Here’s the ‘Metro Taxi’ app that I used to order a taxi. I ordered one an hour ahead of time, but I guess one can stumble out of a restaurant, and see if any are nearby and summon one on the spot.
I am at Denver airport. It’s Thursday and so most of the travelers on the project – and me – are heading home tonight. The office people here plan to wear something orange tomorrow to support the Denver Broncos in their bid against the New England Patriots for a place in the Superbowl final. (And Seattle’s Seahawks play against the San Francisco 49ers this weekend. In Seattle, the colors to wear are blue with a little lime green trim).
My colleague and I tried a new taxi service smart phone app; this one is called Metro Taxi. It’s just a little easier to order a taxi than using the phone and yelling one’s name (and sometimes its spelling) into the phone for the dispatcher. And here in Denver there seems to be a 5 minute or longer wait time for a dispatcher every time I call the cab company.
In the cab and on the way to Denver airport. Easy Street wheat beer is brewed in Ft Collins, Colorado. The town is some 65 miles north of Denver, and was founded as a military outpost of the United States Army in 1864.And here is a snapshot of the light rail train station terminal that is slated for completion some time in 2015, that will connect the airport with the city.
Here’s an interesting excerpt from the Wall Street Journal about the ‘Polar Star’ icebreaker that is based in Seattle.
SEATTLE—The 40-year-old Coast Guard icebreaker Polar Star returned to the Arctic Ocean this summer after seven years in semi-retirement, charging into a thinning polar ice sheet that U.S. defense officials predict will give way to new commercial waterways and a resource-rich frontier by mid-century. The Polar Star was originally supposed to be in service for 30 years. Its age and a lack of funding had prompted the Coast Guard to put the ship into semiretirement: afloat but not operational.
This summer, on its first voyage to the Arctic since 2001, veterans on the crew found a very different ocean. “Back in the day there were a lot more challenges, more multi-year ice, you had to pick your spots through it,” said Coast Guard Cmdr. Kenneth Boda, the ship’s executive officer. “This summer we set a course and go…We were teaching our young officers to drive around the thicker stuff but we could have gone right through.”
The changing conditions make the Arctic particularly unpredictable. Lt. j.g. Paul Garcia, on his first icebreaking mission this summer, steered the Polar Star into what the Coast Guard calls a “blind alley.” In the Arctic, moving ice floes can bunch up to form mountainous ridges of ice. When three or four floes ram together, the ice can be so thick that even the Polar Star—capable of 75,000 horsepower—can’t smash through, creating a blind alley.
Picture from the Wall Street Journal, 1/12/14 : The amount of polar ice in the Arctic shrinks in the summer and returns in the winter. Shown here is how much the ice retreated by late summer 2012. Scientists forecast the ice will further extend its annual retreat, opening new routes between Asia and Europe for commercial shippers by midcentury. (Source: U.S. Navy).. and here is the ice cover forecast for 2020... for 2025.. and for 2030
Here’s my little reward for Tuesday, the smallest serving of Häagen-Dazs ice cream, barely a big scoop packaged in a tiny tub. Even so, it still packs 45% of one’s daily saturated fat allowance! And I learned today that Häagen-Dazs was actually established by Reuben and Rose Mattus in the Bronx, New York, in 1961. Coffee was one of the three original flavors (vanilla and chocolate the others).
For some reason I have always assumed it’s a German brand .. but here is a full explanation from Wikipedia : Mattus invented the “Danish-sounding” “Häagen-Dazs” as a tribute to Denmark’s exemplary treatment of its Jews during the Second World War, and included an outline map of Denmark on early labels. The name, however, is not Danish, which has neither an umlaut nor a digraph zs – ä is used in Finnish, Swedish and German, but Danish uses æ for the corresponding sound (both of these are contractions of “ae”), and zs is used in Hungarian – nor does it have any meaning in any language or etymology before its creation. Mattus felt that Denmark was known for its dairy products and had a positive image in the U.S. His daughter Doris Hurley reported in the PBS documentary, An Ice Cream Show (1999), that her father sat at the kitchen table for hours saying nonsensical words until he came up with a combination he liked. The reason he chose this method was so that the name would be unique and original.
My early morning flight out to Denver today went without incident (because I was sleeping most of the way). It was a different story trying to get to Denver downtown from the airport, though. The one part was our mistake (my colleague’s and mine) : agreeing with a friendly guy to share a taxi to the city to save a few dollars. He was dropped off first, and the detour added about 30 mins to our trip to the office. The other part was not our fault, though. The entire I-270 highway was closed in both directions from 3 am to 1 pm. Turned out a fugitive was shot in the early hours of the morning by the local police (non-life threatening injuries), and the highway was closed in both directions for an investigation. So what should have been a 30 min ride, took 1 hr and 40 mins stuck in traffic. Oy vey.
This is 16th Ave in Denver downtown with the Hard Rock Cafe’s guitar neon sign on the left. I am walking to the hotel from the office, and it’s a nice change not to have freezing and icy weather outside.Here’s Monday morning’s sunrise, as we fly toward Denver from Seattle.
From my TV screen : This is Taima, an augur hawk. I assume the bird is handled by master falconer David Knudson (shown in the Seahawks website).Another shot from my TV screen, showing the stadium and the weather conditions at the start of the game.
So the Seahawks got it, with a win of 23-15 over the Saints. The Hawks will host and play in one more game (tickets start at $415). That final playoff game to get to the Superbowl that is in New York City this year, is Sunday Jan 19. Meanwhile, I ran all my errands on Saturday, also tracking down my vacation mail that was still held at my request by the US Postal Service. Boy, did they made me work for it. USPS moved the mail hold location from my local post office to the SODO (South of downtown) district. I finally found the right building, and with some luck, someone that found my mail. There were no signs, no door and no service counter. Come on USPS, you can do better than that! By the time I got out of there, the fans had started to show up for the Seahawks playoff game. The hardy ones had been tailgate-partying in parking lots around the stadium since early morning already, not seeming to mind the blustery conditions.
The view from the building on 4th Ave where I picked up my mail, looking north toward downtown. The first stadium after the McDonalds golden arch is the baseball stadium. The football stadium is further in the distance. Parking at local businesses and parking lots ran from $20 to $40, depending on how close to the stadium it was.
1. In the news here on Friday : unemployment down to 6.7% in the USA in December, but the labor participation rate of the population is the lowest in 35 years. Is there really that many baby boomers retiring? And why was only 74,000 jobs added in December when most economists thought it would be 200,000 or more?
The George Washington Bridge brings traffic from New Jersey into New York City. Picture from Wikipedia.
2. Then there’s the George Washington Bridge scandal, the world’s busiest motor vehicle bridge : from Sept 9 to 13, 2013, dedicated toll lanes for one of the Fort Lee entrances to the bridge’s upper level were reduced from three to one without notification of local government officials and emergency responders. The orders were issued by aides and associates of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. The closures caused massive traffic congestion, with major delays for school transportation and police and emergency response within Fort Lee. Was the Governor involved, and was it political retribution for the major of Ft Lee’s refusal to endorse Christie for governor in the Oct 2013 election? Time will tell.
3. Finally, it’s the Seattle Seahawks and the New Orleans Saints in an NFL post-season playoff on Saturday here in Seattle, on the road to the Superbowl. The Seahawks are favored (they beat the Saints 34-7 just in December), but they have to do it again.
This is 7.30 am in the morning, and the view of Denver downtown as I’m waiting at the intersection by our office building to cross the street.
The travelers (‘road warriors’) on the project were all very happy to call the first work week of the year done! and we can go home! on Thursday night. So off to Denver airport to go home.
Travel-wise, the week had a rough start with the severe weather. We stayed at a Hampton Inn right across the street from the offices where we work, which was very convenient, given the cold weather. Next week we are back at the Hilton Garden Inn, some eight city blocks away.
This is at Denver airport. United Airlines’s Boeing 757 is just pulling up to the gate – the one that will take us home to Seattle.
A sweater for sale in the fan shop. That’s the foot of a Sasquatch (abominable snowman),the alternative logo of the Colorado Avalanche ice hockey team.The Pepsi Center is a multi-purpose stadium : used for ice hockey, basketball, and even musical concerts. Justin Timberlake is scheduled for a show later in January.This is during a break between one of the four periods. Those are zambonis on the ice, the ice resurfacing machines, The machine is named after its inventor, Frank Zamboni. Also check out the in-stadium only blimps (‘Dream Big’ advertises the lottery!) that are radio-controlled with little electric propellers.Here’s some action on the ice. The Colorado Avalanche bested the Ottawa Senators 4-3 in overtime. The Avalanche team captain is Gabriel Landeskog, a Swedish national.
On Wednesday night we had a project team event : going to an ice hockey game here in downtown Denver’s Pepsi Center. (Yes, we DO work here in Denver as well!). We had great seats ($103 said my ticket, a good thing I did not have to pay). It was not a sold-out event, but there was a pretty good turn-out, given that it was a week night, and that it was pretty cold outside.
It was really cold in Chicago on Tuesday, and even colder in Canada.
We made it up to 4°C/ 39 °F here in Denver on Tuesday – which is a lot warmer than most places here in the USA. I had to hang in there : it was effectively my first day back at work after the break, and I still have jet lag. And what does the cat picture have to do with Tuesday? Well, we stopped by a colleague’s house here in Denver last night. She has one of these, but a black and white one. Seems like the purr-fect cat for a cold night.
Wikipedia’s picture of a Maine Coon cat. Also known as American Longhair, is a breed of cat with a distinctive physical appearance and valuable hunting skills. (Wikipedia]
The polar vortex flinging extremely cold arctic air and snow over North America made for lots of canceled and delayed flights today. My early morning flight out to Denver was canceled, and the next flight out was delayed by several hours as well. So the sun was setting in Denver by the time we arrived there. There is some snow on the ground here, but not a lot. And the temperature may actually reach 50 °F (10 °C) on Tuesday.
This is 5 pm on Monday. The sun was just setting as we taxied to the gate at Denver International Airport.
It was frosty early this morning, but by 9 am the sun was already at it, melting the iciness. The Pacific Northwest is escaping most of the arctic blast that is hitting the Midwest and East.
My bags are unpacked. I like to ‘discover’ the silly little souvenirs that I bought again, as I unpack my luggage and find it in there.
Clockwise : porcelain art from Iceland (not sure what creature that is), London bone china mug from Harrods, bead-and-wire lion from South Africa, porcelain dinner bell from Munich, Lowenbrau beer coaster also from Munich. Nine lions in all, in the picture! Those Bavarian lions are more symbolic than the South African one, though.
I made it in .. was a little tired and uncomfortable during the flight, but Lufthansa took good care of us. Great food, on-time and good service.
The view from my seat at 8 am at the gate at Munich airport, getting ready for the short 35 min in-the-air hop to Frankfurt.We have arrived at Frankfurt, and it’s a short connection time, so I have to run for the gate in Terminal Z. ‘NO eating, NO shopping, just go to the gate!, said the agent at the check-in in Munich.Aww .. I still had time to snap this picture in Frankfurt airport, asking arriving tourists (like me from Africa?) to please NOT buy and bring animal souvenir products (or live animals?) back from vacation.
We’re now taken to the plane at Frankfurt airport, one of those in the distance. The bus driver has a touch screen that says ‘Left the gate’ and ‘Arrived at airplane’ that he punches status updates into.Here’s today’s engine picture (Airbus twinjet A330-300). We’re over Canada’s frozen Northwest Territories here, en route to Seattle.
I’m at Munich airport. A quick stop in Frankfurt, then Lufthansa will take me to Seattle from there. It’s a good thing we fly over New York and Chicago without stopping! I see the winter storms Hercules ans Ion will bring strong winds, snow and brutally cold weather to the Midwest and eastern parts of the USA.
Here’s a picture of the Karlsplatz underground on a Friday night. This is the level where the stores and shops are. Street level is one up; the U-bahn and S-bahn trains are down below.Is it an aeroplane? No, it’s a food truck with a propeller and wings. This is in the big plaza between the train station and Terminal 2 at Munich airport.
Here is a selection of my pictures of walking around Munich, some from Thursday, and some from Friday. Since I’ve been here before, I can enjoy the sights a little more and not feel I have to take hundreds of pictures!
‘Men in crisis’ says the Zeit newspaper on a lead article for the new year .. and that’s bad for women as well, notes the article. I did not read it in its entirety. (It’s hard work for me to read German).A panorama picture of Odeonsplatz. I stood right in front of the Theatinerkirche and panned from left to right with my phone camera.This movie theater at Sendlinger Tor square is 100 years old (OK, 101 years I guess – since it’s 2014!). Interesting that they seem to produce hand-painted posters for movies.This is Marienplatz in the old town. I was in the bookstore on the 4th floor when the glockenspiel started (music, and the little guys in red start rotating and dancing).This is in the Karlsplatz area; with the iconic twin towers of the Frauenkirche seen from the side.This clock is inside the Deutches Museum complex.The Deutches museum seen from afar. This is the river Isar. The water is shallow very clean; I could see the pebbles on the riverbed. Behind me is some islets in the river which were made into city parks.This lion is at Odeonsplatz. Everyone passing by rubs the nose of the lion on the shield (which is why it’s buffed and shiny).This cute cuckoo clock is from a store on Karlsplatz. (I want one! It can be Oktoberfest all day long in my house. Or will I go cuckoo with it? I may order one on-line and have it shipped to Seattle when I get back home).This bookstore is on Marianplatz; has a gorgeous industrially designed staircase in its center.This is close the the University U-bahn station, a war memorial. The figure with the four lions on top reminds me of the Brandenburg gate in Berlin (which I have not been to). The BB gate has four horses, though.Ludwigskirche : a church close to the same university (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München), on Ludwigstrasse.
I arrived in Munich. The Marriott hotel by the main train station did have a room for me for an early check-in at 8.00 am in the morning. So I had my European shower (the kind where you are very careful not to spray water all over the floor, because for some mysterious reason the showers all over Europe only have half bath-length and open-ended partitions. (But it’s not a complaint, just an observation).
It’s 7.00 am in Munich, and we have just stepped off the plane. The sections We walked through to get to the baggage claim is brand new : glass, steel and LED lighting.Hackenbrucke station is on the S1 bahn (line) to Munich’s main station. That’s Ben Stiller in the flick ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ on the poster. The train that I’m sitting in looks just like this one.Here is the Munich Hauptbahnhof (main train station). The sign looks old. There is a lot of construction and remodeling going on; who knows if this sign will survive that.
This is the Airbus 340-600 that took us from Cape Town to Johannesburg (a 2 hr flight).Here’a a panoramic view from the lounge at Johannesburg’s Oliver Tambo International airport. The Qantas airplane in the distance will fly to Perth (flight time just under 11 hrs) or to Sydney (just over 14 hrs).
I am at Johannesburg’s Oliver Tambo airport. I have to wait a few hours for my flight to Munich. We leave tonight, and I fly just about due north, so hopefully I will get a few hours sleep.
The flight is scheduled for an early morning arrival there, and they may not have a room for an early check-in for me at the hotel .. in which case I will feel compelled to use the time to wander around in the city for a few hours!
It’s here! .. it’s 2014! Happy New Year! My family and I did not make a fuss about it in Stellenbosch, all of us retiring to bed well before midnight. I did hear ‘Ob-la-di Ob-la-da, life goes on’ from celebrations at a farm or wine estate close by our house, but not enough to keep me awake.
In South Africa there will be a general election in April (but Pres. Zuma is likely to get elected again despite his unpopularity), and in the USA there will be mid-term elections in November. And Obamacare is kicking in for real with the newly insured.
P.S. The protea flower arrangement is from the lounge at Cape Town International airport. I have started my journey back to the United States, but will stop over in Munich for a day or two first.
The Victoria & Alfred Waterfront is on the Atlantic side of the Cape Peninsula, and offers restaurants, shops, hotels, condominiums, the Two Oceans Acquarium to visitors.We’re at the south western most point in Africa, but the South Pole is still 6131 km (3,809 miles) away. The North Quay warehouse in the background has been there for a long time, but the Ferris wheel in the lower right corner is new.Ferrymans is a pub and the revelry this afternoon had a Octoberfest-ish quality to it with a loud lively band and lots of beer served up in the beer tent. P.S. Check out the Santa and the little snow-flake decals in the window, the images of snow clashing with the blazing African sun.The clock tower used to be red, but now it is yellow. Why? It signifies the implementation of the Cape Town World Design Capital 2014 initiative. It is basically a call for design projects that are dedicated to using design for social, cultural and economic development.Here is the Two Oceans Aquarium mascot (a seal? a SEAL*?) walking around in the V&A waterfront mall. *United States Navy SEALBeautiful wire-and-bead artwork for sale in a shop at the V& A waterfront.
My brother’s family and I ran out to the Victoria & Alfred waterfront in Cape Town this afternoon. We spent some time at a Leonardo Da Vinci exhibition. It consisted of wood constructions of his designs, and electronic displays of his anatomy drawings and of the Mona Lisa* and The Last Supper. Then we had a beer and fish and chips at Ferrymans pub to bid 2013 good-bye.
*Of course : the real Mona Lisa was still safely ensconced in the Louvre!
Cape Velvet cream liqueur mixes well with milk and coffee, and makes a refreshing summer drink when served on the rocks. It has 16.5% alcohol and is made with brandy (Bailies Irish Cream is made with whiskey).
I stopped at the liquor store on Monday to buy some wine, and spotted some Cape Velvet cream on the shelf as well. A brandy-based creamy aperitif, the stuff has been around a long time, at least since I was a student. I believe the label shows the landing of Jan van Riebeeck’s three ships (Dromedaris; Reijger and Goede Hoop) at the future Cape Town on 6 April 1652. Van Riebeeck volunteered to undertake the command of the initial Dutch settlement in the future South Africa. He oversaw a sustained, systematic effort to establish an impressive range of useful plants in the novel conditions on the Cape Peninsula – in the process changing the natural environment forever. Some of these, including grapes, cereals, ground nuts, potatoes, apples and citrus, had an important and lasting influence on the societies and economies of the region. [Information from Wikipedia’s post for ‘Jan van Riebeeck’].
Stellenbosch artist ‘Portchie’ (49) at one of his paintings. [Picture from http://www.rapport.co.za/ website].Here is the house. The price tag is a secret. It is not ugly, but it towers somewhat over its surroundings. I assume the louvred panels slide into the walls to reveal window panes. And the main entrance is a very odd form : very narrow and very tall. Why is that?
There is a flap over an enormous house and art studio that is nearing completion here in Stellenbosch, one being built for a local – very successful – artist that goes by the name Portchie (real name Jan Hendrik Viljoen). The local taxpayer association contends it is too big and that the style does not fit in with its surroundings. ‘Wait until it’s done’ says the artist, and ‘One cannot please everyone’.
