Seattle

The work trip to Seattle initially started off well enough.  Because my flight left so early on Tuesday, I had decided to go to Vienna the day before and stay with the Sonnwebers. Got to the train station, it smelled like dog crap, but it always smells like dog crap.  Got on the train and took my seat.  Being in the last car we were the first to have our tickets checked.  I showed my ticket on my phone to the conductor and he grinned and appeared to be searching for words.  I thought he was about to complain because he couldn't just stamp my ticket like the others.  Being about the most outwardly polite and friendly Czech national I had met, he told me that once we cross the border, the Austrian train crew would not accept my electronic ticket (seems backwards to have the Austrians be behind the curve).  Additionally I had purchased my train ticket for the wrong day.  This meant that I had to purchase a Czech ticket on the train, then get off and purchase an Austrian ticket at the border.  His friendliness did not help ease my frustration with myself.  At Breclav I jumped off the train and ran to the ticket office, dragging my suitcase.  Ran back and got on.

Arriving at Wien-Meidling I purchased a ticket for the underground and proceeded downtown to meet up with Toby.  It was immediately apparent how much easier to learn public transportation was in Austria compared with the Czech Republic.  Knowing Toby had said his family would not be home until later, I walked around and got a coffee.  I eventually ended up at a Croatian cafe that looked nice.  I ordered a tall beer and the specialty for the day:  sausage with goat cheese and tomato sauce.  After finishing I ordered another beer and pulled out the copy of "The Sun Also Rises" I have been trying to finish for the better part of 2 years.  I find it difficult to finish, as I see where the plot is going and I don't really like it.  Anyways, a street cafe in Vienna with a beer seemed like the ideal way to enjoy the book, and it was.  All afternoon the weather was teetering between decent and rainy with a breeze; weather that I appreciate.  Eventually I met up with the Sonnwebers and managed to have a great meal of smoked fish and asparagus (with breadcrumbs).

The public transportation system in Vienna does not wake up early, so I had to take a cab to the airport at 4am.  I didn't actually book my tickets so all I knew was that I was flying Lufhansa to Frankfurt to Seattle.  I did not realize the first leg of the flight was through Austrian Airlines.  I walked up and down the terminal looking for the Lufthansa check-in counter but only saw Austrian.  I tried opening a door which promptly set off an alarm.  I walked away as nonchalantly as possible. At about 5am the check-in counters were manned and it was apparent that I was flying Austrian.  Made it to Frankfurt and spent most of my time watching the flight line.  Of note was the fact that in this airport, apparently 2 toilets per gender per every 10 gates was thought to be sufficient.  Maybe....if the gates were regional, but these gates were handling 747's, 777's, A330's, and A340's, all with over 300 passengers aboard.

I was in the center row, not in an aisle seat, so it wasn't exactly comfortable.  The seats in front of me were occupied by 3 mothers and their infants or toddlers and one business traveler.  Until the flight attendant asked the business traveler if he would prefer an aisle seat.  Thinking she was going out of her way to help him, he said no I'm fine.  She tried again and said he would switch seats with a mother and child.  He again said, no I'd rather stay here and work.  At this point it was obvious that she was not giving a favor, but asking for one.  It was the 3rd or 4th attempt where the attendant finally said, "I am sure you will not get much work done here as there will be children climbing all over the place for 10 hours."  He reluctantly agreed.  The rest of the flight was uneventful, I watched American Hustle, The Wolf of Wall Street, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, and The Most Exotic Marigold Hotel.  I had thought the latter movie was a Wes Anderson Film, but apparently it wasn't.  Either way it killed a few hours.

Got off the flight, grabbed my rental and drove to Redmond.  I don't remember much after that.  Wednesday I hung around Redmond for dinner trying to re-aquatint myself with  the food I ate before I moved to Europe:  Thai, Mexican and Chinese.  I also had a list of things to do in the US:  ship winter clothes home, buy summer clothes, get a haircut, make sure my new phone works in the states.  Got the haircut because I was anxious about getting one using Czechglish to communicate.  Bought some short sleeve shirts that I could wear to work or on the weekends and a pair of shorts.  Shipped the winterweight clothes home.  My new phone, the Samsung SIII Mini was supposed to work on the Verizon network, however apparently there are 2 versions of this phone and mine would only work with T-Mobile (WCDMA Network).

Thursday I went to downtown Seattle to see Pikes Place Market.  I walked up and down the shore taking photos and looking for a place to eat.  The view was spectacular to the West.  The sun was setting behind windswept cumulus clouds.  I finally found a shooting location on top of a convention center.  There was another photographer shooting with a Nikon right at the ideal spot, so I did my best to shoot around him and wait for him to leave.  After realizing he had been here for a few hours and probably wouldn't leave until it was completely dark I conceded to the fact that I had gotten the best out of my wide angle lens and let other people take photos.  I ate dinner and walked towards my car.  On the drive back I realized that there was a parking ticket under my wiper blades.  Despite the fact that I purchased a spot for the entire evening, I was given a ticket.  Apparently I did not display the ticket (I thought it was an automated process- some computer somewhere would let the ticket person know I had purchased a pass).  Eventually I sent a photo of my pass and the ticket to the parking office and the ticket was dismissed.  I don't remember what I did Friday other than do work.

Saturday I drove around Redmond and Bellevue to explore, but was frustrated by the constant traffic.  It appeared to me that these towns were not built for such high volume of traffic.  I eventually went home after sitting around at a model airplane field watching some gas powered model aerobatics.

Sunday I woke up and took the ferry to Bainbridge Island.  I chose Bainbridge because it was the first place I saw I could go.  Had some coffee after I got off the ferry then took a walk around town and on a trail.  Had lunch and visited the local historical museum.  Apparently Bainbridge Island was one of the first places to have Japanese families relocated after WW2 started.  A shocking artifact was the senior class photos taken in September 1941 and 1942; the latter being half the size and entirely comprised of people of European descent.  I found the museum from a poster advertising an Ansel Adams exhibit, although it did not exactly pan out that way.  The Adams photos were those taken in the internment camp and were not printed in the highest quality (not original prints).  Afterwards I drove around the island and got lost.  The scenery was green, with only a few hints of the spectacular horizon to the North and South of the island.

After my last day of work I decided I couldn't live without getting to fly a seaplane, so I went to Kenmore Air's headquarters in Lake Washington and took an introductory flight.

It was great to be in the cockpit again.  Especially on a beautiful day.  Did a couple of landings and takeoffs on Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish.  It was the clearest day since I had arrived and you could see all the surrounding mountain ranges.  Loved every minute of flying that Cub.

The trip back was uneventful except for some sudden clear air turbulence and a toddler who screamed and cried most of the flight.  Took a bus from Vienna to Brno and saw the countryside.  It reminded me of Iowa and brought back great memories.

I think that's it.  I'm sure I could talk more but I wont.

The (mostly) Food Post

So after posting my last entry, I realized there was a bunch of photos on my phone I haven't shared yet.  Most of them pertain to food.

 The first set of photos is one HF problem with the Czech Republic.  Such cognitive dissonance.   Red means "don't."  Green means "do."  Why is the door telling me what I should and shouldn't do?  Ironically this door leads to the Human Centered Systems branch of Honeywell Advanced Technology Europe (not that they had any say in the design of the workspace).

I took the next set of photos on my way to a dinner with colleagues downtown.  The left photo demonstrates a couple examples of modern design in old Brno.  The phallic looking thing is a clock designed to look like a bullet.  The bullet clock commemorates the battle that Brno had with the Swedes in 1645.  When a spy from Brno learned the Swedish army would head home at noon the next day if the city was not taken, the mayor decided to ring the bells early to trick them into leaving an hour early.  Every morning at 11am a little ball comes out of the bottom.  Still need to get one of those.  The photo on the right is just funny.

 The pizza place where this menu was found came highly regarded from my supervisor.  Last Friday I decided to try it.  I walked in, sat at a table and waited for the server to come by.  There was a slip of paper that read "2000" and I figured it was the receipt from the last people.  Apparently it was a reservation and the server informed me.  Looking around, there weren't any other tables open so I started to walk out.  The server stopped me at the door and lead me to another room where she removed a reservation and seated me.  This is something I am not yet used to- seating myself and having most of a restaurant in rooms other than the front room.  My table was nice as I could look at a decent sized aquarium and it was quiet.  The server brought me the menu and once again I had the feeling of being insulted.  "She brought me the kids menu, is this like in France where the Parisians mocked us?"  Upon closer inspection, it was just a zany menu with some zany options.  I ordered the Sicilian which had stewed peppers, onions, salami, and a tomato-chili sauce that added heat.  I definitely recommend it.

Oooh, fancy imported Bourbon!  I was feeling a bit homesick, so I purchased a bottle of Jim Beam to help me unwind after I got home.

Before my Seattle trip I realized all my work electronics used Czech power plugs.  Strange asking for a converter for the USA.

 Another co-worker recommendation was Zelena Kocka.  I was promised a new beer to try, good atmosphere and traditional Czech food.  The beer tasted like an IPA and the Czech food was better than the company canteen!  The wait staff was friendly and as attentive as you can get this side of the Danube.  They misunderstood what I was saying and brought me another beer.  No worries.

 So when I first started work and my supervisor asked me how I was adjusting, I complained about the pizza I had tried.  It had garlic, was greasy and made me sick.  He promptly referred me to Pizza Zakki and Pizza Amici.  Pizza Amici is just across the river/stream/creek/slow moving puddle near the dorms and delivers.  I have been mostly happy with what I have ordered and I can place orders online, avoiding the embarrassment of not speaking Czech over the phone.

Behold....3 kinds of pork on pizza:

2 Posts in a day?  I must have a lot on my mind.

Update: Still alive, very busy

So my schedule has gone something like this:

Monday-Friday - Balls to the walls work
Saturday-Sunday - Balls to the walls everything else (including sleeping in)

I might have stated before that I have become the go-to person for documentation and English writing.  Reviewing documents has become what I do when I'm sick of everything else.  Right now everything else has been preparing for a work trip to Seattle for user observations.  Of course when the trip was approved, I was also tasked with an additional usability study and focus group with pilots. Whatever, if it means I get to go somewhere, that's cool.  I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I plan on getting a haircut and buying clothes as soon as I arrive.  I'm already nervous about getting my haircut and the thought of trying to get one in a country where I don't speak the language feels impossible.  As far as the clothes are concerned, I would just rather buy them from a place I'm familiar with.  I guess I'm self conscious about my appearance.

Two weeks ago I was invited by my coworker, David, to come to Tisnov for lunch to meet his family.  His wife and children came down with an illness, but we still managed to have lunch and take a hike around the city.  Although Tisnov is not a tourist destination, it is a nice place situated between two bluffs and is a generally peaceful town.

This is one of the smallest streets in the Czech Republic.  Locals call it "Piss"

The second smallest.  Locals call it "shitty."  These names come from the
fact that it leads from a bar where locals get "pissed" and "shitty."

A nice hike up one of the bluffs

Looking down from the observation tower on top of the bluff.

The following weekend I decided to take a trip to the Moravian Karst- a geographic region just north of Brno which contains steep hills, natural underwater springs, and a labyrinth of caves.  In hindsight, there must have been an easier way than the way I took.  As it was a rather spontaneous trip, I didn't do a lot of research other than looking at train schedules and a brief ocular inspection using Google Earth.  I knew I had to go to the town of Blansko, just 20 minutes north of Brno by train.  I did not know exactly how to reach the caves or anything open to lookie-loo's other than it was all pretty much east of Blansko.  So I arrived and was promptly lost.  Luckily my survival instinct knew I needed water and lunch....and cookies.  A brief stop at Albert satisfied my need for foodstuffs.  They even had citrus wafers; something that sounded strangely good on a warm afternoon.  From Albert I decided that I should go south, as my memory told me all the photo icons on Google Earth were centered southeast of the town.  Soon enough I hit an east-west road and I headed down it (going east).  From there I used the terrain to navigate.  I followed  a stream and a rail line through the woods (there was also a road, another great navigational aid).  I felt like Bear Grylles.....except I didn't drink my own piss.  Along the way I saw what was apparently a manufacturing plant for water turbines and a recycling plant.  Both had the appearance of being crumbling relics of the old communist regime - old, rusty, and functionally oriented.  They clashed nicely with the lush greenery and crystal clear streams.

The walk to anything resembling an area to explore was about 5 miles or 8km.  There wasn't really accommodation for pedestrians alongside the road which was discouraging for someone who didn't really know where they were going, but the occasional bicycler kept my confidence up that I was indeed going somewhere (as opposed to nowhere, where I would likely die of bear attacks, hunger, or hillspeople).  The walk paid off.  I came across a bed and breakfast near a pond with a spectacular backdrop.  Going further into the hills I found the tourist stop where I purchased tickets to something....but that something was 2km further up the road.  I made the additional trek through even more pristine woods and hills and streams until I saw a group of Canadians huddled around a picnic table in front of a building.  I figured I had an hour before whatever event my tickets were valid for so I took a sky tram to the top of the hill.  It overlooked the Macocha Basin, the primary entrance to the cave system below the hills.  The story goes that a woman wanted to re-marry, but had a child (I forget if it was her child or her prospective husband's child).  So she tempted the child into the woods with the pretense of picking berries before she pushed the child off the cliff into the Macocha basin.  The child grabbed onto a brush and called for help.  Eventually some woodsmen came to the rescue and the child spilled the beans.  The townspeople sentenced the woman to death.....by throwing her into the basin.  Believe it or not.

Eventually I made the tour I had purchased, being on the tail end of the Canadian group.  At first I was disappointed, we walked through the caves and a recording played explaining the discovery and folklore associated with the stalactites.  I couldn't really hear anything and I had seen stalactites before, so I was bummed.....until we reached the basin.  It was eye opening for sure.  Coming from the confines of the cave tunnels to 200 meter shear cliffs was impressive.  After snapping as many photos as I could before the Czech tour group came through, we proceed back into the caves where we boarded a boat.  There was no natural lighting and flash photography was prohibited, so I lowered the shutter speed and saw what came out.  The resulting photos made it look like a carnival ride.  Very cool

After the caves I walked back to the tourist area and sat down.  Unfortunately where I sat down was a cafe and somehow I ordered instant  coffee.  No matter, it only cost me 10czk.  I ate my bread and cheese and citrus wafers for lunch then headed back to Blansko.  I had about 2 hours to burn when I arrived so I found a pub and had a couple beers.  This is where I learned that the people of Blansko were not the most accommodating or even happy.  I can't put my finger on it, but everyone I saw was more or less worse for wear and not as lively as the other places I have visited.

Recycling plant.

No idea what this is, but it looked mysterious.

4 miles in I get this view.  Rewarding

Macocha basin

Couldn't hear the commentary for this one, but that's a carrot the
bunny is holding.

I want to sleep here.  So cool and quiet.

Rather like this selfie.

Watch your head!

After receiving several texts this morning at 4am, I was convinced to skype with the Casa de Fehlinger party in Florida.  Like most parties at the Casa, it lead to drinking, and a slight hangover.  That killed any plans I had for Saturday and I stayed in and watched Archer.  Later I ordered a pizza for dinner and accidentally locked myself out of the dorm.  Oops.  Luckily a fellow tenant let me in.

That's all for now.  I kinda want to talk about how the public transportation system needs human factos work, but I think I'll leave that for later.  Leaving for Seattle on Tuesday, hope it'll provide more great photos.  I'm not sure what it'll be like to be back in the states but it will be interesting to see how much I've adapted to life in the Czech Republic in 3 months.  I hope to eat familiar foods and drive a car again (do I remember how?).

Cheers.