Written by Bruce
I traveled to Potsdam, Germany in October 2026 to attend the Joomla! World Conference as Secretary of Open Source Matters. This is a rough synopsis of the trip with detail in the most unexpected place (for me).
I flew on Icelandair through Reykjavik, missing their so-claimed "63-year storm" by only a single hour, which would have stranded him there for as much as 48 hours. Fortunately, that did not happen. The flight from Dulles took only 5 hours 55 minutes, but only water and coffee were included. At Kefllavik Airport, I had a paltry 50-minute connection to my flight to Frankfurt, and had to get through customs (EU entry) and then run (I don't run) to the connecting flight's gate. I was one of the last 4 who got on the plane.
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Once at Frankfurt Airport, I had to take a tram to get to the Main train station. The tram rides were standing room only, dragging all that luggage. Once at the train station, I knew exactly which platform I needed to find my train to Potsdam and I eventually found it...only to also find my train had been cancelled. Fortunately, a young English-speaking Indian gent was in the same predicament and showed me how to use the app I had installed in August to get it to put me on the next best route. But it had 2 transfers as opposed to 1 transfer on the original train, which went to the correct train station in Potsdam.
Arrived at one of two Potsdam train stations (the wrong one, of course) and it was a ghost town at 8:30pm. Made no sense to me. The rest of the arriving crowd dispersed and I had no idea exactly how to get to the conference hotel, Kongresshotel Potsdam. Fortunately, there was one nice German family who spoke a little English and determined the closest tram stop to the hotel and which tram to take. It was a short ride for €6.90 (half of that is tax) to a sports arena only a kilometer or so walk from the tram stop. So I went, walking down an unlit, dark, narrow, wet, leaf-covered, paved (most of it), roughly 1.5-km path. I had Google Maps on my screen and my phone's flashlight lighting my way, still dragging my luggage. By the time I arrived at the hotel, I was so exhausted I could barely stand let alone walk. After registering and establishing the room, I met some of my Joomla! friend for the first time at the hotel bar, where I finally got to eat some real food...a cheeseburger and fries.
The conference was a huge success by any measure. I got to meet in-person many like-minded Joomla! enthusiasts, some of whom I have known for years only virtually. That was the main reason for going, to meet everyone. But of course I learned a lot about what's going on in the Joomla! community as well as in the open source CMS community. I didn't take any photos, but you will likely find some at the website linked above.
After the conference, a long-time family friend. Timo Schewik, who shared a student exchange with my son, Andrew, back when he was only 16, drove 2 hours each way from to pick me up from the conference hotel and take me to his parents' home in Braunschweig. Timo's parents had left an open invitation to visit someday, so I decided it was time. I wish Eileen had been with me.
Braunschweig
I stayed with the Schewik family in Brauschweig. While there I got pizza (yep!), went on an e-bike ride, and got an expert tour of the Volkswagen plant in Braunschweig. I had no idea that existed. Timo's parents both worke(d) for Volkswagen most of their careers.
Schewik Visit
The Schewiks are wonderful people. I felt bad that it took so long for at least one of us to finally pay them a visit. And Joomla! made that possible!
E-Biking
The Schewiks are a family that does a lot together, including riding bicycles and/or e-bikes. Timo and I went for a bike ride, me on his mother's e-bike. It was a relatively short ride, perhaps 10km, on a chilly, wet autumn afternoon. But it was thoroughly enjoyable!
Volkswagen Plant Tour
The Volkswagen (VW) plant where both of Timo's parents work(ed) is the sprawling campus Autostadt Zeithaus museum in Wolfsburg, Germany, which is just outside Braunschweig. A fair number of the buildings there are devoted to the history and product lines of VW, which now include some that might surprise you. Besides the well-known ones, VW, Porsche and Audi, they also include Lamborghini, Bugatti, Bentley, Ducati, Skota, and Scania, to name the big hitters. What an amazing "museum"! We took a break at one of the campus coffee shops.
Heading Home
Breakfast at the Frankfurt airport was typical for an airport: mostly pastries and sandwiches. I couldn't get an egg to save my life. Keflavik airport wasn't really any better. The only place to eat there was a Sbarro pizzeria where a single slice cost about $12 (high taxes). Insane! But in Iceland, their energy is almost free (geothermal and solar, mainly).
