We're off for the next 2 weeks to Scotland. We're taking the sleeper train to Glasgow tonight (with the doggies). We'll pick up a car in Glasgow and spend about 8 days in the highlands, hiking, sightseeing, catching some highland games. We turn the car in on the east coast in Aberdeen, then train it to Edinburgh and sleeper back to London arriving the 10th.
Not taking a laptop, but will have my mobile. We'll get some updates posted as soon as possible after our return.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Friday, June 20, 2008
I'm back in the US
Hello Everyone, I'm back in the us for a little while. The trip over was good. No crying baby's seated close. I'm glad I changed my seat from the back of the plane to the middle.I was seated with a deaf mute on the trip over. So it was pretty much silent . A few times on the plane ride over he got up at the wrong times and the personnel got irritated. I haven't to flown on delta since 911 and they made announcement that you are not to walk thru the plane from coach to business or first class, you will be arrested and/or flown back to your country due to homeland security.So the first time my seated partner got up it was a concern to everyone.Communication was very slack, they did not tell him the do and don't on the flight over. We had a tail wind and landed half an hour early but the staff at the airport was not ready and we had to stay on board for 20 Min's at the gate.I'm now at my sister's place outside Atlanta near Macon Ga. It was a great time last nite talking and catching up. Spending time with Veronica and Ricky and Gregory was wonderful but short maybe a longer visit next time.Veronica especially loved the present I brought over from Germany (flips) they are peanut butter flavored snack which you can't get in the states. I plan to leave this afternoon to drive 2-3 hrs to Augusta and visit my dad and young sister.
Updated July 11th added pictures of my trip.
Friday afternoon Daddy and I sent the day catching up and took a drive to his large new dog house (5th wheel camper stored at the lake.) Also saw Ms Dolores but unfortunately she was working during my visit. Sent some time on Saturday with Sabine and her family. Her son Brian will be leaving in July to join the Navy( Best of luck Brian ) I left Augusta Georgia and drove up to North Carolina Sunday morning . Stopped by Jame's Dad and Regina's for visit before getting to the house in Cary.
I was able to visit with Roslyn and Ben and the boys and had a wonderful dinner of BBQ. I also had Dinner with Cassidy at mellow mushroom pizza restaurant. We where able to catch up and spend some time together.The town house was in great condition only a few dust bunnies found. I also saw the girls at NCSU health center. Everyone looked great, I enjoyed seeing everyone. I left Tuesday morning to drive 6 hrs back to Atlanta Ga for a evening flight back to James in the UK.
Updated July 11th added pictures of my trip.
Friday afternoon Daddy and I sent the day catching up and took a drive to his large new dog house (5th wheel camper stored at the lake.) Also saw Ms Dolores but unfortunately she was working during my visit. Sent some time on Saturday with Sabine and her family. Her son Brian will be leaving in July to join the Navy( Best of luck Brian ) I left Augusta Georgia and drove up to North Carolina Sunday morning . Stopped by Jame's Dad and Regina's for visit before getting to the house in Cary.
I was able to visit with Roslyn and Ben and the boys and had a wonderful dinner of BBQ. I also had Dinner with Cassidy at mellow mushroom pizza restaurant. We where able to catch up and spend some time together.The town house was in great condition only a few dust bunnies found. I also saw the girls at NCSU health center. Everyone looked great, I enjoyed seeing everyone. I left Tuesday morning to drive 6 hrs back to Atlanta Ga for a evening flight back to James in the UK.
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| Diana goes to ATL June 08 |
Diana is visiting the US
Diana left yesterday for Atlanta to visit friends and family for a few days. It's her first trip back since she arrived in March. We're used to me being gone, but not her. Neither are the doggies. As she was packing, Darkstar was trying to go with:
Hang in there buddy! It's a guys weekend and momma wil be home on Wednesday.
Hang in there buddy! It's a guys weekend and momma wil be home on Wednesday.
Housework
Diana is adjusting well to being a stay at home Mom (to the doggies). She finds things to clean in the house I never knew existed. Have any of you guys heard of this “dust” stuff? Apparently you have to wipe things down that never get touched to get it off. Mondays are her laundry days, and Fridays are house cleaning days. I was working from home last Monday morning prior to catching an afternoon flight and watched her slaving away at the laundry, per the photo below:
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Some random thoughts I wanted to share
We’ve been here for 6 months now, sure doesn’t seem like it. The time is flying by.
One of the things you don’t expect is the big difference in the length of days. When I arrived in January, the sun didn’t rise until about 8:30 am, and set by 3:30 pm. Now, a week from the summer solstice, it’s bright daylight before 4:00 am, and not completely dark until almost 11:00 pm.
You quickly adjust to your surroundings. According to the TV weather, some areas are still having grass frost in mid-June. We consider a day at 60F and partially sunny to e a beautiful day and try to rush outdoors. 85F is too hot and we can’t sleep.
Another adjustment. When we first arrived, we converted everything to dollars. This process made everything incredibly expensive, as the exchange ratio is 2:1, so all marked prices are doubled. Now, we pretty much think in Pounds Sterling.
Sports - I arrived just before the 6 Nations Rugby tournament. Watched a game on TV and enjoyed it, so I found a web site that explained the rules. I really dig the game now. Tough sport.
European football (soccer) though is different. Right now the Euro cup is playing. It's easy to catch some of the excitement, but then about 1 game in 3 or 4 is enjoyable. The rest are gawd awful boring.
One of the things you don’t expect is the big difference in the length of days. When I arrived in January, the sun didn’t rise until about 8:30 am, and set by 3:30 pm. Now, a week from the summer solstice, it’s bright daylight before 4:00 am, and not completely dark until almost 11:00 pm.
You quickly adjust to your surroundings. According to the TV weather, some areas are still having grass frost in mid-June. We consider a day at 60F and partially sunny to e a beautiful day and try to rush outdoors. 85F is too hot and we can’t sleep.
Another adjustment. When we first arrived, we converted everything to dollars. This process made everything incredibly expensive, as the exchange ratio is 2:1, so all marked prices are doubled. Now, we pretty much think in Pounds Sterling.
Sports - I arrived just before the 6 Nations Rugby tournament. Watched a game on TV and enjoyed it, so I found a web site that explained the rules. I really dig the game now. Tough sport.
European football (soccer) though is different. Right now the Euro cup is playing. It's easy to catch some of the excitement, but then about 1 game in 3 or 4 is enjoyable. The rest are gawd awful boring.
Friday, June 13, 2008
A weekend in Aschaffenburg
I was traveling from Romania to Germany, and it seemed like a great opportunity to stop by and see our friends Frank and Heike, and their son Kai, in Aschaffenburg. I used to live there and got to know them very well. Plus, they've know Diana and me as a couple longer than anyone.
They have a camper at a permanent camping place where they go every weekend when the weather is nice. There's a lot of retirees that live there full time, and lots of people come out on the weekends.
It was also the first weekend of the European Cup soccer tournament, so on Saturday night, they set up a plasma TV outside to watch the football matches. We made a batch of chili, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. As the night went on, the party got a little silly, with strange hats coming out and some even stranger characters showing up.
They have a camper at a permanent camping place where they go every weekend when the weather is nice. There's a lot of retirees that live there full time, and lots of people come out on the weekends.
It was also the first weekend of the European Cup soccer tournament, so on Saturday night, they set up a plasma TV outside to watch the football matches. We made a batch of chili, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. As the night went on, the party got a little silly, with strange hats coming out and some even stranger characters showing up.
Diana Visit's Nurnberg
One of the weekends that I was in the US, Diana went to Nurnberg, Germany to visit her Tante Hannelore. Hannelore was actually her mother's best friend, but I think we all have someone like that in our families.
Looks like she had a great time. They went to the Nurnberg Zoo and saw the polar bear cub, wolves and other animals. They also visited the nazi stadium in Nurnberg we've all seen in movies.
Peter, Hannelore's husband, and Peterle (little Peter) her son, build and race model cars and have a variety of tropies.
There's also a couple of pictures of the place Diana's dad was stationed when he met her mother. Emotions were high.
A link to the online album below. Double click to see the pictures and a Google map of their locations
Looks like she had a great time. They went to the Nurnberg Zoo and saw the polar bear cub, wolves and other animals. They also visited the nazi stadium in Nurnberg we've all seen in movies.
Peter, Hannelore's husband, and Peterle (little Peter) her son, build and race model cars and have a variety of tropies.
There's also a couple of pictures of the place Diana's dad was stationed when he met her mother. Emotions were high.
A link to the online album below. Double click to see the pictures and a Google map of their locations
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| nuemberg germany trip may16-18 |
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Mid-June travel update
Well I don’t think I’ve ever had this kind of a travel schedule. I’ve basically been on the road non-stop since April 14, including 5 weekends! A couple of those were our choice, tryin to take advantage of where I was for Diana to get out, but the rest were purely due to business travel. During that time I’ve hit 12 countries, including the US (which ate up 2 of the weekends).
Generally, travel days run about 14 hours each, trying to do your job as well as meet with partners and customers. It sounds exotic, while in fact it’s exhausting. You’re doing con calls in airports, working on documents in hotel rooms, eating too much and exercising too little. Never getting enough sleep.
Had my first trips into Eastern Europe in the last couple of weeks. Spent 3 days each in Prague and Bucharest. Eastern europe is the only part of europe still cheap. In Prague, 4 of us had a very nice dinner with drinks and desert for about $60. One person could not eat in the same level of restatraunt for that price in London.
Everyone says Prague is lovely, and they are correct. We had about 2 hours the last afternoon to spend in the city before I had to get to the airport. Baeutiful old architecture, well maintained, pretty safe feeling. Only down side is tons and tons of tourists. People from every nation there in tour groups wandering about. The prettier areas are very crowded with tourists.
Bucharest on the other hand is different. As soon as you arrive, you know you are in a poorer, eastern country. Just a little shabbier, not as well maintained. Lots of new buildings, but lots of older, very rundown buildings too. Not much pretty old architecture. Also, it has some vague, not very safe feeling. We never felt threatened, but you knew you needed to keep your guard up.
Everything went well in Bucharest. We always try to find a resatraunt that serves local food, and we found one. Lots of grilled meat, polenta and bread. As we were sitting there, I saw an old Byzantine church. Stopped in for a look. Romanians are Orthodox. I’ve never been into an Orthodox church before, and this one was just wonderful. Very small, no pews or benches, apparently everyone stands during these services. Lots of ornate icons of madonnas, saints and other figures I don’t recognize. In the rear, there was this quaint Greek garden. I didn’t have a camera with me, so can only describe it.
Sitting in Berlin now. First trip here since right after the wall came down. Very cosmopolitan, new and dynamic city. Realize that during the almost 40 years between the end of WWII and reunification in 1990/91, the Russians prevented the Germans in Berlin from rebuilding. When I was here in 90/91, there was still rubble in East Berlin from 1945! Bullet holes in buildings, etc. Now all of that has been razed and replaced with modern, glass and steel buildings.
Only 1 more trip left, Amsterdam next Tuesday. Will be glad when it’s over and I can stay home for a bit. Of course, as soon as I get off the road, Diana is going back to the US for a visit.
Generally, travel days run about 14 hours each, trying to do your job as well as meet with partners and customers. It sounds exotic, while in fact it’s exhausting. You’re doing con calls in airports, working on documents in hotel rooms, eating too much and exercising too little. Never getting enough sleep.
Had my first trips into Eastern Europe in the last couple of weeks. Spent 3 days each in Prague and Bucharest. Eastern europe is the only part of europe still cheap. In Prague, 4 of us had a very nice dinner with drinks and desert for about $60. One person could not eat in the same level of restatraunt for that price in London.
Everyone says Prague is lovely, and they are correct. We had about 2 hours the last afternoon to spend in the city before I had to get to the airport. Baeutiful old architecture, well maintained, pretty safe feeling. Only down side is tons and tons of tourists. People from every nation there in tour groups wandering about. The prettier areas are very crowded with tourists.
Bucharest on the other hand is different. As soon as you arrive, you know you are in a poorer, eastern country. Just a little shabbier, not as well maintained. Lots of new buildings, but lots of older, very rundown buildings too. Not much pretty old architecture. Also, it has some vague, not very safe feeling. We never felt threatened, but you knew you needed to keep your guard up.
Everything went well in Bucharest. We always try to find a resatraunt that serves local food, and we found one. Lots of grilled meat, polenta and bread. As we were sitting there, I saw an old Byzantine church. Stopped in for a look. Romanians are Orthodox. I’ve never been into an Orthodox church before, and this one was just wonderful. Very small, no pews or benches, apparently everyone stands during these services. Lots of ornate icons of madonnas, saints and other figures I don’t recognize. In the rear, there was this quaint Greek garden. I didn’t have a camera with me, so can only describe it.
Sitting in Berlin now. First trip here since right after the wall came down. Very cosmopolitan, new and dynamic city. Realize that during the almost 40 years between the end of WWII and reunification in 1990/91, the Russians prevented the Germans in Berlin from rebuilding. When I was here in 90/91, there was still rubble in East Berlin from 1945! Bullet holes in buildings, etc. Now all of that has been razed and replaced with modern, glass and steel buildings.
Only 1 more trip left, Amsterdam next Tuesday. Will be glad when it’s over and I can stay home for a bit. Of course, as soon as I get off the road, Diana is going back to the US for a visit.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Cassiddy's Second visit
Running way behind updating the blog. Cassidy was in town for the second time during May. This time she brought friends.
Her Italian roommate from last year, Ombretta, and Ombretta's sister Raphaella were her for the first few days. The girls appear to have had a great time running about London.
The day the Italian girls left, Cassidy's boyfriend, Brian (Bobby, Billy?), arrived for several days.
Unfortunately, for all of this time except the first day, I was in the US, so really didn't get to visit much. Looks like everyone had a great time anyway!
These are all Cassidy's pictures.
Her Italian roommate from last year, Ombretta, and Ombretta's sister Raphaella were her for the first few days. The girls appear to have had a great time running about London.
The day the Italian girls left, Cassidy's boyfriend, Brian (Bobby, Billy?), arrived for several days.
Unfortunately, for all of this time except the first day, I was in the US, so really didn't get to visit much. Looks like everyone had a great time anyway!
These are all Cassidy's pictures.
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