It's six months away (November 7th), but registration for Microsoft's TechEd Europe 2006 has opened and I'm booked up. Early registrants get some nice extra's this year as well as the usual 300 Euro discount for booking before September. I'm not convinced this event is great value for money on the training/education front but Microsoft do make sure you have a good time, and it's a great way to recharge the batteries and refind your enthusiasm for working with Microsoft technologies. It's also a great chance to network and meet up with old friends from previous events/PDC or just those you "know" from their blogs.
I'm flying out early on the Saturday morning so I can do some early sightseeing in Barcelona. I've been to the city before (for a previous TechEd, a few years ago now) but really didn't get a chance to do anything other than attend TechEd events on that occasion so this time out I'm taking a couple of days before things kick off with the pre-conference sessions on the Monday. The flights are booked and the event is booked - I just need them to put up the hotel details so I can wrap the whole thing up and forget about it for six months. (Hotel details and registration are due within a week or two apparently).