Report on GDCSE'08, Miami, Celebrity Century Cruise Ship (166 images)
Date: 26th February to 3rd March, 2008
Author: A. Augusto de Sousa
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Excellent conference: for the work (mainly, I should say...), but also for the friendship and good moments. The seven in the "Portuguese gang" helped a lot...
After arrival, in Miami (26th Febr)
After a fast dinner in a marina bar, back to the hotel, a portuguese sentence painted on a
stone in the street... (but who is actually Marcelino)? "Boss J.F." finally arrived to the hotel: three hours waiting for two or three police questions!
Everglades Safari Park (27th Febr)
Track, in Google Earth format, is
available.
Start, in the morning, with... crocodiles, stories with pitons... all tempered with a "very happy" boat driver...
Boat tour around famous people houses
So many millions of dollars...
Ocean Drive by night
...and so many millions... of colors!
Century Boat (28th Febr)
Great boat, this "Century"... big as a city! It's time for work, with the first conference
presentations. Later on, the information about emergency situations and, by 16:00, the vase starts moving.
More work and the day is finished... with an excellent dinner in group: the portuguese gang table is "reserved".
Key West (29th Febr)
Arrival early in the morning to Key West...
...and the visit to the small town is after 12:00.
Track, in Google Earth format, is available. It is a little "noisy" but... for a drink, we got only coconut juice!
Back to the boat, the conference continues, but there is some time for some new pictures. This night, the dinner is formal, and the portuguese gang table gets invited people.
Cozumel (1st March)
With some delay, the boat finally arrives to the Mexican island of Cozumel and, curiously (or not), stays
side by side with another boat. I'll go for a snorkel session (next time I'll get an under-water camera with me), with my luso-dutch friend R.B.; a great experience, starting with the guide
accent... "au(ll) rrright guys?"
Track of the catamaran trip, in Google Earth format, is available.
Lunch in "La Mission", a mexican restaurant, "no, no es picante, siñor", some shopping, a walk around the town until the night falling. Again in the ship, a special dinner with the
presentation of the restaurant staff to the public would make the rest of the day.
Returning to Miami (2nd March)
Track, in Google Earth format, is
available.
This is the last (and busy) day in the cruise. Spent mainly in the auditorium and other working rooms, it finished with the conference closing session, in the dancing bar; thanks and
applauses to the organizer K.F., and still some time to make one or two pictures of the "newest, just-created" Ibero-American group.
For the last dinner onboard, the presence in the portuguese gang table was enriched by the swiss M.G. and by the "big boss C.P.". By the way, where is the Microsoft card with everybody
signatures?
Back into Miami (3rd March)
Track, in Google Earth format, is
available.
Out of the ship, laggage in the airport, and a quick visit to the famous Miami Beach. A small tour over the streets around, surprise "duck bus or boat?", a pizza meal, and a taxi made
the rest of this American visit.
Conclusion
Nice work, nice conference, good conclusions; lots of new things and ideas to test and evaluate in the next months. At the same time, a pleasant way to be in a conference.
One year missing for the next GDCSE? Hum... so much?