Markus’ Blog

I am in San Jose, for the seventh time overall (since February 2006).

It’s been a really good trip so far. US immigration (at Vancouver Airport) was a breeze. I got to the airport at about 5:45am. By the time I went through immigration it was probably 6:00am. There was no lineup whatsoever, and the immigration officer was actually really nice (yes, it does happen). Only two quick questions as to what I was going to do while in San Jose and where/with whom, and that was it.

Airport security decided to select me as their “random search” target, though. (Looks like they have to report x number of detailed searches per day to their superiors.) That cost about 5 minutes and wasn’t really that bad at all. They did use their portable metal detector on me, padded me down and swabbed my bag with a little cloth that they then put into an analyzer. When they were done, they filled out their report form (“we did our duty and conducted a random inspection”) and I was on my way.

The weather down here is lovely. It’s about 18°C out and sunny. Very few clouds. Looks just like it did in July (which also means everything is still brown and dry) — except that it is actually nice and bearable outside. You don’t immediately long for an air conditioned room once you step outside. It also seems less misty/humid. In the summer, I noticed that in the evening (as soon as the sun set) a fairly low layer of clouds would form and it would stick around till 10am the next day when it would burn off. Not so much now. It’s much clearer. They are predicting rain for tomorrow, though. Showers actually. But big deal. A true Vancouverite won’t be taking offense at that.

Work-wise it’s been good, too. Talked to many people over the last two days, and I think quite some progress was made. So, that’s good. That’s, in fact, exactly how it’s supposed to be. Also, it’s nice meeting the guys in person and just chat and catch up on things — we can’t just talk about work. Meeting your co-workers in person becomes kind of special, if you only get to see them every three to four months. Besides, there’s always a good lunch in there for everybody. This time it was dim sum, which was really yummy. — Maybe that’s the true reason I always get such a warm welcome: they all know that they’ll be well fed.

Let’s hope that tomorrow, the last day here, will be just as good and productive.