Lisbon

I'm a little late about adding Lisbon to the list, but I ended my travels here. It's good to finally be home (and to be home for the holidays), but I really did enjoy my trip to Europe even though it could be a bit tiring at times.

Lisbon was the last city to visit and it was my favorite. People have called it the "San Francisco of Europe" which, I was told, was a bit pretentious of Americans. "Why don't they call it the Lisbon of America?" one Portguese friend asked me. Good point, except that we're the global super-power, not Europe. And we're cooler. And everyone wants to be like us. (Don't believe me? Just listen to the music...it's Katy Perry all day, every day).

Anyway, Lisbon is hilly and has a mini Golden Gate Bridge and is laid-back and beautiful and by the water. It's better than San Francisco. I loved the tile work on all the buildings. It's an easy city to walk around and if you haven't had their wine and pasteries, you haven't lived.

And yes, this last picture is an outdoor urinal on the side of a building. Did I mention Lisbon was my favorite city?

Munich

Up until today, Europe has been fairly warm with temperatures in the high 50s/low 60s. To me, this means a light jacket (unless I'm wearing a sweater). To the rest of Europe, this means heavy coats, hats and gloves. I've been a little confused by the attire.

But Munich was COLD. It truly warranted heavy coat, hats, gloves...and fur-lined boots. Of course, it wouldn't be the spirit of Christmas without a little chill in the air.

I was last in Munich about nine years ago, when I went backpacking after college. So it was fun to see some of the sights that I saw then. I did a lot of walking and toured the Residenz (the king's palace). I ate roasted chestnuts from street vendors (it was my first chestnut experience). I went to mass at St. Michael's Cathedral (one of the benefits of being Catholic is that you don't actually have to understand the language to still participate since it's all the same ritual...always). I listened to street muscisians perform classical and holiday music. And I ate some really great food.

Again, I always underrate Germany. Both Frankfurt and Munich have turned out to be such cute towns...even in the cold.






PS...take a gander at the outdoor muscians. Note the baby grand piano that's performing with them. How in the world did they get a baby grand piano outside?

Frankfurt

Everytime I come to Germany, I'm surprised by how much I love it. I had some time to walk around Frankfurt and watch the Christmas markets go up. Unfortunately, I'm just missing them here in Frankfurt (they don't open until next week), but I can see how magical it's going to be once the Christmas season is in full swing.

On Saturday morning, I walked around the outdoor markets, sipped on a cappacino and had a jelly donut (and, just because it looked and smelled delicious, some sort of pork sandwich with onions...yum!).

I love the quinessential German feel of the city, mixed with the modern shopping. This is what you think of when you think of Germany. It's quite a lovely city.

This is my version of "Ich bin ein Berliner." Eat your heart out, JFK!

Barcelona

I had always heard that Barcelona was a magical city. After visiting it, I have to agree. Think Alice in Wonderland down-the-rabbit-hole, a little girl playing make-believe, and charming Europe, all rolled into one.

The one architectural masterpiece that best embodies Barcelona has got to be Sagrada Familia. I was expecting just another cathedral (after all, this is Europe), but this was unlike anything I hadd ever seen - experienced, really - before. It was gorgeous. And not in the Notre Dame kind of gorgeous. But in a Candy Land sweetness kind of gorgeous. You literally feel like you're standing in a magical forest and there's a good possibility that you may be greeted by a sacred tree nymph.

Gaudi was ahead of his time. His use of color, texture, movement, nature - it was unbelievable. Very contemporary yet still tasteful. Of course, the cathedral is still unfinished (it's not slated to be completed for another 25 years or so). So I can't wait to come back and see it in all its glory.

A few pictures are included here, but they don't do it justice (pictures never do).

During our research sessions yesterday, our Spanish moderator asked one of the respondents (in Spanish, of course, but translated here):

Moderator: You're not from Spain, are you?
Respondent: No. But I've lived here for 13 years. I didn't think my accent was that noticeable.
Moderator: Your accent is perfect. But you look like a foreigner.

I was struck by two things: 1) that the moderator could tell someone they looked like a foreigner without fear of litigation and 2) that he could even tell he was a foreigner. It made me realize what a melting pot we are. Aside from our obesity and penchant for wearing athletic shoes, there really is nothing that makes us uniquely American. We don't have facial characteristics that give us away. But other countries are so much more homogenous that you can "tell" if something doesn't belong.

I guess that makes us mutts. And maybe a little bit boring. I'm OK with that...as long as I can still be visited by a magical tree fairy.

Galavanting through Europe

I'm off to Europe for the next three weeks (save for a quick visit to St. Louis for Thanksgiving). I'm visiting six countries and seven cities, many of which I've never been to before. This trip is for work, but I'm hoping to get a little down time to enjoy the sights.

The cities planned on my trip are Barcelona, Rome, Frankfurt, Munich, Paris, London and Lisbon. I'll send updates on my exploits and hopefully have lots of great pictures to share!

Europe, here I come!

The argument for Market Research

I sometimes get asked: What, exactly, is market research? From now on, I think I'll just use this as an example of why a business would want to do market research on a new idea:

From The Economist:

International hotel chain Holiday Inn is offering a trial human bed-warming service at three hotels in Britain this month.

If requested, a willing staff-member at two of the chain's London hotels and one in the northern English city of Manchester will dress in an all-in-one fleece sleeper suit before slipping between the sheets.

The bed-warmer is equipped with a thermometer to measure the bed's required temperature of 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit).

Holiday Inn said the warmer would be fully dressed and leave the bed before the guest occupied it. They could not confirm if the warmer would shower first, but said hair would be covered.

Holiday Inn are promoting the service with the help of sleep-expert Chris Idzikowski, director of the Edinburgh Sleep Center, who said the idea could help people sleep.

Now, I do my fair share of sleeping in hotel beds and I spend much of my time trying NOT to think of the different people who have slept in my bed and what they may have been doing in that bed before I checked in. So to know that there was definitely another person in your bed moments before you entered the room is a little disgusting...and creepy.

Stories from the road

My day started in Indianapolis, wandered to Phoenix, landed in Sacramento, and drove to Kirkwood, California. Travel is an amazing thing.

While in airports and on airplanes (and just in general, really), I tend to talk to the people around me. I find it interesting to meet different people and hear their stories and I usually hope to learn something along the way, or at least be entertained.

The Key to a Happy Marriage:

In Indianapolis this morning, I started chatting with an older couple in the security line. They were on their way to Vegas to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary. Since I had just celebrated my 5th year anniversary, I asked them what the secret was to a happy 40 years.

The wife told me "Patience." And to avoid thinking of and using the terms "me, mine, my, I." Good advice, although something we have all heard a time or two before.

The husband, who was a pastor, gave a slightly different take. "We made an agreement early in our marriage: whoever asks for the divorce has to take the kids." Now this makes sense to me. If you're going to break up the marriage, you have to take a bit of the punishment along with it. I'm thinking of implementing this rule with Scott.

A Surprise Visit Home:

On the ride from Phoenix to Sacramento, I sat next to a soldier who couldn't have been more than 20 years old. He had been deployed in Afghanistan, where he was an explosives engineer. After a month and a half over there, he had been shot by sniper and has been recovering in Kuwait and Germany over the past three weeks or so. This weekend, he was flying home to see his family for four days.

The touching part was that his family didn't know he was coming home. And to top it off, he was going to ask his girlfriend of four years to marry him. He reached into his greens and pulled out the ring to show me (it was very sparkly and very beautiful). You could tell he was nervous and excited.

Whenever I meet an active-duty soldier, I get a little teary-eyed and can feel the emotion catch in my chest. I think part of it is that I'm kind of a selfish person (hence, no kids) and for someone to be that self-less to put their lives in danger for me makes me emotional.

This soldier is going to be deployed again in January, and is totally excited about it. I'm sure there are going to be lots of happy tears this weekend!

A scenic drive:

My travels today ended not with a story, but with pictures. I had the most beautiful drive from Sacramento to Kirkwood, which is someplace east of Sacramento and south of Lake Tahoe. The trees and mountains were breathtaking, and I stopped a few times to take pictures, which don't do the view justice. What wonderful stories and a wonderful drive to kick off a wedding weekend!

A few of my favorite airports

Because I fly so often, I've started to concoct a list of favorite airports. Those that do a great job of making you excited to actually have a layover, or delay, because there's something about the airport that puts you at ease. I know, crazy. Anyway, I've come up with five that I think are among my most favorite I've visited so far:

5. Pittsburgh: While it's an older airport and in need of a little face lift, the indoor mall makes those extra-long waits a little more bearable. It's a little awkward to maneuver a roll-bag between the stand-alones at the GAP, but it's nice to be able to shop if you're so inclined.

4. Detroit: I never thought this airport would make it on my list, but the Northwest terminal is amazing. Spacious, contemporary, with a little red indoor monorail that reminds one of the toy trains that circle along the ceilings of kitschy toy shops. Good restaurants and comfortable seating take the chaos out of this airport.

3. Charlotte: The word "whimsical" comes to mind. I love the white rocking chairs nestled among the tree-lined atrium and they have some of the cutest mobiles hanging from the ceiling. It's easy to get around and they have my favorite eatery there - Yovana (freshly made yogurt).

2. Heathrow (British Airways Terminal): Despite this terminal being practically on the other side of the country from the rest of Heathrow, it's definitely worth the drive. It's exactly the kind of terminal I would imagine Apple creating - lots of fun high-tech imagery, high-end boutiques (in case you're in the mood for a $5,000 Gucci handbag at 7:00am) and easy to get around. It's a very fun terminal.

1. Raleigh-Durham (Terminal 2): Not only does arriving here mean I'm home, but the newly remodeled terminal is gorgeous. Contemporary and spacious, with outlets by every seat and really good restaurants (finally!). I can't wait to see what the whole airport will look like when they are finally finished remodeling...in another ten years!

A random list, I know. But it's the little, silly things in life that help make travel a little more bearable!

Tour de France

So I finally got around the uploading this video. I spent this past weekend in Paris, as I previously posted, and was lucky to get a front row seat of the last laps of the Tour de France. The whole experience was truly incredible.

It started with a parade around the city, with the most fun car floats I've ever seen. The whole thing was very campy and very tongue in cheek. Then about an hour later, the cyclists started to arrive into the city. Near one end of the Champs Elysee, there's a huge jumbotron that showed the cyclists entering the city. At that point, we started to walk down the line of people and find a spot where we could squeeze in. People from all nationalities lined the streets of Paris for miles, holding country flags, foam hands of their favorite teams and emitting an buzzing energy.

The cyclists do about eight laps around the city, before finally ending at the Arc de Triomphe. So we were able to see the cyclists whiz by about six times. On the first lap, they were just one big clump. By the second lap, they had begun to spread out, and spread out more and more with each subsequent lap.

This video was taken on my smartphone, so the quality isn't the best, but it gives you a sense of how fast these cyclists are going.

There are a few things in life that I feel lucky to have experienced - attending a Presidential debate, going to (what was) the Sugar Bowl - and being a stone's throw from the Tour de France cyclists is one more to the list.

And a few still pictures in a bit slower motion...

A ruined woman

Most of the air travel I've ever done in my life has been spent sitting in a coach seat. You know, in the peon section. Not First Class. Not Business Class. Not even Economy Plus, whatever that means. I'm basically the passenger that barely got a ticket onto the Titanic - stuck in the bowels of the ship while the other passengers feast on duck and caviar.

So when I discovered that we travel Business Class across the Atlantic, I was super excited. The plush seat reclined a good 120 degrees. The leg rest came up. I even had lumbar support. The flight attendants served me vegetable lasagna and complimentary reisling and even ice cream for dessert. I had my own video monitor and a real blanket. "This is the way to travel," I thought. I knew then that I could never go back.

Until the flight back. The gods smiled upon me at Charles de Gaulle and I got upgraded to First Class. First Class across the Atlantic! No one has this kind of luck! The seat fully reclined into a bed - I got the best 3 hours of sleep on an airplane ever. Real pillows, a real quilt. A three course meal with salad, chilled carrot soup and tortellini. A choice of three desserts. My own little pod, where it was just me, my recliner and my cubby. An ameneties kit with toothbrush, mouthwash, toothpaste, lip balm, socks and face gel. When I got my "wake up" deli tray, I knew it was over. I was ruined forever.

I have another trip to the UK coming up in about three weeks. I'm slated for Business Class again. I don't know if I can do it. I don't know if I can go back to Business Class. Now that I've tasted the duck and caviar, I just can't go back to the bowels of the ship. Maybe the Fergie gods will smile upon me again and grant me another First Class voyage.

A hop, skip and a jump over the pond

Today I leave for London and Paris! While most of the week in London will be spent doing actual work, we should have some time to enjoy the food and sights. Paris is purely for fun. I figured I flew 7 hours to get to Europe, I might as well enjoy things while I'm there.

The exciting thing is that the Tour de France will end in Paris on Sunday. I'm sure it'll be a mad house, but I'm thrilled to be able to watch it. We'll be squirming our way through the crowd, with cameras held high to catch the bikers on their final push home. Hopefully I'll get some good shots.

It's amazing, but it's been 7 years since I've been to Europe (wow, that makes me sound old). When I graduated college, my friend, Lindsey, and I backpacked for about a month through Europe, starting in London, circling around, and ending in Paris. My French has definitely rusted since then so I'm a little nervous about navigating around Paris, but I'm also excited to be back in two of my favorite European cities!

Enjoy the week!