... are not many. Had the meeting about the trip to Strasbourg/Luxembourg/Brussels, which was kinda interesting.
It appears I'll know reasonably well only about 2 or 3 of the about 40 people going on this trip, but I suppose that's kind of the point.
It does appear that the programme is going to be pretty heavy - we were given a 'reader' [Leiden term for 'a booklet containing a photocopy of all/most of the materials relevant to the class', for not in the know...] about all the institutions etc, and encouraged to read it. Apparently, this trip is now in its 29th year; pretty impressive, huh?
The programme appears to be :
- a VEERY early start on Sunday 23rd (I mean, 8.30?! I've not been up that early since The Moot!) to get to Strasbourg;
- Monday morning spent at a former concentration camp near Strasbourg itself, sollowed by a visit to the Council of Europe and the ECHR, with a reception at the Dutch Representation in the evening;
- Tuesday is a visit to the Rhine Navigation Commission (apparently, the oldest international organisation in the world...), the European Ombudsman and ARTE TV, the European TV network, and the trip to Luxembourg;
- Wednesday is the visit to the ECJ, with the hearing on the Microsoft case in progress at the same time (this is the ECJ review of the Commission decision to impose a $6bn [??] fine on Microsoft for breaching Competition Law) - hopefully, we'll be able to see that!
- Thursday is spent in Brussels, visiting the Commission and the Parliament [and 'possibly a law firm', it says...];
- Friday is NATO and the Council of the EU, and a trip back to Leiden
All in all, sounds pretty cool, huh? ;)
I also thought I'd share this gem with you. Here's what's printed on the inside cover:
"DISCLAIMER
LEIDEN UNIVERSITY, NOR THE STAFF OF LEIDEN UNIVERSITY OR THE PERSONS ORGANISING THE RIO* TRIP, ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER THAT MIGHT OCCUR DURING THE EXCURSION OR DAMAGE(S) THAT MIGHT BE CAUSED BY ANY OF THE PARTICIPANTS OR THIRD PERSONS. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN BEHAVIOUR AND YOUR OWN BELONGINGS. BE SURE YOU ARE PROPERLY INSURED. JOINING US ON THIS TRIP MEANS YOU HAVE ACCEPTED THIS DISCLAIMER"
* RIO = 'recht van de internationale organisaties' [sp?], Dutch for 'Law of International Organisations'
Aaah, you know you're going on a law trip when...
After that meeting,
katrin514 came over and we had LOTS and LOTS of cake (
shiny_and_new having also brought several back, courtesy of her mother...) - so much so in fact that we didn't eat dinner till quite late. But
eoin_mclove cooked a DELIGHTFUL lasagna, which was also great. Once again he wasn't satisfied that it was as good as the first time he made it, but I liked it even the time that it was a bit too flour-y, so...
That was followed by a trip to Einstein's
, which turned out to be pretty fun - mainly because I found a couple of people who were up for dancing regardless of the fact there weren't that many people on the floor (thanks, Misty and Shelley! ;) ), and that I met some cool Italian people. Which is always good! Also saw Marya for the first time in MONTHS, which was cool - should be going for a coffee/something tomorrow. :)
The downside is I'm still awake at 4 am (aaah the joy of backdating...). Guess which tag is appearing on this entry?
Till the next one,
N x