For all the hoopla about #SXSW I can say the following:
- I’ve never seen such a dysfunctional transportation system in my life. Cabs not being available for hours on end was really frustrating!
- The weather was somewhat fickle. It didn’t know whether it wanted to be nearing summer or receding to dark, dreary winter.
- On that note, the torrential downpour Saturday night, coupled with the lack of transportation did not, in the least, keep me amused.
- Seeing Twitter and Facebook friends FINALLY IRL was amazing! The connection was the same regardless!
- You consistently ran into familiar faces despite the multitude of parties, locations and meetings.
- Wifi was everywhere but not necessarily accessible. Except for the convention centre, the hotels and even Starbucks didn’t allow for consistent connections.
- Electrical sockets were few and far between. I felt like a homeless person squatting at the Hilton desperate to find any available electricity to juice my devices.
- Food was abundant. See pics below. You could easily gain 10 pounds just by looking at the food.
- Canadians were everywhere! It was great that we “represented”. I’m so proud of Rogers for consistently creating an environment for Canucks to hang out!
- I finally got to meet some amazing people I look up to including Jure Klepic, Jeremiah Owyang and Michael Brito face to face, and have a bit of conversation! That made my day!
- Talking with people who “speak the same language” was pretty awesome.
- Innovation and ideas were everywhere. Disruptive technology was definitely present.
HessieJ.com 