Currently facing the infamous problem of the cost of travel and short-term accommodation for conferences. Coming up in early september is the Irish Theoretical Physics Meeting, consisting of two days of very interesting-sounding talks. Obviously there are many factors that make me want to go: it’s my university, I’ve recently become familiar with theoretical physics on an academic level, I know several attendees and have been taught by all of the chairpeople, it would be great for networking, it sounds cool, etc.
None of this want or desire, however, can overcome the financial burden of attending. There’s really no concievable (not true, see edit) way for me to attend this conference: this is the second time I’ve encountered this problem but this time it’s more annoying (who even wants to go a python conference anyway). I looked at airbnb/hotels but the prices are absolutely insane. It is possible for me to travel down both days but honestly I’d rather just stay at home with my family, who I haven’t been able to see much all summer.
It’s also incredibly frustrating because I’ll actually be moving into maynooth like 4 days after the conference when the accomodation opens up. If it occurred during the term I’d have no issues whatsoever. Obviously I understand the impossibility of this; the staff are overworked enough as is during term so they could hardly host a national conference. Not having a direction to point your frustration in is worse than the alternative, I’d at least like to blame somebody.
So I will blame somebody, let’s say today that I’ll blame the glenroyal hotel for asking eight hundred euro for one person for two nights! Generously, the actual workers who would clean my room/make breakfast would be paid in total like two hundred euro for my existence there for two days. So what, it must take half a grand to manage this operation? Gee, that must be a really tough job; telling people to do stuff. Monday to Friday, telling the workers to do the same thing everyday. What would we do without them? Bless their hearts, honestly.
The only hotel manager in my graces right now is Monsieur Gustave H., the rest I can do without.
Besides my frustration at my inability to go (I really should’ve planned this earlier), I hope it goes well. There’s been some really cool stuff going on everywhere in physics recently so it’d be really interesting to hear it all. Got to get back to working on my final report for Tyndall now.
(Edit: Thanks to Darragh, I’ve actually managed to get cheap accom on south campus!! Can’t wait to go!)