tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-227475922024-02-07T13:00:43.035-08:00The World Accordinglybabble, photos and other random things...David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.comBlogger72125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-14415575617554042442014-08-26T01:35:00.001-07:002014-08-26T01:37:01.976-07:00First test of a video for the family back home<p>Trying a first upload of a video from my Blackberry Q5.  Unfortunately I had an old micro SD card that didn’t support HD (since been rectified).  But quality is even worse as I took the original 212MB MP4 and shrunk it to about a 40MB MP4 before uploading to GoogleDrive to get it on my blog (via Live Writer).  Anyway…</p>
<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzAS56QgufhROG5wNlY4aVR2emc/edit?usp=sharing"></a>David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-57549735353531298372010-09-11T09:30:00.000-07:002010-09-11T09:31:01.103-07:00New Old Computer<p>I’ve rebuilt a freebie computer from work and put in extra memory (also freebie) and old 300GB & 160GB hard drives from an old computer and am now playing.  Did Windows Updates and it installed Windows Live and Windows Live Writer that supposedly make it easier to write blogs… well, I figured I’d play…  Here’s the only photo that happens to be on this computer… a photo from Phoenix this past New Years with the sis and bro’s family (or many of them, Alison and Max missing) on the way to a Coyotes game (the old Jets).</p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjSzq-o8eCWxTcz257JinEIHy_RvWB1aYm1wriV2Tzy3NGBiZSF7ggLhlULk933VxjLatHUEtklD7iK9dn6cOSc-rhq-PaAaICW270Nqrk86ZKBmE8h_tlEcbYa_cAzKh2MAMswg/s1600-h/margaritapic%5B2%5D.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="margaritapic" border="0" alt="margaritapic" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm-Jsf_8KWgUgdrjzqIPtCslTbrkXb4T_79icGCxzKRPrcdtk7L3pFwWnVvIAs9ezGRgVB3I6yoSbamI_w3LIYtT3yySXCzoJ4bilxo13KXLlEuZO0BhLmNi0ifLePv6fDdvXLHA/?imgmax=800" width="244" height="184" /></a></p> David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-51693326404433051482009-09-24T06:02:00.000-07:002009-09-24T06:29:11.927-07:00I'm a CelebrityI've got some photos to post of trips Netherlands, Turkey and Norway, but going to be a week or so before I get around to it. But in the mean time, just to prove I actually was there, here's a photo of Pat and I in Stavanger...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizcCGF8ZDYzEo7OiiXHV4PrYVvaEyz1dkvy324mUaQ0chRd0m4h1awslx76qaxE361S7rgZv6XB5WzHpk83jIO8Md1nnsUGeSEut8zuxu0Ke-yFbcg-drKxU1soffdtphyr5LAhQ/s1600-h/avisen+scan+small.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 224px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizcCGF8ZDYzEo7OiiXHV4PrYVvaEyz1dkvy324mUaQ0chRd0m4h1awslx76qaxE361S7rgZv6XB5WzHpk83jIO8Md1nnsUGeSEut8zuxu0Ke-yFbcg-drKxU1soffdtphyr5LAhQ/s320/avisen+scan+small.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385025308249233874" /></a>David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-58862755446877201722009-08-15T05:13:00.001-07:002009-08-15T05:32:54.787-07:00finally a post againOkay, it's been a few months. Probably most people have given up on me posting again. Work got a little intense and it's summer and... I've got a list of excuses, let me go grab a couple more :)<br /><br />Work was intense. Second week in July I got out a report that was three volumes and over 1000 pages documenting most of what I had been working on for 13 months. And then July 30 I was in Belfast to present the reports to the regulator and have a meeting. Anyway, since getting the reports done I've started to refocus and reduce the workload and have been doing a pretty good job.<br /><br />I've been doing a fair bit of play as well... I've spent a weekend sailing around the Isle of Wight (near Portsmouth), have been hiking in Dartmoor (SW England near Cornwall) and Gower (south Wales), climbing in the Wye Valley (on the border with Wales and England at the River Severn), kayaking near Brighton, etc. etc. So definitely have been getting a chance to see some of the British country side.<br /><br />I've been pretty bad about bringing my camera or getting photos from others (or just too lazy to keep them in one place). Here are a couple from Gowers a couple weeks back:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRIwpnniwEhCCXjJHqDHfQ4jC1_KvwK46tPwOM-vVh1KdEE6TEBfjQ-b_Bq0DiUTPSDlIyD84iMf8P7D1G-QlCYV2z00ZkE3JXXoO8QrsbazH1Q2BcV5C7V9rJx8FJobfhYHXfIA/s1600-h/Gower2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRIwpnniwEhCCXjJHqDHfQ4jC1_KvwK46tPwOM-vVh1KdEE6TEBfjQ-b_Bq0DiUTPSDlIyD84iMf8P7D1G-QlCYV2z00ZkE3JXXoO8QrsbazH1Q2BcV5C7V9rJx8FJobfhYHXfIA/s320/Gower2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370165444072694770" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintFiHYwF0pFa_YnzsuV8rlgACdt1nqRrSK52Gb3QAsajeB152CBXulrJDG2nN4xRllXi_Vxnz9xEQM70wGIVWzjcTqViIa9teUOV9xHo2eJJdluwmBSSbQOKiyZ3N9ii44luWAA/s1600-h/Gower1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEintFiHYwF0pFa_YnzsuV8rlgACdt1nqRrSK52Gb3QAsajeB152CBXulrJDG2nN4xRllXi_Vxnz9xEQM70wGIVWzjcTqViIa9teUOV9xHo2eJJdluwmBSSbQOKiyZ3N9ii44luWAA/s320/Gower1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370165291391452162" /></a><br /><br />And a couple weeks ago I got dressed up and went to the Cartier's International Polo and saw England and Argentina play along with my buddy Prince Chuck. Quite a snooty affair, but fun none the less:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYOc3HZzaboHoK8mSe3HNtZMkih9C999pIC-R5ffYGh3-r_lpwmmUsns_dUCxBVL0lrGadMxbAMRTbydsLnUllyNUPKjFpDYoBpzUGOAsaxDX5PtAKONSSbxLS19Agt451vtXYA/s1600-h/Polo4.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYOc3HZzaboHoK8mSe3HNtZMkih9C999pIC-R5ffYGh3-r_lpwmmUsns_dUCxBVL0lrGadMxbAMRTbydsLnUllyNUPKjFpDYoBpzUGOAsaxDX5PtAKONSSbxLS19Agt451vtXYA/s320/Polo4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370166522013849202" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxT98_9Dmj2ARTgynBj61vsKpxV-d8EHJ1WuSbM7qiTvOsRtJd_VqyhP49qCcEOCYQkgWdXO6jtn-dp7uAt6L79S2Uiw7EQTtAM4_HEn65vQ4hkZwcq8qpEJ1pMkbMcM05FXVkwg/s1600-h/Polo3.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxT98_9Dmj2ARTgynBj61vsKpxV-d8EHJ1WuSbM7qiTvOsRtJd_VqyhP49qCcEOCYQkgWdXO6jtn-dp7uAt6L79S2Uiw7EQTtAM4_HEn65vQ4hkZwcq8qpEJ1pMkbMcM05FXVkwg/s320/Polo3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370166515764793138" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibyMUKgIeRSec6v53NoneQYYdgvdETpvwx5FJ9x__bEAepIo_p8QOrKM-FZ19wcpQLBxmMgusWsxemTjiZ8aG6ydIzOsxljT4gtM0ba90EmUQKe3EN3B6THDlHONfY5IHLUd6wiw/s1600-h/Polo2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibyMUKgIeRSec6v53NoneQYYdgvdETpvwx5FJ9x__bEAepIo_p8QOrKM-FZ19wcpQLBxmMgusWsxemTjiZ8aG6ydIzOsxljT4gtM0ba90EmUQKe3EN3B6THDlHONfY5IHLUd6wiw/s320/Polo2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370166509592309794" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzdsf73SdnNbTwT-YLkS6wJ3YGpOdUW5dZYRniNcm_v0eyQBVhc_2yy7DNemjR_7bEkBK03d3gfx7RLfD21tk8rUXHk_TqwTDYxmKEQfAQPRmDmmc2J0b2QnzyeOGJ-JHRtaQypw/s1600-h/Polo1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzdsf73SdnNbTwT-YLkS6wJ3YGpOdUW5dZYRniNcm_v0eyQBVhc_2yy7DNemjR_7bEkBK03d3gfx7RLfD21tk8rUXHk_TqwTDYxmKEQfAQPRmDmmc2J0b2QnzyeOGJ-JHRtaQypw/s320/Polo1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370166264203174098" /></a><br /><br />As for the next few months, I'm still trying to get to the Netherlands to visit Jen, Darran & Jenny and Lisette, also Norway to visit Pat & Stef, and various places. I've bought tickets to climb Mt. Toukbal in Morocco starting on my birthday (Oct. 7 for those that want to send an early present) and I'm off to Turkey in a couple weeks though I still haven't bought my ticket. And I need to do a better job of working from France as I don't pay taxes when I work there!! (just did my UK taxes and getting 15% of my taxes back from last year!) I'll try to do a better job of snapping some photos and writing blogs in the coming months!!David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-32784328731154451152009-04-12T07:07:00.000-07:002009-04-12T07:42:33.895-07:00Florida wildlife from past days...A few animals from the Florida everglades...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSPwwCILF02kgMeKQbXPwQZojc6QESgirupPuB32ymYTLob55hxuAED8K3HiHQdQ0nPCIrqDPD5gL66hVKy50qJg2eJ9Pkpc4zOQy0otipsiJBEWATr5DQpEhsTe6kjZBo8y9Mqg/s1600-h/Alig+3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSPwwCILF02kgMeKQbXPwQZojc6QESgirupPuB32ymYTLob55hxuAED8K3HiHQdQ0nPCIrqDPD5gL66hVKy50qJg2eJ9Pkpc4zOQy0otipsiJBEWATr5DQpEhsTe6kjZBo8y9Mqg/s320/Alig+3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323812403376902130" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEF6YnCmepHY68TRch0vHSGQUaWiHHxYDKAhDt5OV_n0C8rEXb0EfXA_6vYdk_rGu8qlcV9Hajp2__qShdMK7IKfMdBLilTXeXQH8mcmWDO0IPb6BQgIhBKor-PpbarBG4IBuZTw/s1600-h/Alig+1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEF6YnCmepHY68TRch0vHSGQUaWiHHxYDKAhDt5OV_n0C8rEXb0EfXA_6vYdk_rGu8qlcV9Hajp2__qShdMK7IKfMdBLilTXeXQH8mcmWDO0IPb6BQgIhBKor-PpbarBG4IBuZTw/s320/Alig+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323812410294464226" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPBo_GdEYGvdK4BoxkdDrChodF42bA85KVbLYjie8aDfsCFZHrJy4EvVDorM97LtQLD6sRL8RT98DzwneM1pO40hlOSzFirfEjQveGn8WWUkUeuf4FNooQDn-TOo4MUebrOxJ2_Q/s1600-h/Alig+2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPBo_GdEYGvdK4BoxkdDrChodF42bA85KVbLYjie8aDfsCFZHrJy4EvVDorM97LtQLD6sRL8RT98DzwneM1pO40hlOSzFirfEjQveGn8WWUkUeuf4FNooQDn-TOo4MUebrOxJ2_Q/s320/Alig+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323812410998920242" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuoCOyNYpZnJm7QwA_b2ZUStamC1CO8SISDZufJURRVOriw5VE_WGl9ceXltkuDUMrIs6vPUCLJwlVXWIjlB50agyQci1hVtNssLuUMkpcO5fjCg2bBl5CJB0g081Ht2NHYgQgmw/s1600-h/Bird+5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuoCOyNYpZnJm7QwA_b2ZUStamC1CO8SISDZufJURRVOriw5VE_WGl9ceXltkuDUMrIs6vPUCLJwlVXWIjlB50agyQci1hVtNssLuUMkpcO5fjCg2bBl5CJB0g081Ht2NHYgQgmw/s320/Bird+5.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323813624525487346" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlotLQpNOf6hKqVHt3CiKUMOQLHJlWUOuGOAGyMpWcurOp-xXRun2i1NfjN2ksZE_kSEnzObwN2ZxVCI6PQVr4zzC9WEwfsSOrrhI_bJj5TcTmj4IshyQ6aUuyHZPAMrOo6CMAJg/s1600-h/Bird+6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlotLQpNOf6hKqVHt3CiKUMOQLHJlWUOuGOAGyMpWcurOp-xXRun2i1NfjN2ksZE_kSEnzObwN2ZxVCI6PQVr4zzC9WEwfsSOrrhI_bJj5TcTmj4IshyQ6aUuyHZPAMrOo6CMAJg/s320/Bird+6.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323814763072873410" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxuD1Lm7g8U2svmJ6GOUArMZN_pVDBy1VVsxtObDFtG77MHwYaEO-Of58JIz4MhRH2h9ptYhcQY48dCuCjsH0re1greZvl3k783Cd2BOH8S4u-9KxjIeUczJcLRHSzU5To0pbCNw/s1600-h/Bird+3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxuD1Lm7g8U2svmJ6GOUArMZN_pVDBy1VVsxtObDFtG77MHwYaEO-Of58JIz4MhRH2h9ptYhcQY48dCuCjsH0re1greZvl3k783Cd2BOH8S4u-9KxjIeUczJcLRHSzU5To0pbCNw/s320/Bird+3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323813617416892002" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA7loLB_hHBETVFhHnj7BqbBCqiQ7bjjVpJeNNaqPLC5ib4MX0JuzcfjntRUb-9jjqo99QCRpugq_2coyNq5qrLEtn_ecWz1wha7VRHpRuwGp2Yhbmalvr4MaAwvimVHr3qsMY4A/s1600-h/Bird+2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA7loLB_hHBETVFhHnj7BqbBCqiQ7bjjVpJeNNaqPLC5ib4MX0JuzcfjntRUb-9jjqo99QCRpugq_2coyNq5qrLEtn_ecWz1wha7VRHpRuwGp2Yhbmalvr4MaAwvimVHr3qsMY4A/s320/Bird+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323813618121231138" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxtvFifZPpbHUNy3mTV0zi4-xPeo_TKZyakFR2We31jPX3DneDmlLQIaxIFFVxeGG7GoZZv1EeykuzODNe4TJnuiFhjXQwmu2u4njyK45wwpu3vYoQtas8oUDRW5OQ-ghFl8g2QQ/s1600-h/Bird+1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxtvFifZPpbHUNy3mTV0zi4-xPeo_TKZyakFR2We31jPX3DneDmlLQIaxIFFVxeGG7GoZZv1EeykuzODNe4TJnuiFhjXQwmu2u4njyK45wwpu3vYoQtas8oUDRW5OQ-ghFl8g2QQ/s320/Bird+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323813612960633570" /></a>David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-3386406402063598412009-03-03T01:48:00.000-08:002009-03-03T02:10:07.171-08:00first week in FranceLast week was my first somewhat normal week working and living in France. Not entirely, but somewhat. I travelled to Lyon (plan) Tuesday afternoon and caught up with Jim (from our Germany office, we're both Project Managers) at the flat. The flat is a 2-bedroom with a living (w/ pull out couch) and a small dining area and kitchen. And all stylishly decorated with flat screens in living room and bedrooms, so not too bad. <br /><br />The next day I went into the office of the company we're partnered with in France and got neck deep in the projects I've kind of been ignoring for a bit. And I won't bore you with details, but mostly just scoping and setting up proposals and such for the French projects right now. And then for Thursday and Friday I mostly worked out of the flat and didn't go into the office, which means I could have been working on a beach in Asia (a consideration!!), but anyway... went out a couple times once to a good brew pub near the stadium... Gerand was it? So that was my first somewhat normal week in Lyon.<br /><br />To keep things interesting, I left Lyon Saturday morning and headed to Paris by train. I've a friend here and spent Sat & Sun night. Wasn't a cloud in the sky and over 20 so we sat around in tshirts on the Seine Saturday afternoon... very rough... Then went to a house party on Sat night on the hill near Sacre Coeur (Montemarte). Here I drank what seemed a very reasonable / normal amount of beer, but in retrospective, drank too little water during the day, leading to nice headache Sunday morning. So Sunday started rather slow going to a markets (near Bastille) and we sat around in a sidewalk cafe for a couple hours. And then I got setup with a couple other friends going to the Musee Pampidou, which was free along with all museums on the first Sunday of the month. And was good because one of these friends didn't talk English so it forced the conversation for the afternoon/evening entirely into French, which is much better for my practicing!!<br /><br />Well, that's about it. Had a nice home-cooked salmon dinner last night and now I'm on the trainsoon to go into the chunnel and should be at work in London in another hour. Must admit, I've spent ~€350 on trains coming home through Paris (which I plan to expense) rather than the €70 a flight would have cost from Lyon to London, but I'm not charging my travel time, so I feel no guilt. But it is still amazing that trains can be that much more expensive than flying. But travel city center to city center sure makes life easy (I left the apartment about 1hr 10min before my train was to depart, just try to do that for the airport!)<br /><br />And my goal now is to stay in London for 2 weeks without any travel. I'm thinking I've got a shot!! Other goals for those who care:<br /><br />- make all my French classes for next 2 weeks and actually do my homework<br /> and practice occasionally (there's a few French group get togethers I <br /> can attend if I get off butt)<br /><br />- make it to the climbing gym again for the first time in 6 months<br /><br />- get signed up with the gym across the street from work that work pays for <br /> and I haven't registered with despite being full time in London since July<br /><br />- getting telephone and tv at the flat tomorrow - have to stay home all <br /> day :( internet will follow in 12-15 business days<br /><br />- thinking I might by a plant for the flat and make it look like someone <br /> lives there (did I mention I bought a print for the wall? a Lichtenstein...)<br /><br />- I'm avoiding putting work things down as priorities to do, though the <br /> sad realiity is....<br /><br />- make plans for some trips... Netherlands in April to visit Jen, Darran <br /> & Jenny and soon to be Lisette as well!, find a time for Canada in the <br /> summer, and then my sister and her kids in August (Lyon and then Greece<br /> & Italy I think is the plan) - but I'm also thinking of working in a trip<br /> to somewhere new... was thinking Egypt, someone just planted the thought<br /> of Istanbul... somewhere for just a 3-4 day weekend might be nice and <br /> easily doable.<br /><br />- oh, and I hopefully hired someone on Friday, but assuming they accept, <br /> they won't really start until April 10, so I can't start dumping on them<br /> until then. this should really help give me more of a life!!<br /><br />Okay, I must stop writing and go for my pain au chocolat, jus d'orange et grande creme (whichis more or less a cafe au lait or maybe a latee from what I can tell). Priorities!!<br /><br />So does this blog make my mother happy? And I'll have a phone in my flat so you can start calling me at 4AM! And my sister can rack up my cell phone with roaming charges in Paris while I give instructions on how to install a portable hard drive! Seriously, that's pricey tech support!! :)<br /><br />(Quick little side note... it's the next day and I'm finally putting this into the blog... missed French class last night and went for some really yummy Indian food instead... just got my landline hooked up, the number for which I'm not going to put online!! now waiting for the Sky-tv guy...)David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-68454112260926687332009-01-27T05:57:00.000-08:002009-01-27T06:00:17.007-08:00to watch or not to watch...The biggest dilemma of my life right now is whether I should get cable and internet. Right now I snag wireless off the corner coffee shop and it is slow and unreliable. So here are the considerations:<br /><br />- ~£30/month, 12 month contract for sat TV (w/ digital box w/ 40hr recording), high-speed internet and a phone line<br /><br />- I'm supposed to be paying an annual TV tax that everyone with a TV pays; I've avoided it so far and could be prosecuted, but plan to play the dumb Canadian who is hardly ever here (not far from the truth). But if I get my sat TV hooked up, I'm going to have a hard time playing dumb (okay, I can still pull it off pretty easy).<br /><br />- As soon as I commit, I'll get fire or want to move.<br /><br />- If I don't commit, I'll be in London for 13 years without good TV.<br /><br />- If I do commit, then I can watch Battelstar Galactica & Lost live on TV, recorded on the Sky digital box, or via high-speed internet (via my US work VPN)<br /><br />- If I don't commit, I could take the ~£450 at the end of each year and go on vacation (this rationale falls apart because whether I spend the money on the TV has nothing to do with whether I'll go on vacation).<br /><br />So it more or less comes down to the fact that I'm an analytical Libra who doesn't make decisions very quickly. An intuitive friend in the bar last night suggested that I treat digital cable boxes and women the same way... I keep looking at the specs, weighing the options, humming and hawing, and then do nothing until the decision is ultimately made by me moving countries. Ouch, but somewhat true! So maybe I should:<br /><br />A. get married<br />B. get cable<br />C. A and read more books<br />D. B and go to the bar more often<br />E. A but only after B and only if B doesn't cause A not to happen <br /> because I never leave the house<br /><br />Well, too much babble about nothing I know. Besides cable/TV/, life is good. Was in Madrid most of last week for training and meetings. Came home Friday 9PM and found the construction guy (washing machine leak of months ago finally being fixed) had locked a lock on my door for which I didn't have a key. Forced me to go sleep at a friends Friday night. This week I'm in London for the entire week (yahoo!) and next week off to Lyon Mon-Weds for meetings. Hopefully be my first time staying in the new flat (Ed, Lisette, Robyin and others that have already made reservations - should be getting it any day now). <br /><br />Only other thing new is that I'm taking French classes Mon & Weds nights. I've got homework to do tonight actually :) This and my time in Lyon should do wonders! I'm already much more fluent in being able to have conversations, but the future conditional, future proche and future simple are all causing me to revisit my past... quite strange!!<br /><br />So between the travelling, classes, work still being nuts and some general trouble causing and visiting of establishments providing alcoholic beverages (Madrid was bad for this!), I'm rather out of control. One of my new year's resolutions was to slow down and haven't quite managed that yet. Though meeting with the recruiter at 4:30 this aft about some possible hires to support me this has been listed as high priority for him for 2 months now and still no one hired while our #1 competitor has laid off 25% of their workforce... how can we not find a suitable candidate?!?!<br /><br />Did I mention I'm finally feeling 100%. Had a nasty something when I got back from NA, strep or mono or something that laid me out for most of a week with a fever and then kept me wiped for the next couple weeks (several family members back home had it all weeks apart, which makes it sound like mono, which would also explain the tiredness afterwards, though my niece just last week, about 3 weeks after I left, came down with a confirmed case of strep). Anyway, finally feeling like my old workaholic self. And speaking of that, I'm leading a conference call with the client in 2 minutes and I guess I'll be winging it!!David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-39602466519100386092008-12-06T03:07:00.000-08:002008-12-06T03:39:11.530-08:00winter update...My mother has complained I haven't blogged in while and whether I still have a cold (that was so two months ago!! quite healthy right now). And I hope I stay health as things are too busy right now. Everything is going very well, just 9.5 out of 10 on the pace. Mostly work, but other things too. Maybe I'll start off with the work Xmas party a few nights ago. I'll share a few photos (there are some others, but there are some work photos that just don't need to be widely distributed!). The party was at the Kensington Roof Gardens, which are owned by Richard Branson and supposedly a posh venue. Unfortunately it was cold and we never really got to take advantage of the roof garden (except Christian and I sneaking out the staff door to see the flamingos).<br /><br />(actually, the dialog box to add photos is showing up on my 2nd monitor, which isn't attached - despite clicking the right boxes on the driver settings, it's still not working, so maybe we'll add photos at a later time!)<br /><br />I have another Xmas party this coming week for the Olympics in the London Dungeons space. Not the official dungeons, but an equally neat space of mazey type rooms. I've been there once before as it's also like a club / strange space on Friday and Saturday nights. I'm sure it will be fun and messy.<br /><br />Work in Ireland is still going full speed, but I'm not making any more site visits (maybe till March when everyone gets together for a meeting onsite). The project is still humming and I'm trying to delegate and hire someone to delegate more. And the delegation is largely because I've taken the PM role for two projects in France, one of which is completely in French, and I'm about to get thrown into another. I'm off to Strasbourg on Dec 15 for a few days to kick off one of the projects. We're talking about renting a company flat in Lyon so myself and others can have a place to go and stay for a week at a time type thing. <br /><br />Had my first visitor come for a visit (friend from California) and that was nice. I felt a bit guilty that I didn't have more time to "hang", but work blows up when I don't stay on top of things. I have another visitor coming next weekend, but just for a couple days on her way to Africa.<br /><br />Let's see... other things... I was in Madrid for a few days of meetings and team chartering. (my boss from France came for the meeting and we went out partying till 3AM the day before I led the team chargering meeting... bad idea!) I spent a lot of hours building a Data Management team over the past couple months (all non-billable!) and managed to do what every said was impossible and get two of the key team members (one from Milan, one from Madrid) sent to California for two weeks of training. Now if things don't go smoothly it's my neck on the line. And the really sad things is when I was getting the funding approved by the Global Lead, he asked if I should also go to California to oversee the training and make sure all goes well. And the really really sad thing is, I'm so busy, I had to say no. How pathetic!! Oh well. One of them is in San Francisco tonight and he's being taken out by a few of my friends, so that should lead to some good stories!<br /><br />I'm heading back to Winnipeg on the 19th for 12 days. (12 days of Christmas?) Then I'm off to Chicago for New Years! Chicago has always been on my list of cool cities to visit and a friend and I have excess Hilton points and we're staying at the Drake for 3 nights! I know nothing about the Drake except it was often the hotel you'd here at the end of Oprah or Wheel of Fortune or some show like that where they'd say "Our guests stay at the Drake located on the .... blah blah". Anyways should be fun.<br /><br />Okay, must get a move on as I'm off to a French movie this afternoon with some friends. Have been going to this French conversation class thing every Monday and trying to practice as much as I can. I think in the new year I'll be taking proper classes, too. I better since the proposals and workplans and such on one of my projects is entirely in French. Yikes! Hope all is great with everyone!David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-11242778136603767822008-10-12T04:39:00.000-07:002008-10-12T05:41:03.841-07:00update from Northern IrelandWell, I say update from Northern Ireland, but I'm actually back in London for 72 hours. And even then I went up to Birmingham yesterday. But I figured I'd visit my apartment to make sure it's in one piece. Quite a strange feeling to be coming back to London and have a sense of coming home (maybe not home home, but home none the less). Though the flat still does need some work to feel like home (like say something hung on a wall?!).<br /><br />I've got a good set up in in Derry (aka Londonderry depending upon your religious & political persuasion) with a nice flat (5 of us in the same building), though it definitely wouldn't be my city of choice if I ever chose to live in Ireland (would definitely choose Belfast or Dublin). I'm really looking forward to having some more time in London, but as far as field jobs go, it's a good set up with good people. And the UK driving is coming along... I can now say I am 98% when shifting with my left hand and staying on the left (wrong) side of the road. I still find myself routinely trying to get in the passenger door to drive and can't reverse looking over my left shoulder, but will probably come.<br /><br />Work has been quite intense lately. I'm managing the Northern Ireland project and doing very little "field work" despite the fact I'm in the field (I spend most my time sitting in the field trailer drinking lattes). But the budget has tripled since I took over and has gone from me managing 1 or 2 people to having a team of 4-5 people full time and many others part time with me trying to hold on to the reins. I've been working from site trying to train up the field team and deal with all the clients that want to come and see the site. Has sometimes felt like I'm getting very little done and everything is piling up. But everyone (including bosses and clients) and very happy with the status and prospects.<br /><br />At the same time I was in Lyon for meetings a few weeks (month?) back and I'm now senior hydro for a project in Strasbourg. I need to do a site visit and kick off some work there in a few weeks. Apparently the client is sold that the N. Ireland project is going so well and was quite impressed at the meeting and Ireland site visit, so now they want me to the same in France. So I'm getting lots of kudos (literally told I have been the turning point for sealing the contract for the next 3 years across all of Europe), but lots of pressure to keep up the pace! Sheesh.<br /><br />And then at the same time I've been given the task of recruiting another hydro for the London office and a data manager for the Milan office. I'll probably head over to Milan in late October for a visit while some staff are visiting from the US. The sacrifices I make... :) Starting to get involved in recruiting and my more regional roles are great for the career, but I have time to do this like I have money to burn (which obviously I don't with the stock market down - though I must say I've been hoarding cash in savings accounts for the past 18 months and I'm feeling like a genius right about now). <br /><br />Well, that's a lot of babble all about work, but that's certainly been most of my life this past month. What else... I made some friends in Paris during my travels to Lyon and that could be fun in the coming months (especially as I have more upcoming work in France). And I've been on a couple dates with someone I met in London (though she's a doctor living in Birmingham, so definitely limitations). And I've bought my ticket home to Winnipeg for Christmas and Chicago for New Years (home to Wpg on Friday Dec 19 and leave Wednesday Dec 31). And there are 3 flies in my apartment.<br /><br />Oh, almost forgot, I think I'm almost a Canadian employee again! At least they've screwed up and can no longer direct deposit my US paycheques / expense cheques - a sign the transfer really is happening!! Not sure if you can all follow this as I know I can't.... I'm currently a Canadian with a US work visa based in US but working in the UK with a UK visa (I'm double visa'd right now). Soon I'll be a Canadian employee being paid in Canada but paying taxes and living in the UK with a UK Visa. Follow? All I know is that the original UK offer was ~35% more than my US salary and the CDN expat offer is ~15% more than that and since I got CDN Expat offer the CDN dollar has gone up 5%, so I won't complain about the $1800 (!) plane ticket home at Christmas (should have worked that into the Expat contract!). Okay, heading back to Derry in a couple hours so must do some errands...David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-81218529358937432282008-08-29T01:25:00.001-07:002008-08-31T05:27:16.034-07:00some Thailand photos finally...Okay, I admit, I've been a little lazy with regards to any sort of photo taking lately. Phases and busyness? Is busyness a word? Has taken being home sick on the couch for 2 days get it done. Anyway, here's some photos from Thailand back in... May? Was there for Ben's wedding and travelled around a bit with Michelle from Calgary.<br /><br />The trip started off in Bangkok, and I'm sure a bunch of photos were taken, they were all on Michelle's camera and she's been too lazy to share! And being it wasn't my first trip to Bangkok, I wasn't all that eager to snap away either. But it was a nice visit for about 5 days because Ben, Samantha and Connor were there and we did some touristy stuff, some good eating, some foot and back massages (envision myself, Ben and Michelle with beers in hand getting foot massages and some divey place... then envision Ben falling asleep and starting to snore!). The trip even involved me babysitting once (I hope the damage isn't permanent!).<br /><br />So before I get started babbling and photo posting, here's a few map of Thailand, mostly from <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=thailand&ie=UTF8&ll=13.560562,103.513184&spn=15.124139,21.708984&t=h&z=6">google maps</a>:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-PR_NvRerJIo1pnmxnFE4IBZbiDt4HdVXiqQ7OfZDEAPG-YQTITz8wjy1FLDAzJ1Jd4O-CChJX3xlTJ7vnZZVIGuIQJtIXvmIKtMnMDz48o62GSd7OMBGmcpcrsyJ72Q9LQnkYg/s1600-h/Map+of+Thailand.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-PR_NvRerJIo1pnmxnFE4IBZbiDt4HdVXiqQ7OfZDEAPG-YQTITz8wjy1FLDAzJ1Jd4O-CChJX3xlTJ7vnZZVIGuIQJtIXvmIKtMnMDz48o62GSd7OMBGmcpcrsyJ72Q9LQnkYg/s320/Map+of+Thailand.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239858346624376130" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0LOp-JKG7Uhd8CmrjtfJCIZP5XpaExXcM6eZhMkvp1WSHFfTC9kwAKYWkzR2N0owO08B5Yz4OmhWwBSCTsKaz94vSvn-g1Egz1cwYRY0ix3tsdz3aZR7w7zrIlQEaA_DR-s1aZA/s1600-h/Thailand_Satellite.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0LOp-JKG7Uhd8CmrjtfJCIZP5XpaExXcM6eZhMkvp1WSHFfTC9kwAKYWkzR2N0owO08B5Yz4OmhWwBSCTsKaz94vSvn-g1Egz1cwYRY0ix3tsdz3aZR7w7zrIlQEaA_DR-s1aZA/s320/Thailand_Satellite.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240656282643344786" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaJoSnNZMZ_WtAz3NGIAlloachyphenhyphenfBozAbIoYPXB4HLJwcZ_TuV9bPjt2JYej1O76RAYEQZ2HoypRlO0aqQRMiec6cj6JzSByuEp0BlpiJZFdmT_mJTGZUSXkhcxCqrHmgga-hilg/s1600-h/Thailand+world.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaJoSnNZMZ_WtAz3NGIAlloachyphenhyphenfBozAbIoYPXB4HLJwcZ_TuV9bPjt2JYej1O76RAYEQZ2HoypRlO0aqQRMiec6cj6JzSByuEp0BlpiJZFdmT_mJTGZUSXkhcxCqrHmgga-hilg/s320/Thailand+world.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240656282307727506" /></a><br /><br />After Bangkok, Ben et family headed to Phuket to start doing wedding prep type things while Michelle and I headed north. Our first stop was for one day (literally just the day) at Ayutthaya. Here's a snipped from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayutthaya_kingdom">Wikipedia</a>...<br /><br /><blockquote>The kingdom of Ayutthaya (Thai: อาณาจักรอยุธยา) was a Thai kingdom that existed from 1351 to 1767. Ayutthaya was friendly towards foreign traders, including the Chinese, Vietnamese (Annam), Indians, Japanese and Persians, and later the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and French, permitting them to set up villages outside the city walls. In the sixteenth century, it was described by foreign traders as one of the biggest and wealthiest city in the East. The court of King Narai (1656-1688) had strong links with that of King Louis XIV of France, whose ambassadors compared the city in size and wealth to Paris. Before Ayutthaya fell to Burmese attack in 1767, its vassals included the Northern Shan states of present- day Myanmar, Lanna (Chiang Mai, Yunnan & Shan Sri (China), Lan Xang (Laos), Cambodian Kingdom, and some city- states in the Malay Peninsula.</blockquote><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Ep9RtyoJkw3iGkahmiBS2eSY2STtUjFiypvcu2mI-6MHg4BxV2w3jVCBh8DAvDr7UK1rUsMek6WZBd7o-mnA7NZ-1M_UCN8O62rlvTELvDd-JC8yRbXTtLHh7pTCOUnndF1bfg/s1600-h/IMG_0913.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Ep9RtyoJkw3iGkahmiBS2eSY2STtUjFiypvcu2mI-6MHg4BxV2w3jVCBh8DAvDr7UK1rUsMek6WZBd7o-mnA7NZ-1M_UCN8O62rlvTELvDd-JC8yRbXTtLHh7pTCOUnndF1bfg/s320/IMG_0913.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239860505948394786" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWfjepp_e-wQdsBEkJj_WvsOGUsUxh9SB6Yez9X68JDnwUaXnXokQ4ybG0NhmyeBtuKPyTmt-6c_5xKI_zSw7v-PrYGiezIdSCGBR9rSKml5bNdQtv5Ssr0zVuKmA14NImoOXUbg/s1600-h/IMG_0915.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWfjepp_e-wQdsBEkJj_WvsOGUsUxh9SB6Yez9X68JDnwUaXnXokQ4ybG0NhmyeBtuKPyTmt-6c_5xKI_zSw7v-PrYGiezIdSCGBR9rSKml5bNdQtv5Ssr0zVuKmA14NImoOXUbg/s320/IMG_0915.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239860507696559682" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSmkXw_zoQ6_BuB-OnMrMPVMsQWBlFS9tsaVV0rJQC9Oj6c6-5hu0UALcAi_ySRvrmbBMPDb3fyx8w1kLsO67kDWHmZ4WkJ-yZJTmlQXbNBHFpSOimFsCBHEpJNsbSfroa1Progw/s1600-h/IMG_0916.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSmkXw_zoQ6_BuB-OnMrMPVMsQWBlFS9tsaVV0rJQC9Oj6c6-5hu0UALcAi_ySRvrmbBMPDb3fyx8w1kLsO67kDWHmZ4WkJ-yZJTmlQXbNBHFpSOimFsCBHEpJNsbSfroa1Progw/s320/IMG_0916.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239860505157141106" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8IKglZYBtz3clx9Czbff1bBjahLZOJdX_Jv_wDcw38i9P7mJOVHSUeRUHC5sppRn_Xxeq5kA0nw-PxF4FJRg1Z1aBFGpHKiyeF6654L56u5yOfkhLWRzgyn_oqv2q9D6SGbm-Jw/s1600-h/IMG_0918.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8IKglZYBtz3clx9Czbff1bBjahLZOJdX_Jv_wDcw38i9P7mJOVHSUeRUHC5sppRn_Xxeq5kA0nw-PxF4FJRg1Z1aBFGpHKiyeF6654L56u5yOfkhLWRzgyn_oqv2q9D6SGbm-Jw/s320/IMG_0918.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239860512740354674" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA3TjnY1HAMQXBu5jFZueFxms5X0q1REBas3IN3_9HXvo7MuDu2BIOKKgcOlWZPtHiS9kUe8pSNN3oDtfZpBkkZNGZypDgawr-gc0DKf-VmKU1DumCy2viTqgaZ0cyU-cFTM7wPw/s1600-h/IMG_0920.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA3TjnY1HAMQXBu5jFZueFxms5X0q1REBas3IN3_9HXvo7MuDu2BIOKKgcOlWZPtHiS9kUe8pSNN3oDtfZpBkkZNGZypDgawr-gc0DKf-VmKU1DumCy2viTqgaZ0cyU-cFTM7wPw/s320/IMG_0920.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239860512616690898" /></a><br /><br />At around 8 or 9 at night we caught the night train up to Chiang Mai. It was nice travelling with Michelle as neither our budgets were particularly tight (at least in the Thailand sense - I'm sure if we were in Hong Kong I wouldn't make this statement) and we got a first class cabin for ourselves. The 2nd class bunks didn't look too bad either, but then we heard stories of people partying all night and people snoring and people being sick and all of a sudden, $40 for a train ticket seems quite cheap! Was a little disturbing to wake up at 10AM and find Michelle already on her first beer (closeup of phone as proof... 12 MP has it's benefits)...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgotmCOSXHLre_BHz4UUigmrTA1t_q-nWKUveb-L_8BuWgta67VPM6RMfzGPVbcy2EpPvnoj7FLJAxDsuKDIXEH7wE7VukzL-47ly0PTKKamEhj52gGIQqbSJeX8_n387EjQ5-LA/s1600-h/IMG_0932.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgotmCOSXHLre_BHz4UUigmrTA1t_q-nWKUveb-L_8BuWgta67VPM6RMfzGPVbcy2EpPvnoj7FLJAxDsuKDIXEH7wE7VukzL-47ly0PTKKamEhj52gGIQqbSJeX8_n387EjQ5-LA/s320/IMG_0932.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240629704661074594" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhKBNpPEzlI21D1WMBVLqiQRY1Dvd1lWhMUFHv7t37t215GgWMVqGG-VjaFewOFwaS33sDLRI0V_YE18jSLh4p-1is6_cpBIOYymgwEimfnnIhTUjNRTR8Xy14kJ0VibaGWdMcWQ/s1600-h/IMG_0932b.JPG">><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhKBNpPEzlI21D1WMBVLqiQRY1Dvd1lWhMUFHv7t37t215GgWMVqGG-VjaFewOFwaS33sDLRI0V_YE18jSLh4p-1is6_cpBIOYymgwEimfnnIhTUjNRTR8Xy14kJ0VibaGWdMcWQ/s320/IMG_0932b.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240629708239682338" /></a><br /><br />One of our first outings in Chiang Mai was a day trip to a temple in one of the hills surrounding the city. There were also waterfalls and some hikes to do, but it was rainy and we were pretty slow in getting going...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOiD4ayYXO_spEsrS4snl9SUCVtpFCb28Ch1RGI5BArgSYqAjzl66RU_8VF-u7cotOQuGeqEb-iUE8KWGffNEwIIMfEh2e28yS_m76KFLktG7iXfHxMDx_BWzmMn_7-71nO_MaAA/s1600-h/IMG_0937.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOiD4ayYXO_spEsrS4snl9SUCVtpFCb28Ch1RGI5BArgSYqAjzl66RU_8VF-u7cotOQuGeqEb-iUE8KWGffNEwIIMfEh2e28yS_m76KFLktG7iXfHxMDx_BWzmMn_7-71nO_MaAA/s320/IMG_0937.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240631958739039378" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXs4OOZ4rCi0JreVCWep4pALOxLfO9y8ljqaDhfqm9pSradkPojImy151YDnVFH2ZsYQKuToBuA1a-EUf86dMLYgFUsaxzJ8RN2nYdNYbiUj0UqBOCI2McvU0p3uJ3gaH__2Vqbw/s1600-h/IMG_0939.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXs4OOZ4rCi0JreVCWep4pALOxLfO9y8ljqaDhfqm9pSradkPojImy151YDnVFH2ZsYQKuToBuA1a-EUf86dMLYgFUsaxzJ8RN2nYdNYbiUj0UqBOCI2McvU0p3uJ3gaH__2Vqbw/s320/IMG_0939.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240631958752728146" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifyQWtj7lyz-Nc8MoeAs8_Wb9aA4g4B38Lo1bXufxsteqjfKFbgibaHYuulPeo8o5JS66m2x42D_kQ5M5FeNjoW2_98QUY_h9-9QhE6oY4QTEyCZkip-TYcO1GK5GEyqhyphenhyphen1T1vQA/s1600-h/IMG_0942.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifyQWtj7lyz-Nc8MoeAs8_Wb9aA4g4B38Lo1bXufxsteqjfKFbgibaHYuulPeo8o5JS66m2x42D_kQ5M5FeNjoW2_98QUY_h9-9QhE6oY4QTEyCZkip-TYcO1GK5GEyqhyphenhyphen1T1vQA/s320/IMG_0942.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240631962879290130" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvofL6187r2jrfuWF5PoKw9AxFhZml7UAufBD57hWCGVRC6t9Kuvo826z1momNl8d9vNaFOpL3j_LHnGUs_5V3Te5Uc3Fjke64wfGMllAT4MVwBDDPfAMioYD2P49Y9iWNpRoOQ/s1600-h/IMG_0943.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvofL6187r2jrfuWF5PoKw9AxFhZml7UAufBD57hWCGVRC6t9Kuvo826z1momNl8d9vNaFOpL3j_LHnGUs_5V3Te5Uc3Fjke64wfGMllAT4MVwBDDPfAMioYD2P49Y9iWNpRoOQ/s320/IMG_0943.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240631970347288914" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwv2hxXI0f0GvSqubw5AQbBWFNF2vhMnHjvZz-IRF1bKHqpTJfCIbgQZjmq8FSNQAmX9RPoWZfBzerxzhECS2F6Y1BX7TNmDKjFEviB1QCWJ5VZtmAeqRWD5Z7DvaMY9IqtwLuA/s1600-h/IMG_0953.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzwv2hxXI0f0GvSqubw5AQbBWFNF2vhMnHjvZz-IRF1bKHqpTJfCIbgQZjmq8FSNQAmX9RPoWZfBzerxzhECS2F6Y1BX7TNmDKjFEviB1QCWJ5VZtmAeqRWD5Z7DvaMY9IqtwLuA/s320/IMG_0953.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240631967622710418" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXnLS4L3jv-xyv9RwJkfDMXd2epiGSwkPEQQLZ8wmFikhGJDaNYKnOwvIBNLBoK30pdv1W6Yd2FHFhXvJLh92r2m4pJhiwfCJ_feHu00UFJ0E1ahpgb_mDQ2f1LfpxgCba24vwSA/s1600-h/IMG_0951.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXnLS4L3jv-xyv9RwJkfDMXd2epiGSwkPEQQLZ8wmFikhGJDaNYKnOwvIBNLBoK30pdv1W6Yd2FHFhXvJLh92r2m4pJhiwfCJ_feHu00UFJ0E1ahpgb_mDQ2f1LfpxgCba24vwSA/s320/IMG_0951.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240632131701811218" /></a><br /><br />Another couple days in Chiang Mai were spent doing a 2-day trek in the mountains to the north. The first afternoon also included something I'm not so sure I wanted to do and still not sure I should have done (on ethical grounds), but none the less, I rode elephants for the afternoon. Actually, several aspects of this trek into the homelands of the hill tribes is rather ethically questionable. Tourism has radically changed these people, the tourism has resulted in roads being built which has changed the crops that people grow, erosion is a massive problem because the crops are being grown in large plantation for sale and export, etc. etc. I picked our guides brain about this and he thinks it's all beneficial as the farmers all used to grow poppies (i.e., heroin) and now they don't, and now they are getting civilized, which is a good thing I guess. Anyway, here's the photos...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSitV1QCLwLicv0zzOYQJTPSw35Tg8u2QaYvyplmXtiCt94ttitN0xnlm-IsEpguM4fbEoA7q-H_VYP8O2YcP5mlZ0d44OznhdrFaMj4w3qOwhsJW-fmcEmkmMU253WnMhyphenhyphenkYETA/s1600-h/IMG_0974.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSitV1QCLwLicv0zzOYQJTPSw35Tg8u2QaYvyplmXtiCt94ttitN0xnlm-IsEpguM4fbEoA7q-H_VYP8O2YcP5mlZ0d44OznhdrFaMj4w3qOwhsJW-fmcEmkmMU253WnMhyphenhyphenkYETA/s320/IMG_0974.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240636733069712514" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1iouSkVmQr4wqfyJGbqO8_1lPsJgCPhQ_YVbutksgzB2Hykmr-yIGdA0vCG-2XA3Qrm1srCFBk9DR4SniroDcofMlkXZ1dNMkWv0ht1TG2Ns0wdrMLM3kA2fTCa_AuJTMIdQ8iw/s1600-h/IMG_0986.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1iouSkVmQr4wqfyJGbqO8_1lPsJgCPhQ_YVbutksgzB2Hykmr-yIGdA0vCG-2XA3Qrm1srCFBk9DR4SniroDcofMlkXZ1dNMkWv0ht1TG2Ns0wdrMLM3kA2fTCa_AuJTMIdQ8iw/s320/IMG_0986.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240636734515660754" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2qzDksHmNSnc_SME8J-r4P7BEBUt-ZlqecWQPPdoMe2mIeMKbTDyZVpQxkh8UD1EJiTALafUVDn8dwPBqgCeZwIEtd23BfO7u6gxAOBxKROS3y1VROpKFU1UWsIks3p8f2ybzXQ/s1600-h/IMG_0989.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2qzDksHmNSnc_SME8J-r4P7BEBUt-ZlqecWQPPdoMe2mIeMKbTDyZVpQxkh8UD1EJiTALafUVDn8dwPBqgCeZwIEtd23BfO7u6gxAOBxKROS3y1VROpKFU1UWsIks3p8f2ybzXQ/s320/IMG_0989.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240636734657219554" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPfGXByY1EEDZvTenNXTg-NYwmAT0Q-TM_nwn3IYeDKHTff_AK17XubWSoFeuD64OdnhhcS3BYI4IK68vMFL4iWi87l4Cmkk9QDESAMbA8TlQIIEWS09C4gxzCD1Nh4AWoQaDcNA/s1600-h/IMG_0992.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; 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cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEoWCVPbeF9GXaA1G8-ym79x-AViF02JazAxkBxAe93k6rHfaCtzL_QfNDvIfSL_7WdD-LViEj_2opXCulTP50Z1DRgbK2_fqquMFlTR9ZkxyILdY6c4QZRPhyphenhyphena0aSqzfBspuomQ/s320/IMG_1173.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240641413637429858" /></a><br /><br />More later...David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-25495524040042316572008-08-29T00:58:00.000-07:002008-08-29T01:24:49.334-07:00Busy days...It's Friday morning, about 9AM and I feel kind of crappy. Could definitely feel something coming on yesterday afternoon and I wasn't the only one in the office complaining of the exact same symptoms. So I'm set up in my home office today (i.e., lying down underwear on couch with blanket, pillow on lap for laptop and mouse on adjacent coffee table). Over the past few months of travelling I've led some pretty important conference calls from the funniest of situations. But I digress...<br /><br />London is good, though weather is so so. Last weekend was fun with a trip to Stonehenge on Saturday with a friend and then a handful of us from the Olympics project got together for the London 2012 handover party in Trafalgar Square. Though the "party" was very non British and not much of a party as it had no booze. Not even a beer garden. Ummm... excuse me? Live music for how many hours without booze? What kind of alcoholics did they want to attract? So we all left half way and went to the pub. Which led to a bar. Which led to a club. All quite messy as usual...<br /><br />Oh yeah, I don't think I had been to Ireland last time I blogged. Ended up flying into Dublin and driving to site up north (Derry). All went quite well and got to know some of the voices on the phone, had a good productive week of work and then got to spend a fun night in Dublin and they way home. I had come with another person from the London office and we were trying to figure out the best way to get home and I personally thought a night in Dublin was essential to work in. He was sure as it might cost a bit more or at least be questionable. Then I reminded him I was the Project Manager and I guaranteed his expenses would be approved. So all in all, I must say Dublin is a fun city and could definitely spend some time there (for those who've been reading my babble for a while, you'll remember they were pushing for me to relocate to Dublin many months ago).<br /><br />Not too much else new... I've been extremely busy at work, but things are also going very very well. I've now tripled the budget forecast for the next 6 months (okay, I say "I" and clearly there is a team, but sometimes I spell teim with an i). I'm also working on my French and have even taken a couple lessons / tutorial type things. I'm going to France on Sept 8-10 for meetings and going to be managing a project just outside of Lyon, so I'm trying to get some practice. Going to a french meetup thing tonight actually which is just a thing where frenchies get together on Friday night at a pub and socialize, but a good way for me to practice (and when there happens to be some hot french women, such is life). <br /><br />Last night was funny. I made Christian (friend mostly, but also landlord) come over to help me change light bulbs. I texted him saying can you come over and help me change a lightbulb and it sure sounded like it was a booty call! But the lights in the kitchen had only 1 bulb out of 4 working and I had bought the wrong bulbs which were pulls and the actual bulbs were push in (hard) and turn. Anyway, I thought that it was funny that I had to have someone come over to change my lightbulbs :) Okay, till later...David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-48373729552650125072008-08-09T05:34:00.000-07:002008-08-09T07:58:48.865-07:00Returned with a Visa...I'm back in London with work visa in a new passport. Getting both of these seemed like big challenges a handful of weeks ago, but actually the passport took ~72 hours and the UK Ancestry Visa even less (though it did require me going to Vancouver). If only now I could actually get a job contract now. While I was away, International HR got involved and now instead of being a UK employee, I might be a Canadian employee with an expat deal (it's my choice but the expat deal is slightly in the lead). Which is all kind of funny because I'm currently a US employee. Any volunteers to do my taxes this year? Anyway, both job offers are on the table and we're working through issues - mostly boring stuff like if I'm a UK resident (therefore non-resident in Canada) employed by the Canadian branch of the company, how do I receive my ~6% company-match RRSP contribution because I can not contribute to RRSPs as a non-resident. Seems the company is more familiar with US ex-pats and I'm sure by the time this is all worked out they should have just given me a $20,000 bonus, told me to sign and saved all the HR expenses. Anyway, there are about 6 or so good dilemmas / issues like the RRSP issue that must be figured out before agreement is reached. <br /><br />With that said, I'm very busy working. In fact, flew in at 6AM and was at the office by 8AM. The $600K proposal I presented in Philadelphia at the start of the North America travels and then completed somewhere between Winnipeg, Calgary and San Francisco (literally) is full steam ahead and I'm off to Northern Ireland on Monday to kick off the work. So needless to say the 3 days this week in advance of this kick off have been intense. All this while having hour long meetings with HR interspersed. I can deal with work, I can deal with HR, dealing with both might kill me. I'm very thankful I kept my flat as dealing with hotels and unsettledness at home could have put me over the edge! (and yes mother, I know unsettledness isn't a word, but my english ain't always so good)<br /><br />Had some good days this week catching up with some old friends and just getting settled. A fun evening at the Earl's Court beer festival where a few beers were sampled (about the only time drinking half pints is acceptable). Had some big plans Friday night (not really), but ended up not getting out of the office till 10PM. Now I know that sounds bad, but to be fair, I slept in till noon and 10PM is and still kind of feels like 2PM (Winnipeg time that is). And the hours after everyone left were incredibly productive and I know have less than 20 emails in my inbox!!<br /><br />It's Saturday afternoon right now and I've had a relaxing morning followed by a wander around <a href="http://www.urban75.org/brixton/index.html">Brixton </a>shopping. Brixton is a strange neighbourhood if I may say. I'm midway between Clapham and Brixton with both having a lot of energy, but Brixton being the more ethnically interesting (largely black with a lot of African and Carribean flavour). It almost feels like a black Chinatown or Thailand with a web of indoor and outdoor fair type booths all covered in tarps carrying everything from coat hangers to pigs heads intermixed with shops and dollar stores etc. etc. (it looks quite quiet in these photos, which it certainly wasn't this morning, so clearly I've stolen these photos as I'm too lazy to carry my camera, but here's the <a href="http://www.urban75.org/brixton/photos/index.html">source</a>)...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZI0Mfgk-mpQwuMiRBri2rcOFp3zsyBfTQH-02f9ZKRw2swlUGLZ-kxFFAtRZ0RV_7FRsenWc4k_XaT0E11H1uN43LRRt86OB_PSLLOOk-t_2YdxJ-wKNEW-5BR-01J7MUq2r1Q/s1600-h/64.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZI0Mfgk-mpQwuMiRBri2rcOFp3zsyBfTQH-02f9ZKRw2swlUGLZ-kxFFAtRZ0RV_7FRsenWc4k_XaT0E11H1uN43LRRt86OB_PSLLOOk-t_2YdxJ-wKNEW-5BR-01J7MUq2r1Q/s320/64.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5232528452550576930" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWG_INH3uOp-Wvvt8bccPn2uyK2oVHpq5jg2jLsTBIX3XaU0MO-Exlo96HoDoVtXfr-KLrO_g8UOzBTfRJtA17-Ei85d_c0NHoxxKOcQgxVebuN4ZuqvsO8wH-6IZ78cmeNlgc_w/s1600-h/reliance.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWG_INH3uOp-Wvvt8bccPn2uyK2oVHpq5jg2jLsTBIX3XaU0MO-Exlo96HoDoVtXfr-KLrO_g8UOzBTfRJtA17-Ei85d_c0NHoxxKOcQgxVebuN4ZuqvsO8wH-6IZ78cmeNlgc_w/s320/reliance.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5232528009403612626" /></a><br /><br /><br />And Brixton is pretty neat. So far this morning I've learned Sharon Osbourne and David Bowie are from Brixton. And the Eddie Grant song Electric Avenue is based on the Brixton night life. And I found the Brixton Acadaemy which is quite a famous venue for live music (about 7 minutes from my flat). If you really want to know more about this history of <a href="http://www.urban75.org/brixton/history/index.html">Brixton...</a> (P.S. I live a few flats off of Acre Lane).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNKzNkiFrCxtBSZRhiw6Rqo8eoSgp6NRwbZVUGLmqlDHRS10BONr7RNwlMUHPCW_tqntX0GZc6rDssQ7NdBWKIZ3Hrdq26zg8webg9rXsbWkZdv1gpwzA8JLt481GZn4H6hJChA/s1600-h/brixton.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNKzNkiFrCxtBSZRhiw6Rqo8eoSgp6NRwbZVUGLmqlDHRS10BONr7RNwlMUHPCW_tqntX0GZc6rDssQ7NdBWKIZ3Hrdq26zg8webg9rXsbWkZdv1gpwzA8JLt481GZn4H6hJChA/s320/brixton.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5232526770092788418" /></a><br /><br />My big purchases were a white wicker basket with lid for dirty clothes, a brown bean bag cube chair / foot rest and a stainless garbage can for the bathroom. Wild and crazy I now. That with some hangers ran me £40 ($80) on the nose at Woolworths. I'd give <br /><br />I'm being a tad unsocial at the moment... not sure if I'll even call anyone tonight or just enjoy some more downtime. The last many weeks have involved visiting so many people which is really great, but absolutely no down time. Between unpacking and repacking, the last visit in Winnipeg didn't even leave time to visit the grandparents. What a bad grandson I am! Maybe Sam / Justin / Rob / Gabe want to have a beer and game of pool at the Elbo Room - wait, wrong city...<br /><br />Okay, I'm going to go play with my Thailand photos (maybe they'll still get posted some day) and I'll give another update after Ireland - I hear there are 8 women for every guy, so maybe there will be some interesting stories, or maybe I'll schedule myself to do all the fieldwork? ;)David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-16413910966672131482008-07-20T15:18:00.000-07:002008-07-20T15:54:17.949-07:00West Coast TravelsHi from San Fran. Having fun bouncing around visiting Calgary, Vancouver, Victoria, Seattle and San Francisco so far. A lot of fun, but also a lot of work. Got the UK work visa taken care of and then the application mailed off in Vancouver, but this left me passportless so I had to do a land crossing to get into the US. And now training taken care of in SF and working here for a couple more days. <br /><br />I'm heading to LA on Wednesday for a work medical and visit with friends and going to catch up with my brother's family in Anaheim Saturday night. And since my UK visa has been approved (in amazingly short turn around!), I'll be able to fly back to Calgary (was worried I'd have to do another passportless land crossing). Though Calgary will just be for a day to pack up furniture to move to Winnipeg (so much fun). Thinking furniture will be for a new cabin I'm buying with my dad in Arnes.<br /><br />Must say I've taken on too much work and since I'm doing more work than I'd like. Seems management type work means I can't just disappear without responsibility anymore. Kind of sucks. With that said, I should be back in Winnipeg by ~Aug 29 and back in London August 6 for a meeting. Of course all the HR stuff hasn't been settled, which is a bit of a stress, but I assume it will get taken care of. So in the meantime, here's a couple fun links...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><a href="http://www.occidentalgalleryseattle.com">108 Occidental Gallery</a></span><br />My friend Justin has opened an art gallery in Seattle. Check it out if you're in Seattle!<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><a href="http://www.3ProngPower.com"><br />3Prong Power Inc</a></span><br />Friend Dan in Berkeley has started up a company that upgrades Toyota Priuses to full electric. Saw one of the cars yesterday and was quite neat.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><a href="http://www.drhorrible.com">www.drhorrible.com</a></span><br /><blockquote>When the Hollywood writers went on strike last winter, it was speculated that television and film's loss would be the Internet's gain.<br /><br />It's been several months since the strike concluded, but there's finally evidence that that lull in production has resulted in a game-changing online creation from Hollywood professionals looking for a new avenue.<br /><br />The first episode of the three-part Web series “Dr. Horrible's Sing-along Blog” was posted Tuesday at drhorrible.com, and it doesn't take a mad genius to realize its quality, its humour and its inventiveness signify a great leap forward for online video.<br /><br />The series stars Neil Patrick Harris (“How I Met Your Mother”) as Dr. Horrible, a wannabe mad scientist who blogs about his unrealized dreams for world domination and his refused entry into to “Evil League of Evil.” For example, he's working with a vocal coach on his maniacal laugh....<br /><br /><a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080717.wgtdrhorrible0717/BNStory/Technology/home">http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080717.wgtdrhorrible0717/BNStory/Technology/home</a></blockquote>David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-26211494718643205892008-06-14T01:45:00.000-07:002008-06-14T02:18:50.840-07:00London music and decisions madeI just ticked off #2 last night! (<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/apr/03/london.music">http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/apr/03/london.music</a> http://www.thedublincastle.com/) Apparently the bar (and Camden) is the origin of Madness (of "our house, in the middle of the street.... our house......") judging by all the posters on the wall....<br /><br />So when is help coming to check out the other venues? Pretty sure I've been to the Hope & Anchor, but didn't see any music. And the Windmill (Brixton) is minutes from my flat.<br /><br />And speaking of my flat, I just got my transfer offer yesterday and looks like I''m a Londoner. And I think I've swung some deals (with work & landlord) so that I don't have to move out of my flat even though I'll be in US/Canada till Aug 1 (serious considerations at $1700/month). Anyone want to sublet for the next month? Or need a vacation flat in London this July? I'm leaving tomorrow for a week in Milan to "get to know the team" there, then Phillie for a meeting on the June 25-26th, then back Canada to get my Visa and relax (road trip out west for sure). And almost certain that I'll be rolling through SF on my way to London (late July / early August).<br /><br />I'm kind of unwinding at the moment. Could be travelling to Italy today and enjoying a new city, but I've decided to take my time getting out of London (i.e., leaving tomorrow). Was all kind of stressful this week including balancing two jobs (Olympics and "normal" CH2M are in different offices, so it's almost like 2 jobs) and me rejecting the first transfer offer and having people freak out that I'd go home (which I contemplated, via Africa of course), but worked out in the end. Sort of. Even with a good raise, I'm sure my standard of living will be lower (my latte while writing this email was £2 / $4). Though 25 days of vacation, 8 statutory holidays and a seemingly weeks of sick time (which Brits do flagrantly abuse) will be nice. Not to mention my flight to Italy tomorrow, which I still haven't booked, will be $120 last minute - can't complain about that!!<br /><br />I babble with my latte induced whir... so... I'll be back in US/Canada all of July and mid-late August till early September I'll be working in Northern Ireland, but besides that (and assuming I don't move, which isn't looking likely) I will have a 1 bedroom London flat with futon in the living room!! And there's lots of good live music! Hint hint :)David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-76308867228571553272008-06-08T04:54:00.000-07:002008-06-08T05:03:01.609-07:00Leaving London, but just for a bit...Hey folks. Just another quick update. I’ve been busy working in London the last month and a bit since Thailand. Mostly working on the Olympics project, but slowly working more on the DuPont projects (Ireland, Netherlands stuff). But only have another week here in London and then need to get out of the country to get my work visa and such. So I’ve given up my flat as of this coming Friday and I’ll be living and working out of our Milan office until flying to Philadelphia for a June 26th meeting. With all this said, I still don’t have my transfer offer, and if it really sucks, I won’t be coming back (my way of ensuring I get my 25% raise to adjust for $6 beer).<br /><br />Life here has been quite good. I haven’t been travelling at all, mostly because I’ve been content spending time in my own flat and working. It’s been a while since I’ve been this settled in a place I call my own and just as long since I’ve really felt engaged and excited about work (field projects have a different excitement). I must admit that working on the Olympics is a bit energizing. I’m putting together quite a significant presentation for this Monday (dry run) and then Wednesday (to our client) that summarizes most of what I’ve been working on (and the entire team) for the last few months. The presentation will then continue forward (in some form) for a multitude of things (contractor initiations, other client meetings, etc.). So I’m heading into the office momentarily (yes, it’s Sunday) to finish off the presentation. Kind of sad, but since I’m not going to be around for the next month, I’m trying to NOT give the presentation, though it’s looking like I know the information too well and can’t delegate it all. But not much use getting my face up front with the client if I won’t be here to follow through.<br /><br />And looking forward, I’m hoping to be back in Canada for the July long weekend. Yes I know, apparently this is not the best time to come home with other guests and such in town, but it seems that when you start making work commitments you have a little less say on things. Well, actually, it’s only the June 26th meeting in Philly that has really tied my hands. I could still end up being in Canada till the end of July depending on how long the work visa takes. And when I get back to the UK in late July / early August, I’ll only be here a week or two before heading to Northern Ireland for about a month. That’s it in Ireland though as I’ve kind of insisted on making London my home base for now. After making friends and getting to know the place, I just couldn’t bring myself to moving to Dublin right now. Especially since my company has a much bigger presence in London and isolating myself in Dublin just isn’t the right thing to do.<br /><br />So hopefully I’ll have a flat in London again by September 1st? (important info for you travelling & likely-to-visit types) Though feel free to come and visit before then if you’d like, but I’ll probably be staying in hotels in either London or Dublin (could be worse). I thought about keeping the flat, and still a chance that I will if work pays for it (which they currently are, but until transfer letter gets in my hands and terms get settled...). Just keeping the flat seems the easiest, but flats seem easy enough to come by and at $1700/month, I don’t think I’ll be here enough in the next two months to justify me paying for it! But then again, moving my crap this week sure seems like a lot of effort too never mind having to look for a place in the future and the idea of hotels again… sigh…<br /><br />Trying to think if there’s anything else somewhat exciting that I’ve forgotten... hmmm... I've seen a few shows lately including The Weakerthans this past week – a really good indie band from Winnipeg of all places (so had to go). I was supposed to go up to Inverness / Aberdeen this weekend to visit Pat & Stef and Pat’s brother Graham from Victoria (I knew Graham from elementry school / Camp Stephens), but work just got too nuts and I couldn’t take the days off (sheesh – I’m working Sunday!). But next weekend in Italy with my friend Jen from Amsterdam should be loads of fun, so I’ll quit my bitching. And I’ve made a few new friends in France, Spain, etc. that will all make wonderful visits sometime in the near future!! <br /><br />But that’s it for now, must get to work!! Hope to see many of you in the coming month or so. Definitely those in Winnipeg & Calgary. Maybe those in Victoria? Maybe those in San Francisco / LA (not sure how the US visits might work as I will be passport-less while my visa application is in progress and the US has just put passport requirements in place - maybe on my way back to London, though not exactly on the way, are some work justifications i.e., ways to get work to pay for stop off).<br /><br />If I had to vent right now... how come Europe is become less restrictive on passports and travel, work, etc. (I travelled from Poland to Germany without a passport!!) while North America is going the other way. Just a thought for the day...David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-23805794792650809242008-05-18T03:48:00.000-07:002008-05-23T03:33:18.146-07:00I missed summer in London and what to do with my life :)I have a few blogs in progress, but doing the photos takes too much effort!! So just thought I'd give a shout from London with no photo. <br /><br />It's actually mostly sunny today, but cool. When I got here on Tuesday it was really nice, warm and sunny and I'm told it was like that all last week or even longer. And then it started to rain Wednesday and just stopped this morning for a bit (probably rain again this aft). Everyone is joking (sort of) that the last couple weeks were the London summer and that I missed it. Hmmm...<br /><br />So I'm back working on the Olympics for the next few weeks. And then after that I'm supposed to start working with the usual CH2M HILL office (more commonly referred to as the Kensington office). Not sure how engaged I am in anything right now. Still wondering why I left Bangkok.... the money hadn't run out and there were beaches, massage courses, cooking classes and, well, lots of things to do! Sigh...<br /><br />So instead of massage course tomorrow, I have a meeting with the regional business group manager that will largely resolve my future in Europe (?). Outcomes range from me saying "thanks, no thanks, I'm going travelling and back to North America to work in a coffee shop" to me getting a really sweet UK salary with paid accommodation (thanks Mum & Dad, I already know your vote!). Reality is probably somewhere in between, but closer to the latter as I'm more ambivalent about what happens right now and they're in dire need. You see, one of the key London hydrogeologists is in the Territorial Army (sort of like reserves) and just got called up to Afghanastan. So its gone from "we're interested in having you join...." to "we're desperate to...". Combined with my ambivalence, seems a good time for negotiating!<br /><br />Since you're reading this, you get to think through with me what my key requirements are:<br /><br />1. I'm going to be in London till late June and I'm sick of hotels. They're paying for the accommodation and this will continue (negotiating point #1a), but I want it to be in the form of a per diem that I can use for whatever (point #1b) i.e., there are a couple sublet opportunities that have come my way that will be much nicer than hotels - also, if the sublet is less than my per diem, then I pocket the cash.<br /><br />2. They've requested I attend a meeting near Philadelphia on ~June 30th. I've already told them I'm taking 3 weeks off in North America after this meeting. I need to confirm this and make sure all tickets are paid for. I'm hoping work in San Fran will pay for a trip there too. And hopefully I'll just have to pay for 1 ticket to Winnipeg. And I need to move the meeting so I can make the Canada Day long weekend in Winnipeg.<br /><br />3. Upon returning from North America in say late June, they want me to work in London for a bit and then work in Dublin. Ideally they'd like me to settle in Dublin for the rest of the year, but they'd accept a London residence if I resist (client is in Ireland and the client is pushing for "local staff" even the project site is in Northern Ireland and would still require flying to the site???). And they'd also like me to support the same client in the Netherlands and France. Which all sounds great in a lot of ways, but wow, I'm just starting to make a group of friends in London and thinking about which neighbourhood I'd like to settle in and now boom, time to change cities again! I've been living out of the same two suitcases since January and haven't been more than a month anywhere in probably the last two years!! And if I settle in Dublin then I won't be able to work on the Olympics project at all because they're in London and.... So many things to consider. If they want me to be mobile and live in Dublin, then we're seriously talking a "show me the money" type thing. Settling down somewhere is high on my priority list and this sounds like the opposite.<br /><br />4. I'm a part time employee. Everyone seems to forget this including you, me, my boss, everyone I work with, etc. This is my attempt to make work a lower priority and other things (historically travel, relationships, volunteer work, etc.) a higher priority. I'm more or less failing and working too much and doing too little of the other things. Good for the bank account, bad for the life. How can I tell work people that I will commit to stuff but don't want to work too much? I pulled it off fine in San Francisco after working for many years and then people just accepted it because I did a good job when I did work (usually) and maybe more so just because it was San Francisco (more laid back than London). But I need to subtly bring this up tomorrow that I don't want to manage 3 projects, support 4 others and work on 60 hours per week. Or if I do work 60 hours per week, I take every second month off (which is fine when you work field jobs, almost like contract work, but not so hot when you're managing the projects with a high level of responsibility).<br /><br /><br />Okay, since I'm babbling after 2 cups of coffee, here's a funny one. This was my list of priorities from an email exchange between Laurel and myself a couple weeks ago (I've deleted her answers as I wouldn't want to influence anyone - also her response of "move to Ireland for the hot Irish chicks" while very true, I'm thinking going where the chicks are hottest isn't the best way to plan my life... though there is definitely more thought required on this point). She was requested to put these in order or priority and figure out what to do with my life. Feel free to take a stab and then I'll average responses and do what people say so that I don't have to make any decisions myself :) Cheers!<br /><br />__ Work on Olympics project in London - committed (and now doing) May 13 - May 31<br /><br />__ Start long-term commitment for Ireland/Netherlands/France project June 1<br /><br />__ Support a project in Canada, ~1-2 week effort (could fly to Canada, but not<br /> conducive with above European work commitments or Canada vacation schedule)<br /><br />__ Visit friends (Jen L. and Darran & Jenny) in Netherlands (but might be<br /> working there soon enough to make visiting now silly)<br /><br />__ Visit Canada for at least 2 weeks (family in Winnipeg, move stuff in Calgary)<br /> <br />__ Visit Calgary to move possessions from friend's basement to ??? and to help<br /> Mr. McNeil celebrate finishing his PhD!! Thinking of maybe putting my car <br /> back on the road to drive out to Calgary, maybe Vancouver too in first weeks<br /> of July...<br /><br />__ Visit Laurel in Egypt? Ethiopia ? E....? some E country in Africa :)<br /> Actually, it's Ethiopia, and could also do some Engineers Without Borders work<br /> in Tanzania. But I don't think Africa is worth it unless I can take a full<br /> month off and just not sure how to fit this into my upcoming work schedule.<br /><br />__ Visit San Francisco to do training, have fun, etc. Could almost certainly <br /> get work to pay for this if I was already in North America.<br /><br />__ More travelling, maybe China, maybe India in October with a newly-made friend,<br /> France to visit some new friends, maybe over there, how about there, how <br /> about... (again, work commitments seem to inhibit my travel desires)David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-41652626516214374032008-05-17T07:56:00.000-07:002008-05-18T06:31:55.084-07:00Sliven, Burgas & PlovdivI finished up my stint in Bulgaria a couple days ago (actually, now a several weeks ago since I'm so slow actually finishing this post). I ended up working several extra days due to typical Bulgarian problems and because I told the next geologist I'd finish it off. I thought it would just be an extra day or two, but everything from drilling issues to simple stuff like getting shipping boxes and coordinating the shipping of samples to Italy seemed like heroic tasks. If you can believe it, the FedEx depot in Sliven doesn't take credit cards, only cash. And since the shipment was going to be 2300 Euros, I wasn't too keen on going to the bank machine 12 times and carrying a massive wad of cash around in a place notorious for mafia and people carrying guns (during the time I was in Bulgaria, my translator was robbed in Sofia - I know, law of small numbers but...). I could have paid with the corporate FedEx account, but then the price was a little over 4000 Euros. Interesting to say the least. Before I get on to more interesting things than work, here are some photos I took while "working" including a couple abandoned military watch tower buildings (gutted by gypsies for the copper), some scenery shots where I was drilling and me playing with the macro.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmdqwSxUcyFR4AB4Iuzh8odkh1JTW7LaGi3XYqPg_quIJv3yAZ68KGzI5t7tJPbndUNSGq7xfRF8ubxFEcaUuPw8ZZr1bgiPzfTlmvj_DfYDQ7qeFpYlqH0AhR8cizcdhLeKbnjA/s1600-h/abnd+bldg+3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmdqwSxUcyFR4AB4Iuzh8odkh1JTW7LaGi3XYqPg_quIJv3yAZ68KGzI5t7tJPbndUNSGq7xfRF8ubxFEcaUuPw8ZZr1bgiPzfTlmvj_DfYDQ7qeFpYlqH0AhR8cizcdhLeKbnjA/s320/abnd+bldg+3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201649917525525714" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4EufqbuafpQ6hXv35sWITzs-BWQZEy0nOCLPi1rozH8HS_YiKzei1_dooSZv1135S5WpPlv49lmIje_mJLI5m2G-hK5XvAeD3fZPcLitQzCilU0JBikl3wdV6-qx8-tKWnt2cA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+140.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw4EufqbuafpQ6hXv35sWITzs-BWQZEy0nOCLPi1rozH8HS_YiKzei1_dooSZv1135S5WpPlv49lmIje_mJLI5m2G-hK5XvAeD3fZPcLitQzCilU0JBikl3wdV6-qx8-tKWnt2cA/s320/Bulgaria+140.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201649939000362258" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqA6hSr_40TgbjL1FrDHQeWv-Y1am5Wy80A_b6QR6BBx8CRzUF1jZGM8t-idpCFGYtu6Qn1ok0gIrytzFIqhRAcujjmGH06ph9qHFwAtwIqg1P3SD05coIdcHgy61NQwNRhNoMNg/s1600-h/abnd+bldg+7.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqA6hSr_40TgbjL1FrDHQeWv-Y1am5Wy80A_b6QR6BBx8CRzUF1jZGM8t-idpCFGYtu6Qn1ok0gIrytzFIqhRAcujjmGH06ph9qHFwAtwIqg1P3SD05coIdcHgy61NQwNRhNoMNg/s320/abnd+bldg+7.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201649921820493026" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5s9JkfNfrvjZjXD1Zbir5O3-AdRj5G2FHLMld63t2R-bp6hDZ28TLqj00u4iuDTuiekO9Grk76Yg2UcmqE1v9OdfAhXxkGcmdX7BMdoSNqWvEiM1jIIU3wAOZTvlrpk9ODoIk-Q/s1600-h/Bulgaria+120.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5s9JkfNfrvjZjXD1Zbir5O3-AdRj5G2FHLMld63t2R-bp6hDZ28TLqj00u4iuDTuiekO9Grk76Yg2UcmqE1v9OdfAhXxkGcmdX7BMdoSNqWvEiM1jIIU3wAOZTvlrpk9ODoIk-Q/s320/Bulgaria+120.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201649930410427634" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAlYz2jRUE45n45pz0Ikb8LKf26AOb5gxICJ-cX13FsahCu671qhyphenhyphenfg5hlUaDm_L2pVZfVMqKZUla6WXiI0LenETVVTUvUr9hRIzaHEWce2WwoTeIese-OEC2ispD42AzOQNM6Fg/s1600-h/Bulgaria+135.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAlYz2jRUE45n45pz0Ikb8LKf26AOb5gxICJ-cX13FsahCu671qhyphenhyphenfg5hlUaDm_L2pVZfVMqKZUla6WXiI0LenETVVTUvUr9hRIzaHEWce2WwoTeIese-OEC2ispD42AzOQNM6Fg/s320/Bulgaria+135.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201649934705394946" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqGqGSZMtrLN_EfJlTFFOBGauOzCr-zulLQJt6VxB-KQ-FdWRCYkEuq1n2kw1tqLGUGIZ4dZsIAqXknIFT6jJI_9DHdeG6TW9idGInqmp1kHXRiV_6eDFYXz3PD_w8qojo3xek0Q/s1600-h/Bulgaria+142.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqGqGSZMtrLN_EfJlTFFOBGauOzCr-zulLQJt6VxB-KQ-FdWRCYkEuq1n2kw1tqLGUGIZ4dZsIAqXknIFT6jJI_9DHdeG6TW9idGInqmp1kHXRiV_6eDFYXz3PD_w8qojo3xek0Q/s320/Bulgaria+142.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201651437943948578" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb2Xj0K3lJ5UMvlwgRRzMcyEC8GI_9cl_wKMCdyT53PH6PW2p5knT_Y5FPaEK_LqSLrO_saeSOSqjW3XrLhHSchO-63Y0g3WhXKqB_CzkzQ6NS8BdvfUUBjycH1jtTp6-1-xJtBw/s1600-h/Bulgaria+182b.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb2Xj0K3lJ5UMvlwgRRzMcyEC8GI_9cl_wKMCdyT53PH6PW2p5knT_Y5FPaEK_LqSLrO_saeSOSqjW3XrLhHSchO-63Y0g3WhXKqB_CzkzQ6NS8BdvfUUBjycH1jtTp6-1-xJtBw/s320/Bulgaria+182b.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201651442238915890" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjglb8TGJSio-fwURHpsPOUVKLk8feRGwswsTza6o6kxdF_Ng10qzg7mKyKHczRQRhHUhKngfXuucFvhWBSKgRjItAEnSZ4Zkh4icb97iaswpmApW__F15yzrUk7bwCeHZJeEaxNg/s1600-h/Bulgaria+184.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjglb8TGJSio-fwURHpsPOUVKLk8feRGwswsTza6o6kxdF_Ng10qzg7mKyKHczRQRhHUhKngfXuucFvhWBSKgRjItAEnSZ4Zkh4icb97iaswpmApW__F15yzrUk7bwCeHZJeEaxNg/s320/Bulgaria+184.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201651446533883202" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6KldyxvCkpkxehIKrT3B9t6gc08glFQcmKIlfzKH0-p8FZpRhafBM4OiDuMD0knAjrpDP8yvD34JSHz_-x66lr2d4L1st8QKKvYuVdhj9QMfiWlxC3JIA_hCWRWk1zQZFC7JDjA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+187.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6KldyxvCkpkxehIKrT3B9t6gc08glFQcmKIlfzKH0-p8FZpRhafBM4OiDuMD0knAjrpDP8yvD34JSHz_-x66lr2d4L1st8QKKvYuVdhj9QMfiWlxC3JIA_hCWRWk1zQZFC7JDjA/s320/Bulgaria+187.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201651450828850514" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5fX4Rf7yU8A5OijQtkRC99PitXl6GFUp1E465iLeml085xeBb5zF-9maJXdf81OdPBfzL268B-DUYnrogik0F3U2hbwIe0b5yCbcpPGmafIwCLDHr9jQDXCCOwbTndKq-m8bayQ/s1600-h/Bulgaria+188.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5fX4Rf7yU8A5OijQtkRC99PitXl6GFUp1E465iLeml085xeBb5zF-9maJXdf81OdPBfzL268B-DUYnrogik0F3U2hbwIe0b5yCbcpPGmafIwCLDHr9jQDXCCOwbTndKq-m8bayQ/s320/Bulgaria+188.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201651455123817826" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3wdLp-OPhqGv8gGI9CcAOMC-nzqk-2YBG4Aol6tEreFym3tZROg8hv78PARUE8m5uMb1ho6jBdV8ZqyX4SH058ivRrFHvKFX5gT0XpThazAhAjAWw1YxDUJur5wPIc9yTpBPv7w/s1600-h/Picture+142.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3wdLp-OPhqGv8gGI9CcAOMC-nzqk-2YBG4Aol6tEreFym3tZROg8hv78PARUE8m5uMb1ho6jBdV8ZqyX4SH058ivRrFHvKFX5gT0XpThazAhAjAWw1YxDUJur5wPIc9yTpBPv7w/s320/Picture+142.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201701431363274722" /></a><br /><br />I did a half-day trip to the Black Sea on my last Sunday in Sliven. I worked the morning very hungover and things were mostly finishing up and I was annoyed at having to work my second weekend in a row that I called up Tara (a peace corp volunteer that I met from the nearby town of Yambo) and said let's go! She was up for it as she wanted the beach and I had the car. So off to the Black Sea (Burgas, to be more precise) we went. There are some much nicer and touristy towns right around Burgas, but she mostly took me to a nice beach and some cool places in town. The weather was sunny and 28 degrees C, but the water was chilly (at least too chilly for anything but my feet). <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwt18RDv5JKl2xo55ljc7c02-6N2Y2leNo-uNSBumJUMhm_IGSzUPZrhBTdAkdlq5Xa5J6_lYUlVy4mUtxNFe25SWyS6Zg0IGppqF1FewG6m_MkhYecM0L_54PQHCT0co-6BfYWA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+189.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwt18RDv5JKl2xo55ljc7c02-6N2Y2leNo-uNSBumJUMhm_IGSzUPZrhBTdAkdlq5Xa5J6_lYUlVy4mUtxNFe25SWyS6Zg0IGppqF1FewG6m_MkhYecM0L_54PQHCT0co-6BfYWA/s320/Bulgaria+189.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201653740046419314" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-NGftObPS4z-benb3TcSk8oWv33M4ZXa1Q-qiF0W79HN7-gp-auhW3nIbljoRNXYpNpupqeriYQtUYH9pqOS99FzSgKdaNIi2v1QEbtqnuXQJbQAYKCGSekWSVGWG5DMup10Wsg/s1600-h/Bulgaria+190.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-NGftObPS4z-benb3TcSk8oWv33M4ZXa1Q-qiF0W79HN7-gp-auhW3nIbljoRNXYpNpupqeriYQtUYH9pqOS99FzSgKdaNIi2v1QEbtqnuXQJbQAYKCGSekWSVGWG5DMup10Wsg/s320/Bulgaria+190.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201654964112098706" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9oNAHH4DjONht1Pcy4vLDtxG4NwlSkru5DE_hd52Hgd1GDv8p5VAQ17P2JMS2JmW-qzj3ahwZL1tmajUopsBWLtWvXan381kQ8glq0dNiCgQheBBR_KCFPet3OyitJzbew_LFfA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+213.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9oNAHH4DjONht1Pcy4vLDtxG4NwlSkru5DE_hd52Hgd1GDv8p5VAQ17P2JMS2JmW-qzj3ahwZL1tmajUopsBWLtWvXan381kQ8glq0dNiCgQheBBR_KCFPet3OyitJzbew_LFfA/s320/Bulgaria+213.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201653748636353922" /></a><br /><br />The town of Burgas was surprisingly nice. I guess I had become a little too settled in Sliven, a moderate sized town but quite rural. Not that Sliven is really small, but it's somewhat isolated and behind the times compared to Burgas which feels a bit more European / modern / happening even though it's further east. Burgas has blocks and blocks of walking streets, though this seems to be more the standard for Bulgarian cities. In fact, probably the most impressive thing about Bulgarian towns is that all the downtown cores I've been too have pedestrian streets that seem to rule the downtowns. And not just one block, but block after block that make turns, join at a big square / plaza and continue in multiple directions. Very nice. In Burgas, it was nearly 30 degrees out and all the streets and markets were packed.<br /><br />A few things I like about these photos... doesn't the church look like it's leaning? I know it's some photographic / visual illusion whose name I can't recall, but... Also I was just looking at the brass sculpture photo and there appear to be two boys making out... how scandalous!! :) Lastly, I'd like to give a moment of photographic honor to Zagorka, a fine beer and my beverage of choice for many a day! The same can be said of McDonalds only once on the 3-hour drive from Sofia to Sliven, which has a McDonalds drive thru exactly half way and sadly proved too tempting ;(<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWdz8VzUS3L3SO-Er6TVj9FTIe5X5ZGpmhbQgRiFBveoKlwC8A8FIsNeHLzJLBQjh2PeH73yAAzOPthDsVBI3Z7dZJsVzqHk7FvPTZ_gLwEc2CyFlN8g-QzR-jLBF3dgTSVtMfWA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+194.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWdz8VzUS3L3SO-Er6TVj9FTIe5X5ZGpmhbQgRiFBveoKlwC8A8FIsNeHLzJLBQjh2PeH73yAAzOPthDsVBI3Z7dZJsVzqHk7FvPTZ_gLwEc2CyFlN8g-QzR-jLBF3dgTSVtMfWA/s320/Bulgaria+194.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201656377156339106" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_VBWxyenL9-hCsfIo8Eq1hNyzBbXR-LOvFh8x8RtkYjbZGuifbOnWQd7iF4riqtUPZbqMqMi8uyxKxqQG3kSG3T4sUVvwXTM2nD1LwCK9t3EDZO9reAPrItqwvS3ZoCKxUYmtg/s1600-h/Bulgaria+201.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_VBWxyenL9-hCsfIo8Eq1hNyzBbXR-LOvFh8x8RtkYjbZGuifbOnWQd7iF4riqtUPZbqMqMi8uyxKxqQG3kSG3T4sUVvwXTM2nD1LwCK9t3EDZO9reAPrItqwvS3ZoCKxUYmtg/s320/Bulgaria+201.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201656385746273714" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFzxztW39yr4GKP_eouvhtvRpliiGQiVjfdwxSdJrS71iOytSHyS-adccFVm0pbCdQN-inKzKafqXXi2Nc4yBdIXuqUmc0BB1Px2PvEzeY4Ps4D4LB8qAHez-sWC4kmNrw9pXeoQ/s1600-h/Bulgaria+205.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFzxztW39yr4GKP_eouvhtvRpliiGQiVjfdwxSdJrS71iOytSHyS-adccFVm0pbCdQN-inKzKafqXXi2Nc4yBdIXuqUmc0BB1Px2PvEzeY4Ps4D4LB8qAHez-sWC4kmNrw9pXeoQ/s320/Bulgaria+205.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201656390041241026" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQTd7b0Jl3fbM0ndF8UUodjtETprFbr_l0mkyD5DXqVdZJ2HAelEAfjOFI9F7q7i_V8L4UswfChGBdFgtgn-3YT_m1hBZvzUT3GysIU7VhRaRebPqfkastEmd06LaqWkuhaksp_g/s1600-h/Bulgaria+207.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQTd7b0Jl3fbM0ndF8UUodjtETprFbr_l0mkyD5DXqVdZJ2HAelEAfjOFI9F7q7i_V8L4UswfChGBdFgtgn-3YT_m1hBZvzUT3GysIU7VhRaRebPqfkastEmd06LaqWkuhaksp_g/s320/Bulgaria+207.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201657407948490242" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLz4KZLXSZDWrLkZwTDSPky5n06zGUxIYAZdijTnJW-4CfmuwWR6E_teufLYUC-DFI2gyYurjjhTnlPD0wlkSYrPRluF9BeoozF_SHPWffr9ehv8L9W7AqnH46_b7k2KwQ-ySiGw/s1600-h/Bulgaria+211.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLz4KZLXSZDWrLkZwTDSPky5n06zGUxIYAZdijTnJW-4CfmuwWR6E_teufLYUC-DFI2gyYurjjhTnlPD0wlkSYrPRluF9BeoozF_SHPWffr9ehv8L9W7AqnH46_b7k2KwQ-ySiGw/s320/Bulgaria+211.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201657412243457554" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYh4i_MS9wsFTyOyh7052ctGofS_kkVNxa9D4GCsdQ4mhCbqN9FIKgzPBbQonMdbduWxHiQ3S6__2ThBuGx2fWI_3lAfZ112okoX4AMI1g9d8Q84WeSo8Wjagkzc_o3n5wD63xfQ/s1600-h/Bulgaria+204.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYh4i_MS9wsFTyOyh7052ctGofS_kkVNxa9D4GCsdQ4mhCbqN9FIKgzPBbQonMdbduWxHiQ3S6__2ThBuGx2fWI_3lAfZ112okoX4AMI1g9d8Q84WeSo8Wjagkzc_o3n5wD63xfQ/s320/Bulgaria+204.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201657403653522930" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0B_y6f8-7oVc1wKg-SCPCiG-s46J0AV9t8O8cvt6LRjcIkhe2iec8c8rt-boYN4_Fh4JMFSedgZWUaVRVqbAPcqhny2ZChPZj62WCg0WRQSM3-jDw7L9E2SH7yZFE_OCQjdYXvw/s1600-h/Bulgaria+199.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0B_y6f8-7oVc1wKg-SCPCiG-s46J0AV9t8O8cvt6LRjcIkhe2iec8c8rt-boYN4_Fh4JMFSedgZWUaVRVqbAPcqhny2ZChPZj62WCg0WRQSM3-jDw7L9E2SH7yZFE_OCQjdYXvw/s320/Bulgaria+199.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201656398631175634" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhitBhyphenhyphengBrzYClxHwF7q3UfUHiKYEc3AI4zbQWUYBrYag7P6A_mC7BYqF0R02dRA0eozzuWASC3ufkpqvJaofEfLYFaOgZfQSQV2Mgq-JVKijIit8Dh-I7Q1VgG0oa8nmWYaRHtJQ/s1600-h/Bulgaria+200.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhitBhyphenhyphengBrzYClxHwF7q3UfUHiKYEc3AI4zbQWUYBrYag7P6A_mC7BYqF0R02dRA0eozzuWASC3ufkpqvJaofEfLYFaOgZfQSQV2Mgq-JVKijIit8Dh-I7Q1VgG0oa8nmWYaRHtJQ/s320/Bulgaria+200.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201656402926142946" /></a><br /><br />After I finished up work I headed to Plovdiv, almost the half way point between Sliven and Sofia (Sofia being where I was flying out from). I had grandiose plans of spending one night in Plovdiv and another night in a monastery in the mountains (which comes highly recommended), but alas, work took too long and I was burnt out. I think this was about Day 16 without a day off - though granted I did take an afternoon here or there - and I was getting a tad grumpy and just repeating to myself "show me the money!" A good part of the drive from Sliven to Plovdiv was on a small secondary road that was ridiculous (map showed it as a highway, but that was a bit of an overstatement). I essentially travelled from a mountain range in the north down into the valley that runs (it seems anyway) nearly from Sofia to Sliven. Then Plovdiv is across the valley further to the south approaching the next (and bigger) range of mountains that are an extension of the Alps sort of? Anyway, my rental car was a fun little 1.4L (?) Spanish car with a stick shift (it drove and had several things about it that were very Volkswagon, so I'm guessing there had to be some joint something or other between the companies). I don't think I've ever driven such twisty roads with severe swtichbacks, 20% climbs / declines, obstacles (trees, animals, potholes that would swallow a truck, sudden changes to gravel or near disappearance of road, etc. etc. And was kind of strange as all signs of human life nearly disappeared for over an hour with only one logging truck being seen and there were no signs in any language I recognized so I was highly uncertain that I was on the "highway". In places the road was partially overgrown so I was trying to recall if any nuclear reactors had failed in Bulgaria. With such strange conditions, I naturally drove the crap out of the car and for about 1 hour (still not knowing if I was on the righ road) and it was either full on acceleration up hills, hard braking and downshifting (the car loved the redline) into a corner (or to avoid animal or tree or...) with the odd burst on very rare straight aways. Quite intense and I burnt off much of the work frustrations (as well as 20% of the engine life and 50% of the brake pads). <br /><br />I took a few random photos of interesting things along the way, both in the hills and then upon hitting the valley. The randomness of the photos from the hills doesn't come across because several of these things had no sign of life for 20 km on either side and then all of sudden there was a fountain or a building or some ruins. I took a photo of the sign post because it was the first thing I had seen in english confirming I was in the right spot in quite a while. And I have no idea what the half naked woman on the billboard is trying to sell, but I find this kind of product endorsement / spokesperson is much more effective than say Tiger Woods.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsUXYRgH9n98DFaw-zMmmogYvQ-l-5JUJMCkLl6rh7WhbckQqYo8x4RhLIltnVee-ylMiPSrYy3qQjlSz42bJ3TmhQ6k28q7_kbKuRWPzuOksht_WBP4tGK9BbFn4_j4d7rDO18Q/s1600-h/Bulgaria+154.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsUXYRgH9n98DFaw-zMmmogYvQ-l-5JUJMCkLl6rh7WhbckQqYo8x4RhLIltnVee-ylMiPSrYy3qQjlSz42bJ3TmhQ6k28q7_kbKuRWPzuOksht_WBP4tGK9BbFn4_j4d7rDO18Q/s320/Bulgaria+154.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709231023884274" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjD7h880nhBnGSEbCdX8OIH8x5pfsjZP-HubjMQs3ZdKlkHKWJrzj7wwvhcPceXFsLmm5DgnzgoCKQBEH30UdUVp2v_KNXlrnD7nbNhw0rX2ZOXJEW08IZhZgx1aVEoC5uLsOegQ/s1600-h/Bulgaria+155.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjD7h880nhBnGSEbCdX8OIH8x5pfsjZP-HubjMQs3ZdKlkHKWJrzj7wwvhcPceXFsLmm5DgnzgoCKQBEH30UdUVp2v_KNXlrnD7nbNhw0rX2ZOXJEW08IZhZgx1aVEoC5uLsOegQ/s320/Bulgaria+155.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709235318851586" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3XOasRvHy5ccxIqOxpL78vUGNUCEtIyU7-qgCoQN6H6ceaFnTHLfEyoh98mx7BxRWsXU2zOc14CFFgZxALqQWgEDVmN4TaM_4flge__VpXdxSktvcGLxrMwNfl1uPK97ZPKMXA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+157.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3XOasRvHy5ccxIqOxpL78vUGNUCEtIyU7-qgCoQN6H6ceaFnTHLfEyoh98mx7BxRWsXU2zOc14CFFgZxALqQWgEDVmN4TaM_4flge__VpXdxSktvcGLxrMwNfl1uPK97ZPKMXA/s320/Bulgaria+157.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709239613818898" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkejZjvtBl2oTMDb_t8MBfA9o80JjGjITUjmZY0v-ixy4geoFZyJGGzRvJLEDcotJs3yhWu0Cg6h1ZXYHmWAailubw_Y3lRDtkVnDhKYHymW91iX7V6XzpYuG-SyWVztUNCY0aQ/s1600-h/Bulgaria+158.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkejZjvtBl2oTMDb_t8MBfA9o80JjGjITUjmZY0v-ixy4geoFZyJGGzRvJLEDcotJs3yhWu0Cg6h1ZXYHmWAailubw_Y3lRDtkVnDhKYHymW91iX7V6XzpYuG-SyWVztUNCY0aQ/s320/Bulgaria+158.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709248203753506" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghR8yqYAHPewM0oWvhhn1w0PPIdOULxsjaoFpPmebecdSB9XrX_peRVc2wj0TmfoQF-zpnSSz5UOhxbmXx3NOIXsagBvc2YvJKZgnWhld0D5FxcptVRkgQGOKqAJf1vFMO4an34w/s1600-h/Bulgaria+159.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghR8yqYAHPewM0oWvhhn1w0PPIdOULxsjaoFpPmebecdSB9XrX_peRVc2wj0TmfoQF-zpnSSz5UOhxbmXx3NOIXsagBvc2YvJKZgnWhld0D5FxcptVRkgQGOKqAJf1vFMO4an34w/s320/Bulgaria+159.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709252498720818" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi837DGoszheqRnEY5tOEVEsO-oQ-S6FaoLnQUVHtqe5IGnnfw4HiBrbSrCS1xlr5NRQu1ZC2mlzzfkfEkCsl-0T9WmdhOG7w1L1p1g5BEFoibq4j_aL1wLHC1jk4n3xXk9z64VkA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+160.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi837DGoszheqRnEY5tOEVEsO-oQ-S6FaoLnQUVHtqe5IGnnfw4HiBrbSrCS1xlr5NRQu1ZC2mlzzfkfEkCsl-0T9WmdhOG7w1L1p1g5BEFoibq4j_aL1wLHC1jk4n3xXk9z64VkA/s320/Bulgaria+160.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709677700483138" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR8xqdx_q4ernmoOv7xczD-OLJqPDYYy2Uo3yQIHc4ddHjE9GCSnq4GFhhSAu6WTtc1gJ7gJHSBzkIuoTpQeQGL8W-BUUsqsTDBQcqhBynDudFoZzsVX5GcZfxeStZaA5xG2kV_Q/s1600-h/Bulgaria+161.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR8xqdx_q4ernmoOv7xczD-OLJqPDYYy2Uo3yQIHc4ddHjE9GCSnq4GFhhSAu6WTtc1gJ7gJHSBzkIuoTpQeQGL8W-BUUsqsTDBQcqhBynDudFoZzsVX5GcZfxeStZaA5xG2kV_Q/s320/Bulgaria+161.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709681995450450" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2W8KQoP8o2UGo9x0cGHxfnUM-zoAgohNMzfC55cFjSlWYg5b-cas52Jyx7xyQkJKJx2bx4YDkV5bWqr6S5SRjKHukSmPBnK9RVf-PohlYoIPJhWo0x3i_OEmQEffLiQcukWvblA/s1600-h/Bulgaria+162.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2W8KQoP8o2UGo9x0cGHxfnUM-zoAgohNMzfC55cFjSlWYg5b-cas52Jyx7xyQkJKJx2bx4YDkV5bWqr6S5SRjKHukSmPBnK9RVf-PohlYoIPJhWo0x3i_OEmQEffLiQcukWvblA/s320/Bulgaria+162.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201709690585385058" /></a><br /><br />I made it to Plovdiv around 5PM. Tara had hooked me up with a couple of Peace Corps friends in town and I had dinner and drinks with them that evening. Unfortunately the work requests to finish up this and that kept coming and I spent much of the next day in my hotel room scanning, faxing and tabulating until I was ready to tear someones head off. But finally I made it out for some more touristy things, which was quite easy since my hotel was in the heart of the old district (I had Roman ruins literally 300 feet from my hotel). I really liked Plovdiv, the former capital that had also been occupied by the Romans in times long long ago, then the Turks, then the XXX, then the XXX, etc. But somehow, the occupiers never leveled the place so it has become quite the architectural collaboration. Was a really nice city with some great hills overlooked by mountains, the aforementioned great architecture ranging from Roman to Islamic mosques to churches, to Japanese to Russian, and a nice balance between eastern and western Europe. Here's a handful of photos I snapped (yes, I admit, my blog is more of a photo album than a blog, but what's your point?).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdA81aZmBrhMVjV0bdblVkUv_UFt9N2md8svbp2hLR6TNMwpJirK0-raXwJCeAlxKcfxgDfby9BqFkWDX314LI8el1ZQKBgRFFPv0NvSz4O0OfHxe9ZbI9i3O0mkZCktIT7bBEhA/s1600-h/IMG_0843.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdA81aZmBrhMVjV0bdblVkUv_UFt9N2md8svbp2hLR6TNMwpJirK0-raXwJCeAlxKcfxgDfby9BqFkWDX314LI8el1ZQKBgRFFPv0NvSz4O0OfHxe9ZbI9i3O0mkZCktIT7bBEhA/s320/IMG_0843.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201686295898523282" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW3cFI1nY2uo5aurN18cMu6S3aFFxKySx6_fFVHt2ydTDXO_iukvD8ePrjz9XqryZjTQ-DJOr9ppYxVK8OLiz21zMV7Zti_cCRxSJyLWtBmQgutJxXLJXRUSqAWkv0wow6NsZ12Q/s1600-h/IMG_0847.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; 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cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKKvxTA5cZBPg0PsbxGGvarXsAWTMNxDM1Gvvh8VTXvJ6ajziDDi7lhqwh9ZAMwwTP7ykpMEDi97xAvRZsIACLW2zngVzgFiK15vXze-TODMjP0ldJ3TRZ9gQ0rngo7CwnxSin8A/s320/IMG_0874.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201688636655699794" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiownFySe9FKRNtH4-ujTYtcZcc_Z6VL-_PiwInWEHX-deDm72W_MDR_iahF1ULxbB7SMpxaT3bYCw2ub2bUHAdPweB-Pr1ClXCvOK995bscd8MZo11Y3h556e1srka72MzNJw2uA/s1600-h/IMG_0876.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiownFySe9FKRNtH4-ujTYtcZcc_Z6VL-_PiwInWEHX-deDm72W_MDR_iahF1ULxbB7SMpxaT3bYCw2ub2bUHAdPweB-Pr1ClXCvOK995bscd8MZo11Y3h556e1srka72MzNJw2uA/s320/IMG_0876.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201688640950667106" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3QEXQHOotbWUxSgnZ6f2jmgw31HOaLRn2lmLnDFiUBw66guE7MklPXqm16UMrZDg1JyyqRhTLzfbBteVIpKOqSqmY7WyA0OKU46rRCDKCM0WJC501y2D1lB1hbebH34o3It6jHQ/s1600-h/IMG_0881.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3QEXQHOotbWUxSgnZ6f2jmgw31HOaLRn2lmLnDFiUBw66guE7MklPXqm16UMrZDg1JyyqRhTLzfbBteVIpKOqSqmY7WyA0OKU46rRCDKCM0WJC501y2D1lB1hbebH34o3It6jHQ/s320/IMG_0881.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5201688645245634418" /></a>David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-69214772056792467552008-04-29T22:03:00.000-07:002008-04-29T22:56:38.461-07:00Green curry is so good!Hello from Chiang Mai! It's raining right now and I thought I'd say hi and let people know where I'm at. I ended up working more than planned in Bulgaria and only had a couple days off in Plovdiv at the end. And even those days off involved some to a lot of work on the computer. Such is life.... but last Thursday's paycheque (for the first two weeks of work in Bulgaria - about 140 hours!) has paid for the Thailand vacation and probably the next, so I can't really complain I guess. Especially when the hour Thai massage only costs $4-7! But I do complain none the less because whining is so much fun! In whole, Bulgaria was work, but really pretty great with a beautiful field site in mountainous farm land, really getting to live and meet people, having a fun car to putt about on mountain roads, and way more real than just being a tourist ever could have been. I like this idea of working in different places, though it gets old too. I'll put some photos up at some point when I'm not being drawn to swimming pools, wats, massages, etc. etc. <br /><br />So I flew out it out of Bulgaria last Thursday and spent a couple days hanging out with Ben, Sam & Conner in Bangkok (I even babysat for an afternoon... yikes!!). Then Michelle arrived and we spent one more day in Bangkok. Definitely fun all hanging out together, having drinks, wandering about Bangkok, having a suit & shirts made, getting foot massages together, etc. etc. Now Ben & Sam are down in Phuket getting wedding stuff prepared while Michelle and I are up in Chiang Mai. We took the night train up and among other things are booked for a 2-day trek tomorrow and a full day organic farm cooking class on Saturday. <br /><br />The cooking class (I think) we're going to take is described pretty well here in <a href="http://primitiveculture.blogspot.com/2007/07/thai-farm-cooking-school.html">someone else's blog</a> that I found by trying to get some info on the different places (we've found a few places wandering and talking to people, but since I'm stuck travelling with my laptop after Bulgaria and the hotel has free wireless, why not...)<br /><br />Also came across this <a href="http://www.thaifoodtonight.com/thaifoodtonight/recipes.htm">Thai cooking lessons website </a> that might be interesting (my connection is too slow to watch streaming video, but maybe yours isn't?).<br /><br />In case any wedding folk are curious, we're flying to Phuket direct from Chiang Mai Sunday May 4 arriving Thai Airways at 1445. Should be perfect timing to get checked in, cleaned up and make the reception get together thingy at 6PM. I think our plan is to stay in Phuket at least till the 7th, maybe the 8th before moving on to Ko Phi Phi (maybe, elsewhere too?) and finally Krabi. Michelle and I fly to Bangkok from Krabi Sunday May 10 9PM.<br /><br />I'm very conflicted, but I've tentatively confirmed with the London Olympics project that I'll work starting May 13 for 3 weeks. Part of me wants to stay in Thailand by myself and do a week-long massage course or something just totally relaxing. I could just sit in a hut by myself and read? Or maybe go join Ben in Vietnam for a week before he flies back to Australia for a holiday? Or maybe fly to Ethiopia to visit Laurel. I don't know, but going back to work so soon just seems silly. Like, who needs to work, like really? (that statement should be said with full valley girl dizziness) Any suggestions?David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-63100628481127068542008-04-12T00:22:00.000-07:002008-04-12T02:31:27.958-07:00rock & dirt in Bulgaria...Hello from Sliven. About 3 hours east of Sofia (the capital). I must admit my geography of eastern Europe is a bit skewed, so if you're like me... it's a couple hours north of Greece and not much further to Istanbul (both of which I'm contemplating next week assuming the work finishes up). Bulgaria used to have some coast line on the Adriatic, but Macedonia split off and took the coast with them - I remember reading about how Greece objects to them calling themselves Macedonia because Greece has states (provinces ?) called Macedonia and they don't like the confusion and maybe also worried their states will join with the new country of similar name? Like the Kurds in Turkey/Iraq? Ignorance is bliss...<br /><br />The last week has been a bit intense. Finishing up in London and getting rushed onto this job very last minute was... rushed. And this job (doing geotechnical borings in farmland for what someday will be a US Army base) has been very poorly planned in many aspects. And given the job is in Bulgaria, it's kind of like being thrown to the wolves. But still in a fun way. <br /><br />Getting a rental car and leaving the airport here is a challenge. You leave the airport and there are two choices for directions, but no signs. Ummm... thanks for that. And even if there were signs, they'd probably be in Cyrillic. And then I get onto a fairly major road, but still no signs that provide any indication as to which direction I'm heading or anything. And of course since everything was rushed I had no maps and the map Hertz gave me only had the downtown core and didn't show the airport. And unlike every Hertz rental in the US where they try to push GPS units on you, Bulgaria doesn't have them. Lovely. Anyway, I somehow made it onto the highway I wanted, and despite not really getting the road signs, I did the 3 hour drive to Sliven without too much incident (arriving at 10PM, 4 hours later than planned thanks to snow in London). <br /><br />Sliven, it turns out, is a very nice city of ~100,000. My hotel is I think the nicest hotel in town and right in the central district on a park and pedestrian street. Lots of shops, cafes, outdoor restaurants, etc. And a very cheap place to get my US cell phone unlocked and a new battery for my old cell, which has a Bulgarian SIM in it (it's free to call me, but costs to for me to make calls, so ask for my number if you want to call). Here's my first Sliven photo taken from my hotel window...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdGb8DDTEkKgs7kXOxVLIN40CT1gAZf5x0lNVKVQCvQUHpD-VyNDRg9d5QXwbsPeC3lYpEJp9ixN6DPJ4lM631H1ehJcwDEtLyEOaB82yOdckjWvTiFFSMBLoTDAVxSSXKHnQlgA/s1600-h/Sliven+from+hotel.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdGb8DDTEkKgs7kXOxVLIN40CT1gAZf5x0lNVKVQCvQUHpD-VyNDRg9d5QXwbsPeC3lYpEJp9ixN6DPJ4lM631H1ehJcwDEtLyEOaB82yOdckjWvTiFFSMBLoTDAVxSSXKHnQlgA/s320/Sliven+from+hotel.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188287441527186082" /></a><br /><br />The work has been slow, but also what I was expecting. In 4 days, we've accomplished 4 meters of hole. Everything from the driller (my subcontractor) showing up with a drill rig & crew that they has been in turn subcontracted (subcontractor to the subcontractor). And then they don't have the right equipment, and then this breaks and then that and.... well, let's just say we're working the weekend and it's 11AM and I'm doing a blog in my hotel because we're waiting for a part... The work was supposed to be 5 holes up to 25 meter each to do geotech properties and sample collection, but rock is very shallow and most holes look like they'll just be a few meters. Anyway... here are a few photos of the crazy looking Russian drill rig, the hired band of Gypsies (that show up in their horse drawn cart) digging a mud pit and some random rock / soil photos:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5kkdIQilrKK2TYM8gW5c8Y1ERDl8tIfuWfPZJZmaALRcrfkabRAZzIh0KRyNKNecyB5why4NtLN6euJbcUWfrlvzXwpCTVIBWl42fLltW3Xal51-phi4-_-F6ScAuvJ8xVgkzZg/s1600-h/Digging+mud+pit+for+BH2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5kkdIQilrKK2TYM8gW5c8Y1ERDl8tIfuWfPZJZmaALRcrfkabRAZzIh0KRyNKNecyB5why4NtLN6euJbcUWfrlvzXwpCTVIBWl42fLltW3Xal51-phi4-_-F6ScAuvJ8xVgkzZg/s320/Digging+mud+pit+for+BH2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188262075450335826" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjChhhJybvi_KuJcq1QxCnIegFCEO9pRZDtE2Ncm_vkV9hb7Hi2sB-91F6wCJCeXy4hfm4MNzDf27WBW-Mg4lD6Wisers0cCglKFN6SCnT5hs2cZ5hg48SJSTOZZBWEuAm4h87jeg/s1600-h/Drill+rig+%232.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjChhhJybvi_KuJcq1QxCnIegFCEO9pRZDtE2Ncm_vkV9hb7Hi2sB-91F6wCJCeXy4hfm4MNzDf27WBW-Mg4lD6Wisers0cCglKFN6SCnT5hs2cZ5hg48SJSTOZZBWEuAm4h87jeg/s320/Drill+rig+%232.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188262075450335842" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj48sl6QByQU7yEpzxn68pxUZwLW-Am_ij4ECmJx3SgZ4rjlT2KabWb56y1XHzcqhaEBDsEukCtmtiGYcIoN1MKgS4ReLH-b_Gqtw_bwRxw6ZmMsCPhnyvpdLarCyXFEjnBiS3LRA/s1600-h/Drill+rig+at+BH1+%233.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj48sl6QByQU7yEpzxn68pxUZwLW-Am_ij4ECmJx3SgZ4rjlT2KabWb56y1XHzcqhaEBDsEukCtmtiGYcIoN1MKgS4ReLH-b_Gqtw_bwRxw6ZmMsCPhnyvpdLarCyXFEjnBiS3LRA/s320/Drill+rig+at+BH1+%233.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188262079745303154" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimHNxwkmQa54OSfgjNELb7ydoGpq7csdnHa9iCoqrUX8qaTNhieNvrnrcoI4SXHfHWugqQdkYjFf-RzZ4nsKwL004PDSENIG8MwxNPD2X2Q-ZD9IgFcVbTX0qGAUPNS4-YEVSOoA/s1600-h/Rock+outcrop+off+road+near+dam.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimHNxwkmQa54OSfgjNELb7ydoGpq7csdnHa9iCoqrUX8qaTNhieNvrnrcoI4SXHfHWugqQdkYjFf-RzZ4nsKwL004PDSENIG8MwxNPD2X2Q-ZD9IgFcVbTX0qGAUPNS4-YEVSOoA/s320/Rock+outcrop+off+road+near+dam.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188262079745303170" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvPVOMvpvu_5m8YWy5BLBMxxz9J7BM4tzVhx8XJ4CR003NBfVaSFOSU4a3r-N_XfZcbHxJlOTvwxkvUwVHsHqkfDkZRrXjwkRL6DIkSDX7KyyvLPB7ohq3frXGvR44TsOSLLlwSQ/s1600-h/Mud+pit+at+BH1+%235.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvPVOMvpvu_5m8YWy5BLBMxxz9J7BM4tzVhx8XJ4CR003NBfVaSFOSU4a3r-N_XfZcbHxJlOTvwxkvUwVHsHqkfDkZRrXjwkRL6DIkSDX7KyyvLPB7ohq3frXGvR44TsOSLLlwSQ/s320/Mud+pit+at+BH1+%235.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5188262084040270482" /></a><br /><br />I had an interpretor for the first 5 days, but now I'm on my own. Was kind of nice having someone to hang out with while we did nothing. Milkana knew some neat little towns with little restaurants up in the mountain villages and we had a few 3 hour lunches and such. I really wish I had taken my camera for some of these places as they were incredibly quaint. Life is rough... but now I'm sort of working.<br /><br />Work will go for at least another week. I'm hoping to be done by next weekend and I don't fly out till the following Wednesday or Thursday. Which will give some time to go to the Black Sea? Turkey? Greece? Bucharest? Serbia? Maybe a road trip to all of them? Will all depend on when the work finishes and how burnt out I feel. And on the 23rd or 24th I fly to Bangkok to catch up with Michelle on the 26th and head down to Ben's wedding in Phuket. Then back to London on May 12 I think, but that's still weeks away. Anyway, that's what I'm up to... Hope all are well everywhere!David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-4148978939932130842008-03-21T05:33:00.001-07:002008-03-22T06:07:50.686-07:00Working in the LondonI flew from Berlin to Glasgow to catch up with Pat & Stef who were taking a weekend vacation in Edinburgh. P&S once again were gracious enough to put me up for a couple nights not to mention bring my luggage from Aberdeen (they did get some babysitting out of the deal, which involved no effort since Chloe never woke up once). I was travelling Poland/Germany with just a small day pack, which is most certainly the way to travel. I finished writing the the last bit of the Berlin blog on the train from Edinburgh to London on Monday (which had wireless!) and then Tuesday....<br /><br />I'm finally in London working! Was what I first talked about in when I left San Fran in April 2006! More specifically, I'm in the Canary Wharf office working on the 2012 Olympics for the next month or so (until Vietnam/Thailand). Which isn't really a CH2M office - it is, but isn't - more of a project office dedicated to the one project. Kind of different lifestyle as the office is right in the center of the financial district (21st floor of the Barclay Building) and I'm taking a ferry each morning from the Hilton Docklands. Let's just say I'm going shopping this weekend to buy some nice close to fit in a bit better!! And I'm also checking out of the Hilton for a slightly more reasonable hotel (only a mere £120/night) and, more importantly, a funner neighbourhood (Old Street). It has been quite a shock from the stay in London a month ago - a £14 4-bed hostel room to a £200 hotel.<br /><br />There have been numerous phone calls and emails over the last few weeks about my future in London (post Thailand). Nothing confirmed, but looking like the Olympics project may try to keep me part time and the work in Ireland wants me for ~3 months (based out of the main CH2M London office). And the client for the Dublin work also needs support for sites in the Netherlands & France. All this looks like lots of travel, but doesn't look to be too settled. So choices are looking like:<br /><br />A. Forget about work and travel (Ethiopia & Tanzania are still quite interesting) <br /><br />B. Support projects in a few countries for up to a few months at a time, get to travel, but don't really get to settle in a have a normal life.<br /><br />C. Settle down in London, get a flat, but then have all the London expenses that somewhat limit travel.<br /><br />I'll have some decisions to make and no doubt some will get made for me. And in order to get this all settled, they want me to attend a quarterly client meeting on April 29-30 (apparently the Ireland client really likes local staff and will have to be won over by Canadian charm). But this is just a few days before Ben's wedding and they are unwilling to hold the meeting in Bangkok - how unreasonable! Everyone seems eager to get me on board, so hopefully my absence at the meeting isn't a fatal blow. <br /><br />And a really funny one... I spoke some words of French with the PM of the Ireland work (who happens to be French and lives in Marseilles) and next thing I know I'm getting a request to do a senior review of a report in French. Ummm... big difference between being able to order a meal or navigate the metro and do a senior review of a technical report! I could have brutalized it after a few beers (my French vastly improves after a few beer!), but not understanding the subtly of one word can greatly change the meaning of a sentence and.... I spoke French with Chloe my entire time in Aberdeen (granted she's 2 1/2 years old), but my experience there makes me think that a few weeks in France talking French (maybe taking a class) would do a world of good. Hmmm... maybe that should be Choice D above?David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-32611512033683561072008-03-17T12:13:00.000-07:002008-03-21T05:33:09.634-07:00Krakow & BerlinAnd off to Krakow, barely looking at a map, not knowing how to say hi, not knowing if it's in the EU, and really just being quite ignorant and indifferent to my ignorance - bliss, perhaps. Turns out Krakow is a very nice city with lots of old buildings, churches, palaces, etc. (the only largish Polish city not to be leveled during WWII). It's one of the cities where I feel I could settle down and just hang out for a few weeks without wanting to leave. I really didn't take many photos of the town itself as kept planning to get evening photos (the town square had great light in the morning and evening), but I never got up early enough and then always forgot at night, so I stole the last two...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPpjB1SZ-WjFC93vWYP6LNQGljnjtVbXljSQp8bd-e-Nnq3o2BiUX1CmkMRmwteW9KD6l3CbvBdKQZarkzNnWLn7h5H39-UHjX2g-U5bYYCYFwHvmwXdUyQI83SXeifgVoZk7z2g/s1600-h/IMG_0376.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPpjB1SZ-WjFC93vWYP6LNQGljnjtVbXljSQp8bd-e-Nnq3o2BiUX1CmkMRmwteW9KD6l3CbvBdKQZarkzNnWLn7h5H39-UHjX2g-U5bYYCYFwHvmwXdUyQI83SXeifgVoZk7z2g/s320/IMG_0376.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179558106411120290" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_gY2cFzJvCNvwd95SeHI2s_cQCR0q1ZVJy29FHpRlu5LwgNfrTTnGUyEv7ZMi7w7s7vIQrt_jfgHlp6bqw_mZW2_oXzIQxHoju4HPgyYhl6vD6eefSWcmvgS8uQo6_H1O1j0dyA/s1600-h/IMG_0383.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_gY2cFzJvCNvwd95SeHI2s_cQCR0q1ZVJy29FHpRlu5LwgNfrTTnGUyEv7ZMi7w7s7vIQrt_jfgHlp6bqw_mZW2_oXzIQxHoju4HPgyYhl6vD6eefSWcmvgS8uQo6_H1O1j0dyA/s320/IMG_0383.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179558115001054898" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4gAXjxtP4JFC_ZRQLboMR71r4XAIpF4E4D6qOZfvELaK_y_v438YQQQpSeZRSg3hSsgy8BQ8QQGUK2AssG17A4GMniTXeSH-Knk7kDmcYLG5gSlrTnx2TP0-95GmKwJH6RWd-5Q/s1600-h/IMG_0387.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4gAXjxtP4JFC_ZRQLboMR71r4XAIpF4E4D6qOZfvELaK_y_v438YQQQpSeZRSg3hSsgy8BQ8QQGUK2AssG17A4GMniTXeSH-Knk7kDmcYLG5gSlrTnx2TP0-95GmKwJH6RWd-5Q/s320/IMG_0387.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179558119296022210" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOp59iaIKfDDYwHThCHeIICWFOegTf3fnHe0rshbtOMo8M3eMOSr6uFlifdtrhdvwirL_-hZME10yvOmagU1b6dGQmOxOyeHY2puJDLbfmAkIBTDULM4_6Aepura3QN_6arPs9IA/s1600-h/krakow1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOp59iaIKfDDYwHThCHeIICWFOegTf3fnHe0rshbtOMo8M3eMOSr6uFlifdtrhdvwirL_-hZME10yvOmagU1b6dGQmOxOyeHY2puJDLbfmAkIBTDULM4_6Aepura3QN_6arPs9IA/s320/krakow1.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179559841577907922" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb_0dfS-5qkrL12Z4hEnZXsMiDWp1O9JIFXLpHHScjg29xXvxYI1Xu_F4MO68uQ-oqEdn7hIzrm9DCzdDjFfUS1xcGfAVFj546AOXkcED2Z8zulpFyh9HDCCgmH5i5Yt3zO9QqLw/s1600-h/Krakow2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb_0dfS-5qkrL12Z4hEnZXsMiDWp1O9JIFXLpHHScjg29xXvxYI1Xu_F4MO68uQ-oqEdn7hIzrm9DCzdDjFfUS1xcGfAVFj546AOXkcED2Z8zulpFyh9HDCCgmH5i5Yt3zO9QqLw/s320/Krakow2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179559845872875234" /></a><br /><br />As a summary, I'd have to say Krakow was great. I'm left wanting to do a lot more travel in Eastern Europe. Prices are reasonable, people are more or less friendly, lots of fun, beautiful tourist things, nice when out of the tourist area, beautiful women (as in holy cow), and they love to party. What else could one want? Was a good time to visit as well being fun but a quieter than the summer months (which can supposedly get a little crazy). But to put it in perspective, I arrived at the hostel at 9PM and was out at a club by 10PM (of course with no food or water, so...). <br /><br />On the tourist side, I did a day trip from Krakow to Auschwitz, the infamous WWII concentration camp in which a few million people met their fate (predominantly Jews & Poles). Wasn't exactly a destination that you want to go, but more a destination you have to go. Was quite impressive, if that's the right word.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwIjCr5Z5iElmcw2U8crn8UvWybx4o9drNOV3ncVs9-IUc8N2py3jDW2XPOMNg3FsL52KkYKrzpH4usOCb9iQAS8d8ENZ_U1dOQtEkeaTUh3dHH_wpKpcziz-WvvOFdE1FJ8YgPQ/s1600-h/IMG_0351.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwIjCr5Z5iElmcw2U8crn8UvWybx4o9drNOV3ncVs9-IUc8N2py3jDW2XPOMNg3FsL52KkYKrzpH4usOCb9iQAS8d8ENZ_U1dOQtEkeaTUh3dHH_wpKpcziz-WvvOFdE1FJ8YgPQ/s320/IMG_0351.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179554215170749938" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQRzk2gWX_i5I8DSnBcWW9vmAzL4Lbi-H8MmY1NC1cY851qnGQeYo84x5iQpPjgx41TcLunwZ2JfeSruBP7MY48oXbYVRdIVRy_qXXKTVfd7QX20WQirKLOXR82niBJ9JFFqhRQ/s1600-h/IMG_0352.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQRzk2gWX_i5I8DSnBcWW9vmAzL4Lbi-H8MmY1NC1cY851qnGQeYo84x5iQpPjgx41TcLunwZ2JfeSruBP7MY48oXbYVRdIVRy_qXXKTVfd7QX20WQirKLOXR82niBJ9JFFqhRQ/s320/IMG_0352.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179554219465717250" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDShfDyy_TRG53pFRjk5RM6cKwB5O9-F0wBa4VQU67XDuQI5MKL-1N55JjpJXnYu7C9bWSoHH4YLCPizwq6EWBxS_YJE6pteLKF5Oe6p0B_3N32TghrMTGnvXhhEIi4wKfPEeHbQ/s1600-h/IMG_0354.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDShfDyy_TRG53pFRjk5RM6cKwB5O9-F0wBa4VQU67XDuQI5MKL-1N55JjpJXnYu7C9bWSoHH4YLCPizwq6EWBxS_YJE6pteLKF5Oe6p0B_3N32TghrMTGnvXhhEIi4wKfPEeHbQ/s320/IMG_0354.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179554223760684562" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3llVw8XYrz5KplPMdnw3bCDncJIps5mC0GdIc_esxU1ZnBdVyL61m7s9T8rPBF_gx1JqI8Wk8pRNmdgVM0CylucSDXUk_5WplwWOMsQ5RixHDiGHfFhpqksa9laSX9bcx8TPRA/s1600-h/IMG_0355.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3llVw8XYrz5KplPMdnw3bCDncJIps5mC0GdIc_esxU1ZnBdVyL61m7s9T8rPBF_gx1JqI8Wk8pRNmdgVM0CylucSDXUk_5WplwWOMsQ5RixHDiGHfFhpqksa9laSX9bcx8TPRA/s320/IMG_0355.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179554228055651874" /></a><br /><br />And then from Auschwitz we went to Birkenau, which is right next door. Auschwitz was a Polish army camp that the Germans took over and then they built Birkenau so they could hold more people. Many parts of Birkenau got destroyed / burnt as the Germans left so you have to use your imagination when you just see rows and rows of chimneys just how many people actually would have been in this camp.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYihlNdPrOYSyYL15P9TWTqKDfEXGaXjGYaYhUhn-Vt4vhX2uHfa_0PAPcQqBud-Hb2qK03j8mmpl4Qw0ZleLf2klMyAlLHxmLTk_9ZMjBgd9by1y97Bbw0o7gOhvUP24PfGfQUw/s1600-h/IMG_0359.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYihlNdPrOYSyYL15P9TWTqKDfEXGaXjGYaYhUhn-Vt4vhX2uHfa_0PAPcQqBud-Hb2qK03j8mmpl4Qw0ZleLf2klMyAlLHxmLTk_9ZMjBgd9by1y97Bbw0o7gOhvUP24PfGfQUw/s320/IMG_0359.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179555542315644466" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgikscDwGHOd_JE6NoBjI-HSgsn1As4WIij06so6BsAq_1Sq-TBmoxVs4R6SzCyrx6Vsikj8Itfxu5zApMVoAf9vS1vH4hv49JZPCquffPZByktrKFUm3Ya6KfquCF0fPcCeJ9d2Q/s1600-h/IMG_0363.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgikscDwGHOd_JE6NoBjI-HSgsn1As4WIij06so6BsAq_1Sq-TBmoxVs4R6SzCyrx6Vsikj8Itfxu5zApMVoAf9vS1vH4hv49JZPCquffPZByktrKFUm3Ya6KfquCF0fPcCeJ9d2Q/s320/IMG_0363.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179555546610611778" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZaXpBsnrzu-8WZcBReaCsjrANqmxbB8F07B623L993F3VVriTalW9W5BoP2KsuOD306EqJakhISjKIsE8DwB7aZbcTckfDNUOQJfeK1KW8kGYpfPGsbjnOnjccZekp0ri-FocQ/s1600-h/IMG_0364.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ZaXpBsnrzu-8WZcBReaCsjrANqmxbB8F07B623L993F3VVriTalW9W5BoP2KsuOD306EqJakhISjKIsE8DwB7aZbcTckfDNUOQJfeK1KW8kGYpfPGsbjnOnjccZekp0ri-FocQ/s320/IMG_0364.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179555550905579090" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhh86Et_o0YcNylTuSc3_WOvbB4V__cQ_-wUVCWk1hHYI7Bfu5FdRYszvbNKBEC09HNEU7vY3P9gLl3x4L_nAU0gyPrBDVr5WL1UGIu8DIx_K637cdGjfV6w3nlHLdXj_O6z0dQ/s1600-h/IMG_0367.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPhh86Et_o0YcNylTuSc3_WOvbB4V__cQ_-wUVCWk1hHYI7Bfu5FdRYszvbNKBEC09HNEU7vY3P9gLl3x4L_nAU0gyPrBDVr5WL1UGIu8DIx_K637cdGjfV6w3nlHLdXj_O6z0dQ/s320/IMG_0367.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179555555200546402" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifHxLbB6lGtjCy2b_0l0bdRDz1x_IiE4YVg2kZR33xxd0p8WIeHC9eD5t6Yye2QCg6d6xSR2QLy7m_im7Aw9cybZUSPxdKQlVYqVKe8hsd3jm5Hyc-JDNWwbwCl4eEuAORyR0F-A/s1600-h/IMG_0368.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifHxLbB6lGtjCy2b_0l0bdRDz1x_IiE4YVg2kZR33xxd0p8WIeHC9eD5t6Yye2QCg6d6xSR2QLy7m_im7Aw9cybZUSPxdKQlVYqVKe8hsd3jm5Hyc-JDNWwbwCl4eEuAORyR0F-A/s320/IMG_0368.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179555555200546418" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaIeAyJDoEHmcFY72hnCQGXgkfKyTotL71QQ92WCQfvWRjRCymMPxD3NTaJP0WUp51xfuA8xd1QKKmf5hXVPEFnqb55hzjc208umFr_NKoHnU7SgKKcYjVTS87gno45FC9duTAlg/s1600-h/IMG_0372.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaIeAyJDoEHmcFY72hnCQGXgkfKyTotL71QQ92WCQfvWRjRCymMPxD3NTaJP0WUp51xfuA8xd1QKKmf5hXVPEFnqb55hzjc208umFr_NKoHnU7SgKKcYjVTS87gno45FC9duTAlg/s320/IMG_0372.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179556014762047106" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOiGJER3b31p0BtKHwqmmN7057SOig0WGznUMx5zNelAiDqOV6zpPKB8wkseaCj2vxQRcKMQpTCx9Lj_ydu9J3w1lZX_ZMhr_UqMs4dE2w5Qx6vm3ZeSsyAoWAW7DXUJ-RYSsUwQ/s1600-h/IMG_0374.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOiGJER3b31p0BtKHwqmmN7057SOig0WGznUMx5zNelAiDqOV6zpPKB8wkseaCj2vxQRcKMQpTCx9Lj_ydu9J3w1lZX_ZMhr_UqMs4dE2w5Qx6vm3ZeSsyAoWAW7DXUJ-RYSsUwQ/s320/IMG_0374.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5179556023351981714" /></a><br /><br />More on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auschwitz">Auschwitz & Birkenau</a> from wikipedia...<br /><blockquote>Auschwitz-Birkenau (Konzentrationslager Auschwitz (help·info)) was the largest of the German Nazi concentration and extermination camp complex. Located in German-occupied southern Poland, it took its name from the nearby town of Oświęcim (Auschwitz in German), situated about 50 kilometers west of Kraków and 286 kilometers from Warsaw. Following the German occupation of Poland in September 1939, Oświęcim was incorporated into Germany as part of the Katowice District (Regierungsbezirk Kattowitz), or unofficially East Upper Silesia (Ost-Oberschlesien), and renamed Auschwitz. There were also around 40 satellite camps, some of them tens of kilometers from the main camps, with prisoner populations ranging from several dozen to several thousand.<br /><br />The camp commandant, Rudolf Höß (in English commonly Hoess or Höss), testifed at the Nuremberg Trials that 3 million people had died at Auschwitz during his stay as a commandant. Later he decreased his estimate to about 1.1 million. The death toll given by the Soviets and accepted by many was 4,000,000 people. This number was written on the plaques in the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. The Museum revised this figure in 1990, and new calculations by Dr. Franciszek Piper now place the figure at 1.1 million about 90 percent of them were Jews from almost every country in Europe. Most deportees were killed in gas chambers using Zyklon B; other deaths were caused by systematic starvation, forced labor, lack of disease control, individual executions, and medical experiments.</blockquote><br /><br />Another afternoon trip was to the W Salt Mines. Wasn't sure if I'd enjoy this trip, but as a geologist, I figured going into a mine is always good. And it turns out the mine was a very worthwhile trip. It's not so much of a mine as a serious of rooms. Well, it is a mine with I think 250 km of tunnels, but the rooms they've carved out are cathedrals, music halls, elaborate swimming pools which now function as resorts, etc. etc. All with hundreds of sculptures lining halls and rooms. Very nice and well worth an afternoon. (photos cost extra, so the last couple are scavenged off the net)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJAuX6SfHPyGzYOXE12cROnPl8_Fg0KWvHhewpdDrNYpt8VGKPh9HolUkCE3TyEuOEWYXUnRU67cFFmSTmEK4W2n4NqtR-19nR1DWi7mBF00SKaf-2nFvZ6VCtrG3GBHSLxv5Qg/s1600-h/saltmine.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJAuX6SfHPyGzYOXE12cROnPl8_Fg0KWvHhewpdDrNYpt8VGKPh9HolUkCE3TyEuOEWYXUnRU67cFFmSTmEK4W2n4NqtR-19nR1DWi7mBF00SKaf-2nFvZ6VCtrG3GBHSLxv5Qg/s320/saltmine.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180162111956924242" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJdU5cwNIIEznHQq5R6lx0PA69KEV3X3eMEAfdHN7InYL1AR144VCsxxzwE_iEVPaQtEp9AyxRPTdWjod0nMRuczTUcjyVd0DWSA3G7YVpP28nSW9GA1mU6ngyYvLTpV-BIRYElQ/s1600-h/IMG_0389.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJdU5cwNIIEznHQq5R6lx0PA69KEV3X3eMEAfdHN7InYL1AR144VCsxxzwE_iEVPaQtEp9AyxRPTdWjod0nMRuczTUcjyVd0DWSA3G7YVpP28nSW9GA1mU6ngyYvLTpV-BIRYElQ/s320/IMG_0389.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180162008877709058" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxT1BIzKWRsm-IhIfcjR2euVu9qkpcsgZ4tbBEd_7qfvekYdYYpXrrkts6Iiex84TlarCu_tjNdYIGRlGizkeoL6RgHjOqR6B_N6iBMKfgxanvHstSyoRf6ZGWvpZg_80rT6iw9w/s1600-h/IMG_0390.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxT1BIzKWRsm-IhIfcjR2euVu9qkpcsgZ4tbBEd_7qfvekYdYYpXrrkts6Iiex84TlarCu_tjNdYIGRlGizkeoL6RgHjOqR6B_N6iBMKfgxanvHstSyoRf6ZGWvpZg_80rT6iw9w/s320/IMG_0390.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180162017467643666" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga81PhkLmw4BQvh2ES0GvlI3PsvGEoz2rJdCM3Go5wIx9GhdYl5hhalqFyNviiN3o4H0FFYYT-aV4USakfUmNWA7StuEalA5p3NcQqsO3Odd1Baevju5xT__IV6CvcLcibQm56cg/s1600-h/IMG_0391.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga81PhkLmw4BQvh2ES0GvlI3PsvGEoz2rJdCM3Go5wIx9GhdYl5hhalqFyNviiN3o4H0FFYYT-aV4USakfUmNWA7StuEalA5p3NcQqsO3Odd1Baevju5xT__IV6CvcLcibQm56cg/s320/IMG_0391.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180162017467643682" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoi6mKwWEUmAxkN-eQsxto_QneE5mQItk5f88iTMVeKxAMAB9fvxwK8yNmTDDp4_dehzzpNCZENgbBdg0ETLTx2AQXTaKG0zbFdWmdLgtBn2SfIWSgkHCXFfGMBVlh64z6ZbBw0A/s1600-h/IMG_0403.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoi6mKwWEUmAxkN-eQsxto_QneE5mQItk5f88iTMVeKxAMAB9fvxwK8yNmTDDp4_dehzzpNCZENgbBdg0ETLTx2AQXTaKG0zbFdWmdLgtBn2SfIWSgkHCXFfGMBVlh64z6ZbBw0A/s320/IMG_0403.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180162021762610994" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZvl1JDpI68tBeofcJJdbNTZ_8k_rj-zlMC9tCJs1-23NcHgcLo-ycylnNFnHxex1xCGezcpuXj0eqsnKFhz-1Hy3uj5DKHblVTWezTCiX0WbBM-zQ4Q-cd9-kS32pEzfykF-Pig/s1600-h/IMG_0404.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZvl1JDpI68tBeofcJJdbNTZ_8k_rj-zlMC9tCJs1-23NcHgcLo-ycylnNFnHxex1xCGezcpuXj0eqsnKFhz-1Hy3uj5DKHblVTWezTCiX0WbBM-zQ4Q-cd9-kS32pEzfykF-Pig/s320/IMG_0404.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180162026057578306" /></a><br /><br /><br />After 4 days in Krakow and after work stalled a bit more, I decided to go to Berlin on the train. Rather than doing a night train (Krakow to Berlin ~11 hours), I broke up the trip with a night in Wroclav. But since my bed in Krakow ranged from 4 to 5 in the morning and usually involved many vodka drinks, Wroclav ended up being a movie night (Control - about Ian Curtis of Joy Division) followed by early to bed. So I actually didn't take any photos here. <br /><br />Berlin was another unknown for me. I had never been to Germany, though I felt like it would be more like home and it was. I think in part because Germans are so well educated and also travel so much, english is never a problem (Poland was sporadic, though the younger folk are definitely more worldly). Similar to Poland, I arrived late (8PM) and ended up finding myself cabbing it home from a club at 3AM. Unfortunately, the subways and buses were on strike, so the 3AM cab ride was a tad pricey, but the only option was to wait till 4:30AM when the overground train (S-baun) started to run (I took this option the following night). <br /><br />I was really just in Berlin for one full day, so I had to make the most of it. I did a free walking tour by the same group that do the walking tour in London (and a couplie other cities, too). The tour took us through many buildings and statues and such with WWI and WWII relevance. Was quite eerie in a way to be in the German capital talking about the Nazi war machine (and the Holocaust Memorial - the field of grey cement blocks in photos below) after having been in Auschiwitz just a few days earlier.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Te-TCTS4t5Xe9mC92mEn1D-9lx29Zfm276JgTISYWzbscVQ2tJA_tTH-L7QeUZGPrXpBw9OeFJ7veO8p1GVlMYdoaKNpio46Fuc1OfQV5kMguD449gnme2vNodLM2kc8XWRfbw/s1600-h/IMG_0430.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Te-TCTS4t5Xe9mC92mEn1D-9lx29Zfm276JgTISYWzbscVQ2tJA_tTH-L7QeUZGPrXpBw9OeFJ7veO8p1GVlMYdoaKNpio46Fuc1OfQV5kMguD449gnme2vNodLM2kc8XWRfbw/s320/IMG_0430.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180165354657232818" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqoJ0XaOoufCsuFcH-5CxPNewCohRPk-OXqyqgefkmS9p_4dqmeJsZ9EQpXTTQPuOZFOpOTp51gMFII_4naVE26rlNNZgYSWXUUZXd1hiSjNcXtPEEgXZxUqa43yRJZBkevK7BaA/s1600-h/IMG_0408.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqoJ0XaOoufCsuFcH-5CxPNewCohRPk-OXqyqgefkmS9p_4dqmeJsZ9EQpXTTQPuOZFOpOTp51gMFII_4naVE26rlNNZgYSWXUUZXd1hiSjNcXtPEEgXZxUqa43yRJZBkevK7BaA/s320/IMG_0408.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180165019649783650" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikfikzFgOU5a-uBPAroLDf3PYi_dTBUxQRB_sdI5BlSAyYZ8HOry6e5LYJG_hfBi4sQsFM2DuecEYrWG4p_uGOHfTk04ph7a8ICNKB2D0_Z-TBcvVKpGGKBNkZJ8871Pk4EzSCdw/s1600-h/IMG_0411.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikfikzFgOU5a-uBPAroLDf3PYi_dTBUxQRB_sdI5BlSAyYZ8HOry6e5LYJG_hfBi4sQsFM2DuecEYrWG4p_uGOHfTk04ph7a8ICNKB2D0_Z-TBcvVKpGGKBNkZJ8871Pk4EzSCdw/s320/IMG_0411.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180165023944750962" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gP0XT7aSbDg1sLJAQ4kqvPYN_X-4_DUYX_yW3J8XEx_QOzW7jMNultm7Tq1osq04_A6-y1ozTBpdnl-BhKcXMGkDiQ_4M2946ciUkh4mSic19fSwlRGYGb2ysY0JV8UzSS9XlQ/s1600-h/IMG_0424.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0gP0XT7aSbDg1sLJAQ4kqvPYN_X-4_DUYX_yW3J8XEx_QOzW7jMNultm7Tq1osq04_A6-y1ozTBpdnl-BhKcXMGkDiQ_4M2946ciUkh4mSic19fSwlRGYGb2ysY0JV8UzSS9XlQ/s320/IMG_0424.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180165023944750978" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXvU-Gpkmb0yFG9Q4TWVfrTSPluFdflGFAckmviOoalzyz37mckHU-FFJwuNof7hHmwtd9y3SHIm2J3LAyt0LyASpdsViWUq1wTBGFgUTlAcL_daVKrdKfI6sEI761YE2MMmmBQ/s1600-h/IMG_0425.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvXvU-Gpkmb0yFG9Q4TWVfrTSPluFdflGFAckmviOoalzyz37mckHU-FFJwuNof7hHmwtd9y3SHIm2J3LAyt0LyASpdsViWUq1wTBGFgUTlAcL_daVKrdKfI6sEI761YE2MMmmBQ/s320/IMG_0425.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180165028239718290" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKKKlaB6ZO8vNCp5kwQaY58Pa9MoL4oASajnRABxtJaBXpcYDYBixcJPgA1HAOeQX_Ns5Owlx9fLEbxe2APdgfDS2XXnzt5gR8h2ZqdItZ1oQEQjqZcTm824TvGKsRCAMZTFRGkw/s1600-h/IMG_0429.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKKKlaB6ZO8vNCp5kwQaY58Pa9MoL4oASajnRABxtJaBXpcYDYBixcJPgA1HAOeQX_Ns5Owlx9fLEbxe2APdgfDS2XXnzt5gR8h2ZqdItZ1oQEQjqZcTm824TvGKsRCAMZTFRGkw/s320/IMG_0429.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180165032534685602" /></a><br /><br />Maybe one of the most interesting things for me was the Brandenburg Gate, largely because of its history and story that it tells. The gate leads from the Tiergarten (big park, zoo, etc.) into Paris Platz (Square) and has history from Napoleon to being part of the Berlin wall. Here's my photo of the Brendenburg Gate on a cold rainy morning (sort of fitting).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC9DNSJytc1A74AOReou87NEKNVaUUlG4_1JIHwhPnBauOIS8vkESdpf7-DCKo9JIfebIzfi08XVEyo8jnETZ97JdJCa43_pHzWkDrncAUgKOsSxL8MfdescJOLKeo0_o-Gtzo2g/s1600-h/IMG_0407.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC9DNSJytc1A74AOReou87NEKNVaUUlG4_1JIHwhPnBauOIS8vkESdpf7-DCKo9JIfebIzfi08XVEyo8jnETZ97JdJCa43_pHzWkDrncAUgKOsSxL8MfdescJOLKeo0_o-Gtzo2g/s320/IMG_0407.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180168451328653266" /></a><br /><br />To start, the gate has a statue with 4 horses that was stolen by the French a few hundred years ago and then the Germans (actually the Prussians at the time I think) defeated Napolean and recaptured the statue. After taking the statue back to Berlin, they changed it to look more fortified (took away olive branch and put militaristic staff in hand) and put the statue back up on the gate leading to the newly renamed the Paris Square (kind of a screw you French, we're watching you sort of thing). Supposedly they also turned the head of the statue so it angles down looking at where the French Embassy is (more subtle German sense of humour).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQqBd_pBLlglpbvMiEJbpW_EsWmBxjVAUIodq7oIxFuIopU_9p1vsU1Z-S1v0j2peH6-IWWkVyyxzdfsabHDSUctZSTSGNrnh5yasko9_pDhl9j4ss7PXicwe89_5GeWAZuQNSA/s1600-h/Brandenburger_tor_1871.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQqBd_pBLlglpbvMiEJbpW_EsWmBxjVAUIodq7oIxFuIopU_9p1vsU1Z-S1v0j2peH6-IWWkVyyxzdfsabHDSUctZSTSGNrnh5yasko9_pDhl9j4ss7PXicwe89_5GeWAZuQNSA/s320/Brandenburger_tor_1871.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180167549385521090" /></a><br /><br />In early 20th century (before WWII), the square was described as one of the nicest squares in Europe and was home to many prominent buildings including the US and French Embassies, a fancy hotel, etc. (currently home to a new the French Embassy and the US one is under construction). Then WWII and literally every building surrounding the square was leveled (apparently the Russians had some frustration to take out) and only the gate survived, albeit a little worse for the wear. Up close you can see how it looks like a patch work of plaster filled bullet holes. This is a photo of a historic sign they have that sort of shows circa 1944 vs. today.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQq6Vt2X4Qa4ERLx6aBE-lDok71L-c0SulDJEe9qO00qJcC___gR9kr4oeen21XGmbhOkhCPEBUPNQgcX7xnC1nhJrU5ei31lfz4nKX-_D1WSb4K-Ec8BNuDJKQUf0Z1wEk6JAAw/s1600-h/IMG_0414.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQq6Vt2X4Qa4ERLx6aBE-lDok71L-c0SulDJEe9qO00qJcC___gR9kr4oeen21XGmbhOkhCPEBUPNQgcX7xnC1nhJrU5ei31lfz4nKX-_D1WSb4K-Ec8BNuDJKQUf0Z1wEk6JAAw/s320/IMG_0414.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180169516480542690" /></a><br /><br />Then, lastly, after WWII the gate became part of the Berlin Wall. Can't say I have any photos of this, but definitely a few of the Berlin Wall and one that I scavenged off the internet (pretty obvious which one is not present day).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIIqTB-c8VeVQJ_EsIZHOOV6aSSzNvFiPgEk8dRowD7_sV-58_FFdC0-czjQGJ_ciykAn5xIa61uX6liIj6iNZMLKOb32MszIvelLCskFZbAHh78jqYpy_iLCERbUwehZzVMv1_Q/s1600-h/IMG_0412.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIIqTB-c8VeVQJ_EsIZHOOV6aSSzNvFiPgEk8dRowD7_sV-58_FFdC0-czjQGJ_ciykAn5xIa61uX6liIj6iNZMLKOb32MszIvelLCskFZbAHh78jqYpy_iLCERbUwehZzVMv1_Q/s320/IMG_0412.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180171066963736562" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPJfWDNgXpOF1r-VyvgcHU7jhyphenhyphenIiCOvpin2e6lvs_scwhrK87NBAPZy-5CVljsOCWEHE8vpKY8q8eO-cgwN9dzO69wQxNkSRZg-K43cYC2hlAUnWdxt922a5K10Oo01bl0nqQIag/s1600-h/IMG_0413.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPJfWDNgXpOF1r-VyvgcHU7jhyphenhyphenIiCOvpin2e6lvs_scwhrK87NBAPZy-5CVljsOCWEHE8vpKY8q8eO-cgwN9dzO69wQxNkSRZg-K43cYC2hlAUnWdxt922a5K10Oo01bl0nqQIag/s320/IMG_0413.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180171071258703874" /></a><a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bild:Berlinermauer.jpg"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQJr674ZVEMmTZ7HzjWUiOr6pgjBex3k_dU_T0WH35V9_IMjJ5mT9s3lKIiSbTe1Y_8p9oc_L_7HJUaaFLMpz326ODCPQcjV3QBkTjLwCK886YviAgvvCvu0R5pHrIDead3ilnA/s1600-h/Berlinermauer.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQJr674ZVEMmTZ7HzjWUiOr6pgjBex3k_dU_T0WH35V9_IMjJ5mT9s3lKIiSbTe1Y_8p9oc_L_7HJUaaFLMpz326ODCPQcjV3QBkTjLwCK886YviAgvvCvu0R5pHrIDead3ilnA/s320/Berlinermauer.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180171079848638482" /></a></a><br /><br />The last night in Berlin was a DJ club type thing in the basement of an abandoned building in the outskirts of what was Eastern Berlin. This was quite an adventure ending at 6:30AM (this left 2 hours for sleep before going to the airport). Ouch! My ears were ringing for 2 days, I was blowing smokey snot out of my nose for the same amount of time, and my feet are still sore from dancing. But was definitely worth it!David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-55522527545039551982008-03-13T08:17:00.000-07:002008-03-17T12:13:45.708-07:00Old Scottish FriendsAfter the couple weeks working in London, I went up to Aberdeen to visit Pat, Stef and Chloe, of course! (old friends, though newly Scottish!). The time in Aberdeen was very nice and relaxing with some quality time with friends. Pat & I got many a scotch tasting (tours, local pubs and the living room). We also did a hike in on a nearby "mountain" - okay, it wasn't a mountain, more of a large hill, and it was covered in snow, and the distillery at the base (Glenlivet, which was supposed to be our reward), was closed, but still a nice hike and some much needed exercise. Stef and I also got a day adventuring to nearby castles (we avoided the snow!). And then there were the many fun days of hanging with Chloe and, I must admit, some days doing some remote work to pay the bills.<br /><br />Here's a few photos from an expedition Pat & I took to the town of Elgin and the Glen Moray distillery (3 pounds for a tour and 7 scotch tastings!!).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpO2zfa_U4kUO9tsJYBCczdwlLvt_N-UbIfJPXePsSzTLs9IbHEhQCSbvt5W4I-CvXUt9lXcGL93nGooFbVzOfW5qgAOgLu9ReRCIBYvdskGdzszXHPYaY_RlL7zCOdw6cIlvNjA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+015.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpO2zfa_U4kUO9tsJYBCczdwlLvt_N-UbIfJPXePsSzTLs9IbHEhQCSbvt5W4I-CvXUt9lXcGL93nGooFbVzOfW5qgAOgLu9ReRCIBYvdskGdzszXHPYaY_RlL7zCOdw6cIlvNjA/s320/Aberdeen+015.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178731632473668418" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAAIlpcxIL8pHKyyS1vp1Jbk0elCzdRGovZst3YoNiW3mVZGiGQgtWFA51dkzotZuBoBLDnTUfsUWjz6pdxd1qBQUVnYJvvMaKrhnZ9g1kv2fxwzjIG_BVTugIrBvzfoiWuB3T6g/s1600-h/Aberdeen+012.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAAIlpcxIL8pHKyyS1vp1Jbk0elCzdRGovZst3YoNiW3mVZGiGQgtWFA51dkzotZuBoBLDnTUfsUWjz6pdxd1qBQUVnYJvvMaKrhnZ9g1kv2fxwzjIG_BVTugIrBvzfoiWuB3T6g/s320/Aberdeen+012.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178731649653537650" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmjIlPsuBRQgNyDxINcwg4W3MF7_fFZq9-cGt3gPTjHRTdTqyRIMCeGTK28UKyO2jVeKaAR-8BNaHXIT5wlekCw-JKuUETxBexmOrrZ6x-GnjHnDYFawWE9xKUR2pno318xJn8A/s1600-h/Aberdeen+004.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVmjIlPsuBRQgNyDxINcwg4W3MF7_fFZq9-cGt3gPTjHRTdTqyRIMCeGTK28UKyO2jVeKaAR-8BNaHXIT5wlekCw-JKuUETxBexmOrrZ6x-GnjHnDYFawWE9xKUR2pno318xJn8A/s320/Aberdeen+004.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178732933848759186" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7oi6sDvYz43zYfxb5ATvpVsDy3e2bTJLMsaz9el_5SdKTujnkM7CdiN5uVqzFzKDUhVdYsLOSXcbkzeq7lGvCuwxceZf0iIig0Qme2ENk5O10HCA1g3n-d0XD5PfnaNYXqXn2lQ/s1600-h/Aberdeen+005.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7oi6sDvYz43zYfxb5ATvpVsDy3e2bTJLMsaz9el_5SdKTujnkM7CdiN5uVqzFzKDUhVdYsLOSXcbkzeq7lGvCuwxceZf0iIig0Qme2ENk5O10HCA1g3n-d0XD5PfnaNYXqXn2lQ/s320/Aberdeen+005.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178732942438693794" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn130epnUawTpSH7_UFWPfZqeGlBNLNn2Vo2eiRl9cZphayVMLQ1Vex0svq6_ArEd-6y-dwK96DHDShmbGs367EDplMOsFk4tUgodIBbUu_QEUcQPK6cwDpDxWT8lTRk4Q5kjT5g/s1600-h/Aberdeen+009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn130epnUawTpSH7_UFWPfZqeGlBNLNn2Vo2eiRl9cZphayVMLQ1Vex0svq6_ArEd-6y-dwK96DHDShmbGs367EDplMOsFk4tUgodIBbUu_QEUcQPK6cwDpDxWT8lTRk4Q5kjT5g/s320/Aberdeen+009.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178731649653537666" /></a><br /><br />And then Stef & I left Chloe with Pat for a day and did an outing to see a couple castles and have a really nice dinner just south of Aberdeen in Stonehaven. The photo of Stef next to a very special piece of Scottish history is quite impressive isn't it? (click on the photo and you can see a larger version of the photo and see what is underneath the box) I nearly had enough "covered" or "being repaired" photos of Scottish monuments to make an entire photo series of hidden art!! Or the other possibility is that this is a Scottish obelisk that will be the found during the beginning of A Space Odyssey: 2014?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhehCgv0lT7EKQfOc8tj0INFKJXgdA7LrCmY5Qxo2UL5vNnBEML9vUCYgsaewkQnI5xK_VtNy_-x9satH-2O26Hj0wYVKFDrooktKXOufOrOLfqOJ3oPdptNHRTb1BXfr5q2xYrmw/s1600-h/Aberdeen+019.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhehCgv0lT7EKQfOc8tj0INFKJXgdA7LrCmY5Qxo2UL5vNnBEML9vUCYgsaewkQnI5xK_VtNy_-x9satH-2O26Hj0wYVKFDrooktKXOufOrOLfqOJ3oPdptNHRTb1BXfr5q2xYrmw/s320/Aberdeen+019.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178736112124558258" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHz37wztm4IIn5eDgTBZKEdqlM10UVNypoj8beRiV1Z4yePn1HUFugr21JVV7rPX3T481uDd7uhCDaPeNgcIY5yRw40moVUlyFAK5PrnvsSmCr5sHyPE7UiHZZ6B-IPhAsF-FYuQ/s1600-h/Aberdeen+021.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHz37wztm4IIn5eDgTBZKEdqlM10UVNypoj8beRiV1Z4yePn1HUFugr21JVV7rPX3T481uDd7uhCDaPeNgcIY5yRw40moVUlyFAK5PrnvsSmCr5sHyPE7UiHZZ6B-IPhAsF-FYuQ/s320/Aberdeen+021.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178736120714492866" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYkIxCbyc60vGWrj5MORAdSgY92-10cBxgQ2KdSXy4tJQ1-QqRmk_blBOPQxsJsocHduNedDD3nkfQ1iOovHsQp0EV1wSroUV0UY5df4FALnt-fGQ4EV6NDW0xmZfdwvo3ac9_uQ/s1600-h/Aberdeen+024.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYkIxCbyc60vGWrj5MORAdSgY92-10cBxgQ2KdSXy4tJQ1-QqRmk_blBOPQxsJsocHduNedDD3nkfQ1iOovHsQp0EV1wSroUV0UY5df4FALnt-fGQ4EV6NDW0xmZfdwvo3ac9_uQ/s320/Aberdeen+024.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178736125009460178" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ipdsluTXfTOpw_nhUhSDSyYPO819G3oXMz74JR0vFyo6JJUfijg7BXaO1NymC24OES88nkeNmyx5UvXdfXGwu0Ce2g_JIz9oMpLVoGpfpFaXp-zEVNDVJZCVgIjukqZDfky0Hg/s1600-h/Aberdeen+034.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ipdsluTXfTOpw_nhUhSDSyYPO819G3oXMz74JR0vFyo6JJUfijg7BXaO1NymC24OES88nkeNmyx5UvXdfXGwu0Ce2g_JIz9oMpLVoGpfpFaXp-zEVNDVJZCVgIjukqZDfky0Hg/s320/Aberdeen+034.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178736129304427490" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMj1l-AEZqH7ii2MJjaWUanRwmbs1rgGwaxWN0eOaU_BTpIxG8hdsoY8BG1prBZx0-xPwU4O0It2bPtrASPDC7y-Ig_ZbcvnI2WJAAoJMzWc4vFVP1YKTiXIivxVXrsnRALUBBYA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+039.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMj1l-AEZqH7ii2MJjaWUanRwmbs1rgGwaxWN0eOaU_BTpIxG8hdsoY8BG1prBZx0-xPwU4O0It2bPtrASPDC7y-Ig_ZbcvnI2WJAAoJMzWc4vFVP1YKTiXIivxVXrsnRALUBBYA/s320/Aberdeen+039.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178736133599394802" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGU5uNbw_0OSyDP_wfJrDz7ccSuIhuZX9vZIrLh3oubdKzZIh0Q140GRcfi3dzJ_cM2yj_Yyz0kdPG14-ropGlj7STMqzS36Hws3YpWLNH1Kf8DiNTHnf2SlCgc3ynisC1HH6GAA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+045.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGU5uNbw_0OSyDP_wfJrDz7ccSuIhuZX9vZIrLh3oubdKzZIh0Q140GRcfi3dzJ_cM2yj_Yyz0kdPG14-ropGlj7STMqzS36Hws3YpWLNH1Kf8DiNTHnf2SlCgc3ynisC1HH6GAA/s320/Aberdeen+045.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178737473629191170" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHpQN6Ty12pPhLoMqmora7h1bVbZ48GvwlOQYAJwwjIhu2ur0U3QTd-YOQCXufzl-WoR2wqika0YPe3IrJKFynqzIR4H4xAEMyZoNqzyZ-tXwcAJiw6eGwJ8VbcbM8JHprayVCA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+049.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHpQN6Ty12pPhLoMqmora7h1bVbZ48GvwlOQYAJwwjIhu2ur0U3QTd-YOQCXufzl-WoR2wqika0YPe3IrJKFynqzIR4H4xAEMyZoNqzyZ-tXwcAJiw6eGwJ8VbcbM8JHprayVCA/s320/Aberdeen+049.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178737477924158482" /></a><br /><br />How about Scottish mountaineering?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik4JwlRO5xhynOmf6YfpDqnzkbp7STOHJj4pwU90JXEwIY8cZQ0GWk-h26JLlsUt_TH8TJqAj9EwXO7hZai0mNVOP2FSLaHX08bntMyQrfjUA-2D2ez3jLMNGc4s1gQVnf2d5FFA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+087.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik4JwlRO5xhynOmf6YfpDqnzkbp7STOHJj4pwU90JXEwIY8cZQ0GWk-h26JLlsUt_TH8TJqAj9EwXO7hZai0mNVOP2FSLaHX08bntMyQrfjUA-2D2ez3jLMNGc4s1gQVnf2d5FFA/s320/Aberdeen+087.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178748597594487986" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUJqfIfF9nX7dRBWwaf8ekxsYKJtUoVvw7F5CRHsL2MxWUoUORs-nd5_tiygn0YmaKos1gmbvWDPTpVdj2flJx52wq2bOilKvhyZH5Tm-i5tlacHgGEthMxsoAmV774rVCYYmcQ/s1600-h/Aberdeen+089.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTUJqfIfF9nX7dRBWwaf8ekxsYKJtUoVvw7F5CRHsL2MxWUoUORs-nd5_tiygn0YmaKos1gmbvWDPTpVdj2flJx52wq2bOilKvhyZH5Tm-i5tlacHgGEthMxsoAmV774rVCYYmcQ/s320/Aberdeen+089.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178748601889455298" /></a><br /><br /><br />And some general trouble causing with my favourite girl in Aberdeen...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0oT7oIrANojbHlXlx6pRoljQgMwmfbx2Nh-dALMmuOdMs2-G_dKOOcBNntxcrQE-TMm10pCGCL-M2eUnEdU-I12OPwlKuLVuFPGiaPTwJ6o9e4H9GJ-8IjLEdLvD4_ykUrnfTCA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+052a.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0oT7oIrANojbHlXlx6pRoljQgMwmfbx2Nh-dALMmuOdMs2-G_dKOOcBNntxcrQE-TMm10pCGCL-M2eUnEdU-I12OPwlKuLVuFPGiaPTwJ6o9e4H9GJ-8IjLEdLvD4_ykUrnfTCA/s320/Aberdeen+052a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178739672652446754" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIkJGYoe5sxCpLTGt6DaeblQN80MFYyHtlObgGuHjgwN1vQ4_a4JFMdI16Swhm-KpJJMDEwyegV_vUSkDQA2ZoS_O3U61I8ESIpVzDv6aU9dv1sk34qgVNxz3kIYJT4rAVthWboA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+062.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIkJGYoe5sxCpLTGt6DaeblQN80MFYyHtlObgGuHjgwN1vQ4_a4JFMdI16Swhm-KpJJMDEwyegV_vUSkDQA2ZoS_O3U61I8ESIpVzDv6aU9dv1sk34qgVNxz3kIYJT4rAVthWboA/s320/Aberdeen+062.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178739681242381362" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNEbbidbQ9zjtX8pYiIZ1LbarM_KOZw-5sUzUPOWXKtqSu0TsxcuMYF7el2nbMfjecSzZYzqBAZIcpaH4w_FeN70bPI232ERJL0J9s_6msHTnea7ElAO9wl9JauvP1GvXMLYMJUg/s1600-h/Aberdeen+065.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; 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cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhMD0RRYNtLRp_D0LHTEbm-fXrt17JG1zCfXeDYCIMSGvf38t2llLIBP7JmN6YdzPxHW5St5WERIC38QGob-SPRypVshxfgqqVYBfJEW-CEGfqmub6TIzNI39xY9-g9P3poVtOqQ/s320/Aberdeen+084.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178740617545252002" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8mOsidwiANJOlnjUwh7_4inBelOVsSlb0xSNjogLNOIyxLsYzCOOqzOskXTE5He95JILMG5FS5ta7I_qcTdFKvqDSRvVq_y03Gky3O6VzejAXTPIGbYGKMFWMYumodKFbGWd5A/s1600-h/Aberdeen+097.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8mOsidwiANJOlnjUwh7_4inBelOVsSlb0xSNjogLNOIyxLsYzCOOqzOskXTE5He95JILMG5FS5ta7I_qcTdFKvqDSRvVq_y03Gky3O6VzejAXTPIGbYGKMFWMYumodKFbGWd5A/s320/Aberdeen+097.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178781969490377954" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfmbpsP78zviSpkVylQEH9RiOwcf1E8iBQGbTGF5tMHaxQ1P_jmDToELA0aSWT-Ec5TZWGgOtgBPR6cVHEaORe3N3_vxagI12sdiXTeHSgMsw-TK8qqcS7fX15OdocB94YB76KKg/s1600-h/Aberdeen+102.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfmbpsP78zviSpkVylQEH9RiOwcf1E8iBQGbTGF5tMHaxQ1P_jmDToELA0aSWT-Ec5TZWGgOtgBPR6cVHEaORe3N3_vxagI12sdiXTeHSgMsw-TK8qqcS7fX15OdocB94YB76KKg/s320/Aberdeen+102.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178781973785345266" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI809JBAy09Q5yX6rdLC7FkfqtzyZIsnWR0Q0PkIBjcNSVfd2U3m6CDw-A11KREVafy9DaIPoOvXoNgbLcJayuq4P4_Hsd9qeidAb7sO4rlbs38i5JRMJUVQQcn3EXzgvk4e_SPA/s1600-h/Aberdeen+106.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI809JBAy09Q5yX6rdLC7FkfqtzyZIsnWR0Q0PkIBjcNSVfd2U3m6CDw-A11KREVafy9DaIPoOvXoNgbLcJayuq4P4_Hsd9qeidAb7sO4rlbs38i5JRMJUVQQcn3EXzgvk4e_SPA/s320/Aberdeen+106.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178781973785345282" /></a><br /><br />After two great weeks in Aberdeen (which flew by!) and with the work in London in the works but the paperwork dragging along, I made a quick decision to make a trip. After printing a map of Europe, going to the local pub, taping the aforementioned map to the dart board and having a few scotches, I threw a dart. Okay, in reality it more involved finding a cheap last minute flight to somewhere I wanted to go. As it turns out, Poland (and more specifically Krakow) was the final choice. And so I said farewell to Pat & Stef (left March 8 to be precise), but left the majority of my luggage with them ensuring another visit sometime very soon!David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-30089123714927345392008-02-25T01:32:00.000-08:002008-03-15T13:11:19.210-07:00Aye, I've arrived in ScotlandHello from Scotland, Inverness to be precise. Just took a cab from the airport and trying to meet up with some friends who have me waiting at this very posh Inn while they finish a brewery tour. Judging by this place, I think I'm hanging out with friends that have "nice tastes" (i.e., expensive). Wasn't in the plans to come here (Inverness), but the aforementioned friends (Ali & Jason from London) were coming up here with a group of friends and have a spare room so... And they left on Thursday and left me their place in London for Thursday & Friday night... just a smallish $3500/month apartment in Islington (near King's Cross tube station). Sheeshh! Things are a tad expensive here! Tomorrow I'm off to Pat & Stef's in Aberdeen.<br /><br />So far things have gone quite well. The reception in the London office was very good, though nothing 100% has materialized. There would be commitments materializing if I were ready to commit 100%, but there are lots of downsides. They don't seem all that busy here (by comparison to the US offices anyway). And committing 100% for a single project would likely mean restrictions on taking smaller jobs in interesting places. For example, the only small job that has presented itself is 3 weeks of drilling supervision in Bulgaria. It sucks thought that job just got pulled out from underneath me at 4PM on Friday (a senior up guy from Germany pulled a "we want CH2M International staff on the project" i.e., not CH2M US - which I find very penny wise, pound foolish if they're interested in having me come over and "join the team"). I was rather annoyed to hear this on Friday afternoon, but things will come...<br /><br />There is also work on the London Olympics project that could come through and be an expenses/accomodation paid endeavour, which is kind of key because London is friggin expensive. There is also work in ~May in Netherlands and ~June in Northern Ireland, but both of these seem so far away we'll have to see what materializes. Both the Olympics and Dublin jobs want me to commit full time, but seem willing to take me on shorter stints as well. This still could all work out well allowing me to do some travelling, go to Ben's wedding (May 4) and still end up with enough work to not cause the bank account to drop. We'll see I guess.<br /><br />I will talk with some London office folk on Monday and barring any requests to come back to London ASAP, I guess I'm off to the Netherlands next? Though I've also met a fun Australian lawyer who's coming to Scotland and we may hang out and I'm contemplating a Germany visit, which could then lead to Prauge or? So maybe I'll add a stop somewhere before the Netherlands? See, the problem is my friend Jen has very rudely scheduled her holidays when I'm planning to be in the Netherlands. So I have to either stay at her place without her or rearrange (not that some alone time in Amsterdam in a paid apartment would be too rough). I haven't started to figure this out yet because everything seems to change anyway. <br /><br />I realize I've talked mostly about work in London. I guess that's what was / is on my mind. But London was lots of fun as always. Were several nights of debauchery, a pub crawl and many a Guinness. I met up with my long lost 2nd cousin (Heather) who turns out went to the same junior high and high school as myself, met up with some fun people at the hostel, and met some good people at work. I was mostly focussed on work, but London is a hard place not to have some fun!!David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-1252035356065649262008-02-19T11:23:00.001-08:002008-02-19T11:26:14.415-08:00Got to Love It!I picked up this card at the pub the other night - so much better than collecting Subway stamps for a free 6" tuna on honey oat!! Unfortunately, the pub isn't in an area of town I frequent :(<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj89t0kMpThiAnr3gNiBUg8kUAxZTY57IZeomXHusXqzpdBQogw8TzCcWiAwsHD8lTNN_0VvOQFhnsRpUaz536fTsG9W3xJWnAIh-c-U2W84FDF1Mq2CvvPch7laETnKLHqPsTZEA/s1600-h/Cask+Ale+Collector+Card.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj89t0kMpThiAnr3gNiBUg8kUAxZTY57IZeomXHusXqzpdBQogw8TzCcWiAwsHD8lTNN_0VvOQFhnsRpUaz536fTsG9W3xJWnAIh-c-U2W84FDF1Mq2CvvPch7laETnKLHqPsTZEA/s400/Cask+Ale+Collector+Card.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5168774548829584546" /></a>David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22747592.post-1168801469516470122008-02-15T06:15:00.000-08:002008-02-15T09:38:59.088-08:00And we're off!Hi from London! After a nearly two years of wandering about North America (okay, a few trips elsewhere), I've finally made the trip to London. Yes, this is the trip for which I largely left SF in April 2006. Better late than never!<br /><br />I've been here for a few days now, working in the CH2M office in Kensington (just west of Hyde Park). Quite a nice office, small, but good people. There's also a separate office for the Olympics project (I'm going for drinks with them tonight). I'm working here till next Friday (Feb 22) doing carry-over work from the Florida and North Carolina jobs. More work than I had originally planned, but on the positive side, my time here will be positive (bank account wise), which an accomplishment of sorts given how crappy the US dollar is! I've also had a very positive reception / level of interest and have had several meetings with people about various "opportunities". Nothing in stone obviously, in large part because they keep asking the question "what is it you're doing right now?". And henceforth starts the dilemmas (sorry, it's exciting so I have to tell someone!)...<br /><br />There are some longer term prospects including a relocation to Dublin (specific project is looking and I'm not sure if I'm interested). There is the Olympics project, which I will find out more about tonight, but would likely be a "need you now" situation. And there is a drilling job in Bulgaria they want me for either the beginning or end of March for 3-6 weeks (would begin to cut it close with Ben's wedding in Thailand). Then there are also job prospects in Madrid and Milan that have been mentioned but I've yet to really look into. So the dilemma, do I keep travelling? Or take the work if it comes? And where do I want to live? There was a mention that the Olympics project might pay for me stay in London for 4-6 weeks, as in all expenses paid. If that offer were to firm up, I'd be an idiot to pass it up!! But don't worry friends, your couches in Scotland, Netherlands, Ethiopia and Vietnam are still very high on my priority list!! :)<br /><br />Just before coming to London I was on a very fun cruise with the family followed by a couple days of debauchery in LA. I'll get a blog for these sometime soon, but here's a foreshadow...<br /><br />Scene on Cruise: My brother (Jeff), my sister in law (Alison) and I are sitting in a lounge doing some sort of twisted scavenger hunt. So happens Jeff is wearing Alison's clothes (a nice short jean miniskirt dress) and Alison is wearing Jeff's clothes (don't ask). And in walks their son Max. The funny thing is, Max doesn't even blink at his father wearing a dress and just starts on with his business. Wouldn't most 16 year olds look a little different at their father for wearing a dress? Apparently Max is quite used to this behaviour. What makes it even better, Max found us by going to guest services and asked them to find out where our charge cards were last used. Hmmmm - smart kid, eh?<br /><br />And from LA: <a href="http://lightling.livejournal.com/87220.html">http://lightling.livejournal.com/87220.html</a>David Thttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02596823689981857508noreply@blogger.com0