Amsterdam and other things

Well it seems like a long time ago now but it's only been a couple of weeks since I was away in Amsterdam. I was away for five days with my parents and it was certainly a busy holiday! There was a lot of walking, museums including the Rijksmuseum as well as the Anne Frank House, markets, the city center itself, a canal tour as well as the Amsterdam zoo. We stayed in the Urban Lodge Hotel which I would highly recommend, it was outside the city itself but 5 minutes walk away from the Sloterdijk public transport station. You buy a public transport ticket which allows you to travel on trains, trams, buses and ferries. It was only a short trip to Amsterdam central. The public transport was great apart from the lack of air conditioning. It was particularly warm and sunny when we were there and apparently it wasn't normal for Amsterdam. We got caught out on the first day which turned from cool and very overcast to very warm and blazing sunshine that kept coming and going and we got a bit sunburnt. Amsterdam is a lovely city though the center especially with all the weed shops can be a bit tacky. As for food we certainly didn't go hungry and the food was generally very nice. It was a bit strange being away so early in the summer but it was great to get away and get a change of scene.

As much as I like the idea of another holiday later on in the summer I am coming to the end of my PhD with my funding running out at the end of September so I need to focus on that. I got confirmation today that I don't need to do any more lab work which was both a relief but also a bit anticlimactic! I hope to get the third paper of my PhD submitted for publication soon and will start to write up the next one once I've completed sorting out the data and analysis on the species I'm working on at the minute. Once that paper is written up it will be a case of sorting out the rest of my thesis. I am fortunate that I've been able to write and publish as I've gone along so my thesis will consist mainly of my papers along with an introduction/background chapter and a review/big discussion chapter. I do not envy those who have to do all their write-up at the end of their PhD. As for what comes after my thesis well I will have to do what is called a viva which is essentially an interview where you defend your thesis and go through it bit by bit with internal and external examiners. So all that to look forward to!