Having never traveled outside of the US there have been many new experiences in just one day. Being in the generation where we are addicted to our cell phones/computers it is strange being in a place where the Internet is not at my finger tips. It isn't too hard to disconnect and concentrate on the amazing science going on in Europe and this once in a lifetime trip the ACS has so generously organized for us. Except you don't realize how easy it is to find your away around when your iPhone shows you a little blue dot and a blue road to follow! So the lesson we learned today is don't forget your basic map skills! Trying to remember if you are heading North or towards the river or which way you were headed on the metro takes some energy and makes you think! Which I suppose is an important lesson to learn. That while technology has taken us as a society to places we never thought were possible, there is nothing that can replace the human mind and it's ability to think, be creative, and problem solve. I anticipate that those characteristics will be echoed all throughout the EuCheMS Congress. With Nobel Prize winners, fantastic universities represented by both students and faculty, and industrial representatives all in one place collaborations will be formed, friendships forged, and ideas exchanged.
