From ESADE to the UPF?
In 2009 Mariano Torcal, with whom I tried to realize a research institute in Barcelona, told me that he had received the permission of the University Pompeu Fabra to create a research center at the Faculty of the political and social sciences. This came as a complete surprise to me and it was not clear what the research center would aim at. One thing was clear, he was the manager of the ESS data collection in Spain while I was working for the Central coordinating team of the ESS. So it would make sense to put these two groups together in one center. About this issue I had to make a decision based also on the facilities we possibly could get at the UPF.
A difficult decision
Since 2003 we had worked with pleasure in the business school ESADE. I was very grateful to Joan Manuel Batista that he had arranged the possibility for us to get a place in Barcelona. In return I had helped several people of ESADE with their dissertations. I have mentioned already Antoni Dorse but I was also involved in the dissertations of Laura Guillen, Desiree Knoppen, Alberto Gimeno and Oyvin Kyvik. With several of them we had also nice personal contacts.
On the other hand, ESADE was going to move its main activities to Sant Cugat. This was a nice little town 30 km outside of Barcelona. There they had created a new building and reserved work places for Irmtraud and me, and for Daniel Oberski and Wiebke Weber, who substituted Steffie as secretary of the ESRA. It felt a little unfair to leave now.
Since 2003 we had worked with pleasure in the business school ESADE. I was very grateful to Joan Manuel Batista that he had arranged the possibility for us to get a place in Barcelona. In return I had helped several people of ESADE with their dissertations. I have mentioned already Antoni Dorse but I was also involved in the dissertations of Laura Guillen, Desiree Knoppen, Alberto Gimeno and Oyvin Kyvik. With several of them we had also nice personal contacts.
On the other hand, ESADE was going to move its main activities to Sant Cugat. This was a nice little town 30 km outside of Barcelona. There they had created a new building and reserved work places for Irmtraud and me, and for Daniel Oberski and Wiebke Weber, who substituted Steffie as secretary of the ESRA. It felt a little unfair to leave now.
The proposal of the UPF
There followed a meeting with the board of the Social sciences faculty of UPF about the conditions under which we would move to the UPF. It should be clear that for the faculty it was not a big issue because we were a group with a lot of prestige. The ESS recently received an European award for the development of the ESS and we brought enough money with us to cover all our expenses.They offered us a work space in a dependence of the Estacion Francia in the center of Barcelona , four rooms around a small hall in the top floor of the building with a view at the Zoo.
Given this situation it was really up to us to decide if we wanted to move or not. They asked me also to teach a course in survey research in the faculty.
There followed a meeting with the board of the Social sciences faculty of UPF about the conditions under which we would move to the UPF. It should be clear that for the faculty it was not a big issue because we were a group with a lot of prestige. The ESS recently received an European award for the development of the ESS and we brought enough money with us to cover all our expenses.They offered us a work space in a dependence of the Estacion Francia in the center of Barcelona , four rooms around a small hall in the top floor of the building with a view at the Zoo.
Given this situation it was really up to us to decide if we wanted to move or not. They asked me also to teach a course in survey research in the faculty.
Our decision
The placement of our group in the Social Science Faculty of the UPF seemed to be a more logical step for our group. By being involved in teaching at the faculty, I possibly could also detect good new candidates for our group. That our work place would be in the center of Barcelona and we possibly could have advantage of the cooperation with the group of Mariano Torcal were other reasons why we were all convinced that it was a good decision to move to the UPF.
Mariano Torcal became the director of the Research and Expertice Center for Survey Methodology (RECSM) . I got the title of managing director. We all could live with this situation and so we started at the UPF in the fall of 2009. To my surprise the researchers of Mariano did not join us in the new building, therefore there was ample space for all of us.
As a compensation for the support I had received of ESADE, I offered them to continue my teaching of the last years.
The placement of our group in the Social Science Faculty of the UPF seemed to be a more logical step for our group. By being involved in teaching at the faculty, I possibly could also detect good new candidates for our group. That our work place would be in the center of Barcelona and we possibly could have advantage of the cooperation with the group of Mariano Torcal were other reasons why we were all convinced that it was a good decision to move to the UPF.
Mariano Torcal became the director of the Research and Expertice Center for Survey Methodology (RECSM) . I got the title of managing director. We all could live with this situation and so we started at the UPF in the fall of 2009. To my surprise the researchers of Mariano did not join us in the new building, therefore there was ample space for all of us.
As a compensation for the support I had received of ESADE, I offered them to continue my teaching of the last years.
Skating in Barcelona
As a Dutchman, addicted to skating I could of course not live in Barcelona without skating. Therefore I was looking for possibilities for at least inline skating. There were indeed a lot of inline skaters and also a club that organized Friday night skating tours like in many other cities, but in Barcelona they started at 11.30 p.m. till 2.30 in the morning in very low speed because there was a large crowd skating. This was clearly not what I wanted, it was too late and too slow. So I looked for a speed skating club. There was none in Barcelona but a bit outside Barcelona close to the airport there was a speed skating club in Prat de Llobregat. I went there to see what they did. You can see it below. This was indeed approximately, what I wanted. Listen to the noise of the wheels. That sounded very exciting to me.
As a Dutchman, addicted to skating I could of course not live in Barcelona without skating. Therefore I was looking for possibilities for at least inline skating. There were indeed a lot of inline skaters and also a club that organized Friday night skating tours like in many other cities, but in Barcelona they started at 11.30 p.m. till 2.30 in the morning in very low speed because there was a large crowd skating. This was clearly not what I wanted, it was too late and too slow. So I looked for a speed skating club. There was none in Barcelona but a bit outside Barcelona close to the airport there was a speed skating club in Prat de Llobregat. I went there to see what they did. You can see it below. This was indeed approximately, what I wanted. Listen to the noise of the wheels. That sounded very exciting to me.
There was, however, also a problem the oldest skater was 26 and I was now older than 62. This difference was a bit too large. Therefore I was looking for another possibility and in the mean time I was skating by myself at the same skating rink or along the river Besós close to our house.
ESRA conference in Warsaw
Later that year the third ESRA conference would take place in Warsaw. The local organization was in the hands of the brothers Pawel and Franciszek Sztabinski, who did a very good job. The number of participants was increased to more than 600, the number of papers multiplied accordingly. Wiebke Weber and Daniel Oberski had taken care of the organization, as far as it could be done on paper and in the internet. What they could not organize was the weather. The first day of the conference I went early by foot from our hotel to the conference hall to speak with the organizers. It was so hot that my shirt was so wet that I phoned Irmtraud to come with a dry shirt to the conference hall. In the new shirt I opened the conference and the meetings went on. At the end of the day an open air barbecue was organized in the garden of the conference building. The barbecue went on very nice till a thunderstorm came up. First, it looked as if we had enough shelter under a improvised roof but when that was blown up by the wind all participants went completely wet. For most people this was the first time but for me it was the second time for different reasons. This was the most remarkable memory I have of this conference. I am sorry to say so but this was really different from the other meetings. The conference itself was at good as the previous ones.
Later that year the third ESRA conference would take place in Warsaw. The local organization was in the hands of the brothers Pawel and Franciszek Sztabinski, who did a very good job. The number of participants was increased to more than 600, the number of papers multiplied accordingly. Wiebke Weber and Daniel Oberski had taken care of the organization, as far as it could be done on paper and in the internet. What they could not organize was the weather. The first day of the conference I went early by foot from our hotel to the conference hall to speak with the organizers. It was so hot that my shirt was so wet that I phoned Irmtraud to come with a dry shirt to the conference hall. In the new shirt I opened the conference and the meetings went on. At the end of the day an open air barbecue was organized in the garden of the conference building. The barbecue went on very nice till a thunderstorm came up. First, it looked as if we had enough shelter under a improvised roof but when that was blown up by the wind all participants went completely wet. For most people this was the first time but for me it was the second time for different reasons. This was the most remarkable memory I have of this conference. I am sorry to say so but this was really different from the other meetings. The conference itself was at good as the previous ones.
in Exciting Italy
Earlier we had decided that we wanted to go to Italy because we had been in Rome only for a few days, we wanted to see what happened to the town Poppi where we had a very nice time in the past. When we saw that there was a very cheap way to go by car on the boat from Barcelona to Rome, we had decided to book that trip, stay in Rome for a few days and go then by car from Rome to Florence and back to Barcelona passing by Assisi, Perugia and Poppi. It became an exciting trip.
Already Rome exceeded all expectations. Our exotic hotel next to the Colosseum was very special as the picture shows but all the ancient buildings, the museums and the lifely terraces were impressive. At the end of the day we still had a swim in the swimming pool on the top of the hotel.
Earlier we had decided that we wanted to go to Italy because we had been in Rome only for a few days, we wanted to see what happened to the town Poppi where we had a very nice time in the past. When we saw that there was a very cheap way to go by car on the boat from Barcelona to Rome, we had decided to book that trip, stay in Rome for a few days and go then by car from Rome to Florence and back to Barcelona passing by Assisi, Perugia and Poppi. It became an exciting trip.
Already Rome exceeded all expectations. Our exotic hotel next to the Colosseum was very special as the picture shows but all the ancient buildings, the museums and the lifely terraces were impressive. At the end of the day we still had a swim in the swimming pool on the top of the hotel.
The trip to the north through small towns and the country site was very nice. Assisi impressed us more this time than before because now all the frescos were restored. Perugia was still very impressive but our favorite was still Poppi, our little beauty in Tuscany. There we had worked during a month when we had serious problems at the University of Amsterdam. This pictoresc town was now a bit more touristic, but it still preserved its special atmosphere in the upper part of the town with the castle and the nice views from there over the Tuscany country site.
The final stop in Florence was more impressive than ever before. Just the square of the Palazzo Vecchio with the David of Michelangelo and at the other side the gallery with statues and around the corner the main square with the white cathedral were fascinating. Besides that we enjoyed the chapel of the Medici with its paintings and the Uffizi Art Gallery. Where elsewhere can you find so much beauty together?
The final stop in Florence was more impressive than ever before. Just the square of the Palazzo Vecchio with the David of Michelangelo and at the other side the gallery with statues and around the corner the main square with the white cathedral were fascinating. Besides that we enjoyed the chapel of the Medici with its paintings and the Uffizi Art Gallery. Where elsewhere can you find so much beauty together?