Dave's Travel Blog

2011-11-23T01:26:00.006+01:00

Some pictures of Tonto Creek and Canyon Creek on the Mogollon Rim in Northern Arizona. Fishing was subdued but the scenery was magnificent.

All but the last three photos where taken on my new iPhone 4s. Impressive camera, but check out the last three taken on my Nikon 200 and you will see the difference.

Pictures are Here.

Lake Mead

2010-03-18T07:02:00.004+01:00

It has be a very long time since I Processed anything to post. I have decided to keep up occasional entries where I make photography excursions. No longer living in Europe, my subject matter is going to be less exotic and expect to see more landscape and nature photography as I get back in my passions for the wilds.

We traveled to Boulder City Nevada, just outside Las Vegas, so Kai could participate in a 1/2 Marathon along the lake and to Hoover Dam. Kai finished with good time and I caught some good shots of the race.

I broke the tripod out for some serious night shots and ran my ultra-wide lens through its paces with some satisfactory results. The glow in the background of the night shots are the light of Las Vegas.

Photos are here.

Scottish Borderlands & Hadrian's Wall

2009-06-14T02:38:00.007+02:00

Pictures are Here

We traveled on a tour bus that had stops at Roslyn Chapel, the borders, and at an old Roman outpost along Hadrian's wall called Vercovicium, or Housesteads.

Rosyln Chapel was an amazing structure. It is currently covered by a steel superstructure to keep the rain off and allow moisture to dry out of the sandstone structure prior to sealing. The moisture has been destroying the chapel. Unfortunately, there is no secret Templar library in the basement, just a small room, but there is an intriguing hole in the top of the staircase revealing an empty space beneath the chapel. A few years ago they good sonar readings from the ground beneath the church and found that that their are catacombs beneath it and that the space below is as big and deep as the space above. Pictures where not permited inside and trees and the steel structure made any attempt to frame a decent shot outside futile. It will have to stick in our memory. The steel frame should be dismantled by August 2010.

Hadrian's wall was well worth the long drive southward. The old fort is nearly all rubble, but you can get a real feel for the this one time dividing line between civilization and the frontier by standing on the wall and staring off into the northern frontier. The wind was very harsh and sheep where many making walking very hazardous. forget about laying on that grass.

Very beautiful country.

West Highlands of Scotland

2009-06-06T20:10:00.013+02:00

Photos are here.

I have to say I originally hated the idea of taking a bus tour while on vacation, but the more of them I take, the more I like them. Here we traveled from Edinburgh into the West highlands visiting castles and lochs.

Castle Duone -- Used for a number of scenes in Monty Python's Holy Grail.
Castle Kilchurn -- Ask Kai for the story on how the driver almost did not take us to see this great castle. This is situated on the shores of Loch Awe.
Invernary Castle -- The seat of the clan chief of clan Campbell, the Duke of Argyll.
Loch Lomond -- Yes the one in the song.
Stirling Castle -- Everyone who has seen Braveheart knows this one.

The Highlands are striking for their spartan beauty and unspoiled wilderness. Driving in and around Scotland was the first time that I felt like I had entered country that nature holds more sway than man while I was in Europe. A remarkable place.

The best shots of this trip was a series I caught of Kai looking out of the window on the second floor of castle Kilchurn. I try not to repeat a lot of shots, but I like these a great deal so posted all of them. She looks great.

National Museum of Scotland

2009-06-06T17:53:00.003+02:00

The National Museum of Scotland allows photos. Some really great stuff here for history fans, but no great aesthitic photos. I liked the Isle of Lewis Chess set and Pictish ornements--particuarlly the chains of estate and authority that look very familar to me.

Pictures are here

Edinburgh

2009-05-24T23:06:00.006+02:00

Pictures are Here

Our last big vacation while living in Europe was a trip to Scotland. I will divide this trip up into four sections: Edinburgh, Scottish National Museum, West Highlands, and the Borderland & Hadrian's Wall.

In Edinburgh, we stayed in The Caledonian off Princess Street and in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle. The Caledonian used to be a train station in the hey-day of rail. That past lends its classic look to the hotel today and was a great place to stay aside from the late night fire alarms.

I got lucky with my landscape shots of the castle. I hit just the right light for to contrast the rocks beneath the castle. I could not be happier with these shots.

Aside from the national museum, we did a lot of walking around the city. We saw the castle, inside and out, walked the high street a few times, and toured Holyrood.

On High Street we had the best pizza we had in all Europe and tried the famous deep fried mars bar. All in all the food was much better than we had expected.

Crecy

2009-05-17T11:33:00.005+02:00

Pictures are Here.

Crecy was the first example of English forces using force multipliers to defeat a larger force of well trained French soldiers and nobility. Crecy also saw the first recorded use of cannons in a battle in Europe and was where the sixteen year old Edward the Black Prince proved himself as a leader and "won his spurs" as it is said.

I did not have a lot of time to take in the battle field. I had scarcely 20 minutes of time to get the layout of the field and take some pictures when a storm from moved in with such speed and violence that staying on the hill, even my car felt like pure foolishness. I saw what I came for so beat a hasty retreat up through Belgium and back to Amsterdam that night.

The English clearly had the high ground, but it was not steep enough to be decisive. As with Agincourt, the English victory depended as much on poor choices by the French as their own initiative or control of the battle.

Agincourt!

2009-05-17T11:10:00.005+02:00

Photos are here.

Today Agincourt is not much to look at, but in the early 15th century it was the scene of the a pivotal battle in the hundred years war and is where Henry V of the England, together with Shakespear's help in later years, assured his place in history. Visiting the site was well worth the trip.

The story is familiar to military history phials like myself. Starving, and outnumbered, the English defeat a large, well trained and overly confident (arrogant even) force of French soldiers, noblemen and mercenaries. The French had every advantage and proceeded to discard them all for defeat by choosing to drive heavy cavalry head on into prepared positions, in muddy ground, and under the range English longbows. The faintest leadership in the French ranks would have changed history in incalculable ways.

The photos show a a view of the field from the French and English side. You can get an idea for the size and layout of the field as well as the distance between the sides prior to actual engagement.

Probably the most interesting part of the visit is the still creepy French burial mounds where thousands of French soldiers and nobles where buried in mass graves that today remains and undisturbed barrow where trees mingle with clingy vines and darkness.

Somme

2009-05-17T10:22:00.002+02:00

Pictures are here.

In August of last year I took a short tour of Norther France with the purpose of seeing the medieval battle fields of Agincourt and Crecy. I needed to overnight in France to visit both sites in a single day and I choose a hotel just north of Amiens in the Somme region. I was able to spend the morning visiting a few sites around the Somme and see some of of the battle fields including the Lochnager mine crater.

Lochnager, is a massive scar on a farm field that was created by tunneling beneath enemy lines, packing said tunnels with explosive and setting it off as a means of breaking the bitter deadlock of trench warfare.

This country is dotted with dozens upon dozens of commonwealth cemeteries which speak the deadly nature of the "war to end all wars".

In the evening I caught some great pictures of the Somme in the waining light and stumbled across Bray-sur-Somme which was in the throws of celebrating their liberation by American Forces on September 1 1944. The town was covered in American flags and a couple dozen people in 1940's era clothing, along with a bunch of "American GI's" where dancing in the streets. At midnight, there where fireworks, the a group of re-enactoers rolled into town on restored Willy's jeeps. Strange what you stumble upon in france. No light for photos for this, so use your imagination.

Included in the strangeness was a lone tower on the road between Amiens and Agincourt.

Tanks in Town 08' Mons Belgium

2008-08-15T08:14:00.001+02:00

Stopped by Tanks in Town on my way to Nothern France to check out the Somme, Agincourt, and Crecy. Pictures are here.

TiT was great this year. Perfect weather and a larger variety of vintage hardware then two years ago. Intersting stuff:

Turretless M5 Stuart
A working Kettengrad
M8 Scott
Lots of Greyhounds
A modern Belgium tank that threw it's track
A tow truck with a .50 cal on top.
And a Jeep armed with dual bazooka's mounted on the .50 cal mount.

Visit Home

2008-08-10T22:10:00.004+02:00

I was back in Phoenix to fix my failing roof. 10 grand thrown after a house I have not lived in for three years!. On a lighter note, I caught some desert colors from the top of my brothers roof facing the setting sun over the valley. Pictures are here.

I had a great time over the two weeks with the family and friends. I found a contractor to get my roof on the way to being fixed and added a new member to the family. It went all too fast.

Best Pictures of 2005-2008

2008-07-23T02:25:00.004+02:00

Just a quick link before I hop on a plan. Here are the best pictures, in my view, of the last three years. It is about 2% of the total.

Best of Gallery here.

Updated: Arrived safe in sound in Phoenix. Good to be home even for just a few weeks.

It should be apparent that photography has developed into a hobby for me in my time in Europe. I have enjoyed it from an early age, but never had found the time or money to develop it in a meaningfully until now.

There are two types of photography from my perspective. One is auto-biographical where I take pictures of places I travel and visit including collections in museums and of my niche interests and hobbies. This stuff is only of interest to me and perhaps to people who share these niche interests.

The second is aesthetic, or dare I say “artistic” photography. These are pictures that capture a collection of visual elements in a way that can draw forth an emotional or aesthetic response. This can be achieved by unique, light, camera angles, and subject matter, but only fires on all cylinders when all three elements come together. While its easy to understand why the picture of the cloudburst above falls into this category, pictures heavy in subject matter alone can fit as well. An example of this is the little blond girl clinging to the leg of the Nelson Mandela statue in Johannesburg.

While the first category is part of the hobby I am most interested in the second and have started to divide out one category from the other. In future albums, I will not mingle the types at all. Also, I am becoming progressively more demanding on what constitutes a picture worth posting so though the number of pictures will go down, the quality will go up. At least in the sense of my view of quality.

Denmark - June 2008

2008-06-19T22:35:00.000+02:00

I am off to Denmark for one last business trip in Europe. Which reminded me I needed to get my photos out form when I was in Denmark in June.

All the hotels in the city where booked, so we where forced to suffer the week out in a beach resort on the black sea, or Kettegat waterway that seperates Sweden from Denmark.

Kronborg Castle was a short walk away. Holger danske is said to be housed there in the casements.

Photos are Here. Enjoy.

Keukenhof

2008-06-15T21:24:00.005+02:00

Pictures are here.

The world famous Keukenhof Gardens. Lots of pretty flowers and perfect weather makes for lot of great pictures.

Best picture of the day.

Delft

2008-06-15T21:05:00.004+02:00

Pictures are here.

Delft: A quaint Dutch town known for its pottery and as the home town of Vermeer. We did not go to the museum-his best works are elsewhere.

We visited the Royal Delft porcelin factory. That was better than I thought it woudl be. They have some great examples of ceramics as decor.

Also in Delft is the Dutch military museum that is housed in an old armory on an island between two canals.

Haarlem

2008-04-25T18:18:00.000+02:00

Pictures are here.

Haarlem is a short 15 min drive from my home. 15 min to drive, and over an hour to find a parking space that is. The day was perfect and Haarlem is more like what you think of as a traditional Dutch town. It has some great character. Nothing special to note except the hammer ride stuffed in the town square right along the towering church.

La Roche, Belgium

2008-04-16T18:09:00.002+02:00

Pictures are here.

La Roche is a small town East of Bastogne that figured prominently in the battle of the bulge and has a very old castle at its center. I stumbled across this town when I stopped for a late lunchon the route back to Amsterdam from Luxembourg.

There is a small WWII museum and a the castle was a short easy walk. Some great pictures, but not much to comment on this stop.

The American Cemetary in Luxembourg

2008-04-15T14:02:00.000+02:00

Pictures are here..

I stopped off on the way out of Luxembourg while there on business. I could not resist the visit to Patton's grave for the 5 minute detour.

Patton rests facing the main burial section. The personification of iconic military leadership in an eternaly grim pass and review. Such an arrangement seems to fit the popular image of the uncomprimising General.

The grey skies that day lent a somber note to the visit. Not that such places are every jubilant, but the greyness was enveloping. I think I caught that in the photos.

It is remarkable that there are one thousand more American soldiers buried in this cemetery alone than have lost their lives in the whole of the Iraq conflict. Even more so when you consider that all of these boys lost their lives in the Ardennes and on the push to the Rhine, after Germany's defeat was imminent. What did they die for? Was it worth it? Depending on your political leanings you would probably answer that differently. Myself, I think these kids where the first casualties of the cold war.

Regardless of your feelings on the war, its clear that we are spoiled compared to the challenges and rewards of our fathers and grandfathers. They faced madmen at the head of powerful armies, dealt with real doubts and questions on the morality of conflict, suffered a much higher body count, and from the chaos forged the greatest period of prosperity the world has ever seen while in a nuclear stand-off with the other half of the modern world.

Johhannesburg

2008-03-01T16:21:00.009+01:00

Pictures are Here.

I was in Joburg on business. Security concerns are such that wondering taken photos--especially in the evening hours after work-- is a bad idea. A such I only got a few shots around the hotel and at an interesting restaurant we visited.

It's unfortunate I could not take a few days off and visit a game park, but I needed to be back on the continent (Europe) for March 1st, so it was not in the cards this trip. I don't think I will be back on business.

Carnivore is a Joburg restaurant that serves various wild game meats on open skewers in the fashion of a Brazilian Barbecue. I tried everything:

Warthog tastes like...well warthog--yuck.

Crocodile is kind of nasty--Ammonia like flavor.
Giraffe is some tough meat to gnaw on. I think it takes more calories to chew than what you get out of it.
My favorite was Hartebeast. It had substance without being tough, was lean with only a slight game flavor. It was somewhat reminiscent of Elk from the American West.
Also very good was the ostrich which was lean, tender, and not gamey at all. It was like a fine cut of pork.

I did not get to see much of the underbelly of Joburg. Most of what I saw was around the upscale Sandton. It actually looks much like a western American city does with its liberal use of abundant space, modern architecture and city planning. It departs from there in the slums where millions like in crude huts with few facilities.

One morning I was waiting in front of the entrance to a client campus while people streamed by on their way to work in the facility. I had my suit and tie on so I was clearly dressed for business. People entering the office had to pass within a few feet of me to get in. The native manual laborers that came past me, gardners, janitors, ect, all turned their eyes away from my and said "sorry" as they walked by me. I can only guess they felt that I had some power over them and that I might be upset that they approached me. I have never had the imbalance of of wealth and power throwing so crudely in my face. This country has long hard road ahead of it.

However, there is hope. As the country struggles with poverty and corruption, the economy booms and opportunity is growing for everyone in the country. In Sandton I saw a little blond girl cling playfully to the massive bronze leg of the Nelsen Mandela statue in the square named for him. We can hope this is symbolic of South Africa's future in becoming more free of its past.

Aalsmeer Sunrise

2008-02-15T01:00:00.000+01:00

Pictures are here.

Aalsmeer, a community that surrounds a large inland waterway, is about 10 minutes from my home and looked like a good place to take some pictures. I was up at 5am for these and I am pleased with the results. It is a shame that the wind was up as calm waters would have made these shots iconic.

Brno, Czech Republic

2008-02-04T00:22:00.000+01:00

I arrived in Brno for a week of work. I will be visiting often in the next sixth months. Pictures are here.

The Czech republic is a the first Slavic country I have had a chance to visit. European city's are starting to look the same to me, but the people, food, and general culture does have its own flare. After shuttling back and forth from the UK and Netherlands on work for most of last year, this was a great change.

Brno (pronounced Bruno) is an 800 year old city in the province of Moravia. It still has some of that cold war charm in stark public buildings. The airport has a load out of hardened hangers buried in earth that now house Cessna's and other small aircraft. The people don't say "when communism went away", they say "after the revolution". The Soviets wore out their welcome in Czech R. and Slovakia big time and its not hard to see why they where quick to embrace NATO.

I found the food to be very good in the fashion of comfort food. Not very classy maybe, and surely not healthy, but very filling and tasty. I had a lunch of chicken, dumplings and a sort of creamed sour kraut that was really good. I am told this was a typical Czech dish. Its tradition to began every meal with a soup and even got questioned several times for not having soup.

There is a very cool restaurant downtown that is in the bottom of a very large cellar and has a medieval theme. Sure it borders on renfair, but its still charming in its own way.
Brno is a college town with over a dozen small specialty schools; medical, technical, arts, ect... So it is pacted with students, bars, and nightclubs.

Zurich, The Black Forest, and Heidelberg

2008-01-03T00:03:00.000+01:00

There are three galleries with this entry. Sadly most of photographs from Zurich and mount Rigi are trapped in a failed microdrive and can't be recovered without proseional data recovery services which would be in range $1000. These where some great photos so I am not a happy camper. These are the first shots from the new camera. I like the results. Here is what survived:

Zurich Fireworks (old camera)

Zurich was a great place to spend new years eve. The fireworks show over the lake was the most spectacular I have ever seen. At one point I was seriously questioning if it was under control, or if the launching barge had just exploded. The place was trashed. Rubbish filled the streets if the form endless firework detritus and broken champagne bottles. By morning the streets where spotless. German efficiency.

The Black Forest (Nikon D200)

We drove through almost the entire length of the black forest. It looks like it is in pretty good shape with lots of trees and small ski areas spread throughout. We saw a frozen lake with hundreds of people skating or walking on it.

Heidelberg City

&
Heidelberg Castle

Heidelberg is a small but very cool town. the castles massive and though very late period, gives you a good sense of how difficult it would have been to assault the main gates up. You first have to run up a 300 30 degree incline. You would be lucky to keep your lungs in your chest after that. I caught some great shots and we drove back to Amsterdam the next day along the Rheinland driving through the down of Hammerstien with its ruined castle looking over the the Rhein from a cliff.

Winter in Amsterdam

2007-12-22T18:40:00.000+01:00

Link to Photos is Here.
Link to Flash Gallery is Here.

Please give the flash gallery a try and tell me if it works! Thanks. This is the best way to view these large photos because it downloads ahead of you viewing them. I can view it fine, but if it’s a problem for people I keep posting in HTML. Note you will need the Flash Plug in which you can get here.

After one week of grey sub freezing temperatures Saturday was a blue sky day to remember. The trees were covered with inch long "snow icicles" that were as fragile as they were beautiful. They gave the trees a white puffy glow to them that would dissolve in a cascade of little snow flurries as the morning warmed the branches. These flurries would catch the light only adding to the spectacle.

Also the The Canals froze-- a first for me in Amsterdam, and rare enough event for anyone. Weather like this for about three weeks will produce the biggest spectacle in all of Holland in the "Elfstedentoch" the eleven cities ice skating race that takes place on the local canals. The last dates it was cold enough for this race was 97', 86', 85' and then 67'.

This weekend was just for the kids though.

Pompeii

2007-08-17T18:15:00.000+02:00

Link to Photos is HERE.

Everyone has heard of it. Pompeii, the city buried in ash by Mt Vesuvius (pictured above) and locked in place in time only to be excavated 1700 years later to reveal a never before seen detailed glimpse of life in the Roman Empire.

I have only have a few observations then some bullet points. First of all the city is much larger than I anticipated and there is still much more to be excavated. The whole complex is huge and some of the greatest treasures may yet to be found in outlying villas. We took a day tour from Rome that only went to the site but any visit include the Museum in nearby Naples which contain the artifacts found in Pompeii.

Our guide was a Dr. of archeology who has spent most of his life studying Pompeii. His book was for sale in the gift shot for something like $100. He held that the famous plaster castings of people who died in Pompeii were not actual copies as reported in many places including the big piece in National Geo. According to the good Dr. these are basically artistic renditions by archeologists based on the evidence found of a body and not in fact a plaster pouring into a cavity left by the body of the victim. This makes a great deal of sense, so I am inclined to believe him.

A Brothel still stands with their "menu" pained on the wall in a fresco. Patrons would choose what they wanted with the corresponding number. "Give me a number seven".
Many mosaics are still on site.
Many frescos are still on the wall such as this one from the house of the huntsman.
This is a poor picture, (the light was impossible for this shot) but we did get to see the famous floor mosaic that says "beware of dog" in Latin “Cave Canem”.
My favorite shot of the day from inside one of the Baths.

Ancient Rome

2007-08-16T17:36:00.000+02:00

Link to Photos is HERE.

I have switched photo processing software from Picasso to Lightroom. Lightroom is incredibly powerful in processing, but needs more options for web exportation. I might use Picassa for my export and develop in Lightroom. The jury is not in yet.

Here is a series of photos form our trip to Rome in August. They consist of the ancient structures around Rome that we visited such as the forum, coliseum, and the arch of Constantine (above).
Rome is the most historically rich city I have ever visited. Like Paris, you could spend a month and not see everything, but unlike Paris, Rome's observable history extends back several thousand years.

Though Rome is everything you would expect there were some surprises. Construction workers found a complex of ancient temples to Roman gods some years ago. They have been excavated and converted in a sanctuary for Cats of all things. The cats gather around the alters and steps and its does not take much imagination to feel like they are there to attend to these old gods. The cats are apparently prized in some fashion as at least one person hired someone to catnap one from the complex.

Palatine hill is a must see. It is the historical birthplace of Rome and the seat of Roman emperors. Mussolini’s Presidential Palace was built there and it still stands bearing his imperial eagle.

City of Rome

2007-08-15T17:52:00.000+02:00

Link to Photos is HERE.

These photos are processed in Ligthroom, but exported to the web with Picassa. I am still undecided what looks best--feedback would be great.

This is my collection of photos from the visit to Rome that are more general to the city and landscape oriented. There are shots of ancient Rome, modern Rome, The Vatican, and anything else of note in and around the city that we saw.

We did a night walk in Rome that included the Pantheon and the Trevi fountain. Trevi is very crowded with tourists, but you can still get a good look at it--no wading allowed. Also on the night walk was the column of Marcus Aerilius. I really liked this column, but I failed to capture it well in the picture. It is worth the detour to go see. The detail of the carvings are impressive to say the least.

On the drive to Pompeii we got a good look at Monte Cassino. This was the site of brutal fighting during WWII where the Germans attempted to hold the allied advance from a prepared defensive line. This battle had notable participation and casualty from the 2nd core free Polish who fought with the allies vs several division of German troops that were in positions around the monastery. Its value as a strategic position is easy to see even today.

The Pantheon

2007-08-14T20:48:00.000+02:00

The Pantheon is now a Catholic Church, but began its life as the temple to all the gods which a statue of each in surrounding the structure inside. It is a massive dome of poured concrete hints at what Rome must have looked like in its peak and to the brilliance of its builders. There is a large opening the roof to let natural light in and the original brass and lead drainage for rain is still in use in the floor.

Raphael is entombed within as is the last king of Italy in the Savoy line--a controversial figure for Italians.
It has its original doors, polished marble and porphyry floors. Besides the Christian trappings it is much the way it was when it was built in Pagan Rome.

Vatican City

2007-08-13T19:05:00.000+02:00

Link to the photos is HERE.

I am very late in getting these out, but so not much that the trip is not fresh in the mind.

Rome is an incredible city. We saw so much this trip I need to split this into at least four entries in the travel blog: Vatican, Pantheon, Ancient Rome, and Pompeii (not in Rome of course).

We also visited the Bourgase gallery, and the Etruscan Museum, but photographs where not allowed in the later, and I have lost my photo's from the Borghese gallery.

You can split the Vatican into three parts: St. Peter's, Vatican Museum, and the Castle of St. Angelo. The later being actually part of Rome, but with a history that ties it closely to the Vatican.

The first thing to note At St Peter's is that they are very serious about not permitting anyone to enter with bare shoulders or bare thighs---Male or Female.

Also, at the entrance are the Swiss guards, which I got a cool shot of right here.

St. Peters is by the far the most magnificent building I have every seen. It is thought that the vision of its architects, which included Michelangelo, was to "place the dome of the pantheon placed on top the Basilica of Constantine". Take note of the how the building captures the light and sends it into the cathedral in beams and giving ethereal contrasts with the cold marble. This is not a testament to my ability with photography, but to the skill of the builders and architects in making a structure the captures the light.

If the simple building where not enough to impress the inside is pact with altars, and crypts of carved marble and stone unlike anything I have seen. The selection of carvings includes the well known Pieta.

We visited the crypts beneath the Vatican that contained the remains of many Popes stretching back 1000 years. No pictures allowed there of course.

The Vatican Museum is difficult to do justice in even a single day. Though not as massive as the Louvre, at least in displays, it has many extremely important historical pieces: The Sistine chapel, the school of Athens, and my favorite, the room of Constantine. Look at this roof of the room of Constantine--my photo washes out the incredible 3d effect, but you can get the idea by keeping in mind that this is about the size of a tennis court.

I have a fascination with the history Constantinople. As such the sarcophagus of Helena and Constantina where an great surprise for me.
Fully Gallery is here.

The Rheinland

2007-06-20T18:24:00.000+02:00

We visited the Rheinland in Germany and met up with some long time friends from Arizona; Jack, Deille, their daughter Elizabeth, and mutual friend Cecily. We stayed in the town of Bacharach, but ranged through a wide area of the Rheinland visiting castles and various sites. Our hotel room provided a unique experience. It was the top room in a tower that used to be part of the city walls of Bacharach. It was 5 stories up with no lift--so it also provided lots of exercise as well as a great view of the town.

This is absolutely stunning country. The rolling elevations of tall hills and mountains with thick pine forests spotted by castles and cut by the wide blue path of the Rheine. It's not hard to see this as a special place today and in history. There are dozens of castles along the Rheine and we only spent time at two; Schmidtburg and Rheinfels. This is definitely Spear and Magic helmet country!

Schmidtburg is a ruin that is out of the way, but well worth the drive. It was last occupied in the 16th century. This is very appealing as most castles have been so modernized that you have to squint to find a bits and pieces of the authentic in the structure. The extreme of this was the cast we visited in Ghent which is a total reconstruction, but made to look like a historical building. We walked among the ruins, sifted through an ancient garbage pile down the hill from the castle, and found some medieval pottery shards. We also visited a reconstruction of a Celtic village across from the castle.

Rheinfels is huge. It used to be even 5 times bigger than today as a complex fortress with multiple angular gun embankments. The army of the French revolution took the castle with ease as it was deemed to costly to defend. They destroyed the more modern fortifications and left the older structure largely in tact.

For only a few days and a five hour drive this was an amazing trip. We got to see some old friends and get an appreciation for this region, surprisingly unspoiled, yet with such a long history.

Warwick Castle

2007-05-15T18:10:00.000+02:00

I was in Birmingham UK on business and my return flight had to be booked on a Saturday. I planned a late flight and did some sight seeing around Birmingham with an evening in the Sulihull district.

Warwick castle is combination Renesainse faire, museum, and theme park. They have a huge trebuchet, an archery, jousting, and falconry demonstration, a hall filled with weapons and a rooms that either show what the castle looked like in differant periods, or told a historical story relevant to the castle and it's heyday.

Though nothing be impressed with they did an above average job on the costumes as far as authenticy. The Jousting demonstration was very week and very modernized in a lot of ways--the demonstration at the Haar Ren Faire last year was tons better.

The best part was the great hall , notably the Irish Elk Antlers, and the firing of the trebuchet. Photo's are here.

Amsterdam Bos (Woods)

2007-04-21T14:06:00.000+02:00

I took a walk in the Amsterdam woods near our home in Amstelveen. Nothing remarkable here. I was experimenting with my new telephoto and macro lenses. Pictures here.

Holland and Frisia with Friends in the first hints of Spring

2007-03-24T12:31:00.000+01:00

After six months of grey skies and perpetual dampness, the first cracks of spring could not come at a better time. We had friends visiting from the US for most of the past three weeks. I did not take much time off work though we did do a few things to take advantage of the good weather which lasted almost of the entire visit.

We visited the Instanbul collection in the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. No pictures allowed. There where artifacts from the entire Ottoman period from the fall of Constantinople to the reformation of Ataturk. There where many interesting pieces--one worth noting was a 15th century saber that belonged to royal Ottoman court that had a piece of box chain that rested across the knuckles of the holder. Notable, because it seems that there is the general view in the SCA that box change did not exist in period, and any kind of hand protection integrated into a sword, beyond a cross guard, is unusual.

When I reflect upon the early Ottoman, it is one sided to not also recall Byzantium, the culture and country uterly destroyed in its wake. The fall can be attributed to poor leadership, social decline, Christian politics, and the Fourth Crusade's sacking of the city, as much as the rise of the Ottomans. However, the image of the final day with Mehmed's guns battering a breach in the walls of the city culminating in the charge of the janissaries is irresistible. The Byzantine empire went into extinction when the last emperor, Constantine XI, drew his sword and himself charged into the throng of invaders rather than live without "his city". It is truly the stuff of movies are made of.

Most of the pictures are from drives around Holland and Frisia. Zaanse Shanse is a 16th century village with windmills, cog shops, museums, and other tourist stuff. Kind of like a dutch version of Colonial Williamsburg. The dye mill was great as you could walk around the guts of a working Windmill. The power these mills capture form the wind is impressive. No pictures inside as I lost my battery at this time.

Several pictures are along the North Sea and Wadden Sea coast and on the Afsluitdijk--the dike that closed off the Ziedersee making the interior of Holland a lot safer place to live in the face of high tides and storm surge. Our house in Amstelveen is actually about 10 feet below sea level,

The Wadden Sea is a vast body of shallow sea with some deeper channels. The shallows are almost entirely exposed at low tide and you can walk out to the outlying islands, if slogging through mud is you idea of fun.

Pictures here.

Ireland: Dublin, Tara, & Newgrange

2007-02-18T16:58:00.000+01:00

This was a great trip. The pictures really do not do justice to all that we saw since in many places did not allow photographs.

In particular, the Irish National Museum which had large quantities of pre-historic gold and bronze artifacts, a great deal of art from the "Golden Age" of Ireland and an even greater share of Viking artifacts. The detail of gold knot work on pieces from the dark ages is just amazing. The Tara Brooch is probably the best example of that. They had three ancient bog bodies in teh museum, one was so well preserved, you could see every detail in his skin that you might have when he was alive.

At Trinity College we saw the Book of Kells, or at least a few pages of it, and the massive "long room" library filled with an enormous collection of old books and manuscripts--here too no pictures where allowed.

We visited the Anglican Cathedrals of Christchurch and St. Patrick's. Christchurch has great floors which have their medieval patterns preserved even though they where mostly replaced in the 19th century. Interesting catacombs beneath Christchurch, but no pictures hear either.

One place we could take pictures was the Guinness storehouse which is a sort of informative Museum on the history of the porter and the process used to brew it. The best part of this was the bar on the roof from which you can get a good look all around Dublin while your enjoying a pint. I am still scratching my head over paying $20 for what amounts to a live action beer commercial.

On Friday we took tour bus out of the city to Tara and Newgrange.

On the hill at Tara stood a hill fort and town that was the ancient culturing, spiritual, and economic center of Ireland. From this hill you can see 75% of Ireland and it's not hard to see how this vantage point would have held significance for the early people.

On Tara is Lia Fáil, the "Stone of Destiny" which stood inside a royal enclosure in the hill fort in ancient times. Legend has it that the Tuatha De Danaan erected the stone there and imbued it with a power unknown to other stones. It is reputted to "cry out in joy" upon coming into contact with the true king of Ireland and was last said to do this for Brian Boru in the 11th century. Unfortunately I will have to return to my regular job on Monday as it remained silent when I touched it.

Tara is still scarred by it's past and remains a very important site to Gaelic identify and independence.

Newgrange also figures into Irish Mythology and was a remembered as a "fairy mound", inhabited by the Tuatha De Danann. It is a prehistoric passage tomb that served the dual purpose of storing the cremated bones of the honored dead and either of predicting or celebrating the passage of the shortest day and the long march back to Spring. The passage and chamber within illuminate via a carefully aligned roof box during the winter solstice in what our guide said was a awesome site. We put our names in for the lottery to be one of 25 who are allowed to be in tomb for next years solstice.

Newgrange was erected in the Boyne valley Ireland surrounded by a salmon river and fertile fields. Little is known of the purpose of Newgrange or the fate of it's builders. The secrets of Newgrange where forgoten for a millenia until scavaging builders took away a the entrance stone from the hill and found a passage beyond it. sadly this was the 17th century and there where scholarly sensibilities at work for hundreds of years.

The final point of interest was the Viking splash tour in a WWII Dukws amphibious landing craft driven by a tour guide dressed as a Viking. It was very cheesy, but the driver was very entertaining and made for some fun in our last hours in Dublin before our flight back to Amsterdam.

All Pictures are here.

Amsterdam Historical Museum

2007-01-14T15:39:00.000+01:00

We did a day trip to the Amsterdam Historical Museum. I took some pictures of medieval leatherwork finds from the Bogs in the Netherlands since in tact leatherwork is rare from that period and I. I was pleased and half surpised to see such widespread use of the tooling of leather. I have been told, by people who should know better, that this was not done in period. See for yourself.

Also, lot's of great sample so turn shoes and boots here.

Dutch power really came into it's own in the late period and most of the museum is focused on that. I found the maritime displays interesting and worthwhile, but nothing that I really felt motivated to photograph.

Holidays in Amsterdam, and the Rijksmuseum

2007-01-02T01:00:00.000+01:00

Here are some pictures with holiday lights around Amsterdam and from the Rijksmuseum.

Have a look at this Rembrant from the left, and then this view from the right, and notice that no matter where you stand the eyes appear to be staring right at you.

Most of the Rijksmuseum is closed right now due to renovations. The part that is open only takes about and hour to run through.

Tanks in Town

2006-08-31T18:08:00.000+02:00

I attended a WWII re-enactment event in Mons, Belgium called “Tanks in Town”. This was a incredible event with dozens and dozens of armored vehicles. Many are extremely rare and most are fully operational. It was a great day.

I have decided that I need an M5 Stuart...no I NEED and M5 Stuart. I am told one occasionally goes on the market for about$50,000. It's worth that--that’s like a sports car only this is like an investment! Seriously I got to sit in every position of a fully restored Stuart, look through the gun site, play with the controls and hatches--it was a blast. To my surprise I actually fit inside one though it was tight going in...

The still photos speak for themselves, but here are some observations:

-There was a group of re-enactors who dressed like and had their campsite up like Kelly's Hero's. They even had a still from the movie of the campsite they rebuilt.

-Tanks not moving in heavy cover are very hard to see.

-The most unusual part of the whole day was walking around hundreds of people dressed as American soldiers and not being able to find anyone that speaks English to tell me how to sign up for a tank ride. Including the "GI's" that where doing the sign in sheets for the tank rides.

All Pictures are here.

Here is a move of an M18 Hellcat spinning around the track:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBgWivabi48

Paris Day 2

2006-08-26T17:35:00.000+02:00

Today we visited the Medival Museum and the Louvre. We foolishly only gave the Louve a 1/2 day and it really deserves 3 days at least. It was enough to see the major pieces, such the place of Sargon relics, the Mona Lisa, The code of Hammurabi, the Egyptian exibits.

Pictures are here.

Paris Day 1

2006-08-25T16:20:00.000+02:00

It would be really difficult not to like Paris. The streets are very clean and there is more to take in this city than any I have ever been to--two days is not enough. We walked around the city and visited Notre Dam,

The armory at the old military hospital which is adjacent to Napoleon's tomb and the Eiffel tower.The selection of canon was absolutely incredible. They had hundreds of examples of cannons from around the world ranging from Chinese, ottoman, to the guns from fortresses around France. Many where ornately cast. The pictures tell it all. If you look closely you will note some serious damage on some of the guns from counterbatterfy fire--very cool.

The Medieval armory was great. They had a huge storage room with glass windows with hundreds of pieces of armor and weapons on racks and shelves. The section from 17th century on closed until 2008, so the entire extensive collection from the Napoleonic area is not open for viewing at this time.

Napoleon's tomb was impressive. There are several tombs including Josephine's, Nap's brother Jerome, and several French Generals from the last couple hundred years. The use of light and colored glass gave several of the rooms a supernatural atmosphere.

We walked up to the Eiffel tower, but declined to wait in line for 1 hour+ to ride the elevator up. Maybe another day.

Picture Galley is here.

Omaha beach, St. Mere Eglise and WWII remembered

2006-08-18T15:34:00.000+02:00

We had about a day to spend on the WWII sites in Normandy. It was just enough get the full picture, but to actually see everything--to include all the museums would take 2-3 days. Still we saw a lot of country: The coastal batteries at Longues and Point du Hoc, Omaha Beach, St. Mere Eglise, and the American Memorial and Cemetery in St. Laurent. The following day, on our way back to Brussels, we drove through the Bocage country. Rolling hills crisscrossed with ancient mounds, overgrown with trees and undergrowth that denote parcels of land and where a nightmare for US forces as they advanced through South-West Normandy.

All pictures can be viewed from here.

Omaha beach is 6km (about 4 miles) long. We picked a small portion in front of the Colleville draw to visit the beach. This gave use a review of some the German defenses that remain, the monument to the 1st ID "the Big Red One" and was walking distance to American cemetery and memorial.

There was an excellent map detailing the defenses in this Sector. The American military classified this section of the beach as "Easy Red" and part of "Fox Green" sectors.

The cemetery was moving and the American memorial impressive. You have to see it yourself to really know what 10,000 white crosses look like. Perhaps surprising was the number of people that where there who really had a grave to visit. There where several families with 2-3 generations present who had brought flowers and where clearly focused on visiting a particular fallen soldier. I felt a bit of an intruder as I watched two men in there forties--clearly brothers standing over a grave when one of the pulled a handful of soil from his pocket and spread it on the grave. They spent a few more moments then walked away toward the beach. If today was like any other it's profound to think about the impact these events still have and still work to shape who and what we are as a country.

The cemetery was built and designed by the US government in the fashion of memorials that are found in Washington. Wide sidewalks and a liberal use of space. You might have to live in Europe to appreciate this fully, but everything over here is crammed in tight and is designed with an efficiency of space in mind. The architecture, the flag, and the undeniable presence of 10,000 countrymen all conspired to make this felt a bit like home--like a piece of the States uprooted and settled down into the soil of Northern France. I would like to think that it will always be so remembered.

On to Normandy

2006-08-18T13:34:00.000+02:00

We stayed in Bayeux at the Liod d' Or Hotel. Great accommodation--I would recommend it. We went right for the tapestry. It was great to see it in person, and you get a good idea for the time and effort that went into it. Seeing it all at once I found the relative few colors used/available to be surprising and the stitches where not quit as close or small as they appear in pictures. Some of the reds where more "red" the others, but all where some version of Brown-Red. For the most part there was great consistency in the color. To our shock and surprise some new scenes from the tapestry have been recently discovered and can be seen here.

For more of this nonsense visit here and to create you own silliness go here. Real pictures of the tapestry are here if you’re interested.

We spent hours driving around the countryside in Normandy with visits to Cain, Falaise and their fortresses. Though we did not know it at the time we stopped and had lunch in the town of Harfleur. This was the city besieged by Henry V just before Agincourt and is included in the Shakespeare tale of the same name. At the time Harfleur was the major shipping port and control point for access to the Seine.

All pictures are here.

Imperial War Museum in London

2006-08-18T13:28:00.000+02:00

I was in London for business meeting and extended my stay over Saturday which gave me a chance to see a bit more of London. I visited the Imperial War Museum which has some great equipment and collections. Really good stuff. The pictures speak for themselves.

Some of the more interesting pieces are; the eagle taken from the Reichstag in Berlin. A Jagdpanther with side armor penetrations and lots of other "lovingly" restored vehicles.

Bastogne!

2006-06-19T00:22:00.000+02:00

Bastogne, next to Normandy, is the destination for WWII history-philes. The museum is the best I have seen, the monument was quite moving. They have an enduring love of US Airborne soldiers here and shows in more than just the tourism.

On the top of the monument, at each point of the star, was a bronze plaque that detailed each German assault on the town where the American held the line.

The collection in the museum was enormous and well worth the visit alone. The sample of uniforms and various pieces rare equipment was impressive as was the dioramas that integrated actually vehicles, tanks and guns where very nicely done!

In the surrounding area I visited the town of Recogne and Foy. The American perimeter was not in the town of Bastogne itself for most of the battle and the lines of troops stretched out to the surrounding hamlets and communities. Foy is famous for the episode of Band of Brothers called "Breaking Point" where the 506th's men and moral where withered by German artillery fire in the woods surrounding Foy culminating in the assault and taking of the town in what are some of the most gripping scenes in the series. If you have not seen Band of Brothers I highly recommend it, even if you are not taken to WWII history.

In Recogne I stumbled upon the German cemetery. A bunch of kids buried six to a grave--tragic.

I finished the day off driving into Luxembourg and walked along a nature trail that runs along the lines of German foxholes during the retreat as Patton's 3rd army rolled them up on the flank to the South. The still visible foxholes are being consumed by the forest, but they leave a ghostly note to the trail.

De Haar Ren Faire

2006-06-16T12:54:00.000+02:00

On May 21st we went to a Ren Faire at De Haar Castle, just outside of Utrecht in the Netherlands. The castle is cool, but it's not much more than 100 years old being a product of 19th century romance.

The pictures say more. The most notable was a very powerful Gyr falcon that was on display.

I took some movies of the jousting, and have them posted, but your miliage might vary in viewing them.

The Abbey at Villers-la-Ville

2006-05-17T21:03:00.000+02:00

The Villers abbey (Wiki, Pictures) is a short drive from Brussels hardly 20 min from the suburb of Waterloo. Founded in 1146 , it's one of the only complete medieval Abbey ruins left in Europe. The grounds include the Abbot's Palace and garden, kitchens, scriptorium, dormitory, very large church, workshop, hostelry, prison and more. The prison was actually mentioned by Victor Hugo in Les Miserables. In it's height it was the home of a couple dozen monks and over 300 brothers with thousands of peasants and tenant farmers working a large range of land surrounding the abbey. It was a wealthy enterprise for most of the middle ages until it was burned out by French revolutionaries in 1796.

I was rather surprised to see a railway (built in 1855) cut through the grounds of the abbey ruining any good panoramic shots of the site, but they managed to preserve the entire site dispate the unfortunate addition.

It's a great site to visit because you can get very close to very old art and architecture. Much thanks to my friend Madigan for tipping me off on this site. The pictures are not the best I have made, but you can't beat the subject matter for light, color and contrast.

Miscellaneous pics from the last two months

2006-05-14T14:20:00.000+02:00

Here are some miscellaneous photos from over past few months. Not much traveling in April. I spent most of it in the US getting my affairs in order for an extended assignment. There are some pics for around Brussels, Waterloo and from the military museum. I revisited the later two to show a few co-workers some sites around Brussels.

At Waterloo I walked by Hougomont (wiki) which looks to be a fully functioning farm still. It's hard to get to, but I think part of the wall remains in in place on opposite end of the farm. Also caught a monument of Victor Hugo and the site of the last stand of the French from the battlefield where several companies refused to surrender though where surrounded. This is today represented by a monument of an Eagle with a Broken wing and defensive claw raised refusing to let go of the French Imperial Banner.

A few other pics show some things I missed in the first run at the Royal Military Museum. I finally got a close look at the 88 they have there.

Ardennes, Bouillon & the Castle of Godfrey of Bouillon

2006-03-01T11:14:00.000+01:00

It's snowing, so where else would you go than the Ardennes. Besides I recieved a very sleek new to me company car that I had to try out on the road. So off we go to Bouillon.

The Ardennes rest at the strategic passage between Germany and France. For millennia armies have used this route to skirt difficult terrain on there way to reek havoc with their neighbors. The last time this happened was when the German 5th Panzer army created the Ardennes Salient during the battle of the Bulge. The legendary town of Bastongne (Nuts!) and the more infamous Malmandy lie a short drive to the East/NE. Anyway the German advance never reached Bouillon. I will visit the places they did later in the year when the museums are open.

This trip to Bouillon was all about the fortress. From this quiet Alpine fortress Godfrey of Bouillon got it in his head that he should sell all his worldly possessions and finance an army to travel to the Holy Land in what became known as the First Crusade. Godfrey followed this vision and succeeded fully in this endeavor having successfully stormed the walls of jerusalem and installed himself as the first King of Jerusalem in all ways but name. Godfrey instead choose to take the more humble title of "Defender of the Holy sepulcher".

The castle felt very authentic. It is a wet cold place where the walls constantly seep water and deposit a layer of minerals on the inner walls that give the fortress the look as if it was chiseled out of the rock or even poured from cement. Below the fortress there is cistern fed by a spring of clear clean water--a must in a siege.

There is a raptor expedition held daily on the castle grounds. They have quite a selection of birds; Eagles, vultures, hawks, owls, and a Saker Falcon. Also there where 4 Harris Hawks which are only native to Arizona and Mexico/CA. Harris' make fine hunting birds for the falconer. They hunt in groups in the wild and thus easily adapt to the human as a member of the 'hunting party' and will even bind large prey they have no hope of taking alone expecting the falconer to catch up and help.

Click here to see my pictures of Bouillon.

Cologne

2006-02-27T11:01:00.000+01:00

We went to Cologne to attend an SCA event, Hansa Challenge. It was a nice event and I got some fighting in which is all to rare of an occurrence these days. It's my perception that the SCA is very much the same, in the most positive of ways, wherever you go. Every group has things they do better and worse, but it's nice to know that game is essentially the same and filled with lots of great people all over the world.

We spent most of the weekend at the event, but we left Sunday for sightseeing around Cologne. Unfortunately it was the height of the Carnival season along the Rhineland. The museums where all closed and the streets where filled with partying strangely dressed Germans tossing back hard liquor at 10:00am. We did not stick around to see what the scene looked like after dark and headed back to Brussels. It looked like one hell of a party, but I guess we where not in the mood for a "Mardi Gras".

We did get some pictures of the Dom in Cologne (Cathedral).

Click Here to see my pictures from Cologne.

Bari Italy

2006-02-14T10:30:00.000+01:00

I traveled to Bari Italy to meet with a supplier that is not performing well. Unfortunately most of the time was spent in meetings, but I did get away for a few hours to see parts of the city including the Swabian Fortress, St Nicholas' Cathedral--said to house the bones of the St. Himself, and the port.

I did not get any picture so St Nicholas' Cathedral. I should have--it was a stunning contrast between a simple unadorned stone construction with magnificent ceiling paintings -Sistine chapel style. The shrine of the saint was in the basement. The chamber had a incredibly ancient feel about it. It was lit cleverly by dozens of hand mad iron Braziers hung from the ceiling that hid the artificial light sources.

The night we arrived where hosted to an incredible dinner in downtown Bari. In all there where over 22 dishes of Apollonian cuisine in a 7 course meal. Excellent sea food and well worth breaking the diet for.

Bari is remembered as a major launching port along the route to the first Crusade. Though Godfrey of Bouillon went by the land route through Asia Minor, Robert of Flanders and Hugh of Vermandois took their forces by boat from Bari. Peter the Hermit preached his message of the first crusade in Bari.

The Swabian fortress was a great piece of work. It had a very Mediterranean "feel" very different from similar structures in Northern Europe. With the palm trees and sun bleached sand this could have been anywhere in the middle east. Some of you are probably wondering what the heck is a Swabian, as I did.

Click Here to see my Pictures of Bari Italy.

London

2006-01-16T13:02:00.000+01:00

I had a short trip to London for a business review. Once again, not much time for site seeing, but that was OK since I had been to London years ago. As luck would have it my hotel was right on the Thames next the Tower, and Tower Bridge and I snapped some nice photos. I am starting to experiment with exposure times and aperture settings for different effects with mixed success. I am impressed with the versatility of a good digital Camera.

Click Here for Picture of London.

Calais

2006-01-07T01:31:00.000+01:00

On our way back from Brugge we drove over to Calais for Lunch. It only took a couple of hours--everything here is very close. Though it was too hazy to see England. Click here for Calais Pics.

Brugge

2006-01-06T01:20:00.000+01:00

Brugge is all people say it is. It is a beautiful even quaint city that has been somewhat frozen in time by it's river silting up in the middle ages. The river was eventually opened back up in the modern era, but the long slumber must have helped preserve many older buildings. The Basilica of the Holy Blood (said to house a relic of Jesus' blood) and the Stadhuis are all must sees. We stayed at the Hotel Jan Brito and found it be an excellent accommodation. Click Here for all the pics.

Ghent

2006-01-05T01:07:00.000+01:00

Ghent was a surprise. We stopped there on the way to Brugge almost as an afterthought. I am glad we did--St. Bavo's cathedral is worth the trip along. Within it's walls is a mediaeval masterpiece known as the 'Adoration of the Lamb' as well as works from Flemish masters that are too many to count. The marbled and alabaster building a massive work of art in itself. Words or my pictures do not really do this magnificent structure justice.

Pictured here is the Alter piece with Candle sticks donated by N. Bonaparte.

Click here for more pictures of Ghent, including the Castle of the Counts. It looks great in the pictures, but I think in reality it would be more accurately described as a reproduction of a castle than an actual mediaeval castle.

Brussels--New years Day 2006

2006-01-01T00:32:00.000+01:00

Click here for pictures around Brussels on New years day.

Brussels in December

2005-12-31T00:26:00.000+01:00

Click here for Brussels pictures from December 2005.

Waterloo

2005-11-14T00:47:00.000+01:00

Here was the greatest battle in a hundred years of war. Great battlefields are haunting. If you have ever been to one you probably have felt it. I have had the same feeling here as I had at Gettysburg and the Little Big Horn. No doubt it's a reverence for the memory rather than anything supernatural. We should be no less impressed in the manner in which these places and events have sent ripples through time, only that they have. Pictures.

Amsterdam

2005-10-31T00:57:00.000+01:00

A canal ride is a great -sit on your ass- way to see Amsterdam. Even better if the weather is good. I recomend getting on the boat early so you your not stuck in the cabin. Click here for the whole boatride.

Brussels in October 2006

2005-10-04T23:49:00.000+02:00

Here are some pics from the Grand place and the castle in the arboretum North of Brussels.

First weeks in Brussels September 2006

2005-09-26T23:17:00.000+02:00

Pictures from my first week in Brussels:

Brussels Military Museum

2005-09-20T00:38:00.000+02:00

Click here for my pics of the Royal Brussels Military Museum.

This is a great museum. Like many museums they don't have room to display everything. Note the WWII ere German 88 shoved off in the corner.

Shown here is a Sherman Tank that was in British service via a lend lease program called a "firefly". The Firefly was noteworther for it's 17 pounder Anti-Tank gun. For those of you not familer with WWII firepower, a 17 pounder is a really big gun.

I started a Blog

2005-09-13T22:50:00.000+02:00

I started a blog because I wanted somewhere to put down links and comments on my travel through Europe. I have some catch up to do.

I am an American Expat that on an assignment with my company in Brussels Belgium. This was suppose to be a six month gig, but It's been extended with a follow up assignment that will keep me in Europe for all of 2006 and at least some of 2007.

Arrived in Europe on September 13th, 2005, my 36th birthday.

That's all for now, on with the blog.

--Dave