Austrian Workshop

Russ tries an artistic photo of Ben, but ....

I hosted a workshop for two colleagues last week.  One colleague (Ben) arrived from Quebec City on Thursday and we spent a day and a half discussing a project that we are working on to design logistics facilities for the Physical Internet (PI).  We made some nice progress and I was able to re-introduce him to Graz (he attended the same conference that we attended in 2006).  He joined our family for dinner one night and the kids were thrilled to have a new audience member.

My other colleague (Eric) arrived from Paris late Friday night.  So, on Saturday, the three of us drove less than 2 hours to Schladming, Austria, which is just about the geographical center of Austria, right in the Alps (and for skiing enthusiasts, Schladming was the site of this week's World Cup Skiing Event).  The way we run our workshops is to spend part of the day (usually the morning when we are fresh) discussing the book we are writing on the PI and other matters (proposals, strategic planning, coordination of research, etc.).  We then take a break in the afternoon and do something active.  In the past, that was going for a hike (look back for the trip to France in September).  For this workshop, it was going skiing.  After our activity, we eat dinner together and get in an hour or two of writing before bed.  It is really productive and enjoyable, and I appreciate Ben and Eric making the effort to travel here.

From our hotel in Schladming, right on the slopes

As an aside, we skied all three days in varying snow/weather conditions, from sunny days with good snow to rainy days with slush at the bottom and snow and fog at the top.  But for the first time this winter, I seemed to really make some progress on my skiing (Eric and Ben boosted my ego saying that I was now ready for a "black," but I'm not so sure!).  It's too bad that the snow is leaving us now -- I'd like to get out a few more times (and see if they are right!).

I drove them back to the airport on Tuesday for their departing flights and was sad to see them go.  But, as it turns out, we had some good friends from Auburn visiting Monday-Friday, so it was from one set of hosting activities to the next!

Russ