Blog

Hey Arjan, very long time indeed!

I suppose you are the Arjan from Svalbard? (I have a colleague within Grontmij whose name is also Arjan).

I do go to NL every now and then - next time is May 8-10 for a wedding - one of Ylian's best friends is due for the big day.

I'm a bit uncertain at the moment exactly whereabouts in NL it will be - down south, I think.

What are you doing in the UK? Were you in New York before that?

Hello Jonas! Where are you these days? Any more visits to The Netherlands? I'll be around in the region. I moved back to Europe and live in Brighton, UK now. I'm just around the corner! Drop by for a drink some day?

Cheers!

Arjan

Ian - thanks a bundle for writing in my blog! These days I find myself working with web-applications each day at work - and surprisingly I don't find it that exciting to do so in my spare time anymore. Odd, isn't it?

After the first couple of months' drowsyness in my new job and country, I found myself in desperate need of wheels! But what to do - due to taxes, cars are insanely expensive in Denmark; they cost about 3.5 times as much as they would do directly off the factory - i.e. a basic VW Polo 1.2 with 3 doors and 60HP is 21 thousand Euros ..!

This makes the most expensive part of having a car the devaluation - for a small car like that the devaluation alone amounts to about 250-300 Euros pr month at the least!

After months of research in the science of car-ownership, I decided on a Suzuki Swift 1.3 diesel with aircon at app 22700 Euros - arrgh!

I wont get it until Tuesday April 22 - I can't wait! Looks cool, though - doesn't it?

Hello Jonas! How are you doing! I just stumbled across your website on google and thought i'd drop by. Glad tosee everything is going well over here! I've given my site an overhaul - www.astroengine.com has turned into a space physics blog and www.eeron.com is now my personal site. I'll look forward to seeing you about! All the best, Ian

It's been ages – though that doesn't indicate that nothing significant has happened. On the contrary!

In November Ylian came to stay with me in Longyearbyen for over a month – both of us were very busy; she finishing her PhD thesis, me finishing my job. In the Arctic darkness we didn't do much but work, work, work – and a bit of sleep and food.

On top of that I had to sell my snowmobile and plan how to move my belongings to Denmark – and get rid of some of them (unfortunately, SAS got rid of my brand new bicycle for me during the flight to DK). So I feel that I have a pretty good excuse for not writing in my blog for ages ...

On Dec 20 I left for Denmark – unfortunately all flights got grounded in Oslo that night, hence the trip was not very pleasant. But I got to celebrate Christmas Eve twice! First in Denmark on Dec 24, next day in NL on the 25th. Yay – good deal!

After New Years Eve in Helsingør with Svalbard-buddies, I started in my new job on Jan 2. Very overwhelming at first – but seems great so far.

Well, I'm off to work – I promise to write more frequently in the future (new year's resolution ..?).

Congratulations on your new job jonas. i must be strange to leave the wilderness and all the outdoor freaks and staying in flat copenhagen with the snowless winters. but i guess you can always make a trip nortwards... are you getting old since you can't go on a trip swith svalbardtove? enjoy your time in lyr until christmas cheers

So, it's official now: I will be starting a new job near Copenhagen from January next year. I quit my avalanche job at UNIS, i.e. I will continue here until Xmas, then start as a GIS consultant in “Grontmij | Carl Bro” on Jan 2.

What's a GIS consultant? GIS means “Geographical Information Systems”. Basically, I will be an IT consultant with GIS as expertise. My job will be somewhere in the zone between hard core developer and supporter; communicate with customers, implement systems for them, understand their needs and develop new features on the basis of those needs.

With a background as a geographer, I have a thorough understanding of the end user, of spatial data and environmental as well as human spatial issues. Combined with a passion for web design and software development, this is where I expect to find the right professional place for me.

It was a very hard decision to make – to leave this very unique place, Svalbard – and to leave a very interesting job indeed. Perhaps the dream job, some would say?

The following issues played a roll in my decision:
- I want to create a life together with my beloved Ylian :o)
- My physical condition wont allow me to do hard outdoor acitivities anymore.
- I want to move on professionally. GIS is what I always wanted to work with. A university is a good place to be if you want to be a scientist. I don't.

Let's see where it all leads ...

It's been a while – and to be fair I must emphasize that I have not been a “grass widower” in Rotterdam ever since Sept 16. That was only two days while Ylian was away on a weekend with her friends. She has been an excellent host providing me with good food and lots of activities! I was very curious as to whether The Netherlands had any nature – after all, the country is the size of Denmark but with three times as many inhabitants. It does in fact have quite some very pretty, green (and blue) places ..!

I just spent four weeks working remotely – mostly from Rotterdam and a few days in Denmark as well. It has been great to spend some working time in the comfort of civilisation again – otherwise it has mostly been recreation time the latter years. Don't get me wrong; Longyearbyen is very civilized and I can strongly recommend checking this exotic place out! We do not have fresh mussels, crispy veggies and green trees – we do have glaciers, mountains, polar bears and a village of 2000 outdoor enthusiasts.

We've had a dump of snow while I've been away – and the motor freaks are already riding their snowmobiles around town. They can't get very far; it's still too rocky out there.

Tove, thanks for inviting me on a ski expedition. 5 years ago I would've yelled “yes!”. Now I must admit that my physical condition wont allow it.

Ylian, I can hear your espresso machine yelling at me even from up here; 2963 km away!

Hei Jonas! Jeg savner Svalbard noe forferdelig til tider, og har nå funnet ut at jeg skal reise på en lengre skitur i påska. Har du tid og lyst må du gjerne henge deg med. Blir topptur til Newton og blir nok borte i ca 1 uke... Skal også ha ei helg med festing i byen, så dersom du fortsatt bor nordpå i mars neste år så får vi treffes!!!

Ha ei strålende helg!

Tove =)

My coffee machine is softly crying "coffee!! coooofffffeeee!", but there's no one there and the rooms are so empty that the echo carries on for hours and hours till it fades away in utter despair....