24 January 2017, evening
Next comes the Conference Dinner. This is being held at the top of a tall building, and we are encouraged to go out onto the roof terrace, in the snow, to look at the pretty lights of Zurich. It is still bone-slicingly cold and pilot-scaringly foggy, so we do not stay out for long. My fellow diners soon establish that my conversation is unmemorable, even if my English is the best on the table. They drink a lot of wine and eventually resort to talking between themselves in other languages. Now and then I throw in some authentically German-sounding verbal padding, so they think I am bilingual. Then I return to my hotel. It still smells of fondue. 25 January 2017 In the morning, after my dry bread and cheese breakfast, I listen to more speakers explaining what they do to bring IP to the uninitiated. One says that in order to make IP more sexy, we should encourage students to engage with patent databases like they do with Facebook® or Instagram®. I presume this means that students should spend half their lives glued to an Espacenet® app and be notified with silly noises every time a new patent application is filed. Personally I cannot see this working quite as well as being notified every time one of your friends gets wasted, or breaks up with their partner, or takes a photograph of a burger they are about to eat. During the morning sessions there are of course Questions from the Floor. As a result of the Questions from the Floor, we are half an hour late for lunch. What did I tell you? Lunch is meaty things and vegetable things, but also there is cheese, for those who were missing it. And then it is time for me to travel home. With the remainder of my Swiss francs, which is about a quarter of Not Much, I buy half a coffee and two biscuit crumbs at the airport. There are seven different chocolate shops in the departure lounge, none of which I can afford to visit, and a bit of a smell of cheese. On the plane I am served a cheese and dry bread sandwich. It is the perfect memento. And at least it is free.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Archives
July 2019
Categories |