Far East Cynic

The S.O. dragged me 447km round trip yesterday to buy a cast iron dutch oven.  Don't even ask how much it cost.

On the plus side she seems to have re-learned the idea of gratitude sex-for now. We will see how long it lasts.

In the mean time here are some more Spain pictures. Click on them to see properly and in a larger view.

This was the old castle the Hapsburgs used in the 15 and 1600 hundreds. Easily accessible by bus from Madrid-that's what we took. It is known as El Escorial.

More pictures below:

It had a beautiful Basilica inside-but of course, no pictures were allowed.

Some pictures from the gardens:

One of the things that surprised me about Madrid was the geography-it was much more hilly than I expected. I guess I had envisioned it as flat.

I kind of think I now understand why Hemingway liked Spain. It is France without the stuck up attitudes of the French.

Regardless-I really enjoyed my trip to Madrid. Surprisingly, the city was very clean, the subways worked much better than those here in Stuttgart, and the wine and food were simply marvelous. The down side of course being, that to eat the food, you had to wait till 8:30 PM or later. I was fine with that-the S.O., not so much. Rather than adapt, she thought she could bend the city to her will. As a result I got to be witness to a few episodes of "the ugly Nihonjin". Suffice it to say, it wasn't pretty and I wanted to go hide in a corner. But, of course, I couldn't do that-I had to pay the bill.

Nonetheless the architecture in the city is marvelous. Below you can see some examples of it. In many ways the city looks like Paris-and why not? considering the lineage of the King is from France. ( Yes its true. The Hapsburgs lost the toss and France has influenced Spain ever since. If they could not win by invading-as Napoleon found out-they just influenced the monarchy. ( click on all the pictures to see them as they should be)

Taken in front of the Teatro Real.

And of course there is the Royal Palace:

Let's not forget the parks:

And the music in the parks:

How a Mariachi Band ends up in a Madrid Park is beyond me. But they had a cute looking lady singer:

More to follow in three subsequent posts.

Those frequent flier miles are not going to earn themselves you know.

And since my erstwhile employer is not cooperating by providing me with the kind of travel I both need and should have as a job perk-I guess I will have to do it myself. So its on a plane today to the heart of Spain. I really don't have the money to do this right now-and the timing is not the best. But its March 27th, there is still snow on the ground and people are watching Charles Krauthammer be stupid.  ( I realize using the name Krauthammer and "stupid" in the same sentence is repetitive-but its a great example of how really deluded a certain segment of the American population is.)

So I need a break.

Pictures to follow if I can my laptop to work right.

Hasta la vista baby!

The S.O. and I had to take separate flights home. She was on Lufthansa and I was on United.   I figured the S.O. would have had the better deal on Lufthansa-but as is typical for her, she found a way to fuck it up. She came into Frankfurt complaining about everything. The flight, the people sitting next to her, the seat, and the fact that it was snowing in Stuttgart and we had to take the train. It took every bit of restraint I had not throw my coffee on her while we were waiting at Starbucks. I've heard this type of whining many times before. I have long grown tired of it. If you don't like traveling then why do you ask to go? Certainly I would have had a better time had she not come along-but that seems increasingly to be the case. The only real blessing was that by the time we got home she was tired-and so I got some rare hours of time alone to myself.

Tomorrow is a work day-and the snow is still coming steadily down. The journey to work tomorrow will probably be most interesting, to say the least.

As for my flight-well United proved yet again that it sets low standards and then fails to meet them. Under the scowl of the S.O. I pre-charged with a couple of beers in the lounge-this to avoid the 6 dollar beers if I could. Like I have said countless times before-the nickle and diming of passengers is a disgrace-just charge 20 bucks more and serve drinks for free. American Air Carriers truly suck-in terms of service. I will be looking forward to traveling on the foreign based carriers when I begin my travel schedule after the first of the year. I only need 100K more miles to be a million miler, so that is one of my goals for 2013. Don't think I will make it-but I am going to try.

I did some reading on the trip. I finished Tom Ricks book, The Generals. My office mate really liked it-I am more ambivelant about the work. I agree with Ricks central point that America's flag leadership is sorely lacking in the traits needed to be successful. What I don't agree with him on is the reasons why this is-or how to cure it. I will write a more detailed review this week.

For now though, its time to cry myself to sleep and dream of better days. 

And we are back. After our day in Zurich-we stayed in a hotel and then got up the next morning and drove to Interlaken. Which was a great drive-albeit taxing as it went over the mountains. But then down to the lakes and we got to see some great scenery.

We stopped and had lunch in the town of Interlaken-then went further SW towards the town of Tun-along the Thunsee.

This town is 20 Km west of Thun.

A closer view:

On the way back over, going over the mountains-we decided to stop at a scenic overlook. As I stopped the car and got out-in one of those uniquely embarrassing moments for both involved-I stepped out of the car and looked over the top of the car back into the woods. As luck would have it, a female pair of eyes, attached to a body in the squatting position, having thought herself concealed well enough, gazed directly back at me. I quickly averted my glance and snuffled a well deserved snicker or two. Unfortunately, the SO also caught a glimpse-and in a move that surprised me-expressed some level of disgust. Not wishing to compound on embarrassment I told her in Japanese ( which I assumed the lady peeing would not understand), "when you have to go, you have to go." She still was not amused. She is becoming more and more of a prude as she ages-much to my own chagrin and disgust-since mentally, I am moving in the opposite direction.

Her boyfriend-obviously not in as much urgency, comes out of the deep woods-having taken the time to give himself more concealment. We by that time had crossed the road and took in the view-hoping that they would get in the car soon and leave, thus ending an embarrassing situation for all concerned. We puttered about taking pictures of the Obersee:

The Obersee has a lot to see-including what appeared to be a tram on the other side:.

After shooting some more pictures-it was back into the car and back to Zurich. What amazed me-was how docile the drivers were-it was nothing like being in Germany where Porsches and Mercedes run down in the left lane in a heart beat. On the A4 towards Zurich, the cars all stayed at the posted speed limit which fluctuated between 80, 100 and 120 km/h. I got the distinct impression more people took the train. Then again-it might have something to do with the huge traffic fines.

One of other thing we noticed-Zurich is not cheap. Dinner even in a modest restaurant could set you back 50 bucks-and that is with only one beer. The other thing that drove the SO nuts was the amount of Chinese women she saw. Not women who were tourists-although there were plenty of those-but rather, women who were well dressed and gave the appearance of living there. I tried vainly to remind her that China has money and a lot of it flows through Zurich on the way to points beyond, like Africa. She never grasped that-probably because she still can't accept the fact that China has passed Japan's economy.

Perhaps I should return alone. It looked like it had potential.

Got up this morning and the S.O. and I drove to Zurich. It's interesting what happens along the way. Driving down the autobahn to Singen-Porsches and Mercedes will run you down at 180KM per hour. As soon as you cross the Swiss border-everyone moves along at a much more timid 120 and 100. Probably has something to do with those 500 Euro fines for speeding. Its really amazing to watch.

After arrving here-we went out exploring.

The Main Station in Zurich.

Then its down Bahnhofstrasse as it is the yuppie shopping street. Zurich being the banking capital it is-has lots of money to spend. Then it was down to St. Peter's church.

Then its down to the Frau Munster Church and the view of the lake:

After which a sojurn up the hill and to the Grand Munster Church:

Finally a view of the bridge at night:

Have been under the weather since returning. Clearly I no longer have the staying power I used to have. Slept and slept today.

Here's the Palma pix:

Trams in Soller.

Western Coast on the road to Valdermoss.

Interesting building that looks a lot like those of my Alma Mater.

A view every Sailor knows-Palma Port.

And we are back.

It was a great trip and I had forgotten how much I really like Palma and why its a great liberty port on so many levels.

Now this particular trip was a different one for me in that I ventured out from the area between the city of Palma and the beach at Magaluff. Back in the day-the Navy made renting a car such a pain in the ass, that  I never made the effort. Now truth be told-thanks to the mistaken assumption I made that the ex could handle money, coupled with living in a house with a 15% interest rate ( my personal souvenir of 1980).

Sure, you say, that's just a good excuse to justify why you did not go touring and hit the bars. Well the response is, "No its not true".  When one is having to live on an allowance of 400 a month ( especially when I was living on an Ensign's salary)-and $130 of it had to go pay an expense the government should have paid ( my wardroom bill). It did not leave a lot. Especially with a non working spouse who could not get off her ass and get a job-but still expected "trinkets" coming down the brow when the cruise was over.

So the beach and beer was just fine. Plus, truth be told, I walked a lot around the town both in the day at night. In those days the buddy system was a phrase not a vindictive regulation. Prowling alone at times was a lot of fun. It still is. I plan to do some of it this weekend when I return to the traveling set. ( The SO got her vacation-now I get mine).

Nonetheless, this trip-we branched out a bit and really explored the island from North to South.

The first day we went to Valdermoss- a town in the Northwest that has , as its chief claim to fame, Fredryk Chopin and his Mistress the French authoress George Sand.

What is really kind of bizarre about these two statues is that they stand right next to the entrance to a church. That's right-after the Spanish government tossed the monks out on their asses in 1835, Chopin wintered over here in 1838-39. The "cells" in the town were available for private rental. This in a monastery that had been there since 1309.

Here is a better shot of the town:

The second day we drove to Cap De Formentor. Its the north most tip of the island-and tough to get to ( but worth it):

That's actually a curving road in the foreground.

There's a lot more to show-but I have to be in Frankfurt tomorrow followed by an evening flight back to another place to be revealed later. More pictures to follow I promise.

On Sunday the S. O. and I drove the circle-heading south to Freiburg-and then over to Colmar, France. The journey almost ended before it began.

While leaving Stuttgart-we came upon the ever present construction that is on going between the city and the town of Herrenberg. German traffic laws require you to slow down sharply in a construction zone-most times to 60 km/ hr. I had complied with this restriction and was driving in my lane when I heard the loud squeal of wheels as if brakes were being applied behind me. Glanced in my review mirror and saw a car had moved into the left lane-and then realized he had not seen a car already there. I hit the gas and that one move alone saved us from being hit because when the rear car swerved he turned-and you guessed it-he got slammed by another car, We just had escaped it by 1 car length.  Between keeping an eye on the traffic in front of me, and hearing the destruction behind me, it was a nerve wracking start to our journey. Once we cleared the construction I stopped and checked the car over. We had in fact been blessed by not being hit by any pieces of car flying. The VW looked as good as ever.

Shaken, but resolved, we got back on the road and pressed onward. As you come to Freiburg-you pass through mountains in the Schwarzwald and there are some really beautiful rock cut outs. The day was glorious-it would have been a great day to be in a convertible. Once you hit Freiburg, the land level out again and then its passage through about 25km of farmland and you arrive at Colmar. The wine capital of Alscace.

Colmar has the distinction of being the last major French town liberated by the Allies in World War II. Apart from Normandy, the areas of France most bitterly defended by the Germans were Alsace and Lorraine. This occurred in part because the Allied surge across France in 1944 was slowed down by logistical difficulties as the Allies reached the easternmost extent of France, but the primary reason for the stout German defenses of these regions is that Alsace and Lorraine  were claimed as part of Germany and would be defended as strongly as any other German soil.  The battle of the Colmar Pocket was fought here in 1945 in January and February.

Its a very pretty town-it has the nickname of "Little Venice" , since it has some small canals that boats run on to various houses.

And lest anyone think the French are really ingrates-we came across several plaques looking this one:

The town is a modern city surrounding a very old ancient central old town. Many buildings in the old town can trace their roots back to the 14 and 1500's. Both the major church's can.

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You greasy bastards.

In the middle of a long business trip, on a mission and a professional sojurn in the Holy Land. I've been from north to south-and since I would rather spend what little time I have watching girls and drinking beer, something has to give. Sorry.

Israel is a fascinating nation. It reminds me of some ways of Japan-as a citizenry of insiders, who have been let in on some secret-that we foreigners only wish we could know.

That said-when I think of the "land of milk and honey" a place where the hills rise sharply and there are rock out croppings all over the place-does not come to mind. This is actually a tough land-but the people cling to it.

Pictures to follow.

Of Istanbul.

These were taken during out cruise on the Bosphorous on Sunday. In this one-someone has money:

This is the old fort that guarded the entrance from the Mamara Sea:

The view of a fort near the second bridge North of Istanbul:

Literally Hundreds of ships transit the straits each day. Making for a long day for the bridge crews:

On Galata tower it would seem the Seagulls are unfazed:

And one thing the city has too much of-is mosques.

And lets not forget why it all happened that way-(pictures taken from the Panorama of the siege of Istanbul):

Here are the ruins of the wall still as it was in June of 1453:

Istanbul was an intriguing city. On the one hand-you can see just about all the "touristy" stuff in about five days. On the other hand-it had all the marks of a city you could hunker down in and " prowl" for a couple of weeks or more.

In particular-I go this feeling when we were up in the Taksim district-which I found to be a lot like Roppongi, only with wider streets and less bars. But my radar still told me there was some nightlife to be had-I just wasn't in a position to explore it. When you consider that you are in a Muslim country, that alone is something of a surprise.

This is what Taksim looked like at night:

Another thing I was pleasantly surprised at was the relatively modern public transportation system-the trams are still pretty new and they have expanded the number of lines apparently. If one got an Istanbul card and loaded it up with about 30TL, that would get you around pretty well for the weekend:

One thing you can never forget in Turkey though-is that while the people are pretty good-you are in a Muslim country, and that means they don't look at the world the same way as you wish they would. This was driven home to me at the airport when we arrived-when I had to get a visa on arrival and the S,O,-with her Japanese passport-did not. Most Europeans has to get visas too. Somehow I can't help but think that is a jab at the EU for not letting Turkey in after all the years of trying. Given the travails the Euro-maybe they are better off.

Another place that drove it home was on the last day, when we went out to the old city walls of Constantinople out at Topkapi Park. The Turks have built a big modern museum with a 360 degree panorama dome that shows the scene of the battle in very artistic terms.

Here is a 360 degree tour of what it looked like. Panorama 1453 – 3D Virtual Tour. ( Click on the inset square to see it full screen-its pretty cool).I like many others had not realized-most of the fighting happened to the west of the city. The old walls tell the tale to a great degree-so too do the panels in the museum. But be prepared for a cultural shock, the Byzantine are the bad guys in this picture. The Pope doesn't get such rave reviews either. It s definitely told from the Ottoman point of view-and I can't help but wonder if it somehow tied to the rise of Islamic parties in Turkey's democracy ( which I do not regard as a good thing).

P.S. If you want a nice view of the city go here-its a cool 3d full screen view if you click on the inset.

Our last day we went up in that tower-which is known as Galata Tower-built in the 1330's by the Genoans. The view of the Golden Horn (and the rest of the city is spectacular.

One final point-everybody makes such a big deal about the Grand Bazaar. I must be getting old because I think if you have seen one-you have pretty much seen them all-plusI don't have a real taste for literally getting verbally assaulted to go in someone's store. I know the deal is to get you inside and verbally pound you into buying something-but I don't like. I did get a kick out of the merchants who would see the S.O. and immediately say, "Ni hao; Ko-Nichi wa; or Ayaseyo" figuring they at least had a 33 percent chance of being right. I think the S.O. was surprised too that so many correctly guessed she was Japanese. Here in Germany-as in Shopping Mall she got mistaken for a Korean. You can guess how that goes over with her.

Today was a full day here in Istanbul. We were up early, ate breakfast out-took the bus and the tram to Sultanmahment Station and saw all the usuals: Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, and Topkapi Palace. The last item is huge and can consume a whole day in and of itself. Sadly-for some reason the Harem was closed, which was the one thing I really wanted to see there. I guess the concubines heard I was in town.

Two days ago, a new movie premiered here, Fetih 1453. It is a big budget Turkish epic about the fall of Constantinople in 1453. It premiered at 14:53 on 16 February 2012. You can't miss the posters-they are literally everywhere. The trailer is here:

Now depending on your point of view-the fall of Constantinople was something of a disaster for the West-putting a whole bunch of Turks within striking distance of "old Europe". On the other hand-they owned everything but the city by then anyway-such was the state of Byzantium at that time. And there are those who say this event probably helped jump start the Renaissance. That said-I can't help but be just a bit disturbed by some of the imagery in the trailer. The Ottomans are looking like they are having way too much fun killing Christians-and in a Turkey where Islam seems to making a jump from Fridays to the rest of the week, I wonder if that is such a good thing. Attaturk would not be happy about all the Abaya's I saw out and about today. The S.O. thought they might be tourists from Iran-could be, but I don't recall seeing that many when I was last in Turkey in 1995. Then again, I wasn't in Istanbul either.

Friday night-over a US holiday week-which is the first one I have gotten since Christmas.

So this morning the S.O. and I boarded a plane-and arrived where?

1) This is city is the largest city in the country-but it is not the capital of the country.

2) In the 1800's there were over 1,400 public toilets all around the city. At the same time, there weren’t any even at palaces in France and the rest of Europe.

3) This city is one of the biggest cities in the world, with over 13 million population.

4) This city has the third oldest subway in the world, built in 1875. 

5) The first traffic accident occurred in 1912 at, when the driver of the Italian Embassy hit a pedestrian and tried to run away from the scene.

6) Alexander the Great was a passer by through this city.

7)This city will be one of three European Cities of Culture.

8)Agatha Christie wrote one of her novels here.

9) This city has been important throughout modern history. "Control of this city is the key to controlling Europe". Throughout history-conquerors knew or sensed this. However in the biggest ever war in history-this city sat on the bench.

Where are we?

How I spent my Saturday:

Prowling the Holy City of Yerushalim!

The Wailing Wall:

And of course we spent a fair amount of time in the church of the Holy Sepuchre: