Project: Nest latest blog: http://projectnest.squarespace.com/project-nest-blog/2011/7/15/let-there-be-light.html.
I'm not above self-promotion.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Where have I gone?
I've jet-setted all OVER the globe--the UAE (+5), Singapore, KL (Malaysia), Mexico, Myrtle Beach... I just haven't written about it. Mainly because I forgot I had this blog.
I'm an idiot. (Truthfully, I really only started this blog for my mother so she wouldn't worry about her prodigal son when I travelled internationally. Little did I know that she didn't care.)
Anyway, for the last year I've given up my business class ways (humble brag!) and settled into another role: contractor. My girlfriend and I bought a fixer-upper condo in the Alamo Square district of San Francisco. You can read all about our exploits on our renovation blog Project: Nest (www.squarespace.projectnest.com).
I'm an idiot. (Truthfully, I really only started this blog for my mother so she wouldn't worry about her prodigal son when I travelled internationally. Little did I know that she didn't care.)
Anyway, for the last year I've given up my business class ways (humble brag!) and settled into another role: contractor. My girlfriend and I bought a fixer-upper condo in the Alamo Square district of San Francisco. You can read all about our exploits on our renovation blog Project: Nest (www.squarespace.projectnest.com).
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
london day 16
july 30, 2007
since i arrived so late last night, i decided to go into work around 1pm today. you know, to get some sleep. so i got up around 8am and explored the city. first i headed to buckingham palace, then to westminster abbey, then to big ben and the houses of parliament and then to the tate modern to tour see an exhibit called "global cities".
the tate modern museam is amazing, one because it was designed by one of my favorite architectural firms, herzog & de meuron, and two, because it's collection of modern art is pretty spectacular. some of theartists you might recognize - alberto giacometti, roy lichtenstein, andy worhol, joan miro, pablo picasso, salvador dali, piet mondrian, mark rothko, paul klee, gustav klimt... just off the top of my head.
the global cities exhibit was impressive. the whole exhibit revolved around the exploding populations of the world's largest cities and the effect on many global issues that result from this. the exhibit was displayed with an architectural twist, geared toward urban eco-friendly design. i thoroughly enjoyed it.
then work. ugh.
after work, i had a late dinner with one of my colleagues - john camm. john is on old bugger that has been hired by hh on contract to do our presentation drawings. the guy is not only a fabulous artist, he's a great designer and has the perfect british monty-python-like wit. dinner was a blast.
since i arrived so late last night, i decided to go into work around 1pm today. you know, to get some sleep. so i got up around 8am and explored the city. first i headed to buckingham palace, then to westminster abbey, then to big ben and the houses of parliament and then to the tate modern to tour see an exhibit called "global cities".
the tate modern museam is amazing, one because it was designed by one of my favorite architectural firms, herzog & de meuron, and two, because it's collection of modern art is pretty spectacular. some of theartists you might recognize - alberto giacometti, roy lichtenstein, andy worhol, joan miro, pablo picasso, salvador dali, piet mondrian, mark rothko, paul klee, gustav klimt... just off the top of my head.
the global cities exhibit was impressive. the whole exhibit revolved around the exploding populations of the world's largest cities and the effect on many global issues that result from this. the exhibit was displayed with an architectural twist, geared toward urban eco-friendly design. i thoroughly enjoyed it.
then work. ugh.
after work, i had a late dinner with one of my colleagues - john camm. john is on old bugger that has been hired by hh on contract to do our presentation drawings. the guy is not only a fabulous artist, he's a great designer and has the perfect british monty-python-like wit. dinner was a blast.
poland day 15
july 29, 2007
i woke up hung over again, although not nearly as bad as friday morning. it's strange - you'd think that after my 6 month health kick that my body would not be able to process the amount of alcohol i've consumed in the last three days. apparentl, my muscle memory is extraordinary.
denis and i decided to go for a bike ride today into osieck and beyond. there is a large cathedral that you can see from the hotel that i wanted to check out. "downtown" osieck is only about 1km from the hotel so the bike ride wasn't long. the cathedral was pretty impressive, especially for a town the size of osieck (population 200... maybe).
denis then had a wonderful idea - a bike gang. so he and i formed one. the ohshitski dragons. he the leader and i the stunt rider. the videos are hilarious.
each town has a large billboard map of the town, which is extremely useful when you are in a bike gang. we wanted to see who we could terrorize next. so we found another little "town" about 2km away and rode there. on our way, we ran into some local trouble. another gang of 5 teenage boys on bikes. they laughed at us when we first rode by so on our way back, denis greeted their jeers with a ferocious bell ring (our bikes were well equipped with signal bells for such an occasion).
afterwards i packed, said my goodbyes and was driven to the airport. i didn't arrive at my hotel in london until 2am. i'm probably going into work late tomorrow.
i woke up hung over again, although not nearly as bad as friday morning. it's strange - you'd think that after my 6 month health kick that my body would not be able to process the amount of alcohol i've consumed in the last three days. apparentl, my muscle memory is extraordinary.
denis and i decided to go for a bike ride today into osieck and beyond. there is a large cathedral that you can see from the hotel that i wanted to check out. "downtown" osieck is only about 1km from the hotel so the bike ride wasn't long. the cathedral was pretty impressive, especially for a town the size of osieck (population 200... maybe).
denis then had a wonderful idea - a bike gang. so he and i formed one. the ohshitski dragons. he the leader and i the stunt rider. the videos are hilarious.
each town has a large billboard map of the town, which is extremely useful when you are in a bike gang. we wanted to see who we could terrorize next. so we found another little "town" about 2km away and rode there. on our way, we ran into some local trouble. another gang of 5 teenage boys on bikes. they laughed at us when we first rode by so on our way back, denis greeted their jeers with a ferocious bell ring (our bikes were well equipped with signal bells for such an occasion).
afterwards i packed, said my goodbyes and was driven to the airport. i didn't arrive at my hotel in london until 2am. i'm probably going into work late tomorrow.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
poland day 14 - the wedding
july 28, 2007
today was the wedding. i've never been to a jewish wedding before. i was excited.
before the wedding, in the morning, oren and anja organized a trip into warsaw. first stop was lazienki park (pronounced wah-zhen-kee). it was a nice large park with the summer home of the king in it. griff, melissa, floor (a hollander) and i walked around it and marveled at the amount of peacocks that were in the park.
next, the tour went to warsaw old town. for those that didn't know, warsaw was almost completely destroyed in world war 2. the germans decided to punish the poles for resisting and bombed the whole city. only 10% remained after the bombing. warsaw old town was then reconstructed by the communists to replicate almost exactly the city as it once stood. it's a little bizaar - old town looks old, but yet it looks like it's 60-years-old instead of 300-years-old.
i really liked warsaw. i'd like to come back when i have more time to spend here.
the wedding was in the evening. i put on my tailored chinese suit and headed to the ceremony. i looked hot. the wedding was very intersting. some of the traditions i'd seen before in movies and such, some i had not. i enjoyed it. mozel tov!
after the wedding, we danced in circles and then lifted the bride and groom in chairs and carried them around. then we did the groom's parents. then we did the bride's parents. by the end, my arms hurt.
the reception was a blast. we drank, drank some more and danced.
today was the wedding. i've never been to a jewish wedding before. i was excited.
before the wedding, in the morning, oren and anja organized a trip into warsaw. first stop was lazienki park (pronounced wah-zhen-kee). it was a nice large park with the summer home of the king in it. griff, melissa, floor (a hollander) and i walked around it and marveled at the amount of peacocks that were in the park.
next, the tour went to warsaw old town. for those that didn't know, warsaw was almost completely destroyed in world war 2. the germans decided to punish the poles for resisting and bombed the whole city. only 10% remained after the bombing. warsaw old town was then reconstructed by the communists to replicate almost exactly the city as it once stood. it's a little bizaar - old town looks old, but yet it looks like it's 60-years-old instead of 300-years-old.
i really liked warsaw. i'd like to come back when i have more time to spend here.
the wedding was in the evening. i put on my tailored chinese suit and headed to the ceremony. i looked hot. the wedding was very intersting. some of the traditions i'd seen before in movies and such, some i had not. i enjoyed it. mozel tov!
after the wedding, we danced in circles and then lifted the bride and groom in chairs and carried them around. then we did the groom's parents. then we did the bride's parents. by the end, my arms hurt.
the reception was a blast. we drank, drank some more and danced.
poland day 13
july 27, 2007
i was a bit hung over this morning. too many shots. freakin' poles and swedes. all they want to do is vodka shots.
oren and anja had organized a horse and carriage ride to a picnic in the afternoon. it was a great time. unfortuantely there was a bit of a mishap with a spooked horse and some thrown people, but everyone involved was ok. a bit scary though...
later in the afternoon, a thunderstorm rolled in. i haven't witnessed a thunderstorm in ages. we don't get them in california. and this was a doozy. the raindrops were massive and the thunder boomed. denis, griff and i sat and watched. it was over in 45 minutes.
the evening efstivities included a swedish dinner full of drinking songs. and vodka. i managed to avoid most of the vodka.
i was a bit hung over this morning. too many shots. freakin' poles and swedes. all they want to do is vodka shots.
oren and anja had organized a horse and carriage ride to a picnic in the afternoon. it was a great time. unfortuantely there was a bit of a mishap with a spooked horse and some thrown people, but everyone involved was ok. a bit scary though...
later in the afternoon, a thunderstorm rolled in. i haven't witnessed a thunderstorm in ages. we don't get them in california. and this was a doozy. the raindrops were massive and the thunder boomed. denis, griff and i sat and watched. it was over in 45 minutes.
the evening efstivities included a swedish dinner full of drinking songs. and vodka. i managed to avoid most of the vodka.
london and poland day 12
july 26, 2007
yesterday was work and a bit of drinking afterwards with some co-workers. not much to tell. today, on the otherhand, i worked half day and then i took off for poland.
but i decided to make a stop on the way - the british museum. i had never been. it was pretty freakin' cool. until you realize that the brits basically stole all of the artifacts that are in the museum before the victimized countries realized what was going on. anyway, if you ever get a chance, visit. and it's free.
the flight to poland was uneventful, which was nice. easyjet is a much nicer budget airline that ryanair. i would definitely fly easyjet again.
when i landed, oren and anja (the engaged couple) had a car waiting for me. it was the first time in my life that i had a driver waiting at the arrival gate with my name on a sign. well, it was oren and anja's name on the sign, but same difference. the car was for me.
an hour later and i'm at the hotel that anja's father owns and the where the wedding is taking place. the hotel is called hotel pod sasmani and it's in a little town called osieck (pronounced oh-shit-zk). josef (anja's father) greated me at the receptino area and immediately took me to the party. earlier, there was a polish dinner and everyone was drinking and dancing when i arrived. there were a few perogis left so i downed them. i hadn't eaten in a while. not good when the first person you meet is a bridesmaid named cookie and she hands you a shot. immediately following, a met up with jason and denis who were about to have a crazy dog shot with another wedding-goer (a crazy dog is vodka, cranberry juice and tobasco). wow. 2 shots in under 5 minutes. and 4 more within the next hour. needless to say i got really drunk.
yesterday was work and a bit of drinking afterwards with some co-workers. not much to tell. today, on the otherhand, i worked half day and then i took off for poland.
but i decided to make a stop on the way - the british museum. i had never been. it was pretty freakin' cool. until you realize that the brits basically stole all of the artifacts that are in the museum before the victimized countries realized what was going on. anyway, if you ever get a chance, visit. and it's free.
the flight to poland was uneventful, which was nice. easyjet is a much nicer budget airline that ryanair. i would definitely fly easyjet again.
when i landed, oren and anja (the engaged couple) had a car waiting for me. it was the first time in my life that i had a driver waiting at the arrival gate with my name on a sign. well, it was oren and anja's name on the sign, but same difference. the car was for me.
an hour later and i'm at the hotel that anja's father owns and the where the wedding is taking place. the hotel is called hotel pod sasmani and it's in a little town called osieck (pronounced oh-shit-zk). josef (anja's father) greated me at the receptino area and immediately took me to the party. earlier, there was a polish dinner and everyone was drinking and dancing when i arrived. there were a few perogis left so i downed them. i hadn't eaten in a while. not good when the first person you meet is a bridesmaid named cookie and she hands you a shot. immediately following, a met up with jason and denis who were about to have a crazy dog shot with another wedding-goer (a crazy dog is vodka, cranberry juice and tobasco). wow. 2 shots in under 5 minutes. and 4 more within the next hour. needless to say i got really drunk.
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