A week on Monday sees the official opening reception for Drupalcon Amsterdam, but for some of us the conference experience begins somewhat sooner. On the Saturday beforehand, a dozen brave UK & Irish souls will will be taking part in the Tour de Drupal, assembling from Ireland, London, Cambridge, and even Lille-via-Oxford.
Once we all get to Harwich, we board the night ferry to Hook of Holland. And after we arrive in Hoek, early Sunday morning, we'll be joined by yet more cyclists, from Holland, Switzerland, and possibly elsewhere in Europe. Together we'll form a long peloton of Drupalish good will, and complete the second part of the Tour, arriving in Amsterdam to a hero's welcome: or at any rate, a drink and a sit down.
The conference schedule looks great, but to my mind the separate unconference schedule is also hotting up, with "Birds of a Feather" sessions booking up fast. There are informal talks on Behat behaviour-driven design, Headless Drupal and (though I blow my own trumpet a little here) a chance for freelancers to swap stories from the trenches. Discussions about work and programming rub shoulders (as they always should) with a session for LGBTQI and an event for women in Drupal: under-represented groups in both Drupal and in tech as a whole. Golly, there's even a BoF about knitting: I almost wish I'd kept up my crafting now; but I'm certainly glad I kept up my Drupaling.
... Anyway, with all that in mind, shall we see you at Drupalcon Amsterdam too? If so, then I'll be the one looking a bit happy and a bit tired. Come and say hi.
