August 13th 2019. After a long flight departing from Houston, I arrived in Aberdeen, Scotland. From here, an adventurous bike trip would take me to this year’s ECVP in Leuven, my hometown. A good friend and fellow-cyclist, Johan, joined me along the way.
The weather in northeast Scotland was exactly as I anticipated: windy and rainy, which gave Aberdeen a mysterious atmosphere. After an energizing run on the beach, I visited the lab of Dr. Rama Chakravarthi at the University of Aberdeen. He gave me the opportunity to present our work to his lab members, showed me around the truly amazing historical campus, and took me for an excellent vegan lunch. After convincing me to turn to Bayesian statistics, it was time to head for Edinburgh along the Scottish coast.
After two days in the saddle, we reached Edinburgh, a vibrant city with an interesting mixture of old and new. I truly loved the place. Here, I met Prof. Dr. Richard Shillcock, who is an expert in the domain of reading at the University of Edinburgh. We discussed ongoing projects over tasty Indian food, followed by a tour of the recently constructed university building. Surprisingly, Johan, who is an architect, worked together with the man who designed the staircases there. Indicative for his broad range of research interests, professor Shillcock also showed a model of how bats find their offspring in caves populated by thousands of their peers.
From Edinburgh we cycled to Berwick-upon-Tweed, where we had dinner in a very kitschy Italian decor. A glass floor that would automatically lift and give access to the wine cellar made the picture complete. In York, our next stop, our legs had a very welcome rest in a beautiful vintage movie theatre, where the latest Tarantino movie was playing. From York it went to London, where I was welcomed by Dr. John Greenwood at University College London. After talking about his latest crowding projects and introducing me to his lab members, I presented our own work. A swollen lip, gifted by a bee I crossed paths with the day before, made this an extra-memorable occasion. The day ended in good company with a refreshing beer, and tapas in a local restaurant.
In order to make it in time for ECVP in Leuven, we needed to hurry to catch the ferry from Dover to Calais. On the deck, I felt gratitude for the travelling, towards the people I met along the way, and towards those who made it all possible. Tom Troscianko and the award that carries his name enabled me to experience an unforgettable mixture of adventure and science. That is a huge gift, which I was lucky enough to receive. Thank you so much. Arriving at ECVP felt amazing.
- Koen Rummens