It's been 2 months since my last update. The weather that I said was so pleasant back in September now has the usual wintry menu: big dark gray skies (making noon feel like early evening), with blustery chilly winds and moderate helpings of rain on the side.
Made some really nice wedding photos back on the 6th for my second Dutch ceremony (see website or Facebook album) and have a marketing shoot coming up before our visit to the US if the client wraps up their end in time. Did the cover graphic design for the Magazine issue that comes out soon, and one of my Alkmaar images will grace the spring cover next March. Interviewed the British Consul for a profile of him, and writing the last of 2 articles for the spring issue from my pen (okay, Mac). The ACCESS calendar is coming out soon, and supposed to contain several of my images that I submitted to the Editor in Chief, who said they were "brilliant" and asked if they were all mine. Hmmmm, sounded like he couldn't connect something he thought had merit, and yours truly. Bummer. Anyway, after deciding not to say I plagiarized them all, I did indeed take responsibility for them all. Whether that will lead to any assignments or work with the 2 magazines he's involved with will be determined at a later date.
We jumped 2 1/2 hours southeast last weekend to a small town named Aachen across the German border to check out their Christmas Market. Was a little strange hearing Jose Feliciano singing "Feliz Navidad" in Germany. Made me think of my high school Spanish teacher. All of the booths were full of chachki's or something to eat. A huge, inflatable gingerbread cookie was the "mascot", as it towered over the proceedings only to be out "verticaled" by the Town Hall that stood nearby, which was built by Charlemagne back in the day - I'm talking waaaaaaaay back in the day (the 790's to be precise). The weather was an absolute gift, sprinkling only a little late in the evening while providing cloudy skies and around 60f during our major "walk-around" time. Gluhwein is the popular seasonal drink, a sweet red wine served warm. You can get a hit of amaretto or a number of different liquids in it. Most are cradling the drink in their fingers, especially when it's cold, to keep a small portion of their outsides warm before it dribbles down their esophagi to keep their insides warm. Nearby restaurants and cafes also fill up with visitors from all over - so much food. Luckily, our hotel was perhaps a 15 minutes walk, so after our filling breakfasts and dinners, we walked our way to a little turbo-digestion. A few years back I would've been looking to eat again after that 15 minute burn to maintain my Greek God, 120 pound temple!
Well folks, that brings 2009 to a close. Have a great holiday season. Maybe I'll see some of you back in the states soon. See you on here again in 2010, unless something compels me to add to this once again in the next 30 or so days. Til then.......
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Picture "Catch-up"
We've been doing things and going places recently and I've been behind. If you go to the blog and click on the links to albums, you will find three new ones once you get there. One is of our visit to Alkmaar where the cheese market is held every Friday morning from march to September. We attended the 2nd to last one of the season together, and I went back for the very last one the following Friday. Also, there are 2 albums from our holiday to Barcelona. One of sights and another of us and the sights.
Leaves are starting to fall from the trees, and the daytime highs are only in the mid to lower 60's. There hasn't been a lot of rain, and we haven't been under a deep, dull, blanket of gray cloud cover, so that's good. In fact the sun has been more active here than usual!
Some excitement at the apartment. The valves were recently changed on the four radiators upstairs, but there was a seal issue with one of them and water leaked between floors - right above our bedroom! As a matter-of-fact, Radhika noticed a different odor one night before bed (do NOT go there!), but I didn't sense it. However, in the morning I felt the air was really moist. I got a ladder and felt the ceiling - cold and damp! Texted the landlord, who had done the job himself, and told him there was a serious problem. Drained the system when he got here, but that still didn't keep water from spilling all over him after he opened a hole in our bedroom ceiling and undid the joint in the pipe! Problem was fixed, and for the next week we have this (un)cool contraption in the room sucking out all of the moisture. The hole will remain for another week or so, and then finally in October the hole will be patched and the entire ceiling repainted (covering the "memorials" on the ceiling where I squished several mosquitoes at 2 in the morning last summer).
Had another good Basic Workshop yesterday with an energetic group of photography enthusiasts. This one even has assignments that some are choosing to do and then I'll critique their results. I find it so enjoyable teaching people! Looking into taking my workshops to The Hague, as I have had several people come to Amsterdam for mine and say there's nothing like it there.
Nailing down next months trip to Munich (post-Oktoberfest) and then scheduling US for December 2 1/2 months from now.
Leaves are starting to fall from the trees, and the daytime highs are only in the mid to lower 60's. There hasn't been a lot of rain, and we haven't been under a deep, dull, blanket of gray cloud cover, so that's good. In fact the sun has been more active here than usual!
Some excitement at the apartment. The valves were recently changed on the four radiators upstairs, but there was a seal issue with one of them and water leaked between floors - right above our bedroom! As a matter-of-fact, Radhika noticed a different odor one night before bed (do NOT go there!), but I didn't sense it. However, in the morning I felt the air was really moist. I got a ladder and felt the ceiling - cold and damp! Texted the landlord, who had done the job himself, and told him there was a serious problem. Drained the system when he got here, but that still didn't keep water from spilling all over him after he opened a hole in our bedroom ceiling and undid the joint in the pipe! Problem was fixed, and for the next week we have this (un)cool contraption in the room sucking out all of the moisture. The hole will remain for another week or so, and then finally in October the hole will be patched and the entire ceiling repainted (covering the "memorials" on the ceiling where I squished several mosquitoes at 2 in the morning last summer).
Had another good Basic Workshop yesterday with an energetic group of photography enthusiasts. This one even has assignments that some are choosing to do and then I'll critique their results. I find it so enjoyable teaching people! Looking into taking my workshops to The Hague, as I have had several people come to Amsterdam for mine and say there's nothing like it there.
Nailing down next months trip to Munich (post-Oktoberfest) and then scheduling US for December 2 1/2 months from now.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Barcelona! The Forgotten Chapter
I don't know why. Perhaps I got lost in everything "good" concerning Barcelona? Still suffering from sunstroke? Who knows? But I left out some details about two not-so-pleasant incidents of our story from my earlier Barcelona post. They follow...
So...months ago, as we decide on where to go, everyone has the same basic opinions on Barcelona. Beautiful this, gorgeous that, nice this, tasty that - oh, but watch out for PICKPOCKETS! Our first few days we were sporting money belts, and we endorse them tremendously for use in may places. But, a brief word with each other one day before leaving the hotel room, and we decided we felt safe enough to go out sans money belts. Well, towards the end of the trip on a subway train back to the hotel around 11pm or so, we were in a crowded car. Not packed, but you could not move freely either. My back is to the door and I'm carrying my camera bag. R is on my right with her backpack. We had just gotten into these positions after getting on the train when this tall, smelly, stale-looking (use your imagination - you can "see" what a stale-looking person would look like on a subway!) man "bumps" into the older man in front of us who is sporting a fanny pack worn in front. I know, he should not be allowed out of his own home with one of those, but it's Europe and they love a lot of shit from the 80's. Just listen to their radio or watch their TV. You would think A-ha just released "Take On Me" and The "A" Team was in it's first run! I should be wearing my old OP cord shorts and puca lightning bolt chain. Any way, I digress. So, I see this "collision" in front of me and I'm thinking this doesn't look kosher. Next thing I know "Rough and Ready" Radhika grabs the phony drunks hand and knocks it away from the older gentleman. I am now in a semi-WTF mode, because my pea-sized brain is comprehending what "Eagle-Eye Annie" has already figured out. I finally grasp the situation and watch to make sure that the now known pickpocket does not retaliate towards the trains new security force of one. He slides away, and R tells the older guy to watch his stuff. He's either French (my guess) or Swiss (R's guess), as he and his older posse earlier bumped and pushed their way past us without a single "excuse me" or "pardon", and we noticed their langauge was not local. He checked his "pack" and his wallet was gone! Well they went into high gear, trying to take photos of the crook and chased him off the train. The doors close, and we noticed that several "shifty" looking people remained amongst the group of riders, tourists, and locals. Damn!! One got off, but was replaced by perhaps 4 to 6 others!! What a feeling it is to have what you KNOW to be criminals right in your sight, but you can't do anything about it. They made no eye contact with anyone. All they did (at least 3 men and one woman) was look at everyone's belongings! It was so obvious. I tried to warn the girl who was now in front of me, as her purse was being "eyeballed", but she was too preoccupied flapping her lips on her cell phone and with her friends. They made no attempt to disguise their intent. I was watching them so intently that I didn't notice one of them trying to distract me by pointing at something, hoping I would look in that direction. R told me about that later. What I did notice was my shorts moving (no, not a good time for one of "those" type of jokes), as I had velcro closures on all of my pockets. I smacked the guy on my left who was tugging at a closed pocket that contained my cell phone, and asked him what the hell he thought he was doing. He didn't look at me or say a word. It was at this moment that Radhika said to get off the train as we were pulling into a station. Once off, I said this isn't even our stop. Well, it was - I just didn't notice because I was intently watching the wolves trying to get the sheep right before my eyes! Well, this was excitement of the variety we didn't need. It took R a full day and a half to regain her chill-buzz she had gained from all the red wine, cava, sunshine, and tapas she had absorbed.
It's the day of our departure. Our flight leaves at 8:25pm. It's about 5, and R wants to head to the airport early (as usual). I finish my mango and coconut ice cream cup (as usual) while she gets assistance from the front desk. Now in my first post, I conveyed that we made it to the hotel by taking a bus from the airport to Catalonia Plaza, and from there a subway train to a stop near the hotel. We could've followed that pattern, but figured the local at the hotel would know a better route. Yeah, you know what's coming. This AAA reject had us take 1 train to a stop, change to another train, and then go to the next stop where we should find the Renfre train that takes you to the airport. At the first transfer, we were both saying what a mistake it was not taking the reverse route back to the airport, because we were hoofiing it through the better part of these stations, up stairs, down stairs, and it was a pain in the ass! But, we finally find the Renfre ticket window, and all seems well. R tells the guy we want 2 tickets for the train to the airport, we ask what platform and he says 1. So we go to the platform, a train comes in, and we board. "Hmmm...not a lot of people with suitcases on this train." We pull into a station we're both familiar with, and I know it to be one that access the airport. Radhika sees people with luggage. We are on the upper level, and the thought to get off there doesn't occur with enough strength until later (hindsight, you know). So we're leaving the city and the view through the windows looks like the plain from "Dances With Wolves", and neither of us is confident we're on a train to the airport. It's well past 6 by now. I ask the gentlemen next to us if the train stops at the airport. You know the answer to that. So now it's a thought process of how to get back on track to the airport. They say the next stop is about 5 minutes away, so we grab our crap and guard the door so we can jump off when it stops. I talk to a guy with a suitcase on the platform who said he was in the same situation, he was put on the wrong train. He said we wern't far from the airport - maybe a 15 euro cab ride. We went into the station to find out in spite of a language barrier that the next train back to Barcelona came in several minutes. Back to the platform, but then I went back to see if we could get a taxi out front, as we were in a small town. The woman didn't fully understand me, but the street looked like it had a decent amount of traffic on it, so I went back and got R and we dashed to the street. It's past 7:15pm now. We walk a block up and do get a taxi and he says he'll take us. We're in the car headed to the airport. We arrive in 15 minutes, the fare was about 15 euros, but it's Saturday AND there's an extra charge to go to the airport. That bumps up the fare 10 more euros. BUT, we are there on time, get on the flight, catch the bus perfectly to Leidseplein, and are safe in our apartment back in dreary Hamstercram. But it's not that bad a place to come back to. So, as with most things in life, we dealt with the good and the bad on this holiday. Had some lessons learned too (like don't try to take something from R unless I want my arm dislocated). Good times.
So...months ago, as we decide on where to go, everyone has the same basic opinions on Barcelona. Beautiful this, gorgeous that, nice this, tasty that - oh, but watch out for PICKPOCKETS! Our first few days we were sporting money belts, and we endorse them tremendously for use in may places. But, a brief word with each other one day before leaving the hotel room, and we decided we felt safe enough to go out sans money belts. Well, towards the end of the trip on a subway train back to the hotel around 11pm or so, we were in a crowded car. Not packed, but you could not move freely either. My back is to the door and I'm carrying my camera bag. R is on my right with her backpack. We had just gotten into these positions after getting on the train when this tall, smelly, stale-looking (use your imagination - you can "see" what a stale-looking person would look like on a subway!) man "bumps" into the older man in front of us who is sporting a fanny pack worn in front. I know, he should not be allowed out of his own home with one of those, but it's Europe and they love a lot of shit from the 80's. Just listen to their radio or watch their TV. You would think A-ha just released "Take On Me" and The "A" Team was in it's first run! I should be wearing my old OP cord shorts and puca lightning bolt chain. Any way, I digress. So, I see this "collision" in front of me and I'm thinking this doesn't look kosher. Next thing I know "Rough and Ready" Radhika grabs the phony drunks hand and knocks it away from the older gentleman. I am now in a semi-WTF mode, because my pea-sized brain is comprehending what "Eagle-Eye Annie" has already figured out. I finally grasp the situation and watch to make sure that the now known pickpocket does not retaliate towards the trains new security force of one. He slides away, and R tells the older guy to watch his stuff. He's either French (my guess) or Swiss (R's guess), as he and his older posse earlier bumped and pushed their way past us without a single "excuse me" or "pardon", and we noticed their langauge was not local. He checked his "pack" and his wallet was gone! Well they went into high gear, trying to take photos of the crook and chased him off the train. The doors close, and we noticed that several "shifty" looking people remained amongst the group of riders, tourists, and locals. Damn!! One got off, but was replaced by perhaps 4 to 6 others!! What a feeling it is to have what you KNOW to be criminals right in your sight, but you can't do anything about it. They made no eye contact with anyone. All they did (at least 3 men and one woman) was look at everyone's belongings! It was so obvious. I tried to warn the girl who was now in front of me, as her purse was being "eyeballed", but she was too preoccupied flapping her lips on her cell phone and with her friends. They made no attempt to disguise their intent. I was watching them so intently that I didn't notice one of them trying to distract me by pointing at something, hoping I would look in that direction. R told me about that later. What I did notice was my shorts moving (no, not a good time for one of "those" type of jokes), as I had velcro closures on all of my pockets. I smacked the guy on my left who was tugging at a closed pocket that contained my cell phone, and asked him what the hell he thought he was doing. He didn't look at me or say a word. It was at this moment that Radhika said to get off the train as we were pulling into a station. Once off, I said this isn't even our stop. Well, it was - I just didn't notice because I was intently watching the wolves trying to get the sheep right before my eyes! Well, this was excitement of the variety we didn't need. It took R a full day and a half to regain her chill-buzz she had gained from all the red wine, cava, sunshine, and tapas she had absorbed.
It's the day of our departure. Our flight leaves at 8:25pm. It's about 5, and R wants to head to the airport early (as usual). I finish my mango and coconut ice cream cup (as usual) while she gets assistance from the front desk. Now in my first post, I conveyed that we made it to the hotel by taking a bus from the airport to Catalonia Plaza, and from there a subway train to a stop near the hotel. We could've followed that pattern, but figured the local at the hotel would know a better route. Yeah, you know what's coming. This AAA reject had us take 1 train to a stop, change to another train, and then go to the next stop where we should find the Renfre train that takes you to the airport. At the first transfer, we were both saying what a mistake it was not taking the reverse route back to the airport, because we were hoofiing it through the better part of these stations, up stairs, down stairs, and it was a pain in the ass! But, we finally find the Renfre ticket window, and all seems well. R tells the guy we want 2 tickets for the train to the airport, we ask what platform and he says 1. So we go to the platform, a train comes in, and we board. "Hmmm...not a lot of people with suitcases on this train." We pull into a station we're both familiar with, and I know it to be one that access the airport. Radhika sees people with luggage. We are on the upper level, and the thought to get off there doesn't occur with enough strength until later (hindsight, you know). So we're leaving the city and the view through the windows looks like the plain from "Dances With Wolves", and neither of us is confident we're on a train to the airport. It's well past 6 by now. I ask the gentlemen next to us if the train stops at the airport. You know the answer to that. So now it's a thought process of how to get back on track to the airport. They say the next stop is about 5 minutes away, so we grab our crap and guard the door so we can jump off when it stops. I talk to a guy with a suitcase on the platform who said he was in the same situation, he was put on the wrong train. He said we wern't far from the airport - maybe a 15 euro cab ride. We went into the station to find out in spite of a language barrier that the next train back to Barcelona came in several minutes. Back to the platform, but then I went back to see if we could get a taxi out front, as we were in a small town. The woman didn't fully understand me, but the street looked like it had a decent amount of traffic on it, so I went back and got R and we dashed to the street. It's past 7:15pm now. We walk a block up and do get a taxi and he says he'll take us. We're in the car headed to the airport. We arrive in 15 minutes, the fare was about 15 euros, but it's Saturday AND there's an extra charge to go to the airport. That bumps up the fare 10 more euros. BUT, we are there on time, get on the flight, catch the bus perfectly to Leidseplein, and are safe in our apartment back in dreary Hamstercram. But it's not that bad a place to come back to. So, as with most things in life, we dealt with the good and the bad on this holiday. Had some lessons learned too (like don't try to take something from R unless I want my arm dislocated). Good times.
Barcelona!
Well, we brought summer (in Amsterdam) to a close with style...by going to BARCELONA!! Today it's below 60f / 15c degrees, the sky is a uniform middle gray, it's windy and wet - typical fall weather for Hamstercram. What's a little soothing is that it's not much better right now in Barcelona - 63f and rain. But for our visit just last week the average was 86f / 30c and sunshine every day! So now that you have the weather report, let's go into our 8 day experience en Espana!
Of course we would encounter extremely strong winds and some rain thrown in on our trip to the airport on Friday evening. We got to the bus stop at Leidseplein before the worst of it dropped from the sky. The KLM flight was fast (a little over 2 hours) and the service was fantastic considering how much flying really blows these days. We were seated in opposing aisle seats (still don't recall picking those). Radhika had her handbag under the seat in front of her with her hair clip on one of the straps. A dutch fellow and his female companion were seated next to her, and during the flight she had to stand in the aisle so he could pass to go to the bathroom. He stepped on her bag, and her clip "crunched" under his foot. He noticed the obvious feeling and sound of stepping on and breaking something, lifted his foot, and went on about his business with no acknowledgement of the incident. I expressed that I felt she should show him the broken pieces, but I was informed it was a cheap clip and not worth mentioning. So, I agreed to not say anything - and man was it hard!!!! And try as I might to remember to collect my tripod from the garment closet located at the door of the plane on the way off the plane in Barcelona, it was Radhika and a flight attendant who did! Right before touchdown I said to myself "Get your tripod on the way out." What a dufus!! And R just loves to point out these things to me! Damn!!
So, we're on the bus from the airport to the city, and we reach Catalonia Plaza where we'll take the metro to the stop near our hotel. As I rise from the seat my wallet stealthily falls to the floor. Radhika is behind me and alerts me to it. Now I am in serious trouble!! I'll save you the grizzly details. I was on a severe "dufus" streak and needed to be watched carefully so I didn't give away my passport and ATM card with a thankyou note consisting of my pin code to the first person who said "Hola!" to me. Luckily we made it to our hotel and I conducted no more giveaways!
A good nights sleep and out of the hotel at the crack of noon the next day! Well, almost...it was a little after 11am. I like to start early, but R prefers a "measured" approach to mornings on holiday. So I end up going out on my own sometimes and come back to the hotel or meet up with R later. But today, we stroll to the ramblas, passing the cathedral which is mostly caged in by scaffolding and a material cover. Can't tell you how many places we have been where major sights are unrecognizable due to surface maintenance (acid rain!) being undertaken. Down the ramblas past street performers and stores to the beach area past The Chris Columbus monument. Funny how they still credit him with "discovering" America! And there's a plaque where he stands before a kneeling native who is kissing his hand. Perhaps because 'ol Chris decided not to kill the guy or cut off his hands as he did to so many others? Pushing past and continuing east, we ended up at the large mall at the harbor. Nice, but hitting malls is not how I like to spend time on holidays. But we explored a little, as R was looking for a pair of Birkenstocks for her sensitive feeties. We walked along the waterfront north finally coming upon beaches. They looked really nice and I was looking forward to a little chill time on them in the coming days. And we did - officially 2 days were spent wholly or partly lazing in the sun and swimming in the cool water. Radhika got 2 massages from the asian ladies who ply the beach with the men selling "cerveza, agua, coke" like hotdog vendors at a ball game. I got one, myself. 30-40 minutes for 10 euros can't be beat! And I'm pretty used to topless beaches now, not like when I was 19 and stumbled across my first one in Ft. Lauderdale. I don't remember, but another "dufus" moment for me, I'm sure. I do recall my friend Tony and I "trying" to be cool as we walked through, then noticed the beach had been taken over by guys laying on towels together. Guess you can say it was a day of firsts for 2 "dufus's" from a small beach town up the coast!
Sightseeing - of course we saw Sagrada Familia, and stupidly paid 11 euros to go inside and witness a construction site. Unless you want to go up the tower for the view, and there are other vantage points to see the city, I would strongly suggest passing up the interior because there's nothing to see. We went to the Picasso Museum, which focuses on his early development. Pretty cool. Many of the parks and plazas were visited, not to mention the many wide streets and narrow passages that offered great buildings and cool little slices of Catalan life. For us, the coolest thing was our visit to La Pedrera. Such a great building way ahead of its time. The Olympic Village was pretty cool too. We took a day trip out to Montserrat, and must say we were disappointed. The monastery is really old, but it's been rebuilt over the centuries that it looks almost contemporary. The surrounding countryside was not all that impressive to us, therefore this is something we wouldn't recommend to others, either. But all-in-all, plenty to see and do for those that want to, or you can just relax and de-stress if that's what you're looking for. A place very high on our list of visiting again! Pictures coming soon!
Of course we would encounter extremely strong winds and some rain thrown in on our trip to the airport on Friday evening. We got to the bus stop at Leidseplein before the worst of it dropped from the sky. The KLM flight was fast (a little over 2 hours) and the service was fantastic considering how much flying really blows these days. We were seated in opposing aisle seats (still don't recall picking those). Radhika had her handbag under the seat in front of her with her hair clip on one of the straps. A dutch fellow and his female companion were seated next to her, and during the flight she had to stand in the aisle so he could pass to go to the bathroom. He stepped on her bag, and her clip "crunched" under his foot. He noticed the obvious feeling and sound of stepping on and breaking something, lifted his foot, and went on about his business with no acknowledgement of the incident. I expressed that I felt she should show him the broken pieces, but I was informed it was a cheap clip and not worth mentioning. So, I agreed to not say anything - and man was it hard!!!! And try as I might to remember to collect my tripod from the garment closet located at the door of the plane on the way off the plane in Barcelona, it was Radhika and a flight attendant who did! Right before touchdown I said to myself "Get your tripod on the way out." What a dufus!! And R just loves to point out these things to me! Damn!!
So, we're on the bus from the airport to the city, and we reach Catalonia Plaza where we'll take the metro to the stop near our hotel. As I rise from the seat my wallet stealthily falls to the floor. Radhika is behind me and alerts me to it. Now I am in serious trouble!! I'll save you the grizzly details. I was on a severe "dufus" streak and needed to be watched carefully so I didn't give away my passport and ATM card with a thankyou note consisting of my pin code to the first person who said "Hola!" to me. Luckily we made it to our hotel and I conducted no more giveaways!
A good nights sleep and out of the hotel at the crack of noon the next day! Well, almost...it was a little after 11am. I like to start early, but R prefers a "measured" approach to mornings on holiday. So I end up going out on my own sometimes and come back to the hotel or meet up with R later. But today, we stroll to the ramblas, passing the cathedral which is mostly caged in by scaffolding and a material cover. Can't tell you how many places we have been where major sights are unrecognizable due to surface maintenance (acid rain!) being undertaken. Down the ramblas past street performers and stores to the beach area past The Chris Columbus monument. Funny how they still credit him with "discovering" America! And there's a plaque where he stands before a kneeling native who is kissing his hand. Perhaps because 'ol Chris decided not to kill the guy or cut off his hands as he did to so many others? Pushing past and continuing east, we ended up at the large mall at the harbor. Nice, but hitting malls is not how I like to spend time on holidays. But we explored a little, as R was looking for a pair of Birkenstocks for her sensitive feeties. We walked along the waterfront north finally coming upon beaches. They looked really nice and I was looking forward to a little chill time on them in the coming days. And we did - officially 2 days were spent wholly or partly lazing in the sun and swimming in the cool water. Radhika got 2 massages from the asian ladies who ply the beach with the men selling "cerveza, agua, coke" like hotdog vendors at a ball game. I got one, myself. 30-40 minutes for 10 euros can't be beat! And I'm pretty used to topless beaches now, not like when I was 19 and stumbled across my first one in Ft. Lauderdale. I don't remember, but another "dufus" moment for me, I'm sure. I do recall my friend Tony and I "trying" to be cool as we walked through, then noticed the beach had been taken over by guys laying on towels together. Guess you can say it was a day of firsts for 2 "dufus's" from a small beach town up the coast!
Sightseeing - of course we saw Sagrada Familia, and stupidly paid 11 euros to go inside and witness a construction site. Unless you want to go up the tower for the view, and there are other vantage points to see the city, I would strongly suggest passing up the interior because there's nothing to see. We went to the Picasso Museum, which focuses on his early development. Pretty cool. Many of the parks and plazas were visited, not to mention the many wide streets and narrow passages that offered great buildings and cool little slices of Catalan life. For us, the coolest thing was our visit to La Pedrera. Such a great building way ahead of its time. The Olympic Village was pretty cool too. We took a day trip out to Montserrat, and must say we were disappointed. The monastery is really old, but it's been rebuilt over the centuries that it looks almost contemporary. The surrounding countryside was not all that impressive to us, therefore this is something we wouldn't recommend to others, either. But all-in-all, plenty to see and do for those that want to, or you can just relax and de-stress if that's what you're looking for. A place very high on our list of visiting again! Pictures coming soon!
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Amsterdam Summer!
Yes everybody!! We are finally experiencing some nice, prolonged, western European summer-type weather. Tomorrow the high is forecast to reach 77 and Thursday an absolute scorching 81!! I cannot impress upon you enough, especially those in central Florida, how nice it is to finally have this stretch of sun and warmth. Granted, people still ride their bikes with jackets on as the air always possesses a chill to it, but it's nice to break out my shorts and short sleeves! We have been enjoying pleasant weather, on and off, for several months now. Last year, it seemed we went from spring straight to fall. Much less rain and overcast conditions this year than last. And it's still strange to come home from a movie late at night in July and now August, getting chills from the cold night air!
Some local Amsterdam stories that you may find interesting and/or entertaining? I have a few. One involves "Public Enemies", Naan, and mice. We had a nice Saturday out and about in the city, and decided to have dinner at a good Indian restaurant we know. As usual, we couldn't eat it all, and much to the shock and horror of any Dutch diners in the place, we asked for the food we couldn't finish to be packed. We decided to hit a movie before going home, so we got tickets to "Public Enemies" (eh-2 stars out of 5). We get home late, so I put the doggie bag straight into the fridge and we crash. Next day I'm warming up the Indian goodies for lunch and notice 2 small holes on opposite sides of the plastic bag. But I take out everything and start to zap the containers. The naan (bread) was wrapped in tin foil, and I noticed two little holes on both sides of that, too. Just like the plastic bag. Upon further examination I determine without doubt they are chew holes!! You see, several months back I was at the movies with 2 other folks (their identities will be protected here because one acted like a sissy), and we saw a wee little mouse on the floor of the theater. Well, one not-so manly man squeeled like a mouse when he said he felt it on his foot. I couldn't stop laughing. Back to the present. I opened the tin foil, and sure enough there were little mousey-bites on each end of the naan!! I called Radhika over to show her. She said during the movie the bag seemed to move, which was placed on the seat next to her. She even picked it up and folded the top over to seal it better. She said she was a little puzzled when it seemed to move a couple of times on its own, but didn't consider the "Jerry" factor. So...NEVER leave your Indian food unprotected at the De Munt theater in Amsterdam. The mice have discerning palates!
Also, I learned there is a squatters law here in Amsterdam. I believe there are similar laws in the US (anyone recall the movie "Pacific Heights" with Michael Keaton?), and I just don't get it! Here, if your property is unoccupied for 6 months, people have the right to break in and live there. I was told this came about many years ago, a century or more perhaps. The wealthy would buy houses here, but only live in them part of the time. Meanwhile, many had no place to live. So, the government, in its infinite wisdom, allowed "squatting" to occur, and made it next to impossible to legally remove them. Today I'm told it is still quite difficult to remove people who are living on your property, some paying 100 euros per month rent. Some have resorted to hiring "muscle" to physically convince the unwanted tenants that it would be in their best interest health-wise, to move out.
Went out for a 3 hour cruise (no, not on the Minnow) on the canals last night. Man was it great!! The sky clouded up as we pushed off after a day of sun and blue skies! It even sprinkled momentarily a couple times, but overall the conditions were nice enough for an end-of-day float with some snacks, cold beer, cider, wine, and conversation. We went through the red light district, Jordaan, out to the Amstel River, and toured down numerous canals. Many had their boats out, enjoying the summer weather.
We'll be in Barcelona in less than a month for our last, European trip this year. At least the last one of any great length (8 days). Looking forward to that! Have heard nothing but great things about that city. More about that after the trip.
Some local Amsterdam stories that you may find interesting and/or entertaining? I have a few. One involves "Public Enemies", Naan, and mice. We had a nice Saturday out and about in the city, and decided to have dinner at a good Indian restaurant we know. As usual, we couldn't eat it all, and much to the shock and horror of any Dutch diners in the place, we asked for the food we couldn't finish to be packed. We decided to hit a movie before going home, so we got tickets to "Public Enemies" (eh-2 stars out of 5). We get home late, so I put the doggie bag straight into the fridge and we crash. Next day I'm warming up the Indian goodies for lunch and notice 2 small holes on opposite sides of the plastic bag. But I take out everything and start to zap the containers. The naan (bread) was wrapped in tin foil, and I noticed two little holes on both sides of that, too. Just like the plastic bag. Upon further examination I determine without doubt they are chew holes!! You see, several months back I was at the movies with 2 other folks (their identities will be protected here because one acted like a sissy), and we saw a wee little mouse on the floor of the theater. Well, one not-so manly man squeeled like a mouse when he said he felt it on his foot. I couldn't stop laughing. Back to the present. I opened the tin foil, and sure enough there were little mousey-bites on each end of the naan!! I called Radhika over to show her. She said during the movie the bag seemed to move, which was placed on the seat next to her. She even picked it up and folded the top over to seal it better. She said she was a little puzzled when it seemed to move a couple of times on its own, but didn't consider the "Jerry" factor. So...NEVER leave your Indian food unprotected at the De Munt theater in Amsterdam. The mice have discerning palates!
Also, I learned there is a squatters law here in Amsterdam. I believe there are similar laws in the US (anyone recall the movie "Pacific Heights" with Michael Keaton?), and I just don't get it! Here, if your property is unoccupied for 6 months, people have the right to break in and live there. I was told this came about many years ago, a century or more perhaps. The wealthy would buy houses here, but only live in them part of the time. Meanwhile, many had no place to live. So, the government, in its infinite wisdom, allowed "squatting" to occur, and made it next to impossible to legally remove them. Today I'm told it is still quite difficult to remove people who are living on your property, some paying 100 euros per month rent. Some have resorted to hiring "muscle" to physically convince the unwanted tenants that it would be in their best interest health-wise, to move out.
Went out for a 3 hour cruise (no, not on the Minnow) on the canals last night. Man was it great!! The sky clouded up as we pushed off after a day of sun and blue skies! It even sprinkled momentarily a couple times, but overall the conditions were nice enough for an end-of-day float with some snacks, cold beer, cider, wine, and conversation. We went through the red light district, Jordaan, out to the Amstel River, and toured down numerous canals. Many had their boats out, enjoying the summer weather.
We'll be in Barcelona in less than a month for our last, European trip this year. At least the last one of any great length (8 days). Looking forward to that! Have heard nothing but great things about that city. More about that after the trip.
Friday, June 26, 2009
French Open
As some may know, we made a weekend trip at the end of May down to Paris to catch two days of professional tennis. I just had to see how much farther I had to develop my skills before I go pro. Uh, it's going to be a while! But it was a great 2 days, with great weather, great tennis, great atmosphere. I'm putting up some pictures that you can find through the usual methods - clicking on the "link to albums" in the upper right corner of the blog. The trip to Orlando, my 30 year reunion, and our week in Ireland will show up shortly, along with ACDC (see video clip on my Facebook page).
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Finally A New Post
Yes, it's been a long while since I last wrote anything of substance. I've been busier than I have been in the past since arriving in Amsterdam, and that's a very good thing! I guess foremost would be my work with ACCESS, which is a not-for-profit organization here in The Netherlands, with offices in The Hague and Amsterdam, that helps English-speaking expatriots deal with their new home. Most people may speak English, but when dealing with government agencies, some utilities, and various other entities, one is not always met with someone you can communicate with. ACCESS helps people with all kinds of matters, and I answer questions that come in via email or phone call. Recently I put in a lot of time and effort on something called the Creative Contest. Art students in the English language schools have their creations chosen by the art teachers in their schools and then a panel of 3 judges, of which I was the head judge, chooses 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners in several age categories in 2D and 3D work. I am also the associate editor for the ACCESS magazine, and that occupies a lot of time developing and writing stories, editing other writers work, taking photographs for publication, even doing some distributing. Outside of ACCESS there's workshops. I've held four so far. I went to Munich for a week to assist a commercial photographer on a Caterpillar project (heavy equipment, not the little fuzzy tubes on your 'maters), and I do all the research, planning, and reservations regarding our travels (the holiday when Radhika's family was here took a while to put together, then there was the Normandy weekend, French Open at the end of May, this long weekend trip to Brussels, Belgium and Maastricht, Netherlands, and our week in Ireland.) Also there are personal photo projects that I do with another US photographer here, tennis (of course!), movies (3 Star Trek viewings under my belt), and the little things and daily battles.
One of the battles recently fought was with our bank here, ABN AMRO. Let me start by saying banking sucks here. Charges for EVERYTHING and severe lack of service. I went into the branch near us one day to conduct some business - it was 4:20 and they close at 5pm. The girl tells me I have to come back another day because their personnel cannot serve the amount of people waiting in the lobby. This was the latest in an endless line of poor service experiences with the bank. I went outside, unlocked my bike, but locked it back up because I didn't like where this ended. So I went back inside, asked to speak to the manager, and waited while I was scoped out by several bank employees. You see, the Dutch do not generally make "waves" when they are treated poorly - they just take it. So, when someone ramps up and starts asking questions like "How is it I come into this bank at 4:20 and am told to come back another day when there's 40 minutes left in the business day?", or "How much more pathetic does the service have to be here before I take my money out of this sorry institution?" things get interesting. Mr. Manager says they don't have enough associates for the number of customers (wrong answer!) - "Not my problem", I tell him. I was in there in the first place because of their poor security and incompetence. Someone copied our card and got the pin and started withdrawing money from Indonesia. Luckily we caught it on a Sunday and put a stop on the card immediately (Radhika wanted to know what in the hell I was buying and spending so much money on! 18 years together - - has she met me?). So, the Barney Fife's who run ABN AMRO security can't see a suspicious pattern when the same amount of money is taken from an ATM in Indonesia 1 or 2 minutes apart repeatedly? What kind of programs do they have in the network to sniff out this type of obvious nonsense? Questions that I posed the desk jockey in the bank. I appreciate when Citi contacts me in China, India, or wherever when I make a withdrawal in these places and didn't tell them beforehand that I would be there. ABN AMRO knuckleheads would sit back and watch withdrawals from an ATM installed in The Sea Of Tranquility and not blink an eye! To continue, they gave us various time frames of when they would replace the stolen funds into our account, so that was a fight. Finally, Radhika called them and she was told by the Female Fife on the bank end that they didn't know when the money would show up! Well, Muffin went off on the hapless Dutchy, got the manager on the line after verbally abusing "Ding-Dong" for a spell and Miss Manager said the funds would be put back by Monday, along with the charges for a new card and stopping the old one. YEAH!!! Can you believe their security fails and they are going to charge us for stopping the card and issuing a new one??? CLUELESS!!! But, they get away with it because the government lets them and the Dutch "take it". We finally got that settled. Next was figuring out this 200+ euro bill from the water company. Seems it's a water purification tax. Not only is the income tax 52% here, but you get taxed from every direction too, not to mention VAT, which is another 19%!!! Oh, they give some dandy tax breaks for having kids, because the Dutch have stopped having babies and in a few years there's going to be far less people to tax and support the socialist agenda here. But that baby break does nothing for us. Maybe we can go out and rent a few for the next 18 months. Anyone want to send their tax deductions (er, I mean children) over to us for a while? I got plenty more to bitch about, but I'll move on to more pleasant matters.
As you know we have been traveling fools of late. Vienna, Prague, Rothenberg, Luzern, Bordeaux, Paris, Luxembourg, Normandy, Munich, now Brussels and Maastricht this weekend. Paris again at the end of the month for the French Open before I hit New York for 3 and Orlando for 10 days before a week in Ireland and returning to Amsterdam the day of the ACDC concert. Of course that's the obvious upside of living where we are living. Still planning some more travels in the year - Barcelona being one of the destinations. It's late, and I got stuff to do. But it's good to get some writing down after such a long break. I'll try for more a little later.
One of the battles recently fought was with our bank here, ABN AMRO. Let me start by saying banking sucks here. Charges for EVERYTHING and severe lack of service. I went into the branch near us one day to conduct some business - it was 4:20 and they close at 5pm. The girl tells me I have to come back another day because their personnel cannot serve the amount of people waiting in the lobby. This was the latest in an endless line of poor service experiences with the bank. I went outside, unlocked my bike, but locked it back up because I didn't like where this ended. So I went back inside, asked to speak to the manager, and waited while I was scoped out by several bank employees. You see, the Dutch do not generally make "waves" when they are treated poorly - they just take it. So, when someone ramps up and starts asking questions like "How is it I come into this bank at 4:20 and am told to come back another day when there's 40 minutes left in the business day?", or "How much more pathetic does the service have to be here before I take my money out of this sorry institution?" things get interesting. Mr. Manager says they don't have enough associates for the number of customers (wrong answer!) - "Not my problem", I tell him. I was in there in the first place because of their poor security and incompetence. Someone copied our card and got the pin and started withdrawing money from Indonesia. Luckily we caught it on a Sunday and put a stop on the card immediately (Radhika wanted to know what in the hell I was buying and spending so much money on! 18 years together - - has she met me?). So, the Barney Fife's who run ABN AMRO security can't see a suspicious pattern when the same amount of money is taken from an ATM in Indonesia 1 or 2 minutes apart repeatedly? What kind of programs do they have in the network to sniff out this type of obvious nonsense? Questions that I posed the desk jockey in the bank. I appreciate when Citi contacts me in China, India, or wherever when I make a withdrawal in these places and didn't tell them beforehand that I would be there. ABN AMRO knuckleheads would sit back and watch withdrawals from an ATM installed in The Sea Of Tranquility and not blink an eye! To continue, they gave us various time frames of when they would replace the stolen funds into our account, so that was a fight. Finally, Radhika called them and she was told by the Female Fife on the bank end that they didn't know when the money would show up! Well, Muffin went off on the hapless Dutchy, got the manager on the line after verbally abusing "Ding-Dong" for a spell and Miss Manager said the funds would be put back by Monday, along with the charges for a new card and stopping the old one. YEAH!!! Can you believe their security fails and they are going to charge us for stopping the card and issuing a new one??? CLUELESS!!! But, they get away with it because the government lets them and the Dutch "take it". We finally got that settled. Next was figuring out this 200+ euro bill from the water company. Seems it's a water purification tax. Not only is the income tax 52% here, but you get taxed from every direction too, not to mention VAT, which is another 19%!!! Oh, they give some dandy tax breaks for having kids, because the Dutch have stopped having babies and in a few years there's going to be far less people to tax and support the socialist agenda here. But that baby break does nothing for us. Maybe we can go out and rent a few for the next 18 months. Anyone want to send their tax deductions (er, I mean children) over to us for a while? I got plenty more to bitch about, but I'll move on to more pleasant matters.
As you know we have been traveling fools of late. Vienna, Prague, Rothenberg, Luzern, Bordeaux, Paris, Luxembourg, Normandy, Munich, now Brussels and Maastricht this weekend. Paris again at the end of the month for the French Open before I hit New York for 3 and Orlando for 10 days before a week in Ireland and returning to Amsterdam the day of the ACDC concert. Of course that's the obvious upside of living where we are living. Still planning some more travels in the year - Barcelona being one of the destinations. It's late, and I got stuff to do. But it's good to get some writing down after such a long break. I'll try for more a little later.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Normandy
Okay - - still haven't gotten around to my writing, but I have another batch (21) of photos from our long weekend visit to the Normandy area of France. Was a great place, as you can see. As usual, go to the link, and the album is Normandy (duh!).
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Latest Pictures
Okay, so I am not doing so hot on the writing part, but I am making some fun pictures of the family visiting. More are on the way and I WILL get to writing again soon. So much is going on, workshops, magazine, volunteering, family visits, GE, French (Hell Yeah!) Open, a trip to Orlando and NJ, Ireland, AC/DC concert, long weekend trip to northern France, fashion photography for the portfolio, photo assisting in Berlin, etc. But I'll get some words down soon. Stay around. To see the pictures, click on the link as always and it's the European Dash album. Enjoy the slideshow!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Skiing In Germany
We went skiing last weekend and I have put up 20 images from the trip. I will write about it later. But for now, enjoy the pictures.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Been A While.....
I know, I know - - no posts in a long time. I'm finally busy with several things, and my mind is cluttered with many things to write in this forum. I will get to them... at least I hope to get to them. I'm sure you are all breathless with anticipation. But in the meantime, until I untangle those thoughts and put them down here, I wanted to advise that I have uploaded new pictures from Vienna, Austria and Bratislava, Slovakia on the blog. Just go to the link, pick the Vienna album and run the slide show. Hope you enjoy. More later - or have I lost my audience and I can shut this thing down? That's an idea. If I don't hear from anyone, I can do just that. I do enjoy it, but let's face it... it's one less thing to do and if no one reads and enjoys it there's no point. It's a DEAL! See you (maybe) later.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
New Years Eve and Year One Report
Sounds fun - - AND official, doesn't it? "Year One Report!" Actually, I thought it would be interesting (but I could be wrong) to revisit some of my thoughts about being here that I shared from a year ago, and how some of those things may have changed or still hold true. But first, let me get into our New Years Eve party, held at our crib in its "primo location" that's close to Leidseplein and the Centrum. Never held one of these, so there was excitement and tension in the planning. We were also always being asked to host some sort of shin-dig, especially by Zsolt, a co-worker of Radhika's at GE. So before we went to The Canary Islands, we visited Europe's version of Sam's Club, a place called Makro. Borrowing our friends membership card while they were in San Diego, we visited the place, list in hand, on the Saturday before we left. Not the best time to go shopping, of course, the weekend before Christmas. But it was all we had. Now, the first obstacle was getting a cart. They have a simple way of insuring that carts don't end up all over the place when shoppers are done with them. To remove a cart from the convoy line of carts, you have to insert a 1 or 2 Euro coin into a slot. It releases a chain that connects your cart to the "convoy", and to get that coin back you have to return it to the "convoy" and as you slide the chain back onto your cart, the coin pops out for you to retrieve it. No dudes huffing and puffing in the parking lot on cart duty. No carts laying in ditches or on the side of the road here. You find them only in their little cart sheds waiting to be used. It's quite smart - - quite simple. Why the US retailers don't do this puzzles me. Now, the only carts I saw initially were the size of tanks! They have the largest carts I've ever seen. It took all I had for my scrawny ass to keep from running over innocent children with it. Turning corners? Forget it. I rolled over an entire generation of "Dutchies" and took out half an aisle!! Then I see people pushing normal-sized carts! Where did those come from? Outside! So I tell R I'm not popping a hernia with this thing and I'll return it outside and get a smaller one. I got my 2 Euro coin back and went to the other side of the lot for the human-sized carts. Oops! They require a 1 Euro coin, and of course I don't have one. Back into the store for change. I finally get the cart I want (this entire process took at least 10 minutes as I have left out portions of the story) and we commence our shopping. Beer, champagne, snacks, sweets - - we're loaded up and ready for check out. Along with the meatballs from Ikea, we're pretty much set for the party when we come back.
A day of decorating and final preparations on the 30th and 31st, and we're good to go. Ultimately, we have about 25 guests in our place eating, drinking, talking, and playing a round or 2 of "Never Have I Ever". Such an international gathering!! Guests of so many descents - - Spanish, Italian, Hungarian, American, French, Romanian, Dutch, Australian, Russian, Indian, not including dual passport holders for Ireland, Poland... WOW, I hadn't thought it was SO VARIED until I compiled this list! We went from 9 until a little after 3, and the wrap up was indirectly spurred by the hosts request that 2 "partiers" should depart as they either showed up "hammered" or reached "hammerdom" the last hour or so of the party, and the likelihood of them crashing through a glass table or taking a header down the stairs was becoming more and more a probability! And when you cut off their drink supply, well, it can just get ugly. But before this, many stood out on the terrace in the cold watching fireworks from several directions. As we learned from last years experience, there seems to be no municipally organized firework shows, just people setting them off from the streets, rooftops, basically anywhere. That's why we saw a building ablaze last year and read reports of deaths and dismemberment's in print media. Also the next morning, the place looks like "shock and awe" went down the night before. The air still has sulfur and powder in it, and the ground is strewn with papers from spent ground and airborne fireworks. It's a real mess that takes days to clean up! Even with the 2 that were unable to show self restraint or recognize their own limits, the party went well, everyone had fun, food was good, there was plenty of champagne, and people made new friends and acquaintances. A good night overall. I'll get some pictures up of the evening soon.
A day of decorating and final preparations on the 30th and 31st, and we're good to go. Ultimately, we have about 25 guests in our place eating, drinking, talking, and playing a round or 2 of "Never Have I Ever". Such an international gathering!! Guests of so many descents - - Spanish, Italian, Hungarian, American, French, Romanian, Dutch, Australian, Russian, Indian, not including dual passport holders for Ireland, Poland... WOW, I hadn't thought it was SO VARIED until I compiled this list! We went from 9 until a little after 3, and the wrap up was indirectly spurred by the hosts request that 2 "partiers" should depart as they either showed up "hammered" or reached "hammerdom" the last hour or so of the party, and the likelihood of them crashing through a glass table or taking a header down the stairs was becoming more and more a probability! And when you cut off their drink supply, well, it can just get ugly. But before this, many stood out on the terrace in the cold watching fireworks from several directions. As we learned from last years experience, there seems to be no municipally organized firework shows, just people setting them off from the streets, rooftops, basically anywhere. That's why we saw a building ablaze last year and read reports of deaths and dismemberment's in print media. Also the next morning, the place looks like "shock and awe" went down the night before. The air still has sulfur and powder in it, and the ground is strewn with papers from spent ground and airborne fireworks. It's a real mess that takes days to clean up! Even with the 2 that were unable to show self restraint or recognize their own limits, the party went well, everyone had fun, food was good, there was plenty of champagne, and people made new friends and acquaintances. A good night overall. I'll get some pictures up of the evening soon.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Canary Island Remedy part 3
I got up at 7am with a slight headache and burning eyeballs (you remember/know that feeling!) and just laid there. About 8am my headache was gone and my eyeball fire was extinguished. So I got dressed and woke Radhika, as she had indicated she wanted to go with me. Yeah, that was a bundle of energy getting out of that bed! She did well, however, and we drove off to Telde which is near the airport and from there took a road that led to the middle of the island. We visited several places along the way, driving high into the mountains and into pine forests that reminded me of Florida. Small villages and scenery was enjoyed on yet another bright, sunny, blue-skied day!! Jamie had another tee time, this one for 2pm so we had to make sure we were back for him to take the car. Also, Elena, Radhika, and I were booked for massages at the place R had her aloe massage earlier in the week. I wanted a seaweed massage which is supposed to be good for the skin, but that "department" was closed on Sunday's, so I opted for a honey massage. Radhika and Elena went for the chocolate massage. My ideas of chocolate don't involve just washing it off the body when the massage was done. Seems like an awful waste to me. Even the honey wasn't my first choice, but after the seaweed wasn't available, they had one where they place hot stones on you (yeah - doesn't sound appealing) and one where you smell all of these oils during the massage. But I get ahead of myself. We visited these little places, and one destination that I plugged into the TomTom had us on a dirt road on the side of a mountain that allowed for very slow progress. R was nervous, and it didn't seem like the road was going to terminate at a breath-taking vista, as we were within 500 meters of the end and it didn't seem like there was going to be much more to see. So, I turned the car around and headed back down. We stopped in a small store, R had a cafe con leche and I had an ice cream bar. We figured at that point we should head back to give Jamie enough time to get to the golf course. Good thing too, because the traffic in Las Palmas was really bad. I pulled the car to the front of the hotel. Jamie and Elena were still on the beach. He grabbed his clubs and went off while we returned to the beach for an hour or so before our massage appointments at 4pm.
We spent an hour or so in the hydra-pool (or whatever it's called), sitting at various stations while water jets work their desired effects on your body underwater, or the several that poured gallons of water down onto you from a specifically designed spout from above. Then there's the cold water dip where neither of the girls made it into, the steam room, sauna room, and finally the room where you rub ice all over the surface of your now hot skin! Isn't this shit outlawed by the Geneva Convention, like waterboarding? Anyway, we sat in our robes with our towels, waiting for our masseuses. This short little muscular dude and nice looking, long curly-hired young woman walked by us several times. You don't have to guess too long who I was hoping for! If the dude came up to me I would've been really unhappy. But to my delight, the woman came up and asked who was getting what. When it was mentioned that I was getting the honey massage, she asked to to follow her. YES!!! Crisis averted!! We went into this room with a metal table like you have in your doctors office, even with the brown paper on it. Now I'm not a "massage expert", so I didn't know whether I'm supposed to keep my compression shorts on or off for a thing like a honey massage. Not wanting to end up looking like a fool or pervert, I just hopped up on the table, figuring she would tell me what I should do. She said nothing, so the rubbing commenced. First, she used this oil/rock mixture on me. Not the most pleasant experience one can have at a spa. Again, seemed like it belonged at Guantanamo or Abu Graib rather than a spa, but that's just my opinion. I was later told that it was salt, but it sure felt like rocks and pebbles to me! Glad my shorts were on at this point, because - - well - - I'll assume you know why. If I didn't like the course sand paper grit on my legs, back, stomach, chest, or arms, I would'nt appreciate it in any other more "sensitive" areas either! I was on my stomach first, and she rolled down my shorts enough where I could easily be confused with a plumber, if you get my drift (or is it draft?). Then she had me flip over, using what apparently is the universal signal to do so by whistling low to high, and she rolled down my shorts on the front side too! I'm thinking by now that this is usually down sans clothing, which is why they gave me a robe (duh? perhaps. Anyone feel free to set me straight on this) So after enduring what I knew to be an exfoliating procedure (hey! I know a little something about skin care!), I was sent off to another room to shower off the oil/rock mixture stuck to my body, walking bow-legged to keep the abrasion down to a minimum. I wanted to keep some of the flesh on the inside part of my thighs. After I did that, I waited. Beatrice came and got me after a while. Guess I was supposed to find my way back to the torture chamber, er, I mean massage room. I know what you're thinking too - - Beatrice!!!!? A girl can have that name and be nice looking. It is possible. So anyway, we're back in the room, it's darker, there are candles (electric ones - you know, the bulbs that "flicker" like a flame), plastic on the table, and Beatrice takes off her official-looking spa attire to reveal a spandex figure-hugging outfit underneath. HELLO!!! To quote my good friend, Chris Washington, DAMN! So I lay on my stomach, being careful not to slip off and end up on the floor as I am still very oily. This warm ooze hits my calves and feet. Finally something that feels good! She works her way up, and I finally catch the scent of honey, which is very nice. She whistles, I turn over, and it's a very relaxing and enjoyable experience. She finishes the massage, then covers me up completely in the plastic film and drapes warm towels over me. It's like I'm a twinkie in the wrapper or something sticky, like a bear claw. That was weird! She left the room, and I was like that for quite some time. I think I fell asleep. All I heard was the ticking of the clock above and behind me, and I think it lulled me to sleep. She came in, removed the towels, opened the wrapper, and then swung this arm over the table that had several nozzle heads on it that could be adjusted to spray in different directions. A forceful stream of warm water came out as she washed my front side off first. But, every so often I would hear a "beep" and the water temp would change to cool, and then another "beep" and it would change to cold, and then finally back to warm. This was a little shocking to the body. She whistled, I flipped, and soon I was rinsed off and out in the waiting area where Elena was already waiting. Radhika walked by with the short, muscular dude, and she was covered in chocolate, on her way to the wash room to have it removed. We took a picture of it before he rinsed her off. When done, we compare notes and I find out they had their behinds massaged! I felt cheated!! Radhika says it's because you're supposed to wear loose shorts so they can move them to the side or work underneath them. How was I supposed to know?! All-in-all, it was a good experience - over 2 hours of treatment for only 60 Euros. You can't get that in the US or Amsterdam from what I know. Elena indicated the chocolate treatment was a one-time deal for her, as she didn't like it as much as Radhika. We walked back to the hotel, and later that evening Radhika and I went back to The Laughing Pig, where the 4 of us ate the 2nd night of our stay, and Elena and Jamie ate at a nice Italian restaurant. We walked back to the hotel and just relaxed, knowing we were leaving the next day. Jamie and Elena tried to get some last minute sun Monday morning before checking out, and I took a bus to "Old Town" which is a section of Las Palmas that is exactly what the name implies, making some last minute pictures. Radhika seemed to get the most sun, with Jamie and I at about the same level of tanning. Elena, with her Russian ancestry and penchant for wearing a fleece jacket that covered her neck and arms on the beach got the least. Our flight ended up leaving around 3pm and we were back in our apartment by 11pm that night. Yet another fantastic place visited, another trip too short, another place we would like to revisit some day. They just keep adding up!!!
We spent an hour or so in the hydra-pool (or whatever it's called), sitting at various stations while water jets work their desired effects on your body underwater, or the several that poured gallons of water down onto you from a specifically designed spout from above. Then there's the cold water dip where neither of the girls made it into, the steam room, sauna room, and finally the room where you rub ice all over the surface of your now hot skin! Isn't this shit outlawed by the Geneva Convention, like waterboarding? Anyway, we sat in our robes with our towels, waiting for our masseuses. This short little muscular dude and nice looking, long curly-hired young woman walked by us several times. You don't have to guess too long who I was hoping for! If the dude came up to me I would've been really unhappy. But to my delight, the woman came up and asked who was getting what. When it was mentioned that I was getting the honey massage, she asked to to follow her. YES!!! Crisis averted!! We went into this room with a metal table like you have in your doctors office, even with the brown paper on it. Now I'm not a "massage expert", so I didn't know whether I'm supposed to keep my compression shorts on or off for a thing like a honey massage. Not wanting to end up looking like a fool or pervert, I just hopped up on the table, figuring she would tell me what I should do. She said nothing, so the rubbing commenced. First, she used this oil/rock mixture on me. Not the most pleasant experience one can have at a spa. Again, seemed like it belonged at Guantanamo or Abu Graib rather than a spa, but that's just my opinion. I was later told that it was salt, but it sure felt like rocks and pebbles to me! Glad my shorts were on at this point, because - - well - - I'll assume you know why. If I didn't like the course sand paper grit on my legs, back, stomach, chest, or arms, I would'nt appreciate it in any other more "sensitive" areas either! I was on my stomach first, and she rolled down my shorts enough where I could easily be confused with a plumber, if you get my drift (or is it draft?). Then she had me flip over, using what apparently is the universal signal to do so by whistling low to high, and she rolled down my shorts on the front side too! I'm thinking by now that this is usually down sans clothing, which is why they gave me a robe (duh? perhaps. Anyone feel free to set me straight on this) So after enduring what I knew to be an exfoliating procedure (hey! I know a little something about skin care!), I was sent off to another room to shower off the oil/rock mixture stuck to my body, walking bow-legged to keep the abrasion down to a minimum. I wanted to keep some of the flesh on the inside part of my thighs. After I did that, I waited. Beatrice came and got me after a while. Guess I was supposed to find my way back to the torture chamber, er, I mean massage room. I know what you're thinking too - - Beatrice!!!!? A girl can have that name and be nice looking. It is possible. So anyway, we're back in the room, it's darker, there are candles (electric ones - you know, the bulbs that "flicker" like a flame), plastic on the table, and Beatrice takes off her official-looking spa attire to reveal a spandex figure-hugging outfit underneath. HELLO!!! To quote my good friend, Chris Washington, DAMN! So I lay on my stomach, being careful not to slip off and end up on the floor as I am still very oily. This warm ooze hits my calves and feet. Finally something that feels good! She works her way up, and I finally catch the scent of honey, which is very nice. She whistles, I turn over, and it's a very relaxing and enjoyable experience. She finishes the massage, then covers me up completely in the plastic film and drapes warm towels over me. It's like I'm a twinkie in the wrapper or something sticky, like a bear claw. That was weird! She left the room, and I was like that for quite some time. I think I fell asleep. All I heard was the ticking of the clock above and behind me, and I think it lulled me to sleep. She came in, removed the towels, opened the wrapper, and then swung this arm over the table that had several nozzle heads on it that could be adjusted to spray in different directions. A forceful stream of warm water came out as she washed my front side off first. But, every so often I would hear a "beep" and the water temp would change to cool, and then another "beep" and it would change to cold, and then finally back to warm. This was a little shocking to the body. She whistled, I flipped, and soon I was rinsed off and out in the waiting area where Elena was already waiting. Radhika walked by with the short, muscular dude, and she was covered in chocolate, on her way to the wash room to have it removed. We took a picture of it before he rinsed her off. When done, we compare notes and I find out they had their behinds massaged! I felt cheated!! Radhika says it's because you're supposed to wear loose shorts so they can move them to the side or work underneath them. How was I supposed to know?! All-in-all, it was a good experience - over 2 hours of treatment for only 60 Euros. You can't get that in the US or Amsterdam from what I know. Elena indicated the chocolate treatment was a one-time deal for her, as she didn't like it as much as Radhika. We walked back to the hotel, and later that evening Radhika and I went back to The Laughing Pig, where the 4 of us ate the 2nd night of our stay, and Elena and Jamie ate at a nice Italian restaurant. We walked back to the hotel and just relaxed, knowing we were leaving the next day. Jamie and Elena tried to get some last minute sun Monday morning before checking out, and I took a bus to "Old Town" which is a section of Las Palmas that is exactly what the name implies, making some last minute pictures. Radhika seemed to get the most sun, with Jamie and I at about the same level of tanning. Elena, with her Russian ancestry and penchant for wearing a fleece jacket that covered her neck and arms on the beach got the least. Our flight ended up leaving around 3pm and we were back in our apartment by 11pm that night. Yet another fantastic place visited, another trip too short, another place we would like to revisit some day. They just keep adding up!!!
Canary Island Remedy part 2
Another early morning start for me as I drove down to the southern part of the island to check out and photograph the sand dunes and Playa Del Ingles. Again there was "fun" between the reality of the road in front of me and what the TomTom was directing me to do. Also, there is a serious lack of consistant signage to guide one along without a navigation device. All of this coupled with my obvious unfamiliarity with the area was cause for more head scratching, audible WTF's?, u-turns, dead ends, "I just passed that" moments, and the like. Luckily I used my pea-sized brain when I thought to mark on the TomTom when I came to a place that I figured I would want to find again (like the damned parking lot near our hotel which was always an adventure when returning to it). This area is much more "resortier" than where we were staying in the north. Las Palmas is a combination of business, residents, and tourism, where this southern area looks to be 99% tourism, with quite the older set from Europe being the main visitors. Plenty of topless areas and a few "all naturale" ones. Seems like the older crowd like to let the sun hit as much of their epidermis as possible. Nothing really out of the ordinary with the exception of one older "boyfriend" greasing up the privates of his younger companion with much gusto! I'm sure it was all about protection from skin cancer. Not to my surprise the men "from fit to fat" loved their "speedos" as did the women and their 2 piece bikini's. It is really quite the norm here, whereas on Canteras Beach in Las Playas there were others than myself wearing swim shorts. But most of the above 60 set had on what American's call "speedos". I spent about four hours down there walking around and making pictures before heading back to Las Palmas between 12 and 1pm. All of us spent time on the beach in the afternoon, and we made plans to return to Playa Del Ingles that evening for dinner and partake in it's nightime festivities. We spent our time on the beach, and a windy day it was indeed with sand finding its way into all sorts of places on/in the body. Jamie and Elena took a drive out to the big Media Markt near the airport while R and I hung back at the beach and hotel. We probably left for Playa Del Ingles around 7pm after Jamie and Elena returned.
Once we were all in the car and close to our destination, that's when the fun started again. Jamie seemed to think we should park in one area near where their "ant" apartment was, but Elena felt it was in a different place. Elena sounded the more confident one, so we went with her recommendation. Oops! Well, you can't win them all. Jamie gloated for some time (yeah, about the rest of the night), as we had to walk a little more then needed from where Elena had us park. We made it to the promenade area where all of the shops, restaurants, and bars are. We walked from about the middle of it to one end checking out the menus and enjoying the sidewalk solicitors who stand out there trying to coax you into their establishments. Jamie took the business card of one guy and told him we'll come back, with the guy responding if Jamie didn't he would come looking for Jamie!! That was pretty damned funny, so when we hadn't made a choice and closed back in on this guys restaurant, we parked ourselves at a nice table outside near the beach and had a great meal. The service was a little "dutch" (for those of you who have forgotten, dutch service is like "military intelligence"). The guy put on one hell of a show as he joked, cajoled, and charmed people into eating at the restaurant! After, we walked to a bar that had a guy playing electric guitar and a woman singer who were doing a pretty good job of entertaining. Better than that they had a huge gas heater right next to our table and we had them fire that up. Soon the jackets and sweaters were coming off of Elena and Radhika as we drank, talked, listened to the music, and played some lively "Connect Four". I started off with a 4 game win streak and Jamie couldn't buy a victory. Then fortunes changed and I was on the losing end. When we left we were all pretty much even in the win column, so there were no bragging rights in the Connect Four championships that evening. We moved to another bar where it was one dude, his guitar, and music machine backup. Not as good as the first bar, but okay. We then moved on to a small place that was playing some techno dance, so we just went out to the dance floor? area? spot? and stayed out there for what I would say was 30 minutes getting our exercise for the evening. There was one guy out there dancing around with a sock on his hand - - what lonliness will do to some people! I want to say 3am we got back to the hotel, and tomorrow was our last full day. Bummer! So we went to sleep, with me having the usual "get up early to shoot" plan, which would mean 4 hours sleep. Would I be able to do it? Stay tuned for part 3!
Once we were all in the car and close to our destination, that's when the fun started again. Jamie seemed to think we should park in one area near where their "ant" apartment was, but Elena felt it was in a different place. Elena sounded the more confident one, so we went with her recommendation. Oops! Well, you can't win them all. Jamie gloated for some time (yeah, about the rest of the night), as we had to walk a little more then needed from where Elena had us park. We made it to the promenade area where all of the shops, restaurants, and bars are. We walked from about the middle of it to one end checking out the menus and enjoying the sidewalk solicitors who stand out there trying to coax you into their establishments. Jamie took the business card of one guy and told him we'll come back, with the guy responding if Jamie didn't he would come looking for Jamie!! That was pretty damned funny, so when we hadn't made a choice and closed back in on this guys restaurant, we parked ourselves at a nice table outside near the beach and had a great meal. The service was a little "dutch" (for those of you who have forgotten, dutch service is like "military intelligence"). The guy put on one hell of a show as he joked, cajoled, and charmed people into eating at the restaurant! After, we walked to a bar that had a guy playing electric guitar and a woman singer who were doing a pretty good job of entertaining. Better than that they had a huge gas heater right next to our table and we had them fire that up. Soon the jackets and sweaters were coming off of Elena and Radhika as we drank, talked, listened to the music, and played some lively "Connect Four". I started off with a 4 game win streak and Jamie couldn't buy a victory. Then fortunes changed and I was on the losing end. When we left we were all pretty much even in the win column, so there were no bragging rights in the Connect Four championships that evening. We moved to another bar where it was one dude, his guitar, and music machine backup. Not as good as the first bar, but okay. We then moved on to a small place that was playing some techno dance, so we just went out to the dance floor? area? spot? and stayed out there for what I would say was 30 minutes getting our exercise for the evening. There was one guy out there dancing around with a sock on his hand - - what lonliness will do to some people! I want to say 3am we got back to the hotel, and tomorrow was our last full day. Bummer! So we went to sleep, with me having the usual "get up early to shoot" plan, which would mean 4 hours sleep. Would I be able to do it? Stay tuned for part 3!
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Canary Island Remedy
What's the next best thing to returning to Orlando for a break from this overcast, gray, dull, wet, cold, windy, icy, shit, Amsterdam winter? Turns out it's a 6 hour flight, with a connection in Madrid, to The Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa (for those who don't know that's a country below Europe, isn't that correct Miss "Maverick" Palin?!) Just what the doctor ordered between the 24th and 29th of December!
Just days before we left, we were at a dinner hosted by DC, with Jamie and Elena (GE grunts) amongst those in attendance. Well, they heard of our warm-weather getaway and started considering it the next day, pulling the trigger within hours and booking flights, car rental, and hotel. They called us, asking if it was okay if they plagiarized our vacation. Unfortunately they didn't get a hold of us, because we would said "Yes, we do mind." But, we figured the island was big enough for all 4 of us, and as luck would have it they were staying on the southern end (of course that's where Jamie would want to be)and we were in the extreme north. So, we see each other at the airport after DC was kind enough to tote Radhika and I there at 6am, and we ride the same flight to Madrid and into Gran Canaria. Note: Iberia is not a top notch airline to fly, but it's the best game in town it seems to get to this destination. Mid-70's NEVER felt so good, and when that sun hit the face it was damn near orgasmic! Jamie and Elena were kind enough to make the 20 minute drive and drop us at our hotel, which also gave them the chance to see our area. They headed out to their place, and R and I were thinking "Man! We dodged a bullet." We check in - - nice room, clean, comfortable. So we go walking around, grabbing a bite at a small place along the beach, then check out some shops. Quite a few tourists in the area. A lot of pasty Germans. Radhika and I were infants compared to most of the visitors, but hey, we'll be fine. There were some younger people around.
The next morning, we're gathering our stuff to head to the beach when the cellphone rings. Seems Jamie had ants in his bed at the apartment in Playa Del Ingles and they want to come up to where we are!!!!!!!!!!!! The Griswold's want to come to Las Palmas!!!!!!!!!! Being the generous and helpful fellow that I am, I checked and told him our hotel had rooms (DAMN!) and that they would like the rooms (ants are an extra charge). So, we're on the beach and this shadow hovers over us - - the Griswold's have relocated!!! So we all get some sun, decide to share the rental car instead of us getting one of our own for a couple of days, and grab a dinner that night. The next morning, Jamie has a tee time at a golf course near the airport. I went out early in the morning with the car, driving to 2 small town southwest of Las Palmas. I came back just in time to pick him up and we drove to the golf course, making every wrong turn you could imagine, missing exits, having the TomTom suggest we turn right into boulders and sides of buildings. It would seem that there has been major road development on the island, and many roads, roundabouts, and highways are different in the navigator then they are in reality. There was so much cursing in that car because tee time was clicking closer and closer, and there was one, edgy Australian driving that car!!! Who said Aussies are laid back? Let missing a tee time become a possibility and you'll see some daredevil maneuvers on the road. We stopped to ask this elderly Spanish woman for help. Bless her, she didn't know we were pinched for time, because she was dishing a dissertation in Spanish involving we believe every detail of the route between where we were and where we wanted to be!! I thought Jamie was gonna yell at her to shut up already!! He kept inching the car along, and I kept saying "Gracias", but that didn't stop Senora Jabber-Jaw. I think a nuke could have gone off, the land laid waste, with skeletons flying all over the place, and she still would've been flapping those lips to our singed remains!!! We finally broke away from the sweet lady (she was! and all dressed up with her fine self too) and after trial and error (mostly error) we made it to the club with under 10 minutes to spare! We should have been there close to an hour ahead of tee time, but we burned 50 minutes easily chasing down every street on the island except the right one! I went shooting in some local towns and villages while he chased the little white ball in the grass for 4 hours or so, and the girls did their thing back in Las Palmas. Radhika chilled out in the sun, Elena shopped, I made photographs, and Jamie exorcised the little old senoras voice from his ears with the whack and crack of golf balls being propelled from his club into sand and water, no doubt. I picked him up after he notified me on my cellphone, had a couple of beers at the clubhouse with another GE employee (Jim - Mr. Facilities), and then headed back to Las Palmas for dinner and relaxation. Seems Radhika had received a 2 hour water spa and aloe massage, being very mellow. I'll finish up part 2 later, and get to our New Years Eve party at the Amsterdam crib. In the meantime, enjoy the C.I. images by clicking on the link to the right and choosing the Canary Island album when you get to the Photoshop site. Enjoy!!
Just days before we left, we were at a dinner hosted by DC, with Jamie and Elena (GE grunts) amongst those in attendance. Well, they heard of our warm-weather getaway and started considering it the next day, pulling the trigger within hours and booking flights, car rental, and hotel. They called us, asking if it was okay if they plagiarized our vacation. Unfortunately they didn't get a hold of us, because we would said "Yes, we do mind." But, we figured the island was big enough for all 4 of us, and as luck would have it they were staying on the southern end (of course that's where Jamie would want to be)and we were in the extreme north. So, we see each other at the airport after DC was kind enough to tote Radhika and I there at 6am, and we ride the same flight to Madrid and into Gran Canaria. Note: Iberia is not a top notch airline to fly, but it's the best game in town it seems to get to this destination. Mid-70's NEVER felt so good, and when that sun hit the face it was damn near orgasmic! Jamie and Elena were kind enough to make the 20 minute drive and drop us at our hotel, which also gave them the chance to see our area. They headed out to their place, and R and I were thinking "Man! We dodged a bullet." We check in - - nice room, clean, comfortable. So we go walking around, grabbing a bite at a small place along the beach, then check out some shops. Quite a few tourists in the area. A lot of pasty Germans. Radhika and I were infants compared to most of the visitors, but hey, we'll be fine. There were some younger people around.
The next morning, we're gathering our stuff to head to the beach when the cellphone rings. Seems Jamie had ants in his bed at the apartment in Playa Del Ingles and they want to come up to where we are!!!!!!!!!!!! The Griswold's want to come to Las Palmas!!!!!!!!!! Being the generous and helpful fellow that I am, I checked and told him our hotel had rooms (DAMN!) and that they would like the rooms (ants are an extra charge). So, we're on the beach and this shadow hovers over us - - the Griswold's have relocated!!! So we all get some sun, decide to share the rental car instead of us getting one of our own for a couple of days, and grab a dinner that night. The next morning, Jamie has a tee time at a golf course near the airport. I went out early in the morning with the car, driving to 2 small town southwest of Las Palmas. I came back just in time to pick him up and we drove to the golf course, making every wrong turn you could imagine, missing exits, having the TomTom suggest we turn right into boulders and sides of buildings. It would seem that there has been major road development on the island, and many roads, roundabouts, and highways are different in the navigator then they are in reality. There was so much cursing in that car because tee time was clicking closer and closer, and there was one, edgy Australian driving that car!!! Who said Aussies are laid back? Let missing a tee time become a possibility and you'll see some daredevil maneuvers on the road. We stopped to ask this elderly Spanish woman for help. Bless her, she didn't know we were pinched for time, because she was dishing a dissertation in Spanish involving we believe every detail of the route between where we were and where we wanted to be!! I thought Jamie was gonna yell at her to shut up already!! He kept inching the car along, and I kept saying "Gracias", but that didn't stop Senora Jabber-Jaw. I think a nuke could have gone off, the land laid waste, with skeletons flying all over the place, and she still would've been flapping those lips to our singed remains!!! We finally broke away from the sweet lady (she was! and all dressed up with her fine self too) and after trial and error (mostly error) we made it to the club with under 10 minutes to spare! We should have been there close to an hour ahead of tee time, but we burned 50 minutes easily chasing down every street on the island except the right one! I went shooting in some local towns and villages while he chased the little white ball in the grass for 4 hours or so, and the girls did their thing back in Las Palmas. Radhika chilled out in the sun, Elena shopped, I made photographs, and Jamie exorcised the little old senoras voice from his ears with the whack and crack of golf balls being propelled from his club into sand and water, no doubt. I picked him up after he notified me on my cellphone, had a couple of beers at the clubhouse with another GE employee (Jim - Mr. Facilities), and then headed back to Las Palmas for dinner and relaxation. Seems Radhika had received a 2 hour water spa and aloe massage, being very mellow. I'll finish up part 2 later, and get to our New Years Eve party at the Amsterdam crib. In the meantime, enjoy the C.I. images by clicking on the link to the right and choosing the Canary Island album when you get to the Photoshop site. Enjoy!!
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