Monday 6 July 2015

Bonkers is off again!

Wuppertal's Schwebebahn
It is four years since I last went abroad for work - I met Birgit of OT in her native Austria during two such trips in 2011, in two different parts of the country, no less! Since then, however, I had rather resigned myself to the fact that my business travelling days were probably behind me, seen off by that villainous duo of Skype and online surveys. But it seems I spoke too soon, as July finds me embarked on four weeks of lunatic Euro-hoppery, five if you include two (long, hot!) day trips to Suffolk and Berkshire last week.

In fact, the whole of the past fortnight has been an exhausting blur of appointment making and travel arrangements - so far including plane, train, tram, and that most challenging transport mode of all - bus. I am accompanied on this trip by the ever portable and pliable Max Rat, and am checking into Facebook when I can for a bit of much needed social interaction while on the road. Sadly, though, the proper blog posts I am planning will have to be deferred till later in the month, and I fear I shan't be able to keep up with my favourite blogs, either in terms of reading and commenting - or not as systematically as I like to do.

But I will be back - with perfume reviews and the usual Bonkers travelogue(s)! Yes, I am keeping a notebook to hand, and have already started jotting down things that strike me...







18 comments:

Olfactoria's Travels said...

Yay! Happy Travels! Hopefully it cools off somewhat over here for you and Max.
Hugs.

Anonymous said...

Hope all goes well (and is profitable too). Look forward to your travelogues.

-- Lindaloo

Undina said...

Travel safely! (and take good care of the Max Rat)

Tara said...

I think we will be reeping the rewards of this trip with your travelogue posts to come, V.

All the best for negotiating local transport. You are an intrepid woman.

For some reason whenever you write Euro hop I want to change it to Euro bop. I guess I like to think of you Euro bopping around Europe :)

Carol said...

Have a great trip, V!!

Anonymous said...

Hi Vanessa,
This sounds exciting, have a wonderful and safe trip!
I was on a sort of business trip in Bavaria last week and bumped into Alain from Galeries Lafayette who is now working at the Oberpollinger in Munich. Of course we talked about you (and slobbered all over you) and he sends you his regards.
Greetings from Anka

Vanessa said...

Hi Birgit,

I gather the temperatures are falling right back from tomorrow, The sun went in at lunchtime and storms are possibly also on the way. Max would certainly welcome some cooler weather on account of his fur, selective accents though that may be. ;) x

Vanessa said...

Hi Lindaloo,

Thank you! It's *some* money, though probably not profitable in terms of the time spent. Best not to count the days really! It was ever thus in my field though. I am mostly seeing the job as CPD, with not having been abroad for work for so long. A chance to get back in the saddle, if you will, with a few nice German beers along the way. :)

Vanessa said...

Thanks, Undina, Max is enjoying himself so far. ;)

Vanessa said...

Hi Tara,

Thanks for your kind comment about my trips providing a seam of travel fodder. If you can have a seam of fodder, I mean.

I had a very satisfactory bus ride today in fact, that didn't even cost me anything - got a free transport pass from the hotel - and which deposited me right by where my meeting was!

Not sure I am going to be doing any bopping as such, hehe, though I watched a very sweet baby being endlessly bounced on her mum's knee in the train today. She seemed to love it, mind. ;)

Vanessa said...

Thanks, Carol, much appreciated!

Vanessa said...

Hi Anka,

Lovely to hear from you and thanks a lot! Sadly I am nowhere near Berlin this month - Wuppertal was the most northerly point today.

What an amazing coincidence about bumping into Alain, and I am chuffed that he would have remembered me, let along (by inference) said nice things! I am very touched and have fond memories both of our meeting in April and of that visit to the store. That also preceded a gig indeed - not at Monarch, but at West Germany next door if my memory serves me.

Business in Bavaria sounds pleasant - though a trifle hot if it was last week? I am in Ulm later in the month, though just for the day.

Anonymous said...

Yes, it was way too hot!
If I remember correctly Alain said something like "tell her greetings from the boy from Havanna - she'll know". I hope that makes sense or means anything to you???

Vanessa said...

I heard stories about the heatwave! And yes, Alain's remark most certainly makes sense to me. ;)

Blacknall Allen said...

Glad to hear that the business part of life has picked up, and have a safe series of trips.
Sorry about the heat wave, we will shortly be feeling your pain here on the eastern seaboard, so you have my sympathy. Yours in perspiration...

Ingeborg said...

Safe journey, Vanessa. Hope it does not get too hot, given you have to work.

Looking forward to posts later on about any events along the way.

Sorry about my broken English, I am now totally hooked on Duolingo to strengthen my rusty skills in French and even worse comtetence in German. It is fun to see I could get quicly to level 7 and 6 respectively. But the hard work starts now, really. Little by little perhaps I get your jokes based on German words!

Vanessa said...

Hi Blacknall,

Belated thanks for the good wishes. Business seems to be picking up, even if this job is not a moneyspinner as such.

I have just resigned myself to the crazy heat - there is no alternative but to accept that limp and sticky is simply going to be one's permanent state.

Hope you're not too hot where you are!

Vanessa said...

Hi Ingeborg,

See my comment above to Blacknall - it was 36C in France last week and 32C in Switzerland and Germany this week, so work and travel has all been a challenge. I am on my third change of clothes today, for example!

Good luck with your French and German studies, and be assured that your English is far from broken! I must say that it has been a baptism of fire working in those languages on this project after such a long interval.