2 Million People and Me

I have returned unscathed from the events surrounding the inauguration of Barack Obama. I left for D.C. two short days after returning from adventures in Europe, hey, at least jet lag wasn't a problem. Fortunately, I had a flight in Reagan National, so much better then flying into Baltimore, Dulles or even Harrisburg, PA, which showed up as an option when I was shopping for my flight.
We started of with a meeting, which was a great chance to be reunited with many of my friends and discuss the impending chaos. I was very impressed with how the company I worked for thoroughly planned for such an unusual event; we had almost 150 tour directors, close to 6000 students from junior high and high school. I also think that the District of Columbia did a great job of preparing for the deluge of people, including bringing in every port-a-potty on the eastern sea board. I had a day to prepare myself a bit more since my group didn't arrive late on the next day. I hit a couple of places that I needed some refreshment on and visit with and got some tips from a friend who had been through the 2005 inauguration. From the time my group arrived until the moment they left, life was a whirlwind. The opening concert at the Lincoln Memorial, which was a giant hit with the people but closed off the most direct route into D.C. causing my group to be late and arrive on the wrong side of the mall. After tracking them down with the help of my local guide, we did a walking/running tour starting outside the Air & Space museum, on to the Washington Monument, WWII Memorial, FDR and Jefferson Monuments. This covered close to 3 miles in 2 hours, in the cold and dark but it was the best thing to do with a busload of teenagers that had been cooped up for 9 hours traveling. The following day after commuting in from mid Maryland, we went to Mt Vernon, where we braved the crowds to visit a bit of George Washington's history. They loved the view of frozen Chesapeake Bay from the back of the home and seeing the farm buildings. In the afternoon, we visited the reopened American History Museum, which was a big hit, especially with the history teachers. Then we crossed the river to Arlington Cemetery for a tour and to see the changing of the guard. However, there were so many other students surrounding the sight, that we were unable to see anything. The finale of this long day was probably the highlight for most of the students, we took them to their own Inaugural Ball. The company set up parties, with dinner, dance floor and music for all of the groups. We stopped just short of the party so that they could change into party clothes, many of the girls brought gowns and even the guys got dressed up. They had a fantastic time. We called it a night and got them back to the hotel to get ready for our early start for the inauguration.
The big day started off with no traffic until we exited into the city. The in bound highways were closed to everybody but taxis and licenced limos and buses. In theory the buses were assigned a parking area and time slot to arrive in, however, that did not pan out for everyone. We arrived in the area but were sent in circles for a bit, so we decided to disembark from where we were and start the long trek to the mall. The distance wasn't far but the crowds were incredible and as we made our way in we were directed farther and farther away from the Capitol. Finally, after an hour of walking we made it onto the mall near the Washington Monument. We found a good spot on the rise at the Monument with some decent landmarks in case anyone needed to leave the group for any reason. We had 2.5 hours in sub-freezing weather to wait until the beginning of the event; at least is was sunny. The kids were creative in entertaining themselves and keeping warm and didn't get too
antsy. Finally, the event they were there for began. I won't go into details, since most of you saw it but I will say that it was pretty thrilling seeing such a momentous event in person, albeit from 1.5 miles away. After it was over we waited a bit for to let the crowds get moving, then headed for warmth and food. It took us 45 mins to make it to the Air & Space Museum, which was designated as a warm zone; meaning that they were letting everyone. I heard that some people took 2 hours to get that far, in horrific crushing crowds, our path was easier. The students had 3 hours in the museum and then we took them to the mall. Yes, the mall, we were supposed to go to the ESPN Zone so they could play video games until we left for dinner, however, the plans changed once the parade ran late and we couldn't cross Pennsylvania Ave. The alternative and a highly successful one, was to let them loose on the mall for an hour or so until dinner.
The final day began with sleeping in, then a trip back into D.C. to visit one last important sight, the new Capitol Visitor center. The center is full of wonderful information and history about the Capitol and allows people that have appointments to tour the Capitol to wait indoors instead of outside in the heat or cold. From there you can take the underground passage to the Library of Congress to see the amazing design and decoration, the gorgeous reading room and the best part, the original Thomas Jefferson books. The Library is definitely something everyone should see. After the time there we headed over to the ESPN Zone for some food and games before the group got back on the road for home.
I had a great time with the group and showing them Washington D.C, along with helping them witness the historical event. The mania surrounding Obama becoming president was completely unreal and somewhat disturbing. I have never seen so many items labelled with a persons name or logo, definitely capitalism at is strongest, though I wouldn't say best. I hope that the future stands up to the expectations.

Thanks for reading.

The End Has Come

I am sad to say the my amazing 6 weeks in Europe are at an end, in less then 12 hours I will board a plane for home. I will miss so many things but mostly I will miss two amazing people. I know that I have not posted as much as I intended but we have been busy, busy people and I promise that I will fill in the blanks in a couple of weeks. Since I posted last we have been to Germany, Milan and Prague, once I return home, I run off to the Inauguration. After returning from that major event, life will slow down, I will return to being the world's greatest Auntie and find some time to lose some of the schnitzel and spaetzel. Then I will write about seeing ancient castles, fairy tale cities and being in Milan after it received way more snow than it knew what to do with. Stick with me, I promise to deliver.

Thanks for reading.

Zurich

One of the great parts about spending 6 weeks based in one place is the chance to breathe and rest between the overnight trips, I like to look at it as living here. I have to admit we have been pretty lazy on those days, we wake up in time to eat with and see CF off to work and then we hang out for a while more. Eventually, we get going. Zurich has an amazing tram system that works seamlessly with the Swiss rail system. Our stop is about 3 houses down the street and has two lines that stop there, conveniently they each travel down different sides of town, with big hub just two stops away. I bought a month long pass when I arrived and I definitely have gotten my use out of it. Since it has been so cold, walking is not always the best option though we are only 10 minutes from central Zurich. And on those days when I do brave the cold and go for long walks, I will sometimes hop on a tram and travel a few stops just to warm up. I have also used them to explore the city; I will get to a stop, take the first one that comes by and ride it until I reach an interesting looking area and spend some time walking around there.

Of course, there have been planned outings. MW and I went up to Uetliburg, the mountain overlooking Zurich. From there we had a view of the lake, the cities, the nearby villages and the Alps. We went walking in a giant park, that is more like a forest, near to the house. That is were I discovered one of my favorite phrases: wanderweg. A wanderweg is a planned walk with signposts, I have seen them traversing forests and through cities. We have followed a few and they always have the nearest tram stop or train station listed so that you can leave the trail whenever you need to.

I have also spent a fair bit of time wandering throughout downtown Zurich. The city core is not that large, even though this is the biggest city in Switzerland. It is centered on the Limmat River which divides it in two, the Niederdorf, an area of winding streets and small shops runs along the east bank, while the Bahnhofstrasse, is the heart of the expensive shopping district on the west bank. Both areas are fun to walk through and cross back and forth between using one of the many bridges crossing the river. We headed downtown on New Years Eve to see the fireworks out over the lake. A few hours before midnight it started snowing heavily but stopped just before 11 pm, however, the new snow made it more interesting. Down along the river there were thousands of people, drinking, shooting off personal fireworks and generally celebrating the moment. We eventually trekked to the lake but because the air was so still, just a few fireworks created a thick smoke and from then on all you could see was the smoke changing colors reflecting the obscured pyrotechnics. The best part was watching all the people out, this was definitely a side of Zurich I had yet to see. After we walked both sides for the river, we caught a tram home, forgoing further celebration in order to prepare for our early departure for Germany the next morning.

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Budapest

Budapest was my first trip to a central European country and won't be my last. We decided to go after some guests on bike tour told me that they had been to Prague and Budapest and preferred Budapest. We flew over just before Christmas and stayed near the Synagogue. We were convenient to the central part of Pest and to public transport, though we never used it. It was somewhat shocking coming from clean orderly Zurich to chaotic, recovering Budapest. The city is still in the process of rebuilding from Communism; as we came in from the airport we passed by the deconstruction of a huge tenement complex. Throughout the city we would pass gaping holes in the ground and giant skyscrapers littering the skyline. Graffiti decorated many buildings and others just had larges chunks of the facade broken away. However, we also saw beautifully refinished buildings, open spaces, ate wonderful food and met some marvelous people. Our small bed and breakfast was called Danube Guest House and run by Zoli and Bob. They just opened their doors in July and do a great job. Breakfast, chocolate and coffee were always available, they helped us get acquainted with the city and make arrangements. We took their lunch recommendation the day we arrived and had the best food of the entire trip. It was a mom and pop restaurant, no English menu and true Hungarian food. CF had stuffed cabbage with sauerkraut, MW had paprika chicken and I had stuffed peppers. All were terrific and a great way to get excited about the trip. As usual we wandered about with a general goal; see the river, get coffee, find the Christmas Market, stay warm. We did happen upon the main Christmas and were pleasantly surprised to find the best one we had seen yet. This one had the best food, the widest variety of handmade goods and great gluhwein. Our favorite market food was the Hungarian "doughboys" with cinnamon, they were being made at two stands over a large fire pit. Another favorite, of course, was the gluhwein, and here you paid a deposit for a real cup instead of a flimsy plastic one, paid for refills and then returned the cup at the end of the day. Well, that is what you were supposed to do, our cups never quite got returned. CF's favorite stand was the one with pork shoulders and sausages being grilled over a fire. We spent quite a bit of time eating and shopping there. We wandered around Castle Hill on the Buda side one morning, from up there we got amazing views of the very Gothic parliment building and the rest of Pest across the Danube. Following the building of the Chain Bridge these cities, Buda and Pest, became one city, starting a century of prosperity for the region. We also stopped by the giant food market that supplies the restaurants and citizens of Budapest. The huge glass and metal building contained near a hundred stands of fresh food, ranging from fruit to venison and live fish, covering 3 floors. Later that day, our search for lunch on a Sunday seeming to go horribly wrong, it turned around very quickly. We saw a place called Le Marquis de Salade and thinking that a salad would be great we went over to check out the menu. The menu was pages long with all types of Middle Eastern and eastern Mediterranean food but the restaurant was empty, however, we decided to go in. We were led through an empty upstairs down to a ancient cave basement, that was also empty. The food was very good, well spiced, something missing from a lot of Swiss food, and different from everything else we had eaten lately. Budapest has a lot to offer and I would love to visit it again. Now, with a successful trip to Budapest behind us, we look forward to our adventure in Prague in a few weeks.

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A Very Swiss Christmas

Our first order of business upon arriving in Zurich was to fill the apartment with Christmas spirit. CF's brother and sister-in-law were due to arrive in a week for Christmas so we wasted no time going to get our Christmas tree. This is very different experience in a city without a car compared to Davis or Ukiah. CF asked around work to find the best place for our purchase, so we headed off to Albisgutli at the end of tram line 13. Yes, we were going to bring our tree back on the tram. We had a great time wandering around the lot, watching kids through snowballs and checking out the trees. In the end CF found a tree about as tall as him and with the sharpest needles I have ever felt. We had it wrapped in netting, paid and headed back to the tram. We giggled a bit as we road through Zurich with our Christmas tree but it certainly wasn't an unusual sight. At home we put what few decorations the W's had, made a chain of paper and put the lights on. We later bought some additional ornaments at Ikea, bought a poinsettia and put lights up throughout the house. Very festive. Now that the house was ready for Christmas and I had some time to enjoy Zurich. The city was definitely ready for Christmas. There was a giant Christmas market in the train station with a giant tree decorated with Swarovski crystal ornaments and selling all the typical goods. However, it was the first time I saw a stand selling raclette, this is a variation of fondue. They place a giant block of cheese under a heating coil or in front of fire and as the cheese melts it is scraped onto a plate. Typical delivery methods include small potatoes, gherkins, pickled onions and dried meats. The one drawback to this dish is that cheese is incredibly strong smelling and not in a good way. Elsewhere in the city, the stores where heavily decorated, lit trees are found tucked into any little square and the Santa trolley can be seen driving through town. One night M and I went down to the Limmat River to witness Lichterschwimmen, when children release lit candles onto the river to celebrate the holidays. It was very beautiful. Of course there was the hustle and bustle of any city, with people shopping on the main street and people coming and going from the central train station. Back here in the apartment we celebrated Christmas with two days of delicious food, cooked mostly by CF and his brother, lots of music, relaxing and a stroll downtown on Christmas day. It has been an amazing experience being in a European city for the holidays, more then I expected. It made more enjoyable by the fact that we could just sit back and enjoy the sights without becoming part of the shopping frenzy. Though the post Christmas sales are looking pretty good.

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Joyeux Noel!, Frohe Weihnachten!, Merry Christmas!

Christmas in Europe has a been a cacophony of color, smells, languages and tastes. I was excited to come to Europe at this time of year so that I could experience the famous European markets and I have not been disappointed. MW & I are now experts on Christmas markets, we have visited them in six cities in three countries. Strasbourg was reputed to be the best in France, followed closely by Colmar so we decided to see both. I found us a nice little room just of the main square, we ended up nicknaming our room the Slanted Strawberry due to a slight slope in the room angled toward the bathroom and it's decoration in red. We still liked it, it was full of personality. We also found great food on our first night. We happened into a small place on a very well decorated square and tried two of the local dishes; flambee and a potato pancake type dish. The flambee is like an extremely thin crust pizza with creme fraiche, lardons and onions on it. MW liked it so much she recreated it back home in Zurich and I do believe it was even better then the original. As usual we had few goals in town but to see the lights and check out the local wares. The stands were positioned in any available square throughout the heart of town. The most common booths contain jewelry, toys, scarves. Some of the other options were preserved meats, cheese, candles and Christmas decorations. However, hands down our two favorite types of stalls were vin chaud and bredle. Vin chaud, or gluhwein in German, is mulled wine and at the Christmas markets they sell it everywhere. Bredle are small Christmas cookies most popular in the Alsace region, and in the markets they are piled up and you pick out how many grams and which ones. You may ask how we knew which one to buy, that is the best part, as you walk by all the sellers are giving away bredle and if you want to try another you just ask. In Colmar, there is a small canal that ran through and instead of being centered on the plazas, the market wound down the streets and along the canal. At one stall we found soap from Marsailles, it was the same as some I had bought in Arles years ago, they smelled so good we had to get a few, or 7. Most of the markets deserve the fuss and definitely made visiting them in the off season well worth it.

Merry Christmas and thanks for reading.

Eat, Walk, Drink, Walk, Drink Walk, Eat.

Anybody who has every traveled with the W's or myself knows that few things are as important to us as seeing, tasting and experiencing. I believe we travel well together because we agree that an army or travelers, travel on their stomachs. I would be hard pressed to find a better way to experience the culture of place then through what they eat and drink. We love to explore farmers markets and pedestrian shopping streets, tempting us into buying way more then we can possibly use while were are there. On this trip we had the added bonus of the Metro not being on strike so we could get to far flung places and from there wander about. On our second day, we ended up at the Place d'Italie and low and behold we found an amazing farmers market going on. The quantity and quality of all the foods put a summer farmers market back in California to shame. The market stretched along the sidewalk for blocks with meats, cheese, seafood, bread, pastries and incredible fruits and vegetables. After exploring, drooling and gawking there, we proceeded through a small neighborhood, stopping in for coffee in one place and bread at another. We later found lunch at a Belgian cafe that M had found on line, so it was beer and mussels to commemorate our trip last year. We had dinner back at the apartment, after shopping on our shopping street nearby. For the 4 days we would start out with a goal such as wander around Montmarte, visit the 7th arrondisement, walk along Rue Faubourg St. Honore. and then when we were done in that area we would head in a new direction, stopping in for vin chaud when we got cold or a coffee when we needed a pick me up. We wandered with purpose one day towards Pierre Herme to pick up some amazing macaroons. One day, we ate lunch in our neighborhood at a fantastic Crepe place that M had found. After I spend time in a city aimless walking I always feel like I know it better then if I have visited it's most famous museum.

Thanks for reading.

Photo credit - Artsy food shots by CF, who now wants to go by his new rap name, Baby Chezus.
Belgian meal shot by MW.