heading south again

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Hey there Debbie and Ben,

Wow. St Petersburg was simply amazing! Between the historical sites,
the 'white night' of summer and consequently late night excursions,
and the richness and diversity of our international conference crowd,
this has been a banner week. Oh how I love to travel.

I didn't get to see as many sites as I was hoping, the conference took
precedence, but I certainly saw enough to know that I'll be back. Hard
to believe this vibrant, baroque place was ever under Soviet control.
Though I suppose the over the top obulence may have led to a slight
bit of resentment among the poor folks that were exploited to pay for
it all :-)

I spent a bit of time with a colleague from Melb this week. Great fun
to hear that nice Aussie drawl :-) When I get back next week I'll get
a fair bit more it as Roger and his family will be staying with us for
a week of holiday.

Hope your travel plans are coming along. Cheers from the blue skies
above Estonia.

Bruce

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