Compaq organized a trip to their plants in Erskin and Stirling, Scotland, and my employer allowed me to join the trip.  It was an expensive one, but luckily not for me.  Well, our hotel was The Gleneagles, that should indicate something..  And in between we had great food, took a helicopter to be transported over Loch Lomond (made famous by Tintin) to a whisky-distillery (Glengoyne), and had our own performers.  Still, it was a very well filled agenda, and I was more tired after than before.  But I enjoyed it!

By the way, have you seen the bagpiper?  Poor guy.  At Compaq's plant he was welcoming us with some music.  He had received instructions to play a tune every time he saw us, and so he was patiently waiting outside the front entrance.  Compaq's building is non-smoking, and during a break one of the group went out for a smoke.  And was greeted by a tune.  Then another one went out.  And was greeted.  Word got around, and in stead of going in a group, one after the other went out, all played at by a private musician.  Well, this wasn't really how the man had pictured his morning, and he was slowly changing from a healthy pink to slightly red after a while.  And by the time the whole group came out to go on with the tour, only the non-smokers didn't understand immediately why the poor man was close to purple...