First Pics from Europe

The images below are a visual companion to my "first impressions" entry. I'll do more detailed entries as needed, but given that Blogger only allows you to upload 5 images at a time, the likelihood of uploading nearly 5,000 images from my camera is pretty darn remote.

The Colonnade before St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City. Something like 200 yards across, each column over 50 feet tall. Gigantic!

Interior shot of St. Peter's. Again, the scale is enormous and impossible to convey with an amateur's camera. Lots of space, elegantly marbled and not overly decorated compared to some cathedrals. The massive spaces and soaring heights are there to lift one's eyes upward and convey the glory of God.

The Fori Imperio (Imperial Forum), a business area or shopping mall--the archeologists aren't quite sure--carved out of the side of one of Rome's "seven hills."

From the sublime to the ridiculous...my room in Bacharach, Germany, had an image of dolphins on the commode lid. Furreal.

Just as Chicago had its bulls, Orlando its lizards, and Huntsville its Saturn V's, so Amsterdam decided to install iconic figures for artists to decorate and adorn the city's public spaces. This one featured U.S. President Barack Obama.

My favorite elephant: Gene Simmons. Why elephants? Near as I can figure, the Dutch once controlled Indonesia, and elephants were prevelant there. Otherwise, I'm baffled.

Darth Vader, unable to find work after Episode III, has been reduced to doing performance art in the main square of Amsterdam.

This is about the only exterior view I could get of the house where Anne Frank and her family hid from the Nazis. No pictures are allowed inside, but yes, Anne's diary is there, under glass--a testimony to the value of witness documents from the Holocaust.

One of dozens of breathtaking vistas one can admire on a cruise along the Rhine River between St. Goar and Bacharach, Germany. This is reputedly the most scenic part of the river. The vineyard terraces date back to the time of Julius Caesar, when he first conquered Gaul.

Did I mention that the sightseeing boat on the Rhine had its own bar? If you've got to see beautiful places, there are worse ways to travel.

This is one of five seaside villages called the "Cinque Terre," hidden along the Italian Riviera between Genoa and Spezia. The hike from one end to the other is about five miles, but it's up and down great hills covered with forests and vineyards. If you don't have "buns of steel" when you start the trek, you will by the end. The views alone are worth it.

Even if you end up taking a wrong turn and hiking through the Cinque Terre e due (the Five Lands plus two), you still get to walk through beautiful places.

The Thinker is still there in the garden of the Musee Rodin, wondering where his clothes went. August Rodin was probably the greatest sculptor since Michelangelo. His figures have a living quality to them that is hard to describe, but you can feel them looking at you.

The Eiffel Tower is lit up every night. However, from the top of the hour to five minutes after, additional, "sparkling" lights are turned on to give the Tower that extra bit of magic. And really, that's why we go to Paris, oui?

European Vacation, First Impressions

Okay, here's the snapshot version to my most frequently asked questions:

Favorite part? All of it. Seriously. This was the best darned vacation I've ever had because of its length, breadth, and scope. It wasn't just a matter of what I saw, but what I did, what I ate/drank, what I did, etc., etc.

If I could return to one place again, where would I go? Rome. Best combination of stuff for me: history, arts, architecture, food, and people.

What specific things/sites impressed me the most? The Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica. I hit sensory overload after about four hours. Just magnificent stuff in there.

What specific activities did I enjoy the most?

• Sightseeing cruise on the Rhine between St. Goar and Bacharach, Germany. High number of castles; interesting landscapes, both natural and man-made: vineyards and green slopes dropping down to the riverbank, along with scenic villages; railroads on both banks with trains zooming by every few minutes, like God's own train set; and as an extra bonus, a full bar onboard the boat.
• A wine tasting in Bacharach, Germany. The wine was pretty decent (after 15 different samples, how could it not be?), and a great deal of fun was had by all as a group of Americans tried to translate the German into something approaching English. That activity wasn't on the tour, some of us just found it. The group did an "official" wine tasting in the wine cellar of a former monastery/hospital in Beaunne, France that was pretty cool...the cellar was about 800-900 years old, and the wine was seriously good.
• The "luge" near Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany. This was basically a wheeled sled with a brake that rolled through a snaking chute downhill.
• Walking through the Imperial Forum ruins in Rome. Some of that was guided, some of it was on my own, and I'm quite glad I went on my own.
• Hiking in the Cinque Terre (five towns along the coast of the Italian Riviera--Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore). Lots of exhausting up-and-down hiking through vineyards, along rocky ledges high above the Mediterranean, and through colorful, picturesque towns perched on the rocks above the sea, in weather ranging from sunny and cool to cool and heavy rain. The path actually splits in Manarola, and I ended up hiking "the Cinque Terre e due" (the Five Lands plus two) because the wrong path took me through two towns that weren't on the original itinerary. Absolutely worth the hike.
• Hearing religious services in a number of beautiful places, including St. Peter's Basilica, Notre-Dame Cathedral, and an Eastern Orthodox chapel located adjacent to the Dachau concentration camp. The old languages (Latin, Greek) and the old forms (chanting) make absolute sense in such places, and the sounds resonated in a way that could send a shiver up your spine.
• Walking through Paris. I took a very long walk on my last day there: the Louvre to the (Auguste) Rodin Museum; and from there to the Alexandre III Bridge, the Champs-Elyseés, the Arc d'Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, and the back to my hotel near the Ecole Militaire and the Rue Cler.
• The overall "Rick Steves Europe Through the Back Door" experience. The pattern is: arrive at a city/town, get an orientation tour of the area, set off on your own. If it's a two-day stay, the second day starts with a tour of the area or a specific site with a local guide. The next day, you get up, pack, have breakfast, get on the bus, and head for the next destination. They offer a lot of time for the independent traveler to go off on their own, but offer the convenience of a group tour in that they take care of reservations, guides, and all the logistical stuff that keeps people like me from doing the whole thing on my own. I find it highly unlikely that anyone could experience all of the delightful tour experiences we enjoyed just by going it alone. If I'd never heard of Mr. Steves and his organization before, I am definitely a fan now. My thanks to the family members who recommended him to me.

Best people? The Dutch, though I really can't complain about anyone--even the French. Everyone was very patient with me, but then one expects folks in the hospitality or service industries to self-select for that sort of behavior. Still, I found the people in the Netherlands the most approachable, direct, and open of all the people I dealt with in Europe. I experienced NO anti-Americanism and thanks to God's blessings plus a healthy dose of city-living precautionary measures, I had no problems with pickpockets or "scammers." I did encounter one girl in a headscarf in Paris who spoke English in a perfectly good American accent who asked me if I spoke English, then asked me to read her little note asking for money to help thus-and-so cousin needing assistance. I just scanned the note and walked away. No harm done.

Did you have any language barrier difficulties? I used most of my foreign language "skills" in Germany, where I managed to order beverages in a biergarten, get directions to a restaurant, and buy a watch without using much English at all. I should point out, however, that I ended up buying a wristwatch that spoke, and had directions in, ONLY Deutsch. The watch doesn't work worth a darn now, but is very polite when announcing the time or waking someone up for an alarm. I call it "Frau Wristwatch" now, as it speaks with a female German voice. In most other countries, as soon as I started speaking the local Klingonese with my Yankee accent, the other person would switch to English, either to help me out or to stop me from mangling their language further. The phrase book and the online lanugage classes I took sporadically definitely helped with my comprehension, if not my speaking.

Best food? I really liked most of what I had, except for some stuff at an Indonesian restaurant in Haarlem, Netherlands, and a "pizza sandwich" I bought off a cart in Rome. Of course I had some snails (escargot) and foie gras (goose liver paté in France). The most unique dining experience had to be in the Cinque Terre, where we had "amphorae," large bowls filled with a large variety of seaborne critters, including lobster, octopus, whitefish, mussels, and a few other critters I didn't quite recognize. It would've been more fun/appetizing if I hadn't been sitting across from a couple of more squeamish eaters, who felt that the bowls looked like something you'd find in an Indiana Jones or Star Wars movie. What, doesn't everyone enjoy tentacles for dinner? I must also put in a strong vote for the breakfasts we had in the Netherlands, Germany, and Italy: fresh rolls, croissants, meats, cheeses, juice, fruit, cereal, yogurt...whatever. Everything fresh, everything delicious.

Least favorites? Breakfasts in France were a real letdown after some of the other countries. Some of my rooms--I paid $800 extra to travel as a single--were downright tiny, with the worst being in Bacharach, Germany, and Venice, Italy. That said, I was there for the other stuff, not the rooms. I think the TV was broken in at least four of my rooms, which was annoying, but again, I wasn't there to watch TV, either. The Paris Metro system, like the French language, is more complicated than it needs to be: 16 different lines, with peculiar senses of logic for making connections.

I'm sure other things will come to me, but that covers the FAQs so far. A lot of thoughts occurred to me during the trip, and others are percolating now. If you're interested, you can read further entries. Otherwise, you can wait until I get back to babbling about NASA, space, politics, and other such things that I paid ZERO attention to while out of town. That disconnect alone was nearly worth it.

Salud.

Returning from Europe

Greetings, Dear Readers (all 20 of you)! Some of you are no doubt interested in all my little adventures, and especially in seeing pictures from said travels. I am doing my darnest, but my camera or my computer is barfing because I have too many images to download. Any suggestions on how to clear all that stuff out or download it to my computer more directly would be appreciated. In the meantime, I am rereading my journal (filled two of 'em!) from the last three weeks to remind myself of what-all I did and to try to sort it out into some sort of logical forms. I think what I'll do is fire off a "first impressions/thoughts" posting first (short version: LOVED IT!), then break up my comments by topic or location. This may take awhile, but hopefully such an arrangement will avoid a 6,000-image slide show on "how I spent my summer vacation," which can bore anyone after awhile.

Your patience is appreciated!

Vacation, Day 21

Tour Over After Breakfast

If you're staying on in Paris, today would be a great day to hop on the train and tackle the sprawling palace and grounds at Versailles. If you're headed home, the airports are an easy shuttle-van ride away. Au revoir!

Vacation, Day 20

Parisian Masterpieces

This day provides a busy, star-studded finale for our tour. After a practical Métro subway lesson, we'll visit the Louvre with a local guide. You'll be free for the rest of the afternoon, to round out your Paris sight-seeing with a walk down the Champs-Elysées, or perhaps a visit to such legendary museums as the Orsay and Rodin. This evening we'll share a final dinner together. No bus. Walking: moderate.

Vacation, Day 19

Historic and Neighborhood Paris

After breakfast, we'll drive into Paris. Our driver will drop us off at our hotel, a croissant's toss from Paris' greatest sights. This afternoon we'll visit the stunning Notre-Dame cathedral, the brilliant stained glass windows of Sainte-Chapelle church and take a walking tour through the historic core of Paris. Sleep in Paris (2 nights). Bus: 4 hrs. Walking: moderate.

Actually, I might ditch the tour this day and sneak off to Versailles. Shhhhh!

Vacation, Day 18

A Hearty Taste of Burgundy

Today we'll say "Auf Wiedersehen" to the Alps and "Bonjour" to la belle France. We'll drive into profoundly French Burgundy for a look at small-town France. After an orientation to town and some free time, we'll gather for a sampling of this region's most famous product, Burgundian wine. Sleep in or near Beaune (1 night). Bus: 5 hrs. Walking: light.

Vacation, Day 17

Free Day to Hike in the Alps

The day is all yours. If the weather is good, you may want to ride a gondola up to the Schilthorn at 10,000 feet, loiter in the thin air, and hike part way down. Or just lie low and play Heidi. For more Alpine thrills, ride trains and lifts to hikes at the foot of the majestic Eiger and Jungfrau peaks. Bad weather options include Trümmelbach Falls, valley hikes, or just relaxing in the mountain air. No bus. Walking: light to strenuous (your choice).

Vacation, Day 16

To the Heart of the Swiss Alps

Today we'll catch an early train back to our bus, then head into the heart of the Swiss Alps. After a breathtaking drive, we'll arrive at our hotel located in the magnificent Lauterbrunnen Valley. Sleep in a creaky old chalet in the Lauterbrunnen Valley (2 nights). Bus: 9 hrs. Walking: light.

Vacation, Day 15

Free Day in the Cinque Terre

Ahh, time for a 'vacation from your vacation.' You couldn't see a museum here even if you wanted to! This is simply traditional Italy, with nothing to do but hike through the hillside vineyards that connect the five villages, take in the breathtaking scenery, hang out on the beaches, swim, and lounge around the town like a local. No bus. Walking: light to strenuous (your choice).

Vacation, Day 14

To Italy's Cinque Terre

We'll drive all day to reach the sun-drenched beaches of Italy's hidden Cinque Terre: five perfectly preserved fishing villages, surrounded by vineyards and the sea. On the way, we'll take time to visit one of Italy's enchanting hill towns. At the coast, we'll leave the bus and take a 10-minute train ride into the Cinque Terre, where we'll sleep (2 nights). Bus: 7 hrs. Walking: moderate.

Vacation, Day 13

Renaissance Rome

Today we'll focus on Renaissance (Catholic) Rome, spending our morning touring the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel, and our early afternoon in St. Peter's amazing cathedral. You'll have the rest of the day free to take a siesta or explore more of the Eternal City. No bus. Walking: strenuous.

Vacation, Day 12

A Walk Through Caesar's Rome

This morning we'll drive straight to the heart of Rome, where we'll spend the afternoon uncovering Ancient Rome (visiting the Colosseum, Forum and Pantheon) with a local guide. Tonight let's celebrate la dolce vita, with a fountain-splashing, after-dinner stroll through the heart of the city. Sleep in Rome (2 nights). Bus: 4 hrs. Walking: strenuous.

Vacation, Day 11

Wonders of Renaissance Florence

We'll begin our day with a tour of the masterpiece-packed Uffizi Gallery. Then you'll be on your own for the rest of the day to discover the wealth of historic churches, museums, street markets and cafés. No bus. Walking: moderate.

Vacation, Day 10

Florence and Michelangelo's David

After checking into our hotel, a gelato-fueled orientation walk will wind us through the historic core of Florence. This evening we'll get acquainted with Michelangelo's David at Florence's Accademia. Sleep in Florence (2 nights). Bus: 3 hrs. Walking: moderate.

Vacation, Day 9

The Art of Wandering in Venice

After a morning walking tour through the historic heart of Venice, you'll be free to tour St. Mark's Basilica, the Doge's Palace, the Accademia art gallery — or shop, explore the alleys, cruise the canals, and "crawl" the pubs. No bus (too much water). Walking: moderate.

Vacation, Day 8

Italy's Incomparable Venice

We'll drive all day to Venice, where we'll leave the bus and board a boat to our hotel in the historic heart of this seductive city. Tonight we'll take an orientation walk to magical, moonlit St. Mark's Square. Sleep in Venice (2 nights). Bus: 8 hrs. Walking: moderate.

Vacation, Day 7

Neuschwanstein Castle and the Luge

It's a short drive and a half-hour walk to "Mad King" Ludwig's Neuschwanstein Castle. After lunch, we'll look for a summer luge to barrel down (weather and season permitting), and find free time to stroll in the woods or relax at our peaceful hotel before dinner. Bus: 1 hr. Walking: strenuous.

Vacation, Day 6

Dachau and Austria's Tirol

This morning we'll visit the Dachau concentration camp near Munich. Later, depending on the day of the week, we'll have a lunch break in Munich or Andechs. We'll then drive south into Austria, toward the Alps and Reutte, our rural and tranquil Tirolean home base. Eat dinner and sleep in or near Reutte (2 nights). Bus: 6 hrs. Walking: light to moderate.

Vacation, Day 5

Medieval Rothenburg

After an early start, we'll arrive in Rothenburg, Germany's cutest medieval town, just before lunchtime. The afternoon is yours to see Riemenschneider's altarpiece (the best woodcarving in Germany), walk the medieval wall, tour the Crime and Punishment Museum, or hunt down the best apple strudel in town. Sleep in Rothenburg (1 night). Bus: 4 hrs. Walking: strenuous.

Vacation, Day 4

Rhine Castles and a River Cruise

This morning we'll take a walking tour of Bacharach with a local guide. Then we'll head to St. Goar and hike up to the mighty Rheinfels castle, overlooking the Rhine. We'll tour the castle, cruise the Rhine, and have a free evening to do some exploring on your own. Bus: ½ hr. Walking: strenuous.

Vacation, Day 3

Dutch Treats and Rhine Views

We'll work our way down to Germany's castle-studded Rhineland. Along the way, we'll stop in Arnhem to visit the Netherlands' first and largest open-air museum. We'll enjoy dinner together at our hotel tonight. Sleep in Bacharach on the Rhine (2 nights). Bus: 7 hrs. Walking: light.

Vacation, Day 2

Progressive, Artistic Amsterdam

We'll take the train into Amsterdam this morning, and begin with a walking tour of Amsterdam's historic core, including Anne Frank's House. This afternoon we'll see masterpieces from the remarkable Rijksmuseum. You'll have free time late this afternoon to see the Van Gogh Museum or stroll along the canals. Later we'll return to Haarlem for a free evening. Train: 1 hr. Walking: strenuous.

Vacation, Day 1

Welcome to the Netherlands

Your room should be ready by 3 p.m. at the hotel in Haarlem (30 minutes by train, bus or taxi from the Amsterdam airport). We'll meet at the hotel around 4 p.m. for an orientation meeting and a chance to get acquainted, followed by a walking tour and dinner together. Sleep in Haarlem (2 nights). No bus. Walking: light.

Potpourri CIV

Another mixed bag this evening. Two days until vacation. Thank goodness. The blathersphere is starting to wear me down (as, no doubt, the pack-mentality piling on is intended to do).

If you read this piece from the L.A. Times, it becomes quickly apparent from the writer's tone that you are just too stupid to realize that government-run health care is good for you. It's that tone alone that puts off people--something to consider when going out to sell the superiority of your ideas to "the rubes"--why should people listen if you act as if you're an idiot?

Speaking of L.A., I've been watching the news of the L.A. fires sporadically--more specifically, about the fires' proximity to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Mt. Wilson Observatory, two organizations close to my heart. The good news is that it appears both facilities are out of danger for the moment. One thing that has fascinated me about the firefighting effort has been the size of the aircraft doing the work now. It used to be small transports like C-130s; now they're using DC-10s and 747s. Wow! That's a lot of water or flame retardant!

This one came from my "foodie" friend Michelle, and it's just too good to pass up: a blow-by-blow email chain from a company attempting to get its first Twitter posting approved. Too funny!

Some gratuitous pictures of aircraft. Before the space geekitude kicked in, I loved airplanes. Still do, obviously.

New from Hu: an interesting video splicing together some of the discussions of the Augustine Panel.

Does President Obama want to politically pre-program your kids? Perish the thought.

Need a Science Cheerleader t-shirt? Sure you do! And now you can buy one--at a $4 discount, if you do well on Dar's science literacy test. And speaking of Dar, she's made another interview appearance, this time on TheScientist.com. Gooooo Dar!

The AFL-CIO is suggesting that the government put a tax on every single stock sale/transaction. No doubt they hope to stir up populist resentment against "Wall Street fat cats" and other capitalists, hoping that the angry public won't recall that half of the populace owns stocks via pensions or 401(k) plans. For gosh sakes...will someone please put a BRAKE on these guys? They passed the point of overreach several months ago.

From Rhonda at Learn to Read: a site with adult literacy resources.

From Stephanie at work: a do-it-yourself podcast program for students to create their own space-related podcast. Cool!

You know, with all these old TV shows being brought back in one form or another, I would love to see Night Court on DVD...NOT remade into a sequel or "reboot" or whatever. I just want to savor some of the zaniness. The example here will suffice; this one stars the usual cast plus Brent Spiner, later known as Commander Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation.

And a last little bit of silliness for your day: the wife of the new Japanese prime minister claims to have been abducted by aliens.