Excel and Lewisham and repaired locks

Jolted back to wakefulness at 3am by the Spanish ladies making a noisy departure, I'm awake till the alarm goes at 7am, having had no sleep at all.

The iconic news image of the day on the television and the newspaper front covers was the Japanese man 10 miles out to sea, on the wreckage of the roof of his house.A second reactor had also exploded in Japan.

I left the hotel with the establishment promising to repair the broken lock on my bathroom door during the day.

This was a day of meetings and providing assistance for the German delegates. The entertainment was provided by the driver of the Hackney carriage we took to Lewisham, who kept up an informative commentary on life, sights and stabbings south of the Thames in London. The overriding impression was however of a man who's pleasure and aim was to help his passengers -creating a positive impression on my European guests. This contrasted with one negative experience when visiting one stand at Excel - fortunately just an aberration amongst the many positive meetings we had.

After presenting an analysis of importing to the UK by colleague Frau Schmidt and myself in a double act, we headed back to the Victoria Pub in Bayswater, our party now 6 strong. A good meal and refreshing drinks gave us the energy to return to the hotel for the night.

I entered my room to find the ingenious solution to my broken bathroom lock and handle. The bathroom door was opened wide and the bed moved closer - so that the door could not close accidentally!