inspiration"
Sun 20:00 Sycamore
Persephone Hazard (moderator)
Mike Cobley
Paul McAuley
Jetse de Vries
Alastair Reynolds

E-Books - are they the future? Ebook readers are being sold in high street stores. Has the timefinally come for them to achieve mainstream popularity?
Sun 22:00 Hawthorn
Alex Ingram (moderator)
Mike Scott
Lee Harris
Jetse de Vries

Monday April 13:

Hugo nominations panel: "The nominations for the 2009 Hugo awards have been released - what do we think? What are the surprises, and what are the notable omissions?"
Mon 11:00 Boardroom
Pauline Morgan (moderator)
Mike Scott
Penny Hill
Shana Worthen
Jetse de Vries

So my Sunday evening schedule is quite full, but luckily I will have time enough on Saturday to check out a few book launches (especially the Future Bristol anthology), the BSFA Awards, the Symphony Orchestra, the dealer's room, and other programme items.

There's even a beer tasting Saturday at 21.00!

Hope to see many of you this coming weekend!

World Fantasy in Calgary...

...was brilliant. It was only my second World Fantasy and it has become my favourite convention.

I haven't made any pictures myself, so I will just point to the good people who have done so:

Laura Anne Gilman's pictures;

John Picacio's pictures (and blog post);

Ellen Datlow's pictures;

Lou Anders's pictures (and blog post);

Kathryn Cramer's pictures;

John Klima's pictures;

Marjorie Liu's pictures (and blog post);

Some of the many, many highlights included:

• Unfortunately missed the Hades party at Wednesday evening because my flight arrived late, but the buzz in the Hyatt hotel bar was fine;
  
• A relaxed lunch with David Levine & Kate Yule;
• The Queensland Writers party;
  
• The Johncon/Nightshade party in Jeremy's room, and going to a liquor store with Alan Beatts to get more booze when it ran out (and then needing to be subtly reminded by Alan that when Jeremy strips he might be indicating that the party is over, around 5.30 in the morning);
  
• Doing the "Fantasy 'Zines Around the World Panel" with a monumental hangover but liking it nevertheless;
• Great lunch with Gordon Van Gelder, Sean McMullen and Jenny Blackford afterwards the panel;
• the Borderlands Scotch single malt tasting party (absolutely awesome! Both the whiskies and the party);
  
• Having dinner with Diana Rowland on Halloween: she was dressed up as Sarah Palin and it took me a while -- we don't celebrate Halloween in Holland -- to realise just why she did that;
  
• The first few days I had problems getting my bar bills paid: that is, the moment I went away for a few minutes (to go to the toilet, to talk with yet another fabulous person) and came back to get my check I found that somebody else had already closed the tab for me. I sometimes protested to be told not to worry about it. Then the last few days I made certain that I picked up a number of tabs from people -- often against their protests -- because good karma needs to go around and around;
  
• Dinner with Marc Gascoigne (now Angry-Robot publisher), Sean and Catherine McMullen and Mike Gallagher: probably the best conversation I had in Calgary;
  

It was fantastic to meet so many people I didn't know personally (but was, in many cases, well aware of) like Shawna McCarthy, Daniel Abraham (David! Next time I'll buy Mexican lunch or dinner), Jenny Blackford, Robert Hoge, Justin Ackroyd, Shaun Tan, Nora Jemison, Steven Mills, Lawrence Connolly, Laura Anne Gilman, Jemma EveryHope, Nikki Kimberling, Rob Shearman (who might have been a wee bit shy initially, but looked like a veteran as the con progressed), Colleen Anderson, and several people whose face (and function) I remember, but whose name I forgot: I ask forgiveness.

And the many very good to good friends (and I'm not even trying to pretend this list is complete): Lou Anders, John Picacio, Paul Cornell (thanks for introducing me to Rob), Karen Newton, Bill Willingham (you should be working...;-), Chris Roberson & Allison Baker, Mary Robinette Kowal, Aliette de Bodard, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Doselle Young, Gordon Van Gelder, JJA (this anthology is METAL!), Marjorie Liu (next dessert will be on me), Jeremy Lassen (even if the 'Shade faded for a little while on Saturday evening...;-), Jim Minz & Jay Caselberg (don't mention the 'better' name tags), Ellen Datlow, Eileen Gunn, Jonathan Strahan, Garth Nix, Alan Beatts & Jude Feldman, Amelia Beamer & Liza Groen Trombi, Todd Lockwood, Kay Kenyon, Diana Rowland (creepy Halloween costume alright, and I'm glad I didn't look like her running mate...;-), Marc Gascoigne, Sean McMullen & Catherine McMullen (what not to do in Venice), David Anthony Durham, Steven Erikson, Rani Graf (I am finally remembering your name: so alcohol does not destroy braincells...;-), Christian Dunn & Mark Newton (obviously...;-), Graham Joyce, Daryl Gregory, John Klima & Mark Teppo, Adrienne Loska (good luck with the documentary!), Tony Richards, Farah Mendlesohn, Mark Rich, Leslie Howle, Walter Jon Williams, David Levine & Kate Yule, Ken Scholes & Jay Lake, Heather Lindsley (say hi to Al Golden --ehrm -- Robertson).

My profound apologies beforehand for all the great people I've met but forget to mention here, and all the great moments that I'm either skipping or temporarily (I hope) not remembering.

World Fantasy is the best!

America: Denver and Denvention, Day One

Tuesday August 5, after returning to Europe from the Asian part of Russia, it was time to visit the third continent in the same week: America.

After an uneventful flight from Amsterdam through Detroit -- nice Irish pub on the C-concourse -- to Denver I met TTAPress publicity maverick Roy Gray and our new electronic editions editor -- who had started up the new Transmissions from Beyond podcast the day before -- Pete Bullock. Pete drove Roy and me to our respective accomodations, and since it was close to midnight, which felt like 8 in the morning on my West European Time, I went to bed. Without a beer: but I would make up for that in the days to come.

The next morning -- let's call Wednesday August 6 Denvention Day One -- I went to the Colorado Convention Center to help Pete and Roy set up the dealer's table, but they wouldn't let anyone in without a badge. The registration line, though, had already stretched over 50 metres. Luckily Pete was already in there setting things up, and Roy was almost up ahead in the line, so without feeling much guilt I went to the Sheraton lobby to meet up with the esteemed Jim Minz.

The plan was a pubcrawl as a way to kickstart Denvention, but apart from me and Jim -- whose idea it was -- none of the usual suspects showed up. Fully understandable, with dealer's tables, presentations and art shows to be set up, and we were going to repeat the pubcrawl on Sunday afternoon. Still, it's vitally important to do some scouting ahead, and, selflessly sacrificing ourselves, we put to the task with vigour.

First stop was Stranahan's, the distiller of 'straight rocky mountain whiskey'. Jim and I and a third gentleman whose name escapes me took a tour at eleven AM. I've been on a few tours of Scottish whisky distillers (whisky or whiskey? See (1)), and what I noted here was that they use a custom-made distillery vessel that is somewhere in between a traditional pot still and a commercial distillery column, which brings their whisky somewhere between bourbon and whiskey. They also keep their casks -- American oak, obviously -- at summer temperatures year-round, at a controlled humidity, to speed up the aging process, so they achieve -- or claim to achieve -- the same maturation of a 6-year-old Scotch in two or three years.

The proof of the (pudding) whisk(e)y is in the (eating) drinking. So Jim and I had our first drink of the day at eleven thirty: tasting Stranahan's whiskey I said: "Jim, we can only go downhill from here." Not specifically meaning the whiskey -- which was very nice, but no match for a good Scottish single malt -- but more the fact that all other beverages of the day would have a lower acohol content. We each bought a bottle: the top of my bottle was cracked by Ian McDonald, Lou Anders and me to celebrate the end of the Pyr party on Friday night, the rest I donated to the Baen party -- hosted by the indomitable Mr. Minz -- the Saturday night after. I had already bought a bottle of Camus XO at Schiphol, and could only import one bottle of booze tax free, so the Stranahan's had to go. Which it did.

Next up was the Breckenridge brew pub, which proved to be -- at least to me -- the best one we visited in Denver. A great selection of beers, and some nice food (although we only found the latter one out on the Sunday, because the macaroni & cheese wedges don't count: while quite OK, they reminded me of their Dutch counterparts nasischijf and bamihap).

The Agave Wheat and the SummerBright Ale were fine drinks, but the Vanilla Porter was the big surprise: imagine a near-perfect mix between beer, coffee and chocolate and you some idea of how it tasted. Quite incredible and very, very good.

Then there was another microbrewery, a bit out of the way, whose name I forgot, which was closed on Sunday. Also quite good, although it was beer only there, with just a few snacks.

Then we went to Falling Rock taphouse, and this place rocks! Over 69 beers on tap: both local and international ones (plenty from Belgium, but at prices -- hey: I live 50 kilometres from the Belgium border. We have Belgium beers, cheap, in our supermarkets -- that gave me pause, even at the current exchange rates). We did a lot of tasting there, together with a local beer enthusiast. Grabbed some excellent onion rings and breaded mushrooms -- that's why beer makes you fat: the greasy food that goes so well with it -- as well. We actually played with the idea of having the whole place relocated to straight across the convention center, as to make it the Con bar, but unfortunately we couldn't make it work. However, we did both get a classic "NO CRAP ON TAP" yellow sticker. Love this place!

We liked it so much in Falling Rock that we had to skip a few other candidates on the list, as we had to get back to the Convention Centre to set things up (and get registered first). On our way, though, we did make a quick stop at the Rock Bottom Brewery, which is close to the pedestrian shopping area. Subsequently, it was very busy down there, but there beer list was impressive. I believe it's become something of a national chain, which, for once, I'll recommend.

Then, at the end of the afternoon, I got registered and checked our table in the dealer's room: Roy and Pete had it set up perfectly, and Pete was even setting up two laptops with headphoes and speakers so that people could listen to our first three podcasts (" ). Great dedication to the cause here.

After the dealer's room closed at 6 PM, it was time (again) for some beer: I checked out the bar in the Hyatt -- across the street from the convention -- and it soon became clear that this would become the central bar of the Con.

(1) snarched from here:

The Bard of Banff

Whisky or Whiskey?

A Scotsman who spells

Whisky with a n ‘e’,

should be hand cuffed

and thrown head first in the Dee.

In the USA and Ireland,

it’s spelt with an ‘e’

but in Scotland

it’s real ‘Whisky’.

So if you see Whisky

and it has an ‘e’,

only take it,

if you get it for free!

For the name is not the same

and it never will be,

a dram is only a real dram,

from a bottle of ‘Scotch Whisky’.

Stanley Bruce.

20th April 2004

Ironically, though, according to Wikipedia, Whiskey was re-adopted by the Irish back in the 1870s 'to distinguish their higher quality product' (because 'the reputation of Scottish whisky was very poor '). How the times have changed.

Holiday 2: Denvention

My WorldCon schedule (preliminary and subject to change, obviously):

(NB: updated August 4.)

Tuesday August 5:

• flight to Denver from Amsterdam via Detroit. Scheduled arrival at Denver airport at about 20.15 hrs. Hope to see Roy Gray at the same airport (arriving with a different flight), and also Pete Butler.
• Then to the hotel and fight jetlag the Australian way(1);

Wednesday August 6:

• 08.00 -- 11.00: set up the TTAPress/Interzone dealer's table with Roy and Pete (dealer's room opens at 12.00 hrs: our table is -- as far as I know right now -- 1106. Map here);
• 11.00 -- ??.00: lunch and cultural exploration of Denver (evil minds might name these activities differently);
• ??.00 -- ??.00: maybe return to dealer's table in time before it closes at 18.00 hrs. Then drinks-shower-dinner-party (sequence subject to change);

Thursday August 7:

• 10.00: open up dealer's table;
• 11.30 -- 12.30: Panel (program item 101 in room 501): "How do eBooks change writing - an eBook writing primer". With Darlene Marshall, (m) Dave Howell, Jetse de Vries, Traci Castleberry. I believe Pete Bullock is on that one, as well. (Update: no he isn't. He's on three other panels on ebooks, namely program item 155: "Choosing a ebook format: technological & economical considerations" on Thursday August 7 at 14.30 hrs, coinciding with my 'Aliens' panel, and program item 492: "eBook pitfalls: what are the publishing, sales & production traps?" on Saturday August 9 at 11.30 hrs, and also program item 547: "A Passion for Electronic Publishing" on Saturday at 16.00 hrs; Good!)
  
• 12.30 -- 13.00 (or so): Business lunch;
• 14.30 -- 15.30: Panel (program item 157 in room 503): "Aliens - Writing about what you don't know", for which I am the moderator. With (m) Jetse de Vries, Larry Niven, LE Modesitt;
• 17.30 -- 18.30 Panel (program item 220 in room 503): "Life After Rocket Science". This is a last-minute add, so I'm not listed on the programming yet. With (m) David Summers, Ian Tregillis, Margaret Bonham, Mike Potter.
• 18.30 -- onwards: evening activities as in Wednesday;

Friday August 8:

• 10.00: open up dealer's table;
• 13.30 -- 15.00: meet up with very good friend in preparation for very good event;
• 13.45: Signing? Que? Scrolling through the program is see that program item 339, in Hall D, is a signing with Jetse de Vries, Lawrence M. Schoen, Michael Bellomo, Walter Hunt. To quote Manuel from Fawlty Towers: "I know nuttin'." This wasn't mentioned in any email sent to me, and I most certainly did not volunteer for it, as I really don't have anything -- like a collection or a novel -- to sign. And I don't see hordes of people with the anthologies or magazines in which I've appeared (with a short story) to be signed. Also, my meeting of 13.30 is *very* important (a commitment I made without knowing about this signing item), and I will give it priority. So I won't be there. Strange, nevertheless.
  
• 15.00 -- 17.00: possibly back to dealer's room;
• 17.30: Sidewise Awards (item 427: in the Sheraton, 2nd level, Tower Court D), where Chris Roberson's "Metal Dragon Year"(Interzone #213) is one of the short form nominees,
  
• 17.00 -- 19.00 (or later): more preparatory activities;
• 19.00 -- 20.00: quick dinner, liquid dinner, and a shower (first two optional...;-);
• 20.00 -- 23.00: Pyr party! Don't miss this one, as I can tell you it will be great.
• 23.30 -- 00.30: Panel (program item 411 in the Sheraton, Terrace Level, Capitol Room): "Lovers in the Slipstream", which I should be moderating. Yes, straight after the Pyr party. Like the "Sex and the Singularity" panel at EasterCon, this should be fun. Or a trainwreck. Or both.
• 01.00 -- onwards: party. I believe Baen is holding a party that night, probably in the Presidential Suite;

Saturday August 9:

• 10.00 -- 11.00: Reading (program item 464, at the Hyatt in Agata A). Indeed, at 10 am, after what promises to be a very intense Friday. Could be fun, or a disaster. At my first reading ever at Interaction, I was scheduled at the same time as Terry Pratchett, which amused my brother no end. Still, 6 people showed up, about 5.5 more than I expected. It remains to be seen if I can top that number...
• 12.00 -- 18.00: predominantly dealer's room presence (to make up for the previous days when I'm mostly not there);
• 18.00 -- 20.00 Hugo pre-party;
• 20.00 -- 22.00 (or thereabouts): Hugo Awards Ceremony;
• 22.30 -- ??.00 Hugo losers party;
• ??.00 onwards: more parties;

Sunday August 10:

• 10.00 -- 14.00 dealer's room. Break off after, or maybe even during that;
• 15.00 -- onwards: second cultural and gastronomical exploration of Denver with the usual suspects.
• 18.00 (or thereabouts): Dead Dog party;

Monday August 11: recover.

Tuesday August 12: Fly home.

Wednesday August 13: Arrive home. Fight jetlag the Australian way(1).

(1): Way back in December 2000 I arrived in Fremantle at about 17.00 after a very long flight. Taped to my hotel room door was a message: "We're in this-and-this [name forgotten] pub. Hurry!"

That was from the Australian superintendent and his boss, for whom I was doing the dry-dock job. I took a quick shower, and went to the pub. Where I was greeted with a cold beer, and my remark that I was very tired and jetlagged was met with the following response:

"Mate, just get drunk"

"?" *slight bewilderment*

"I mean it: jetlag can last longer than a week. A hangover only lasts one day. Just get drunk."

I complied.

EasterCon and World Fantasy

I've just booked Contemplation, the 2007 EasterCon in Chester (with special thanks to Roy Gray for helping me out). I've also booked World Fantasy in Saratoga Springs, New York (got a very good deal for the Amsterdam -- Newark flight).

At EasterCon I'll be mostly busy manning the Interzone dealer's table with Roy Gray. I had some big plans with Convoy which fell through when Convoy fell through (and also because of some developments in my private life), so I'm doing Contemplation more low-key (no IZ party like at LACon IV). Still, I'm looking forward to meeting old friends, and a few new ones (like Gareth Lyn Powell, whom I've only communicated with over the internet). Do feel free to come by the IZ table and talk with Roy and me. We are very communicative (even if we might try to sell you some IZ/TTA swag).

World Fantasy in Saratoga Springs will be my first World Fantasy Con. There will be plenty of good friends there, but I'm especially looking forward to meeting a lot of people who I only know online. So far, I'm not doing an IZ dealer's table there -- logistics are a nightmare -- so will mostly network and hang at the bar.

Also, sparked by Edmund Schubert's comment on my previous post, I might sugget a panel topic.

Hope to see some of you there.