Month: December 2023

Prague Christmas Market

My co-presenter just sent me the pictures she took in Prague the day before the conference started. We prepared our presentation without meeting each other in person, so we wanted to spend some time getting to know each other. Her husband accompanied her at the conference as well, so the four of us went to dinner and then walked to the Charles Bridge and to the Christmas Market. And yes, she is that much taller than me!

Merry, Merry Chicago at CSO

On Friday, I took Naida to the CSO Christmas concert. We went to that concert last year, and at that time, I was surprised that Naida sat through the whole thing, even though I told her that we could leave during the intermission if she felt it was too much. 

This season, since Anna could not come, and I would have both Nadia and Kira in my house, I asked her whether I should keep the tickets and find a sitter for Kira or return the ticket, and she said – the first one :).

So we went to the concert, and it was amazing! Probably the best concert since the time they stopped doing “stories” for these Christmas concerts. 

We had first-row tickets right in front of the conductor. Thomas Wilkins was the best possible conductor for this concert, and Ashley Brown made it spectacular. Thomas Wilkins immediately noticed Nadia in her Sant hat and addressed her when he talked to the audience. Then he asked her to step forward for a second, and when she did, he snatched the Santa hat from her head but returned it right away. 

The concert was perfect, with a mix of old and new melodies and a sing-along.

Santa arrived unannounced before the last two songs. They are doing Santa really well in the CSO! Nadia remembered each word Santa said last year, and she was pleased that he didn’t repeat himself. After the last song and applauses, Santa reappeared carrying a music stand, asking the maestro to play one more song, “which everybody from the audience wanted to hear” (audience burst into applause). He added that “although there are no words for this song in the program, everybody in the audience knew them.” Indeed, how could we not? I am so thankful to the CSO for keeping this tradition of “one more song, and we all know what song it is!”

(The recording is one of the previous years).

CHRISTMAS IN CHICAGO
Christmas in Chicago is my kind of Christmas
It’s just what Christmas ought to be
Snowflakes fill the frosty air, skaters frolic on the square
And on State Street dazzling windows are a beautiful sight to see
Christmas in Chicago, as hearts fill with wonder
Lights sparkle all along Magnificent Mile
I love Christmas in Chicago, that’s my kind of Christmas
At Christmas all Chicago wears a smile
The City of Big Shoulders wears a robe of winter white
The lion statues wear their wreaths of green
Picasso’s sculpture wears a cheerful multicolored glow
Reflected from the city’s Christmas tree
Christmas in Chicago is music and laughter
And singing carols here at Orchestra Hall
I love Christmas in Chicago, that’s my kind of Christmas
It’s like no other Christmas at all
Christmas in Chicago is my kind of Christmas
It’s just what Christmas ought to be
We’ll make a trip to carol at the zoo in Lincoln Park
We’ll sing for kangaroo and chimpanzee
We’ll warm up with hot chocolate there and then we’ll go downtown
To Marshall Field’s and sit on Santa’s knee
Christmas in Chicago is my kind of Christmas
It’s just what Christmas ought to be
Sleigh bells ring on horsedrawn cabs near Water Tower Place
Church bells peal from steeples ’round the town
Salvation Army Santas add a joyful ring-a-ling
The Loop is filled with happy Christmas sounds
Christmas in Chicago is music and laughter
And singing carols here at Orchestra Hall
I love Christmas in Chicago, that’s my kind of Christmas
It’s like no other Christmas at all
Chicago’s kind of Christmas is a magic kind of Christmas
It’s like no other Christmas at all
–Music and lyrics by Gary Fry, Copyright 1996 Fry-By-Night Music (ASCAP)

Pictures From Prague December 12

In view of today’s tragedy in Prague, I was unsure whether I wanted to keep posting happy pictures of the city, but decided to go ahead.

December 12 was the only day when we had a chance to see the city in daylight. We met my friends who moved to Prague from Moscow and since the weather was perfect, decided to spend all the time we had wondering around.

Old Railway Station building
A Flying Deer 🙂
Continue reading “Pictures From Prague December 12” →

Pictures From Prague: December 11

Prague at Christmas time is amazing, and even though we barely had any time to spare, we went to the old town several times, mostly in the dark, but that was even more stunning!

In the first post with Prague pictures, I show the ones that I took on Monday, December 11, the day we had just arrived. Almost immediately after arrival, we went to dinner with my co-presenter and her husband. After dinner, we walked from Hrad down to the Vltava River and crossed the Charles Bridge. Now, I continue from there – most of the pictures are from the Christmas market.

Continue reading “Pictures From Prague: December 11” →

Catching Up With Christmas

This season, more than ever, all I want is some additional time in my life, and nobody can give me it! There was a marathon of writing cards, packing and shipping, and finding the last missing gifts, and I didn’t go to bed earlier than midnight (and one day, it was 1 AM again!). So many things went wrong this season, that I can only hope it will never happen again.

To answer the question I was already asked: Hettie, why won’t you skip this season or just downsize – I can’t describe the joy of seeing parcels mounting on my dining room table, going into big bags, and then to the Post Office counter! It feels so good that I was not even tired the other night when I stayed awake until 1 AM. I just feel an adrenaline rush, and I am so glad I did it!

Random Facts About Staying In Prague

As I mentioned, I didn’t have time to post about anything because I hardly missed a session at the conference, and I was busy talking to people during the “hallway sessions,” and also, I was participating in the after-hours events every day. This is going to be probably the only non-conference-related post.

In the airport:

  • First time ever, I saw a separate exit line for business class travelers (which was very convenient)
  • The most unusual buffet in the business class lounge (photo below at (*))
  • Extremely unclear marking of the check-in desks (and wrong information sent in the check-in email)
  • First time for a very long time: very unfriendly, almost rude check-in desk personnel
  • A good surprise: duty-free shops open at 5 AM! I didn’t even plan on purchasing anything in the airport due to my super-early departure

In the hotel:

  • It is gigantic! Almost uncomfortably gigantic
  • Gigantic food court for breakfast. What was interesting is that they do not even check your room number and whether that is the first time that day you enter. And I do not think it is even possible to check
  • The fitness center is not inside the hotel but in the mall located in the same building, and thereby, it does not open until 7 AM, which was a problem for me (I didn’t have enough time before the sessions started). The fitness center is also gigantic and always busy! And they offer personal trainers, and I actually saw people training with somebody (I am not sure how useful it is to train with somebody who does not know you, but whatever)
  • These days huge problem for me: no makeup applying mirror in the bathroom, so applying makeup was “the best guess”.

In the city:

  • There is still the same insane number of tourists as I saw during my first visit, even very late at night.
  • There are plenty of public bathrooms (sigh).
  • Very few homeless people, if any.
  • Everything is at least twice cheaper than in Chicago.
  • Sometimes, I would run into a “socialist-style” service

(*)The airport lounge buffet:

Overall: a conference in December is a bad idea!

“Postgres at Scale” Community Panel

“Postgres at Scale” Community Panel

The Conference Is In Progress, And I Don’t Have Time For Anything Else!

At the Speaker’s Dinner- there are way more women in Postgres these days!

Prague At Night

Continue reading “Prague At Night” →

Flying To Prague

The last time I flew business class across the Atlantic was when I worked at Pepsi Americas and had that long business trip to several European countries. Interestingly, it was also American Airlines—lots of very nice food and an option to sleep horizontally for several hours.

O’Hare Terminal 3
O’Hare Terminal 3
BA lounge in Heathrow
The Clarion congress Hotel is integrated with the shopping mall, so I am not sure whether this part is still considered a hotel lobby or not 🙂
The most common business trip story: the only time you see the city if after dusk!