Time and more

I should write here more often now, but with summer it is hard not to fall for the temptation to go out and enjoy the sun. It looks to be an incredible summer so far! Most of what I do now is generally preparing to move away from Lund and to Heidelberg. That means basically finish off every thing I have to do, send in my final version of the report, create a nice package with all programs that I have used throughout the project, and yeah basically end everything. It will be so good to leave all this behind. Although I have many pleasant memories from Lund, it is going to be nice with a new place, new people and above all new accomplishments and adventures!

Three years ahead the adventure might begin anew, but until then I am going to live life to the fullest and make the most of my time in germany!

Farewell for now

With a warmth in my heart that it is not so long left until I return to Heidelberg, I arrived to Lund last night again. It has been an increadible adventuare for me and I am longing until I eventually now am moving down there. As I've said, people have been so friendly and kind during my visit. I have met so much new people, just from a week's visit, and I am sure to befriend a lot more as soon as I move there.

Right now I need to work on the java course I am doing over the summer to get my last points for the exam, and also collect the comments of my examinators on the report so I can fix them and then send off the report for a print out.

For the sunday I had decided to travel up one of the mountains that surround Heidelberg city, and it was too boring to go up the one where the institute is situated so I chose the northern one called "Heiligenberg". It was still very hot outside, so I made sure to bring a lot of water.

Up at the mountain where several old relics to investigate further. A long time ago a settlement of celts resided apparently in the mountain. Several small towers where lined along the mountain edges, and two monastery ruins. Between those ruins were also a amphitheatre, which wasn't so old apparently as it was constructed in the 30's. It has over the years been used for many different occasions, amongst unders by the nazis around world war II. Crazy what history you can find by just walking up a mountain. But by time I returned to the hotel I had walked for some 4-5 hours and actually (kind of) "climbed a mountain, awesome!

I finish with some pictures from my mountainwalk and also from yesterday.

Some friendly japanese tourists helped me take a photo of myself, this is as I am walking down the mountain and I seem a bit tired in the photo :)

From the stage of the amphitheater and looking towards the audience seats. Room for quite a few butts on those bricks. As I was taking the photo, two guys were running around the amphitheater, and later tried to run up the stairs in a high pace. I got the impression they had been running for a while so they only managed to go half the way, but man am I gonna train to be in enough good shape to at least run up and down stairs a few times :D

The entrance (or well exit for me) as I left the hotel and headed for the train station and began my long journey home :( I felt a bit sad there, one wonderful week was at its end and I just longed to get back again. But august is soon here, and with that my move down to Heidelberg for three wonderful years in service of science!

I was not alone during my stay, and I was given a chair and place to work at during my visit, and I was not alone. From the left we have Dading, Natalia and Gabriel. I learnt a lot about living in Heidelberg and studying at MPIA from them, and I hope to meet them again as I return for more friendly encounters.

My visit here in Heidelberg is drawing closer to the end, and I have started to enjoy my time here so much now that I wish I could stay even longer. But well, I am returning for sure in late august at least so I just have to wait until then.

The days have been filled with much work of course, that was the main reason I got to come here, but also meeting lots of new people and getting a feeling of that german everyday behavior. The code that I will use in the project are now compiling and running, tomorrow monday (which will be my last day here) I willplay around some more with the codes and get familiar with them.

Apart from that I am meeting with Thomas Henning, one of my supervisors. We are hopefully going to talk a little more specifically about the project; its aims contents and so on. I am looking very much forward to it!

Yesterday was kind of my first opportunity to really inspect the city and its surroundings. I had read about a zoo in Heidelberg so I made a visit there yesterday, accompanied by a long walk around the city. The zoo I was disappointed to see was very small, but on the other hand I should have expected it maybe, but the long walk was wonderful. The weather was hot, towards the later part of the day before the sun went down I noticed a board saying 37 degrees. Yikes! So when I returned to the hotel after my 6 hour walk my t-shirt was soaked in my sweat.

After the walk and about an hours rest, I met up with Alexander(previous master student in Lund) and his girlfriend Maria to watch the game of Germany - Uruguay. The game was intense and not as well predicted as I had anticipated, Uruguay really made Germany work for the bronze, but in the end Germany won at least.

To wrap this already wonderful day we walked down to the river and watch the fireworks which I understood is a tradition occuring the first saturday of June, August and 2nd saturday of July in Heidelberg as a way to attract tourists. It was a spectacular show!

Down below you find a few pictures from my walk yesterday, some from along the Neckar river and some from the zoo.

Although it might seem like fresh water, the Neckar river is quite dirty and I doubt I will be swimming in it anytime soon. But the view here taken from one of the bridges is still lovely, views in Lund is nothing in comparison.

Here you see a view from the side of the river, and you can discern maybe how dirty the water is. Still there seems to be plenty of fish in the water and hopefully I can get a chance to do some fishing some time.

The elephants at the Heidelberg zoo recently got a little baby, who you see here throwing some sand over him to cool down.

...while the seals where just lying in the sun working on their tan?
I also found a bunch of kids sitting around this giant boulder of a turtle. It was huge, slow and very hungry apparently as it ate and ate and ate and ate, not taking any interest to the number of people around it.

....we meet again

Yes, I have finished my master. I am done and free to roam the skies, diving into the deep blue seas and eating breakfast without stress. But there is so much that is to happen now, in september I begin my PhD and I have a bunch of stuff to finish up before then.

Yesterday I arrived to Heidelberg for a week long visit here, meeting the people I will work with over these three years and prepare by getting myself familiar with the code I will be using. Today I spent my first day up at the MPIA, yesterday I was having a look at the apartment I will take over as I move down here.

The apartment is small, but larger than my present apartment in Lund, cozy and a good start, especially since I can buy the furniture from the previous owner and don't have to go through all that. I will begin looking for a new better apartment after I have been here a while. It doesn't have to be that much larger, but I really want a balcony!

Anyway, I am happy to have an apartment at least and don't have to worry about that. Today I have met my supervisor and the PhD student that I am taking over for. The day has mostly consisted of going through background for the project, talking to and getting to know some new people and getting settled in the shared office I work in during the visit. Tomorrow begins the details around the code.

And it is of course a very suitable timing to be in germany the last week of WM in football where germany is still going strong! Can they make it past spain tomorrow to the finals? I am certainly going out tomorrow and finding out! For now I will leave you to these pictures, first one of the outside of my hotel, and the second just to show you how proud germany is.