Category Archives: Travel

City streets and sidewalks

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Several years ago as I was driving Daughter #2 and her dog from the D.C. area to Chicago we stopped in Indiana. At least I think it was there, although it could have been Ohio for all the difference it might have made. Our La Quinta was across a major road from a shopping center and I elected myself as hunter of dinner. Asking at the front desk, I was given driving direction to a location which I could see from my office.

“Can’t I just walk?”

“Oh, why would you do that?”

and it was obvious that, to this young woman, no one ever walked anywhere.  There were no sidewalks in evidence. There were no pedestrian signals at the traffic lights. There were no cross walks.

This morning, on our way to the North Berkeley BART station I noted that we were “in the city” as evidenced by sidewalks and crosswalks. Pedestrian signals abounded including along Shattuck Ave. at a couple of locations where cars could not turn but pedestrians commonly crossed the street mid-block . Then I started to think of the various locations where I have lived. In childhood, suburbs did not have sidewalks where city blocks–even residential areas did. In rural areas, there was absolutely no point to having sidewalks. After all, who is going to be walking 8-20 km along a state highway in order to go to work or visit a friend. Wheeled transportation is assumed when the distance is more than a few blocks.

Another characteristic of some cities (as apposed to suburbs or rural areas in the US) is the presence of public transportation. It is something that I took for granted while living in Germany and the U.K. Admittedly, it wasn’t always convenient, but it was by far more cost effective than driving, paying tolls, burning time and coughing up money for parking.  Especially when looking at meetings in London which not only were difficult to reach via car but then there were outrageous parking costs + congestion tax.

(for those who are following the debate about congestion tax in NYC – this article pretty much makes it clear. Congestion tax doesn’t harm the poor. If you are poor in NYC, you don’t have a car. If it cost (in 2017) an average of $430/month for a parking space and the subway cost $2.50 …. it doesn’t take a genius to realize that public transportation is the way to go. For the cost mentioned above, you can take a lot of taxis, or Lyfts or Ubers when shopping.)

Which takes me back to living in a city. Berkeley is not a large city; population around 123,000. The estimates vary depending on whether or not you count students. We have buses, we have sidewalks, and are connected to San Francisco, two airports, and a chunk of the East Bay by BART. Compared to childhood, it is lovely to walk sidewalks rather than dirt along roads, to have cross-walks where it is more safe than not to navigate to the other side of the street, and to have shops within walking distance.

Not to mention a husband willing to get up in the morning to drop me off at BART. Of course, that means he has access to “the” car for the day (single car family here) but still…..city living can be pretty good.

 

Pi Day

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It is Pi day.

For all of – us who are not math-geeks, in the American date system today is March 14 aka 3.14 which is the start of Pi. Geometry? Circles?

Or, as it better to think of – Dani provided the alternative photo from Pi Day at work –

eight options for Pi Day

 

And, while tasting – you can go to BandCamp and listen to PDX Broadsides – here

Night Skies

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Taken 1 1/2 weeks ago, returning to OAK from Long Beach.

leaving the southern end

Watching the coast of Southern California recede from sight. Flying over land, ocean, and mountain range rarely out of sit of civilization. And then there are the shapes and patterns of communities and buildings.

blurry shapes looking more

like various motherboards

leaving me to wonder if architects imitate life

coming in to OAK

Swedish Tourism

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It was about this time last year that I went to Northern Sweden on a photography junket. Put off from the year before (2017) but that is a completely uninteresting story.

 

 

What brought back the memories and a relook at photos was a lovely notice from the Svenska Turistförenningen (Tourist Office in case you hadn’t guessed). They thanked me for my support last year and invited me to renew my membership. Even sent the form for the standard bank giro. Now, I enjoyed my time. Might even do it again. But voluntarily renew for 295kr + 185 kr Porto? Not likely. In case you needed the exchange – that comes to about $53.75 give or take a few cents depending on the exchange rate of the second.

They try to make it easy – I can pay on line by credit card, I can send a bank check. I can wire money. They won’t (any longer) take Euro Checks.

While it is true that the monies help their economy by supporting sustainable mountaineering and other valuable programs, I think I may keep my money a bit closer to home. But I did send them a polite email saying that I won’t be renewing, so please drop my name off their hard copy mailing list to save a few SEK.

The Bay as a barrier

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It most thoroughly was raining when I crept out of the house this morning, down to the car and drove over to North Berkeley BART parking. In fact, I was pretty damp by the time I had dashed the short distance between the back parking lot and the entrance. The only positive thing I was feeling at that point was a bit of relief that there were still a few open seats when I boarded BART.

Disembarking at Civic Center, the sky was overcast but the rain had ceased hours ago. Merchants were setting up for the Wednesday market. The usual overtones of human were absent in the air, instead the scents of coffee and oranges were teasing the nose.

I repeat – it was not raining.

I remember when we lived in Washington DC and experienced the Beltway phenomena. And no, I am not referring to all the bandits (excuse me, contractors) who lurk just outside DC proper just waiting to feed… Rather, I am referring to the influence of the actual physical beltway (think M25 motor way for you UK types) on the weather. It can be raining in DC, you cross under the Beltway on Connecticut Avenue going north and immediately run into a snow storm. The heat of the city plus all those cars create a micro-climate.

I actually made it through to the end of the day without a drop of rain in San Francisco; it would have been nice to have been able to say that as well as I dodged rain drops on my way home.

Up against the wall

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There we all stand like good little soldiers in a row. Or sailors, airmen,  or marines depending on the individual background. The white woman next to me is fashionably dressed, hair professionally styled, and make-up impeccable. The African American woman next to me on the other side wears a warm down coat, furry trimmed hood tucked closely to her head. There is a white guy in a wheel chair which should prove interesting. I am standing sixth in line, waiting to board the Metro bus headed to the SFVA at 0800 this chilly Friday morning. The diversity in race, age and dress extends behind me as well as forward. This is San Francisco, it is not the white bread of the mid-west.

All together there are 18 of us joining the dozen or so who are already on the bus. The stop prior to ours – the Trans-Bay Terminal picks up riders from Muni, Cal Train, several shuttles and along haul bus or two. The earlier runs are busier. By the time 0800 rolls around, most VA workers are already hard at work.

The elderly vet with the wheelchair carefully hauls himself up the front stairs to the first row of seats while the driver places his chair in one of the lower storage compartments. The young woman with crutches hops up the steps on one leg while keeping a death grip on those same crutches.

From the 5th and Powell stop it is 30 min to the VA. Since I am headed to the Dental Clinic I don’t stop for coffee, donut or muffin no matter how tasty they look. By shortly after 1000 I am at the bus stop waiting for the 38R to get me back to a BART station so that I can work my way hom

Rolling in

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after midnight, I was more than ready to get some sleep (oh, let’s say…~200).

So why did I wake up at 0430 in the morning?

At least I didn’t have any trouble going back to sleep and staying out cold till close to 1000.

I will not claim that I did anything useful for the rest of the day, other than taking the family out for dinner in late celebration of Dani’s birthday follow by cake at home. The theme was unicorns, candle, hooded blanket and general smiles even after the kettle gave up the ghost for good. Now something else on the list to be replaced. (grouch).

And it was back to bed early.

Seeing a pattern here?

Well, I thought it was

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a bright idea. After all, an hour on the bus has got to be better than 2 ½, right? Easy peasy, I had changed my flight to depart from Orlando, the closer airport. The USO was lovely and welcoming. The terminal is cheerful, shiny, but a bit too Disney. The challenge started when the flight before mine leaving gate 124 had an issue.

The dominos started falling. Because the flight to where-ever was delayed, the inbound plane was diverted to 105, meaning that all of us got to stream from one end of the terminal to another. Plane pulls in. It takes over 30 minutes to unload. By the time we are 70% boarded my 60 minute window for plane change in Austin is down to 10 minutes. Not realistic. Then the stewardess pages me along with another passenger. Sara and I look at each other and shrug as we are “invited” to grab our luggage and get rebooked from here.

So queue another hour in the airport. Did I mention that I have been up for over 12 hours with no end in sight? Thought you had guessed.

New boarding passes in hand along with a credit voucher, I finally board. I don’t miss the two ladies with whom I had chatted in the first boarding area who were more than happy to sit with me. Instead I had the opportunity to sit next to a lovely young man on the way home for the holidays. He had been in the row behind me, but when two parents came down the isle with their adult child toward the end of the boarding process, he promptly offered them his row and moved to the middle seat in mine.

Arriving in Denver, at first I panicked when I didn’t see my connecting flight on the board. Double checking by flight number, I was not surprised to find it delayed. For that matter, so is the flight to Los Vegas as well as the young man’s flight to Salt Lake.

So here I am in the Denver airport, now scheduled for departure @2305 Mountain Time and will arrive as close to the scheduled 0035, which of course is Pacific Time. 18+3+? Up too long, that is for certain.

On to Port Canaveral

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As I mentioned, our destination is now Port Canaveral. We will be docking in the morning at the new Terminal 1.

Except in the distance, we haven’t seen rain (unlike what I have heard from various friends in the Tampa area). From mid-morning on, we were able to watch the Florida Coast in the distance off the port side.The winds have been strong enough to have the outer decks closed off to passenger traffic which meant the Solarium was more than a bit crowded for most of the day.

After reviewing the bidding (free drop off at Orlando Airport, Tampa Airport or Tampa Cruise Terminal) I decided to check on Southwest fares. For minimal more I was able to change my reservation to Orlando and cut my bus ride considerably. I will be still connecting to the same flight in Austin which means no change in my arrival time in Oakland. It also means that I don’t have to be up at the crack of dawn (unlike every other day on this cruise when I have been awake by 0330) but will have time for a leisurely breakfast.

Packing took but a few minutes. I made my last forays to both the knitting group and the coffee machine. I am contemplating an early bed time as soon as I place my bag in the hall for pickup. I could haul it off my self, it isn’t either large or heavy. But considering how many people are planning on doing walk off, the elevators are going to be packed. I find the idea of carrying it down four decks not all that thrilling.

So there you have it – BCN to Tampa on the Rhapsody with detour to Port Canaveral.

Diversions

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AKA – non-frolic and detour.

The Rhapsody is scheduled to dock in Tampa on the 22nd.

Or should I say, it WAS scheduled to dock in Tampa. It seems like there is lousy weather headed into Tampa with the resulting rough seas making it a bit more than challenging to get under the bridge and into port.

Instead, our Captain informed us this evening, we will be steaming up the East Coast of Florida (not the Gulf side, just so there is not any confusion) and we will dock in Port Canaveral. Only a short 2 hour jaunt from the Tampa Airport. They are providing free transfers to all the airports (including for those who had paid for them before) as well as to the port of Tampa for those who just happened to have a car waiting for their return.

For a few people, this will be a positive change – for all those who live near Coco Beach, Canaveral and other points East. For those who had actually been heading to Tampa or points west, it might be a challenge.

Me? My flight isn’t till 1800, and I am more than glad I was so cheap as to book the late, cheaper fair. Of course, it comes with a plane change in Austin. Now, I wonder what this is going to do to plane flights….

Not the right size

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On my list of things to do today –  SF Passport office and rescue my new passport. Considering that I turned in the paperwork on Monday, I thought it was a pretty good deal, even with the $60 expedited fee.

After clearing security, taking the elevator upstair, checking in at one desk, being directed to another, followed by heading to “Window #1” I discovered that they had not printed the correct passport book. You see, the books come in two sizes: regular and large. The regular size is exactly that which most people get. It was the size to which I wound up adding 80 pages to in 2013. This time, since the price was exactly the same, I had checked the box for the larger size since the US Department of State has decided that they will no longer add pages to passports.

Correct, they no longer are willing to take books apart, sew in 40/80 new pages. The result is that if you run out of pages, you have to get a new passport. Travel frequently and a 10 year passport will no longer last 10 years. This includes taking into account that the US rarely, if almost never stamps its own passports entering the US.

The gentleman at the window checks the envelope; it contains a regular passport. He goes and checks the order form. It specifies large. I have a choice, I can take the passport. Or I can come back at the end of the day/tomorrow and have the correct size (page numbers) provided. It doesn’t cost more (other than a second BART  fare) to get the correct one and it will save me money in a few years. Since I have to come into the city on Monday (exam time again), I will head back.

Not that I have anything else to do….

Not in Vienna

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It isn’t likely, but you might remember me writing about having one more meeting to attend this year. The IMED is held every two years in Vienna. I have attended the last several. I was all set to go this year; flight reservations, hotel book, fees paid.

But then on Wednesday morning I hit a snag, in fact two. The first I could have worked around but the second turned out to be insurmountable. Then end result was that I was home at 1600, not at the airport checking in to Turkish Airways Flight #79, not to be changing planes in Istanbul.

That second problem?

Where oh where has my passport gone? (and you can’t get same day service in San Francisco)

The most interesting people

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I am sure that I have mentioned that I travel BART four days a week into San Francisco to UCHastings. It is pretty much a different route than the one to the Oakland Coliseum. Short of the distance, it is the start of the route to the San Francisco Airport and Civc Center is a stop past the one where I exit at Powell to take the shuttle to the SFVA.

I meet the most interesting people on BART. This morning there were two:

The first was a gentleman older than me who was on his way to his office near the 12th Street Oakland BART station. He was already on the train when I boarded at North Berkeley. Kindly, he said he would offer me a seat, but that he really couldn’t stand well for the duration of his voyage. Sitting there, smiling and quite stooped in his suit and hat, I had him pegged as a lawyer even before he confirmed my opinion. He is now doing briefs and depositions one-two days a week. He had cut back his practice several years ago during his late wife’s loosing battle with cancer and chemo. We had a short discussion about curls vs straight hair and return growth that wasn’t all that amenable to cosmetic coloring. He acknowledged that he had long hair during his youth but cut it at the point where it became a bit easier to conform.

We said good bye at the 12th street station and I wished him the best on his upcoming 90th birthday.

I quietly sat in his vacated seat from 12th Street through to my stop at Civic Center. The train conductor had been making cheerful comment on the area around each BART station. Montgomery as “Wall Street West;” Powell as the start of the Trolley Car Line. I made the off hand remark to the guy next to me when Civic Center was referred to as “the heart of the Tenderloin” that they had missed the point because the lawyers probably outnumbered the homeless. He laughed and said that he and his wife worked for one of the local homeless organizations. She worked on housing families, his background in engineering and repair meant that he was doing a lot of maintenance in order to have facilities at least marginally acceptable and safe. We talked about the weather and the attraction of San Francisco for the homeless (compared to New England – where he was from, or Minnesota for me). The services here make a difference, but then, with the cost of living compared to the minimum wage, there have to be support services.

The rest of my day should be interesting – morning class in Constitutional Law (working on individual privacies related to the 1st Amendment) followed by a discussion of class conflicts in time for next semester, followed by a lunch seminar on how to survive finals (bribe – food was provided). I have yet to get through my afternoon Health Law Class and then the final class on Legal Writing. Oral Presentation due.

I am planning on George being responsible for dinner.

and I am trying to remember why I am doing this to myself….

 

We both made it

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Did I mention that Carmen was joining me in Rome?

Our original plan involved us being here for 4-5 days, moving on to BCN and picking up Vision on of the Seas for a frolic around the Med before sailing across the Atlantic. That was what I had planned in May/June of 2017. Made all my reservations this past Feb.

Then I got the wild hair to go back to grad school which stood my plans on their head. It isn’t like I can just disappear for four weeks. I think I have previously mentioned that, unlike other fields, accreditation for legal education in the US requires attendance in class. Yes, that is right – attendance in class is mandatory. I am not sure why. Perhaps it is to justify continuing the system, thought pattern, and attitudes of the current educational trends. One would not want to believe that law could be learned on its own. Oh, wait a minute – it is! At least in California you can still do an apprenticeship (5 years) and sit for the Bar exam. But Law, like Medicine, is a relatively insular educational process that is highly regulated and controlled. Medicine, at least when I studied didn’t require attendance at lecture courses. The knowledge was on you. Labs and clinics were another matter. But I can easily draw a difference between didactic presentations and hands-on training.

The end result is that I have to go back to my ordinary life on Thursday while Carmen gets to float on a boat.

The hotel complex is lovely. Clean, well laid out and welcoming. The staff is more organized that many of the Italian hotels that I have used in the past. Dinner was pasta in the hotel restaurant with a Canadian colleague before we both were hit with time zone wack and needed sleep.

Where did the day go

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It sort of vanished. The 29th of Sept that is. Eaten up by flights and time zone changes. After all, when you board a plane in the evening, stay on it for 13 hours plus adding on the fact that traveling east adds on the hours – well, there you are? 13 hours on a plane + 10 hours in time zone changes and a day just vanishes. Totally and completely gone.

I managed to sleep, the food once again was excellent. The lounge in Istanbul is wonderful. Arriving in Rome on the other hand…. we arrived at 2345 and then taxied for about 15 minutes. Followed by a bus ride to the main terminal. Coming in from Turkey means EU Immigration. Since I hadn’t checked anything this time, I headed straight for passport control to find that the automated machines had been turned off for the night.

flying in

The line looked to be several hundred long with only two counters open. I decided to believe a small secondary sign, backing out of the queue and joining the EU line. The Immigration official just looked at me, spent a few seconds paging through my passport to find a partially empty page, then stamped me through.
I was more than ready for sleep when I arrived at the hotel.

 

Almost, maybe, yes a seat

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It became rather interesting last evening when I received the usual 24 hours out notice from Turkish Airlines to check in for my flight. Admittedly, I don’t enjoy doing such things on my phone, but since I wasn’t home nor in the mood to haul out my laptop I didn’t think it would be all that much of a challenge.

Just hit the button, right?

Wrong. Ok, the landing page worked perfectly and checked me through to seat selection. Funny thing, I thought I did that months ago when I made my travel plans. There are two seats empty – 5A and 5K. I try and select one. No dice – this seat is reserved for someone who needs a basinet. I try the other. Same thing. I log out and try again. This time it tells me that the flight is full. Check in at the airport.

Oooookkkk. And I will know that I have a secured flight when? 1415 at the earliest on the day of the flight.

Attempts this morning, both before and after class netted me the same thing. So I went to the airport.

Lovely woman at the check-in counter says, no problem. What is more, I can join Turkish Airways Smiles & Miles program. Much as I love Lufthansa, they simply don’t give full credit for most of their partner airlines. Turkish does. They are less expensive and the lounge in Istanbul is fabulous. The cost is time for the money saved.

Right now it certainly is worth it

So hanging out once again in the new United Polaris Lounge. I have downloaded all my missing course materials and am planning on [perhaps] finishing a couple of writing assignments while I am under way. The alternative is Sunday which may turn out to be a better possibility.

Prettier than new

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After driving a rental car since 3 July, I picked up our shiny clean car yesterday from Hustead’s on 7th in Berkeley. I am so used the size of our Golf and the standard transmission that I have found myself not willing to parallel park due to car size. And then there is the uncomfortable feeling of searching for the clutch which just doesn’t happen to exist. What is also noticeable to me is that I much prefer the hatchback/station wagon back opening to a trunk. Just sliding things like suitcases and groceries is easier than lifting them out.

It is also interesting to have a clean car. Mind you, once in a blue moon or so I drive the car through a car wash. Being a good citizen of California I would rather take it somewhere that processes the runoff water properly than to run up my own water bill and have slime all over the driveway. You see, it is the redwoods around our property. They have a tendency to shed and drip on any vehicle left in the parking area. To get it off requires not just cleaner and water but a lot of scrubbing. Car washes have these lovely big rotating brushes that manage to get off the sticky stuff with one pass through. Much easier on me as well.

At least that is my story and excuse for not washing a car. As far as the rest of it? They actually vacuumed out the inside. And changed the radio station which tells me that the battery in the car is well functioning and provided entertainment to the crews while working. At least I am assuming that you don’t bother to change the station if the only thing you are doing is moving the car in and out of the shop.

Back to the car. I have a new right rear passenger door. A repaired rear quarter panel and a new right rear tire. There is lovely, clean shiny paint along that side.

While waiting for the last bit of polishing, the manager and I talked about the challengers of traveling with family. His most recent experience involved daughters, excess baggage and outrage that he expected them to stay within weight limits. Then I think of the size suitcases I used to travel with and have some sympathy. It takes time and energy to learn how to coordinate clothing so that you can minimize what you pack. It takes a willingness to ignore current fashion in favor of light weight and layer. And besides – if I brought too much in the way of shoes or clothes, I wouldn’t have enough room for the knitting and cross-stitch projects now would I?

M of A

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Is there anyone left in the US who has not heard of Mall of America?

I stopped on my way to the airport. The two are, not surprisingly, fairly close together. Not a bad thing to kill a few hours before check-in. Somewhere around 450 stores plus the central entertainment area.

Because everyone needs rides, especially rollercoasters to break up their shopping expedition…

Minnesota Drivers

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I love Minnesota Drivers. They are polite; they merge flawlessly and without honking horns. They obey traffic signals. Not like the Bay Area where driving can be a cross between a game of chicken and a combat sport. Everyone for themselves and watch out! I can’t blame diversity, transplants or immigrants although we have more than enough of all of the above. The laid back California attitude simply vanishes when someone gets behind the wheel of a car.

Never in Berkeley would someone stop and let you out from a parking spot at the curb simply because you signaled and were waiting for side traffic to clear. Wouldn’t see drivers being careful to always pass on the left. Perhaps Minnesota has a soporific effect on its residents. The politeness and reserve extending to insuring that you don’t interfere with anyone else on the road.

Or maybe it is the long cold winters that instills both a hardiness and a sense of community responsibility. In any case, it was a pleasure driving from the airport to my friends house. Not something I can say often in California.

The Long Overnight

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Unlike on our way to Madagascar, I knew exactly what we were getting into with two 13+ hour flights (not counting the hours in the Istanbul Lounge between flights). It was going to be two extremely long flights punctuated by meals, beverages and attempts to sleep. Business Class on Turkish Airlines includes the Wifi Access, but really – who can’t do without internet connection for a few hours?

There are two lounges in Tana – one for Air France and one for all the other airlines. It wasn’t much of a lounge, just a few seating areas, a bar and a vertical cooler with a variety of drinks. It did provide me with an opportunity to insure that my electronics were charged, just in case there were outlet problems on the flight. I did no shopping; we used our last bit of cash to buy one more candy bar. Should have purchased outside the airport, of course where things were much, much cheaper.

tBoarding consisted of hiking along the barriers, across the tarmac and up the steps onto the flight.

Oh, wait! I forgot the fun of the other couple leaving the same time as us! Ann and Phillip were booked through Ethiopian Air. Arriving at the airport, they were informed that their flights were Sunday. Excuse me? Our printed reservation says today. And around and around they went. The manager said they could make the change for the small upgrade fee of $1000. It was at this point that they went and got Alain – our in-country group leader. Suddenly, the reservation seemed to be today without an extra charge. But there was this small issue of luggage. Can’t check luggage through when the connecting flight is tomorrow. Hello? They have two hours between flights in Addis Ababa. No reason why they can’t check the luggage through. But the second flight is on a different date…. and around they went till someone in management took over (not the same person who attempted the shakedown) and their luggage was checked.

Made our hours in the Turkish Airlines Lounge seem simple by comparison. Plenty of food, olives, beverages and places to plug in electronics if you looked closely enough. Boarding the connecting flight included a bit of confusion since we wound up leaving almost an hour late. Again, plenty of food, a bit of beverage plus my realization that I still had my Adia cloth but had left the pouch with threads, needles and the like on the first flight. Ah, well, sleep and solitaire on the iPad were good enough.

I was through immigration, customs and had the luggage before George made it through the line. If you are a US passport holder/permanent resident and haven’t downloaded MobilePass – I strongly recommend you do so. Faster than Global Entry and doesn’t cost a thing.

BART to home. Time to sleep….