Up early today for our trip to The Great Wall!!! We stop along the way for a visit of the Sacred Way (Or the Spirit Way) of the Ming Dynasty Tombs. We did not get to go to the tombs themselves. Only walk the Spirit Way lined with statues shaded by willow trees. It was a good walk. I would have liked to go onto the tombs and see them as well. But, we had a long day ahead of us. After walking along the Spirit Way we were told that we had to cross one of the most dangerous streets of China, and like Moses parting the Red Sea, Peter walked right out into traffic, which he must have used The Force to stop, so that we could cross the street like his brave little ducklings.
We stopped at a jade factory where we were educated on the matters of jade. It was fascinating to see how they could carve a ball with multiple, individual, moving balls within it, all from a single piece of jade. Like many other revered arts in China, there are only a small handful of people in the world that are considered to be true masters in their craft. After the small bit of education we were shown to...wait for it...yup, you guessed it the jade shopping center. After Barb had made eye contact with one of the "helpers" there, she was stalked the entire visit. If any interest was shown in an item, the helper would then pull out the item for you to see, talk about the price, possible upgrades or other alternatives like the item you happened to glance at. We discovered that there is no such thing as "just looking" in China. The prices were actually pretty good and we picked up a couple things that we wanted.
A small stop for lunch at a cloisonne factory (with some education, shopping and of course stalking) gave us a sampling of some fantastic local Chinese food. We even had the opportunity to sample a local liquor that they consider very strong (about 53%) and some of the local beer (Jinling and Tsingtao). Both of the beers were very...uh...light. Fizzy yellow beer, anyone?
After lunch we get to a major attraction of the trip; The Great Wall at Badaling. I will tell you now that Barb and I are going back. We only had a couple hours on the wall. Neither of us thought we had enough time to walk as much as we wanted. We were given the option of the easy way to the right, or the steeper way to the left. The right side has better photo opportunities, but, the left side would have fewer people. Well, on a day where it seemed that all 1.4 billion Chinese people were on the wall, we took the 'fewer people' route. There were still a lot of people on our side. But, you could look across the valley to the other side and see the people parking lot that was there. Others of the group went that way and said that it was just that; a parking lot.
The weather was fantastic. The views were spectacular. And we were standing on the Great Wall of China. We tried to get a bunch of good photos. Speaking of photos, something about Barb and Brett (another guy in our group) had the locals in a tizzy. These two were constantly getting asked to be in photos with the locals. For me it was like walking around Disneyland with Mickey Mouse. I keep getting stopped so visitors could take photos with my companion. Must be some sort of Rock-star quality about those two...
I was happy that we made it to the first major watchtower, where we were afforded some spectacular views, and the wind was so strong it nearly took our breath away.
Now, you may have heard it referred to as the Great Wall of China, but let me tell you my friends...it was the Great Wall of Stairs. And crazy stairs at that. The first step in a series might be four inches in height, the next three steps might be nine inches, then one step that is two inches, and so on, making for a somewhat scary, uncertain footing. At times, I wouldn't have minded having my climbing gear. On the way back down, which was truly dizzying if you looked straight down, Barb and I were holding on to the handrail for dear life, as we watched a young guy bound down the stairs carrying a child, followed shortly by several girls in heels. Barb stared in awe, and I found myself feeling like such a sissy. Apparently, the people of that region have been imparted with a sense of innate fearlessness, or unbelievable stupidity.
With a touch of sadness at not getting to spend another day and a half hiking The Wall, but our heads filled with plans for our next trip out there, we boarded the bus and made our way back to the hotel. We did make a quick detour and drove by the Olympic Village. Got to see The Nest and the Water Cube.
Stopped into the same hotel restaurant and ordered more Chinese food. Once again we were told that they were out of those particular dishes. How the hell can they be out? Hell, Panda Express makes food all damned day..and it tastes better than the dog food we were fed yesterday. Today was better. The food was just this side of OK. We told each other we would not be back to this restaurant. We would head over to the pizza hut across the street if we needed to in order to not eat here.
Friday, October 02, 2009
Thursday, October 01, 2009
Flight of The Foot
So, the trip has already started off...interesting. We got to LAX for our 1:40am flight in plenty of time to make the 9:30pm deadline. However, it seems that this was the time that the Air China counter opened. Not the time it closed. We got checked in and, with almost nobody ahead of us in line, security was a breeze.
When we arrived to claim our seats on the plane, a Chinese man of indeterminate age was seated smack dab in the middle, which was to be my seat, having kindly offered the window seat to Barb. After a few awkward moments he consented to move over to the end. A center seat, on an international flight? Does it get any better than this, you ask. Indeed it does. The aforementioned gentlemen had no concept of personal space whatsoever, which, quite frankly, I had been expecting. What I had not been expecting was the overwhelming odor that emanated from this guy. When we first started smelling it, Barb exclaimed at the unpleasantness (as Barb is wont to do), and puzzled at the rancid putrescence, I told her that it must be the general accumulated foot stink of weary travelers. It wasn't until we'd been on the flight for a while that I realized that it wasn't the stink of many, so much as it was the unbelievably concentrated stink of the single guy next to me. I don't think he has ever washed his feet...ever. Like his mother bought him socks when he was five and he was celebrating fifty years of never taking them off. The air conditioner on the plane didn't work. So, it was warm and stale on the plane...with that foot funk. We have dubbed this gentleman The Foot. The Foot seemed a kind fellow however. He did share his hot tea with me. I just really wish that A) I was awake at that time and B) he would have shared it in a cup instead of my lap.
Not one to scoff at other culture's customs for sharing drink, I managed to restrain myself from cursing outright in the guy's face. Interestingly enough, once perfunctory apologies had been made, The Foot evinced no further concern for what might have been severe burns on my "groinal" region.
The flight had no real in-flight entertainment. The movie that was played during the flight proper was in Chinese on an old projector screen that you couldn't really see unless you were in the middle of the plane and within six rows of the screen. Besides the fact that neither Barb nor I speak Mandarin, our headphone jacks didn't work. At least we had The Foot; the traveling squirrel of Air China. Besides bringing his odor and sharing skills to the table, he also brought everything he owned. He had no less than four pieces of carry on luggage. Not little bag type of carry-ons either. Barely legal sized roll-ons. He proceeded to bring them down between meals and repack them. He had squirreled them all over the cabin.
I know that I keep describing the antics of The Foot. It was our only real entertainment. He apparently liked the plastic dishes that we were served the in flight food on so much that he cleaned them with the handy wipe and packed them away in one of his many bags. He had plenty of dishes to choose from. When the flight attendant would ask which dish we wanted to have for dinner (Pork Rice or Sheep Noodles...what? Sheep Noodles. I had to order them to try them...turned out to be Shrimp Noodles), The Foot talked his way into getting both; for every meal. That odor requires a lot of energy to keep going.
We have finally landed. Unfortunately it's not in Beijing. They have told us why we couldn't land in Beijing. I think the announcements are made in both Mandarin and some sort of English/Mandarin/Greek/Klingon mash-up. We have no idea where we are why we are here. At least we get to sit on the tarmac in the warm, stuffy stink of this plane. Huzzah!!
We finally find someone who speaks Mandarin and English. We have landed in Tianjin, near the coast. We are waiting until the fog lifts from the Beijing airport. It's about a half hour flight once we get the go ahead. All of this information Barb had to know, as if knowing would make the plane less stuffy or would get us there faster. I was wondering if, after finding out what prohibited us from landing in Beijing, Barb might not take it upon herself to remedy the situation. Whereas I was irritated at the situation, Barb was, as usual, totally stirred up about it. After a couple of hours of this torture we land in Beijing airport. We stand there and breathe the fresh air of the exhaust filled tarmac. Anything after The Foot will be fresh for the rest of our lives.
Our temperature is taken and we are scrutinized at immigration. However, I found it easier getting into China my first time than getting into England. Strange. Finding Peter (our national guide) was really very easy. He was holding a flag with the travel agency's logo on it. Then it dawns on me; we are going to be those kinds of tourists. Following a guide with a flag. Oh, the shame. All we needed to complete the look were Hawaiian shirts and cameras. Barb wouldn't let me bring Hawaiian shirts, so with the camera I was halfway there. Well, such is life.
We are told that our schedule has really been shuffled around due to the day we landed. October 1st is China's 4th of July. It's their founding day. They call it National Day. Seems we have arrived on the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Peoples Republic of China. A huge celebration is being planned in Tienanmen Square today and unless you have papers from the Chinese government, you can't get near the place. I was, quite frankly, a little peeved that we were sold a tour package that we can't go on. However, I was assured that we will get to see everything, just on different days.
On the way to our hotel Peter explains that National Day is actually an 8 day celebration for the country. Beijing is being visited by many, many, many people from all over China as well as the rest of the world. We are going to have to share our China time with other people. I had no idea at the time how many people we were talking about...
Traffic...wow. Many of you know that I am usually willing to drive in any country. On the wrong side of the road, manual, automatic, it doesn't bother me. After being driven around on a huge bus and seeing the roads (can't call them rules of the roads, because there are none, which Barb finally clarified with Peter later), I will state now that I have no interest in driving in Beijing. The cars have the right of way, not people. Bicycles and motor scooters are everywhere weaving in and around cars as they make turns. People wander out in to the street and stop knowing (or hoping really) that the car will go careening within inches of their person but not actually hit them. I swear the bus drove so close to some waiting pedestrians that we sheared off nipples. Amazingly enough, no one seems to find any of this out of the ordinary, and people drive like they are on the most important mission of their lives. Having seen the way our driver maneuvered that bus, I'm fairly certain that he's had some form of combat driving training. The bus mirrors are not on the sides of the bus, but rather on the front, which enables them to scoot by within mere inches of each other. Several times, myself and other passengers unconsciously leaned away from the window as if that might prevent our vehicle from parking itself halfway in the other one.
We got to the hotel (a Courtyard by Marriott) that was very central to everything we would want to see and got checked in. The optional tour that day was a trip to the gardens of the Summer Palace and a trip to the Panda House at the Zoo. I had to skip this tour as something I ate or was exposed to (The Foot) had made me pretty ill. Barb and I got into the room and I napped off the sick feeling. The hotel wasn't the one we were supposed to be booked in, as that one was undergoing renovations. It wasn't the best place I've stayed in, but certainly not the worst. The shower was hot and forceful, and the bed was...hard...rock hard...to the point that Barb and I debated whether or not there was a real mattress on the bed. Apparently mattresses come in firm, extra firm, and stone slab.
When I finally awoke, Barb was *ready* for some food. I was apparently starving the poor woman. We wandered down to the hotel restaurant. We were both drawn to the Tandoori Chicken and Curry Lamb, but, decided that it was our first day in China; we ordered Chinese food. The waitress came back several minutes later to inform us that they were out. Out of Chinese food...in China. Huh? So, she suggested a dish to me that was not on the menu. I jumped at the opportunity. Sweet! Something that the cook was going to create special. I wish I would have ordered the hamburger. The dish was not good at all.
Luckily, I was distracted from the horrible food by the amazing fireworks show that was happening for National Day. Let me start by saying WOW! You may already be aware of my apathy towards fireworks. Individual firework shots are really not impressive to me. But the Chinese...imagine a 4th of July finale on steroids. Now imagine that every 20ish minutes. They had fireworks in the shame of doves firing from hotel rooftops down the street symbolizing the dove flying over the city. Huge displays of innumerable fireworks. Just awesome. I couldn't believe the show. We spent the remainder of the evening in the hotel room watching the fireworks on TV and from our window.
When we arrived to claim our seats on the plane, a Chinese man of indeterminate age was seated smack dab in the middle, which was to be my seat, having kindly offered the window seat to Barb. After a few awkward moments he consented to move over to the end. A center seat, on an international flight? Does it get any better than this, you ask. Indeed it does. The aforementioned gentlemen had no concept of personal space whatsoever, which, quite frankly, I had been expecting. What I had not been expecting was the overwhelming odor that emanated from this guy. When we first started smelling it, Barb exclaimed at the unpleasantness (as Barb is wont to do), and puzzled at the rancid putrescence, I told her that it must be the general accumulated foot stink of weary travelers. It wasn't until we'd been on the flight for a while that I realized that it wasn't the stink of many, so much as it was the unbelievably concentrated stink of the single guy next to me. I don't think he has ever washed his feet...ever. Like his mother bought him socks when he was five and he was celebrating fifty years of never taking them off. The air conditioner on the plane didn't work. So, it was warm and stale on the plane...with that foot funk. We have dubbed this gentleman The Foot. The Foot seemed a kind fellow however. He did share his hot tea with me. I just really wish that A) I was awake at that time and B) he would have shared it in a cup instead of my lap.
Not one to scoff at other culture's customs for sharing drink, I managed to restrain myself from cursing outright in the guy's face. Interestingly enough, once perfunctory apologies had been made, The Foot evinced no further concern for what might have been severe burns on my "groinal" region.
The flight had no real in-flight entertainment. The movie that was played during the flight proper was in Chinese on an old projector screen that you couldn't really see unless you were in the middle of the plane and within six rows of the screen. Besides the fact that neither Barb nor I speak Mandarin, our headphone jacks didn't work. At least we had The Foot; the traveling squirrel of Air China. Besides bringing his odor and sharing skills to the table, he also brought everything he owned. He had no less than four pieces of carry on luggage. Not little bag type of carry-ons either. Barely legal sized roll-ons. He proceeded to bring them down between meals and repack them. He had squirreled them all over the cabin.
I know that I keep describing the antics of The Foot. It was our only real entertainment. He apparently liked the plastic dishes that we were served the in flight food on so much that he cleaned them with the handy wipe and packed them away in one of his many bags. He had plenty of dishes to choose from. When the flight attendant would ask which dish we wanted to have for dinner (Pork Rice or Sheep Noodles...what? Sheep Noodles. I had to order them to try them...turned out to be Shrimp Noodles), The Foot talked his way into getting both; for every meal. That odor requires a lot of energy to keep going.
We have finally landed. Unfortunately it's not in Beijing. They have told us why we couldn't land in Beijing. I think the announcements are made in both Mandarin and some sort of English/Mandarin/Greek/Klingon mash-up. We have no idea where we are why we are here. At least we get to sit on the tarmac in the warm, stuffy stink of this plane. Huzzah!!
We finally find someone who speaks Mandarin and English. We have landed in Tianjin, near the coast. We are waiting until the fog lifts from the Beijing airport. It's about a half hour flight once we get the go ahead. All of this information Barb had to know, as if knowing would make the plane less stuffy or would get us there faster. I was wondering if, after finding out what prohibited us from landing in Beijing, Barb might not take it upon herself to remedy the situation. Whereas I was irritated at the situation, Barb was, as usual, totally stirred up about it. After a couple of hours of this torture we land in Beijing airport. We stand there and breathe the fresh air of the exhaust filled tarmac. Anything after The Foot will be fresh for the rest of our lives.
Our temperature is taken and we are scrutinized at immigration. However, I found it easier getting into China my first time than getting into England. Strange. Finding Peter (our national guide) was really very easy. He was holding a flag with the travel agency's logo on it. Then it dawns on me; we are going to be those kinds of tourists. Following a guide with a flag. Oh, the shame. All we needed to complete the look were Hawaiian shirts and cameras. Barb wouldn't let me bring Hawaiian shirts, so with the camera I was halfway there. Well, such is life.
We are told that our schedule has really been shuffled around due to the day we landed. October 1st is China's 4th of July. It's their founding day. They call it National Day. Seems we have arrived on the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Peoples Republic of China. A huge celebration is being planned in Tienanmen Square today and unless you have papers from the Chinese government, you can't get near the place. I was, quite frankly, a little peeved that we were sold a tour package that we can't go on. However, I was assured that we will get to see everything, just on different days.
On the way to our hotel Peter explains that National Day is actually an 8 day celebration for the country. Beijing is being visited by many, many, many people from all over China as well as the rest of the world. We are going to have to share our China time with other people. I had no idea at the time how many people we were talking about...
Traffic...wow. Many of you know that I am usually willing to drive in any country. On the wrong side of the road, manual, automatic, it doesn't bother me. After being driven around on a huge bus and seeing the roads (can't call them rules of the roads, because there are none, which Barb finally clarified with Peter later), I will state now that I have no interest in driving in Beijing. The cars have the right of way, not people. Bicycles and motor scooters are everywhere weaving in and around cars as they make turns. People wander out in to the street and stop knowing (or hoping really) that the car will go careening within inches of their person but not actually hit them. I swear the bus drove so close to some waiting pedestrians that we sheared off nipples. Amazingly enough, no one seems to find any of this out of the ordinary, and people drive like they are on the most important mission of their lives. Having seen the way our driver maneuvered that bus, I'm fairly certain that he's had some form of combat driving training. The bus mirrors are not on the sides of the bus, but rather on the front, which enables them to scoot by within mere inches of each other. Several times, myself and other passengers unconsciously leaned away from the window as if that might prevent our vehicle from parking itself halfway in the other one.
We got to the hotel (a Courtyard by Marriott) that was very central to everything we would want to see and got checked in. The optional tour that day was a trip to the gardens of the Summer Palace and a trip to the Panda House at the Zoo. I had to skip this tour as something I ate or was exposed to (The Foot) had made me pretty ill. Barb and I got into the room and I napped off the sick feeling. The hotel wasn't the one we were supposed to be booked in, as that one was undergoing renovations. It wasn't the best place I've stayed in, but certainly not the worst. The shower was hot and forceful, and the bed was...hard...rock hard...to the point that Barb and I debated whether or not there was a real mattress on the bed. Apparently mattresses come in firm, extra firm, and stone slab.
When I finally awoke, Barb was *ready* for some food. I was apparently starving the poor woman. We wandered down to the hotel restaurant. We were both drawn to the Tandoori Chicken and Curry Lamb, but, decided that it was our first day in China; we ordered Chinese food. The waitress came back several minutes later to inform us that they were out. Out of Chinese food...in China. Huh? So, she suggested a dish to me that was not on the menu. I jumped at the opportunity. Sweet! Something that the cook was going to create special. I wish I would have ordered the hamburger. The dish was not good at all.
Luckily, I was distracted from the horrible food by the amazing fireworks show that was happening for National Day. Let me start by saying WOW! You may already be aware of my apathy towards fireworks. Individual firework shots are really not impressive to me. But the Chinese...imagine a 4th of July finale on steroids. Now imagine that every 20ish minutes. They had fireworks in the shame of doves firing from hotel rooftops down the street symbolizing the dove flying over the city. Huge displays of innumerable fireworks. Just awesome. I couldn't believe the show. We spent the remainder of the evening in the hotel room watching the fireworks on TV and from our window.
Chinese Prologue
What the H, E, double hockey sticks, I hear you asking. I know. I was supposed to keep everyone updated on the trip *during* the trip. Well, Wi-Fi is not so ubiquitous over in China. Data roaming charges would have cost me the same as a round trip flight to China and I didn't have much free time to locate an internet cafe in each city. So, I will post the updates now that we're home. I will back date the postings so that they match to the proper day. This way they will make sense to me later if I need to go back to them.
Note: All posts from the trip to China are written by both The Barb and I. I write them and then she goes over them to add in stuff I've forgotten already :). Occasionally, she changes some of the copy that she finds too silly.
Note: All posts from the trip to China are written by both The Barb and I. I write them and then she goes over them to add in stuff I've forgotten already :). Occasionally, she changes some of the copy that she finds too silly.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
And we're off
So, Barbara and I are officially on our way to China (really, we are
in the car driving up to LAX as this is posted). Any blog postings
done during that time will be done from my iPhone. No, we are not
bring a computer. So, please forgive any typing/spelling/gramatical
erors made on this infernal device. If the content is not to your
liking, I blame that on the iPhone as well. The writing was so much
better in my head. Seriously. I am talking Pulitzer prize winning
stuff here.
in the car driving up to LAX as this is posted). Any blog postings
done during that time will be done from my iPhone. No, we are not
bring a computer. So, please forgive any typing/spelling/gramatical
erors made on this infernal device. If the content is not to your
liking, I blame that on the iPhone as well. The writing was so much
better in my head. Seriously. I am talking Pulitzer prize winning
stuff here.
There will be plenty of pictures to be had...eventually. I have 10Gb
worth of space to fill. Those of you who have been around my camera
and I know that I can fill that up ;). But, it should give us space
for about 2400 pictures. There will not be a mandatory slide show at
the end of the trip. We will try to get a good smattering of photos posted to the Photo Site when we get back. Hopefully, I coded that link correctly. If not the link is available on the right sidebar.
I can't describe how excited we are.
Edited photo link
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Asia Bound
Barbara and I have been looking into taking a vacation. I'm getting paid out on my vacation and we figured that we would go somewhere and have a good time. At first it looked like we were going to Jamaica. But, the agent we were dealing with moved the price up and up. In the end, it became more than we really wanted to spend.
After that, I had her convinced to head down to Mexico to the Barcelo Maya resort. I spent 11 days down there diving and having fun in the sun a couple years ago. I would go back there in a heartbeat. However, then the swine flu hit. Bah! I figured that we could get a heck of a deal on the resort if everyone else is pulling out of their vacation. Well, many of the vacation packages were canceling their flights. So, back to the drawing board.
I spent a bit of time looking at various places in Europe. Italy, Spain or France were all on the list. However, while reading through the many different blogs that I read, I ran across an interesting offer. I found a trip to China that was within our vacation budget. Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai. I forwarded the link to Barbara just to get an initial reaction from her. Needless to say, it was positive.
So, after discussing it with her over dinner, the decision was made. The next day the deal was struck. So, at the end of September, Barbara and I fly to China to visit the Great Wall!!
After that, I had her convinced to head down to Mexico to the Barcelo Maya resort. I spent 11 days down there diving and having fun in the sun a couple years ago. I would go back there in a heartbeat. However, then the swine flu hit. Bah! I figured that we could get a heck of a deal on the resort if everyone else is pulling out of their vacation. Well, many of the vacation packages were canceling their flights. So, back to the drawing board.
I spent a bit of time looking at various places in Europe. Italy, Spain or France were all on the list. However, while reading through the many different blogs that I read, I ran across an interesting offer. I found a trip to China that was within our vacation budget. Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai. I forwarded the link to Barbara just to get an initial reaction from her. Needless to say, it was positive.
So, after discussing it with her over dinner, the decision was made. The next day the deal was struck. So, at the end of September, Barbara and I fly to China to visit the Great Wall!!
Saturday, April 11, 2009
All Seven Continents
Progress 4/7
We all have at least one continent complete. North America was an easy one for me. The second one, Australia, was taken care of back in 1999 while I worked for SalePoint. Last year, Ashworth sent me to the UK giving me my third, Europe. The plan as it currently is will pick up Africa (Egypt) and Asia (Turkey and China) sometime late 2011. That leaves South America (World Cup games in 2014 hopefully) and Antarctica (no real date pending).
Although, if Barbara has this on her list (and I know she will) we will be hitting Europe and Australia to clear those for her. Shouldn't be too hard while taking care of other goals :). Can't really dive the Great Barrier Reef if you don't go down to Australia. I won't even give an example of the Europe requirement.
- Africa
- Antarctica
- Asia
- Australia
- Europe
- North America
- South America
We all have at least one continent complete. North America was an easy one for me. The second one, Australia, was taken care of back in 1999 while I worked for SalePoint. Last year, Ashworth sent me to the UK giving me my third, Europe. The plan as it currently is will pick up Africa (Egypt) and Asia (Turkey and China) sometime late 2011. That leaves South America (World Cup games in 2014 hopefully) and Antarctica (no real date pending).
Although, if Barbara has this on her list (and I know she will) we will be hitting Europe and Australia to clear those for her. Shouldn't be too hard while taking care of other goals :). Can't really dive the Great Barrier Reef if you don't go down to Australia. I won't even give an example of the Europe requirement.
Edit 2010-Feb-11: Added list of continents and scratched off Asia
Edit 2010-Feb-23: Updated to 4/7
Sunday, March 29, 2009
New Phone Plan
I broke down and did it. Never thought I would really. I had planned on getting a pair of Blackberry phones for Barbara and I. We are now on a shared phone plan. But, that was the plan. It wasn't what was unexpected. What was unexpected was the two of us walking out with iPhones. Yeah. iPhones. We both played with the Blackberries. We also played around with the iPhones. I started messing around with them just because. I had no real intention of actually getting them. However, the ease of use and the flexibility of the device won me over. Same price as well. The Blackberry Curve was $199...with $100 mail in rebate, which I would probably end up either never sending in or getting screwed out of for some reason. The iPhones were also $199. No rebate. The data service price was the same for either device. Barb loved the iPhone and didn't have many nice things to say about the Blackberry. I like the Blackberry, however, and carried one for almost a year. Did everything I needed at the time. But, I felt that the iPhone had more flexibility and expandability. It seemed more like a small application platform that just happens to have a phone app on it.
I'm still getting used to typing messages on the infernal device though...
I'm still getting used to typing messages on the infernal device though...
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Snow Camping on the PCT
Several weeks ago I got invited on a hiking trip with Jacob, a friend of Barb's...Yes, I know that I should have posted earlier. Bite me! I've been busy. I was told that we were going to summit San Jacinto. It's been too long since I've been out and I was free that weekend so, what the hell! I'm in. I was later updated that the itinerary had changed and that we'd actually be hiking part of the PCT north of Lake Arrowhead. I had never been up there, so again, what the hell! I'm in. I went and picked up a couple items from REI that I would need. The biggest piece being a decent topo map...which I have still yet to find. I'm going to have to breakdown and buy the National Geographic topography software so I can print my own maps when nobody provides them.
Pat was decent enough to lend me the use of his JetBoil system so that I could eat. That's one piece of gear that I have yet to pick up. The other crews have that covered. Both Pat and Trent have JetBoils. Rich has a stove (don't quite remember which one). I've never really needed to get one. It would be redundant. I supply the water purification. At any rate...I borrowed Pat's stove.
This was going to be winter backpacking; snow and cold. I got some snowshoes rented from NomadVentures here in Escondido that Barb was good enough to pick up for me. REI was sold out of snow shovels. But, I figured that someone on this crew would have one (Sure enough, there were 3 shovels among the 6 of us). I went through my pile of gear and chose items that would keep me warm and comfortable. Got everything into the pack and then pulled everything back out. Filled the water containers and reviewed everything. If I couldn't convince myself that any piece was *required* to be in the pack, it went back into the storage container.
Saturday Morning, Jacob picks me up and we head off to rendezvous with the rest of the crew. Six in all; Myself, Jacob, Chad, Shawn, Matt & John. Good guys, all of them. There are some strong friendships in that group. They seem to have been together for quite some time. We transfer Chad into Jacob's Jeep and we start the 2 car caravan to the trail head.
We stop at a service station at the base of the mountain to make one final "rest stop" with ready facilities ("Facilities be damned, I gotta use the bathroom" -Max). There are signs posed on each pump stating that they are out of gas and diesel. Jacob, Chad and I go into the store to pick up some energy drinks and find out that they are out of change...not much service to be had in this service station. No gas, no diesel, no change. We don't need gas and a couple of the guys get good deals on their tasty beverages because the lady behind the counter has no change. With that done we head up the mountain.
We get to the point of the road in which "normal" vehicles are encouraged to stay out of. It's a mile drive from here to the trail head parking. We figured that we have a jeep that we can ferry the six of us and gear down the hill and park the jeep there. That way the hike doesn't end with a grueling uphill, ice/snow covered death march. I'm in the first shuttle down. I'm white knuckled the entire way down as we're slipping and sliding all over the place. Seems that Jacob wasn't especially thrilled with the experience either, as the second shuttle never arrived. Instead, the remaining members geared up and hiked down to us. Looks like the death march awaits me at the end.
I enjoy hiking. I really do. I do not, however, enjoy snow hiking. It's a pain in the legs (thought I was going to say something else, huh?) to constantly sink down in the snow. We hiked for several miles this way...with snowshoes strapped to our packs. I know what your thinking. No need to call me an idiot. I know all about that fact. You see, I guess most of us, being novice snow-shoe'ers, were waiting for the lead hiker to put *his* shoes on. So, when we finally complained about sinking into the snow during this hike, we said screw it and put on the shoes. At that point we also agreed to hike back a bit to a nice flat area between two streams that would make a decent campground.
There was a fire that had ravaged the area some time ago. So, with the white snowy ground everywhere and the black, limbless trees, the area that we were hiking through reminded me of an Ansel Adams portrait. It was still fairly beautiful. The open outdoors. As long as you didn't look back in one specific direction (towards some sort of resort), there was nothing man made around us.
In the middle of the night I found that my Thermarest pad gave up the ghost. So, I lost the small amount of cushion-like comfort that it provided. Eh, I can deal with that. However, I also lost it's insulation value. That made me sleeping almost straight onto the snow. That, my friends, sucked. I spent the restless night sleeping rotisserie style. I slept on my side until that got too cold. Then I switched to my back until it got to cold. Then to my other side. And so on and so on.
I did learn several things on this hike. The big one was that water resistant is not waterproof. I had thought that my boots were the later. Apparently not. They are good boots. I've gone all over with them. However, never again will they go into the snow with me.
On the way out we came upon a guy in a brand new Ford Explorer (just down the road that encouraged "normal" vehicles to stay out) who was stuck in the snow. We helped (OK, the other guys helped. They were almost done by the time I got there) him get dug out and pushed back some to get grip for his tires. I think he now knows that he has one of those "normal" vehicles that shouldn't leave asphalt and concrete.
We grabbed some Mexican food in Lake Arrowhead Village and headed off for home. All in all, a good trip.
Pat was decent enough to lend me the use of his JetBoil system so that I could eat. That's one piece of gear that I have yet to pick up. The other crews have that covered. Both Pat and Trent have JetBoils. Rich has a stove (don't quite remember which one). I've never really needed to get one. It would be redundant. I supply the water purification. At any rate...I borrowed Pat's stove.
This was going to be winter backpacking; snow and cold. I got some snowshoes rented from NomadVentures here in Escondido that Barb was good enough to pick up for me. REI was sold out of snow shovels. But, I figured that someone on this crew would have one (Sure enough, there were 3 shovels among the 6 of us). I went through my pile of gear and chose items that would keep me warm and comfortable. Got everything into the pack and then pulled everything back out. Filled the water containers and reviewed everything. If I couldn't convince myself that any piece was *required* to be in the pack, it went back into the storage container.
Saturday Morning, Jacob picks me up and we head off to rendezvous with the rest of the crew. Six in all; Myself, Jacob, Chad, Shawn, Matt & John. Good guys, all of them. There are some strong friendships in that group. They seem to have been together for quite some time. We transfer Chad into Jacob's Jeep and we start the 2 car caravan to the trail head.
We stop at a service station at the base of the mountain to make one final "rest stop" with ready facilities ("Facilities be damned, I gotta use the bathroom" -Max). There are signs posed on each pump stating that they are out of gas and diesel. Jacob, Chad and I go into the store to pick up some energy drinks and find out that they are out of change...not much service to be had in this service station. No gas, no diesel, no change. We don't need gas and a couple of the guys get good deals on their tasty beverages because the lady behind the counter has no change. With that done we head up the mountain.
We get to the point of the road in which "normal" vehicles are encouraged to stay out of. It's a mile drive from here to the trail head parking. We figured that we have a jeep that we can ferry the six of us and gear down the hill and park the jeep there. That way the hike doesn't end with a grueling uphill, ice/snow covered death march. I'm in the first shuttle down. I'm white knuckled the entire way down as we're slipping and sliding all over the place. Seems that Jacob wasn't especially thrilled with the experience either, as the second shuttle never arrived. Instead, the remaining members geared up and hiked down to us. Looks like the death march awaits me at the end.
I enjoy hiking. I really do. I do not, however, enjoy snow hiking. It's a pain in the legs (thought I was going to say something else, huh?) to constantly sink down in the snow. We hiked for several miles this way...with snowshoes strapped to our packs. I know what your thinking. No need to call me an idiot. I know all about that fact. You see, I guess most of us, being novice snow-shoe'ers, were waiting for the lead hiker to put *his* shoes on. So, when we finally complained about sinking into the snow during this hike, we said screw it and put on the shoes. At that point we also agreed to hike back a bit to a nice flat area between two streams that would make a decent campground.
There was a fire that had ravaged the area some time ago. So, with the white snowy ground everywhere and the black, limbless trees, the area that we were hiking through reminded me of an Ansel Adams portrait. It was still fairly beautiful. The open outdoors. As long as you didn't look back in one specific direction (towards some sort of resort), there was nothing man made around us.
In the middle of the night I found that my Thermarest pad gave up the ghost. So, I lost the small amount of cushion-like comfort that it provided. Eh, I can deal with that. However, I also lost it's insulation value. That made me sleeping almost straight onto the snow. That, my friends, sucked. I spent the restless night sleeping rotisserie style. I slept on my side until that got too cold. Then I switched to my back until it got to cold. Then to my other side. And so on and so on.
I did learn several things on this hike. The big one was that water resistant is not waterproof. I had thought that my boots were the later. Apparently not. They are good boots. I've gone all over with them. However, never again will they go into the snow with me.
On the way out we came upon a guy in a brand new Ford Explorer (just down the road that encouraged "normal" vehicles to stay out) who was stuck in the snow. We helped (OK, the other guys helped. They were almost done by the time I got there) him get dug out and pushed back some to get grip for his tires. I think he now knows that he has one of those "normal" vehicles that shouldn't leave asphalt and concrete.
We grabbed some Mexican food in Lake Arrowhead Village and headed off for home. All in all, a good trip.
Monday, February 02, 2009
Updates both good and bad
So, here I am sitting at home surfing the interwebs. Why not spend a bit of my time updating you on what has been going on in my life? First, the company that I work for, Ashworth, has been sold. Yup. Who would have thought that during a time of economic upheaval, the affluent people of our nation would stop spending their hardly earned money on expensive golf apparel. Sure, it's high quality. Number one brand in golf apparel for a decade or so. Can't argue with that. But, the stuff is not cheap. So, the end result is we are purchased by a larger company: TaylorMade. They in turn are owned by Adidas. Yeah, the soccer company. It's big. Really big. HUGE, I say! Fantastic, you comment! Not so much, I reply. Why, you ask?...seriously, this was how the conversation between you and I went... Well, I had thought that TaylorMade was buying the Ashworth company when in turn it really was buying the label. They decided that it has it's own way of doing things and that it would not be moving forward with my beloved iSeries (AS/400, eServer series i, or whatever IBM is butchering it's name to be nowadays). I understand that. I am, of course, really bummed out by that. But, I understand that. The last thing that they need is yet another computer system. So, I've been given notice. I have been retained for some time to aid in the transition between systems. Such is life. We roll with the punches.
This kind of bad news may keep a lesser man down. Place him in the doldrums. Not me. I would not let this kind of thing steer me off of my path. I had a plan, ladies and gentlemen. I had spent several months working on this plan. Secrecy and subterfuge were key to this plan. And on January 22nd of this year, the plan *SPRUNG* into action. I asked Barbara for her hand in marriage. To nobody's surprise, she said yes. Why do I say it like that? Because she's been introducing me to people saying things such as "I'd like you to meet Kevin. He's the man I'm going to marry". I still wanted her to be surprised when the question was brought up. The 22nd was her birthday and I've been telling her that there was no way in hell I would ask her on that day. Well, I did. I love her dearly and she will be mine. Oh yes! She will be mine. So, mark the day on your calender boys and girls. That date would be; sometime in the fall of 2011.
I know what you're thinking. 2011? Isn't that a bit far out there? Why, yes, it is. How very astute of you to notice that. You see, Barb and I have already planned what we would want to do for our honeymoon. It really isn't going to be cheap. So, I need time to save up for it. What was that? You want to know what the plan is? Okie dokie, here is the basics of the plan: First we fly to Cairo, Egypt. We take some time to see the sites of ancient Egypt and experience not so ancient Egypt. From there we fly ourselves to Istanbul (not Constantinople), Turkey. We may make a stop off in Nepal for me. Not sure if that will come to pass, however. From there we head on over to Beijing, China for the Great Wall, Forbidden City, etc. We'll take a small detour to Xian to see the Terracotta Army. Maybe a stop off in Hong Kong. I've had several people say that if you're flying through the area, it would be a shame to miss out on this city. Then back home. Yup, two airline tickets. Round-trip? Nope! No need. We'll be going Round-The-World, baby! So, yeah, gonna need a bit of time to save up for the trip.
There you go. A couple of updates. One good, one bad. However, with the bad always comes the good. I try to see bad situations as opportunities in disguise. Even when they take my fancy coffee machine away from me...the bastages!
This kind of bad news may keep a lesser man down. Place him in the doldrums. Not me. I would not let this kind of thing steer me off of my path. I had a plan, ladies and gentlemen. I had spent several months working on this plan. Secrecy and subterfuge were key to this plan. And on January 22nd of this year, the plan *SPRUNG* into action. I asked Barbara for her hand in marriage. To nobody's surprise, she said yes. Why do I say it like that? Because she's been introducing me to people saying things such as "I'd like you to meet Kevin. He's the man I'm going to marry". I still wanted her to be surprised when the question was brought up. The 22nd was her birthday and I've been telling her that there was no way in hell I would ask her on that day. Well, I did. I love her dearly and she will be mine. Oh yes! She will be mine. So, mark the day on your calender boys and girls. That date would be; sometime in the fall of 2011.
I know what you're thinking. 2011? Isn't that a bit far out there? Why, yes, it is. How very astute of you to notice that. You see, Barb and I have already planned what we would want to do for our honeymoon. It really isn't going to be cheap. So, I need time to save up for it. What was that? You want to know what the plan is? Okie dokie, here is the basics of the plan: First we fly to Cairo, Egypt. We take some time to see the sites of ancient Egypt and experience not so ancient Egypt. From there we fly ourselves to Istanbul (not Constantinople), Turkey. We may make a stop off in Nepal for me. Not sure if that will come to pass, however. From there we head on over to Beijing, China for the Great Wall, Forbidden City, etc. We'll take a small detour to Xian to see the Terracotta Army. Maybe a stop off in Hong Kong. I've had several people say that if you're flying through the area, it would be a shame to miss out on this city. Then back home. Yup, two airline tickets. Round-trip? Nope! No need. We'll be going Round-The-World, baby! So, yeah, gonna need a bit of time to save up for the trip.
There you go. A couple of updates. One good, one bad. However, with the bad always comes the good. I try to see bad situations as opportunities in disguise. Even when they take my fancy coffee machine away from me...the bastages!
Friday, January 09, 2009
Life Goals
So I was reading some of the many blogs that I follow and decided that it was about time to implement some of the ideas that I had gleaned. I keep getting these ideas that I like and then collect them without ever putting them to work for me. Pathetic, I know. One of those ideas is the life goals list. Choose 100 things you'd like to do, experience, visit, photograph, etc. within your life. For those of you who've seen The Bucket List, it's little bit like that.
I figured, I could do that. So, I promptly sat down to write out a list of 100 things I'd like to do. I'm a fairly adventurous guy. This should be pretty easy. I got somewhere in the 50's and drew a blank. I had to think about all the things that I've wanted over the years that I couldn't think of now. I have finally completed the list. I'm still going over it seeing if there are things that need replacing with others. I actually came up with about 110 items. I've removed some of them as they were not as "important" as the ones on the list. I'm actually down to 102...I felt like over-achieving today.
There were so many others that I wanted to put on the list. Things I'd like to do...again. But, I had done them in the past. Some examples; revisit Paris and Chichen Itza, Dive off the coast of Cozumel, Attend the Sundance Film Festival, summit Mt. Whitney, see Stonehenge...the list goes on. I just had a hard time putting them on the list even though I'll be doing them all again to share them with Barbara. Each of them being just a little better this time because she'll be right there with me. Those of you who are now having an allergic reaction to romantic-speak may go vomit, I'll wait for you.
A couple of the ideas that came to me to place on the list I was a little shocked by. Things I never would have thought I would do. Like 'Compete in a Triathlon'. My fingers typed it as one of the items and I thought "Huh? Where the hell did that come from". But, why not? Why not indeed! I'm fully capable of doing that. So, that goal remains.
Now that the goals are spelled out, now is the time for planning. Put something into action. I'm not getting any younger!
Here's the current list (in the future, it will be on the right sidebar with any updates linked from there). I do reserve the right to modify this in the future as I see fit. It's in my contract :).
So...what's on your list?
I figured, I could do that. So, I promptly sat down to write out a list of 100 things I'd like to do. I'm a fairly adventurous guy. This should be pretty easy. I got somewhere in the 50's and drew a blank. I had to think about all the things that I've wanted over the years that I couldn't think of now. I have finally completed the list. I'm still going over it seeing if there are things that need replacing with others. I actually came up with about 110 items. I've removed some of them as they were not as "important" as the ones on the list. I'm actually down to 102...I felt like over-achieving today.
There were so many others that I wanted to put on the list. Things I'd like to do...again. But, I had done them in the past. Some examples; revisit Paris and Chichen Itza, Dive off the coast of Cozumel, Attend the Sundance Film Festival, summit Mt. Whitney, see Stonehenge...the list goes on. I just had a hard time putting them on the list even though I'll be doing them all again to share them with Barbara. Each of them being just a little better this time because she'll be right there with me. Those of you who are now having an allergic reaction to romantic-speak may go vomit, I'll wait for you.
A couple of the ideas that came to me to place on the list I was a little shocked by. Things I never would have thought I would do. Like 'Compete in a Triathlon'. My fingers typed it as one of the items and I thought "Huh? Where the hell did that come from". But, why not? Why not indeed! I'm fully capable of doing that. So, that goal remains.
Now that the goals are spelled out, now is the time for planning. Put something into action. I'm not getting any younger!
Here's the current list (in the future, it will be on the right sidebar with any updates linked from there). I do reserve the right to modify this in the future as I see fit. It's in my contract :).
- Dive the Great Barrier Reef in Australia
- Visit Uluru
- See the Tree of Life in Bahrain
- Drink lambic in Belgium
- Attend Carnival in Rio
- See Christ the Redeemer
- Take a ride down the amazon (not all of it, of course)
- See Ankor Wat
- Visit Easter Island
- See the Forbidden City
- Stand on The Great Wall
- See the Terracotta Army
- Cruise the Nile
- See the Pyramids
- See the Sphinx
- Attend the Cannes Film Festival
- Experience Oktoberfest in Munich
- Visit the Parthenon
- Brew mead at home
- Climb a 5.11 route
- Compete in a Triathlon
- Complete 100 push up challenge
- Construct a mandolin
- Construct a violin
- Create an oil painting that I would hang up
- Drink bottle of 100-point wine with friends
- Drink bottle of Dom Perignon with friends
- Finally get my tattoo
- Finish the guitar
- Give $1000 to a charity anonymously
- Join Toastmasters
- Lead climb a 5.9 route
- Marry my dearest love
- Play a duet with Kira
- Ride in hot air balloon
- Run a half marathon
- See every Oscar winning movie
- Skydive with solo free-fall
- Speak a second language
- Visit the Taj Mahal
- Drink Guinness in Ireland
- Tour the Coliseum
- Dive Christ of the Abyss
- See the Leaning Tower of Pisa
- See the Sistine Chapel
- Visit Vatican City
- See the Kiyomizu Temple
- Photograph and summit Mt. Fuji
- Stay in a coffin motel in Japan
- See Petra in Jordan
- Visit Mt. Everest base camp
- Trek in the Himalayas
- Dive Palau
- Cruise through Panama Canal
- Tour Machu Pichu
- Photograph some specific animals in the wild
- Stand in Red Square
- See St Basil's Cathedral
- Ride on the Transsiberian Railway
- See Loch Ness
- See/Climb? Table Mountain
- Bull Run (Watch or Participate?)
- Several Live Sporting Events
- See the Swiss Alps
- Climb Kilimanjaro
- Photo Safari in Serengeti
- Visit the Hagia Sophia
- See the Blue Mosque
- Buy a rug from a Turkish rug merchant
- Dive with manta rays
- Dive with whale sharks
- See an iceberg
- See the Aurora Borealis
- Watch a WorldCup game live
- Watch an Olympic event live
- Experience Weightless Flight
- Bluegrass Festival Virginia or Kentucky
- Visit Bryce Canyon National Park
- Climb 14 US 14ers
- Drive Route 66
- Visit Glacier National Park
- Visit the Grand Canyon
- Visit Great Teton National Park
- Hike the JMT
- Hike up Half Dome
- See the Lincoln Monument
- Experience Mardi Gras
- See Mount Rushmore
- Experience New Years Eve in Times Square
- Visit/Climb the Statue of Liberty
- Stay in Jules' Undersea Lodge
- View a shuttle launch in person
- Visit all fifty state capitals
- See the Washington Monument
- Visit Yellowstone National Park
- Visit Zion National Park
- See Angel Falls
- Experience a Gondola ride in Venice
- Visit all 7 continents
- Visit the North Pole
- Swim in Jellyfish lake
- See Victoria Falls
So...what's on your list?
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