Far from home

I have just arrived in Helsinki and I feel far away from home in more ways than one.

Obviously wife and child are far away in the south of France at the minute, but it's the northern chill stepping off the plane that struck me tonight. I think back to my roots and the days of growing up in Newcastle and heading off to the Quayside and Bigg Market for a pint or three in a short sleeved shirt. What the hell was I thinking? I would hazard a guess and say that it would now be physically impossible for my body to accept such reckless treatment. As I got off that plane all I could think was, "where are my gloves and bobble hat". Macho O'Brien from Newcastle has long since bitten the dust.

I was also struck by something else today. I was pleasantly surprised to see that although I haven't had an internet connection for most of the day, the world did not end. In fact, I was actually pretty efficient and had some very useful conference calls. A couple of calls have even spawned further business trips and hopefully AIMS projects in France (C&HT) and Ireland (Products). More anon.

The only other place I would have wanted to be tonight is in Brussels. It is a city that holds a special place in my heart after having worked there for 18 months. Tonight sees the end of the Accenture contract on which I was worked. There is a big farewell do and I was sad to miss it. Hopefully Laurent, Bert, Francois and Jason will do me proud and have a pint for me.