I attended Earthwatch's annual conference last Saturday. While it was a somewhat interesting affair, I suspect it would have been more fun had I gone (or met up with) others. My overall impression was that continuing connections with others (team members, scientists, etc) was happening all around me. While Early Man scientist Luis had intended to attend, the recent arrival of a new family member (congrats Luis!) seems to have upset his travel plans. Not surprising I guess.
The morning session consisted mainly of presentations by three scientists of their work. First Nithya Balaji talked about community education in southern India (Tamil Nadu). Next Ralph Riley talked about researching the critical role salmon plays in the Pacific Northwest, and about how local community (fishermen and loggers, for example) are included in their work. Then Chris Joyce talked about research into wetlands in Estonia, and how agriculture there had interestingly worked to increase biological diversity, and how abandonment of agriculture in Soviet times was leading to its decrease in this area.
After these presentations came a forum discussion that I decided to skip, preferring to spend some time in the "Global Village", where a variety of researchers had poster-style presentations of their work, and were themselves present (or had staff there) to answer questions about their work. I had an interesting chat with Karl Laumbach about his work in the American Southwest, digging up Pueblo artifacts.
Following a break for lunch came a presentation by two women, Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher, who have done much work for National Geographic over the last 30 years, photographic and documenting indigenous African cultural traditions. A fascinating kaleidoscope of pictures and short video clips was studded with personal reminiscences and a sense of impending loss, especially in areas such as the southern Sudan, only now starting to recover from civil war, where they fear things they documented before the violence began may be irrevocably lost. They have lots of books available.
The afternoon session continued with three more scientist presentations. Marcos Santos talked about Brazil's need to better understand its marine mammal populations, given two challenges: (1) a relative lack of expertise (there are few marine scientists in Brazil, a significant problem given the amount of coastline and rivers), and (2) an increase in coastal development for tourism. Then Mark Huxham gave a spirited presentation on trying to restore damaged and destroyed mangrove stands in Kenya. The importance of these has come to the fore since the Indian Ocean tsunami... The final presentation was by Peter Kershaw, a leading researcher on the impact of global warming in the Arctic. The pictures and data he presented give a particularly compelling message, and he didn't mince the words that had political overtones. Are our politicians listening?
The final event of the afternoon was the keynote speech by E.O. Wilson, probably the world's leading expert on biodiversity. (Do you detect a theme here? Good.) He made some interesting observations on the relationship between habitat preservation and the amount of biodiversity that can be supported when habitat is reduced. If 90% of a habitat is lost, you can expect to lose 50% of the biodiversity, but it only gets worse from there.
If any Earthwatchers read this, did I miss you?
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Friday, October 28, 2005
Bottomry
Looking at admiralty court records (from 1839 and 1840) introduced me to some new words...
Bottomry is sort of like mortgaging a ship and/or its cargo. Ship owners strapped for cash for needed repairs would in effect mortgage the ship to raise funds needed for repairs until the ship could deliver its cargo, at which point the funds would be repaid. (I was not able to find any really good links describing the term -- Wikipedia for example only has a stub entry for it.)
Bottomry is sort of like mortgaging a ship and/or its cargo. Ship owners strapped for cash for needed repairs would in effect mortgage the ship to raise funds needed for repairs until the ship could deliver its cargo, at which point the funds would be repaid. (I was not able to find any really good links describing the term -- Wikipedia for example only has a stub entry for it.)
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Fun facts about the US Navy bureaucracy in 1918
I had my first stint of volunteering for the government today. It was about 3 hours spent refiling some fairly dry stuff from the Boston Navy Yard Commandant's Office in 1918.
OK, there's a small consolation. We were at war in 1918, so maybe you'd think interesting war-related stuff would turn up.
Uh uh.
The most interesting tid-bit I turned up (other than the fact that there were daily and weekly reports filed by the yard's forge on how much chain it produced, and what it cost to produce it) outside of the amazing quantity of reports being passed up the chain of command was that submarines were seen at the base. There were also some "reduction in force" (ooh, office-speak goes back that far?) reports that only occurred in December, after the armistice was signed.
I also saw monthly reports on the condition of the USS Constitution, including notations to the effect that (at the time) it was last painted in Portsmouth (NH) in 1897, and was basically in good shape.
I'm sure you all always wanted to know that back then they inspected their fire hoses quarterly.
I asked to be exposed to a different bureaucracy next week. It's looking like it'll be court cases, possibly more interesting reading.
OK, there's a small consolation. We were at war in 1918, so maybe you'd think interesting war-related stuff would turn up.
Uh uh.
The most interesting tid-bit I turned up (other than the fact that there were daily and weekly reports filed by the yard's forge on how much chain it produced, and what it cost to produce it) outside of the amazing quantity of reports being passed up the chain of command was that submarines were seen at the base. There were also some "reduction in force" (ooh, office-speak goes back that far?) reports that only occurred in December, after the armistice was signed.
I also saw monthly reports on the condition of the USS Constitution, including notations to the effect that (at the time) it was last painted in Portsmouth (NH) in 1897, and was basically in good shape.
I'm sure you all always wanted to know that back then they inspected their fire hoses quarterly.
I asked to be exposed to a different bureaucracy next week. It's looking like it'll be court cases, possibly more interesting reading.
Thursday, October 13, 2005
Road Trip, Maryland and Pennsylvania
Driving last Saturday might not have been the swiftest move in some parts of the country due to the heavy rains, but I was blessed by not encountering much of it until I got into Pennsylvania. Even then, it wasn't much of a problem until it got dark. Dad was reached around 10PM, safe and sound.
On Sunday morning, I drove down to the suburbs of Baltimore to visit Alex, an old high-school buddy I've not seen in many years. (Our last encounter was when we were both in graduate school, I was at UCLA, pretending to work on a master's in Computer Science, and he was at U of Hawaii studying astronomy, which he seems to have parlayed into a good career.) He and I were both French Horn players in school, something I let go, while hanging on to the piano. So the first thing we had to do was play some music -- the Beethoven Horn Sonata being within both our abilities to mangle. We had an otherwise enjoyable afternoon, meeting his wife and son in the bargain.
On Monday, my dad and I went to Pennsylvania's Washington Crossing State Park, which most of the Americans reading this will probably understand (curious non-Americans are invited to follow the links to see why this place is important). We did NOT get to New Jersey's park, even though it was not that far away...
In the evening we drove into Philadelphia to see an 1807 and Friends chamber music concert, which was fairly enjoyable, even if there were occasional balance issues with the piano in quiet passages...
The drive home on Tuesday was blissfully uneventful.
On Sunday morning, I drove down to the suburbs of Baltimore to visit Alex, an old high-school buddy I've not seen in many years. (Our last encounter was when we were both in graduate school, I was at UCLA, pretending to work on a master's in Computer Science, and he was at U of Hawaii studying astronomy, which he seems to have parlayed into a good career.) He and I were both French Horn players in school, something I let go, while hanging on to the piano. So the first thing we had to do was play some music -- the Beethoven Horn Sonata being within both our abilities to mangle. We had an otherwise enjoyable afternoon, meeting his wife and son in the bargain.
On Monday, my dad and I went to Pennsylvania's Washington Crossing State Park, which most of the Americans reading this will probably understand (curious non-Americans are invited to follow the links to see why this place is important). We did NOT get to New Jersey's park, even though it was not that far away...
In the evening we drove into Philadelphia to see an 1807 and Friends chamber music concert, which was fairly enjoyable, even if there were occasional balance issues with the piano in quiet passages...
The drive home on Tuesday was blissfully uneventful.
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Road Trip, Indiana
In driving from Wheaton, IL, to Bloomington, IN, I discovered just how flat parts of Illinois really are. Let's just say that you can drive at highway speeds on county roads (except in the villages -- slow down, folks). I had a decent, if unexciting crepe for lunch in downtown Champaign, Illinois.
Bloomington is home to the main campus of Indiana University. It's also home to Allisson and John and Belinda and Julia, which was why I went there. Allisson and I have a history that goes back to mutual friends we each met while (separately) at Syracuse University. We've generally only seen each other at weddings and funerals, so I thought a visit was in order, especially after the arrival of Zilla and the Bird aka Belinda and Julia, now about 1.5 years old. Given the nature of small children and their oft-frazzled parents, the visit was predictably low-key.
We had a lovely dinner and beer at Lennie's (thanks Allisson!) on Thursday night. Friday we managed to get out to the Encore Cafe for lunch. These two options showed that the Midwest is not completely devoid of eating possibilities for us vegetarians. (See my previous entry, where I mention the food offerings at Cedar Point's.)
After lunch we had a leisurely stroll around parts of the nearby McCormick's Creek State Park, punctuated by overly-difficult (and eventually abandoned) stream crossings, and an extended visit to the playground.
Fortunately I remembered to take a few pictures before I left.
Belinda liked my phone, so I took her picture with it.
Belinda liked the camera too
Allisson and Julia
Sorry, no room for John...(hey thanks for taking the pic tho')
Saturday was taken up by a long drive from Bloomington to my Dad's outside Philadelphia.
Bloomington is home to the main campus of Indiana University. It's also home to Allisson and John and Belinda and Julia, which was why I went there. Allisson and I have a history that goes back to mutual friends we each met while (separately) at Syracuse University. We've generally only seen each other at weddings and funerals, so I thought a visit was in order, especially after the arrival of Zilla and the Bird aka Belinda and Julia, now about 1.5 years old. Given the nature of small children and their oft-frazzled parents, the visit was predictably low-key.
We had a lovely dinner and beer at Lennie's (thanks Allisson!) on Thursday night. Friday we managed to get out to the Encore Cafe for lunch. These two options showed that the Midwest is not completely devoid of eating possibilities for us vegetarians. (See my previous entry, where I mention the food offerings at Cedar Point's.)
After lunch we had a leisurely stroll around parts of the nearby McCormick's Creek State Park, punctuated by overly-difficult (and eventually abandoned) stream crossings, and an extended visit to the playground.
Fortunately I remembered to take a few pictures before I left.
Belinda liked my phone, so I took her picture with it.
Belinda liked the camera too
Allisson and Julia
Sorry, no room for John...(hey thanks for taking the pic tho')Saturday was taken up by a long drive from Bloomington to my Dad's outside Philadelphia.
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Road Trip, Illinois
I spent a few days visiting with Mom in Wheaton, IL. I've done this before, but have usually flown. On Tuesday we lovely afternoon in Chicago visiting this place:
The Oriental Institute is the University of Chicago's Near East Studies organization. Its museum has been under renovation for a number of years, so I never had chance to see it (also since we would be preoccupied by going to Chicago's other fine museums, like the Art Institute and the Field Museum. In any event, we had a great time there, spending considerably longer than either of us had anticipated. Anyone visiting Chicago should consider a visit there.
After that, we trundled up to the Navy Pier in Chicago, which is mostly a tourist trap and convention center. We went mainly to admire the contents of the Stained Glass Museum, which is essentially a free exhibit, skirting one side of the convention facilities, of a wide variety of stained glass windows.
On Wednesday, we again traveled into Chicago, this time to see the Art Institute's special exhibit on Toulouse-Lautrec, the well-known fin-de-siécle French artist. It was a well-staged exhibit, including many of his best-known works (quite a few of which were advertising posters, and are thus fairly recognizable). It also included vintage movie snippets from the time, as well as a later recreation of the Moulin Rouge scene from this movie.
While there, we met up for lunch with Karen, one the Earthwatch volunteers with whom I was in Spain. Hi Karen!
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
Road Trip, Ohio
I've not spent any substantial time in Ohio since I was in high school. (No offense to Ohioans reading this, but those have just been the turnings of my life.) At that time (1979), I went to Cleveland to check out Case Western Reserve University. It got dropped off my school candidate list at least partly because it was, well, located in Cleveland, which was none too attractive at the time.
For this visit, I drove right through Cleveland. But I do understand that times are better now than then, and this was not intended as a slight on Cleveland. It was mainly due to the fact that I had to drive 700 miles that day, so a sightseeing stop there was not in the cards. I did get a small sampling of radio stations, though. The local NPR affiliate has quite a variety of foreign language programs unlike anything we get in the Boston area. I heard parts of German, Russian (or some other Slavic tongue), and Hungarian programs.
My destination for the night was East Harbor State Park, which is located between Port Clinton and Marblehead, Ohio. This part of Ohio, about midway between Toledo and Cleveland, is fairly rural, and, being on Lake Erie, features a heavily boating- and recreation-oriented atmosphere.
I arrived at about 6:15, and was stopped by a ranger well before the checkin area. It turns out they were having some sort of Halloween celebration this weekend (and next), and I couldn't drive to my campsite until 6:30, due to trick-or-treat-like activities.
Halloween on October 1st? Huh?
Apparently, this part of Ohio celebrates Halloween for the entire month, or something, since Cedar Point was also decked out in orange and black. Whatever happened to celebrating (or recognizing) days like this on just that day?
I eventually got my camp set up, had some dinner (leftovers from the European trip -- thanks Eric), and eventually got to bed (err, sleeping bag) around 9, mostly avoiding the hay ride and haunted house.
On Sunday I was up fairly early (gotta learn how to shut down that sun detector if I'm ever going to sleep really late), and went for a short drive around the Marblehead peninsula. It's got some nice views of Sandusky and Cedar Point, which I didn't photograph since I didn't have the camera along.
I drove into Sandusky itself, which was predictably sleepy at 9:30 on Sunday morning. Things were already getting going at Cedar Point, though. I was through the gates shortly after 10.
I rode a whole bunch of roller coasters. Really! Top Thrill Dragster was closed. My favorites were the Magnum XL-200, Raptor, and Mean Streak, each of which I rode several times. I also rode Millenium Force twice, but it didn't make the cut due to its long(ish) line (about 40 minutes).
I also ate plenty of bad-for-you fair food. Based on the food offerings at Cedar Point, it's no surprise Americans are getting fat. (I don't think there was a single salad on offer in the whole park.) At least I didn't need to make dinner...
On Monday morning I again arose early, and this time prepared myself to take some pictures of the sunrise. These were taken between 6:30 and 8 AM.
The first view.
The first view, overexposed. What a difference!
For this visit, I drove right through Cleveland. But I do understand that times are better now than then, and this was not intended as a slight on Cleveland. It was mainly due to the fact that I had to drive 700 miles that day, so a sightseeing stop there was not in the cards. I did get a small sampling of radio stations, though. The local NPR affiliate has quite a variety of foreign language programs unlike anything we get in the Boston area. I heard parts of German, Russian (or some other Slavic tongue), and Hungarian programs.
My destination for the night was East Harbor State Park, which is located between Port Clinton and Marblehead, Ohio. This part of Ohio, about midway between Toledo and Cleveland, is fairly rural, and, being on Lake Erie, features a heavily boating- and recreation-oriented atmosphere.
I arrived at about 6:15, and was stopped by a ranger well before the checkin area. It turns out they were having some sort of Halloween celebration this weekend (and next), and I couldn't drive to my campsite until 6:30, due to trick-or-treat-like activities.
Halloween on October 1st? Huh?
Apparently, this part of Ohio celebrates Halloween for the entire month, or something, since Cedar Point was also decked out in orange and black. Whatever happened to celebrating (or recognizing) days like this on just that day?
I eventually got my camp set up, had some dinner (leftovers from the European trip -- thanks Eric), and eventually got to bed (err, sleeping bag) around 9, mostly avoiding the hay ride and haunted house.
On Sunday I was up fairly early (gotta learn how to shut down that sun detector if I'm ever going to sleep really late), and went for a short drive around the Marblehead peninsula. It's got some nice views of Sandusky and Cedar Point, which I didn't photograph since I didn't have the camera along.
I drove into Sandusky itself, which was predictably sleepy at 9:30 on Sunday morning. Things were already getting going at Cedar Point, though. I was through the gates shortly after 10.
I rode a whole bunch of roller coasters. Really! Top Thrill Dragster was closed. My favorites were the Magnum XL-200, Raptor, and Mean Streak, each of which I rode several times. I also rode Millenium Force twice, but it didn't make the cut due to its long(ish) line (about 40 minutes).
I also ate plenty of bad-for-you fair food. Based on the food offerings at Cedar Point, it's no surprise Americans are getting fat. (I don't think there was a single salad on offer in the whole park.) At least I didn't need to make dinner...
On Monday morning I again arose early, and this time prepared myself to take some pictures of the sunrise. These were taken between 6:30 and 8 AM.
The first view.
The first view, overexposed. What a difference!
Friday, September 30, 2005
Road Trip!
OK, so Our President has said to cut back on driving. Since I've never listened much to him before (except to occasionally groan at either what he says or how he says it), why start now? (I will be listening to my wallet groan, courtesy of current gas prices.)
For the next ten days or so I will be traveling, mostly for the purpose of visiting friends and family. My first stop is Sandusky, Ohio, which is home to a large amusement park famous for its rollercoasters.
I'm stopping there because (1) it's between here and Wheaton, Illinois, which is where Mom lives, and (2) Wheaton is about 1000 miles from here, so I need to stop somewhere, and (3) there are rollercoasters nearby.
Stay tuned for trip details. Bear will be coming along (although he is a bit shy of rollercoasters, so he'll be skipping that part).
For the next ten days or so I will be traveling, mostly for the purpose of visiting friends and family. My first stop is Sandusky, Ohio, which is home to a large amusement park famous for its rollercoasters.
I'm stopping there because (1) it's between here and Wheaton, Illinois, which is where Mom lives, and (2) Wheaton is about 1000 miles from here, so I need to stop somewhere, and (3) there are rollercoasters nearby.
Stay tuned for trip details. Bear will be coming along (although he is a bit shy of rollercoasters, so he'll be skipping that part).
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Volunteering for the government
I mentioned a few posts back that I was looking at a volunteer opportunity at the local National Archives. I was shown around the place last week by the volunteer coordinator there.
For people who think that archives look like scenes at the end of this movie, you'd be wrong, since that's a warehouse where stuff is kept. The Archives is where documents are kept (like the original Declaration of Independence in Washington, say). So if you instead think of scenes from this TV show where the intrepid investigators are poring over documents on shelves in a large high-ceilinged room full of floor-to-ceiling shelving that are filled with (a) boxes (b) more boxes (c) even more boxes (d) some moldy old books ... well, that's a somewhat more realistic picture. (Note to self: try to see if a camera can go in there.)
Volunteers at this site perform two different functions. The first is "front desk" duty, helping out newbies to find things. Did I mention this facility is open to the public? The second is what they call "project" work, which is doing basic preservation of documents.
What kind of documents, I hear you say?
This particular archive contains things like court records, immigration records, shipping and customs records, and so on. There's a large body of materials, much from the 19th century, that needs some basic preservation: documents need to be (sometimes carefully) unfolded, content briefly examined, and refiled into acid-free storage boxes. Extremely fragile (i.e. nearly crumbling) documents are placed in mylar envelopes. They have more complex work too, but figure this is a good speed for a newbie.
I figured this might be a nice way to see if I want to do some sort of conservation work (either art or history), and gives me a window into regional history, while letting me actually handle Old Things.
Since this is the government, I have to fill out paperwork. To wit: I need to permit the FBI to do a background check, and I need to get fingerprinted (a service ably performed by the local police). And I need to provide a resume with two references. And I'm not even getting paid. Humph.
For people who think that archives look like scenes at the end of this movie, you'd be wrong, since that's a warehouse where stuff is kept. The Archives is where documents are kept (like the original Declaration of Independence in Washington, say). So if you instead think of scenes from this TV show where the intrepid investigators are poring over documents on shelves in a large high-ceilinged room full of floor-to-ceiling shelving that are filled with (a) boxes (b) more boxes (c) even more boxes (d) some moldy old books ... well, that's a somewhat more realistic picture. (Note to self: try to see if a camera can go in there.)
Volunteers at this site perform two different functions. The first is "front desk" duty, helping out newbies to find things. Did I mention this facility is open to the public? The second is what they call "project" work, which is doing basic preservation of documents.
What kind of documents, I hear you say?
This particular archive contains things like court records, immigration records, shipping and customs records, and so on. There's a large body of materials, much from the 19th century, that needs some basic preservation: documents need to be (sometimes carefully) unfolded, content briefly examined, and refiled into acid-free storage boxes. Extremely fragile (i.e. nearly crumbling) documents are placed in mylar envelopes. They have more complex work too, but figure this is a good speed for a newbie.
I figured this might be a nice way to see if I want to do some sort of conservation work (either art or history), and gives me a window into regional history, while letting me actually handle Old Things.
Since this is the government, I have to fill out paperwork. To wit: I need to permit the FBI to do a background check, and I need to get fingerprinted (a service ably performed by the local police). And I need to provide a resume with two references. And I'm not even getting paid. Humph.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Friday, September 23, 2005
Really, I'm not just moving the ladders around
That's about 3 hours work. Keeping fingers crossed for tomorrow to finish this coat.
The glorious whitewasher
The weather cooperated yesterday, so the project now has had primer applied.
Where's Ben Rogers when I need him to do the first finish coat? (Also, where are the weather gods to send away this morning's drizzles?)
Where's Ben Rogers when I need him to do the first finish coat? (Also, where are the weather gods to send away this morning's drizzles?)
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Garfield (NOT the stupid cartoon cat)
Went for a modest (6 1/2 hour) hike today. (Surrounded by 2 1/2 hours of driving on either side as is fairly usual...) It was cold (40s) and windy on the summit, but I was prepared.
That's about as nice as the visibility ever gets these days.
That's Owl's Head behind me. The wall I'm holding up was once part of the foundation to a summit building (fire warden's house or fire tower) here.
Tomorrow, back to work on my Tom Sawyer project. One day of nice weather, hope I can make the most of it.
That's about as nice as the visibility ever gets these days.
That's Owl's Head behind me. The wall I'm holding up was once part of the foundation to a summit building (fire warden's house or fire tower) here.Tomorrow, back to work on my Tom Sawyer project. One day of nice weather, hope I can make the most of it.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
rain, rain, go away
It rained last Saturday, and it's rained today. This makes continuing this work a bit difficult, since I need to wait at least 36 hours after rain before continuing. At least I've gotten all the sanding done (thanks to the Narf's emergency backup sander, after mine broke down).
I've used the rain intervals to somewhat good effect, and will be visiting the local National Archives on Thursday to see what kind of volunteer projects they have. Stuff to do with cataloging and conserving immigration records, based on what I've read so far. Stay tuned.
On tap for tomorrow: Mount Garfield
I've used the rain intervals to somewhat good effect, and will be visiting the local National Archives on Thursday to see what kind of volunteer projects they have. Stuff to do with cataloging and conserving immigration records, based on what I've read so far. Stay tuned.
On tap for tomorrow: Mount Garfield
Friday, September 16, 2005
Geek stuff
Since rain has descended on the Boston area, I've been unable to make progress on the back of the house, which is currently stuck in the sanding phase of paint-prep. I've instead started focusing on other activities.
First, on the technology front: I've decided to learn PHP. For the non-geeks reading this, it's a language for writing and managing dynamic web pages. There exist a number of blogging software packages that use it, and I'm imagining that this site will eventually be migrated to one of those.
In addition to learning PHP, I also want to familiarize myself with Eclipse, which is an IDE for doing lots of different development tasks.
To these ends, I've been reintroducing myself to the Apache Web Server, and will also be getting to know the MySQL database system.
Soon I may be a dangerous web site backend maintainer, since I will be armed with a small amount of knowledge about these tools and technologies.
Second, I've started investigating volunteer opportunities in the Boston area. My current focus is on ESL tutoring possibilities, since I'm considering getting an ESL teaching certificate at some point in the near future.
First, on the technology front: I've decided to learn PHP. For the non-geeks reading this, it's a language for writing and managing dynamic web pages. There exist a number of blogging software packages that use it, and I'm imagining that this site will eventually be migrated to one of those.
In addition to learning PHP, I also want to familiarize myself with Eclipse, which is an IDE for doing lots of different development tasks.
To these ends, I've been reintroducing myself to the Apache Web Server, and will also be getting to know the MySQL database system.
Soon I may be a dangerous web site backend maintainer, since I will be armed with a small amount of knowledge about these tools and technologies.
Second, I've started investigating volunteer opportunities in the Boston area. My current focus is on ESL tutoring possibilities, since I'm considering getting an ESL teaching certificate at some point in the near future.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
European Trip Thread
The links in this entry are a chronological listing of the blog entries I made that describe my travels in Europe during July and August 2005.
Finland
- The Big Day
- The Ride Out
- Train Hijinks
- Tampere
- The Finnish Sign Quiz
- Tahkovuori
- Nilsiä and Opera Cava
- Canoeing Preparations
- Canoe Tour Day 1
- Canoe Tour Day 2
- Canoe Tour Day 3
- Canoe Tour Day 4, and Tampere
- Return to Germany
Germany
Paris
Barcelona
Las Alpujarras
The Earthwatch Dig
Spanish Cities
- Sevilla
- Córdoba
- Madrid and Cercedilla
- Zaragoza
- Salamanca
- Ciudad Rodrigo
- Madrid
- Some Hazards of Traveling Alone
- Toledo
Paris Again
Monday, September 12, 2005
Waterfire
So last Saturday, after a very nice afternoon visit from several people, I drove down to Providence, Rhode Island with Herself. The purpose of this drive, besides indulging in a picnic dinner of sandwiches and homemade gazpacho (which was a bit too spicy, but that's another post), was to once again see Waterfire.
Well, see doesn't quite do it justice. Experience is a more apt description of the, well, experience. While your computer probably has sound (the fires are accompanied by a wide variety of music, often on water- or fire-based themes), it does not come with Smell-O-Vision to also pick up the aroma of cedar smoke that accompanies the experience.
Or the street scene, which in a small way is reminiscent of the evening wanderings in Spanish and other Mediterranean cities after dark.
This the main waterpark before sunset.
One of the torch ships goes by before lighting begins.
Oh, while we were there we had what Herself claims is a Rhode Island specialty (although Google Image Search turns up lots of places where they're made), the Eccles Cake. Regardless of its origin, they're tasty.
Well, see doesn't quite do it justice. Experience is a more apt description of the, well, experience. While your computer probably has sound (the fires are accompanied by a wide variety of music, often on water- or fire-based themes), it does not come with Smell-O-Vision to also pick up the aroma of cedar smoke that accompanies the experience.
Or the street scene, which in a small way is reminiscent of the evening wanderings in Spanish and other Mediterranean cities after dark.
This the main waterpark before sunset.
One of the torch ships goes by before lighting begins.
Oh, while we were there we had what Herself claims is a Rhode Island specialty (although Google Image Search turns up lots of places where they're made), the Eccles Cake. Regardless of its origin, they're tasty.
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Lágrimas Negras
While I was on the Earthwatch dig in Spain, we often listened to CDs in the van. One of them I really liked, so I tracked it down.
When I put it on here, I was immediately transported back to that van in Spain.
Thanks, Luis.
When I put it on here, I was immediately transported back to that van in Spain.
Thanks, Luis.
Wish I was Tom Sawyer
If I was Tom Sawyer, I'd probably be getting friends to help me with this:
That's the back of my house. It's had a perpetual paint-peeling problem since the house was resided 12 years ago. I've decided (given that I have experience painting things) to have a go at it myself, which is why I started scraping it down this week. Painting will begin next week, weather permitting. (And New England's weather has been glorious this week, and should be for at least part of next week.)
I've also been looking at volunteer opportunities in fields that I find at least a little interesting. I'll probably be doing some ESL tutoring in the near future.
That's the back of my house. It's had a perpetual paint-peeling problem since the house was resided 12 years ago. I've decided (given that I have experience painting things) to have a go at it myself, which is why I started scraping it down this week. Painting will begin next week, weather permitting. (And New England's weather has been glorious this week, and should be for at least part of next week.)
I've also been looking at volunteer opportunities in fields that I find at least a little interesting. I'll probably be doing some ESL tutoring in the near future.
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Closing trip thoughts
Seven weeks was a long time to be not-home. Especially for those who normally never get more than about 3 weeks of vacation at a time.
Living out of a backpack is a bit of a challenge, but it was good practice. Just gotta be careful about where the beer goes.
Even in this internet-connected age, making travel plans on the fly is work. If you're going to do this, make sure you leave time for it.
I definitely want to travel more. Even after having been home for two weeks now, I feel the itch a bit. Road trip?
As a possible career move, I've decided it will be worth the time and money to get an English teaching certificate. I looks to me like it's a highly portable skill.
While I tremendously enjoyed the Earthwatch expedition, I'm uncertain that a career in archaeology is in my future.
Living out of a backpack is a bit of a challenge, but it was good practice. Just gotta be careful about where the beer goes.
Even in this internet-connected age, making travel plans on the fly is work. If you're going to do this, make sure you leave time for it.
I definitely want to travel more. Even after having been home for two weeks now, I feel the itch a bit. Road trip?
As a possible career move, I've decided it will be worth the time and money to get an English teaching certificate. I looks to me like it's a highly portable skill.
While I tremendously enjoyed the Earthwatch expedition, I'm uncertain that a career in archaeology is in my future.
Monday, September 05, 2005
The end of the journey
OK, so I'm at my brother's place in Ludwigshafen. I need to catch a flight from Frankfurt to London at about 2:30 PM. This is easily accomplished using Germany's relatively efficient train network, especially considering my brother's apartment is a short walk from the Ludwigshafen train station. This part goes off without a hitch. While I vaguely recall checking to see that the departure time was apparently normal, nothing appears out of the ordinary until I am sitting in the departure lounge (having passed through 3 layers of security including a pat-down) at about 2 PM, with no sign of an aircraft.
This usually gets me worried, since I know from experience how long it typically takes to turn an aircraft over between flights.
Never fear, my worries are realized. An announcement is made about air traffic control problems in the UK.
They don't know if our plane is even off the ground. They'll know more at, oh, 3:30. What's not mentioned is that the problem was only in the morning, and they're now basically in recovery mode.
This sort of thing sucks. But at least I'm going in the right direction (home).
I hightail it back out (past 3 layers of security), and head for the ticket counter, since I worry about making the London->Boston flight. Can they book me onto the later Boston flight? Or a flight series on a different day? The last thing I want to do is spend the night at a hotel near Heathrow (I like England just fine thank you, but this is not my idea of fun).
No can do. All possible flight combos are booked for the next few days, but they can conditionally book me onto the later Boston flight. This turns out to be a smart move.
Armed with the notion that I've made my best effort, I return to the gate lounge (through 3 layers of security, and another pat-down -- I've got the drill down about keeping the change out of the pockets) and wait.
The plane arrives around 3:30. I forget exactly when it takes off, but we arrive at Heathrow around 5, which of course missed my original Boston flight by 30 minutes. I get pointed at the flight transfer desk to fix my problem. The flight transfer desk has a line that looks at least 1 hour long. This puts the 6:30 departure of the second Boston flight at risk, if I have to wade (err, wait) through it.
Fortunately there is an BA rep at the end of the line doing triage. I explain what happened in Frankfurt, including the backup booking. He says "Oh good" and directs me to wait in a much shorter line, preceded only by a Pakistani family apparently doing a similar exercise for a different flight. By 5:30 I have a new boarding pass in hand. Yay.
Now all I have to worry about is food, since BA has catering problems. Never mind that special meals don't normally follow you when you rebook onto a different flight.
There's a semi-decent Italian restaurant at Terminal 4. I sit down, peruse the menu, and say "What's vegetarian that I can be done eating in 30 minutes?"
We settle on manicotti. 28 minutes later, I exit the restaurant and head for my gate. I stop at a computer, buy 5 minutes of Internet (cost: 1 Euro) to send email to Herself and Phil about the change of flights.
The flight to Boston is uneventful, even though it is populated by some teen church group that went to World Youth Day. They were remarkably well-behaved, even if the kid next to me never showed me much more than the back of his shoulder. One of the meal options turns out to actually be vegetarian, but I only pick at it, since I just ate. I get to see Robots on a 3"x5" screen (or whatever size those in-seat screens are) with horrible resolution. I'll see it on DVD again, I think.
Upon arrival in Boston, I spend more time than I ever have in recent times waiting to pass through passport control. As I'm waiting for my bag, I worry that I will have to wait to the bitter end of the baggage delivery to find out it didn't make the rebooking.
Fortunately, BA does manage to do some things right. There is a PA announcement that includes something that sounds vaguely like my name. I get hooked up with the person who has The List, who says "Sorry your bag didn't make it, here's a form for where we should deliver it tomorrow." Yay.
This speeds my exit considerably. Herself meets me as expected. We trundle (via MBTA Silver Line Bus and Red Line) to her place, and then Phil gives me a ride from there back to my place. Time? 11:30PM or so.
Let's see. I was up at 8AM Central European Time (GMT+1). Bed around midnight EDT (GMT-5). I don't like 30-hour days.
But it was good to be home, even if my bag wasn't. (It did arrive the next evening.)
This usually gets me worried, since I know from experience how long it typically takes to turn an aircraft over between flights.
Never fear, my worries are realized. An announcement is made about air traffic control problems in the UK.
They don't know if our plane is even off the ground. They'll know more at, oh, 3:30. What's not mentioned is that the problem was only in the morning, and they're now basically in recovery mode.
This sort of thing sucks. But at least I'm going in the right direction (home).
I hightail it back out (past 3 layers of security), and head for the ticket counter, since I worry about making the London->Boston flight. Can they book me onto the later Boston flight? Or a flight series on a different day? The last thing I want to do is spend the night at a hotel near Heathrow (I like England just fine thank you, but this is not my idea of fun).
No can do. All possible flight combos are booked for the next few days, but they can conditionally book me onto the later Boston flight. This turns out to be a smart move.
Armed with the notion that I've made my best effort, I return to the gate lounge (through 3 layers of security, and another pat-down -- I've got the drill down about keeping the change out of the pockets) and wait.
The plane arrives around 3:30. I forget exactly when it takes off, but we arrive at Heathrow around 5, which of course missed my original Boston flight by 30 minutes. I get pointed at the flight transfer desk to fix my problem. The flight transfer desk has a line that looks at least 1 hour long. This puts the 6:30 departure of the second Boston flight at risk, if I have to wade (err, wait) through it.
Fortunately there is an BA rep at the end of the line doing triage. I explain what happened in Frankfurt, including the backup booking. He says "Oh good" and directs me to wait in a much shorter line, preceded only by a Pakistani family apparently doing a similar exercise for a different flight. By 5:30 I have a new boarding pass in hand. Yay.
Now all I have to worry about is food, since BA has catering problems. Never mind that special meals don't normally follow you when you rebook onto a different flight.
There's a semi-decent Italian restaurant at Terminal 4. I sit down, peruse the menu, and say "What's vegetarian that I can be done eating in 30 minutes?"
We settle on manicotti. 28 minutes later, I exit the restaurant and head for my gate. I stop at a computer, buy 5 minutes of Internet (cost: 1 Euro) to send email to Herself and Phil about the change of flights.
The flight to Boston is uneventful, even though it is populated by some teen church group that went to World Youth Day. They were remarkably well-behaved, even if the kid next to me never showed me much more than the back of his shoulder. One of the meal options turns out to actually be vegetarian, but I only pick at it, since I just ate. I get to see Robots on a 3"x5" screen (or whatever size those in-seat screens are) with horrible resolution. I'll see it on DVD again, I think.
Upon arrival in Boston, I spend more time than I ever have in recent times waiting to pass through passport control. As I'm waiting for my bag, I worry that I will have to wait to the bitter end of the baggage delivery to find out it didn't make the rebooking.
Fortunately, BA does manage to do some things right. There is a PA announcement that includes something that sounds vaguely like my name. I get hooked up with the person who has The List, who says "Sorry your bag didn't make it, here's a form for where we should deliver it tomorrow." Yay.
This speeds my exit considerably. Herself meets me as expected. We trundle (via MBTA Silver Line Bus and Red Line) to her place, and then Phil gives me a ride from there back to my place. Time? 11:30PM or so.
Let's see. I was up at 8AM Central European Time (GMT+1). Bed around midnight EDT (GMT-5). I don't like 30-hour days.
But it was good to be home, even if my bag wasn't. (It did arrive the next evening.)
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Paris, long museum visits
After an uneventful train ride to Paris (on which I did in fact manage to get some sleep), I managed to locate my hotel with the aid of a taxi, since I stupidly believed Orbitz that it was in the middle of Paris.
It was actually near the Montparnasse train station, which is not anywhere near the middle of Paris. Ah, travel lessons.
Once that was settled, I immediately headed to the Louvre, where I engaged in the exercise of determining how much time I could spend there, and how much of it I would see in that time.
The answers turned out to be 5.5 hours and about 1/4 of the collection respectively.
A lot of people get "museum legs" and/or "museum fatigue" after 2 or 3 hours in a museum. I usually do too, but I decided the Louvre was special. I ignored the museum legs (I've been tramping around Spain for how long?). When I got tired of any particular area, I simply moved on to something different, and thus avoided the fatigue of "oh, not another gallery of X". Since the Louvre has such an incredible diversity of materials, this was not hard to do. I ended up seeing a fair amount of French and Dutch paintings, French sculpture, objects from the French Middle Ages, and Levantine antiquities. I didn't see plenty of other things, including Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa. I'm reasonably certain they'll still be there the next time I'm in Paris.
I saw the Louvre on Monday August 22. Tuesdays in Paris are bad news -- most museums are closed. However, one that was open was the Marmottan, which has a very nice collection of Monets.
While in Paris I also rediscovered the need for long pants, and the existence of droplets of moisture falling from the sky, things that had seemed remote while in Spain. (Well, it DID rain on occasion in Spain, but it was usually short-lived.)
I left Paris on a late-afternoon train for Mannheim, finally getting to my brother's abode in Ludwigshafen around 11:30 at night. Eric called a little while later to report that he and Claire were stuck in traffic in Switzerland -- this due to flooding. They arrived sometime in the wee hours.
I'm almost home, but there's one more piece of adventure left: I have to fly British Airways to get home.
It was actually near the Montparnasse train station, which is not anywhere near the middle of Paris. Ah, travel lessons.
Once that was settled, I immediately headed to the Louvre, where I engaged in the exercise of determining how much time I could spend there, and how much of it I would see in that time.
The answers turned out to be 5.5 hours and about 1/4 of the collection respectively.
A lot of people get "museum legs" and/or "museum fatigue" after 2 or 3 hours in a museum. I usually do too, but I decided the Louvre was special. I ignored the museum legs (I've been tramping around Spain for how long?). When I got tired of any particular area, I simply moved on to something different, and thus avoided the fatigue of "oh, not another gallery of X". Since the Louvre has such an incredible diversity of materials, this was not hard to do. I ended up seeing a fair amount of French and Dutch paintings, French sculpture, objects from the French Middle Ages, and Levantine antiquities. I didn't see plenty of other things, including Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa. I'm reasonably certain they'll still be there the next time I'm in Paris.
I saw the Louvre on Monday August 22. Tuesdays in Paris are bad news -- most museums are closed. However, one that was open was the Marmottan, which has a very nice collection of Monets.
While in Paris I also rediscovered the need for long pants, and the existence of droplets of moisture falling from the sky, things that had seemed remote while in Spain. (Well, it DID rain on occasion in Spain, but it was usually short-lived.)
I left Paris on a late-afternoon train for Mannheim, finally getting to my brother's abode in Ludwigshafen around 11:30 at night. Eric called a little while later to report that he and Claire were stuck in traffic in Switzerland -- this due to flooding. They arrived sometime in the wee hours.
I'm almost home, but there's one more piece of adventure left: I have to fly British Airways to get home.
Toledo, and how to catch a train
Toledo is a medieval city a short (1+ hour) train ride from Madrid. It is situated on some high ground near the confluence of two rivers.
I basically just wandered about the city, which is a maze of narrow streets, occasionally punctuated by small plazas. There is one main largish plaza which I suppose qualifies as the "center" of town, even though it's near one end of the town, and another decent-sized one near the cathedral.
Toledo is known for having a large number of paintings by (and a museum featuring the works of) the painter known as El Greco. Since I'm not a much of a fan of his, I didn't pursue these possibilities. In fact, the only attraction of sorts I went into was the local mezquita (mosque converted to church).
The other surprise was that Toledo has a somewhat interesting train station. It appears to have a church as part of the structure, but there's a fair amount of typical mudejar styling at work there.
(Go figure, stained glass in a small train station.)
I then had a bit of a travel near-ooops. The same day I went to Toledo, I was also scheduled for the night train from Madrid to Paris. However, I had (stupidly?) neglected to remember exactly when the night train left Madrid. I returned from Toledo to Madrid, and spent some more time walking in Madrid (and having a bite at Ben and Jerry's). I finally returned to hotel around 6:30 to pick up my bags and head (early, I thought) to the train station.
Train departure time was: 7:00
Uh-oh.
I'm glad it was Sunday, and I was right near a taxi queue. I'd have never made it in time on the subway. The train pulled out 5 minutes after I got on board.
Adios, España.
I basically just wandered about the city, which is a maze of narrow streets, occasionally punctuated by small plazas. There is one main largish plaza which I suppose qualifies as the "center" of town, even though it's near one end of the town, and another decent-sized one near the cathedral.
Toledo is known for having a large number of paintings by (and a museum featuring the works of) the painter known as El Greco. Since I'm not a much of a fan of his, I didn't pursue these possibilities. In fact, the only attraction of sorts I went into was the local mezquita (mosque converted to church).
The other surprise was that Toledo has a somewhat interesting train station. It appears to have a church as part of the structure, but there's a fair amount of typical mudejar styling at work there.
(Go figure, stained glass in a small train station.)
I then had a bit of a travel near-ooops. The same day I went to Toledo, I was also scheduled for the night train from Madrid to Paris. However, I had (stupidly?) neglected to remember exactly when the night train left Madrid. I returned from Toledo to Madrid, and spent some more time walking in Madrid (and having a bite at Ben and Jerry's). I finally returned to hotel around 6:30 to pick up my bags and head (early, I thought) to the train station.
Train departure time was: 7:00
Uh-oh.
I'm glad it was Sunday, and I was right near a taxi queue. I'd have never made it in time on the subway. The train pulled out 5 minutes after I got on board.
Adios, España.
Friday, September 02, 2005
Some hazards of traveling alone
An assertion was made to me during my time in Spain that traveling alone is usually better than not traveling alone. The basic idea being that decision making happens faster if there's only one person making decisions.
I don't buy it, and this trip left me with a few potential reasons why two heads are often better than one.
Reason #1: losing things. I lost, at different times and places, my sunglasses case, my sunglasses, and the case for my binoculars. More eyes might have recovered those things.
Reason #2: divide and conquer. Eric and I arrived in Tampere, Finland at about 7PM without a reservation. One person watches bags, other person goes to find digs to stay in.
Reason #3: double-checking travel arrangements. Due to the popularity of night trains, I had to book my Madrid->Paris night train well in advance (and even then, I only got second class). When I made my hotel reservations for Madrid and Paris, I did not remember for which night I had reserved the train. This resulted in a scramble (luckily only with minor financial costs) to correct things, since there was no other reasonable, cost-effective way to get between Madrid and Paris. (Local trains taking 14 hours doesn't count as reasonable.)
Reason #4: avoiding the odd bone-headed maneuver. I might have made the bus into the Sierra Nevada on the first day if I'd arranged things a bit differently, including my tactical actions at the bus stop. (Hint: go to the bus, don't stand in the ticket line.)
There are probably other reasons, but these fell out when I thought about it, and I figured this was a good place to share them.
I don't buy it, and this trip left me with a few potential reasons why two heads are often better than one.
Reason #1: losing things. I lost, at different times and places, my sunglasses case, my sunglasses, and the case for my binoculars. More eyes might have recovered those things.
Reason #2: divide and conquer. Eric and I arrived in Tampere, Finland at about 7PM without a reservation. One person watches bags, other person goes to find digs to stay in.
Reason #3: double-checking travel arrangements. Due to the popularity of night trains, I had to book my Madrid->Paris night train well in advance (and even then, I only got second class). When I made my hotel reservations for Madrid and Paris, I did not remember for which night I had reserved the train. This resulted in a scramble (luckily only with minor financial costs) to correct things, since there was no other reasonable, cost-effective way to get between Madrid and Paris. (Local trains taking 14 hours doesn't count as reasonable.)
Reason #4: avoiding the odd bone-headed maneuver. I might have made the bus into the Sierra Nevada on the first day if I'd arranged things a bit differently, including my tactical actions at the bus stop. (Hint: go to the bus, don't stand in the ticket line.)
There are probably other reasons, but these fell out when I thought about it, and I figured this was a good place to share them.
Madrid, mostly museums
I had planned to spend most of my time in Madrid alternating between museums and other activities, hopefully including working on the blog. But my inability to find a place in Madrid where I could actually upload pictures is part of the reason I'm about a week behind in describing everything. Never fear, the blog is catching up to reality.
Over three days (including the 1/2 day preceding the daytrip to Cercedilla) I visited the Museo del Prado and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum.
The Prado is basically Spain's national gallery, and has a great many important Spanish paintings, and more than a few important Dutch paintings (courtesy of Spain's long rule over the Low Countries). It also has Hieronymus Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights, and some very nice Roman-era sculpture. I don't normally photograph in museums, but I liked this guy:
You can see all of the Prado in 4-6 hours -- I spread this over two days.
The Thyssen Museum is the repository for what was once a private collection, amassed by a German-Hungarian business/noble family. (The Thyssen name is well-known in Europe as a major industrial concern. This is an outgrowth of the family business, which was originally steel.) The collection presented here includes separate sections for the Baron's and Baroness' collections, and it is a real gem of a collection. All of the works are in amazingly well-kept condition, and, unlike the Prado and other large public museums, was remarkably uncrowded. If you are an art lover in Madrid, you should not miss this collection.
The Thyssen is also a 4-6 hour affair, again spread over two days.
Since I was unable to blog effectively in Madrid, I of course chose to walk.
The Palacio Real (Royal Palace)
Street Scene
A day in the park.
While staying in Madrid, I also day-tripped to Toledo. (No, NOT the one in Ohio!)
Over three days (including the 1/2 day preceding the daytrip to Cercedilla) I visited the Museo del Prado and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum.
The Prado is basically Spain's national gallery, and has a great many important Spanish paintings, and more than a few important Dutch paintings (courtesy of Spain's long rule over the Low Countries). It also has Hieronymus Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights, and some very nice Roman-era sculpture. I don't normally photograph in museums, but I liked this guy:
You can see all of the Prado in 4-6 hours -- I spread this over two days.
The Thyssen Museum is the repository for what was once a private collection, amassed by a German-Hungarian business/noble family. (The Thyssen name is well-known in Europe as a major industrial concern. This is an outgrowth of the family business, which was originally steel.) The collection presented here includes separate sections for the Baron's and Baroness' collections, and it is a real gem of a collection. All of the works are in amazingly well-kept condition, and, unlike the Prado and other large public museums, was remarkably uncrowded. If you are an art lover in Madrid, you should not miss this collection.
The Thyssen is also a 4-6 hour affair, again spread over two days.
Since I was unable to blog effectively in Madrid, I of course chose to walk.
The Palacio Real (Royal Palace)
Street Scene
A day in the park.While staying in Madrid, I also day-tripped to Toledo. (No, NOT the one in Ohio!)
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