Over the hump

Yesterday was just too frenetic to post, so this will likely be a gush of news.

As usual, I barely slept the night before the opening on TechEd. Too many irons in the fire and anticipation over the business press coverage. Over a quick breakfast, I scanned the IHT and FT. No coverage. Yikes.

Claudia and I cabbed to the Rai. My notebook wouldn't boot fast enough for me to get to the NYT site. The story is up and it's good! We're off and running.

Off to the keynote. Hmmm, I can hear the drumming as I enter the massive hall. The drums are cool. There are a half dozen drummers in African atire on stage leading the drumming. It's fun. People are joining in. Ten minutes till 10. I bolt for the press center to grab my new Olympus camera. Gotta capture this for the troops back home. Just in time to grap a couple of quick snaps. The keynote goes well. It's a little more casual than in the states, but the demos are good and the 1.5 hours passes quickly. Grab an extra drum for Hippie.

On to the press conference. Some tough (annoying) questions, but Jonathan does a masterful job. Perfect tone and manner without backing down. This is another win. Coverage rolling in (slowly), but it's looking good, remarkably on message and consistent. Still waiting for more from Europe. The press room is a beehive.

I've gotta say something about the VoIP phones available here. They rock. I've made calls all over the world and they just work. Fast, easy and super good quality. My news project when I get home is to sign up for this service. Another great way to extend the value of your PC.

The press party is at the Maritime Museum (sorry about the language), not far from our hotel. As we walk in, we're told it's the most beautiful building in Amsterdam. It is very nice and very relaxing. Good food and music. Nice wines from Italy and, of course, Heineken. Woosh, suddenly it's 11 p.m. The end of an exhuasting day.

Lynne has been scoping out venues for sightseeing later in the week and collecting gifts to take back. The weather here has been remarkably good all week. More coveraging rolling today -- still looking good.

Tonight's the big game, Holland vs. Portugal. Still scouting out venues for where we'll watch. Claudia, Heather and I will finalize our plans later today. Wearing my orange (oranje) shirt today in support of the Dutch. That's especially for Silvia, who has been very helpful with ideaas on what to do here as well as other don'ts. :)