The Dolomite mountains in northern Italy are FANTASTIC.
Trip reports coming soon to my hiking blog.
Actually, I’m writing from Munich. En route to some great hiking in the Austrian Alps.
FINALLY found some free WiFi internet access.
Category: travel
why I can’t live in the Maritimes … or Italy
Much as I like Halifax, living in the Maritimes is a non-starter for me. (Sorry Anne.)
Why?
Too many smokers.
It’s disgusting.
As I toured Nova Scotia, one Tim Hortons to the next, I had to push my way through nicotine addicts lurking at each entrance. Yeesh.
Why can’t those Maritimers go work their short-term Summer jobs as mandated by pogie?
I fled the second hand smoke for Italy.
Doh!
Italy is even WORSE. (Remind me not to travel to Cuba.)
And why am I even in Italy? I’m one of the few people you know who doesn’t want to travel in Italy. It’s the last place I wanted to go … last except for the land of the cheese-eating surrender monkeys.
My Mom reminded me of my only other trip to Italy, over 30yrs ago. I wrote her this on a postcard:
… “Italy is Great…too bad it is run by Italians” …
Italian men back in 1976 were totally irritating.
Happily I can report they’ve improved over the past few decades.
In fact, it seems the young Italian men have collectively opted into a 1980s George Michael look-alike contest. Pretty funny. I don’t speak Italian, but I’d estimate at least 6 million young men, so far, have voluntarily joined into this amusing competition.
It’s great to see that those (formerly) arrogant pricks are now able to laugh at themselves.
The detested Italian machismo seems to be fading.
Of course I’m in Italy for hiking. It was a complete surprise to me. One minute I was searching the internet for cheap flights to Iceland. The next I’d bought a $100 ticket Gatwick to Venice.
Here I am in Bolzano, no guidebook. It’s like the blind leading … myself.
Fortunately 6 of my 10 words of Italian from the distant past have returned to me.
Oh, … I should add that there are only 2 good smokers in the World. And one of them is trying to quit.
shout out for Halifax
I’ve always liked this city.
It’s a University hangout with Dalhousie right downtown. A party place. Great restaurants and bars.
I had a terrific $5 steak special at one busy restaurant as part of my Tattoo ticket package.
The impressive Citadel Hill cannot be missed.
But really it’s the harbour I like most.
My best photo, former prison camp, Georges Island.
… what will Rick do without internet?
Rick McCharles is mostly offline hiking in Europe.
Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo – a review
Excellent.
I was very happy I finally got the chance to see it. The original meaning of military tattoo is a military drum performance, but nowadays it sometimes means army displays more generally.
The themes: the military, police, fire, patriotism, Scottish heritage, international cooperation, tradition. Military music: drums and pipes.
It’s so unhip. So retro. So old fashioned … I found it very charming. It’s the anti-Cirque.
Happily the old men in charge laughed off any suggestion to pander with a reference to Michael Jackson. In fact, they don’t know who he was. … But they do know Abba.
Though I was born to parents both in the military, my upbringing was just the opposite. The formative book of my teen years was anti-war: Catch-22.
The first adult movie I saw was anti-war: Kelly’s Heros.
As a young adult I told Rich that I would rather be Red than Dead. (As a gymnastics coach, I might just have been better off under the Commies than under Trudeau.)
But I’ve always respected the military. They are clear on purpose. Announced loudly and clearly during the Tattoo:
There are no good wars. And there is nothing good about war.
(Nod to Benjamin Franklin.)
A strong military is all about preventing war. And minimizing the risk of war.
Our greatest danger in 2009 is the hazard that the wrong people in Pakistan might get their hands on nuclear weapons. (Not climate change. Please.) We need a strong military to do what we can to minimize the risk of nuclear war.
At MEC I happened to see a young female soldier shopping for a personal backpack for her upcoming deployment to Afghanistan. Very young. I could only think of how much braver she was than me. I’d hate to be going over there right now.
Kudos to everyone in police, fire prevention and the military. I salute you.
official website – Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo
Here is the 2009 promo video on YouTube. (The footage is from previous years. But you’ll get the idea.)
The Tattoo is too long and slow for kids. At least 3 were asleep near where I was sitting by half way through the performance. But I recommend you attend if ever you get the chance.
Leave a comment if you’ve seen a Tattoo.
love / hate rent-a-car
Part of the rationale of me not owning a vehicle is:
I can always rent-a-car.
Recently I’ve started relying on the insurance provided by my credit card. Risky, I think.
I got the TD Gold Select Visa Card mainly for this feature:
Use your eligible TD Visa Card to charge the full cost of a car rental and the Auto Rental Collision/Loss Damage Insurance program will cover you at no additional cost. This insurance coverage means you do not need to purchase the collision/loss damage insurance coverage offered by the car rental company. You’ll be protected against loss arising from damage to the rental car on most rentals in North America and many foreign countries. Some restrictions apply.
One problem is that I must pay any costs up front, then make a claim to VISA for reimbursement.
Risky. So far I’ve never had to do it.
Recently I woke up to find my rent-a-car looking like this:
I changed the tire myself, putting on the skinny temporary. Maximum 80km/hr, it says.
When I got back to Avis I learned that there will be no cost to me if the tire is patched. But that I am responsible to buy a new tire if it cannot be patched.
I’ll learn that decision by watching my credit card statement.
hmm
dreaming of Iceland …
I posted this on my hiking blog yesterday. One of the most charming music videos I’ve ever seen.
I tried and failed to find a very inexpensive flight from Eastern Canada to Iceland. Unfortunately it’s very high season there.
This evocative music video inspired me.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Exotic. Ethereal. Stark. … And very weird.
If you’re looking for inspiration to visit watch Glósóli by Icelandic band Sigur Rós. They are the second most famous band out of Iceland.
That’s Iceland.
The music reminds many of Arcade Fire from Canada.
But this is sigur rós, a rock band from Iceland.
… glósóli, shot in iceland in august 2005. the video is directed by icelanders arni & kinski and features a cast of icelandic children. …
read an interview with the video’s cinematographer Chris Soos – takk… glósóli video
Canada Day, Charlottetown PEI
I was a guest at a big house warming / Canada Day Party in beautiful Prince Edward Island.
Big barbecue. Great seafood chowder. A dozen kids on the trampoline.
I’m in Charlottetown for a Summer Gymnastics Camp.
Air Canada and Aeroplan still suck
I tried to request credit for two flights I made recently on Air Canada.
It’s difficult to find the right place on the Aeroplan website. But eventually I did.
Aeroplan > Request Mileage Credit
But when I filled in the much too detailed data required, I got only an error page:
The data is right. Aeroplan and Air Canada suck.
Thanks to Peter Long for pointing out that I had the wrong airport. Montreal Dorval has changed names to Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport. (2004)
They truly do what they can to ensure so called valuable customers do not get credit for mileage.
Why not automatically credit every flight?
Air Miles programs will be dead to me after I use up the 70,000 points I have left on this crappy airline. I’ll do everything I can to avoid AC.
related – Aeroplan® expiring me
==== UPDATE:
After submitting, did I get credit for the miles?
Your request for mileage credit has been received. The missing Aeroplan Miles will be validated and, if accepted, the miles will be posted to your account within six weeks. No confirmation e-mail or letter will be sent.
Screw you very much, Aeroplan. Six weeks?
What? You will have an employee confirm this request?
Aeroplan deserves to go out of business.
Now I have to phone them – GAWD AWFUL – because my miles might expire July 25th, before the 6wks, if I don’t.
from Parksville to Charlottetown, PEI
Why did I have trouble waking up this morning?
Oh … RIGHT.
I just traveled 2700mi (4400km) … 4 time zones … in the past few days.
I’m here for a gymnastics camp and coaching clinic.
