Europe 2008

Landed in London on the 15th after a LONG flight on Virgin from Chicago. A fine airline but maybe I am getting older and that 7 hours in a tin can at 35,000 feet now makes me a lot more swelly and cranky. We were soon on to Cologne and went out to dinner with Paul's brother in law Johannes and his friend Frank Peters in an Italian neighborhood for a fine meal and the France/Italy football match which Italia thankfully won. Got a glimpse of the Cologne Cathedral once again and was again wowed by this Gothic colossus.

The following morning we were spirited at 140 KPH in a Mercedes wagon cab to the airport for our flight to Moscow.

Russia-Moscow

Got into Moscow to a midday drizzle that seemed fitting to the grey but booming former center of the Evil Empire. What is immediately striking in Moscow is the construction. Everywhere we went there was surveying, digging, banging and craneing...lots of craneing...oh, and the subway. The subway, Lenin's plasticized corpse and Socialist Classicist architecture seem to these eyes as one of the major remaining visible symbols of Soviet aesthetics. Moscow's Metro is worth a tour in and of itself.



Efficient, functional, inexpensive (in a city that is now one of the most outrageously priced in the world) gaudy, beautiful and a monument to public/collective space. Entering the stations you know from the beginning this is not a run of the mill people mover. The entrance ways tend to make a statement and then you descend, really descend, on tightly torqued escalators, that take one deeper into the depths than one would seem imaginable. All are then (millions a day) treated to all the world's styles of arches, vaults, chandeliers, mosaics, some socialist realism (less then I thought there would be), marble, columns and a lot more. And it works, well, and on time. Here's a video on the granduer that is the Moscow metro.

Our hotel was in an old converted Soviet building on the edge of the city in a working class neighborhood. Ann really enjoyed the wallk across the railroad track (there was a light for pedestrians although I am sure there have been a few casualities over the years) which we crossed daily on our way to the Metro.



In the few days we were in Moscow we walked the main tourist areas, visited Red Square, Lenin's Tomb,



the Kremlin, St Basil's Cathedral,




Pushkin Square, the Peter the Great Monument and sculpture garden



and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (which was destroyed in 1931 and recently rebuilt),



amongst other sites.

To be blunt, Russians are rude. Service seems to be learned at a gulag finishing school. In the subway the women workers, we saw no me, were never mean but rarely nice. Smiles are a rare commodity. Our favorite cranky service moment was in a kiosk that we frequented near our hotel. I had bought some cheese, bread and meat there a couple of times prior to our 2nd day when I went to repeat purchasing a Syrian loaf and I picked up the bread like I had previously. This set off our humble Slav. Grabbing the loaf aggressively she threw the bag of bread 8 feet back to its appropriate spot. I guess one is supposed to point to one's bakery and then she will retrieve it from the back NOT grab it yourself. I will not make that mistake again.

A word on Lenin's tomb: I have always, from a democratic perspective, been opposed to the idea of putting Krupskaya's husband on display in rigor. It supports all of the concepts us materialists supposedly oppose-the cult of personality, obscurantism, authoritarianism and an aesthetic that hearkens back to the religious relic collecting of the East. This being said I was surprisingly moved by the viewing. The overall process of the viewing helps build the gravitas of the event. When we were there there was a substantial line that was administered by cops. You then are required to hand over all bags, cameras, etc... You then pass through a metal detector and are searched. You then enter Red Square in an area restricted to those who waited on line. The Kremlin wall acts as a backdrop as you walk towards the triangular red marble mausoleum. The internationalism of the revolution is celebrated as the name of Irish and American (Big Bill Haywood) radicals, among others, share places with heroes of Russian Bolsheviki. As you enter the dark tomb ominous looking, formally dressed soldiers bark out SHUT UP to any chatterers. It sets the tone of sacredness and solemness (fear?) as you descend. Viewers then turn and then ascend again towards a well lit encased corpse. I guess his make-up artists have varied in quality over the years but the current artist is top notched. It amazed me to no end that this person had died in 1924. He looks pretty good. It reminded me of a wake. I was moved. It was quite creepy.

Leaving the mausoleum I now understood the power of the cult. It is solemn. It was powerful. If I had studied Marxism-Leninism since my early years and constantly read about the greatness of the balding one, I too would be moved, oh yeah, I was...even though I was born in the heartland of anti-communism.

Russia-St. Petersburg (Leningrad)

After a few days in Moscow we took the Moscow Metro for the last time to Lenin Station to catch the train to St. Petersberg.



The train was quite new, spacious with a very professional staff. Old Soviet movies were the entertainment which made this one of the most enjoyable train rides of the trip. Took this shot in a very old train station along the way to St Pete's:


Jeff and Natasha met us late at the train station which was quite nice given the late hour and new surroundings.

Two years ago Jeff and I stayed at Hotel Anabel on St. Petersburg's most famous street Nevesky Prospect. We again stayed there this time around with Don and Tim Revis of Kenosha who had joined Jeff earlier in Riga. The Wisconsin 5 where now in St Pete's for an action packed week.

Our first day we all jumped in a small bus, after quite a lot of line waiting and vague price announcements, to Peterhof, the 18th century palace built for Peter the Great. Once again the feelings of my first visit to the Hermitage two years ago returned as the decadence of the royals was displayed at the "cottage" and gardens. Words cannot describe the ornateness and vastness of this crib on the Baltic. Here a few shots to try and convey the degenerate nature of the Russian ruling class in a nation of serfs:



The gardens are vast with lots of fountains, boulevards, bird houses, galleries, etc....



For our return we hopped on a small speedy ferry that took us to the center of downtown, a pleasant surprise as the ride over was akin to a 1940's ride from Warsaw to Auschwitz given the amount of toxic fumes leaking into the passenger area.

Russia is in the midst of an economic boom fueled by gas and oil. The signs of economic growth are everywhere. Correspondingly there has been a rise in Russian nationalism. The Stalinist style military parade this pasted May Day is one of the most visible examples. In our discussions with Russians the primary way that they are experiencing the new nationalism is through sport. The past year has been a particularly succesful year for Russian teams and they won the only contest more insufferable than American Idol, the Eurovision Song Contest. But as in most of the world football reigns and while we were visiting the UEFA tournament was entering its final games and Russia was surprisingly competing with Europe's top teams. They made it to the semi-finals where they finally lost but in the meantime the people of Russia were in a frenzy I can only compare to the winning of the Superbowl by the Packers in 97. We experienced two wins, one in Moscow and one in St Pete's. The St Petersberg victory created a traffic jam along Nevesky Prospect that included gun shots in the air, public diplays of affection towards anyone that would agree, young men standing on the top of cars at frightening speeds, lots of chanting, etc... Quite the experience:



Dangerous behavior:



This guy would have been very upset if the Russian's had lost:



The following took us to the Hermitage, the Russian State Museum. I blathered on in a 2006 post about the wonderfulness of this place but once again I must strongly recommend a trip once to this amazing treasure of loot that the Russian rulers extracted from the Russian serf. Until I went to the Louvre, see below, I had never seen such a collection of paintings in my life.

Fun with the Revis's at Focus



and visits to St Isaac's Cathedral



finished up the Russian leg of the trip.....Oh and a word on Russian cuisine, one word-Crapdogs!




On to Helsinki.

Beckham at DC United

Went to my first ever professional soccer game today to see DC United play LA Galaxy . Dad was the parab operator and it was a day game and my friend wanted to come along. We found out David Beckham plays for LA Galaxy and that was too good an opportunity to pass up. We really enjoyed the event. Just watching the DC fans is an experience in itself. The stands actually bounce up and down with all the singing and chanting. I may even go again. By the way, DC won 4-1. Beckham is amazing to watch. He made the assist for the Galaxy score. He is No. 23.

Ted Fons Moves East

After many years in California at Innovative Interface, Ted has decided that the midwest looks good again. In July, Ted, Jennifer and Rachel will pack up and move east to reside in Dublin, Ohio with a new job at OCLC. Everyone here is looking forward to their being closer. Here's a brief description of his new assignment. Good Luck, Ted.

Here's the press release.

http://www.oclc.org/us/en/news/releases/200818.htm

May Day May Day

These two had an adventure right here at home that turned into a May Day call. Bubbles were up to the window and they nearly covered themselves in bubbles. Any more people in there? Nancy to the rescue with towels and mops. No one drowned.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2292/2447956880_41f9aaba2d_m.jpg

Ted in Maryland

Ted was in DC for a meeting and stopped by for the day. We spent most of the day at Ben's Cub Scout picnic. The event was held at Broadneck Park and included good picnic food and Rain Gutter Regatta. If you've never been to one, you are missing a lot of fun...Ben placed 3rd overall and 1st in single hull. We won't mention why he placed 3rd, but the other two participants had made catamarans, much to the dismay of the other cubs...Those little sprinters just zipped along and breakneck speed. As mentioned before, Ben used a single hull and placed a respectful 3rd....

Capture the fun with these pictures.

Chris Hits Washington

Here are some pictures from last weekend's visit.

The New York Giants SUPERBOWL Champions!!!

Eli Manning walking on to the field.




Here's a small picture of the large crowd cheering on our team.






Yesterday I went to Giants Stadium with a few friends from school after the Parade of Champions in the city. On our drive down the NJ Turnpike we followed the team buses all the way into the stadium. We sat in the 17th row near one of the end zones. Half of the stadium was filled with crazy fans wearing their champions tee shirts and jerseys. The cheered ONE MORE YEAR for Michael Strahan and Coach Spagnuolo and MVP for Eli Manning. This is certainly something I will never forget. Here are some pictures from Giants Stadium! GO GIANTS!!!





Coach Coughlin addressing the crowd and having FUN. :)




The confetti was endless. I took some home with me to save. We were covered in it and I am still finding pieces stuck to my clothes.

STILL CHEESEHEADS AFTER ALL THESE YEARS

We will see what happens after the game today. We may be Giants fans for the Super Bowl. Go Packers

THREE SCORE & 10

You guessed it. Dad/Pop-Pop is 70. Amelia likes the idea

Cali 07 III: Down the Coast

The last 3 days of the trip took us back up to Davis to vist Jennifer, Rachel and Ted and then down the coast to Big Sur and a final walk around in LA. The visit to Ted's was short, we spent lots of time on our way up at the Presidio and lunching in Sonoma, but fun. Rachel hammed it up for the relatives, see pics, as we had a great meal in downtown Davis.

The next day, New Year's Eve, took us down the coast sighting whales and seals on the way to Big Sur. Really one of the great sites on the planet. As Henry Miller (he lived in the area for awhile) put it,

“Big Sur is the California that men dreamed of years ago, this is the Pacific that Balboa looked at from the Peak of Darien, this is the face of the earth as the Creator intended it to look.”

The photos do not do it justice but I'll let them speak for themselves.



The seals near our hotel:



The last sun of 2007:

Cali 07 II: No SoCal

After a marvelous Xmas in Calabama we headed up the San Joaquin valley to Napa. The valley that is the ugliest agricultural factory I have ever seen gives way to the most beautiful agricultural factory I have ever seen, the Napa Valley. We stayed in an environmentally friendly hotel, it had a moat and no electric lights in the lobby, and met Mary and Paul for a frolic of wine tasting and dinner on the Silvarado Trail. Our first stop was lunch at Auberge du Soleil where the view is as impressive as is the pretensiousness of its name. Its an upscale spa/hotel where we could only slum at the bar for appetizers and the hook is the view. Really a good spot to start to get the lay of the land. After the view we headed to Stags Leap winery, ehh, and for the money, forgettaboutit. Then on to Baldacci Vineyards, the best of the wine we tasted by far. Pricey indeed but the Carbernet and Pinot were sausagey and supple, as all wines should be. A day of wine tasting is hard work indeed so after the toil of the day we settled on Rutherford Grille in Yountsville (pronounced yuntsville by some). Comfort food with incredible service, fancy pants surroundings and packed to the gills. Probably the best meal of the trip and by no means the most expensive. The Napa tour was one of the best days of the trip. Mary and Paul made the day as we crawled a small portion of the Silverado Trail in a day to remember.



After a couple days in Napa we drove to San Francisco for a David Sedaris reading and city walking. Before the Sedaris event we stopped at Muir Woods for a hike. Have been to MW a couple of times but this place never disappoints, natural beauty that parallels few places I have ever seen. And damn are those trees big! After MW we drove across the Golden Gate and got in to our one indulgent hotel, The Adagio, (pretty cheap on line though as a last minute special). Located in the theatre district in SF, this boutiqueeee place was really a treat. I think I may have to invest in a king size bed, oh my house is too small! Anyhoo, David Sedaris turned out to be a play BY David Sedaris! It was quite funny although by this time exhaustion had settled in and it took a Herculian effort just to keep the eyes open. The following day we walked the streets begining the day at the farmers' market on the pier a walk through Chinatown and a late lunch at L'Osteria del forno, an unassuming cafe in North Beach that was probably number two on the best meal list although it was simple and modest.



Ann seems to have adapted to San Francisco, no?

After resting up at our swank digs in SF our final morning their took us to breakfast in the Haight and on to Golden Gate Park and the Presidio path for a last look at the city on a gloriously clear and warm morning. This morning brought us spectacular views of the Golden Gate, surfers under the bridge, lots of birds of all types and a dolphin show-they were actually surfing right by the Cliff House.

Cali 07 I: Sooo, So-Cal

Almost didn't make the flight out of MKE because of overbooking and fog but a large family negotiated a sweet deal for themselves and six of the bumped made it to sunny LA by mid-afternoon on the 23rd. Checked into our lux Japanese digs (found way cheap on line) in lax's Little Tokyo and were in moments planted in front of a sushi conveyor belt next to a Taiwanese filmmaker who was quite the chatterbox. Fun, because he could explain all the types of rolls, etc.. as well as riff on Wong Kar Wai (yeah I pulled out my light artillery early) and any other filmmaker known by the art house Eastsiders of Milwaukee.

After that salvo off to Hollywood which was packed mostly with Latino families out for some last minute shopping. Kind of like Roc-a-fella (Kanye West's Graduation is our soundtrack for this trip) Center but only for two blocks and warm. Wandered into a marvelous bistro,
Cheebo, on Sunset and had some Manila clams with a white sauce and beans that I still dream about. Continued to walk over to West Hollywood and eventually parked at La Boheme, yes it is VERY LA. The barkeep and the one next store warmed to us very quickly and even gave us wine which had been sent back (the table sent back two bottles by the way-$80 a pop!) which was fine by our, all the staff partook, vulgar proletarian pallets. French Bordeaux by the way, dry but with flavors of KISS MY ASS! Why exactly did these people send back two bottles of wine? Because they could. Just awful, but a real LA moment indeed. The staff loved it, it gave them a chance to spit in their entres, kidding, am I? Take a look at the gallery of this place on the website. I think there were at least six crystal chandaliers, and half were red! This under a ceiling of massive exposed beams and bronze statues galore. Quite the modest gin mill. After the cab ride home, the cabbie was a Russian nostaligic for the USSR but who in the same breath gloried in the opulence and opportunity of LA, we gorged with udon in a packed Japanese noodle house very late. All on the first night.

Day 2: Santa Monica/Venice and the Blustery Santa Anna’s*



Our second day took us west to the booshie burg along the Pacific, Santa Monica. No slum indeed. Had breakfast and then shopped a little, rented bikes and cruised the pier and Venice Beach. Took a break around 1 at the beer garden in Venice and Ann catches, not out of the corner of her eye, because once you notice this bit there are no glances, a truck load of Venice culture: a massive white dude with spiked white hair dressed all in black speedily cruising on a large skateboard with a orangeish brown Pomeranian in a harness that he periodically whips into the air whereby the dog gracefully lands on his right arm seemingly guiding the large human which it now seems he commands. I began to write about the creature (the dog-Austin) but was reading the American Kennel Club’s notes on appearance of the breed, which do Austin, and the toy group, more justice:

“His heavily plumed tail is set high and lies flat on his back. He is alert in character, exhibits intelligence in expression, is buoyant in deportment, and is inquisitive by nature. The Pomeranian is cocky, commanding, and animated as he gaits. He is sound in composition and action.”



Cocky indeed! (see above picture)

It turns out, Johnny (our intrepid spiked boarder) chooses to sit with us for a beer and let us say, Johnny is no introvert. Johnny has lived in his short 38 years: as a child of New Orleans he has mom issues, drove a yellow Extera in the general Cancun area as a music and event coordinator, house sits in the Malibu area, fell in love with a 17 year old named London a few years ago, works periodically for the Ginzu knife folks at state fairs’ and such-yes he made it to the Wisconsin state fair this summer which he mentioned did not have, the let us say, the most svelte of participants-and a Pomeranian stud manager among other professions! Johnny was a trip to say the least and delayed our ETD to Fresno by a few hours because Johnny liked to talk, was really interesting and he really liked to talk.





The next few hours of day 2 took us to Fresno AKA the Alabama of California. The drive there is amazing as you leave LA going north. The mountains and into the valley leave one without words although Johnny said about them………..

*Not sure if the one’s we experienced were the Santa Anna’s but they sure were blustery!



Christmas day found us at Loretta’s home-a dear friend of Mary and Paul’s who teaches Women’s Studies at Fresno State-for a vegetarian feast which included lots of different mushrooms, a tofurkey, seitan, assorted roots and tubers and enough desert to fill the space that fills Johnny’s ego (see day 2). Loretta graciously invited us to dinner which we shared with her older brother Mike and sister Kathy who are from San Francisco and Los Angeles respectively. Really a fun day that included readings from “Masques of Gold” one of, if not the greatest romance novel of all time, a rousing rendition of “God Bless America,” I think it was as close to the Ethel Merman version that has ever been reproduced in any part of southeastern Fresno, a more subdued but inspirational singing of “This Land is Your Land,” lots of tasteful comedy and the newly created ritual, the weighing of the Kifli (see photo). Really a fun Christmas day, we missed our families but we were treated as if we were of. Thanks to the Kensingers, and particularly Loretta, for sharing the holiday with us.

Tim at Giant Stadium

Tim, sophomore No. 34 River Dell High School ('10) played in the 2007 NJ State InterScholastic Athletic Assn. championship games held 12/1/07. His positions are listed as RB/LB. Tim is 5'10", 175 lbs and growing... River Dell defeated Pascack Valley 12-7 for the State Championship in their division. Hope to see them back next year. Way to go, Timmy.

Rachel's Second Halloween

Here are a couple of pictures from yesterday's fun. Jen took Rachel downtown for trick or treating with the mothers' group and then to the neighbors in the evening. Her little flower costume was pretty cute:

Green Hair Grows

Several new people have come forward with Green Hair. Check out these beauties. Who's next?