Starhotel Michelangelo, Rome

Globus selected Starhotel Michelangelo as our hotel in Rome. For the most part, it was a good choice, and I would opt to stay there again; here are the pluses and minus.

• While certainly not luxurious, the rooms are clean, showing a little wear here and there but overall comfortable with nothing terribly objectionable.

• The hotel is a bit hard-to-find, and to that end even the Resort Hopper shuttle service got lost. If you were to stay here, I'd recommend you print the driving directions (from the airport to the endpoint) and give them to the driver. Alternatively, you can try it own your own, using public transit, but just make sure that you realize the nearby train station is NOT the Metro but rather is the FM train. The Metro stops on the other side of the Vatican, which would be a very long walk with luggage, not to mention that the directions would be hard to follow. Having said that, once you know where the hotel is, this is very easy to access in that all you need to do is take transit or a taxi to the Vatican, and it is easy to get home from there.

• There are a couple of mini markets nearby, so you can get snacks/drinks (or even alcohol) rather than paying the full hotel price. A 750 ml bottle of whisky is 15 Euros in the mini mart, while a shot of whiskey in the hotel is 12 Euros. The math works in your favor very quickly.

• The (included) breakfast was very good, in fact a notch above most others, including meats, hot eggs and bacon. plus the normal continental items such as fruit and breads. I did not take lunch or dinner in the hotel. Room service has very limited hours (when the restaurant is open), so it really won't help any at all if you get the late night munchies (again, this is where stocking up with a few supplies from the local mini mart is a good idea).

• Staff was hit and miss. Most were helpful enough and understood English well, but occasionally you would find one who didn't want to talk, such as when I asked for a Metro map and she dismissed me with a "No." She was the exception, though unfortunately those are often the ones we remember while forgetting those who were helpful.

• TV channels were limited, and most of the time I could not find anything in English. If you really need your daily dose of CNN, this place most likely will not work for you.

• Since there seems to have been some ambiguity online, I will say they do have in-room safes, large enough to hold even a reasonably sized laptop.

• No ice machine, which unfortunately is typical of European hotels. You can try to get some from the bartender for your room, of course this is a problem in that the quantity is limited, as well as the available times.

• I won't mention the excellent location in terms of the Vatican as that has been stated about 10,000 times by now, but I will point out how close the hotel is to Trastevere, a beautiful part of Rome most tourists never see. It is "quaint" without any true historical highlights, and for that reason tour buses do not venture there, yet it is a fantastic area to walk by foot, and it is easy to find from the hotel: Head towards the Vatican (you can't miss it as St. Peter's Dome is clearly visible), turn right at the Vatican, walk for about ten minutes (through the tunnel), then turn right at the Tiber River. Walk for 15 or so minutes along the Tiber, and you will be in the heart of Trastevere.

• The biggest rip-off and disappointment with the place: WiFi is 22.00 Euros for 24 hours in the hotel. Signage all over the hotel claims WiFi is only 11.50 Euros per day, but my check-out bill clearly charged me 22; there must be a secret such as buying it from the front desk or for multiple days rather than ordering it on your computer. It is too bad a hotel such as this has to go for the ripoff, spoiling what would otherwise be a very pleasant memory of the establishment. Here is the best advice I can give you, and you can save a great deal of money with it: Buy a 10 Euro dinner (or even just a drink) at one of the local bars, and get the WiFi for free. There were at least four places in the immediate area that offer free WiFi for customers.

One great place for food, drink and free Internet is:

All Brothers Cafe

Via Delle Fornaci n8/10

Christmas Day 2010

Christmas Day, 2010

Much to my surprise, the tour group had nothing planned for today, either as part of the package or as an option, save for a dinner later in the evening which I decided to pass on, so instead I spent the day solo. Rain was on and off, though not nearly as hard as the day before. It's a shame that yesterday's weather made it difficult to enjoy the walking tour of the old section of town, yet at least it was warm enough that the temperature was not an issue.

I was concerned that Rome would be "locked down" on Christmas, much as London which essentially goes entirely dark for the holidays, so to my pleasant surprise I found many places were open, including restaurants and bars of all styles and sizes, gift shops, the local food shop, and the Hard Rock Cafe.

I was debating between attending the Papal Blessing or taking another tour of the city since the hop-on/hop-off buses were running. I decided to take the bus tour, since I had already received the blessing from the Pope during the audience with him on the previous Wednesday. (Surely I don't need two Papal blessing a week, do I?) The Wednesday audience was much smaller and "more personal," compared to the attached picture from the media which shows St. Peter's Plaza to be packed.

Surprisingly, the Metro was closed and the tour bus did not stop anywhere near the Hard Rock, so for my "pilgrimage" there, I had to take a taxi both ways. Normally, I eschew taking taxis as I think public transit will serve the need for a far better price, not to mention it is more rewarding to figure out than simply taking a cab, but with the Metro shut down I did not have much of a choice. The classic cheeseburger was pure heaven for me, as I have not had a "regular" meal in several days now. Yes, this was definitely better than the "special" seafood dinner I had planned and tried a couple of days prior. In some regards, Hard Rock is always that oasis in a foreign city, a place an American can go and get known food, wait staff with flair, and a predictable decor.

I was very tired in the late afternoon, I guess the weather and dampness got to me, so I took a three hour nap until 8:30 PM then went back to see my waitress with an attitude friend. Surprisingly, many places were still open, so even in the late evening on Christmas Day it was quite possible to find whatever

My waitress with the attitude: Xhefka Fernanda (Turkish); she actually read the above and insisted on typing her name in for me…and she swears that is really the way it is spelled.

Christmas Eve, Group Day One

Christmas Eve 2010.

I found myself wide awake at 2:00 AM this morning, so I took a quick walk around the area, hoping to stroll through the Vatican during the peace and quiet, but, much to my surprise, the Vatican shuts down and--literally--locks its gates at night! Perhaps the "country" was open had I walked around to the other side (what a strange thing to say), but I didn't feel like venturing that far in the cold and drizzle.

One thing that struck me, symbolically, was a single white dove flying over St. Peter's Basilica all by himself; he would soar into the wind, then float back a bit, all the while hovering over the dome of the basilica. In some ways, it felt very much as if the dove was doing the bird equivalent of my human stroll. Unfortunately, he was a bit too far off to photograph with my camera, but it would have been an incredible picture or video if I could have recorded it.

The group met in the morning, and we went through the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica, the Forum and the Colosseum before lunch. Seeing the basilica, in particular, was amazing on Christmas Eve morning, as they were busily putting the finishing touches on it for that night's ceremony; we were there but a scant twelve hours before the show went live.

In the afternoon, we went on a walk to the Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona (Christmas Market) and the Spanish Steps; unfortunately, it was raining, heavily, the whole time we were walking, so it was hard to take it in and enjoy. I certainly don't want to complain about something as wonderful as walking about Rome, and in fact the prior week the cold had been so severe that the fountains froze over, so in hindsight this was preferable, yet it did seem too bad that the days immediately before, and the days immediately after, were either dry, or worst case carried with them very light rain.

The Christmas market at Piazza Navona was a bit disappointing compared to, say, the markets in Germany. The German markets are more quaint and pleasantly decorated, while the Italian markets were more commercial, selling cheaper toys and trinkets than the German goods. As much as I hate the German Gluewein, I will drink a glass of it as part of the festivities, but there is no corresponding thing in Italy.

Our group dinner was held this evening (Christmas Eve), and I sat with a wonderful Catholic family of five: A husband, a wife, a son just starting college and majoring in Business, another son just starting high school, and a strikingly beautiful and brilliant young woman who was a senior in college, majoring in Math and Theology (along that line I recommended Bernard Haisch's "The Purpose-Guided Universe" to her). I have to ask: Where were these young women when I was in my early 20's? Seriously, it is a different crowd than when I was that age, much more urbane, cerebral and spiritual than what I knew in college and early adulthood.

After dinner, I walked over to the Vatican with a senior woman to watch (on an outside TV screen) the mass from St. Peter's Basilica. It was cool and damp, but the rain had subsided to the point I could easily tolerate it without a jacket or an umbrella, and I stood there for an hour with no discomfort.

This tour is pleasant, though the pace is, perhaps, a bit slow for me, in that I enjoyed the previous tempo of the trip five years prior: The drives were a bit longer, not to mention that in the same number of days we included a trip back down to Pompei, Naples and Capri, something we will not be seeing on this trip. Still, it is far, far better this time without the food poisoning or whatever it was that knocked me down five years ago!

Tweener Day

23 December 2010

Yesterday was devoted to the Vatican, namely the Papal audience and the Vatican Museums, so today (23 Dec 2010) I ventured out to the heart of Rome on the Hop On/Hop Off bus. As is typical, it is a great and easy way to get a quick overview of the city, even if the recorded narration leaves a great deal to be desired. It is odd, this was a two hour loop, yet for the entire trip I was the ONLY person on the bus…I'm not sure why, as other vehicles from other companies seemed to have people on board, but in any case I was able to get the top deck, front seat which is always highly coveted. The weather could not have been better, even to the point that I was perfectly comfortable in a simple long sleeve shirt, with no jacket.

In the evening, I met the group I would be touring with, and we received an overview of what to expect, starting with a tour of the Vatican the next morning.

For dinner, I went to one of the nearby restaurants and found what I can only label a waitress with a (fun) attitude…definitely not as spiritually and cerebrally exciting as the American woman last night, yet this one had "the attitude" that so many men (myself included) find intriguing---in limited doses Yes, it would get old very quickly if you had to deal with it regularly, yet for a fleeting encounter such as this, I always remember the waitress who just seems to know how to pull it off. And I saw her again a couple of days later, more in that day's entry.

Pope Day

Wednesday 22 December 2010

Today I had the audience with the Pope! Now, lest you think I am joking, please understand this was an audience of a couple of thousand people ("Pilgrims"), not a 1.1 with His Holiness. Nonetheless, it was incredible, literally bringing tears to my eyes a couple of times.

For background, I emphasize what I have said earlier, namely that I am not Catholic. For that matter, I am not religious in the dogmatic sense, preferring what I consider a scientific approach to the subject of creation, which actually does lead me in a spiritual direction, but that is a different discussion for a different day. In any case, to continue with the audience, every Wednesday the Pope holds a general audience to which anybody may be invited, simply by asking in advance for a free admittance ticket. The attendance at this week's event was very low (about 3000 people by my estimate, or a tad over half of what the capacity appeared to be). The clergy in the audience were surprised at the low numbers, but that notwithstanding, it was an incredible event for many reasons:

• I was 150 feet away from the Pope, closer than I ever imagined I would be.

• The Audience Hall was a bright and cheery environment, not the dark, drab, cold chamber I had feared.

• There are two types of Swiss guards, the colorful Michelangelo uniforms we all know so well, and the Secret Service types, complete with the ear tubes and speaking into their shirt sleeves! The second type was clearly visible before and during the ceremony, and I was told by a priest in the audience they carry guns.

• Nigeria was there and rocking! When the English speaking bishop introduced his pilgrims, he introduced, among others a group of about 300 Nigerians who burst out in a unified song. It was odd in that I never considered Nigeria an English speaking nation, but to my surprise that is their official language, and the song carried by so many was incredibly moving, literally bringing me to tears.

• As is usually done, the audience included a special place for Newlyweds, with most of them dressed in their wedding attire. One young couple, who actually were brought up to meet the Pope after the ceremony consisted of a woman in a street type dress and a man in jeans. I thought that incredibly tacky, until a woman next to me explained this was unexpected for them: One of the guards heard them mention that they were newlyweds (presumably lamenting they did not know about the possible special seating arrangement), and as such he invited them into the special section and to meet the Pope. I'm assuming this sort of directive came from Benedict himself, and if so I do consider that impressive: Some guy in jeans is unexpectedely meeting the Pope!

• Afterwards, I quickly saw the Vatican Museums, with the Sistine Chapel as the highlight as a "warm-up" to the group visit which would be held the next day.

My special dinner sucked!! I had decided some months back that I wanted one very nice dinner in Rome, and for some reason I felt seafood would be appropriate, so I tried the outdoor area of one of the places near the Vatican. The prawns were way overdone, tough, and essentially inedible as in Paris a bit back. Additionally, rather than asking about the wine price, I let the waiter bring me a bottle of mediocre white, only to find out later it was 25 Euros. Oh well, if every dinner risk were to turn out perfectly, it would be boring.

Unlike five years ago, this trip there are no titties on Italian TV! My last trip, it seemed that late at night most stations turned to the equivalent of US paid programming, and it usually always consisted of one or more young women topless, accompanied by a toll free number of some sort. I must not have the equivalent of cable that I had last time!

Oddly, as for the language, I often find myself defaulting to German, asking, for example, for a "vodka und tonic. or saying "bitte" rather than "per favore." Part of it, I think, is my belief that another continental language is perhaps a bit more widely used and understood than is English, and part of it is simply a feeling that speaking English everyplace in the world is just wrong. Even if I don't know the Italian phrase, or if it does not come to me immediately, trying in German seems a bit more altruistic. Then again, it might be nothing more than jet lag and confusion...

At dinner time, I met an Asian couple and their daughter in one of the restaurants, and we chatted about our military histories (the husband too had been in the service, as had I many years ago). They had a young daughter, college aged, and the three of us encouraged her to try out her operatic voice (it actually did not require much pressuring---she seemed to be longing for an audience). She did extremely well, with her voice filling the entire restaurant, They left, I had a few more drinks, and the owner went so far as to go next door to get more ice for my vodka tonic. (Ice is still treated as scarce in Europe--go figure!) By that time, I was feeling very generous, so I gave the owner 100 Euros for my 20 Euro dinner and asked him to apply the balance to a young couple who were dining there; I'm sure it covered their bill and left him a tidy tip as well. When I went back a couple of days later, he remembered me and greeted me fondly!

After dinner, I went back to the "All Brothers" cafe, and had a few drinks. One should not get drunk in public in Italy as open intoxication is not welcome, and I was certainly pressing the limit, but it seemed OK in this particular environment, with the shopkeepers appreciative of my patronage (and tips!). After I was a bit too tipsy to remember everything clearly, an incredible college-aged American woman who was studying in Rome walked in the cafe; she knew the owners and the regulars very well, she befriended me, and she chatted with me for quite some time, discussing questions about the language, religion, and the Middle East with me. I was unbelievably impressed with her maturity yet also her warmth and intelligence. I told her as I left, and still believe at this moment, that she needs to be in charge of the UN in 30 years--if only we had that caliber of clear-headed, reasonable leaders. And, to be totally honest, if I were still in my 20's, I seriously doubt I would have left the cafe without proposing to her!

Tomorrow: I go for the hop on/hop off bus tour, then a walking tour (if I am up to it), then I meet the "group" at 6:00 PM.

When in Rome..

Arrival, Tuesday afternoon, 21 December 2010.

Hello Rome, I am back for the Mulligan from 2005. This time, no food poisoning, or whatever it was you did to me five years ago!

There's a bit of time dilation going on with the blog; I meant to fill in the story as I flew over, but travel inconveniences got in the way so I miraculously went from "six days before" to "here I am." Actually, the trip from Seattle to Rome was fairly uneventful, simply the typical pains that go along with a three leg trip. (Damn, I miss living in the Bay Area where most of the world was a non-stop away!) The Air Canada flight on an Embraer (Brazilian) jet was the only real "highlight," with the passenger entertainment system indicating we had traveled over 24,000 miles in four hours. That, if true, would have made us better than twice as fast as the publicly claimed speed of the SR-71, but the flight attendant admitted it was a known software bug, and they were waiting for the patch. Thankfully the cockpit software seems to have been better tested and more accurate.

The only other point worth mentioning during the trip was my leg in Copenhagen, where snow had been extremely pervasive these last few days. When I arrived, three and a half hours before the connecting flight into Rome, I went to the transfer desk to get my boarding pass for the last leg, only to find out I was customer 171 while they were on number 76…understandable, except that they only had two (2) agents working the backlog; somehow, I (and others) thought SAS would have thrown more meat into the problem given all the publicity about the weather those prior days. In any case, I ignored that queue, went to the indicated gate for my flight into Rome, and was boarded in time for the flight without any drama. So, all in all, a rather monotonous, and lengthy, flight from SEA to YYZ (Toronto) to CPH (Copenhagen) to FCO (Rome).

Having said all that, I have just arrived in Rome, and I am in one of the local "bars" with free WiFi. I'm tired, and it is approaching 9:00 PM local time (which would mean I have been up for well over 24 hours in SEA time). I took a quick pass by the Vatican to pick up my ticket for tomorrow's audience with the Pope, and I also made a quick run through the Trastevere district to see what it had to offer. More thoughts on both of those tomorrow, when I have a chance to regrow a few of the missing braincells.

(Almost) On The Road Again

It's 14 December 2010, and in less than six days I am off, again, to Italy. For those who have known me for a bit, this is a Mulligan, a do over, of the trip I took five years ago, the one I became very sick on during the first few days. This is essentially the same thing, namely Christmas in the Vatican, New Year's in Venice (rather than Naples in 2005/2006), with Assisi and Florence in between. Full details can be found on my itinerary page by clicking the title link above. More updates as I get closer, but for now I just wanted to set the upcoming stage!!

Future Travel Thoughts

I've been home for 48 hours now, and am over the jet lag finally...It's odd in that I virtually never suffer from it, but for some reason with this trip it did hit me. Perhaps it has something to do with the cold, and not being able to walk around but rather spending more time indoors than I normally would on a vacation. In any case, after one more good night's rest I should be entirely back on the right clock.

I've already started daydreaming about my next trip, though I am not sure where to go. I do have a few ideas, as well as a few things I want to remember the next time I plan a vacation, so more or less as a reminder to myself I am going to paste them below. The list is pretty much self-explanatory:

Places you have not been but would like to see:

• New York
• Greece
• Spain
• Middle East, say Israel?
• Egypt---especially Nile River cruise
• Antarctica combined with someplace in South America
• Ocean cruise

Places you have been and would like to see again:

• London
• Paris
• Monaco
• Italy

Things to look for in a Hotel:

• Check easyHotel
• Check Novotel
• Free internet
• Guest Laundry for longer trips

Remember:

• Take seasonal weather into account: Freezing is no fun, even if you get the trip at a bargain in a place you like. Same with too hot. It's easy to say cold is "no problem" when booking a vacation in July, but look at the actual temperature you will be facing and decide objectively if you want to take the risk. Upon arriving in Berlin, for example, it was literally -9C (about 16F) and snowing...if you decide to travel next December, Egypt or Australia probably should go towards the top of the list. BTW, a really cool place to check archived weather is: http://www.eurometeo.com/english/. You can search by city and by day/hour!
  
• I love cities which have ancient history, not large bedroom communities such as Munich or Berlin. Perhaps, as you get older, this is because you appreciate the importance of something which has permanence rather than fleeting in time. Whatever the reason, keep in mind that you want to see what mankind has brought forth in this world; sitting under a palm tree and sipping a beer would be fun for 15 minutes, but you would be going bonkers after that.
  
• Maybe it is time to try an escorted tour again rather than going solo. Escorted tours are hit or miss, depending on the tour guide and your fellow travelers, so consider it but do not decide right now.
  
• Check into Boingo for Internet access...I was amazed at how much I had to pay for access in the hotels, and Boingo seems to have fairly good coverage at a decent price. Short of that, consider leaving the netbook home and checking email, etc., in Internet cafes. Gotta think this one through, as the idea of being without a computer for a couple of weeks is a bit hard to imagine!
  
• Cut back on the drinks in hotel bars: Nurse one or two at most, or buy a bottle in a supermarket if you want more (or, even sneak it in to the bar and replenish the drink you ordered!). Drink prices, with a couple of snacks thrown in, can come close to doubling the hotel bill....ouch!
  

Travel as a Political Act

I once attended a talk by Rick Steves, the travel guru, and he suggested that we think of travel as a political act, a way to broaden our minds with new ideas and experiences. Since that talk, I have considered travel a way to expand what we know and think, a way to look at things differently and to question the status quo.

To that end, there were, of course, homeless people in all of the cities I visited (save for Monte Carlo). In all cases, the picture was the same: A homeless man or woman sitting on the ground, draped in a blanket, more often than not with a dog as his or her only companion. They would often be reading, or writing, or in some cases staring at the ground, but never aggressive or troublesome to those of us passing by. Often I would drop in some change, with a feeling of powerlessness to change what was just in front of me.

In London, I walked by a man, a typical homeless person, who was sitting on the ground, reading a book, with his dog cuddled up with him, blanket over both of them. I did not give this particular scene any special thought, until I was returning back and passed him again a few minutes later. This time, a female bobbie was standing over him, talking with him. I could not help but wonder what she was discussing, since he had not been causing any trouble so I could not fathom why she would be bothering him. To my surprise, a little eavesdropping revealed that rather than harassing, she was suggesting alternatives to him over sitting on the street. She appeared to be offering places he could go to be warm, and she most certainly was not doing this in a threatening manner, but rather one of empathy. I didn't stay long a it was a very strong scene, though I did manage to snap a picture.

I should point out that I do not follow any one political party line, but I instead make my decision on any single issue based on the merits of that particular case. In some situations I am very conservative, in others very liberal, but when it comes to social matters I firmly believe it is a travesty that we have people starving on the streets, cold, homeless, alone, when we squander our taxes (10% sales tax in WA state alone) on bullshit such as ensuring that salmon can spawn. I don't care to hear about the sustainability theory: That argument is meritless when you compare it to the need to a person--not a salmon, but a person--who is in crisis and in urgent need. I have nothing but disdain for our politicians of either party who turn their backs on people while grandstanding for politically correct environmental issues. Let people starve while spending taxpayer money to ensure that fish can f*@k...yes, it is nothing short of disdain that I feel for that sort of lunacy. In that sense, I can say that this one street scene was, indeed, travel as a political act for me.

Overall Trip Thoughts

Berlin--

• In hindsight, Berlin was probably not the greatest choice I could have made, as it really feels more like a flat city than a true historical spot. I thought that with it being the 20th anniversary of the fall of The Wall that there might be a special spirit in the city, but it was not there. Berlin, and Munich for that matter, are not really cities you can dislike, but they are rather boring in that they lack the excitement of Rome, Paris, London, Tokyo, Hamburg or Koeln. Berlin felt like a large bedroom community, nothing wrong with it per se, but just not as vibrant as I had been led to believe.
• The Crowne Plaza City Center hotel was actually overpriced for what it offered, and the absurd practice of nickel and diming to death was irritating: They charged me, as a hotel guest, 8 euros to use the 8x10" sauna in the basement, while you could alternatively go to a local neighborhood sauna and pay a little over 20 euros for an all day pass in a full spa facility. I've had good luck with other Crowne Plaza hotels (the Rome St. Peters is a gem!), but the Berlin City Center was a disappointment, especially as I spent six nights there.

Paris--

• As I mentioned before, my one and only previous trip to Paris was disappointing, so I was very surprised that I enjoyed this trip so much. My biggest complaint would be the cold, which of course should be expected when traveling to Europe in winter. The Parisians, while still rude, did not really bother me. The beauty, the history, and the novelty of the city, however, stuck me much more than the last time. I feel I would like to return again, to spend a longer time when the weather is warmer.
• The Paris hotel, Hotel du Square d'Anvers, was indeed spartan, but it was clean enough, and the location superb. I might stay there again, though it would be tempting to look for a hotel which is a bit nicer, assuming price is not an overriding concern. It was two stars, but price and location were superb.

Monte Carlo--

• The highlight of the trip. As much as I enjoyed it (and the relative warmth), I am not sure that I would spend much more than three nights there at a stint, at least not without expanding the exploration to include Nice or Western Italy. The overwhelming oppulence is mind-boggling, yet after a bit feels almost like a prolonged stay at Disneyland: Incredible for a short while, but not enough diveristy for a long vacation. Still, nothing compares with living out the Bond fantasy....
• I can't say enough for the Monte Carlo Novotel hotel. It was moderately priced (about $200 per night if you pre-purchase and agree to the no cancellation/no refund risk), yet it was also very clean, bright, modern and well-located. The only complaint is that the techno music in the bar is a bit much if you listen to it for too long (as in taking all your meals there), but that notwithstanding it was a great environment. You don't get the oppulence you would at, say, the Le Meridien, but at one-third the price, and at a better location, I highly recommend the Novotel---and the sauna was free!!

London--

• I won't bother saying anything about London because I could go on non-stop about this town! That has been many vacations in and of itself for me, and it will be one again relatively soon. Let me simply say it truly is a homecoming for me. To paraphrase the saying, a man who is tired of London is tired of life.

In short:--

• While I don't regret the experience, if I had known awhile back what I know now, I would have skipped Berlin and extended the stays in Paris and Monaco, or I would have substituted Rome for Berlin. Still, it was an incredible trip. Also, if my situation were to permit, I would like to return to Europe in Spring or Fall rather than in winter; should my professional career continue to restrict my vacations to the Christmas season, then perhaps I should consider a Nile cruise or a return to Australia for the next one. All in all, though, weather complaints are relatively minor in the course of memories.

BTW, for hotels in the Heathrow area, I should point out the National Express "Hotel Hoppa" bus which runs from the terminals to all the nearby hotels. If you stay in Central London, transit from LHR to Zone 1 is easy via the tube, the Heathrow Express, or numerous other options, but you don't have these choices if you are staying in the immediate Heathrow area. I paid 20 pounds for a taxi (one way) only to find out later that afternoon that the Hotel Hoppa provides service for 4 pounds. It is a bargain to keep in mind for any LHR area hotel, and it is not well-publicized on any of the hotel websites.

Special mention to the Doubletree Airport in Seattle for a $39 upgrade to a suite on my first night! Granted, it was an opportunistic chance, and it was not guaranteed save for availability at check-in, yet for the cost of three drinks it was an amazing way to start the trip.

Also, while I did not try it on this trip, I heard of and will check out easyHotel for future vacations. This is along the line of easyJet, easyEverything (Internet cafe) and all the related serial entrepreneur attempts: Clean, cheap, no-frills. The handful of hotels they have look incredibly well-priced for their locations, so I am making a note to myself to try them at my earliest chance.

Internet access throughout Europe was very expensive, and spotty in two of the hotels (Crowne Plaza and Hotel du Square d'Anvers) even when paying over $20 per day. What is most annoying is that in many hotels in the US---including the cheapo places I care not to admit having patronized, wireless access is free. while Europe seems to have done a much better job settling on phone cell standards than have we in the US, broadband access, at least for tourists, is a letdown.

Saturday Night in London

Since my trip to Monaco required that I fly in and out of Nice, a rather small airport, flights were not available for an early morning return home, so instead I arranged to travel from Nice to Heathrow on the second to the last day of my vacation. In addition to the pragmatic consideration, this also had the advantage of allowing me a short afternoon/evening in London, my favorite city in the world. Make no mistake about it, when I first planned this vacation I had initially booked two solid weeks in London, but upon further reflection I thought it best to try to branch out a bit, so instead I did the Berlin/Paris/Monaco route instead. Nonetheless, even though this afternoon was just for a few short hours, landing in Heathrow truly felt as if I had come home.

Since I had such a short time in London, I felt it best just to touch upon my sentimental favorites, and they were, of course, as I remembered them: The Strand Hotel looked unchanged; my favorite pub, the Lyceum, was unchanged save for a a new sign out front; my favorite restaurant, Little Italy, had changed names to "La Piazza," but otherwise appeared to have the same menu; the street performers in Covent Garden were still perfomring the same act; the Upper Crust in Charing Cross was still open; and the Adelphi was of course still providing theater, with "Chicago" having moved on to a different venue and "Ratpack" playing in its stead. All in all, home seemed to be unchanged.

I chuckled at myself when I stepped off the Picadilly Line in Covent Garden, and immediately felt that I knew the area far better than Seattle, where I have lived for over five years now. A couple of young women, noticing my "Hard Rock" jacket asked me if the establishment was in the neighborhood, to which I was able to reply quickly, that no, it was near Hyde Park. An elderly man asked me where the Adelphi was, and to my joy and amazement I knew and remembered quite well where it was. If you were to ask me where the Act Theater is in Seattle, I would be reaching for the GPS, but in London I just remembered the location.

While Monaco had been far warmer than either Paris or Berlin, London had the same numbing, bone-chilling cold, so I was only able to walk about for a short bit. In a way, I was glad the weather in London was no warmer than other parts of my trip, else I might have regretted not spending more time in the city. As it is, this is a good time to head back home and to plan on returning when the weather is more conducive to walking and admiring this incredible place.

So it is now my final night, and I am spending it at the Crowne Plaza near Heathrow. The terminal conversions are still in progress, but I believe I fly out of terminal one tomorrow morning. Vacations are always bittersweet at the end, and this is no exception. At some point, I really would like to make Europe a part of my daily life rather than a vacation spot. For now, though, I should be turning in shortly rather than dreading my return home.

Blue Moon New Year's Eve

So I did manage to pull off the James Bond fantasy on New Year's Eve...the tuxedo, the Grand Casino, a Cuban cigar, and far too many vodkas. But enough about the fantasy (at least for a public blog)...

The Grand Casino was different than the other, surrounding casinos. This one consists of three different "levels" if you will: A free area which is slots, a 10 euro surcharge area with card game and slots, and an additional 10 euro surcharge area for those who are willing to don a jacket and live in the most secluded region.

I arrived at the casino just before 8:00 PM and immediately headed into the "middle" level, paying my 10 euros to have a vodka rocks in the bar. The casino was very nearly deserted at this early hour, but it did give me a chance to walk about and get familiar with the layout. In the front of this middle area is a bar, a (very expensive) buffet, and a restaurant. There were, of course, table games, and a large slot area off to the side, only this slot area was far different than what I had seen the night before. Imagine a cathedral full of slot machines, with the noise there but turned way down. Unfortunately pictures were not allowed, but it truly did seem to be a very incongruous blend, with vegas style slots in what would otherwise have been pure opulence.

I had to try the more exclusive area as quickly as possible, so I paid my extra 10 euros and entered the innermost sanctum. In this area were more tables and a bar, but virtually no patrons, just numerous employees dressed in tuxedos.

Throughout the evening I vacillated between the two areas, and though the crowds did pick up as the evening went on, neither ever become terribly crowded--in fact, the inner sanctum was virtually deserted even when I left at 11:30. I lost a couple hundred euros playing roulette (unfortunately, playing "7" in that sense did not pay off at all). I did get to witness an older Japanese businessman playing thousands of euros at the table, and though I could not tell whether he came out ahead or behind, it certainly did not matter to him: He was the consummate high roller, and was treated as such.

As the mood in the casino was somber and quiet, at 11:30 I decided to leave and see what the outside was like. This was far more in line with what you would expect for NYE: Large, noisy crowd, champagne bottles, "Bonne Annee" in the air. I spent the next half hour there, enjoying the intensity with the crowd. Though not as intense as, say, NYE in Naples, there was in any case an excitement and hope as the new year rolled in. Bonne Annee!

Monaco Thoughts

As for the Monaco casinos, they are more like the US than I thought, just no free drinks. Slots are exactly the same and make the same noises, table games look the same with a few minor variations (Just a “0” on roulette tables, no “00.”). Save for the Grand Casino, most others will allow casual clothing. I don’t gamble much, but I will give it a shot tomorrow…besides, my nemesis is not here: Cocktail waitresses. Truth be told, for a heterosexual male, it just doesn’t get any better than a beautiful young woman in a short skirt bringing free drinks. How do you concentrate on the table with that distraction at your side?



One of the things I wondered about most when I decided to travel to Monaco was whether the prices would be exorbitant, and surprisingly no, they are essentially in line with what you would expect to pay in Europe. Certainly, there are pathetically expensive options, such as $20,000 per night hotel suites in the well known Hotel de Paris, but there are more “normal” prices here than I imagined. Supermarket prices (yes, I found one almost immediately) are essentially in line with what I saw in Paris, and casual restaurants offer pizzas in the 10 euro range.




The difference between Monaco and the rest of the world is that (literally) a few feet down from the “normal” pizza place is a small storefront, plain-looking in its own right, which sells customized corporate jets, and displays in its front window a plastic mock-up of an Airbus outfitted with couches, reclining chairs and beds. What a convenience, you go out for a quick bite at the local pizza joint, and you can stop in and check on the status of your corporate Airbus right afterwards.


Monaco is, of course, synonymous with the Mediterranean seacoast, and the harbor is one of the city’s most renowned vistas. To be certain, walking past, literally, dozens of yachts is an experience beyond words. A large percentage of these come from Georgetown (Cayman Islands), though you will also find vessels from many other cities such as London.


It is coming on towards mid-afternoon, and the hotel has just dropped off their New Year treat, so I think I will take a short nap so that I can awaken later and become…..Bond, Mark Bond.

Paris Thoughts

I’m a bit out of order here as I am actually in Monaco yet publishing some more thoughts on Paris. I also acknowledge these thoughts are not fully polished, but I wanted to get the ideas down while fresh, then clean them up in the future.

Overall, I was very pleased with Paris and had a far better time than I thought I would. I knew, of course, that Europe at this time of year would be chilly, and the weather did indeed provide a bone-chilling cold. It warmed up a bit on day four in Paris (though it was raining) Unlike Berlin there was never any snow or ice on the ground, yet the weather was cold enough that it limited the time you could spend outside. Even with my thermal long-johns, and skull cap, and gloves, after eight or nine hours outside I would come back to the hotel room with a bone-chilling, painful ache that made me very tired. Unfortunately, I couldn’t really find any way to beat it: Walking around was painful, but sitting on the tour bus (even downstairs in the enclosed part) literally hurt. In short, the cold severely limited the time you could spend outside site-seeing to about eight hours at most; after that, you want to spend time in the hotel room and take a nap or stay close by in a local restaurant/brasserie. It really was too bad in that I truly enjoyed seeing the city, and I would specifically have liked to spend more time on the Left Bank. One advantage to the weather: I could buy meats or other refrigerated products and keep them outside on the window sill without any concern they would spoil!


The hotel was very warm, which given its budget price of just over $100 per night was a pleasant surprise, though in many other ways it lived up to its budget promise:

• No cable TV, aerial only, and they are still showing Michael Jackson tributes!!

• Pathetically dinky elevator, the type that I have only seen before in France. I could literally rest my back against the wall and easily reach across the longest span with my arm.

• Metal window shutters: What are they for? I don’t think it is for hurricanes, but am guessing it it perhaps to lock heat in?

• Rude hotel attendant: When asking for my key (they do make you post), I offered to show him my passport, and he snapped “Why are you doing that?” I guess I'm getting better handling snobs, in that I retorted that the better hotels required ID in such cases. This seemed to have worked in that he is a bit nicer to me from that point on. Unfortunately, it was one of those cases in which it was better to meet the rudeness with rudeness.


Though very much a tourist area, many of the shops in the Anvers area sell dirt cheap clothes, stacked in bundles, with people literally diving through them to find what they want. I’m not sure if this is a local, regional market or not, but it is odd to see so many Parisians – literally – doing headstands to dig through the clothing.

As for the language, I have never studied French and cannot understand any of the spoken word (even when looking at what is written, such as station announcements on the Metro), but I have remarkably good luck figuring out written French: Its roots must be close enough to English that I can quite often translate what is written, and I have verified this in more than one case with side-by-side translations.

Paris restaurants were better than what I experienced many years ago, perhaps because I have a better idea what to look for. Unfortunately, as is well known bread is a staple in French food, and I am definitely not a dough-head. Nonetheless, I did try real fondue (which was not as great as I expected---it’s definitely something that has a better appeal than is justified in reality), and I was surprised and pleased to see that most Paris restaurants will give you a chilled bottle of tapwater rather than making you pay for bottled.

I did find what I believe to be the perfect Paris restaurant; and it was literally right next-door to my hotel: L Table d'Anvers, http://www.latabledanvers.com/ . It was very clean and had an earth-tone modern feel to it. The food was excellent, and it was very moderately priced, especially for the region. I also splurged my last day and tried $65 glass of Cognac: You could tell the superior difference and quality, though admittedly it will only be a once or twice in a lifetime event for me.

Much to my surprise, there were only a handful of Starbucks in Paris, certainly not the one on every corner situation you expect to see in the rest of the world. While I hate to admit it, I can only drink cappuccinos for so long, and was pleased to stumble across Caffee Americano.


As in Germany, the meal “doner” (shaved lamb) is also very big in Paris. I personally don’t care for it so did not try it, but it appears to be the exact same as the German version.

Wireless Internet access was very spotty in both Paris and in Berlin, something that I found extremely surprising in this day and age. In both hotels, the throughput was very slow (as confirmed by the “very low” wireless signal level), and even after cold boots and ipconfig tweaks, login attempts usually required half a dozen or more efforts. I even tried restoring my system to a week earlier just in case something changed, but to no avail.

Monaco!

It's the 30th of December, I just flew in from Orly to Nice, and I have checked in to the Novotel in Monte Carlo. This is incredible, almost a fairy tale type of place! I'll make this entry short as I want to do some exploring, but let's just say it is absolutely the highlight of the trip. Berlin was a bit disappointing, Paris was much more fun and enjoyable than on my visit a few years ago, and Monaco is over the top. Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, and the tux arrived safely with me (in fact, not even wrinkled, much to my surprise!)

The Novotel is fantastic, modern and trendy. I'd go so far as to say that the website, for once, does not do the property justice!

The Ultimate Mulligan Fulfilled

I did finally resolve one of the more silly mistakes in my adult life, in that this last Sunday (27 Dec 2009) I visited the Louvre. As I mentioned previously, I missed it some years back during my first trip to Paris (it was closed on Tuesday, my last day in the city), and in fact this "do-over" was the main reason I retunred to Paris. I spent the better part of the day in the Louvre, and while I am by no means a student of art history, nor do I profess to understand the time periods, this was incredibly fascinating and overpowering beyond words. The Mona Lisa, Venus, and all the treasures under one roof are enough to boggle the mind. The Italian painting gallery alone is something you could spend a day wandering through, mesmerized, even if you are not an oil painting fan.

I plan to spend Monday (and perhaps Tuesday) on the hop-on/hop-off busline. More later.

The Rest of the Paris Story

So there is no doubt about it, not everything with the Paris trip has gone 100% smoothly. As that well-known journalist would say,here is the rest of the story:

The Journey from Orly to Paris: While the flight from Berlin to Paris was more or less uneventful (save for forgetting to remove my shoes at the security checkpoint, which terribly upset one Teutonic security guard), there was “a challenge” at the RER ticket machine. I flew into Orly, which compared to CDG was, indeed, a blessing, and I took the automated tram to the RER line for what should have been a 20 minute ride to Gare du Nord. When I left the tram, I noticed that the automated gateways required an RER ticket, so I stepped up to the machine to purchase one. Very quickly, I was able to determine that the cost was 9.85 in Euros, and I was pleased to see that the machine would accept credit card, or paper Euros, or Euro coins. I first attempted to pay with three different credit cards, but after trying all four orientations for each one (12 total), I realized that my cards, blessed only with the magnetic strip, would not work in a machine which expected a smart card, in essence the same contact set as is in a SIM card (the little gold contacts on the front of the card). No problem, I had thought ahead and had over 200 Euros on me. First, I tried to insert coins, but I found that I was about one Euro short of the necessary fare (somewhat akin to an old Father Guido Sarducci SNL skit, for those old enough to remember). No problem, I tried to insert the paper bills, but no slot on the machine was physically capable of accommodating paper money. I noticed, however, that there was what appeared to be a change machine, some beast which would accept my paper money and give me coins in return--except that this device was completely inoperative, even when I repeatedly tried to insert my paper into what was the obvious slot. Finally, when I was about ready to board the train back to Orly in defeat, I noticed that another machine did, indeed, have a paper bill acceptor. Had it not been for that I might have been stuck on “the MTA” (for those of you, older than myself, who recognize the song title).


Hygiene: In the interest of full disclosure, I point out upfront that I am a single heterosexual male who lives alone, so cutting corners on household hygiene is not unheard of. Yes, my body is always clean as are my clothes, but an un-vacuumed rug or plates in the sink are to be expected. With that in mind, it is somewhat disconcerting when I ordered a vodka tonic (my signature drink), only to find a "floatie" of undetermined nature in the glass. I had noticed in Germany, as well as in France, that rather than relying on Hobarts and the like, glass washing in bars consists of a quick dunk in the sink full of (warm) sudsy water, followed by an equally quick dunk in a sink full of "clean" water (water which in theory was clean, but had been compromised after repeated dunks from the first, sudsy sink). I was debating with myself how big an issue to make of this: I did not want to sound like a wimpy American complaining about something that any European would consider silly, and given that French is far from my strong point, I did not even know how to broach the subject with the bartender. With that in mind, and also knowing that the alcohol in the drink would sanitize any floatie, regardless of its origin (which I elect not to guess), I was consoling myself to accept the notion that I should discreetly "fish" the floatie out with my finger and continue with the drink. No problem, except that as I was attempting to quietly move the object from the glass, a beautiful 100 pound Rottweiler who had been quietly lying behind the bar decided to jump up on the kitchen counter and say hello. I am, of course, the consummate dog lover, believing that they not only have souls but that they are more perfect than are we humans, yet somehow the notion that a dog was hopping upon, and slobbering upon, a food bearing surface was a bit much for me. (I started at that point having visions of the origin of the floatie….) Fortunately, though, I was able to remove the floatie, while one of my dining companions casually tossed the dog a french fry, which he caught in mid-air and gobbled down, as he then removed his front paws from the counter. Floatie fished out, dog on the kitchen floor, “alles gut” as they say.

Found the light switch: OK, so the hotel does, indeed, have lights in public places, but alas they are only on for a few minutes after pushing the on-demand button, before they hibernate. Still, I might be able to retire the penlight.

Hacked my blog: This one irritates me: Not only did the hackers manage to infiltrate my email account and spam my friends, colleagues and jilted ex-lovers (you know I don’t really mean that!), but they also managed to hack this very blog, putting an entry in with a URL to what Google flagged as an "attack site."

QWERTY Not: I wish that the world would settle on one $&(#*) keyboard layout. Sure, when you have different languages (e.g., Cyrillic) I can see why the layout would need to be altered, but French keyboards have many of the keys in the “wrong” place, not to mention that you have to select caps to get numbers and the “period.”…..arghhhh. Normally this would not be an issue as I would use my own netbook, but given the hack above, I am trying to rely on wired lines, which means Internet cafes. (BTW, the availability of Internet cafes is in and of itself a great pleasure to be found in France, unlike Germany where they no longer exist.)

Escargot: OK, put some pesta on it, and give me a shot of vodka, and I can wash almost anything down…actually, it was not all that bad, if you just imagine it grew on a tree rather slithering through the ground.

Fergie is Married: The latest edition of Cosmo, sitting in the hotel lobby, highlights on its front cover a picture of BEP Fergie with a title: “Her Naughty Honeymoon Surprise.” I can’t quite bring myself to read it, lest I spend the rest of my life regretting not being on the receiving end, but I can say that for all those other articles (“HIS #1 SEX WISH” and the like), Cosmo could not be more wrong. Also, why would you want to get rid of “Muffin Top?” Playboy visualizes the average woman sitting on a piano, sipping wine in a corset while fingering herself, and Cosmo does likewise to the male image. Geeze folks, get a life and find out what a real person is like.

Deutsch ou Russki? I often am able to pass myself off in a foreign land as either a German or a Russian (though there are places such as Berlin where I have to default to Aussie as they will see right through either of the former), and I am finding that ability convenient in France Granted, the anti-American sentiment is not so great as it was during the start of the Gulf War, but somehow Europeans seem more tolerant of fellow Europeans who do not speak the local native language than they are of Americans who do not speak the language. Don’t get me wrong, I kick myself for not having continued to work on foreign language skills, yet there is some truth to the idea that English, though a de facto universal language, is still despised by many. Much better to be a German-speaker in France than an American-speaker in France: “Danke” is cool, “thanks” is not. BTW, I seem to be able to do a decent job _reading_ French, as I can usually trace it back to roots and figure out the meaning, but the spoken word skips by me every time, even if it is just listening to a subway platform announcement.

Note to self: When paying by credit card in a restaurant, tell the waiter/waitress the tip upfront, before they run the card through, rather than afterwards….Bill is “neun,” so say “zwolf” and they will write it that way. It cannot be changed after the fact.

From Berlin to Paris

I am way behind on my trip posts, so let me try to catch up quickly then possibly fill in some more details later on.

It's Saturday 26 Dec, and I have flown from Berlin to Paris. Much to my surprise, Berlin turned out to be somewhat of a disappointment, while Paris (at least initially) seems to be far more exciting and enjoyable for me. The five days I spent in Berlin were, to put it succinctly, uneventful and sterile, something that was just the opposite of what I had anticipated. I chose to spend the first days of my vacation, Christmas in particular, in what I had heard was a high energy city. While I really cannot find any specific fault with Berlin, it was very flat, sterile, sparse, almost a bedroom community, similar in many respects to Munich: Nothing to dislike, but not a place that seemed to bring about any excitement. To be fair, I arrived late on Sunday night, and the first two days were cold and snowy, so the weather certainly put much of the damper on things in and of itself. I spent the first day doing the hop-on/hop-off tour bus and was able to see the major sites: Brandenburg Gate, Reichstag, Checkpoint Charley, etc. After that, since it was literally too cold and snowy to walk about, I spent Monday and Tuesday in the sauna (Therma am Europa) across the street from the Crowne Plaza City Center. The spa, again, was a disappointment: Small and dingy, nothing at all like the grandiose Therme Erding I visited 16 months ago. I did get to see the Christmas markets, but again, nothing really jumped out at me as being a highlight.

Also, for one of the few times in my travelling career, jet lag caught up with me, and I spent virtually all of Wednesday in bed. This is odd in that normally jet lag is a non-event for me; I think it goes hand-in hand with the ho-hum feeling I had towards the city.

Paris, so far, has been a far more pleasant surprise than I remembered or expected. I was last here several years ago at the start of the Gulf War, and while the city itself had an appeal, the attitude of the Parisians soured me quickly. Perhaps I have grown more accustomed to foreign travel in those ensuing years, but while the simple rudeness is still apparent, I am able to brush it off and enjoy all the other things the city has to offer: It is lively, even though still cold outside and even though it is Boxing Day. The streets are very crowded, the shops old and helter-skelter, far from the sterile, spacious atmosphere of Berlin. Also, Paris definitely has the cosmopolitan, world mixing bowl feel of say London, Rome, Hamburg or Koln; panhandlers abound, street merchants try to sell cigarettes and perfume to you as you walk past, and chestnuts were roasting from many "merchants" pushing them about in shopping carts. One very vivid difference is that in the five full days I spent in Berlin, I only saw two Blacks, with everybody else begin Caucasian; yes, lots of Russians, but still a very fair-skinned city. Paris, of course, has every race and ethnic group imaginable.

In short, and in hindsight, I probably should have reversed Berlin and Paris, spending Christmas in France rather than in Germany.

As for the people, as I noted before, the Parisians do seem to live up to the stereotype of being rude; Berliners (and Germans in general) are far from kind, but more brisk and professional than openly rude. Granted, this may partly be due to my own behavior, in that my German is actually fairly good (at least after a few days of refreshing), while my French consists of half a dozen words. (And that assumes you count "si vous plais" as three words; if you consider it a single entity, then my French vocabulary is down to four words.)

One thing that has been problematic during this trip is Internet access, in both Germany and France. Many wireless vendors offer services, at ridiculous prices such as $15 for two hours, and as bad as the price may sound, what is even worse is that the service is terrible: Slow if it works at all, often requiring you attempt to access a page three of four times before it finally renders. I do, of course, live by the web, so having to struggle to access something that I normally take for granted is unnerving.

Also, to add to the Internet woe story, I was hacked in Berlin: Presumably somebody intercepted my cell signal while I was checking email, and thus every contact in my address book received an email from "me" sending them to a pharmaceutical drug site. On the bright side, it did result in a few replies from many people I had not heard from in years, so it was a very welcome chance to say "Happy Holidays" when I responded with the apology for spamming them!

The one itinerary item high on my list for Paris is the Louvre, as I missed it the last time I was here. (I had planned to visit it on my last day, only to find out it is closed on Tuesdays!) More than likely I will do that tomorrow, with Monday and Tuesday being free and up in the air.

The hotel in Paris ("Hotel Du Square D'Anvers) is not so nice and modern as the Crowne Plaza in Berlin, but the location is fantastic, within easy walking distance of the Gare du Nord. It's older but clean, though many of the enhancements have been made by a person whose carpentry skills are below mine: I measure once and cut twice, though this person seems not to own a tape measure and eyeballs the cut, with noticeable gaps in the woodwork an acceptable end result. Also, the hotel doesn't seem to believe in turning on lights---I'm glad I tucked away a small penlight, as I literally would not be able to walk up the stairs without it! As simple and odd as it may sound, the Parisian hotel has a reasonable public sitting area, something that was lacking in Berlin, so I can sit in public as I type my thoughts rather than being squirreled away in my room.

The Supermarket and the Christmas Market

One of the first things I do any time I am visiting a foreign country is to find and check out a local supermarket, with the reasons being twofold:

1. I like to "see how the locals live." Most local people don't live at the tourist traps, so I very much like to go to their equivalent of a Safeway or Albertsons to see how the normal people live, what is in their market, and to try some of their food.
2. On a pragmatic level, though I don't intend to save money when I travel, I do enjoy finding a way to avoid being taken by the hotel and normal tourist traps. In the picture to the left, all the food and alcohol cost me just a tad of $30 US, which may not sound all that great until you realize the the bottle of vodka ("wodka") cost me no more than the cost of one vodka tonic at the hotel bar. Granted, saving money on a trip is not my first goal, but to avoid getting taken is a nice benefit.

On a different note, Germany has always been famous for its Christmas markets, and while Berlin is no Bavaria, the Christmas market fever is in full swing here. With the snow on the ground and the chill in the air, this is an almost magical place just four days before Christmas--save for that "Gluhwein" that they are trying to push. I'm not exactly sure what it is; Wikipedia only defines it as a "muled wine" and explains that

• "Historically, wine often went bad. By adding spices and honey, it could be made drinkable again"

When I find out what that really means, I will post it, but for now say let's just say that something that sounds wonderful and happy is abyssmal--and I am not sure I agree with the "drinkable again" comment.

Beyond that, I spent the day doing the "Hop-on/Hop-off" bus thing, partly to get a quick overview of Berlin, and partly to avoid the unbelievable, record-setting cold we are seeing. More on that tomorrow.

The Christmas 2009 Odyssey Begins

It's a week before Christmas, and my vacation has just officially begun. It's back to Europe, this time for two weeks, with---

• Six nights in Berlin
• Four nights in Paris
• Three nights in Monaco (including New Year's Eve!)
• One night in London on the way back

I decided to start the vacation in the Seattle Airport Doubletree the night before my flight out...I was worried about snow (which turned out to be a non-issue), and I also did not want to hassle with the early morning wake up and drive in from home. Upon arriving at the hotel, I was very pleased to find that I had been upgraded to a penthouse suite, something I have never tried before but definitely could get used to: A corner suite with a sitting room, a bedroom, a huge bathroom with soaking tub, a balcony (which wraps around the building), and (of course) a separate wet bar.

Tomorrow morning I start out flying from Seattle to SFO, from SFO to Heathrow, and from LHR to Berlin. I'll be arriving about 6:30 PM on Sunday evening. More updates to follow....

A Philosophy to Live By...

I was curious about steak tartare, so I looked around for a recipe the other day, and I was surprised--and pleased--to find the below. For those who don't know, steak tartare is beef that is mixed with other ingredients (egg, capers, onions, anchovies, or other items of that nature) and served raw. It was very popular many years ago (my childhood or earlier), but has since fallen out of style for health reasons.

The site I found allowed comments, and people were arguing back and forth on whether or not one should eat this dish due to the health concern. The reply below, IMHO, was spot on, and beyond applying it to steak tartare, it can be equally well applied to so many other things in life when one person attempts to interfere in another's life. Read the below, enjoy it, and remember it can be easily applied to so many other arguments in this world.

"Wow. The world has really come to the point of insanity when people have nothing better to do than argue about a freaken recipe.

"Uhm...if you don't like or trust the idea...here's an idea: DONT EAT IT, FOOL! For the flip side people: Who CARES what the anti person thinks? Either eat it or don't. Nothing else matters but what YOU do when it comes to your life.

"Seriously. This is not rocket science, people. Either eat it, or don't. Problem. Solved.

"Just weird, man. In a feeble attempt to thwart anyone from wasting their valuable, precious time on responding to this...don't bother. I won't see it. I got the recipe, saw this lunacy and decided that it boggled my mind so much I had to "comment."

"Anything further is a waste of my time.

"Suggestion...? Find a new hobby rather than fighting with complete strangers on the Internet. Trust me, they are not worth your time. You'll miss your time when it's gone. Spend what little you have on people that matter.

"Later."

Google's "Tribute" To D-Day

6 June 2009 was the 65th anniversary of the D-Day Normandy landing. The search engine Bing.com marked the sacrifice of the 10,000 fallen heroes with a photograph of one of the beaches. Google celebrated the day by marking the 25th anniversary of Tetris.

Choose your search engine.