Back from London and Stockholm…minus an umbrella, phone (not mine, thank god) and 20 years off my life.

Wow is all I can say. Casinomeister, can you turn 50 again please? Amazing birthday party, great GPWA conference, ridiculous dinner with RaketheRake.com, crazy times at Mahiki, even more adventures in Scandinavia (part 3), and roughly 10 hours of sleep. Total. I blame this on Spin Palace Casino, PKR Affiliates, MMPoker and the Turkish mafia! Ok, so it's my fault completely, I know. Please read on for a taste of what has ultimately defeated me (and Margaret and Neda) over five very long and very enjoyable days and nights in the EU.

Greeted by PDC Affiliates at Heathrow- the beginning of the end
A luxury beyond luxuries! Upon arrival in London, I was greeted by PDC Affiliates' Richard W. who drove me straight to my second home, Anna from Spin Palace's flat. Problem was, I didn't recognize the guy because a)he was wearing a cap (no big hair) and b) he was dressed in casual attire. Can you believe it? Anyway, thank god for Richard because I was carrying a huge suitcase, a computer, two bags, a poster, a sign and 100 Hawaiian leis. Ya...don't ask.

Lunching with a Greek and South African is educational
For the first time in my online gambling experience, I had the pleasure of touring the Party Poker offices followed by lunch at Wagamamas with Kriton and Claire, my beloved Party Poker contacts. After a nice healthy business chat, I learned from Kriton that "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is completely true to life, and, I learned that Kriton must marry a tall woman according to his strictly Greek mother. Dammit! Guess that rules me out.

The Casinomeister is a closet (and excellent!) dirty dancer
How many of you can say that you've semi-dirty danced with the Casinomeister? No one but Caselli and I! Do you have any idea what an honor this is? After years and years of carrying American products such as Trader Joe's O's, maple syrup and hot sauce to various conferences around the world for Bryan, I have finally been repaid.

Photography lessons with 25 year old Aussies are fun
Who knew that attending the Casinomeister birthday party included a free photography lesson? What a nice surprise! Documenting grown adults acting like complete idiots at the bar and on the dance floor is such fun. However, the online gambling crowd decided to take it even one step further...APCW's J. Todd has the whole night documented on video tape too. Eeeeek.

The key to a successful GPWA conference is a little red wine
Thanks to our friends at PKR Affiliates and Intertops, the GPWA put on a conference and cocktail reception at Café Royal which everyone thoroughly enjoyed, especially Alex Pratt. I had lunch with Alex, U-ffiliates, Ladbrokes, the Fridge, and several affiliates at the Cheers bar next door, left for some presentations, came back two hours later, and guess what? Alex was still there. Same table, same seat, a few new friends, and empty red wine bottles everywhere. Lesson learned- we will be serving red wine at the GPWA Conference @G2E next week. Come join us!

Dinner and night out with Karim from RaketheRake.com, take two
It has become an annual tradition. Karim takes me plus 15 industry victims for dinner, drinks, and very inappropriate behavior at Benihanas followed by a table at one of London's most posh clubs. This year we choose Mahiki, the favorite spot of Prince William and home to "the treasure chest", a cocktail for eight that is clearly wayyy out of my price range. In addition to Karim and Alan, I would like to send a warm thank you to Anna's roommate who woke me up from my coma at 7am the next morning- if it wasn't for her, I most certainly would have missed my flight to Stockholm AND lost that £20 bet with James from Poker Heaven.

Spontaneous trip to the Gnuf office...straight from the airport
You can only imagine the state I was in when I arrived at the Gnuf office straight from Arlanda airport. Johan and Henrik, please tell your colleagues that I don't normally present myself like that, OK? Thanks. After pulling my physical state back together, I met up with the boys once again for a nice tour of South Stockholm bars, with a promise of an authentic East Stockholm night out with Johan and Unitbet's Erik Good Looking and Gustav the next time I come. Bring on the bath robes and tight pants boys, I am ready.

Quality time with Affiliate Lounge's Henrik the Swede and Franco the Sicilian
I adore quality time with Affiliate Lounge, an affiliate program full of good people and extreme personalities. In preparation for my arrival in Stockholm, Affiliate Lounge's Henrik arranged dinner amongst friends at a Thai food place that took us one hour to find on foot, but it was worth it. The next day, Franco the Sicilian brought me to a fancy café and treated me to multiple cappuccinos, espressos and carrot cake as we talked and laughed for four hours straight. Throughout our coffee drinking session, Franco must have seen about 19 people he knows, speaking anything from Swedish, to Italian, to French, to German, to Hebrew, to Latin, you name it. Unbelievable.

Becky+Margaret+Neda+the Turkish Mafia = lots and lots and lots of trouble
Starting to drink at 4pm, 7/11 stop at 6am, and bed at 7am is a nightly occurrence when hanging with this crowd. Its easy to stay out all night when your crowd owns the bar, knows the owner, gets in a fight at the bar, and takes over the bar. Do you know who I am?! Do you know who we are?! Combine this Turkish Mafia attitude with girls like us and you're in for the weekend of a lifetime.