vacuum packed

Flying around this week, with some early starts and late nights.

Along the way a languid evening meeting in a castle and a successful negotiation of the Brussels bus system. Then staying in a posh hotel that transformed itself overnight into a conference centre exhibiting bright orange tractor-sized cleaning systems for public spaces.

The hotel was very clean.

And the memorable and entirely genuine question from an over-travelled American colleague, who asked me which country we were in.

I had a chance to say, "It's Thursday, so it must be Belgium".

duck or grouse

Back to the UK and a chance to replenish my toiletries bag with a new duck. I'm not sure what happened to the last one, but it had raised the occasional smile whenever my luggage was searched until its tragic loss somewhere in Canada a year ago.

Perhaps it thought it was a goose?

Actually, there has been something of an overload of shampoos and toiletries at this hotel, with 7 bottles containing different substances, plus a complete separate set of massage oils and soaps on some sort of mixing slate,

And don't get me started on the other soaps in tins or the array of sponges and special salts in the bath rack.

one for analysis

My work phone/blackberry accompanies me most of the time when I'm away from home, although I have a separate iPhone for 'social use'.

Of course with my two day escape for a short vacation, the work phone has been buzzing like a swarm of wasps. The problem with onesy-twosy holidays is that no-one else really cottons on that you're away and so all the work just stacks for return. I mainly resisted the temptation to answer the calls although the BLOCK CAPITAL SMS messages seemed to grab my attention.

In addition to the two phones, like many, I also attempt to keep some separation and filtering with the blog.

I've written ages ago about my own little rules when blogging about what can and can't make it into 'publication'. I'm also sure that anyone who reads a blog for a while could start to piece together aspects of a blogger's life and interest, which I'm sure is acceptable and in many cases encouraged.

Its like a Venn diagram of Work, Social and Self and a set of decisions about how much to disclose. It shouldn't really be a worry, because it assumes that any passing readership really has the time or inclination to join the dots - which mainly they don't.

So back to the phones...Next week, we are all being issued with new gadgets at work because the phone contract provider is changing and the old ones won't work. I had a choice of a replacement Blackberry or iPhone. My current 'personal' phone is already an iPhone, so I could theoretically simplify my life with a single device for both business and social.

But I've resisted.

I'm keeping the work phone separate.

I justify the easier typing of emails on a blackberry keyboard, but at the same time I know it is easier to keep a gap between business - world and rashbre central.

strozzi palace

Another interesting apartment for Thursday and Friday, as we travelled to Cheltenham prior to Jo and Andrew's wedding at the weekend.

Stupendous weather to help us enjoy the cafe society of central Cheltenham. Some last minute shopping before the weekend and a move to yet another hotel which was the base for the occasion.

In the meantime I was able to drift off towards Montpelier although the run of events has successfully prevented me from any other blog posts.

i am welcomed back with tube, bus and road closures

Saturday's early morning cocktails supported overwhelming logic to stay at the Sanderson rather than crosstowning with limited direction finding faculties. The room was all a bit Philipe Starck, white box, stainless steel, electric voile curtains, deliberately offset bed and strange workout devices augmented with a ceiling landscape picture.

By proper morning the inadvertent jaunt to Berners Street seemed entirely logical, as did the very late breakfast considerately served until 11:30.

Then outside into everchanging London streets. Nearby Oxford Circus tube's big gates were pulled shut. Oxford Street had its usual roadworks. The easy 137 bus route to Sloane Square was cancelled because "A Night at The Museum 2" was sponsoring a pedestrian only day for the entire length of the shopping area.

Our simple resourcefulness found another route, but I feel sorry for the confused tourists arguing with the shouty man in the yellow jacket at the myriad non functioning bus stops.

I smiled to myself about this place called London.

hotel lobby

time to leave this foreign city

03:44 am. I just woke up. The windows are open. Its already getting light. Across to the left there's a slash in the sky where early red sunlight is cutting over the horizon. White and orange bursts against a receding night.

I hear a gull's scree, from the nearby waterside.

Dim light several floors below me bathe communal areas in safety. From the other side of the building there's shouts from revellers, whose voices I have become accustomed to in this foreign town.

In the full morning I will pack. Leave this place. Next time I will be here as a visitor.