Fantastic Den

Over the past few months, I've made some fantastic additions to my den. 

Marvel Titan Hero Series : Sherry bought these for me for Christmas.  They are still boxed, but they won't be forever.  I plan to play with them with James and any future grandchildren, as the grandchildren become of an age where it's safe, and they think it's fun.

Magic: the Gathering Legacy Collection figures.  Six Planeswalkers.  They were an impulse buy -- encouraged by Sherry, in fact.  These guys might stay in their packaging, or they might not.










There Be Dragons:  The Dragon has lit my imagination since my earliest memories of childhood.  Now that the toy/game world can produce such excellent draconic figures, I've started to buy them.  Whether just figures, or from games, I have a decent set of them now.  And my Dungeons and Dragons players get to encounter them on occasion, including in our very next gaming session!

Favorite Foto Friday - Verona Clocktower 3

From beautiful Verona, Italy.  That day was so memorable!

Thanks, to Pascal and Francesca for the tour and the hospitality!

Merry Christmas from the Will Family

Favorite Foto Friday - Color For Sale

One of many memorable images from my visit to the Vienna Christmas Market.

It's Been a While - Akershus

I guess I have not posted for a while.  I think I'll queue up a few posts.  Most of them will be photos because I have way too many good shots from places I've been in the past two years.

Here's one.  This is Akershus, the Castle Fortress which overlooks the Oslo harbor. 

On my day alone in Oslo, I just walked around the city.  I found I remembered how to walk to many of the famous sights, including this one.  I didn't  walk around the grounds of Akershus that day, but I did a couple of days later, when I served as "better than nothing" tour guide.  Say "hi" to Trevor and Dr. Frank.

Favorite Foto Friday - Budapest

Budapest - I saw very little of it up close, but I saw many impressive buildings from a distance.  Here is one.

Favorite Foto Friday - A Palace in Vienna

I am in Vienna, Austria on a Friday.  I think my photo should be from today.  This is a beautiful city.

 

The photo is a bit grainy.  But I like it.

Favorite Foto Friday - Here Comes Hallowe'en

I am confident I posted this before, though I can't immediately find when.

I know, Hallowe'en is not for another week, but I sincerely hope to have a very cute picture to post on that particular Friday.  And this is appropriate as we head towards the holiday, anyway.  Plus, I miss these kids.

A Short Walk in Budapest

Today, I only had 90 minutes to see what I could see in Budapest.  Fortunately, from the Corinthia Hotel, where I am staying, I can walk to the Danube in only 15-20 minutes, and while I walked, I also passed some nice sights.  Also, fortunately, the rain which had fallen in the morning had given way to some partly sunny skies, making timing ideal for both a walk and some photos.

I am going to lead with probably the best shot I got.

Now, what is that?  At the moment, I do not know.  As I said, I had ninety minutes.  I walked (fast), I looked at things (when I wasn't watching for traffic), I admired the sights, and my good fortune, and I took photos.  Then I walked back to the hotel.  So, someday I expect I will find out what these buildings are.  But for the moment, sorry, I don't know.  But I'm sure it's a famous place.

Here is another famous place.  The sun was behind it, but it was So Grand!  I had to have the picture anyway.

I mentioned I was by the Danube.  So let me show you a photo of the Danube.  It was very clear, for a big river.  Very nice.  Once again, the panoramic setting on the iPhone makes for a good view.














But let's take a look at some of the beautiful buildings lining the river, shall we.

You get the feeling the buildings above would be highlights in many cities, but as they sit below the impressive structure in the first photo, they probably don't get as much attention as they might.  Anyway, that photo just above is on the left side of the Danube, as seen in the panoramic shot.

On the right, is this glorious cathedral - see the photo below.  I mean, I don't know for sure it's a cathedral, but, c'mon -- doesn't it have that look?

And, on my return walk, I saw this next building.  Sorry I don't know what it is.  If I get a chance on Thursday, I am going to take a bit more time.  Or at least study the map of the city, so I can take educated guesses as to what I saw.
 

 

Clearly, this is a beautiful city.  While I certainly hope I get to see more of it, I do feel fortunate to have had this opportunity to see, and record, what I have.  It's amazing what you can see on a short walk in Budapest.

Social Media and the Solitary Traveler

So, lately I've been doing something I don't get to do very much: taking a bit of time "off" when I am traveling for work.  Now, I don't blog about work (here) but every once in a while, I have to stretch that rule a little bit so I can talk about my life.  This is one of those times.

When I travel for work, I almost never get a "weekend" away.  I am using the term "weekend" loosely here.

You see, when I travel for work, I often have to leave on a Sunday, and sometimes a Saturday, in order to be able to participate in whatever event I'm attending.  For example, if I have to give a presentation on Monday morning in Europe, I have to leave on a Saturday, which puts me in Europe on Sunday.  This current trip, I needed to attend the start of the conference on Sunday, which meant I had to leave on Friday.  And, I had been at a conference in the US all week before I went to Sweden, so I had flown to that conference on the previous Sunday.

If you don't follow all that, the point is this: a standard "weekend" where the Saturday and Sunday make up two continuous non-work days -- this just doesn't happen much when I am traveling.

If you saw a few Stockholm photos from me, they were taken during a few hours when I did not have to attend the conference, but I was definitely working most of those days.  And mostly, I was taking the photos while walking around with a colleague.  (Hi, Tim!)

Anyway, as it happens, I left the conference in Sweden in order to fly to London for another work event in the middle of the week.  And, as schedules would have it, while I was due in Budapest the following Sunday, I didn't have to rush immediately from the hotel in London to the airport.  I had a couple of days in which I was not required to be working.

So, I could have made other choices:

1. Spend the time in my hotel room, doing work.  There's plenty to do.  But there is always plenty to do.  I could work through pretty much every weekend at home, too -- you know, those Saturday/Sunday combinations.  But generally speaking, I don't.  It's part of how I balance my work and my life.
2. Fly back to the US for however much time I'd have, and then fly back to Budapest.  I think, had I done this, I might have had something like 16 hours at home.  But I would have spent another 48 hours in aiports and airplanes.  And it would have cost more than staying in a hotel.  Sure, someone else is picking up the monetary cost, but I'm the one on the plane.  And I can tell you, after all that time in the air and airports, those 16 hours would have seen me one brain-dead individual.
   
   So, I chose option 3.

3. Spend a "weekend" in London.  Put away my computer (except to write personal blogs in the evening [and answer critical work e-mails; and try to make reservations for my next trip {See?  There is always work to do.}]) and push myself to enjoy the time here.

Now, while option 3 seems reasonable, there is a problem.

I don't go out alone.

It's not a phobia or anything.  It's just a personality trait.  When I am alone, I just tend to prefer to stay alone.  I huddle up with books, games, music, a comfortable place to sit, movies, TV shows, snacks -- and I just sit relax, and enjoy myself.

This works out fine in Rochester.  In fact, let's be honest, it works most anywhere I normally travel in the US, given that I typically only have a couple of "free" hours anywhere.

But here I was in London!  I mean, wow, there are a lot of things to see within an hour of the Hilton Metropole in London.

If I had been here with Sherry, we'd have been out all day, every day, every hour I was not required to be working.  Because she's like that.  And when I'm with her, it rubs off on me.  So, when I took the work trip to Australia and New Zealand, and she joined me, we saw things!

But here I was, alone in London.  What would I do?

First of all, I got a great start because on the first uncommitted day, I didn't have to be alone.  A work colleague who lives near Winchester offered to show me around, and specifically to take me to Stonehenge, which is within an hour of the Winchester train station.  So I rode a train to Winchester, she picked me up, and we saw Stonehenge!  We also saw Winchester cathedral, walked around the lovely old town, had a drink in a pub, and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  Now, we did end up talking about work for a while, and it was a good conversation to have.  But really, the day was basically a "weekend day."  (Thanks, Therese!)

However, I still had some time on my own.  I had part of one day without work, and one more full day of non-work, if I wanted it -- and I wanted it.

So, how to push myself to see as much as I could, when my normal state of mind would draw me back to a quiet room in the hotel?

I decided I needed to get social.

Despite the fact that it would use data from the cell phone plan, I figured if I posted photos and comments as I went along, it wouldn't feel so much like I was alone.  See, one of the best things about traveling around (for me, anyway) is often the experience of sharing what you see, hear and learn with others.  Most often, for me, that's Sherry.  But I've also had a good time sightseeing with people I know from work.  It's a great way to form friendships, and it's how I saw most of what I saw the other two times I was in London.  (I saw "Wicked" in London, taking the chance to introduce two of my co-workers to what is probably my favorite musical theater experience.)

But this time, I didn't have any traveling companions.  So I used facebook (and blogger, but I only did the latter in the evening, so it was not the same.)

When I'd see something, I would post a good photo, or a status message (usually both) to facebook.  And I could hope some of my friends would see it and react, so I could feel like I was sharing the experience with someone.

Did it work?

Did it ever!

When I started looking at fb, after posting the photo Therese took of me at Stonehenge, I saw that lots of people were paying attention, and sharing things with me.  Mostly, it was "likes" -- and that's what I was hoping for - a few people noticing and being glad for me.  But there wer more than a few, and then there were several people who left comments!

It was all beyond my expectations.

And it made me feel like my travels would not be so much "alone" as I had thought.  So, after my day with Therese, it was much easier to go out into London with a plan to share other stops along the way.



The Tower of London, with the Poppies exhibit.  The Tower Bridge (which is so striking in sunlight,) the walk along the Thames to the Parliament building and Big Ben, the visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum (you can take pictures in there!  Almost everywhere!) and then the performance of "Billy Elliott."  I made all of these "social" events by putting them on facebook and interacting with family and friends back home. 

It was a full day, and it was made more full by sharing it.

I want to thank every single one of you who participated by responding in some way to the facebook posts, or to this blog.  It means something to me -- something real.

So, as a reward for sticking around for this long post, here are a few more photos, and some information about Stonehenge.

Royal Albert Hall

Kensington Garden - and another Panoramic photo. 

St. Paul's Cathedral

And I walked as high as they would let me - the views!

Oh, and Stonehenge?

It was not built by druids.  That theory was proposed by one of the famous people who studied it -- John Aubrey -- who had no true concept of how long the structures had been around, so his attribution of a druidic origin, while widespread in "common knowledge," has been shown to be false.  Stonehenge predates druids by thousands of years, as far as science knows.

That doesn't make the references from "This is Spinal Tap" any less funny.  More, perhaps.

And while some of the stones were, in fact, transported for miles overground (the sarcens, which are taller stones -- the vertical ones we typically see -- came from about 19 miles away from the site) the bluestones are the ones from Wales, and they almost certainly were taken to the site primarily over water.  Again, this does not make Eddie Izzard's bit any less funny; just not quite as accurate.

I think it's important not to get our science from non-scientists.  It's kinda a thing with me.

So, there it is.  I have spent a few more hours, now, making this "weekend" a "social" event by composing this blog entry.  Again, thanks to everyone who has participated in my travels.

Because tomorrow is Sunday, and while it might be a weekend for you, I am traveling to Budapest, and working.

Weekend Over.  G'Night!

Favorite Foto Friday - Stonehenge

I had the opportunity to visit Stonehenge (thanks, Therese!)  I was awestruck.  I didn't take as many photos as I probably should have.  It was so amazing.  I just kept looking at it, and listening to the audio tour, and looking at it.

Here's the shot I've chosen for my FFF:

But just a bit more about the visit:

When you visit Stonehenge, you park by a visitor center, and then get on a bus or a set of small connected cars -- we were on the latter.  We were offered the chance to get off at the midway point of the drive to the stones, and I wanted to walk the one kilometer from the midpoint.  Well, that was cool.  No one else did it, as far as I could see.

We were able to view a description of some of the surrounding archeological elements.  

And then we got to walk to some of those features, but to do so, we opened a gate and walked Right Past some (lots of!) cows.  (I thought of James -- he loves cows!)
















Some people might have been worried.  Not us.  We just walked past them and Right Up To some of the burial mounds!

Notice that, from the mounds, you can see Stonehenge in the distance.

And zooming the lens from there, it's a pretty good picture itself.   The foreground seems to have some excavation going on.  As we walked to the stones, I meant to find someone and ask about them, but, shoot, once I was looking at the actual thing, I totally forgot.

I mean, look at that thing!  

 

This was impressive.  I am so glad I saw it!

Stockholm - Stortorget - The Big (Beautiful) Square

A couple of photographic views of a very picturesque square in Stockholm. I'm sure it must have a name.  I should find out what it is.  (I have since found out it's called Stortorget - "The Big Square."  Thanks, Torbjörn.)

First, the normal shot.

Now, because I am experimenting with the "panoramic" setting on my new iPhone, the strange result of that.

Favorite Foto Friday - Thinking Christmas

While I was looking for summer photos to include as Favorite Foto Friday photos, I came across this.  I remember intending to post it last year, and never did.  It got me thinking about Christmas.  Then, Sarah asked me to think of some Christmas music for a particular task, so, naturally, I listened to some. So, while I do not wish to hurry the summer away, I am a Christmas lover.  So, I shall schedule this photo to appear sometime in the future, and it will be a nice reminder.

Favorite Foto Friday - Parliament Building

In two weeks, I will be in London again.  If I am lucky, someday I will get to reshoot this photo when the sky is not overcast.  If I am extraordinarily lucky, it will happen on this trip.

Favorite Foto Friday - Recognize This?

Today's photo: Do you know what this is?

Favorite Foto Friday - Flora from Brooklyn Botanic Garden

On our recent trip to visit Leah, we took in the beautiful Brooklyn Botanic Garden.  The grounds are quite extensive, and quite lovely.  Though most of the photos I share are grander in scope -- skylines, mountain views, and the like -- I've certainly seen some smaller creations which deserve to be preserved in photographs.  Here are a few from that day.


I find I have begun to take more photos with this 1920x1080 aspect.  My initial reason to do so was selfish -- I have computers which have screens of these relative dimensions, so the photos fit perfectly as background images, with no padding or stretching required.  But while it started with that intent, I am also discovering my "eye" changing to "find" that aspect ratio when I look for something to capture.

 But I certainly don't limit myself to the "wide screen" view.  Some images clearly need to be closer to square.  And, then, of course, some images call for a "portrait view."  These are not quite as esthetically pleasing in slideshow mode on my computer, but that's not the only use for a photo, and I recognize that.



Anyway, here's a photo which required a more square view.

Sorry, folks, I just don't know the names for these flowers.  I suppose I should.  If I were professional, I'd have a journal (or a memory) for them.  Me, I just look, admire and take the shot.

Favorite Foto Friday - Freedom Tower (One World Trade Center)

On the same day we saw the Statue of Liberty, we walked to the 9/11 Memorial, and visited the newly opened 9/11 Museum. 


On the walk, I took this photo of One World Trade Center, also known as Freedom Tower.  I was entranced by the way the perspective makes the building seem to rise into infinity.














Here are another couple of views, from farther away.

During the day.

At night.

Favorite Foto Fridays - Hogwarts

On my tour of "The Making of Harry Potter" in London last year, one of the impressive exhibits was the scale model of Hogwarts, which was used by filmmakers to get the views of the castle/school for several of the films.  The detail was extraordinary.

The lights in the display room were on a continuous rotation, to allow the castle to also be seen "at night." I am not as good at dark photos, but here's one I tried. It was fun to be able to walk all around the school and see the structure from so many angles.