Some of the best and maybe worst...

So, today will probably be my last post prior to arriving home on Sunday afternoon. I thought I would brainstorm some of the best things about my Europe experience before I head to Epsom. Of course you can ask me about anything but here some I thought about this morning....

Transportation/Lodging

Metro System - Vienna
Airport - Dublin
Taxi - Antwerp
Hotel - Cocoon (Munich)
Airline - Lufthansa (On time, free beer and wine, decent food)

Food

Food - Lyon
Restaurant - Hackerhaus (Munich)
Meal - Bangers and Mash at the Lotts in Dublin
Beer - Leffe Blonde (and its not close)
Dessert - Dame Blanche (Het Pomphuis)
Lunch - Het Pomphuis (Belgium)
Breakfast - Garfunkels (London)
Irish Pub - Charlie P's (Vienna)
Wine - Châteaux Talbot (France)
Cocktail - Cocktail Roland Garros at the French Open
Chocolate - Vienna

Cities/Sights/Culture

Dressed - Paris
American Friendly - Munich (without speaking English)
Shopping - London
Weather - Majorca
Bar - Harleys (Prague)
Song - Barbara Streisand
Most Expensive - London
Most Dangerous - Paris (the young thieves there are so annoying)
Park - Prater (Vienna)
Church - Melk, Austria
Historical Sight - Westminster Abbey

Odd Specifics

$34 for a Burrito and Beer in Paris
$27 for 100ml of sunscreen in Paris
$2 for great red wine in several places

Luggage

Too Little: Socks, Cell Phone Data Plan
Too Much: American Money, Golf Shirts, Sweaters, Adapters
Life Savers: Back Pack, Travel Wallet, iPhone, Suit Compartment

Be Thankful

Be thankful for your health and well being. After using public transportation exclusively on this trip, its amazing to me the courage and determination of some of those less fortunate. Through disabilities and blindness, people persevere everyday to navigate and get to where they need to be. Sometimes I complain about lugging 70 pounds of luggage through the metros. Then i need to look no further than the young girl struggling with every step at snails pace. The public transport system can be hard for anyone, I cant imagine doing it disabled. Its very humbling how many people in the world struggle with the very simplest things we take for granted. I hope cities abroad continue to renovate all their public facilities to become more accessible.

Almost to the finish...

Hello All,

Sorry I have not been posting as much in the past few days. I have been on the move quite a bit. In Majorca there was no internet, now in London, there is internet at gold prices. So today I anted up and got the internet in my room. I need to check train schedules, places to go, racing forms, all kinds of things. But, hopefully to your likes, the first thing I am doing is blogging.

The big two nine in Majorca.

Majorca was awesome, but wow, was I not totally out of gas when I left there. Fifteen hour days in the sun with pints of San Miguel can take it out of you. Plus water had to be purchased, making dehydration more of an issue. Also, have you ever noticed the weird lower leg muscles that absolutely kill you after walking several hours on the beach? I didnt even know some of those muscle groups existed. Oh well, I am uncertain if doing a tropical vacation by yourself is worth it, my feeling now is that it would be much better shared with someone else. More so than any of my destinations thus far.

Bangers and Mash with Guinness, Meal of  the Trip??

So I left the island on Tuesday only to fly to another island, Ireland. I only had an afternoon there in between flights but found it pretty cool. It was a typical cloudy and cool day. My mission was to have a Guinness and local food. I did just that in The Lotts Pub. The "Bangers and Mash" I had there was one of the best meals I have had thus far on my trip. Warning, its not for everyone. Also very neat in Dublin is the level of interest in horses, horse racing is everywhere. Even the cab driver spoke of Tabor and Magnier, Sadlers Wells, etc. Very nice and welcoming after having zero in common with most in Majorca.

Big Ben from my subway exit at Westminster.

Now I am in London. Great city. I really like it. It reminds me of American big cities in way. But not really. The architecture is totally different, but I guess because it has a river (Thames) running through the city and that there are some rather large financial building that look very American. The history here is flat out incredible! I spend hours yesterday inside Westminster Abbey, that is a must for anyone at all interested in history. Buckingham Palace was simply a landmark in my mind. Things are a tad bit expensive as now 1 pound is $1.63. A rate like that can put a hit on you if you dont watch it, that steal on lunch for 5.95 just cost you about 10 american dollars. Thats scary going straight into the two largest days of English racing at Epsom, but glass half full, the winnings will be compounded by the rates.

 Well, I am going to go. Ironically, I didnt pay the high hotel room cost and internet costs to use them all day. I must get out and see more.

Three amigos...

Good Morning!

Sorry if this entry is brief, there is not much wifi on the island and I am going through my cell phone. Things are wonderful in Majorca. It's an unbeleivable paradise.

As I have sat here today, I have thought a lot about what got me here. There are several things, but for this simple moment I am going to give credit to a few male influences that I know gave me the luck I find today as I look over the Mediterranean.

I cannot describe how proud I am of my father, he put up with all my nonsense for so many years. I cannot think of a better person, so nice and friendly. He gave me the opportunity to be who I wanted to be, never once do I recall him doing anything other than encourage me. As I sit here I am thankful for both the kindness of my father and the feistiness of my mother that I am blessed with. If I could only be half the person my dad is, I wouldnt have a worry in the world, he is my hero...

The sun shining through the clouds in Majorca.

There are several things that run through your mind while sitting on the beach alone. I couldn't help but think about Papaw Rollie. The guy that cared so much to throw me batting practice when he was in his seventies after that 0 for 4 day with three K's. But he got me through it.

Finally, Big John, how I wish we could share this moment together. I would give my bottom dollar only to speak to you for a few minutes. You would love this place. I know you are somewhere looking down on it all, but know you are the "man" as far as I am concerned.

So as I finish this post from paradise. Remember there are none more important than the ones closest to you . Adios!

Freedom...

Good Morning,

Today I write you from a hotel lobby in Paris. Let me tell you, I am ready to hit the road for several reasons. First, work is complete. Like I have continually said on this blog, its not that the work itself is extremely difficult, but the entire process is quite taxing when you consider the logistical and language barriers you must fight to make it all happen. Let me tell you, it all hasnt been smooth. At least now, as I move forward on my journey, I am the one calling the shots, therefore I have the ability to play Europe my way. Its rather relieving and tonight I will be on an island in the Mediterranean...this trip is good, and its getting better!!! 

The French really made a great effort the past 48 hours to downgrade my high thoughts of the country over the weekend. While work and the people were very nice, their culture has no respect for anything outside of their own life. To be honest, I have never been in a place so self absorbed and at times unaccommodating. I am not being critical, I am simply pointing out facts.

First, I change my entire post work itinerary because the french cannot adapt their plans for mine. That should have been a clue when the locals cannot make an adjustment for someone thats coming from 4000 miles away. I couldnt depart on Wednesday night because one person couldnt meet until Thursday. After kindly expressing multiple times that it will be a hassle to change my plans but as a guest I could politely do whats necessary to respect their regular schedule and change mine, I finally changed my agenda to accommodate the proposal. Who cares? Only two flights and one hotel room night I lose out of my personal funds because no refunds are possible. Well, I care, I care a lot, but I quietly and politely change my schedule.

To make a long story short, nothing on the original proposal went as planned. We bounced around the agenda as if it didnt exist, nights in Rotterdam were supposed to be reserved, they werent. We were supposed to be in Rotterdam two nights, we changed at the last minute, only one...putting me on the back burner for a last minute over priced room in Paris. And finally...Thursday meeting cancelled because I saw the guy on Tuesday. Its hilarious, but hard for a Midwestern American to handle.

As far as the hotel, well the room is very nice, everything else is French. It took me 30 minutes to check in while the desk attendants shared duties and allowed people to cut in line. Then the room key machine started failing, lets not mention they double charged my credit card. Yeah, I paid for it on the internet, only to be told last night that I didnt and had to pay to check in, only this morning to be told I cannot be printed a receipt because i paid for it on the internet. We will see what hits the card and what doesnt, but whats the worth in arguing with these bozos. To put a special touch on the french experience, despite waiting for too long to check in, despite the hassles, despite the French never showing up on time, not a single one has been on time since I arrived, the hotel called my room today 45 minutes before checkout time to remind me I must leave by noon. Seriously???

So there you have it. That brings me to this moment right now, I am in the lobby of the hotel, waiting for a file to upload to my work server at home because connection in the room was to slow to finish BEFORE noon. Before I move to the airport, I must take care of a camera battery issue, as easy as that sounds, it wont go as planned. Its really hilarious, but hey, I am the guest and I understand that cultures are different. However, you would think the arrogance would have stopped when german didnt become the official language in the mid twentieth century, but then again you really cant expect this society to respect our inconvenience in those times either....

Roland Garros

Good Evening Everyone...today was another full one for me as I ended my Paris tour in fine fashion. As most of you are aware, the French Open began yesterday and I couldnt pass up the opportunity to check it out. Yes, for those wondering, three days in Paris and I use two of them to attend sporting events. Just because I am in Paris doesnt mean I become a new person.

Me at Court #2

Roland Garros was pretty neat, there is a lot of history there. Of course, I dont have much to compare it with. I have only been to the RCA's up in Indianapolis at home, but now the US Open is firmly on my "to do" list. I loved the atmosphere. The grounds were very small, there were probably 20 courts, three of which are stadiums, the others have small grandstands. One could easily walk from one end of the complex to the other in about five minutes without the crowds. The lay out is very unique though, there are not "blocks" of courts, there are just a few here and there, separated by trees or buildings covered by ivy. It was really neat, also this is the first time I have watched tennis on clay in person, the hacks at the Racquet Club in Evansville dont count.

I didnt acquire a seat for any of the stadiums. I had my opportunities, but I had to purchase tickets in pairs. It wasnt worth it to me to buy a seat for my backpack at $100 per. Also, there is absolutely no scalping of the tickets. You have to buy your tickets through Roland Garros, register them under your name, print off an e-ticket, scan it at the gate, then you present your ID card, then you are given a ticket with your name printed on it. Really, if you took a family of four to Roland Garros, you would have to enter all the names electronically at least 24 hours in advance to be able to use the tickets. So when I didnt buy stadium seats on Saturday evening, I was pretty much done. In hindsight, I could have easily bought a pair, then listed my single on the Roland Garros exchange, and it would have sold quickly after the draw for Monday was announced. Sorry for the long story, I had been wondering for over a month how this would play out, and actually, it played out perfect the way it happened. Center Court featured Federer, Djokovic, and other top seeds pummeling opponents while the other two featured French players in the draw. The best action was on the "outside courts".

The view from my seats at Mardy Fish's (far court) match.

My ticket for the grounds allowed me to go anywhere but the main three stadiums. I scouted out my first two matches on Sunday night. Considering that it was the first round, it was hard to predict which matches, if any were going to be most competitive. Matches started at 11, I arrived at 1015 to make sure I got to Court #2 in time to get a good seat for Daniela Hantuchova's match. After that I headed to Court #7 to watch the primary match on my agenda, American and tenth seeded Mardy Fish. Before Fish came on, i caught Nadia Petrova get upset in the third set. Fish's match was good, four setter, in which he won. He gave me reason to cheer and get a little loud, also there were some Americans in there with me. It was nice, Mike Lynch saw me on TV several times in NYC as I sat two rows up behind Fish. He was quite excited about it. I concluded my day on Courts #2 (Baghdatis) and #3 (Maria Kirilenko). Miss Kirilenko was definitely as advertised and defeated American Coco Vandeweghe. After NINE hours of tennis watching I was ready to call it quits.

I walked home nearly in tears as my allergies were really bothering my eyes. My claritin just couldnt keep up all day long. I finished up with a beer and some attempt at Tex-Mex at a place named El Rancho on my walk back to the hotel. My three days in Paris were awesome, it really couldnt have gone any better without the presence of others.

Tomorrow Rotterdam. Good night.

Kirilenko serves up the picture of the day.

Hippodrome de Longchamp

Back to back blogs tonight before I chill and watch a movie to recharge. Today I went to the track, a place that forces you to take the good with the bad. There was a lot more good than bad, but still the bad has me a little bothered. So lets begin.

At the Paddock

Hippodrome de Longchamp is a world renowned racecourse here in Paris. Their premiere even is run in October, its fittingly named Prix de Arc de Triomphe. That race is probably the most prestigious open grass race in the world. The Epsom Derby (which I will attend in two weeks) is the most prestigious for 3YO on turf, the Kentucky Derby for 3YO on dirt, and Breeders Cup Classic for open dirt. Now that you are an expert on international horse racing, I explain my day.

I take a cab to the course and examine my French racing form on the way. Only a mysterious black brief case handcuffed to my hand would have made the cab driver think I was more serious. I was studying, hard. Numbers are numbers, but working through the French required focus. On todays card was two Group One races and one Group Two race. There were also five other races on the card. Eight total. Considering that it was a nice day and there were two Group Ones, I was expecting a large crowd, considering further that Goldikova was running, I thought it could be packed. I show up one hour before post, this place was like Arlington Park on a Wednesday. Not many could be found early. The place was plenty nice, and reminded me a lot of Arlington. There just wasnt many people there and I wasnt certain how to navigate the grounds.

You find a total of eight seats in a day of French horse racing and you only find them a few minutes before post. There are no assignments and everyone does something else other than sit in the grandstand prior to post time. Therefore, there was no putting the form and beer down at the seats in order to walk around and make a wager. Everything went with you. The crowd ended up coming. Very strange crowd, mostly young families. Very few old timers smoking cigars talking about Alydar, or I guess in these parts, Alleged. Also, the crowd was certainly not a party crowd, there was only one concession stand in the public area, and anytime I needed a refill, I didnt even wait in line. Far from Saratoga or Keeneland. But unique none the less, I enjoyed the atmosphere and trying to wager in french.

The racing was world class, Goldikova won her 2011 debut. Click here if you would like to read about it. Andre Fabre's, Wavering, won the other Group One today. Also, an American bred Team Valor horse won the Group Two. So how could this day have had any bad? Well, I didnt capitalize on a single one of these easy selections. Didnt cash ticket one. I knew Goldikova was going to win, but whats the fun in that? I threw money away by trying to beat her. I got nosed out in two other races, one of which the photo was reversed, totally unheard of!! All in all frustrating from a turf point of view today. This isnt my first rodeo and there will other days, however...there was no Mercedes taxi (or any for that matter) waiting on me at the exit, so deservedly, I walked my ass two miles home losing papers in hand.

Finish line at Longchamp

Impressive champion mare Goldikova

One trip to the infield, best picture of the day.

A tourist in Paris...

And the legs make their first appearance of 2011!!!

Sorry for running a day or two behind my blog. Things have been quite quick for me the past 48-hours. Things are good as I wind down in my 75 sq foot hotel room. Seriously, this place is a mess, you have no room to put anything. The desk I am sitting at has everything from chargers, bottled water, metro tickets, laundry, racing forms, and bags on it. Yes, there is enough room for the computer. It really doesnt matter, lack of organization does bother me, but I havent been here that much.

To begin, yesterday I got up in enough time to get to Arc de Triomphe before lunch. It was easily done, the subway stop on the 9 for me was Franklin D Roosevelt. Hard to forget that one. So I begin my journey at the Arc. It is pretty incredible, much larger than I expected. Actually the entire Champs Elysees area was bigger than life. Every retail store with a global pulse was present as I walked from the Arc towards The Louvre. The weather was sunny and mid-70's. Perfect day for walking around.

Looking west up Champs Elysees towards the Arc.

I walked in a few stores on my two mile journey down Champs Elysees, things were priced as you would expect them to be. I dont do much shopping, but the prices in the Lacoste and Nike store were pretty much on par with what we pay at home. Maybe a little more expensive, but not outrageous. Of course, I didnt venture into Chanel, Dolce and Gabbana, or Louis Vuitton, I am sure their prices matched their impressive store fronts. It would be a shoppers dream. Guys, bring the pocket book if you are going to bring the lady to Paris, you will need more than the money you have reserved for the plane ticket and overpriced food and hotel. So I keep walking...

About an hour or two later, I make it to The Louvre. Honestly, I wasnt going in, I can look at artwork on the internet. While I appreciate it, I am not going to stay inside on a great day to look at a painting that wont change unless I know Thomas Crown is going to strike while I am there. So I took a few pictures of the glass pyramid, sat on the lawn and smiled at the idea of where I was and what I was doing.

Notre Dame Cathedral

Lunch was finally in order after the Louvre, it was already three, and I hadnt eaten. I wanted something decently healthy, so I go for roasted chicken at a Cafe on the Seine. It was roasted chicken, leg and thigh with fries. That combo with a glass of wine was interesting but it did the trick and gave me power to continue further across the river to Notre Dame Cathedral. Notre Dame was really cool, a bit on the dark side, but very impressive. It also gave me a chance to get out of the sun for a little which was important because I was getting a little sunburn.

So one thing left at 5:00, walk four or five miles back over to the area the Eiffel Tower stands, then my whirlwind tour would be complete. It was a nice walk, I found some sunscreen for fifteen Euro and took in some interesting sights. One of which was Pont de l'Alma tunnel, the sight of Princess Diana's fatal car crash. There is a nice tribute to her there. I remember where I was when I learned of her death, still to this day I think its tragic. I also saw a building that had plants growing all over it, intentionally, it was set up with irrigation and all. So finally I arrived at the Eiffel Tower. While there I had to stop and smell the roses for awhile, very rarely do I stop to reflect, I am always about whats next. However, being here, its hard not to just have seat and enjoy the moment. Paris sightseeing accomplished.

Living the dream...