I had the priveledge of visiting Berlin... in 1980, driving through East Germany on flag orders, to get there and seeing the Wall and the differences between east and west. I worked at NATO headquarters from 1984 to 1995 so lived through historic changes. My German colleague on our NATO committee gave me a paperweight with a chip of the Wall in it. I visited Berlin again in 1991, right after the Wall fell, and was able to visit what had been East Berlin and then drove south to Dresden. Not much had changed as the reunification and rebuilding had barely begun. It's time I visited Berlin again to see the many changes. Thanks for giving me a preview.
Binz Some fabulous photos of some of the delights of the resort island of Rugen, Katha. Probably fortunate you booked the restaurant months in advance by the sound of your time on the island. Great belated present for your Mum.
Beautiful weather for Vancouver... we were there last October and it rained the whole time. I guess your conference organizers are better at picking conference dates!
Re: Artsy Shot Thanks! I can definitely recommend going there. It is an amazing place where, as Tara Cloud put it, lovely places and places of horror are neighbours. If you decide to go I am sure we will be able to follow you here on TravelBlog.
The Beauty and the Beast! Lucky you to be flown to wonderful Krokow for work! You've given a great account of lovely Krakow with its palace, churches, central market and peaceful Jewish quarter, and of the horrors that occurred so nearby in Auschwitz and Birkenau. It does seem we humans are capable of so much good and so much evil. Like you, I hope we learn from this and don't repeat our errors.
Re: The Beauty and the Beast! Thank you :-) I was in fact amazed by the great interest that people show in both the "good" and the "bad" history of the area, it makes me hope that we do learn something out of it.
Re: Nice view Thanks! In fact there is a little reflection. The entire floor is behind glass unfortunately, but without it it would be too windy I guess.
Re: A wedding It was a wonderful experience indeed. And they made me feel so welcome that it felt like being a member of the family after only a day's time :-)
Business and pleasure! I'll agree with you and Bob that it was so wise of you to go to the Disney World attractions since your ever-so-fabulous conference was there. I used to work for the U of Chicago, and would always stay an extra week after trainings were finished to explore the city. I love the showcasing of other countries at Epcot--it could inspire people go traveling. And since the animal puppets on the Jungle Cruise seemed so real, that would be a great alternative to holding animals captive in zoos. I'm from California, so throughout my childhood and for my last birthday at home, I've gone to Disneyland, and like you, I love it!
I started this blog in late 2007, before heading off to Australia for a hang gliding adventure. After my first solo flight in a hang glider all I wanted to do was fly as much as possible. I gave up my job as a human resources consultant and headed to Australia to live my dream of hang gliding. When I returned after four months, I wanted to build my life around the sport I loved so much, and I did. I was also determined to make it into the national hang gliding team and started flying competitions with only one year of flying experience.
My dream was shattered in earl... full info
Home and Away
Bob Carlsen
I had the priveledge of visiting Berlin...
in 1980, driving through East Germany on flag orders, to get there and seeing the Wall and the differences between east and west. I worked at NATO headquarters from 1984 to 1995 so lived through historic changes. My German colleague on our NATO committee gave me a paperweight with a chip of the Wall in it. I visited Berlin again in 1991, right after the Wall fell, and was able to visit what had been East Berlin and then drove south to Dresden. Not much had changed as the reunification and rebuilding had barely begun. It's time I visited Berlin again to see the many changes. Thanks for giving me a preview.