Another trip, another gadget

Coming home from my latest London trip on Thursday night, I found a nice surprise: Following my rather favourable comments and suggestions about their mobile charger, Lifetrons sent me their Xmini capsule speaker�- thank you very much! Now, although you're apparently not supposed to look a gift horse in the mouth, that's exactly what I'm going to do:

The Xmini is a tiny technical miracle the size of a golf ball that's been chewed on by Laika - when closed. When opened, it folds out like an accordion to provide the resonating cavity required for a mighty big audio effect. Hearing is believing! It comes with a double mini-USB cable that plugs into the device and a powered USB port (for charging only) or a 3.5 mm audio out port suitable for most devices. An amazing little thing!

But again, under-marketed. Those Lifetrons guys need to do something, and quick, the competition isn't sleeping. Compare the Powerstick - it doesn't even pack a sixth of the performance of the Lifetrons product (which is still not available on their own web store!)�with a similar form factor, but it is much more visible and will therefore sell a lot better. Wake up, guys!

SBB's iPhone plans

This blog is slowly mutating into an iPhone blog, what with the slow frequency that my few readers must have noticed. The reason for that btw is that I've become more active on facebook for very short links and notes and stuff. If you want to keep up with what's going on, move over to my fb profile and find out whether I want to be friends with you ;)

But back to the topic at hand: Yesterday, the Swiss Railways SBB have gone public with a mobile phone based ticket shop. Me being the avid rail traveller that I am, I tried to upgrade my account to it straight away, only to find out that the shop is not compatible with iPhone! Seeing how iPhone has a wide distribution in the Swiss market, and iPhone users tend to be heavy web users on the road, that surprising, to say the least.

But chances are that this is a transient issue, as I heard today from SBB: A version 2.5 of their app is already in the works and scheduled to see the light of day at the beginning of March. This version should take care of the stability issues that continue to crash the app on my phone. And by mid year, the app is planned to include the mobile ticketing feature! Now if that doesn't sound like good news!

Hidden gem for iPhone

If you think, like I do, that iPhone's only real hardware shortcoming (software ones such as missing video recording will hopefully be dealt with soon) is that there is actually too little of it, i.e. that its battery doesn't survive a day of heavy usage, then I have found a must-have little gadget for you: the portable charger LT025 from tiny Swiss firm Lifetrons. The charger takes a charge of 4800 mAh (probably about 3 iPhone charges), which it delivers actively to iPhone, i.e. it is not an external battery pack that needs to remain connected to be effective, it actually charges iPhone, and it does it very quickly. The gadget's power input is USB and it charges lots of other mobile devices via a plethora of adapters for its USB cable. The device's footprint is smaller than iPhone's, but it is about 2 2.5 times thicker. The device is well designed and nicely executed.

But as the title of this post holds, it is a hidden gem. So much so, in fact, that I only stumbled across it in a duty free catalogue. Strangely, Lifetrons only distributes via airlines and duty free shops, and they don't market their wares actively - it is not even available in their own online store. At least not for the moment, I'm told by their CEO. Another instance of under-marketed Swiss engineering ingenuity? You bet! I hope they get their marketing act together really soon, because they deserve it!

Here's the anecdote of the purchase: I saw the description on my way to Brussels and decided to hold off on buying until I could do a little online research, which I did in Brussels. But it yielded very little, there's virtually no online reviews available nor, as mentioned, alternative distribution. So, I decided to buy on the way back, even though Swiss has all three colours as long as it's white/silver. But I created a bit of a stumbling block for the friendly flight attendants - the catalogue advertises that you can pay with M&M Miles rather than cash, which I wanted to. But their payment appliance didn't work, so we had to use a regular credit card slip. Now, I'm a little nervous that I am going to be charged CHF 22'000 for the device rather than 22'000 miles ... keep your fingers crossed!�

Global manners

The latest issue of Monocle has a fun little Global Guide to Business Etiquette travelling along in its sleeve. With its only 25 hints covering the globe, it may not be all that useful, but it is certainly well done and caters to a number of national stereotypes.

Ben's Cookies

My London trips have gained another regular stop: Shortly before departure, I'll go down to Ben's Cookies store at the South Kensington tube station to get a selection of freshly made cookies to take home. Absolutely delicious! I'm glad there's no outlet near where I live ...

Hamburg

IMG_0070.JPG
Originally uploaded by chdreyer

On Friday, I was in Hamburg for a meeting. It was the first time I was there, but unfortunately, I only had time for a sightseeing tour and a cup of coffee sitting at the Aussenalster. It was nice, and Hamburg made a favourable enough impression, with the one notable exception that I haven't found a free wireless access anywhere, not even in my hotel! What kind of a business hotel is it that hasn't understood, yet, that free wireless access is an indispensable amenity just like running water?

Swan Upping

Haven't we talked about Swans before? Here's an interesting video on HM Swans - enjoy!

Email in Sch�nenbuch

Die Weltwoche ist zwar auch nicht mehr, was sie mal war (daher ist sie jetzt auch abbestellt), aber wenn sie schon die Gastrokritik eines der beiden Restaurants meines Wohnorts bringt, muss sie zitiert werden: "Email hat hier drin noch nichts mit elektronischer Post zu tun, sondern ist ein Schmelz�berzug, mit dem man vor Urzeiten Reklameschilder verzierte". Gute Idee - lies selbst.

Trainspotting

No, not the movie - this! Amazing!

Voyager

Ever wondered what the golden disk aboard spacecrafts Voyager 1 & 2 contained? Unsurprisingly, you can find out online here.

One down ...

Six more to go of the Seven New Wonders of the World! Here are the pictures of my recent trip to Jordan. Most of them are of Petra, one of the aforementioned wonders. To my shame & surprise, I have already visited half of the runners-up, but only one of the actual wonders to date.

Without a doubt, Petra is an amazing place, incidentally re-discovered by a fellow countryman in 1812. You can check the place out much more comfortably than him by using Google Earth with its great coverage. I am not sure whether this is going to work, but if it does, you'll get directed to Petra by clicking here for Petra.kmz. Have fun!

Some other pictures are of the Dead Sea (very dead, indeed - note the complete absence of boats), and of Amman, Jordan's capital (quite alive, actually). When in Amman, don't miss to go to Darat al-Funun, a rather surprising and relaxing place. Kudos to The Rough Guide to Jordan for pointing me there!

The journey on Lufthansa was ok, considering that I lost a day because my feeder to Frankfurt was cancelled without replacement. It's really hard to understand why all major airlines get very odd arrival/departure times (ca. 0230h), which is quite a bit of hassle. Especially when you're at the airport early, fully expecting that you can while away your time in the lounge. No such luck - you're not getting in because the check-in counters will not be manned. Jordanians are certainly a very friendly and congenial people, but it is noticeable that tourism hasn't been among their core competencies ... but that will happen before long.

My impressions of the place are complex. It's obviously an Arab country (the first I've been to!) with all the behavioural trappings of the culture, although moderated by a strong influence of the pragmatic Palestinians. Most impressive, though, is the mixture, or maybe partially the overlay, of the different influences that have accumulated over time from both invaders and refugees: Roman, Ottoman, Palestinian, even Circassian! I was particularly interested in trying to discover the remnants of the Ottoman empire, which I've been fascinated by on my trips to Istanbul. The Arab perspective is significantly different. And I'll just mention Lawrence ... Aqaba!!

This post is in part-fulfilment against a friendly complaint that I don't post enough about my trips, which I cannot deny. But I'll try to do better, promise!

Woohooo!

This is the first blogpost I'm creating on my new iPhone, lying on my bed in NYC. And it works great!
Too bad the 16GB model is sold out, but hey, you can't have it all!

Wallpaper* Basel

A while back, I got the Wallpaper City Guide Basel, among others. The fact alone that this guide exists had me surprised, as Basel is not exactly a hotspot of urban culture, with the occasional exception confirming the rule, of course. So, insofar as a city guide is a review of a city, this is a meta-review.

First, let's drop some names from the Urban Life section (this is the useful part): Stucki Bruderholz, Le Lertzbach�(just across the burn, btw), �NT/Areal, Acqua, Fumare Non Fumare, Chez Donati, Grenzwert, Campari Bar, Coumou (already closed), Das Schiff, Bar Rouge, Johann, Nuovo Bar, Eo ipso, Noohn. I'll admit straight away that about a third of the names I have yet to try, so coming from a native, that is already a compliment. The other places are definitely top rated in town.

The Wallpaper City Guide is quite a useful small (very!) companion catering to the urban chic city traveller who doesn't care much for the jetsam that traditional guides provide. In that, it is also handy for the native who might discover a new gem or two in the place she calls home.

Gayageum

One of the lasting effects of last year's trip to South Korea is the CD with traditional Korean music by Hwang, Byungki which I bought at Seoul airport. Hwang is considered a key authority and performer on the gayageum. The album I got entirely at random is called Darha Nopigom, and it turns out to be one of the best buys in a long time. Unfortunately, it is not available on Amazon or anywhere else I looked. The only similar album I found is this.

As expected, the music is quite foreign to our ears - yet it is very melodic with a vibrant rhythmic structure. I can listen to it time and again, and I still hear new, �intricate details - the hallmark of quality, I guess. As an added bonus, it always reminds me of the concert I attended at Korea House.

Oh, and speaking of last year: Happy New Year to my dear reader(s)!!

WMC

On my recent London trip, I also went to see the Weapons of Mass Communication exhibition at the Imperial War Museum. This is a chronological display of propaganda posters from different countries for WW I & II, interwar Europe as well as for the cold war and the new world order. It is fascinating to compare the different countries' different approaches to the same thing, using an eerily appealing visual language. In fact, it's so fascinating that I got the�book, too!

Speaking of books: walking past Waterstone's, I noticed that Ian Rankin's latest book, Exit Music, is already on half price sale there. So I bought it also.�

Tales from the Emerald Isle

It's true, my blogging is getting lazy: It's over ten days that we've returned from the family trip to Ireland, the 1600+ pics have been distilled down to half that, about 250 of which have ended up in an iPhoto photo book (highly commendable!) which is already here, but I still haven't blogged about the trip in any detail. Given that I don't approve of the no time excuse as a matter of principle (it's always a question of priorities), I have nothing to hide behind other than that. Yet, here's Ireland redux in pictures.

Anyways, onwards to greener pastures, literally: Ireland is a fabulous destination for a family round trip. Here's the approximate route we took during our eight days. A word of caution is in order at this point: Don't be ambitious about the mileage you can do, many of the cross country roads are still charmingly scenic, which is a euphemism for narrow and somewhat bumpy, and don't rely to heavily on any one map. I brought my trusty TomTom, and yet we had to rely not only on C's navigational skills, but also on the occasionally rather epic directions of extremely helpful and friendly publicans. So, give yourself time - travelling Ireland is not a rushing matter. Also, make sure that you're fit: one of our drivers currently suffers from a herniation apparently contracted on the drive.

Our night quarters were, in order of sequence: Cabra Castle for one night, Dromoland Castle and Park Hotel Kenmare for two nights each, Waterford Castle and finally, Kilkea Castle. So, plenty of old stones, and yet, the experience was quite fresh everywhere. We were particularly surprised about the consistently high quality of the food everywhere - not to speak of the quantities. Obviously, the chefs cater mostly to Americans rather than French guests, even though the latter would hardly find anything to complain about, except for the over-priced wine list maybe. But then again, we were travelling with a wine expert, and Ireland is certainly not grape country. The altogether most outstanding experiences were to be had at Dromoland and Kenmare. Waterford shone with its Victorian infrastructure (sic!) and its high potential (meaning it has a bit of catching up to do), whereas Kilkea appeared a bit, erm, rustic?

Thus, we had a great impression of the spectacular beauty of the Irish countryside and its heritage. We did not get much exposure to modern Ireland and its contemporary culture, but that was not the purpose of the trip anyway. So there's something for next time, right?

Hello from Ireland!

Did I mention that I am currently staying in Ireland for a few days with a bunch of family? I can already recommend to stay here and here! At Cabra, do not forget to meet Oscar, the Irish Wolfhound castle dog - an impressive appearance!

Asia pics

Thanks to iPhoto '08, check out my new web gallery with the pictures from my recent trip to Singapore and Seoul! The things you can do with web gallery are neat, but it's a bit of a bandwidth hog ...

Peccabo

Interesting! Swiss / Lufthansa have started a partnership to offset carbon emissions from air travel. To offset the 342 kg of CO2 produced by my forthcoming trip to Ireland will cost CHF 11, for instance. A trip to London is CHF 9. Good stuff - never since the days of indulgences was a clear conscience attainable for less! Too bad that the indulgence cannot be added at the point of sales directly - that is going to be the next step in the sales cooperation, I guess.

Therefore, in the spirit of Sir Charles Napier's immortal pun, let's keep sining!

File Vault trouble?

I'm a bit paranoid about security, that's why I use File Vault on my laptop to protect sensitive (client) information. However, that might have nasty side effects, as I think I've uncovered. Let me quote my posting on Apple's discussion forums:

When travelling abroad, I've repeatedly encountered very serious system instabilities, involving the loss of application preferences, keychains and other vital system information. This was always easily recovered by restoring the backup back home. But naturally, the home backup is not really handy on the move ...
I think I've narrowed the cause of these instabilities now down to a combination of using File Vault and changing the time zone from the account that is protected by File Vault. Is anyone unfortunate enough to be able to confirm this, and might any expert out there have an idea about a plausible explanation and fix for this? Thank you very much!
Incidentally, the workaround (short of not changing the time zone) is changing the time zone in a user account that is not protected by File Vault.

I hope someone can comment on that. Meanwhile, don't try to replicate this on the move, and be sure to have a working backup!

A rising star?

Definitely! Having just touched down at Bangkok after a very pleasant flight from Seoul, I must say that Asiana is going to give the Singapore Airlines etc a run for their (much more) money! The A330-300 is very well laid out, the staff extremely polite & friendly (expect the experience to begin with a coordinated "all hands" reception bow while taxiing) and the food is good. So it's a thumbs up all around, followed by the pleasant surprise of being expected by two ground staff who whisked yours truly to the Thai Orchid Lounge on one of those obnoxious scooters to wait for the connecting flight.

First things first

The first thing to get in Singapore is an umbrella. Remember - it'll be cheaper when the sun shines! The first thing in Seoul is to make sure your mobile phone works with CDMA. You'll need it because apparently, they don't really have addresses in Korea. If you get a little local map together with your appointment message, then that's not just a nice gesture, but a bare essential!

Cheers from Seoul

So, my short trip to Singapore is history. The first impression of the place is one of a more formal version of California - which I like a lot! The formality certainly has to do with the echoes reverberating from British rule. I actually stayed in one of them - very recommendable! Being able to do your laps before breakfast in an olympic size outdoors pool in the heart of downtown Singapore is just great. Funny how the locals think you're crazy if you're swimming when it rains because they think it's "chilly": at about 30 degrees!

People seem to be extremely ambitious and business-minded. And when they're working in service, they're incredibly efficient and friendly. Smiles left, right and centre, which is a great change from Europe. Singapore, I'll be back. With less rain next time, hopefully! And maybe a bit better comprehension of Singlish, which I was occasionally struggling with.

My first trip on hallowed SIA turned out to be a little bit of a disappointment. Sure, the staff were just perfect, fully in line with what I said before, even in the eye candy department. But taken altogether, I think SIA Business doesn't deserve the premium it commands. Admittedly, my expectations were set by the trip down to Singapore on Swiss First, which may be considered as unfair. But somehow I got the impression that many people feel that SIA's business class is better than many firsts. That's far from true for Swiss' - I slept like a log!

Bobby

It's a sad day. Just hours before my departure to the hitherto longest trip of my life, we had to decide to put down Bobby, our 16 years old dog. An open ulcer was just too much for her - and us. You were a great dog, Bobby, and you've instructed your successor well!

And now, I'll leave for Singapore until 30 August, and onwards to Seoul, for presentations in each city. I'll return on 7 September. Until then, my mobile phone gets diverted to the voicemail directly, which gets forwarded to my email, so don't worry if you cannot catch me immediately. More later ...

All is calm, all is Swiss

It would be a pity if you missed this unexcited travel essay about Switzerland in Saturday's Financial Times. Granted, it's stereotypical, but there's a grain of truth in it nonetheless.

Urbi & orbi

One of the smaller things I took home from London was the July / August issue of Monocle, which is dedicated to an evaluation of the world's most liveable cities. The ranking of the 20 most liveable cities not published on the public site is as follows: Munich, Copenhagen, Z�rich, Tokyo, Vienna, Helsinki, Sydney, Stockholm, Honolulu, Madrid, Melbourne, Montreal, Barcelona, Kyoto, Vancouver, Auckland, Singapore, Hamburg, Paris, Geneva.

While I am certainly glad to note that 2 Swiss cities made the cut, I am surprised at the bile expressed against Berne, the nation's capital. I am not exactly saying that Berne is a global metropolis - quite on the contrary. But if easy access to a long haul hub is such an important criterion as it is made out to be, then the metropolitan area of all of Switzerland should actually enter the competition, thanks to the country's small size. After all, Singapore is there, too, and some people are beginning to think of Switzerland as one big metropolitan area with a really huge natural park (the alps) in the middle. At any rate, I think I am not going to buy another issue of Monocle, because I am going to take out a subscription.

Speaking of cities & the world at large, I also stocked up on those new Wallpaper* Guides of the cities that I currently have an active interest in: Bangkok, Basel, London, Singapore. Great concept!

Live hypocrisy

There's really nothing much favourable I can say about spin events such as Live Earth. Not only were most participants quite hypocritical in their own answer to the call, other than jumping on a well prepared PR bandwaggon. What's more, the message promulgated by Messrs Gore et al is one of pathetic over-dramatisation. The planet needs no saving, nor does mankind as such. I don't contend that "we" are likely to run into quite a lot of trouble and pain in adapting to the changing environment, and that it may be reasonable to take mitigating measures now, but the missionary zeal in evidence does little to alleviate my suspicion that there is more to it than meets the eye: Politicians will jump at every opportunity to expand their own sphere of influence, even though the single most effective strategy would be one of a government-neutral increase of the relative price of fossil fuels. Politicians however are loath to hear the bit about government-neutral, of course ... they are part of the problem rather than of the solution.

In fact, I am wondering whether we're on the way to a carbon standard economy. This refers to the world currency system, as in gold standard, or the Bretton Woods system. Already today, the influence of one form of carbon (i.e. oil) on the global economy is very strong and may be seen as an alternative currency.

Anyway, arcane considerations such as that apart, I've come across a good evaluation of voluntary carbon offset programmes by Tufts University. I am glad to see that one of the recommended companies is Swiss MyClimate. Amazing that my forthcoming trip to Singapore for instance will release about 10 tons of CO2, the offset of which would set me back some ?260. I need to consider my policy options.

Home for now

Now that I've returned from London before some stupid people seem to have tried in vain to start some fireworks in the central London neighbourhood that I usually stay in, I'll be grounded here for the next few weeks until my next big trip to the far east. Meanwhile, I am glad to relate that a picture of a Fortnum & Mason's shop window that I took on an earlier trip has been selected for an online travel guide. I'll be a photographer after all!

In other news, there has been a lot of talk about great change in London. At least, that's what a well established politician claims to put into place after having moved next door ... well, we'll see. A classic line by the Bard crosses one's mind, one admits.

Meanwhile, no signs of premature ihype have been spotted at the Regent Street Apple Store, even though it was as full as always. Nevertheless, I took advantage of the beginning end of season sales to indulge myself in some retail therapy. Among other things, I've upgraded my decrepit old Samsonite carry-on to a much better designed Tumi one. I've been enjoying the smart design of one of their backpacks for years now, and despite of the heavy use, it still looks almost as good as new thanks to the sturdy material it's made off. The new carry-on is just the same, and it's in silver grey, so I'll never be at risk again for grabbing any of the perfectly uniform black Samsonites from the conveyor belt. Simple pleasures ... just like the new jacket from Holland Esquire that I picked up at Liberty. I've never gotten my hands on garment that is as perfectly tailored as this for such a reasonable price.

The final word

With the arrival of my lost luggage tonight, I can close the book on my 48 hours power trip to Washington on Lufthansa. The verdict is not favourable.

As I mentioned previously, the service is ok, but it lacks the certain panache that is required in a truely first class service. Just a few examples: They fill up wine glasses, of which there is only one size btw. Also, you may get champagne in a wine glass, even though the proper glassware is clearly available. Announcements are annoyingly loud, but the occasional background music is inappropriately muted so that you only get the faint din of the percussion. Not even the nice Van Laack gift polo and track suit will make up for that.

But all that is still bearable. Where it gets quite bad is where it really counts. My final connection on the way home was booked rather daringly, so when we run into the inevitable departure delay at Dulles, things became critical. From my earlier experience with Swiss, I expected at least the same level of service when it became apparent that it might just work in the final approach. However - nothing! Not only did I have to ask what was happening (there were only 3 FC passengers) rather than the crew would inform us pro�ctively. They virtually didn't know anything.

Eventually I was told that I was re-booked to a later machine, and that they didn't wait for connections. But nevertheless, I was told to ask the ground personnel, so obviously they weren't sure what was happening. Upon landing, there was no ground personnel at hand, and the transfer desk was helplessly clogged. So I decided to try and make it to the rather distant departure gate on my own devices in order to avoid an unplanned five hours interlude at Frankfurt airport. 'Lo and behold, I was lucky! The gate staff asked jokingly whether I had flown in, so evidently they knew about the delayed connection, and that's how I made it to Basle in time, without much help from Lufthansa - quite on the contrary, in fact. Naturally, my checked luggage only arrived tonight, but that's another story.

So, my experience travelling with the crane was well below expectations. I am looking forward to my forthcoming trip to Singapore on Swiss in late August. The trip to London on Tuesday (for three days) will be more of a commuting experience, compared to that.

Update (25.6.): I thought the book was closed on this, but it wasn't really. This morning, 24 hours after the fact, I received an SMS notification that my booking had been changed to flight LH 3812, departing from gate NULL. I might just have to review my German stereotypes ...

Lest I forget ...

how I spent my birthday this year! On the way back from Moscow, I realised that I hadn't even blogged about it - shame! My blogging becomes too patchy these days!

Anyways, I was in New York for some business on the day itself. The evening was spent in pleasant company at the Jazzgallery, a tiny downtown Manhatten place which I picked for the programme (a local trumpet player with band whose name escapes me now). It turned out that their style was a bit too - shall we say - experimental for my liking, but then again, this is East Coast stuff, I really should have known. Nevertheless, the atmosphere of the place fully made up for the lack of swing, or at least for my inability to recognise it. The gallery is located in a benignly neglected, quiet neighbourhood on the first floor above a bar. It seats maybe 60 people, most of whom appeared to be from the local conservatory, and there seems to be an occupied flat in a cubicle just inside the gallery - very homely.

My birthday did not go uncelebrated, though. It was made up for with a few good friends on the Friday following my return from NY. There's only a rare selection of pictures available of the occasion on my flickr account.

Where?

To Russia, with doubts

I am glad to say that the preparations for my forthcoming trips seem to be coming to an end. In terms of effort, the trip to Moscow in mid May was certainly more strenuous to prepare than the trip to New York next week. I was not prepared for the paperwork required to get a visum to Russia: you need an invitation, proof of medical insurance, a physical slip as proof of payment of the visum fee ... what a hassle! Nevertheless, I hope that the Consulate will revert in time for the NY trip next week, ere immigration without a passport might turn out to be a bit difficult. Otherwise, NY is much easier to deal with: you only need to find a seat on a plane and a hotel that is not fully booked - both are equally difficult, it seems.

Turkish delights

It's already a few days that I've returned from my second trip to Istanbul within a couple of weeks, but I've been kept from blogging about it. While in the Istanbul Hilton, I had an inexplicable (or so it seemed) corruption of all my system preferences on the laptop. Thanks to the trusted backup, that could later be restored without difficulties. But then I remembered that the same thing had happened earlier in Athens where I also stayed at a Hilton. The common factor most likely is the fact that I left the machine running overnight while connected to the web via Swisscom Eurospot, a disgustingly expensive hotel ISP which apparently somehow messes with my machine's preferences. Rest assured that I am not going to take that risk again.

Speaking of risk taking - I have a funny little story to tell about my close encounter with the Istanbul underworld. I spent the Sunday evening walking the town before meeting up with friends later. So, this regular looking guy asks me something in Turkish, to which I respond in English. Turns out he wanted to know the time, and he's a stranger, but frequent visitor to Istanbul by the name of Ali. We strike up a conversation during which he shows me around. A bit later, we decide to have a drink at a place he knows. Hmm, funny, I think, but ok, let's go.

Not long after sitting down at a table at this place "friend" Ali knows, we were being joined by two very blond, very curvy Russian ladies who developed a healthy appetite for the local bubbly. At that point, all my remaining warning lights went off and I asked for the bill. Not really surprisingly, the tab already stood at 2'340 Lira (EUR 1'270). What came next really took me by surprise though, and that was my reaction: I remained rather cool and asked for the police because there was no way I was going to pay. Naturally, our friendly ladies quickly cleared away, and the room's atmosphere turned distinctly unfriendly. Equally naturally, the manager was disinclined to call the police, nor did I have the local emergency number. Thus, the negotiations commenced.

I offered to pay 400 for the wine and firmly stuck to that offer, knowing full well that I didn't have more than 70 with me. That wasn't satisfactory of course, especially since "my friend" Ali offered to take half the bill. When I still wouldn't budge, he finally switched sides and started boasting his boxing prowess and mafia relations, to which I responded in kind (karate & bankers!). After about half an hour of this back and forth haggling, the manager became increasingly nervous and finally took me up on my offer. When I disclosed that I only had 50 in cash, he suggested to escort me to the next ATM as he wouldn't take credit cards for the remainder (why's that, I wonder ...). But once we were outside (he all by himself), I decided that I'd had enough and bade him farewell, not without shaking hands, and swiftly made it to the next cab.

In the end, that little adventure only cost me 50 Lira, and I learned a lesson or two along the way. On the one hand, I am rather pleased with the brazen way I negotiated myself out of that mess, on the other, I am not very happy about having gotten myself into it in the first place - it could have ended much less satisfactorily. I'll be more careful next time. There will be a next time for sure, as this could have happened everywhere, and Istanbul really is a fascinating place, you can take my word for it!

Cracking the Oyster

Perfectly in line with Mr Butt's advice that the oyster is unseasonable in all months that do not have a letter R in their name, I have used my new Oystercard for the first time this morning. By which information you can safely deduct that I am in London again - until Thursday.

P.S. What's really great about it is that it's available without a UK address, thus for tourists and other London travellers. And that's a good thing seeing how the rates for individual trips have been hiked. It's not completely thought through, though, in that you do need a UK address to register the card to protect it against loss and top it up online.

His last journey

Reading obituaries for the late Ryszard Kapu?ci?ski reminded me of the one book of his that I've read: Meine Reisen mit Herodot (Travels with Herodotus, which is not yet available in English, it seems).

Kapu?ci?ski tells stories of his many trips to Asia and Africa as a foreign correspondent, starting in the 1950s. In a wonderful illustration for the synchrony of the asynchronous (Ernst Bloch), he juxtaposes those stories with his reading of the reports of the first known "modern" historian, namely Herodotus. His colleague's method of 24 centuries back was to collect stories and memories of past times on his long journeys all over the known world, and to record them faithfully - just the way Kapu?ci?ski does. In both streams of narrative, there is at least one common denominator: humanity.

Writing this, I note that I seem to have taken to travel literature of sorts lately. While Pamuk's Istanbul admittedly stays in one place, it recalls that place's journey through time. The Art of Travel on the other hand may be categorised quite unequivocally. But there is even more in the To Read pile of books ... so I guess that commits my travelling firmly to the armchair variety. Which is of course much more environmentally friendly than any other kind of trip.

To Hydra by hydrofoil

Following a friend's recommendation, my first conference-free day in Athens was spent out of town: I took the hydrofoil to get to the Aegean Mirtoan island of Hydra. That was two firsts rolled in one: I never rode a hydrofoil before, and I never was on a Greek island either. Hydra is very scenic, but the claim that there are no cars there is a sham - I saw them! All three of them ... nevertheless, apart from garbage disposal, everything else is transported on donkey's backs. Not that anything else would be possible, given the extreme narrowness of the "streets". So, I just spent a pleasant few hours walking about, taking pictures and having an excellent lunch of freshly caught squid & greek salad (what else?) at the Ostria Caf�. My new Shuffle was providing the soundtrack all along, and still is after more than 12 hours on a single charge!

Tomorrow will be dedicated to sightseeing (Akropolis, here we come!) / shopping, and on Sunday, the Monastiraki flea market will have caught my attention before I have to leave this great place again.

A classless society ...

Lufthansa certainly ain't! In fact, they have a myriad of booking classes that reminds one of the Indian caste system, and it's equally despicable. If you buy a deep discount ticket from Swiss, which is now part of Lufthansa, then you're akin to a jet set dalit: there's no way to get an upgrade.

For my future reference, here are the booking classes that do not allow Miles & More upgrades within Europe: X / T / E / L / I. For intercontinental flights, the same applies to classes X / W / E / T / I. Incidentally, these are subcategories of economy class. The eco ticket in V class that I booked yesterday for my trip to Athens in two weeks' time fortunately allows for miles upgrades.

Ode to Istanbul taxidrivers

The Istanbul taxidriver is a virtuoso with his vehicle. He studiously reads the traffic's score & adjusts to the road's vagaries in his trajectory. Like an organ player interpreting Bach's Toccata con Fuga, he would happily apply his full person in controlling the wheel, the gear and pedals. He seldomly engages the brakes, but would rather use the hooter & the accelerator in its stead. Despite of the full road orchestra's din, he maintains his focus on his part by listening to Turkish pop music blaring from his radio.

His masterly performance can be seen during each rush hour for just a few yenteli. Sit back in awe and enjoy!

Sleepless in Philly

While that may not be strictly true, my biological clock is still rather confused, so I have enough energy to give you the lowdown of my day here in Philadelphia. It can be summed up pretty easily, too - I did a lot of walking! And that's great, because Philly is a rather european place in that most places of consequence can be reached on foot quite easily. But that's not the only europeanish aspect: much of the city has a distintly european, or rather english flavour to it. Which probably won't be much of a surprise because it is in New England ... anyway, that's how I like it!

Tonight, I went to see the Dave Ramsey Trio in the Caf� Habana, where I also had a good dinner. This trio of music students appears to have a very ecclectic repertoire - tonight, they gave us some all time jazz classics, what with Chet Baker & everything. It was great fun in a relaxed atmosphere. I knew about it because I met Dave at The Last Drop where I had breakfast. Since he seems to like e.s.t. as much as I do, I followed his recommendations to see them play tonight and also got the latest album of The Bad Plus, which I didn't have time to listen to, yet. Right about now, I think I am tired enough to go indulge myself in some sleep.

Travelling plans

Apparently there's some curious people out there who want to keep track of me. So, I'll let them - for now. Tomorrow way too early in the morning, my plane leaves for Budapest, where I'll be staying here. I am scheduled back on late Saturday night. Then, I am staying home for a full week (it's my birthday!) and some, only to leave for Philadelphia on May 4th. In Philadelphia, I am going to stay at this place. On May 10th, I hope to be back safely from the land of the slime mold bugs, only to depart for the land of Wiener Schnitzel and the epotopical Waltz the following day. I don't know yet where I'll be staying, though.

Thunderbolt

I forgot to mention in my previous post: I am home again, having returned safely from a short trip to NYC, where they keep overdoing it with their star spangled banners, cf:

As usually, it was fun, even though the second day's walking through the city got to me. But there's a story to it!

I was booked on Swiss flight 19 from Newark to Z�rich, leaving on 2205h on Tuesday night to arrive at 1130h on Wednesday. I was expected to speak at a conference in Zurich at 1600h on Wednesday, so I took an upgrade from business to 1st class. Fortunately, I can say now. Because the flight was delayed substantially! It already started in the afternoon when I first received a text message and afterwards a phone call notifying the bad news. Fair enough, so there was a bit more time to kill in NY - not a bad thing, although it still was too early for the shows. It only dawned on me later that it was bad because the arrival lounge in Z�rich where I intended to freshen up for the presentation closed at noon - too early for a late arrival! So I created a bit of a ruckus at Newark check in, letting it be known in no uncertain terms that I expected 1st class service. And surprisingly, I got it! Upon arrival in Z�rich, I was welcomed by a VIP staffer who whisked me past everybody in one of those shuttle things and escorted me to the 1st class lounge where I could leisurely prepare for the presentation, which went by in a breeze. Good times - thank you, Swiss! The only letdown was the lounge at Newark (a Delta Crown Room), which is distinctly dingy if you compare it to Swiss' 1st class lounge at JFK.

Later that night, the distinct lack of sleep became overpowering and I was soon dead to the world. And if you wonder what the heck the title is about: We're just having a heavy winter thunderstorm with lightning and the full Monty!

The Art of Travel

You will be wondering why I haven't spared Alain de Botton's The Art of Travel for the imminent trip, since this appears to be the quintessential travelling companion. Having finished it now, I assure you it is not! As a matter of fact, it is the ideal book to read before taking off to distant places. Here is the final paragraph which sums up rather nicely:

"We meet people who have crossed deserts, floated on icecaps and cut their way through jungles - and yet in whose souls we would search in vain for evidence of what they have witnessed. Dressed in pink and blue pyjamas, satisfied within the confines of his own bedroom, Xavier de Maistre was gently nudging us to try, before taking off for distant hemispheres, to notice what we have already seen."

De Botton's book is a wonderfully unhurried eye opener towards today's high speed, long distance frenzy. Its classical style and execution in five sections (Departure, Motives, Landscape, Art, Return) together with its lavish accoutrement (I have the first edition) makes it splendid reading for the discerning armchair traveller with an occasional spike in his airmailairmiles account. About which he may feel uncomfortable when reading about John Ruskin's travelling habit of never making more than fifty miles a day ...