Note
Normally the official hotels for IOF meetings are a bit too upmarket for my tastes, but this time round, because I made such a late decision to come, it was the only thing still available (except for places well out of town which would have required hiring a car), and I figured that it was $230 a night, but it was only two nights, and the surplus between the allowance I'm being paid by WMO in Geneva and what I'm spending in Geneva will more than cover it. There are, however, advantages in not having to go anywhere for the meetings (can think of at least one reader who will appreciate this point), and in occasionally being able to do useful business through random encounters.
(In case you're wondering, I don't claim any funds from OA for this when it's in conjunction with WOC, but I suspect we'll need to subsidise it if we want someone to go to the 2018 meeting, which won't be at WOC. The current bids for the 2018 Congress, none of which exactly filled people with enthusiasm in the current environment, are from Russia, Turkey and Egypt).