Canada 2008 Trip

I am back from my PostgreSQL PGCON 2008 trip. I was there to attend the developer meet, present my work on HOT and of course listen to many other fantastic speakers. I thought it would be a good idea to note down my experiences with this trip. It's rather long so read whatever interests you.

You can see the photographs here.

Flight

I flew by Lufthansa-Air Canada via Frankfurt-Toronto-Ottawa. This was the first time I flew via Frankfurt. This airport seems much smaller and less sexy that the Heathrow airport. But the transit was quick and fast. I would have liked some free wireless internet (I know I am asking too much). T-mobile operates a wi-fi zone, but its rather expensive. Another thing I found weird is that all the T-phones refused to connect to the India. I tried using both my credit cards, but no luck.

The Toronto and Ottawa airports are OK. Nothing great. Ottawa airport is very quiet. Toronto is a bit busy, but nothing like other international airports I have seen.

I liked the food served by Lufthansa. Air Canada was pathetic. Also the cabin staff of Air Canada was less friendly. The good thing about Air Canada is that they have personal TVs and a good movie library. And they have USB and power sockets on each seat for laptop/mobile chargers.

Canada

Canada is the second largest country in the world by size. The population of Canada is around 33 Million. Compare that against Mumbai which alone has something like 23 Million people living in and its suburbs. I think Canada is a beautiful country, though I am not sure if I would say the same if I visit in winter J I mean, I would enjoy the snow for few days, but then wouldn’t it too boring to see the slow everyday for three months and daylight for just few hours!

I also found Canada a bit more expensive compared to US, at least for food and usual day-to-day stuff. But I was there for just a few days, so may be my perception is wrong. Another thing that confused me is the hotel bills usually have a “gratuity” head. I thought it’s just a fancy name for “tip” and that’s what it is.

Another cool thing I observed while talking to people is that they are really excited about the way India is progressing. I heard lots of comments like “India is doing great!”. It’s nice to hear that from distant foreigners.

Stay at Ottawa

It’s a nice city. Though it’s a capital of Canada, it’s much smaller and quieter than Toronto. I stayed at Holiday Inn which is right in the downtown. It took me something like $26 (plus tips) for a cab from the airport. The hotel has free internet access, though parking is paid. There were few shopping malls, pubs and restaurants near the hotel. There are few museums around as well, but I did not get chance to see any. I managed to find an Indian restaurant too.
Ottawa is quite pedestrian and bicycle friendly. So if you plan to stay for a longer duration, you can rent out a bicycle. You can ride on the drive ways as well as pedestrian ways :-) Though I was a bit worried about the weather, it did not trouble me much. It rained either during the nights or during the day when I was attending the conferences.

Stay at Toronto

Well, I stayed pretty close to the airport. One reason for choosing Four Points By Sheraton was that it offered complimentary airport pickup and drop shuttle. I am not sure if this was the best decision because the airport is quite far from the downtown and there is nothing much to see or do near the hotel. There is a good public transport to take you to the downtown, but you need to ride a bus and then change at couple of subway junctions to reach to the Union Station. But if you have time and energy, that’s not a bad option. I guess the public transport may cost you $2.75 one-way or you can get a $9 day pass. Btw, this hotel also had free internet access.

I would recommend staying in the downtown if you are staying for 3-4 days, so that you can roam around a bit and see the city. I guess hiring a cab from the airport would cost you dear (something like $50).

Niagara Falls

I feel I did the right thing by visiting Niagara Falls. It’s amazing. It’s not the world’s tallest fall, but what makes it so beautiful is the sheer volume and speed with which the water flows down. Of course, the Canadian Falls are much more beautiful than the American Falls. The ride to Maid of the Mist is more than worth the penny. Also keep some time at your hand to walk down to the falls. You would love the close look at the falls.

I took one of the Niagara Tour buses. I think that’s the best way if you are going for a day trip. The guy picked me up from the Hotel which is like 15-16 km from the downtown and dropped me back to the hotel just in time to catch my flight. Also it’s more fun to listen to the tour guide than just visiting the place and coming back. The tour costs $79 (plus taxes + $12 for outside Toronto pickup ~ $91) . It includes the ticket for Maid of the Mist.
But be ready to shell out another $10 for this :-)

There are few sight seeing buses at Niagara. I think the pass for hop-on hop-off bus is something like $10 - $15, which I would say is not expensive. So another option to visit Niagara Falls is to take a train or a CanadaCoach bus to Niagara Falls and then use local buses. I am sure there are bicycle renting agencies too and that could a great option on a bright sunny day.

And here is the wedding of the year! A couple got married on the same boat we were riding to Maid of the Mist – right in the middle of the Fall! That’s amazing, isn’t it!

Mumbai Airport

Welcome back!

I thought they are doing a lot to improve things, but there is a long way to go. In fact, when I left from Mumbai, the departure gates are renovated and they look good. There are power points from laptop and mobile chargers, the rest room are clean too. But the arrival gate is still in very bad shape. Also, I did not at all like the immigration and customs folks. They are just too arrogant and bureaucratic. In fact, I answered some survey questions at the Frankfurt airport (well, I was tired, but the girl taking the survey was beautiful, so had to answer the questions ;-)) . I was very conservative in giving them ratings. So I wonder what would I do for the Mumbai airport ;-)

I’ve written a bit here about the conference itself. I would write some more, So stay tuned.