Conference culminates in carnival

The conference cityConference culminates in carnival

Just what happens when a professor gets infected by the bacillus carnivalis virus? Easy. Carnival is held not in January or February, but in the height of summer.

Conference centre Eurogress

2,700 sqm. of exhibition space
18 conference rooms
70,000 conference delegates in 2009
Usage occupancy: 320 days p.a.

After attending the “Orden wider den tierischen Ernst” (“Antidote to Serious”) carnival soirée, Aachen University Professor Rik W. de Donker was so taken by the Aachen carnival that he promised colleagues in Mexico, Brazil, Korea and the US that during the “PESC Power Electronics Specialists Conference and Exhibition” in Aachen he would initiate them into the perhaps-not-so-secret rites of the “fifth season of the year” (a.k.a. carnival).

International conference with carnival atmosphere

No sooner said than done! Even the conference logo sported a carnival hat. By day, the 1,000+ PESC delegates from 52 countries talked shop. But when it came to the formal evening event, the Europa Room at the Eurogress Conference Centre transformed in a flash from a lecture hall into a genuine “Öcher” carnival hall.

The Bürgerwehr (Civic Guard), one of over 50 carnival societies in the city, marched on in full costume and taught people from Japan, China, America and elsewhere in Europe how to sway en-masse to music and how to deliver the famous carnival cry “Oche Alaaf” (yes, just say “oh-hay a-laugh”!). And the crowd loved it!

Even if not every conference transforms into the pinnacle of carnival jollity, delegates from all over the world are made to feel right at home at the Eurogress Conference Centre on Monheimsallee. A mere eight minutes’ walk from the cathedral, and situated in the middle of the Kurpark, with the scientific capability of Aachen’s universities and colleges on its doorstep as well as the most modern conference technology right to hand – no requirements are left unmet.

And a mere stone’s throw away is the city centre where you can enjoy even more of Aachen’s great atmosphere.