NESEA 2011 in Perth, Australia (1/2)

Its been a busy few weeks. Last week I had work visitors from St. Andrews, Lancaster and Darmstadt as well as my Inaugural Lecture, all of which was good, but left me exhausted.

Then at 7AM on Saturday I hopped on a plane for Perth, Australia where I chaired the NESEA'11 conference. It was a busy week, but everything ran smoothly, which is a big credit to Kevin Lee, who was the local organizer at Murdoch University. The highlight was definately our cruise on the River Swan from Fremantle to Perth. Some photos follow:

 

Doing the Work Thing

 

The Attendees Walk to the Boat

Sailboats on the River Swan

The Setting Sun

After the conference, I had just one half day free, so I hit the beach and then explored Fremantle. Here are a few photos:

Playing Sharkbait

Conversing with a Stoic Fisherman I met

Perth was lovely, but 6 days just wasn't enough, especially as I spent five of them working 12-hour days. I am already planning my return.

Summer Holiday (3/3) New Orleans

We reached New Orleans around 8PM and checked into the Holiday Inn near Canal Street, where we met Caren's friends Dee and Amanda. There was no rest for the wicked as we quickly changed and headed into town. Dinner was red beans and rice with some nice fruit beer from Abita (one of America's best micro-brews and local to Louisiana), and then we hit Burbon street for some drinks and music:

Left to Right: Amanda, Caren, Dee and Me

Flaming Pianos at 'Howl at the Moon'

After a big night out, we needed to recharge, so Dee took us on a short tram ride to a great little restaurant in mid-town called Katie's Sunsday Brunch. The food was excellent; especially the savory Beignets, and the bottomless mimosas weren't bad either!

Dee, Caren and Amanda on a Street Car

Katie's: an Excellent Spot for Brunch

We spent the rest of Sunday exploring the French quarter and walking along the banks of the Mississippi River:

A Mississippi Steam Boat

Jackson Square: the Heart of the French Quarter

Delicious Food at the French Market

French Quarter Streets (1/2)

French Quarter Streets (2/2)

We also visited the New Orleans museum near Jackson Square, which has an excellent exhibit on Hurricane Katrina. The exhibit does a good job of explaining the science of hurricanes and how and why so many people died when Katrina hit. Unfortunately, even now, many of the problems discussed in the exhibit remain unfixed. Perhaps the most poignant display was a real garage door covered with the paint marking of the rescue workers:

Sad Artifacts from Hurricane Katrina

On our next night out in New Orleans was all Cajun. First we had some pretty good Cajun food and more Abita Beers at Mulate's in the Business District, and then we went to watch some Cajun bands on Burbon Street. The music was great, and as you can see the audience got really involved:

A Full House for Cajun Food at Mulate's

A Good Cajun Band on Bourbon Street

Amanda and Dee Take Over the Washboard

The following day Amanda and Dee had to leave for Kentucky and Ireland, so it was just Caren and me for the next few days, which we mostly spent relaxing and taking in the sights, from cemeteries to historic architecture:

The Cemeteries are a Common Stop on New Orleans Tours

Due to Flooding, Everyone in New Orleans is Entombed not Buried

Historic Tombs, including Homer Plessy

Some Graves are used for Voodoo Rituals

Of course, we also spent a lot of time eating and drinking, including a fancy dinner and nice bottle of Sauvignon Blanc at Emeril's in the Business District. The following day, we had an even better lunch at the historic Mother's restaurant, on the edge of the Business District, and of course, not trip to New Orleans would be complete without a hurricane at Pat O'Brian's, which is a lovely place to escape for a while from the hustle and bustle of the French Quarter:

Canal Street at Sunset on the way to Emeril's

Caren Has Steak with Shepherd's Pie at Emeril's

Pat O'Brian's Courtyard

One Last Hurricane for the Road

New Orleans was, as always, awesome. I can't wait to go back.

Summer Holiday (2/3) Amtrak Crescent

Sorry for the long delay between these posts! Since we arrived in Leuven we have had lots of stuff to arrange (but that will be the subject of a new post).

The second leg of our summer holiday was a 1,400 mile, 30 hour train journey from New York City to New Orleans on the Amtrak Crescent. I think that long distance American trains are very underrated. They may not be fast or punctual, but they are quiet, cheap and you get to see some spectacular scenery.

We boarded the Crescent in New York City at Penn station around 2PM. We had a 'Viewliner Roomette', which is a small two-person cabin containing two seats, table, power outlets, sink and toilet. At night the room converts to a pair of single bunk beds. Because the room is small and the angle tight, its really hard to take a good photo of, so here's Amtrak's stock images:

 Day in the Roomette

 Night in the Roomette

Along with the room facilities, there are also some communal facilities on the Crescent. Each sleeper carriage has a shower, ice machine, coffee machine and a drinks station (which meant that we were able to keep a bottle of wine on ice in our cabin sink) and the train also has a dining car and snack car. If you are travelling in a sleeper-cabin, then your meals are included with your ticket. Passengers are seated together so that you'll share a table with other diners, which I think adds to the experience of a long train journey. By early evening we were sitting in the dining car, for dinner and watching the Washington sights pass by while chatting with some fellow passengers:

 Browsing the Menu in our Room

The Dining Car

Darkness fell as we rolled south through Virginia and one of the conductors made up our bunk beds. Despite the sounding of train horn, we fell asleep pretty quickly and woke up shortly after sunrise an hour north of Atlanta and one hour behind schedule.

Keeping People Waiting

After a cooked breakfast and a few strong coffees we returned to our room, where we read, worked and watched the scenery pass by. The further south we went, the more beautiful the countryside became.

Forests

Lakes

As we passed the Louisiana state line, it was growing late in the evening and the sun was setting as we reached lake Ponchatrain which offered the most spectacular views of the trip:

Sunset near the Louisiana State Line

Lake Ponchatrain (1/3)

Lake Ponchatrain (2/3)

Lake Ponchatrain (3/3)

I don't think that the photos could ever do the experience of crossing lake Ponchatrain at sunset justice; because its not just the view that is really cool, its the feeling. As you travel across the low causeway over the lake, you can't see any land, so it looks just like the train is flying across the surface of the sea, which is weird but very cool. Finally around 9PM and roughly an hour behind schedule we arrived at New Orleans Union station, ready for our first night out in the Big Easy.

Summer Holiday (1/3) Larchmont and NYC

Our holiday started in New York State, where we visited with Caren's cousin Julie and her husband Tucker for a few of nights. Unfortunately, our fight was late and we took the wrong train from Grand Central, so we arrived very late. The next day, we spent with Julie and little Lucy at the beach and then had a fantastic dinner with the whole family. Here are some pics:

Julie and Lucy

Freddy the Dog Enjoy's Baby Lucy's Play Matt

Swimming in the Long Island Sound

We spent one day in New York City shopping and walking. As we have both visited many times before, we didn't take many photos. Here are a couple of shots from Katz's Deli, a famous delicatessen in the East Village:

 A Packed Lunch-Time at Katz's Deli

Caren Enjoys Pastrami on Rye beneath a Photo of 

Anthony Bourdaine

Goodbye China

I write this from my new flat in the Groot Begijnhof, Leuven where I will be staying for the next month until we find more perminant accommodation. Tomorrow, I start my new job as an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at K.U. Leuven. It will be a big change of course, but I'm looking forward to it.

Here are some things I will miss from China: my friends, Family Mart veggie buns, speaking bad Chinese, great cheap restaurants, tofu, my students, 1000 year eggs, glorious autumns, cheap rent and my electric scooter (the hogcycle). The only thing that I won't miss about China is the blocking of Internet sites.

Our stuff is travelling to Belgium via the slow boat, here's a shot of it all packed up:

Our Posessions Ready for Shipping to Belgium

I hope that I will be able to return to China soon. Perhaps for IPSN 2012 in Beijing... I will have to start working on that paper.

Hiking Qionglong Mountain

Our time in China is drawing to a close. From September 1st I will join the Computer Science department of Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium as an  Assistant Professor.  In our last weeks, we have been trying to see a little more of Suzhou, and last week we went hiking on Qionglong Mountain near lake Tai where Sun Tzu is reputed to have written the art of war.

Most of Suzhou is flat as a pancake and densely populated, so it was nice to get away from the crowds for a while and see some nature. Qionglong Mountain has two small connected peaks that are covered in dense vegetation and  bamboo forest. The trails are paved and well maintained and there are several Buddhist temples. It was 32 degrees, sunny and very humid, so the hike was hard going, especially considering I was carrying our lunch and water in my back pack.

Steps, Steps and More Steps

Hiking in China is quite different than hiking in Europe. Trails are paved and hills are terraced with steps. On the one hand this doesn't feel as natural, but on the other, it does make the hiking easier. Qionglong Mountain might have the largest forest in the Suzhou area, and certainly has some of the most spectacular natural views.

Bamboo Forest

Lush, Unspoiled Hillsides

The mountain trails are dotted with a number of temples, some of which are old, some of which have clearly been rebuilt. Below are a couple of my favorites.

Hillside Temple

Reclining Buddha Temple

The Giant Buddha

After a long hike and a delicious lunch on top of the mountain, we started to head home. Unfortunately, we got completely lost and spent another hour walking along service roads through little villages back to the base.

Lost in Jiangsu Province!

It was a long, hot day, but I had a great time and it was great to see some of the countryside around Suzhou.