Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Last Day
Jason, my colleague, told me encouragingly this morning: "Last day, eh?". I told him: "I've had a 'last day' here before...".
I guess I feel I will be stranded here again.
I guess I feel I will be stranded here again.
Counting chickens
I should have learned by now... the trip isn't over until the plane has taken off.
I will be staying one more week in lovely Bavaria. Thankfully, Carolyn is still heading home tomorrow.
We saw daylight today! It was so wonderful. We got to work a half-day (only 6 hours!), so we managed to have time to walk around Hallbergmoos. They have a street here called Bürgermeister-Funk Straße. Isn't that awesome?
Tomorrow I'll be taking Carolyn to the airport for her morning flight, and then heading into Munich city for some sight-seeing. Not sure what I'm going to see yet... I will probably just walk around, trying to enjoy my day of freedom (from work, not my wife).
I'm supposed to be flying home on Friday. We'll see.
I will be staying one more week in lovely Bavaria. Thankfully, Carolyn is still heading home tomorrow.
We saw daylight today! It was so wonderful. We got to work a half-day (only 6 hours!), so we managed to have time to walk around Hallbergmoos. They have a street here called Bürgermeister-Funk Straße. Isn't that awesome?
Tomorrow I'll be taking Carolyn to the airport for her morning flight, and then heading into Munich city for some sight-seeing. Not sure what I'm going to see yet... I will probably just walk around, trying to enjoy my day of freedom (from work, not my wife).
I'm supposed to be flying home on Friday. We'll see.
Grüße aus München
So I'm in Munich right now (in the bathroom so I don't wake Carolyn). When I started this week I did not expect to end it on the other side of the ocean, but I suppose that's life.
Carolyn and I were notified at work around 3 or 4pm on Wednesday that we needed to catch a flight to Munich... at 8pm... that evening. I wasn't 100% sure that my passport was valid, so I rushed home right away. Passport was valid, so I began the packing process, but it's been some years since my work travel days, so we didn't hit the road until nearly 6pm. Thankfully the task to get to the airport was left to our new VP of Engineering, with the CEO as first mate.
Through some kind of magic (I couldn't say which - my eyes were tightly closed) we made it to Pearson in less than an hour, with plenty of time to grab Tim Horton's for dinner. We also learned that pregnancy has it's perks for travel, as we were allowed to pre-board and settle in nicely, before all the plebes.
I won't go into details about the trip, suffice it to say that the doctor drilling a hole into my thumbnail this evening to relieve some pressure after slamming it in a car door this morning just might be the highlight of the trip.
To the office tomorrow, hopefully with positive results.
Carolyn and I were notified at work around 3 or 4pm on Wednesday that we needed to catch a flight to Munich... at 8pm... that evening. I wasn't 100% sure that my passport was valid, so I rushed home right away. Passport was valid, so I began the packing process, but it's been some years since my work travel days, so we didn't hit the road until nearly 6pm. Thankfully the task to get to the airport was left to our new VP of Engineering, with the CEO as first mate.
Through some kind of magic (I couldn't say which - my eyes were tightly closed) we made it to Pearson in less than an hour, with plenty of time to grab Tim Horton's for dinner. We also learned that pregnancy has it's perks for travel, as we were allowed to pre-board and settle in nicely, before all the plebes.
I won't go into details about the trip, suffice it to say that the doctor drilling a hole into my thumbnail this evening to relieve some pressure after slamming it in a car door this morning just might be the highlight of the trip.
To the office tomorrow, hopefully with positive results.
Rocky Holidays
Last Thanksgiving weekend, Carolyn and I went to visit our friends Andrea and Jeremy in Alberta. They moved out there last summer when Andrea got a ministerial placement in the metropolis of Killam. I can confirm that there is at least one stop sign in the town.
They were gracious enough to drive many hours and many hundred kilometers to show us the amazing Rocky Mountains, so I thought I should finally share some photos. Furthermore, I upgraded my computer over Christmas so I can do certain post-processing techniques (such as panoramas) much quicker.
We flew into Edmonton in the evening where we met Andrea, Jeremy, and Hiro. From there we drove straight to Canmore. Jeremy has booked us a great chalet, and this is the view we found in our backyard the next morning.
We drove into Banff National Park - my first visit - and headed for the Banff Gondola. The view on the way up is amazing, and once you're at the top - spectacular. We hiked around for quite some time and I took a number of photos. I think Jeremy and Andrea learned how time can slow to a crawl when I have my camera.
We then headed to Lake Louise for another short hike. Right on the lake is the Château Lake Louise, which is amazingly large and without a doubt has the best-smelling bathroom soap I have ever used. Everything since has left me wanting more from my hand-washing experience.
Just south of Lake Louise is the pristine Moraine Lake. I have never witnessed water so turquoise. Apparently it is one of the most photographed locations in Canada, and I can understand why.
Me and Carolyn at Moraine Lake.
Jeremy and Andrea at Moraine Lake.
To our dismay (and relief) we didn't have any real bear sightings (ask Carolyn), but on our way out of the park we had the pleasure of coming across a family of deer.
After ingesting some overpriced raclette in Banff, we headed back to Canmore. The next day we started the trek back to Killam. We stopped in Drumheller at the Royal Tyrell Museum. Sadly we got there too late to see any exhibits, but not too late to purchase some gifts for our dinosaur-crazy nephew. There were some dinosaur replicas outside the museum that Hiro was not too impressed with.
Late in the evening I finally got to check another thing off my life-list: seeing a moose. The photo isn't great but it's proof.
We finished our our visit with another few days in Killam, enjoying some balmy weather and a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner.
They were gracious enough to drive many hours and many hundred kilometers to show us the amazing Rocky Mountains, so I thought I should finally share some photos. Furthermore, I upgraded my computer over Christmas so I can do certain post-processing techniques (such as panoramas) much quicker.
We flew into Edmonton in the evening where we met Andrea, Jeremy, and Hiro. From there we drove straight to Canmore. Jeremy has booked us a great chalet, and this is the view we found in our backyard the next morning.We drove into Banff National Park - my first visit - and headed for the Banff Gondola. The view on the way up is amazing, and once you're at the top - spectacular. We hiked around for quite some time and I took a number of photos. I think Jeremy and Andrea learned how time can slow to a crawl when I have my camera.
We then headed to Lake Louise for another short hike. Right on the lake is the Château Lake Louise, which is amazingly large and without a doubt has the best-smelling bathroom soap I have ever used. Everything since has left me wanting more from my hand-washing experience.Just south of Lake Louise is the pristine Moraine Lake. I have never witnessed water so turquoise. Apparently it is one of the most photographed locations in Canada, and I can understand why.
Me and Carolyn at Moraine Lake.
Jeremy and Andrea at Moraine Lake.
To our dismay (and relief) we didn't have any real bear sightings (ask Carolyn), but on our way out of the park we had the pleasure of coming across a family of deer.
After ingesting some overpriced raclette in Banff, we headed back to Canmore. The next day we started the trek back to Killam. We stopped in Drumheller at the Royal Tyrell Museum. Sadly we got there too late to see any exhibits, but not too late to purchase some gifts for our dinosaur-crazy nephew. There were some dinosaur replicas outside the museum that Hiro was not too impressed with.
Late in the evening I finally got to check another thing off my life-list: seeing a moose. The photo isn't great but it's proof.We finished our our visit with another few days in Killam, enjoying some balmy weather and a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner.
48 hours in Japan
For those of you keeping track, I successfully made it to Japan, despite some difficulties. I seem to have misplaced a wad of cash, so I had much difficulty obtaining any yen for which to, well, do anything. I did eventually find a Plus ATM so all is well.
I'm off to Naritasan Shinshoji Temple while it's still light out.
I'm off to Naritasan Shinshoji Temple while it's still light out.
To Singapore and beyond!
Actually, I think Singapore is far enough. That's where I'm flying to tomorrow (or technically, later today). I'll be there for about a week for work, and then I have approximately 2 days in Japan before I fly home. Anyone have suggestions of what to see in Singapore or Tokyo?
Lost in the Wilderness
Another lonely day in California, but the weather was magnificent and my camera batteries were charged, so there was nothing standing between me and adventure. I had received some advice about what I should do today, but after doing some research this morning, and with some prompting from Richard, I decided to go see some big trees. If there's one thing they know how to do out here, it's big trees.
Some of the smaller big trees I saw. This photo was HDR-modified for your enjoyment. Do not adjust your monitor.
I speculated that Big Basin Redwoods State Park would provide a high-probability of seeing big trees, so at 10am I headed west, through the Santa Cruz mountains, towards my destiny. The twists and turns through the dense forest of the Santa Cruz mountains were most enjoyable, although I think 45mph is a bit fast for some of those turns.
Here is my car in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. The car itself leaves much to be desired, but I'm starting to like the colour.
I headed out on the Sequoia trail towards Sempervirens Falls. "Sempervirens" means always green.
I learned that this was the first state park in California, formally created in 1902.
Here is a long-ish exposure of the falls. I actually had to brighten it a bit in post-processing. At the falls lookout, I only had to take pictures for two groups. I hate P&S cameras... they feel so clumsy.
After the falls I headed back towards the park headquarters via another trail. I came across this little guy (and many of his skittish friends) on a rocky clearing.
I simply loved the texture on the trees; I made this photo black & white to emphasize this quality.
In case you didn't believe me, here is a gang of redwoods. (HDR)
This was a funny tree that I've seen before but I don't know the name of. The bark appears to just peel off, leaving behind this smooth, flesh-coloured trunk.
And of course, the flower shot.
Some of the smaller big trees I saw. This photo was HDR-modified for your enjoyment. Do not adjust your monitor.
I speculated that Big Basin Redwoods State Park would provide a high-probability of seeing big trees, so at 10am I headed west, through the Santa Cruz mountains, towards my destiny. The twists and turns through the dense forest of the Santa Cruz mountains were most enjoyable, although I think 45mph is a bit fast for some of those turns.
Here is my car in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. The car itself leaves much to be desired, but I'm starting to like the colour.
I headed out on the Sequoia trail towards Sempervirens Falls. "Sempervirens" means always green.
I learned that this was the first state park in California, formally created in 1902.
Here is a long-ish exposure of the falls. I actually had to brighten it a bit in post-processing. At the falls lookout, I only had to take pictures for two groups. I hate P&S cameras... they feel so clumsy.
After the falls I headed back towards the park headquarters via another trail. I came across this little guy (and many of his skittish friends) on a rocky clearing.
I simply loved the texture on the trees; I made this photo black & white to emphasize this quality.
In case you didn't believe me, here is a gang of redwoods. (HDR)
This was a funny tree that I've seen before but I don't know the name of. The bark appears to just peel off, leaving behind this smooth, flesh-coloured trunk.
And of course, the flower shot.
I'm an idiot, but that's okay
I went to San Francisco today. I packed up my awesome Slingshot camera bag (thanks Carolyn!) with all my gear: D70, 18-200 lens, macro lens, 50mm lens, tripod, circular polarizer, ND-grad filter, extra memory card, micro-fibre cloth, GPS, card reader, battery charger, water bottle, apple, granola bars. It was heavy, but I was all set for a day of shooting.
I got to San Fransisco around 11:30, and I parked at the de Young museum in Golden Gate Park. I was planning on spending much of the day there, and I was happy to finally get out of the car (see this post).
After about 15 minutes of walking about, taking pictures of random statues of Beethoven and Verdi, I found myself at the Japanese Tea Garden. I paid my $4 to enter and proceeded to photograph the serene surrounds when I noticed the battery symbol flashing on my camera. Uh oh. Well, it's a good thing I learned my lesson long ago and bought a spare battery, right?
Right.
Wrong. Thanks to new US Department of Transportation regulations, I couldn't pack my spare battery in my carry-on luggage. Of course I had forgotten this fact, so my battery remained safely packed away in my suitcase back in the hotel. Great.
I still had my battery charger in the car, but of course the other thing I forgot to pack was the car adapter. Even still, I had just paid $4 so I didn't want to leave. I had no choice but to grin and bear it.
As it happens, batteries have a remarkable ability to retain some residual charge - enough charge to focus and flip the shutter. I couldn't actually see the photos I was taken, so for the next 1.5 hours I was doing it "old school". And I really mean old school, because as in the days when they had to replace the photographic plates after each shot, I had to wait about a minute or so for the battery to recharge. In the digital age, this is very frustrating!
But, remarkably, I did manage to get some good shots. In fact, many turned out much sharper than they usually do, so perhaps I haven't been taking enough setup time for my shots. I've posted a few shots below; all but one are unprocessed because I don't have my image processing softare on this laptop. I will post final versions on flickr when I come home.
A Blue Jay that happened to hop up very close to me. If my battery had been charged I would have snapped 20-30 shots of this guy, but I only managed five in the few moments he was around. I'm really happy with how sharp this image came out. I also performed some HDR (or DRI) on this photo to lighten some of the shadows without blowing out the background.
I'm not sure what this is, but I liked the white against the red.
A shot of a tree with pagoda in the background.
A gorgeous Japanese maple, shot from below.
An iris.
I'm glad that a bunch of photos came out nicely, because the rest of the day was a bust. The battery totally gave out by the end of my stay in the garden, so no more pictures were going to happen until I got another battery. I walked around the park some more, and up Haight St. (supposedly quite famous? I saw lots of tattoo parlours and hippie shops... no camera stores though). I then went back to the car, hoping that my trust GPS would take me to a camera store. What luck, there were several camera stores to try! However, I forgot that the GPS takes pleasure in my failures. For the first camera store the GPS led me directly to a residential area where there was no sign of even a convenience store. The second location was much more promising but alas GPS tricked me again. Fool me once, shame on you, but fool me twice, shame on me. I wasn't about to be fooled a third time, so I decided I should just go back to the hotel.
Ok, so I was fooled a third time too. I thought I'd try another store supposedly in Palo Alto on University Ave. University Ave sounded promising. Not surprisingly, the Ritz Camera store was not there (I'm beginning to suspect that it's not a real camera chain at all); however, I did find a Wolf Camera store that the GPS didn't know about. Take that little machine! But, it turns out that Wolf Camera sucks. They didn't have my battery. They didn't have the lens I was interested in either (but he could order it... well, so can anyone with an internet connection). Every time I visit the US I gain appreciation for Henry's back home.
Enough complaining. My time in Golden Gate Park was refreshing and memorable. I'm glad I went. I wish I had been able to take some photographs of the Golden Gate Bridge, particularly at sunset, but I suspect I will return one day. Not tomorrow though, as I am through with big cities. Tomorrow is a hiking and relaxation day. And my battery is charging as we speak.
I got to San Fransisco around 11:30, and I parked at the de Young museum in Golden Gate Park. I was planning on spending much of the day there, and I was happy to finally get out of the car (see this post).
After about 15 minutes of walking about, taking pictures of random statues of Beethoven and Verdi, I found myself at the Japanese Tea Garden. I paid my $4 to enter and proceeded to photograph the serene surrounds when I noticed the battery symbol flashing on my camera. Uh oh. Well, it's a good thing I learned my lesson long ago and bought a spare battery, right?
Right.
Wrong. Thanks to new US Department of Transportation regulations, I couldn't pack my spare battery in my carry-on luggage. Of course I had forgotten this fact, so my battery remained safely packed away in my suitcase back in the hotel. Great.
I still had my battery charger in the car, but of course the other thing I forgot to pack was the car adapter. Even still, I had just paid $4 so I didn't want to leave. I had no choice but to grin and bear it.
As it happens, batteries have a remarkable ability to retain some residual charge - enough charge to focus and flip the shutter. I couldn't actually see the photos I was taken, so for the next 1.5 hours I was doing it "old school". And I really mean old school, because as in the days when they had to replace the photographic plates after each shot, I had to wait about a minute or so for the battery to recharge. In the digital age, this is very frustrating!
But, remarkably, I did manage to get some good shots. In fact, many turned out much sharper than they usually do, so perhaps I haven't been taking enough setup time for my shots. I've posted a few shots below; all but one are unprocessed because I don't have my image processing softare on this laptop. I will post final versions on flickr when I come home.
A Blue Jay that happened to hop up very close to me. If my battery had been charged I would have snapped 20-30 shots of this guy, but I only managed five in the few moments he was around. I'm really happy with how sharp this image came out. I also performed some HDR (or DRI) on this photo to lighten some of the shadows without blowing out the background.
I'm not sure what this is, but I liked the white against the red.
A shot of a tree with pagoda in the background.
A gorgeous Japanese maple, shot from below.
An iris.
I'm glad that a bunch of photos came out nicely, because the rest of the day was a bust. The battery totally gave out by the end of my stay in the garden, so no more pictures were going to happen until I got another battery. I walked around the park some more, and up Haight St. (supposedly quite famous? I saw lots of tattoo parlours and hippie shops... no camera stores though). I then went back to the car, hoping that my trust GPS would take me to a camera store. What luck, there were several camera stores to try! However, I forgot that the GPS takes pleasure in my failures. For the first camera store the GPS led me directly to a residential area where there was no sign of even a convenience store. The second location was much more promising but alas GPS tricked me again. Fool me once, shame on you, but fool me twice, shame on me. I wasn't about to be fooled a third time, so I decided I should just go back to the hotel.
Ok, so I was fooled a third time too. I thought I'd try another store supposedly in Palo Alto on University Ave. University Ave sounded promising. Not surprisingly, the Ritz Camera store was not there (I'm beginning to suspect that it's not a real camera chain at all); however, I did find a Wolf Camera store that the GPS didn't know about. Take that little machine! But, it turns out that Wolf Camera sucks. They didn't have my battery. They didn't have the lens I was interested in either (but he could order it... well, so can anyone with an internet connection). Every time I visit the US I gain appreciation for Henry's back home.
Enough complaining. My time in Golden Gate Park was refreshing and memorable. I'm glad I went. I wish I had been able to take some photographs of the Golden Gate Bridge, particularly at sunset, but I suspect I will return one day. Not tomorrow though, as I am through with big cities. Tomorrow is a hiking and relaxation day. And my battery is charging as we speak.
A week in the village of Saint Joseph
In case you didn't know it, I'm not at home (but Carolyn is, so don't steal my stuff!). I'm in the land of freedom and firearms for two weeks (although I'm hoping it'll just be one). Specifically, I'm in a place they call San Jose. I can't say I've seen much of it, but it looks like most other American cities I've visited. I am enjoying the warmish weather though (about 15-20 degrees centigrade - yay metric system!); I'm wearing a jacket, but I could take it off, if I wanted to.
I won't bore you with all the details.
But I will bore you with some.
I flew out on Sunday at 10am to Vancouver. The Rocky Mountains are awesome. Beautiful. I saw them only from the airport, but they are truly awe-inspiring. My layover was less than two hours, of which an hour was spent sitting in US Customs awaiting my fate. While my experience wasn't nearly as bad as it's been in the past, but every time I talk to a US Customs official I ask myself why did I agree to go on a business trip to the US.
"What is the purpose of your trip?"
"I'm doing software integration. I'll be installing our software and testing it to make sure it works".
"So... you'll be... testing this... software?"
"Uhm, yeah"
"Oh"
He obviously didn't get straight-A's at jack-ass boot camp, but I'll give him a B for effort. The woman who escorted me to the "nervous room" was, dare I say, almost amicable. The third guy let me through after "checking something out" in the back room (i.e. pee break) and giving me the ol' "you're lucky we let you through this time" spiel. Anyway, I didn't cry, so I think it went well.
The flights were both uneventful. I was bothered that they didn't serve food on the flight to Vancouver. That's five hours! Those jerks. When I fly to Germany it's only slightly longer and I get free wine!
My car, alas, is no Musty, but it did come with GPS which I've mentioned before is a gift and a curse. I've only had to loop around a couple of times.
So here I am in San Jose. I haven't taken a single photo yet. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe not. Really, it doesn't matter because I forgot to pack my card reader. Although that does give me an excuse to go to Fry's...
I won't bore you with all the details.
But I will bore you with some.
I flew out on Sunday at 10am to Vancouver. The Rocky Mountains are awesome. Beautiful. I saw them only from the airport, but they are truly awe-inspiring. My layover was less than two hours, of which an hour was spent sitting in US Customs awaiting my fate. While my experience wasn't nearly as bad as it's been in the past, but every time I talk to a US Customs official I ask myself why did I agree to go on a business trip to the US.
"What is the purpose of your trip?"
"I'm doing software integration. I'll be installing our software and testing it to make sure it works".
"So... you'll be... testing this... software?"
"Uhm, yeah"
"Oh"
He obviously didn't get straight-A's at jack-ass boot camp, but I'll give him a B for effort. The woman who escorted me to the "nervous room" was, dare I say, almost amicable. The third guy let me through after "checking something out" in the back room (i.e. pee break) and giving me the ol' "you're lucky we let you through this time" spiel. Anyway, I didn't cry, so I think it went well.
The flights were both uneventful. I was bothered that they didn't serve food on the flight to Vancouver. That's five hours! Those jerks. When I fly to Germany it's only slightly longer and I get free wine!
My car, alas, is no Musty, but it did come with GPS which I've mentioned before is a gift and a curse. I've only had to loop around a couple of times.
So here I am in San Jose. I haven't taken a single photo yet. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe not. Really, it doesn't matter because I forgot to pack my card reader. Although that does give me an excuse to go to Fry's...
Heidelberg (with photos)
By popular demand, I will post some photos. Tonight may be the last night I have internet access (well, free and unlimited internet access anyway), so I figured I should finish my Heidelberg story at least.
Ah yes, I was driving around Heidelberg, trying to coax the GPS to give me proper directions to Karlsruhe. Well, as luck would have it, I stumbled upon a giant blue and white 'P' and decided to give "ol' Heidi" a second chance.
I was now at the river-level of Heidelberg, where the peasant-folk live, but as my preferred mode of transportation is my two feet, I was happy. U-turns are really easy when you're walking.
I figured I need to go up. So that's what I did.
It turns out this is the road to somebody's house.
In my meandering I eventually saw a sign. Now I don't know much German, but I can put two and two together.
So up and up I went, and first went to an outlook on the south(ish) side of the castle (partly because I wasn't sure which way the castle was). The view was lovely, and especially after coming from freezing temperatures and deep snow, it was refreshing as well.
Here is a (cropped) view of the platz where I parked my car. Funky trees.
And here is die schloß, under renovation of course, as many of Europe's finest buildings are.
So I walked over there and bought a ticket to go inside (truthfully, the washrooms were inside the castle, so I had no choice). I didn't want to wait for the tour so I just showed myself around. Here is a gargoyle that I liked.
And here is another view of the city. I don't think it's quite as nice as the original view.
Also, here is a cat that was outside the castle. (It's not a George travelogue if there's not a cat photo.)
Finally, here is a (poor) photo from the platz where I parked my car. You can see the castle in the background, and the funky trees.
So that's about it. I left Heidelberg for Karlsruhe in the afternoon and I made it there in one piece. I survived the week and now I'm traveling the countryside as my ancestors once did, hunting for goats. I already visited one city today (but I won't say which one!) If you're lucky, I will get internet and post some photos. Tomorrow I head to Bonn to visit with a couple that Carolyn and I met in Berlin in '06. The adventure has begun.
Chus!
Ah yes, I was driving around Heidelberg, trying to coax the GPS to give me proper directions to Karlsruhe. Well, as luck would have it, I stumbled upon a giant blue and white 'P' and decided to give "ol' Heidi" a second chance.
I was now at the river-level of Heidelberg, where the peasant-folk live, but as my preferred mode of transportation is my two feet, I was happy. U-turns are really easy when you're walking.
I figured I need to go up. So that's what I did.
It turns out this is the road to somebody's house.
In my meandering I eventually saw a sign. Now I don't know much German, but I can put two and two together.
So up and up I went, and first went to an outlook on the south(ish) side of the castle (partly because I wasn't sure which way the castle was). The view was lovely, and especially after coming from freezing temperatures and deep snow, it was refreshing as well.
Here is a (cropped) view of the platz where I parked my car. Funky trees.
And here is die schloß, under renovation of course, as many of Europe's finest buildings are.
So I walked over there and bought a ticket to go inside (truthfully, the washrooms were inside the castle, so I had no choice). I didn't want to wait for the tour so I just showed myself around. Here is a gargoyle that I liked.
And here is another view of the city. I don't think it's quite as nice as the original view.
Also, here is a cat that was outside the castle. (It's not a George travelogue if there's not a cat photo.)
Finally, here is a (poor) photo from the platz where I parked my car. You can see the castle in the background, and the funky trees.
<br />Publish PosttKCI/AAAAAAAAAxo/365WMO7w9Bc/s1600-h/GV_080203_4569_080210.JPG)
So that's about it. I left Heidelberg for Karlsruhe in the afternoon and I made it there in one piece. I survived the week and now I'm traveling the countryside as my ancestors once did, hunting for goats. I already visited one city today (but I won't say which one!) If you're lucky, I will get internet and post some photos. Tomorrow I head to Bonn to visit with a couple that Carolyn and I met in Berlin in '06. The adventure has begun.
Chus!
In 400 metres, keep going straight...
So said my helpful GPS system to me on the way home this evening. I still can't figure out whether that is supposed to be helpful, reassuring, or impertinent. In any case, I'm going to assume that motto for my integration trip: "keep going... and when you get there, keep going some more".
But this isn't the story about my work... it's the story about a little boy from a small country called Canada, who struggled against all odds to get a blog so that he could tell his story.
Where did we leave off? Ah yes, lost and bewildered in Heidelberg. So I plugged "Heidelberg schloß" into my trusted electronic companion and put my fate into her cold, digital hands (and pretentious British accent... no way I'll be ordering the Globe & Mail from her!).
After the seven or eight prerequisite wrong turns ("Oh, did I say turn right? I meant left. Please make a U-turn when it is legal to do so.") I found myself winding up the switch-back road to the castle. I got stuck for several minutes behind a large tourist bus attempting to do the same thing; after a failed attempt at a 19-point turn at the elbow, it decided that perhaps the tourists didn't want to see the castle that day and that the candy store was open. You like candy, don't you?
Somehow, some way, I took a wrong turn. I don't know how this is possible, but I did it. I parked (probably illegally), took some photos of the vista, and made my way back down so that I could head - defeated - to Karlsruhe.
But, is that what happened? Stay tuned until next time George has enough time and energy tomake up tell his stories.
But this isn't the story about my work... it's the story about a little boy from a small country called Canada, who struggled against all odds to get a blog so that he could tell his story.
Where did we leave off? Ah yes, lost and bewildered in Heidelberg. So I plugged "Heidelberg schloß" into my trusted electronic companion and put my fate into her cold, digital hands (and pretentious British accent... no way I'll be ordering the Globe & Mail from her!).
After the seven or eight prerequisite wrong turns ("Oh, did I say turn right? I meant left. Please make a U-turn when it is legal to do so.") I found myself winding up the switch-back road to the castle. I got stuck for several minutes behind a large tourist bus attempting to do the same thing; after a failed attempt at a 19-point turn at the elbow, it decided that perhaps the tourists didn't want to see the castle that day and that the candy store was open. You like candy, don't you?
Somehow, some way, I took a wrong turn. I don't know how this is possible, but I did it. I parked (probably illegally), took some photos of the vista, and made my way back down so that I could head - defeated - to Karlsruhe.
But, is that what happened? Stay tuned until next time George has enough time and energy to
Day 1-2: The departure and arrival
So for those of you who don't appreciate the delicate prose of my grand travel epics, please click here to get the synopsis or "Coles Notes" version. For the rest of you, it's too late to turn back now...
In usual Vnoucek fashion, I finished packing for the trip about 5 minutes before my shuttle (well, can you really call a Mercedes a 'shuttle'?) arrived to take me to the airport. I think the only thing I forgot to take is a travel alarm clock.
I'd have to say the journey from doorstep to plane seat was wonderfully pleasant and uneventful. I arrived at the airport in plenty of time to line up in the inevitably long check-in queue... but not 30 seconds after I lined up did the Air Canada assistant direct me to the queue in the other aisle... so off I went to discover I was now first in line for the executive class check-in. :) Four minutes later I passed through security like a ghost, and then I was free... the airport was my oyster. So of course I proceed to do some work. But it was stress-less and soon I was on the plane.
The flight was like any other flight, except that the plane, source and destination, crew, passengers, and weather conditions were probably different... but we did fly through the air, and the movies weren't very good. Surprisingly the food was edible and almost enjoyable (I got some beef noodle dish). And the wine certainly helped Mr. Sandman find my seat. Aside from some turbulence, the flight too was a non-event. We landed safe-and-sound in Frankfurt shortly after 7am CET.
Customs, check. Baggage, check. Rental car, check. GPS, thank goodness! I ended up getting something called a Zafira, which is like a short station-wagon, or an elongated hatch-back. It took be 5 minutes to find the parking break, and another 10 to figure out the GPS, but by 8:15 I was on the road, headed towards Karlsruhe.
It probably hit me about 5 minutes into the drive that I was definitely in Germany. I was probably driving around 140km/h in the right-hand lane, and I was continuously being passed by cars (mostly Mercedes and BMW) going probably an extra 100km/h faster than me. It was crazy. But it seems to work. The slow cars go in the right, the faster ones move to the left to pass, and then go back. Everyone knows the system. I wish it were like this back in Canada.
I should mention that the weather was absolutely lovely. Clear skies, and I'd guess it was between 0 and 5 degrees Celsius. Seeing as I was making good time, I decided to stop in Heidelberg on the way. This is when the GPS became both my best friend and enemy at the same time... like that clown friend that everyone has that is eager to help but then forgets to show up... but you can't not ask for help because every now and then he comes through. This was my GPS. Often it would lead me on the right track, but it would not be fast enough, or tell me ahead of time, so I can't tell you how many times it told me: "at the next possible place, make a legal U-turn". Arg.
I finally found (quite by accident) a tourist information booth, so I parked (after about 10 minutes of driving through the city trying to get back to it, and I think at least once driving on the wrong side of the street) and discovered that of course the building was geschlossen. Boo.
But here was what greeted me on the other side of the street.
Kinda funky. Don't ask me what it is. I was quite ready just to head to Karlsruhe, but I forced myself to buy a drink (banana-kiwi) and ask how to get to the Heidelberg Schloß. Thankfully almost everyone here speaks English, because my knowledge of German phrasebook ends at the "kein Deutsche" section. They kindly told me which train to take, but I realized that taking the train would involve more embarrassing interactions so I opted to try the GPS again.
[Editors note: This post is taking much longer to write than originally expected. Stay tuned for the remainder of this story, and find out more about how George's first day on-site played out.]
The synopsys
I made it to Germany alive. Tomorrow will be the real test.
In usual Vnoucek fashion, I finished packing for the trip about 5 minutes before my shuttle (well, can you really call a Mercedes a 'shuttle'?) arrived to take me to the airport. I think the only thing I forgot to take is a travel alarm clock.
I'd have to say the journey from doorstep to plane seat was wonderfully pleasant and uneventful. I arrived at the airport in plenty of time to line up in the inevitably long check-in queue... but not 30 seconds after I lined up did the Air Canada assistant direct me to the queue in the other aisle... so off I went to discover I was now first in line for the executive class check-in. :) Four minutes later I passed through security like a ghost, and then I was free... the airport was my oyster. So of course I proceed to do some work. But it was stress-less and soon I was on the plane.
The flight was like any other flight, except that the plane, source and destination, crew, passengers, and weather conditions were probably different... but we did fly through the air, and the movies weren't very good. Surprisingly the food was edible and almost enjoyable (I got some beef noodle dish). And the wine certainly helped Mr. Sandman find my seat. Aside from some turbulence, the flight too was a non-event. We landed safe-and-sound in Frankfurt shortly after 7am CET.
Customs, check. Baggage, check. Rental car, check. GPS, thank goodness! I ended up getting something called a Zafira, which is like a short station-wagon, or an elongated hatch-back. It took be 5 minutes to find the parking break, and another 10 to figure out the GPS, but by 8:15 I was on the road, headed towards Karlsruhe.
It probably hit me about 5 minutes into the drive that I was definitely in Germany. I was probably driving around 140km/h in the right-hand lane, and I was continuously being passed by cars (mostly Mercedes and BMW) going probably an extra 100km/h faster than me. It was crazy. But it seems to work. The slow cars go in the right, the faster ones move to the left to pass, and then go back. Everyone knows the system. I wish it were like this back in Canada.
I should mention that the weather was absolutely lovely. Clear skies, and I'd guess it was between 0 and 5 degrees Celsius. Seeing as I was making good time, I decided to stop in Heidelberg on the way. This is when the GPS became both my best friend and enemy at the same time... like that clown friend that everyone has that is eager to help but then forgets to show up... but you can't not ask for help because every now and then he comes through. This was my GPS. Often it would lead me on the right track, but it would not be fast enough, or tell me ahead of time, so I can't tell you how many times it told me: "at the next possible place, make a legal U-turn". Arg.
I finally found (quite by accident) a tourist information booth, so I parked (after about 10 minutes of driving through the city trying to get back to it, and I think at least once driving on the wrong side of the street) and discovered that of course the building was geschlossen. Boo.
But here was what greeted me on the other side of the street.
Kinda funky. Don't ask me what it is. I was quite ready just to head to Karlsruhe, but I forced myself to buy a drink (banana-kiwi) and ask how to get to the Heidelberg Schloß. Thankfully almost everyone here speaks English, because my knowledge of German phrasebook ends at the "kein Deutsche" section. They kindly told me which train to take, but I realized that taking the train would involve more embarrassing interactions so I opted to try the GPS again.
[Editors note: This post is taking much longer to write than originally expected. Stay tuned for the remainder of this story, and find out more about how George's first day on-site played out.]
The synopsys
I made it to Germany alive. Tomorrow will be the real test.
Auf Wiedersehen!
Well, I was planning on being more productive with my blogging this year, but it looks like I'm on an anemic one-post-per-month pace. I have good reason though (as all of us lazy bloggers always do). I've been busy working on a project for work that has my flying to Germany this afternoon. I'm working specificaly in the city of Karlsruhe for about one week, integrating the software we've written at my company with the hardware at our customer's site. It's my first integration trip so I am still naively optimisticly, but I'm sure that will fade quickly ("what do you mean I have to send the commands in German?!?")
After my work week, I've taken the next week as vacation (I had several days accrued from last year). I'm planning on visiting some friends that Carolyn and I serendipitously met in Berlin in 2006. They're living in Bonn so I'll be heading up there, and then I'll be touring Cologne and probably Koblenz. Many thanks to my mom who spent hours researching potential sites of interest, train schedules, etc., since I have had no time to do so myself. I have a big stack of printouts that I'll be reading on the plane. :)
As has been my practice when travelling (especially alone), I'll probably post more than usual. I'm lugging my precious D70 with me (how could I not?) so I won't miss a photographic opportunity. The weather is quite a bit warmer where I'm going (5°C as opposed to -10°C... and getting warmer!), albeit a bit rainy, but I'm not going to let that stand in my way of seeing the sights... but if I do, I'll at least take some pictures from my hotel/hostel window :P
My escort to the airport is picking me up in about 4 hours (with a fresh French Vanilla cappuccino for me!), so I'd better get packing. Wish me luck, and I'll keep you posted on any tales of interest.
After my work week, I've taken the next week as vacation (I had several days accrued from last year). I'm planning on visiting some friends that Carolyn and I serendipitously met in Berlin in 2006. They're living in Bonn so I'll be heading up there, and then I'll be touring Cologne and probably Koblenz. Many thanks to my mom who spent hours researching potential sites of interest, train schedules, etc., since I have had no time to do so myself. I have a big stack of printouts that I'll be reading on the plane. :)
As has been my practice when travelling (especially alone), I'll probably post more than usual. I'm lugging my precious D70 with me (how could I not?) so I won't miss a photographic opportunity. The weather is quite a bit warmer where I'm going (5°C as opposed to -10°C... and getting warmer!), albeit a bit rainy, but I'm not going to let that stand in my way of seeing the sights... but if I do, I'll at least take some pictures from my hotel/hostel window :P
My escort to the airport is picking me up in about 4 hours (with a fresh French Vanilla cappuccino for me!), so I'd better get packing. Wish me luck, and I'll keep you posted on any tales of interest.
