Menu
Menu
AWS re:Invent 2019 – Quick Recap
- By Michael Lakus
- Read Time: 5 min
AWS re:Invent 2019
AWS re:Invent is back again and it’s the perfect chance for me to sprinkle some tech into another post. Just like re:Invent 2018, this year commenced right after Thanksgiving again in Las Vegas. It was my second year attending, so I had a much better idea of the pace of the conference and how to carpe díem to the fullest.
Below is a quick video wrap-up that includes some, but not all of the activities and events over the one week spent at re:Invent.
You can also check out a small Instagram Highlight.
Register Early!
Suites at the main hotels (Venetian / Palazzo) go quick. The earlier you book the better.
Running around re:Invent
I was pretty fortunate this time around to book early, and was able to snag a room at Palazzo, opposed to the Wynn last year. Both are amazing hotels and casinos, but the Venetian / Palazzo is where the main re:Invent venue is located, so I made quick pace to all the action. The layout and schedule were very similar to last year. There were plenty of sessions to choose from during the day and AWS / Partner hosted events during the evenings.
Although last year was a lot of fun, I made a few planning mistakes which I was able to get around this year. Most of it had to do with overbooking sessions and running from venue to venue, always short on time. As a result, this re:Invent I chose the slow and steady route – 2 reserved session limit per day! The main reason was due to the spontaneity of the entire conference – there is always something impromptu to do!
As an engineer / developer, re:Invent offers a lot of chalk-talks and sessions at an advanced technical level for those in the thick of cloud-based services. After all, AWS is the largest cloud provider out there. My sessions mainly focused around serverless architecture and infrastructure as code. I also engaged in AWS Partner Networks to see what others are working on in the field. There are courses for everyone on a variety of subjects. These range from beginner level “AWS core services” to complex workshops developing service catalog life cycles.
A Week in Review
Aside from the sessions, re:Invent also hosted a slew of community events, the biggest being midnight madness and re:Play (basically huge parties). There was also the gigantic vendor Expo and lounges for AWS certified attendees (yes, that includes me :D). This year, I signed up for their charity 4K/8K run and came in 13th place with over 600 participants! There were also game, movie and craft nights (grab a drink and paint kinda stuff).
Being on the strip, re:Invent would have sessions at several resorts. This gave me the perfect opportunity to check out a lot of the casinos in my downtime, eat many delicious meals throughout the day and attend shows at night. Some of the highlights will be in the recap found below. My favorites were Mystère and Beauty & Essex.
Ultimate Craps
I think Casino Royale has the only $5 craps table on the Strip during weekdays. Take advantage!
In conclusion, re:Invent 2019 was another amazing conference, to which I thank my employer for funding. Taking this year a little easier actually kept my energy high and allowed me to better enjoy a week of AWS tech on the Strip. I’ll consider it a year-end bonus!
My re:Invent Sessions
For those interested, here is a list of main sessions I attended.
In this chalk talk, we illustrate an example and discuss how to enforce immutable infrastructure using AWS Config rules, AWS CloudFormation, Terraform, and Packer with insights in AWS Security Hub.
In this chalk talk, we share the technical details around how Quick Starts are built, tested, and deployed. We do a deep dive into the use cases, challenges, and best practices for leveraging Quick Starts as a deployment accelerator.
The AWS Cloud Development Kit (AWS CDK) is a multi-language, open-source framework that enables developers to harness the full power of familiar programming languages to define reusable cloud components and provision applications built from those components using AWS CloudFormation.
In this session, you learn best practices for designing, using, and sharing Lambda layers to make your serverless app more robust while writing less code.
The AWS Partner Network (APN) helps companies build a successful AWS-based business by providing valuable business, marketing, and go-to-market (GTM) support via AWS SaaS Factory.
This chalk talk is designed to help you understand the key similarities and differences between AWS Control Tower and AWS Landing Zone and how to use them to better position the right solution to the customer.
In this session, build a catalog of products to facilitate user self-service on an as-needed basis, and also define an automatic expiration time for these provisioned and ephemeral resources.
Source: https://reinvent.awsevents.com
Recap of Places
- Sushisamba – a Japanese/Brazilian/Peruvian fusion experience
- Mystère – lighthearted, colorful and impressive Cirque du Soleil performance at Treasure Island
- Beauty & Essex – chic restaurant with sharing-style dishes at the Cosmopolitan
- Bouchon Bistro – the French brunch spot at the Venetian
- Kura Revolving Sushi – conveyor belt sushi right off the Strip. Stuff you face.
Want to share?
Want to share?
Michael Lakus
IT professional, athlete, musician, ponderer of many things... Born and raised in Florida, I began traveling internationally after college. I created this site primarily to remind myself of where I've been and to share my experiences on traveling with a quirky, stress-free, travel attitude.
All Posts »