I anxiously awaited #ICE13 for what seemed so long and it went by so quickly. Making the most of each moment with little down time makes experiences become memories before I'm ready. One might think that the carefully planned workshops, sessions and keynotes might be the highlights or foci, but I look most forward to connecting with people. I got to see friends that I see fairly often, enjoyed more "first time F2F meetings with tweeps" which is always worth any amount of miles traveled, but I still missed out on a few people which unfortunately happens. I never crossed paths with +Pernille Ripp, merely glanced at @teach42 (Steve Dembo) and missed out on a first F2F with and @ipadsammy (Jon Samuelson). On the flip side, I reconnected with @jenwagner (Jen Wagner), had a short conversation with +Josh Stumpenhorst and was reignited by @bengrey (Ben Grey) with his insightful, though-provoking session. I also was introduced to many like-minded individuals. Some "new" people were actually ones that I "knew" on Twitter as we'd followed each other for some time. Meeting in person gives those relationships a new layer and takes them to a new level.
So the next time you get a chance take the trip to any conference, EdCamp ,or other professional gathering, make the time and spend the money. You'll get more than you pay for - really.
