Postcard from Orlando: ASTA 2023 national conference

The palm trees and swampy lands of Florida whizzed past the window on my way from Orlando airport to the hotel, and the driver wasted no opportunity to promote his home city. ‘The airport is the biggest in Florida. There are lots of national conferences here. Actually, there are volleyball championships now. You’ll see the teams at the hotel!’ It makes sense that Florida is the go-to place for national meets. Its year-round average temperature is 22 degrees, overtaking Hawaii to become the warmest US state. And there is more than enough space for gigantic hotels and convention centres – which soon appear outside the window – to host such events…