Morning at 08:00 - the graveyard shift - starts with an eduVPN session, which 2 minutes before start looks a bit empty.

The projector is not connected. This is really monday morning.

A situation like that is solved so much better, the more people you throw at the problem.

Tangui Coulouarn from DeiC is leading the session and he starts without slides...

...while the projector is being adjusted...

...and configured

Rogier Spoor from SURFnet continues

...and at some point even the slides show up!

François Kooman (since recently from DeiC) talks about the development work and status of the server software.

The few technical issues at the start of the talk delayed the whole thing for a quarter or so, the side effect of which was that most participants ended up being on time.

The nice and stylish venue also has spaces for relaxing and meeting in smaller groups

Usually at NORDUnet, they don't let their contract manager Thomas Hyllested out much, but this year they made an exception. Take a moment to meet this nice fellow.

Warming up for the opening session...

...featuring an artistic performance with some of the coir singing and more modern music, both of which is a trademark of Estonia

The opening session take place in two rooms, with Erik and Christian on thw two different stages and teleported to the other

The opening session is a dual feature of two Estonian entrepreneurs, Linnar Viik and Siim Sikkut, that have made the national identity card, online voting and much more.

The robots are coming

Cyber warfare

Walking the dog can also be automated

Valter Nordh gives the GÉANT community award to Anna Wilson from HEAnet

John Dyer is here to hand out the Vietsch medal

Claudio Allocchio really deserves this award for a lifetime of achievements, not least for LOLA and all the other work in the field of multimedia and online real-time collaboration

The two main figures of GÉANT management: Erik Huizer and Christian Grimm. There seems to be a size difference.

Kristina Lillemets is more relaxed after having discharged her opening speech. We are grateful to her and her team for accepting to host the conference. Here, she is talking to Tangui Coulouarn from DeiC and Jakub (Kuba) Moscicki from CERN.

Kuba is looking happy

One of the many freindly Estonians, Maria Ristkok from EEnet.

Claudia Battista (GARR), Vasilis Maglaris (from Greece, somehow) and Petru Bogatencov (RENAM)

Claudia Battista (again) and Ana Pinto (FCCN)

Ieva Muraskiene from LITNET

Next session is the first wave of lightning talks

Esward moynihan from Indiana University suggests that the NREN community should get together and do something about connecting the researchers in Antarctica.

There are no cables down there. There should be!

Explaining to a stranger what we are doing and what research networking is all about often proves to be a bit diffcult. Maja Vreca from ARNES helps us explain this in a simple way.

Sigita Jurkynaite from GÉANT is singing a song. Or so it looks.

...but the talk is really about getting more women into cybersecurity

Renato Furter from SWITCH turns his talk...

...into a real rap song. Really impresive. I guess he aims for winning the award for the best lightning talk.

Olamma Iheanetu from Nigeria starts her talk, but she is given ...

...some slides that are not her own.

Anna Wilson promises her, she can come back tomorrow

The slides really belong to the nex speaker

Marcos Felipe Schwarz from RNP

The session "Opening data silos is chaired by Maciej Brzezniak from PSNC

Jonathan Homa from ECI and his wife Anne

Leif Johansson from SUNET and Sarah Rudolph from NIH

Look who is on the telly: Me!

Let us see the Vietsch medal, please, Claudio

People at the conference: Rosanna Norman from GÉNT and John Dyer

Bram Peeters (GÉANT) and Raimundas Tuminauskas (suddenly now from PSNC)

The CEO dinner - squeezed in between the opening reception and the opening party

Andreas Veispak from the EC gives a speech

Steffie Bosman and Jessie Brockhoff from GÉANT

Erik Huizer makes a speech in the honour of David West for his many achievements in making conection projects outside Europe

The opening party is a new feature at TNC. It is set in a part of town where the abandoned factory buildings gives the whole place a kind of crative/hipster atmosphere

Pavle Vuletic (AMRES) and Sonja Filiposka from Macedonia

David Kelsey (Rutherford Appleton Laboratory), Hannah Short (CERN) and Mischa Sallé (NIKHEF)

Freindly guys from RENATER: Franck Commanay and Anass Chabli

A Baltic car, although not Estonian: The Latvia minibus.

Once more, the sun sets on this beautiful city of Tallinn, after a truly eventful day

Martin Bech, DeiC, martin.bech@deic.dk