Brown Family

Individually wrapped bananas

Found in the Microsoft Korea office. Not sure why you need to wrap a fruit that has its own wrapper, but there they were sitting.

 

Korean food, always a treat

I’ll have to ask my co-workers for the names of all the food I ate, but once again I have the pleasure of eating excellent food.

Last night Sung Woo and I had dinner together. I love tofu with kimchi so he took me to a restaurant he and his wife like. Yummy.

 

Tonight Good Hyun picked for us and we had a spicy chicken dish. Very spicy. Not in the photo was the additional ginseng chicken and rice stew. I am stuffed! You can tell in the second photo how copious the chili oil was in the stew.

Viva Las Vegas

I wonder how many million of blog posts start with that title. Oddly in Seoul last night I tuned in to Men In Black (the movie) at the end right when the line “Elvis isn’t dead, he’s just left the planet” was spoken. For those who wondered where he went.

Last week I visited Las Vegas for the annual Microsoft MIX conference. Las Vegas, as always, an oddity to me. Every time I fly in over the desert and see it appear from the sand it amazes me that anyone would think to build a city here. Las Vegas reigns supreme as a the vacation destination, and, as two women I met from the North East explained to me “Why would I go to Florida? What’s there to do there? San Francisco? Huh?”

I stayed at the Mandalay Bay hotel at the end of the strip. A very nice ‘resort’ it is slightly different from the Venetian where I’ve stayed in the past with a beach theme and a wave park that I unfortunately had no time to visit. Looked nice, but work kept me enclosed within the walls of the hotel for most of my visit, with only a short time outside its walls.

On the last evening I was there my co-workers and I did manage to get outside on St. Patrick’s and wander the strip. We ate American, drank Guinness and told all the raunchy Irish jokes we could remember – though I’m not sure if the last bit is traditional but it felt right.

Today I sit in a conference room in Seoul, South Korea. I finished my presentation a bit ago and felt obliged to sit through the post-lunch presentation, at least one. I understand absolutely nothing but wish I did. Always a challenge. The presenter is a famous designer and I missed much.

Some pictures from Las Vegas…

 

The wow factor

I had a flash back to my college days this evening. I was sitting having dinner at a restaurant along Darling Harbor in Sydney, Australia and watched a few young people help a friend sit down and work off an obviously large buzz. I remember when I was in college and we’d have moments of togetherness like this (or not) and I thought how beautiful the sky was, how the boats rocked in the gentle current, how the clouds looked perfect against the evening and was happy.

It is a nice feeling not to be caught up in my day-to-day head trip that becomes my life with all the complications and responsibilities and just sit back and remember that all is good.

Hope all of you are good too.

Rain in Rome

I am glad I came early to tour! Today I checked out of my earlier hotel and transferred to one closer to the airport for work, the Sheraton Golf Parco de’ Medici Hotel and Resort, where it is now raining. I don’t mind. Easier to work if there is a gloomy day outside.

Many of the sites in Rome are religious and it makes sense that you show respect and dress appropriately. There are typically signs like above to demonstrate without language. I liked this one since it appears one piece bathing suits are not appropriate for men.

I did see one man outside a church dressed in a Hawaiian short sleeved shirt, short pants and sandals pondering a similar sign wondering why he couldn’t go in. Go figure. You’d think people would read a little about the culture before they arrive.

Rome, Sunday

Another spectacular day of touring Rome with my hosts. Today we journeyed by car and went numerous places and I managed to visit all four of the major Basilica in Rome today completing some sort of good Catholic visit without trying! I still have one more day next Saturday so I have a few places I’d like to visit. There is all always more to see in Rome.

I awoke early in the morning, around 4AM, as jet lag is finally getting the better of me. After reading as much email as I could stand, I wandered out of the hotel to find a cafe (espresso) and to see St. Peter’s Basilica at first light. Being so close to the basilica is a treat as I can just wander over to the courtyard and be seen by all the large statues peering down from above.

 

My hosts picked me up around 9AM and after a cafe and croissant at Caffe Portofino, we made a couple of quick stops as we drove along. Even as I write this blog post, I cannot even remember all the sites we saw while driving as the constant stream of amazing beauty is impossible to take in and I just tried to drink in the sites and sounds. We first stopped look within Basilica of St. John Lateran as I ticked off my second basilica of the day. Note, in many locations I did not take photos inside as mass was being celebrated or it was just too dark. Following we drove up above to St. Sabina, which held a door made of wood that survived from long ago (400-432) as it was blocked off by plaster at one point and preserved quite well. The interior is quite beautiful, though my photo doesn’t do it justice. As we came down the hill we stopped above the runes of a roman bath, I believe was Baths of Caracalla. The three photos below are St. John, St. Sabina and the runes of Caracalla.

 

 

Our next stop was to be my third basilica, but as we motored along I got a quick peak at the Pyramid of Cestius. Even without the writings of Dan Brown, it is obvious by the numerous obelisks and this pyramid that the Roman’s had great pride in their conquering of Egypt and saw great significance, strength and power in the items they plundered. I’ll have to say much of the mystery goes away when I think about the Egyptian antiquities as just loot taken by the stronger army and remove all the religious significance that might be associated with them. Basically, the items looked good so they brought them home. Following are the Pyramid and one of the many obelisk, this one in the courtyard of the Pantheon.

 

 

My third basilica of the day was Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls. A more modern basilica finished in the early 1800s, the interior is graced with a portrait of each Pope with his papacy dates inscribed beneath. We arrived at the end of a mass so I was treated to the wonderful sounds of Italian singing accompanied by a pipe organ reverberating within the church. A beautiful treat. This location holds the tomb of St. Paul, and is treated with great reverence by the numerous visitors. Following is a shot of the outside, one of the interior with light streaming in, and of the organist and priest discussing an arrangement.

 

 

 

Following St. Paul’s, I was taken to my host’s house which was nearby as we made decisions on the most important part of the day – lunch! Eating in Rome has been spectacular and I have enjoyed every meal. Today, at lunch at Caffe Palobini, one of the most tasty dishes was a salad of greens (not sure what kind) and a dressing made of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, some raw smashed garlic, anchovy paste, a bit of salt and some vinegar. You soak your greens in this until they weep out a little water and delicious. I will try this dressing when I get home with a local bitter vegetable, possibly water spinach (kang kong), julienned cucumber and maybe jellyfish. So tasty. I also had fish, grilled vegetables, lasagna, salad of tomatoes with greens, a sweet and a cafe. Yesterday too I had a large lunch and tonight again I believe I will skip dinner and eat only enough so I don’t wake up hungry! The following three pictures are from this portion of the day. The first is a building in an area outside Rome central that Mussonlini built out post-automobile. I can’t remember the buildings name thought I think it is written upon it. This is also near where we ate at Caffe Palobini. The final photo is from within my hosts beautiful home which, with its Italian style furniture, reminded me of pieces I saw in my grandparent’s homes (though I bet my mother will tell me I am wrong!).

 

After lunch we started our way back in to Rome central. We first stopped at the Catacombs of Domitilla. We learned during the presentation that there are 64 catacombs within Rome, but only one with a basilica attached. Catacombs are burial areas for the Christians who did not want to be cremated, the popular Roman way, with the catacombs were dug for convenience – it was easier to dig these long tunnels to intern the bodies on-going at a lower cost that digging down each time. It must have smelled horrible. The tour takes you through a short bit of the 14 km (11 mi) long catacombs and shows a bit of the surviving art above a crypt and other facts of interest. My hosts had not been their either and we all enjoyed the discussion. I have no photos here as they are forbidden and I didn’t feel like buying a book! Click the link. Next we parked along one of the ancient Roman roads, the Appian Way. I was told that if I ever was asked to move to Rome to work, I should demand a villa along Appian Way. Something to keep in mind. The photo that follows is of the Appian Way.

 

Our final two stops were back in town. I had wanted to see Michelangelo's Moses statue so we stopped at San Pietro in Vincoli. In a word, amazing. I cannot even imagine how you would carve something so detailed and so flowing out of stone. A genius obviously. As with all spaces in Rome, there are too many works of art to digest, but I do like the reflections on our mortality that this religion seems so focused on and snapped a couple of pictures of death.

 

 

Our last stop, just to complete the quadric basilica tour, was at Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore. I just did a brief walk within, but captured the outside briefly in the closing light of the day.

 

Here is where I parted from my hosts with great thanks for sharing their city and knowledge with me. I am so lucky to have been treated to such personal service as a guest in another country. Tomorrow I begin my work week, and I have lots to do. Ciao!

Saturday in Rome

Today I had the pleasure of touring Rome with my landlord and her husband. They arrived at my hotel a little after 9 AM and we stayed together through to 5 PM. A fantastic day as both of them have taken time to learn about their adopted city and had favorite art to show and history to share. This certainly beats having read about it all myself.

I do not believe I will be able to remember all the places we visited, as Rome is just packed with too many historical buildings, runes, churches (basilica), paintings and statues that there is no way to remember them all. But here is a general outline of our walk.

We started near Campidoglio, and as we walked the stairs to the giant statue of Marcus Aurelius on a horse I was told how Michelangelo designed the side buildings built slightly off parallel to better enhance the impress of space in the plaza.

 

Behind this lies runes, old arcs, a view of the Coliseum, and lots of other historical bits that I’ll need to buy a book to have a chance to remember. My hosts had a neat book I’ll try to find. It has paintings of the runes and transparent overlays that show artist’s impression of that period. Neat.

 

Following we visited the Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II  or Il Vittoriano. This is a giant edifice that was built within the last hundred plus years and, as is tradition in Rome, wiped out a host of other old runes in the process. Questionable and the talk of the town back then I was told, but fantastic and statuesque. We rode the elevator to the top and had a grand view of Rome.

 

After leaving we wandered down Via Del Corso, a giant boulevard with numerous shops, and passing by Piazza Colonnoa which contains a giant column with the history of something in pictures embossed along it. (OK, I looked it up. The column is called the Column of Marcus Aurelius.) I learned that there is a plaster casting of all the runes in a museum somewhere, but this is deteriorating due to Rome’s consistent smog. Lot’s of unknowns in the sentence above, but that is the way a lot of this tour went for me. History overload. The picture is nice.

 

Our next stop was at the Pantheon. I had wandered by there yesterday evening when it was less crowded, but enjoyed returning with a history lesson. I learned that when Michelangelo was asked to build the dome in St. Peters he said he could not make it as large as Pantheon since the builders were to smart for him. To this day, the Pantheon is the largest dome in Rome. The building process involved clever usage of less weighty ingredients as it rose higher ending with the top most section being made of pumice stone. Interesting. Raphael's Tomb is here also. Generally a dead religious guy, rich or famous person buried somewhere near you when walking Rome. They are often underfoot.

 

To spare you every detail, I’ll skip ahead to the Fontana di Trevi, or Trevi Fountain. Very beautiful site swamped with other tourists like myself snapping pictures. If I understood correctly, this is where the water from the famed aqueduct ends up. The water in Rome is endless. For someone who lives in Singapore, the amount of drinkable water that runs freely everywhere is somewhat amazing. There are endless flowing fountains of water everywhere, making your first bottle of water you purchase your last if your smart (free endless refills). In Singapore fresh water is so scarce they blocked up a salt water bay to create a fresh water estuary. So different!

 

We made our way next towards Trinita del Monti and Spanish Steps. They ought to just call it the Tired Tourist Steps as you can clearly see that grateful walkers found haven for their tired bodies along the steps in great numbers. You don’t really notice as everyone seems endlessly in motion, but if you are tired in Rome, you’re out of luck. Stopping at a Cafe/Bar is about the best option if you can’t keep moving. Along the way we passed this tiny Fiat. My host told me that he and his brother drove one to England on a vacation once.

 

Lunch was had at a wonderful restaurant/museum called Museo Atelier Canova Tadolini. This restaurant is built within the same space that sculptors Antonio Canova and his pupil, “…the promising Adamo Tadolini,” worked for many years. The interior is now filled with bits and pieces of preparatory models used for future sculptures. Very unique place to sit and eat. And the food was great. I over indulged and had appetizer and two courses and wine, a celebration, followed by a cafe. Wonderful. I highly recommend visiting here for lunch or supper if you can.

 

After lunch we visited Piazza del Popolo and a church which contained a famous painting. I’ll need to actually look at my look later to remember all this! But more tomorrow! The last two photos are from above the Piazza looking towards St. Peters.

 

Rome, Italy

Though work travel can be tiring, especially if the destination is often the same, once in a while you get a real lucky break and I am writing this post from my hotel in Rome.

I arrived yesterday morning after a 12 hour plus overnight flight direct from Singapore. The hotel which I booked, Atlante Garden Hotel, offered free pickup at the airport, which I arranged in advance but yet no driver was there. I had some issues with phones and was unable to reach their staff either by their phone number (which started being picked up after I was in the cab) or the toll-free number which didn’t work for me either though I tried from a couple of pay phones. My guess on the toll-free number is that I didn’t push one button or needed to put in some cash – hard to tell since Italian is farily impenetrable to me. Oh well.

The hotel is fine. Not a 4-star by any stretch but the room is clean and the shower works. I’ve lots of little complaints, but in terms of a European hotel, not bad.

As I arrived so early in the morning I cleaned myself up a bit and headed immediately to St. Peter’s Square.

In a word, wow. These Catholics really know how to build grand iconic areas. Surrounded by columns that soar and wailing statues of mysterious religions figures, many in poses of what might be described as heady anxiety, the plaza is fantastic. I went back this morning and just drifted around looking at all the statues, the obelisk, the people showing up for a cue and what not. Very impressive.

As I wandered towards the back of the line for St. Peter’s basilica I was picked off by a tour guide hustler who introduced me to an English man who was building a group for a tour. Advantage to a guide? No cue for getting in to the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel and Basilica. Worked out fine though the timing to get in to the museum included a pit stop at a local cafe to collect money from us all and I assume to garner a kick-back from the cafe owner.

All worth it in the end. Here are a few pictures I took. There are many places where flash and photography are prohibited so getting a book later might be in order. After seeing all the idols and iconography everywhere here I can why Dan Brown would inspired to write thrillers – quite a visual smorgasbord. More later.

Tempura for dinner

 

Tonight I had dinner on my own – which is nice. I wandered around Shinjuku East exit side for a bit until I decided on tempura at Tsunohachi. In a word, yum. Very good. I seldom eat tempura as I generally feel quite stuffed afterwards and you should only eat excellent tempura if you do. This worked out just fine.

I ate the Edo Zen course and added a couple of items along the way. I started out with Bonito sashimi served with ponsu and garlic. Yum. In season this is a very flavorful fish. Next started the tempura. First up is shrimp, which they pull from the tank and show you live and kicking before it is disassembled and delivered hot and crispy to your plate. Eaten with salt, this is the opener to a long sting of items. I ate, if I remember correctly: shrimp, squid, clam with shitake mushroom and ginger (fried in the shell), maitake mushroom, scallop, oysters in green pepper, anago (salt water eel),  and ended with ebi kakiage (little shrimps done together) on rice (basically 天丼). Fantastic. I asked about the ordering and you start with shrimp, end with ebi kakiage and put a vegetable in the middle I was told. All good.

I am stuffed though. I didn’t drink too much which was good, but I did sample a lot. I don’t need to eat for a while but I certainly enjoyed what I ate.

I remember a meal I ate in Kyoto once. I haven’t found the restaurant ever again and am certain it is no more, but it was a tempura place which had a counter for 6 or 8 and maybe one table. The chef moved around and served all and was about 1000 years old in my estimation at the time I went. He also must have been only all of four feet tall as he was wearing 12 inch (30 cm) geta as he worked the counter. Like a gourmet circus act you never knew was performing until you happened to look behind the curtain.

Lovely meal

In Japan: Surprise! They have cool weather!

I am back in Japan again for a week of business. The big change this time is cool weather. Luckily I have remember a light jacket but it is a surprise to my body that I can’t wear shorts and a t-shirt 24/7. Today even has a cold drizzly rain to make it complete.