The classes that I taught from South America through South Africa were just a subset of the whole World Tour series. There were a couple classes before I started, one in Canada and one in Mexico, and the tour continued in Europe after I was done. The guy who is teaching the first two weeks in Europe is my coworker Mike Fox. He's the one who gave me the idea of doing this blog, and he also put his photos up on the web, on Facebook. Albums there can only hold 60 photos at a time, and he's created two so far:
Mike Fox Facebook album 1
Mike Fox Facebook album 2
I'd love to see Versailles. Maybe next trip...
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Home at last
My flights back to the US were relatively uneventful, until after we landed in Raleigh. The RDU Airport Terminal C has been under reconstruction for some time, and just opened the day we landed there, so our flight was one of the first ones to be parked at that gate. Apparently they had not worked all the kinks out of the new terminal yet... The pilot taxied to the terminal, but had to wait on the tarmac for a while until the ground crew got in position to help direct him to the parking spot. After he parked the plane and cut the engines, the people operating the new ramp couldn't figure out how to work it. There was about a one foot gap between the ramp and the plane, and apparently the operator couldn't get it to move any closer. The pilot threatened to make us all sit back in our seats so he could move the plane to a gate that worked, and there were people on the plane with connecting flights who were worried about making their connections. Almost a half hour after we landed, they finally found someone who knew how to reposition the ramp and let us unload. Janice, Laura and Brian were waiting for me just outside security.
When we got home, Laura had made this welcome banner:
It sure feels good to be home!
When we got home, Laura had made this welcome banner:
It sure feels good to be home!
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Last post from abroad
I'm sitting in the business lounge waiting for the flight back home. I planned to leave the hotel at 7:00am, to get to the airport in plenty of time for the 10am flight, but when I checked out I was told it was only 6am - apparently, daylight savings time in Spain ended last night. So once again I was WAY early for my flight.
I took a quick inventory of the folders of photos I took. All total, it's more than 1300 pictures! And that's the count of photos that I have not discarded in my first cut. There are more than that on the 2G memory card in the camera, it's still 40% empty! Just yesterday I figured out how to create an audio memo to go with each photo, to help keep track of what the picture is about. I wish I had figured that out 5 weeks ago!
I took a quick inventory of the folders of photos I took. All total, it's more than 1300 pictures! And that's the count of photos that I have not discarded in my first cut. There are more than that on the 2G memory card in the camera, it's still 40% empty! Just yesterday I figured out how to create an audio memo to go with each photo, to help keep track of what the picture is about. I wish I had figured that out 5 weeks ago!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Madrid
The bus tour of Madrid started out at the Palacio Real, which is the royal family's summer palace. There's a square in front of it with a statue of one of the prior kings:
It has over 2,000 rooms! Of course they don't live there, they only use it for special parties.
The tour passes by one of the fanciest squares in the old city, the Plaza Mayor, which also has a statue in the center:
I ate dinner there later in the evening, at one of the many restaurants that line the inside of the square. There are lots of street performers in the square trying to earn tips.
There are many sights in Madrid, many old fancy buildings that I don't have any inkling what they are used for. This is one of the fancier ones, the Palacio de Comunicaciones:
There are also structures which serve no real purpose, like this "gate" in the Plaza de la Independencia:
It's kind of like the Arch de Triomphe in Paris, serves no real purpose except to remember some event which I didn't catch the full meaning of on the tour bus.
Madrid's major park is Parque del Retiro, and in the middle of it there's a man-made lake where you can rent row boats. The focal point of the lake is a monument on the far side named Monumento a Alfonso XII:
It was a very pleasant walk through the park, and the monument was a total surprise to me when I saw it.
There were MANY more sights, I just don't have time to upload the photos right now...
I'm heading home in the morning. Yipeee! It's been a wonderful trip, but I'm glad to be going home.
It has over 2,000 rooms! Of course they don't live there, they only use it for special parties.
The tour passes by one of the fanciest squares in the old city, the Plaza Mayor, which also has a statue in the center:
I ate dinner there later in the evening, at one of the many restaurants that line the inside of the square. There are lots of street performers in the square trying to earn tips.
There are many sights in Madrid, many old fancy buildings that I don't have any inkling what they are used for. This is one of the fancier ones, the Palacio de Comunicaciones:
There are also structures which serve no real purpose, like this "gate" in the Plaza de la Independencia:
It's kind of like the Arch de Triomphe in Paris, serves no real purpose except to remember some event which I didn't catch the full meaning of on the tour bus.
Madrid's major park is Parque del Retiro, and in the middle of it there's a man-made lake where you can rent row boats. The focal point of the lake is a monument on the far side named Monumento a Alfonso XII:
It was a very pleasant walk through the park, and the monument was a total surprise to me when I saw it.
There were MANY more sights, I just don't have time to upload the photos right now...
I'm heading home in the morning. Yipeee! It's been a wonderful trip, but I'm glad to be going home.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Krugersdorp Game Reserve
I originally booked a tour to the Lions Park, but was coerced to change it to the Krugersdorp Game Reserve because I couldn't pay in cash (none of my cards work in the ATMs here so I have NO cash at all) so I had to book a tour that the hotel would let me put on my room bill. I'm glad I did! The tour was great. Business was slow at the park, so the lead tour guide was available to be our driver, and there were only four of us on the tour. This is the vehicle we rode in:
Note, no windows or doors for us in the back, and we sat up high so we got great views. The tour guide is the tall older guy behind the Land Rover on the left. The three other guys on the tour all knew each other, and were joking around a lot, and that made it that much more fun.
I mostly took video, but did manage to get some photos. The park is huge, and consists of rolling hills with mostly grasslands with periodic bunches of trees. We went to hunt down the lions near the beginning of the tour. They're kept in their own separate, multi-acre part of the park, fenced off from the antelope and wildebeast that would normally be their prey. We had to drive around for about 15 minutes until we spotted them, under some trees next to the road:
These are young but full grown lions, one male and four females. The tour guide called them and waved a towel around, and that drew them very close to the vehicle, almost too close for comfort. Then he pulled forward a bit, grabbed a 2-ft long stick from the ground, backed up to where the lions were, then waved the stick and tossed it into the grass on the other side of the road. Two of the females jumped up and jogged over to get it, and the male followed. I got this photo:
That was scary, to see those big cats come out of the woods to us. We were really unprotected - if they wanted to, they could've jumped up and killed all of us. The park also has another pride of younger lions, and a trio of white lions, in separate smaller cages near the exit of the lions section of the park.
We exited the lions section, and headed back out to the grassy plain. We passed herds of several kinds of antelope, including the springbuck, which is the national symbol of South Africa. I didn't get good photos of most of that, must've been taking video. We drove up to the rhino, which was grazing near some trees, and got a few good shots:
After a while he got irritated, starting snorting at us, so we left him alone.
The next herd was a mix of white-faced antelope and wildebeasts:
Right next to them were zebras:
A little further down the hill, next to a couple trees, were the male and female giraffes:
The male is seated, the female (lighter in color) was much more timid.
The last small herd we saw was this kind that I can't remember the name, but they have very long antlers:
The birds (white egrets?) among them sometimes ride on their backs. The birds eat bugs that are flushed from the grass as the antelope graze.
So, back to reality. I pitch tomorrow for the last time, then head straight to the airport for my flight to Madrid. I need to review my material tonight, and copy it to GSA and/or send it to Mike & Peter for their use in the upcoming weeks.
Note, no windows or doors for us in the back, and we sat up high so we got great views. The tour guide is the tall older guy behind the Land Rover on the left. The three other guys on the tour all knew each other, and were joking around a lot, and that made it that much more fun.
I mostly took video, but did manage to get some photos. The park is huge, and consists of rolling hills with mostly grasslands with periodic bunches of trees. We went to hunt down the lions near the beginning of the tour. They're kept in their own separate, multi-acre part of the park, fenced off from the antelope and wildebeast that would normally be their prey. We had to drive around for about 15 minutes until we spotted them, under some trees next to the road:
These are young but full grown lions, one male and four females. The tour guide called them and waved a towel around, and that drew them very close to the vehicle, almost too close for comfort. Then he pulled forward a bit, grabbed a 2-ft long stick from the ground, backed up to where the lions were, then waved the stick and tossed it into the grass on the other side of the road. Two of the females jumped up and jogged over to get it, and the male followed. I got this photo:
That was scary, to see those big cats come out of the woods to us. We were really unprotected - if they wanted to, they could've jumped up and killed all of us. The park also has another pride of younger lions, and a trio of white lions, in separate smaller cages near the exit of the lions section of the park.
We exited the lions section, and headed back out to the grassy plain. We passed herds of several kinds of antelope, including the springbuck, which is the national symbol of South Africa. I didn't get good photos of most of that, must've been taking video. We drove up to the rhino, which was grazing near some trees, and got a few good shots:
After a while he got irritated, starting snorting at us, so we left him alone.
The next herd was a mix of white-faced antelope and wildebeasts:
Right next to them were zebras:
A little further down the hill, next to a couple trees, were the male and female giraffes:
The male is seated, the female (lighter in color) was much more timid.
The last small herd we saw was this kind that I can't remember the name, but they have very long antlers:
The birds (white egrets?) among them sometimes ride on their backs. The birds eat bugs that are flushed from the grass as the antelope graze.
So, back to reality. I pitch tomorrow for the last time, then head straight to the airport for my flight to Madrid. I need to review my material tonight, and copy it to GSA and/or send it to Mike & Peter for their use in the upcoming weeks.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Made it to Johannesburg
I've checked into the Hilton Sandton in Johannesburg. The plane that we flew in was NOT one of the big new Airbuses, just a 747 jumbo with a special cabin arrangement. The upstairs section was all business class, and the seats started at number 80, that's why I was in 84K. Interestingly, the seats were arranged at a 45 degree angle from the center aisle, instead of facing forward. Apparently that lets them squeeze more seats in less space, while still allowing the seats to lay flat. The other instructor that I met in Taipei, Patrick Kappeler, was right across the aisle from me on this flight, and we rode together to the hotel this morning. He presents tomorrow, then continues on to teach at all the European sites. I booked a tour to Lion's Park tomorrow morning, and I teach my last class on Friday, leaving immediately afterwards for Spain and then home.
What I've seen of Joberg from the taxi is a bit unnerving. All the houses have walls around them (not just fences), and the walls are topped with electric fences, razor wire, or spikes. I think I'll just work from the room today, and go out with Patrick for meals.
What I've seen of Joberg from the taxi is a bit unnerving. All the houses have walls around them (not just fences), and the walls are topped with electric fences, razor wire, or spikes. I think I'll just work from the room today, and go out with Patrick for meals.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Giant Buddah
Today is travel day to Johannesburg, but I don't fly out until 11:45pm. So I basically have all day here in Hong Kong. However, my aching feet won't take much more walking, so my plan is to see the one remaining sight, then checkin to the Cathay Pacific business class lounge and wait there for my flight. That sight is the giant Buddah in Ngong Ping, which you get to via a 25-minute ride up the side of a mountain in a cable car. I got video going up, and got this photo on the ride back down:
That's the airport on the left, and a town of highrise appartments named Tung Chung on the right.
The Budda himself is made of brass, and is really huge. Here's the first good shot you can get of him, when walking through the little village at the top of the cable car ride:
Here's a straight-on shot, after you walk to the base of his mountain:
Unfortunately, you have to climb a lot of steps to get up to him. Of course, this is NOTHING compared to climbing the great wall, which really did me in... Also unfortunately, most of my photos at the top came out blurry. I must have accidentally left my camera on Landscape mode despite taking pictures that were mostly close-up.
So I saw Buddah, and after I climbed back down, I went to a show entitled "Walking with Buddah" which was inspirational, in a way. Apparently the guy who this statue honors was a prince, son of a king in Tibet, who was married and a father. Despite all his riches, he could not find peace in his heart. So, he left his riches and family, and went in search of enlightenment. He found it after years of searching and sacrifice, apparently almost starving himself to death. He became one of the greatest Buddahs ever, with many inspirational teachings to his credit. Of course, the story does not say what became of his wife and child...
I got back to the airport before 2pm, and my flight doesn't leave until 11:45pm. I asked the Cathay Pacific people if I could check in early and spend the time in the business class lounge, and they said OK. When I got my boarding pass, the seat they assigned me was 84K. Usually, business class seats are in row number less than 20, so I asked about that, and he said my seat is upstairs. I've been upstairs in a 747 a number of times, and I know the row numbers up there only go to 25 or so, so I asked, "Is this one of the new big Airbus planes?" "Yes," he replied. Cool! I'll see if I can get some photos after I board.
In the mean time, I need to catch up on my paperwork: recording daily expenses, maybe even submit a travel expense account to cover the expenses on my current AMEX bill.
That's the airport on the left, and a town of highrise appartments named Tung Chung on the right.
The Budda himself is made of brass, and is really huge. Here's the first good shot you can get of him, when walking through the little village at the top of the cable car ride:
Here's a straight-on shot, after you walk to the base of his mountain:
Unfortunately, you have to climb a lot of steps to get up to him. Of course, this is NOTHING compared to climbing the great wall, which really did me in... Also unfortunately, most of my photos at the top came out blurry. I must have accidentally left my camera on Landscape mode despite taking pictures that were mostly close-up.
So I saw Buddah, and after I climbed back down, I went to a show entitled "Walking with Buddah" which was inspirational, in a way. Apparently the guy who this statue honors was a prince, son of a king in Tibet, who was married and a father. Despite all his riches, he could not find peace in his heart. So, he left his riches and family, and went in search of enlightenment. He found it after years of searching and sacrifice, apparently almost starving himself to death. He became one of the greatest Buddahs ever, with many inspirational teachings to his credit. Of course, the story does not say what became of his wife and child...
I got back to the airport before 2pm, and my flight doesn't leave until 11:45pm. I asked the Cathay Pacific people if I could check in early and spend the time in the business class lounge, and they said OK. When I got my boarding pass, the seat they assigned me was 84K. Usually, business class seats are in row number less than 20, so I asked about that, and he said my seat is upstairs. I've been upstairs in a 747 a number of times, and I know the row numbers up there only go to 25 or so, so I asked, "Is this one of the new big Airbus planes?" "Yes," he replied. Cool! I'll see if I can get some photos after I board.
In the mean time, I need to catch up on my paperwork: recording daily expenses, maybe even submit a travel expense account to cover the expenses on my current AMEX bill.
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