Introduction: The 15th annual Sloan-C Conference on Online Learning will be adding a new virtual attendance option to its October 28-30 event in Orlando, Florida. Hmmm. Will this online “addition” be anything to write home about? Or is it just an afterthought, a pale reflection of the “real” conference? -Jim S

John Sener, ETC writer, on 15 Oct. 2009, 3:54 am:

Sloan-C’s virtual conference option at its San Fran event in June was very well received by its participants. It’s certainly not intended as an afterthought; Sloan-C is very consciously and deliberately moving into this space of virtual conferences, which is driven in part by the high cost of travel and the budget crunch.

Whether or not it’s a pale reflection of the “real” conference depends on one’s perspective about virtual vs. f2f events, I suppose. Recently I’ve been hearing ads by British Airways touting the necessity of f2f contact to conduct business effectively. I interpret that as meaning that virtual meetings must be starting to cut into their business if they feel the need to counterattack the trend in their ads…

Claude Almansi, ETC editor, accessibility issues and site accessibility facilitator, on 15 Oct. 2009, 5:08 am:

I agree with John Sener. Based on participating in 2 virtual conferences recently:

1. Oct. 3: about digital natives, both real-life in Lugano and online.

positive: brilliant moderator for the online part, quick in accepting chat messages, good at drawing speakers’ attention to them (they were all a bit too old and above all set in their ways to know how to multitask between their in-presence do and reading the chat)

negative: the do was only transmitted in streaming video, and at too high a definition, meaning that the moderator kept sending messages: “If the streaming stops, reload the page.”

2. today: work meeting between folks in Lugano, Luzern, Zurich, Brig and Geneva. Real virtual conference, say like Elluminate but as Web app, so no java applets to install.

positive: again, the moderator was good (though there was no connection to be made with a real-life meeting as there was none, and we were all used to video conference softwares, so her job was easier)

positive: the software allowed folks to indicate their connection type (hence speed), and actually everybody used just written chat and audio (not video)

positive: nice whiteboard for slides etc: much better than having them filmed onscreen in a video streaming

negatives: none

So based on these 2 recent experiences (and some older ones) I’d say that when offering an interactive conference both in real life and on the web, success depends on

• having a separate moderator for the online part
• using a real online conferencing software rather than just video-streaming the live event + a text chat.

John Thompson, ETC editor, green computing, on 15 Oct. 2009, 5:12 am:

A growing number of heretofore F2F ed tech conferences (e.g., TCEA, FETC) are now including a virtual attendance component. I suppose it provides another way to reach out to the ed tech community, and perhaps can be seen as a marketing tool, especially when the virtual conference is free. It also attracts attendees who might not otherwise have participated and provides another revenue stream for conferences, many of which are seeing the effects of the strained economy.

Having F2F conferences offer a virtual choice is similar to print media also offering an online edition. And there you’re seeing a gradual shift to online editions being more like the print edition, not “pale” versions. USA Today has recently initiated a free electronic edition for subscribers that is exactly like the print edition, plus add a reduced size Saturday electronic edition to subscribers. The NY Times and Chronicle of Higher Education are two other print pubs that now offer electronic versions to subscribers that are exactly like the print editions.

Interesting to see Sloan-C charging a registration fee for its virtual component, albeit at a significantly reduced level from the F2F conference registration fee. These are changing times for long time institutions such as print pubs and F2F conferences, and those times are exacerbated by the current difficult economic situation. At the very least, Sloan-C needs to be congratulated for taking the initiative.

Disclaimer – I’m presenting at the Sloan-C conference this month.

By popular demand I have decided to dish the dirt on my summer. I have been home for a month now and I am almost able to reminisce without crying and wishing I could do it all over again.

Over the summer I took a road trip around the states. The route we ended up taking was from Atlanta GA, to Texas, to LA then Vegas and back down to Atlanta. We then went up to New York and back to Atlanta before coming back home. A staggering drive clocking up 7000miles on our carbon footprint (minus flights).

Summer in the States

 The 30something weeks that we spent planning the trip felt like a lifetime and in hindsight was a total waste of time… but on the bright-side this was our first lesson learned – no point in making plans… they never work out anyway.

 Who’s Who:  

• Narelle (Me)
• Jade, my cousin who lived stateside for 12years
• Lisa and Danielle… two of my three best friends (Jenna couldn’t make it this time)

  Jade flew to Atlanta, Georgia a week before Lisa and I to spend some time with her family before our trip.

 Lisa’s mum picked me up two and a half hours before our flight and headed to Glasgow Airport. On our way she announced to us that for flights stateside you had to check in three (not two) hours before departure… great just what we wanted to hear.

 In the car… half thinking we weren’t going to get to go we made a back up plan… fly to Ibiza and stay there for the summer if they won’t let us in to the states.

 When we got to the airport the panic over was over – they are allowing us to fly despite previous concerns.

jetting of to the states

 We got on our first flight to Philadelphia (the home of the steak sanny and Rocky) and we are not sitting together. The old couple in-between us only had to swap one seat (they would still be sitting together) in order to allow us to sit beside each other – but they refused. So we WARNED them if you don’t swap we will be shouting over you the whole flight and passing things back and forward… and that is exactly what they did. And at the same time hopefully taught a couple of old buddies a lesson. Lol… why must they be so stubborn?

When we got to Philadelphia and I was gutted that we didn’t get to see Rocky Balboa or at least have time to run up the stairs… oh well maybe next time. At Phili we were clearly the only tourists… the only people with passports in an airport – nuts! From Phili we flew to Atlanta Georgia, aka THE SWEATBOX.

 Atlanta

 Atlanta Hartsfeild Jackson Airport is the busiest in the world and is like the crystal maze… as Lisa and I have absolutely no sense of direction and were sweating the bit out we decided it best to follow a guy we recognised from our flight.

 Due to the sheer size of the place we had to get on a train inside the airport to get our luggage… which isn’t the easiest thing to do in 100degree weather and whilst trying to stalk some (in the beginning) unsuspecting traveller.

 Following the guy was the start of the hilarity. The train kept stopping and he got off to let someone else off… we followed. Then he got back on… we followed – not obvious at all. Then the train stops and he gets off… this time for good and we follow him. He starts walking faster, so do we and he keeps looking back – with a look of terror on his face. He clearly knew we were following him, but surely he could figure out why – we only wanted to get our luggage… with his reaction you would think we wanted to jump his bones.

 I mean I understand we were not quite looking our best with the 24hours of travelling and sweating the bit out in the most humid place in the world but come on boy!

 My LITTLE cousin Mark came to get us at the airport… whilst collecting our luggage we were trying to resist the urge to shout bomb in the airport: apparently they don’t take kindly to that stateside. People in Atlanta drive like head cases: our first week there flew in.

 Our first night out didn’t quite go as planned… jet lag meant that I was steaming after about three drinks – Lisa and I were also five hours ahead, not only in time but the amount of time it takes the Southerners to get a sentence out: it can prove to be rather time consuming.

Anyway we went downtown Atlanta to go to a club, Opera I think, with Bridgette (US G BFF) and Brandy (Drama Queen). It was like being out with the paparazzi – the American girls sure like taking pics. Brig was driving and trying to find where we were going was so funny. We were so drunk and bursting we had to stop and pee behind a petrol station… all of us. Lol. Eventually found the club, I went in first but Lisa was 20 at the time and apparently you need to be 21 stateside. Lisa’s argument at the door was repeatedly… ‘but I’m 20’ – doesn’t matter Stella, that’s like arguing you are 17 trying to get in to a club in the UK.

Lisa, Jade and Brig on our first night out in Atlanta

 As the girls wouldn’t be too happy if I went without them I came back out. In the car park we asked a girl where else we could go… mid conversation we see a tear tat on her face… hmm why does that look familiar and what does it mean? We later found out that it apparently means that you have killed someone… okay lucky we didn’t take her advice as to where to go.

Jade & I on our first night in Atl

 We ended up in a dingy bar on our first night called the Highland Grill (I think)… however the night was by no means a total loss. At the bar we met Jade’s ex and his friends.

 Jade’s ex (Jordan G aka Napoleon Dynamite: to be named and shamed) will come in to our trip later but on this night was actually really funny. He was eating some weird shit and kept saying ‘Jesus’ whilst trying to understand our jokes. But he was by no means the highlight… also got to meet his friend Aaron (aka Dennis).

 So… Jade kept trying to tell jokes (Jade is the worst joke teller that side of the Campsies, which is some distance lol) to try to distract me I think. But I could not be fooled. Every single guy we met or even whose name came in to conversation Jade had went with. Lol. Word on the street is that it’s why she actually had to move back to Scotland – because she had went with every guy in the state of Georgia.

 The drink police were out that night… I got a drink at the bar – Lisa had a sip of it and they were all over her like the chicken pox. The drink thing was one of the big things for Lisa to get used to stateside… having been going out drinking since we were 15… being 20 and being told she couldn’t drink did not go down well.

 Luckily for us they couldn’t understand a word of the sheer cheek she gave them. Lol.

 That night came to a close… we all went back to Jade’s to stay and heard all Brandy’s gossip… man the American girls can be dramatic. Lol.

 Our first week in Atlanta ended up being one house party after another courtesy of Bridgette – the Queen of finding parties (thanks babe).  At one of the parties I learned to play my first game of ‘Beer Pong’ (An American drinking game which was at the centre of every house party we went to… sucked for me as I was crap at it, lol.

 At that same party (I think Cody’s party) Lisa and I gave a stand up comedy show… apparently they don’t tell jokes stateside – so they loved us. Lol. That night Lisa and I also went on a double date to – wait for it…. Waffle House! – class was just oozing out of us the whole time we were there. Oh we were also told that we were the best people that they had ever met… and soaked it in like a sponge. Lol.

Lisa & I double dating at Waffle House

 We also had pant party that night at Bridgett’s where we spent the night… Brig won sexiest.. although I think mine were cutest – unfortunately Jade destroyed all pics of it so my word will need to do. And got to see the crazy side of Brig at that party. She lost her phone and freaked out… starting going through people’s bags and told a girl she was going to kick her friends ass! Crazy Americans… why don’t you just look for it? Lol. Staying at Bridgett’s we wound up having to sleep in her brother’s jiz ridden bed… where Lisa thinks she could have gotten pregnant. Lol.

 The heat in Georgia isn’t the same as the heat here or on holiday… it is so humid and makes you feel like you can’t really get a breath. Due to this breathlessness feeling I am pretty sure it made me boy crazy – that’s my excuse and I am sticking to it. Lol.

 So… went to Brig’s Gran’s pool the next evening to try to cool down and put ended up getting up to no good. Bit of boozing, smoking and skinny-dipping resulted in us putting on a talent contest… whereby we performed our rendition of ‘The Cheeky Girls’ – needless to say we hit it out of the park. Lol. Also played the ‘n game’ that night… don’t try it – it will drive you crazy… I’m still thinking of ‘n’ things to this day. We also got ripped off that night… that’s all I can really say about that – but I developed my first US hatred… damn that boy (well my second if you count Bush) lol.

 Another of our Atlanta parties was an all day shout. There was a pool party during the day… whereby I ended up steaming. Before going we went to get drink and spent $100plus on booze – we said at the time… of this runs out then we are clearly alcoholics and need some help – it ran out: didn’t get help just had to get more booze.

 During the day of our drinking sesh we had the pleasure of Aaron’s company along with his slightly odd friend Jordan K. Brig warned us before hand that he doesn’t talk much and that he likes football (not American but real football or soccer as they like to put it). So I spent around an hour burning his ear… at least I managed to entertain myself… won’t talk me to Jordan – that’s fine – doesn’t meant I won’t talk to you!

 There was a pool Nazi there though… my 2^nd US feeling of hate and where I got my only regret of the entire trip! If I could turn back time I would go back and push her in the pool. It did cross my mind at the time but I didn’t have the balls. Damn it.

 Aaron… who despite talking ridiculously slow was quite entertaining and good to look at, lol.

What I meant by Aaron being nice to look at

 We wound up at Brig’s Gran’s house for the party that night… which is also Jordan G’s house, Jade’s ex and Napoleon look alike. It was a rather scary house… which an actual deer head mounted on the wall and a death step which I fell victim to after a few more bevies. Specifically strawberry daiquiris which we made extremely strong as I didn’t Lisa had already put the vodka in… so we ended up with a double dose. Lisa also had a mini drama in trying to find a blender which she was not happy about… what kind of place has an actual nut cracker but no blender? Lol.

Lisa and the Deer head

 At this party Aaron helped me break in to a room to see Brig do it. He took Lisa and I where the crazy ass dogs were and I feared for my life in order to see her in bed. Anyone who would help me break in to a bedroom to watch someone do it is more than okay in my book. Lol.The other events of that evening which kept me entertained included a game of beer pong (which I didn’t win), a diabetic guy getting really angry and storming off claiming he is not coming back… but then was like “Fuck… I’m only back for my insulin!” lol. Ha! Jade taking a dump and broadcasting it and Lisa getting a KB. Lol. As well as seeing Jade naked.

 That night a certain someone in the aftermath was an asshole… but he later gets what is coming to him. He was also a bit of a douche to Lisa… and it takes a lot to upset my gal but he managed to. SHAME ON YOU! But to be fair… when I fell up the death step we did help me and get me a replacement drink after soaking myself.

Whilst in GA we also went to Athens (the college town) to see Emily and co. and we had a blast. We went to a party and I won my first game of beer pong… wuhu!

Brig getting up to no good

 Although I loved this party everyone else hated it and we had to leave … but I had a great time despite the guys being a tad sleazy. But then we got to go hag with Emily’s boyfriend and friends… they were such fun and we loved them!

 They were the only ‘American boys’ who kissed us hello… apparently the Americans don’t do that. I actually didn’t realise I did it so much until I kept going in for a kiss and not getting anything back. Lol. Brig was hilarious in Athens… and a bit of a hoe!… wuhu – go Brig taking one for the team! Oh I also loved the guy who made me breakfast… those were some great eggs – thanks Miami boys! And thanks Emily… we had a great time.

Athens

 We were staying at Jade’s in Atlanta and whilst there we witnessed the most ridiculous argument I have ever heard in my life. To understand you will first need to envision a two year girl who has been spoiled rotten and is acting like a total brat. Now envision that little brat in the body of a 40plus, 6ft tall man – you have just met Jade’s dad. When Jade was living stateside she had an American accent, since coming home she has gotten back her Scottish accent, which to most people makes sense.

 Not to Jade’s crazy assed Dad. He actually believes that Jade was putting on her Scottish accent just to annoy him because ‘everyone in Scotland hates him’; hmm wonder why? He actually thinks that the whole world revolves around him.

 But Jade’s dad wasn’t the only person who was hard work… her uncle also was less than pleasant. To be fair to him he sorted out our car that we took on out road trip… which would have been helpful – hadn’t the car been a heap of shit. Lol. But it was the ‘Shaggin Waggin’ and we had some great times in it… as well as some near death experiences. Lol.

In Atlanta it was great getting to know Mark and Megan again… love you guys, thanks for keeping me entertained and being so good to me. But I think this is where I started to put on my weight via my aunt Catherine’s cooking… which is by far the best cooking ever.

mosquitoes love me

My only real problem in Atlanta was that the mosquitoes absolutely love me! I had at one point 30 bites on my body! I used bucket loads of repellent and tried to stay inside at key mosquito times but they got me regardless. Lisa and Jade’s bathroom habits, announcements and photo taking also gave me the boke! We also got some shopping done in Atlanta which was fun… especially our remake of American girl style in Macys.

Dress up in Macys

 As Lisa is a dumbass she had to cut her part of our trip short and had to leave Atlanta after one week due to a failed placement. So for Lisa’s last night Jade, Lisa, Brig and I went out for dinner and drinks and wound up dining with the first of the several potential serial killers we met whilst stateside. He comes up and said that he is waiting on his friend and asked if he could wait with us… we stupidly said yes – although he did provide some entertainment. It turned out that he had been stood up as his girl friend who in his words was ‘out fucking someone else’. Then his fat friend shows up and starts rapping. Yes you read right actual real rapping… both a variety of popular rap music and material he had written on his own (no joke). Keep in mind this was in a restaurant. One of the strangest things I have ever experienced.

 Taking Lisa to the airport was sad for me… she is my BFF and I love her like fat kids love cake… Bye Stella and hello road trip!

On the road

 Texas

On our three day drive to LA, our first stop was Dallas, Texas – and we loved it! On Aaron’s instruction we were giving the Longhorn sign to pretty much everyone, lol, and mostly got a good response. Dallas was fun and the Texan boys were sweethearts but despite what they say not everything is bigger in Texas… ask Jade – she did the leg work. Lol.

 Our second days drive and lone behold we are still in Texas – do not underestimate the sheer size of the place as you will be in it for what feels like a lifetime. Heading in to the desert and our air con breaks… it was 100plus degrees and we were in the middle of no where. It was so hot I had to strip down to my pants and try to think cool thoughts.

Whilst I’m lying in my pants with no AC Jade is ripping the arse out of the Shaggin Waggin and a funny noise starts… I said to her about it and she blames the texture of the road. Then all of a sudden a massive bang and black smoke was coming from the back of the car… we pulled over and our back tyre was no longer on the car… it was ripped to shreds and lying all over the interstate – Shit.

 So we get the spare out the boot and its one of those ‘only for temporary use’ tyres… Jade made me put my dress back on – although I think the lack of it would have helped our hitchhiking. After getting all the tyre change stuff out when then discover than neither of us know how to change a tyre.

Time to flag a car for some help… however as I said we were in the desert and there were not many passers by. But help as we discovered is like buses… none for ages then three guys stop to help at the same time. And they were the ideal people who you want to stop and help… they were strong, sweet and so sexy – kind of rough looking (and here is the heat making me boy crazy again). The boys put the temp tyre on directed us to where we could get a new one put on (Big Springs).

 Big Spring is like a place out of a movie… where they all know each other by name – and where we experienced one of many ‘dumb American’ moments.

 Whilst waiting on our tyre being changed… we went to Walmart as I needed a UK to US travel adapter. I asked the shop assistant where it was and she literally pointed in two different directions and said “over there”… oh I’m sorry where? Again pointing in different directions “over there” – okay you are clearly a fruit cake.

 Then we went to pizza hut for a bite to eat and I asked for a cheese pizza… I was told “we don’t do that”… the women clearly either didn’t understand what I was saying or just wasn’t listening as I said it again and again I was told that in Pizza Hut they don’t do a cheese pizza – another ‘dumb American’ moment.

 Back on the road and as Texas is the size of the UK we spent another night there… this time in El Paso. In Texas is where we got ghetto and had to motel it up! – Beggars can’t be choosers: so we were Super 8 right out our tats!

 Driving to El Paso we kept seeing signs that read:

 “WARNING PRISON AREA DO NOT PICK UP HITCHHIKERS”

 Which as you can imagine is just what we want to see in the middle of the desert late at night in our dodgy Shaggin Waggin.

 El Paso, Texas, was a little like a third world country. We were on interstate 10 West and you go right down to the Mexican border. We didn’t go out in El Paso… although we are Glasgow Girls even that was a little rough for us. Lol.

 But that night Jade and I were in bed (Jade likes to share a bed with me… despite there being two double beds there – lezzy bitch. Lol.) and I wake up startled because I felt a nip on my neck… initially I thought it may have been Jade trying to give me a nookie… but it wasn’t. I went to the bathroom and had three large bumps on the back of my neck… they looked like more mosquito bites but they were really painful and hard.

spider bite !

We went to the chemist and met more dumb Americans. The pharmacist advised that it looks like a spider bite but that he doesn’t know which kind of spider… and that some spider bites could kill you. He then said that he doesn’t really know as he doesn’t have much experience with spider bites and asked Jade and a passer what they think! This almost pushed me over the edge. We eventually found someone who knew and got the correct anti-biotic cream for it… but come on pharmacy guy – pull it together – I really don’t want to hear that some spider bites may kill me and that you don’t have a clue what to do!

The third day of driving to LA and we were still in Texas… as much as I loved Dallas… the state of Texas just goes on forever!… we finally went through New Mexico and got to LA that night.

Hard core you know the score! lol.

 Los Angeles

Jade & I in LA

 In LA we stayed on Long Beach and definitely moved up from our Super8 experiences. Our hotel was absolutely gorgeous… a 4 star downtown number. We spent a few nights in LA and most of it was a total blur as I think I was drunk the entire time.

 We were getting free drink at this Irish bar, the Dubliner, and we took advantage of it. I hate shots… I hate taking them… I hate how they make me feel – but in LA I all of a sudden thought I was Mary Queen of Shots and was knocking them back left, right and centre.

Route of all evil

 So drunk the entire time, and as we are boob people, we spent a bit of time in Hooters where I thought it would be funny to motorboat one of the girls… it was. Lol.

LA Baby

 In the Dubliner my ‘free’ drinks did come at a price… I ended up prostituting my dancing skills out to a soiree of old men. I initially danced with one to be polite, then another came up so I thought when in Rome… then he asked me to dance with his friend and after I did another then came up… I said no and he responded “well you danced with all them” so by then I left obliged.

 Back at the hotel I was a tad sick… I came out the bathroom and there is Jade lying butt naked on the floor… although it sounds funny now – it really wasn’t at the time. I got in to bed and told Jade to get in to hers. But instead she kept trying to get in with me butt naked and I was covered in sick…

 “Just leave me alone Jade… go to your own bed!”

 The next few nights in LA was when my liver started to hurt… a weeks solid booze abuse in Atlanta then pounding the shots in LA started to take its toll.. so instead of stopping drinking Jade suggested I get on the cocktails instead – this actually made sense at the time – in hindsight no so much. Lol.

Jade in LA with her clothes on

 We got on the bus to downtown LA (as opposed to Long beach) with a cocktail in our hand and our heels on… we stuck out like sore thumbs. But mostly in a good way…except from my prostitute dress.

  On the bus a guy approached Jade and gave her a flower… which was sweet enough. Two minutes later he comes back and gives her a picture of a lady on a horse… hmm – they don’t really do this at home… was it another cultural difference or did Jade have a weird stocker? Lol – it was the latter.

flower power

Hollywood is so dirty! We went to the walk of fame and down to Sunset and it is, not to sugar coat it, a shit-hole. Every single person was totally out their faces and there was homeless people everywhere… not at all like one would imagine it to be.

 We went back to hotel Maya drunk and could not work the lights, so Jade steaming put in an official complaint. The next morning Jade was out getting us breakfast and an electrician comes to the hotel door and says that we complained all our lights were broken and he was here to fix them. Turns out we are just a couple of morons who were too drunk to turn on the lights and the guy took me round the whole room showing me how to turn the lights on and off – needless to say I was mortified.

Hollywood walk of fame

 Back on the road and heading to Vegas… by this time we have listened to every single CD in the car so many times, so we turn to radio. Man American radio sucks… in a nutshell it is a mix of country and God stations and the manner in which they tell the news makes me feel sick to my stomach. Luckily we just got a bargain for Bally’s hotel in Vegas and were only 4 hours away… wuhu!

Las Vegas

I do need to be cautious regarding what I reveal about Vegas… when we got to the hotel we had to pledge an agreement… as you may have heard ‘What happens in Vegas: stays in Vegas.’ (I actually think this may be why we still don’t know who shot Tupac… everyone’s lips are sealed) lol.

Vegas

 But Vegas is the best place in the world… it just has everything! We could have stayed in our hotel the entire time… the room was amazing, the service was amazing, there was food I could actually eat (as I struggled a little with food stateside), there was even a Mall and a train station inside our hotel.

 In Vegas we actually got our first real chance to sunbath… we lay at the pool all day, drank cocktails and got a perv at the boys… most of whom were gay dancers – but nonetheless they are lovely to look at (again I blame the heat). Poor Jade got toasted though… and to this day she still thinks she’s got skin cancer.

 I had a very lucky night in Vegas… all thanks to my bum-bag… yes I have a bum-bag – or as the Americans say fanny-pack. Ha! I love that expression. Jade was totally mortified… but I actually think it was a good look for me: and if nothing else it is definitely practical. Lol. On my lucky night we played Black Jack (21) and I got hooked and actually managed to make a good amount of cash as I got loads of 21s… every time you get it they give you a necklace… by the end of the night I looked like a Christmas tree.  

 Unfortunately I got greedy and played again the next night and lost all my money! Damn. But I think it’s all part of the experience.

 The clubs in Vegas were great too… we were also trying to do some celeb spotting – but failed miserably. We also went to a topless show… that was fun. We paid for the ‘cheap’ seats at the back… but when the lights went off the Usher came to get us and put us in the VIP boxes, where the nips almost take your eyes out – score lol.

Bally's Show

 Oh I almost forgot… another dumb American story. The entire time we were there both Jade and I were using the same ID… mine. I had my passport and she was using my driving licence and we went places together… one after the other – and not one of them noticed. Either that or they just didn’t care. If it’s the latter they go from dumb to nice Americans.

 Some of the people we met in Vegas were just nuts… there was the dumb blonde (not her official name, although it should be) who was married to a fat rich old man who gave me the boke. And there was the two Mexican guys who were just hilarious. One of them, who was clearly there illegally, was carrying around a fat white guys passport. I looked at it and almost peed laughing. He was like “that was before, that was before” – before what pal? – your skin transplant? And there was my lucky card dealer!

 Another highlight was forgetting the time difference, calling home and telling my Mum I got married, priceless. That’s really all I can say about Vegas without breaking my oath… but it is simply the best place in the world. It’s not the kind of place you could actually live… unless you want to develop a very unhealthy drinking and gambling problem – but it was just out of this world.

What happens in Vegas...

 Bye Vegas!

Back On the Road

Heading back to Atlanta was nuts… I think we did it in a world record – 2days non stop driving from Vegas to Georgia. I actually think we should be given an award for it. We went back on 40 then 20… as opposed to 20 then 10 – so we went through all the mid states… and of course somehow wound up back in the monster state that is Texas. We pulled over to get a few hours rest… it was absolutely bucketing down and we could hardly see. We later found out that there was a tornado right where we were… and that was not our only run in with the dodgy American weather.

When we got to Oklahoma on our way back we had to spend a few hours in a Pizza Hut… not because we were so hungry but due to a tornado scare. I was bricking it!

As mentioned previously my eating habits stateside where not the best. I felt like I couldn’t eat anything so resorted to fast food the whole time. If I never see another Subway in my life… my life will be a happy one.

But a combination of all the fast food and drinking, which was every night, resulted in my gaining half a stone – which I am still trying to get rid of! Damn Americans and their massive portions… no wonder they are all so fat.

Although I am sad to be back home… I’m lucky I came home when I did – otherwise I would be like Ten Tone Tess by now.

Back to Atlanta

Back in Atlanta we got up to no good. I was still avoiding Jade’s uncle… who was dying to go out with us – every time he called I had an excuse not to speak to him. I thought it was best to avoid him… in case I couldn’t bite my tongue at our next encounter.

Well you remember Jordan G (Napoleon) he managed to upset Jade… so we went along with our trusty companion (or so we thought at the time) Aaron to egg and flour his car. It was genuinely the happiest I felt whilst being there – lol: that must be the bad in me coming out… but honestly he deserved it! 

Ha !

I also had a few good nights out with Aaron… all of which are now scrambled in my head and not very clear at all – I think he was trying to get me drunk. Lol.

 One night Jade and I went out for a drink with Aaron and met up with his friends then went back to a party and it was the most drunk I had gotten the entire time I was there. I don’t know if what I’m about to tell you actually even happened as I can’t remember any of that night – this is from Jade’s account. I entered in to a drinking contest with Aaron’s friend Justin… and I don’t think I won. Word on the street is I hit the shots, everyone could see my knickers most of the time and I ended up lying on a bathroom floor being sick… classy chic.

Another ?

 But Aaron thank you for being such a sweetheart and getting me home safely and carrying me when my legs deserted me… and for listening to all my drunken babbling.

 I do however remember the next day when I uttered those infamous words “I’m never drinking again.” I was actually hung-over for a full 24 hours… and not just feeling crappy… it was a hard core hangover – proper sick all day… not eating – I even cried a little as a felt so sorry for myself. Lol.

 I managed to pull it together eventually but I was out of commission for a full day and night.

Shockingly after my classy performance Aaron still wanted another night out with us. Lol. The next one I can remember I had a great night… although Jade didn’t. I think it was at Twisted Taco (a dive) but it was good fun… but Aaron did get his revenge a threw a drink on me. Although he denies it to this day claiming it was me – I am certain he threw it on me on purpose. But to be fair to him he did more than make up for it that night. Thanks for a great time.

We had another few nights out like that… a place called Diamond Daves springs to mind… where I got dropped on my ass (thanks for that… although I did get my revenge). That’s what I get for trying to teach the Americans to dance. In the states they ask you to dance but they would be as well asking you to dry hump to the beat of the music.

 Got to spend some more time with Mark and Megan when we were back in Atlanta – miss and love you guys!

 The next big thing was heading to NYC to meet up with my other BFF Dani T.

Dan, Jade & I in NYC

New York, New York

I was so glad to meet up with Danielle in New York… someone else who could actually understand me and who got my jokes – wuhu! Jade and I rallied it up to New York… ditched the Shaggin Waggin and got in an NYC taxi aka death trap.

Big Yellow Taxi

The drivers in New York are absolutely nuts… especially the taxi drivers… we were in a taxi and I actually let out a scream it was that bad.

But New York was amazing… and ever better we were more amazed as we got VIP everywhere we went. We spent most of out nights out at the Meat Packing District (sounds dirty I know… but apparently they actually pack meat there) and got hustled to the front and VIP at all the clubs. We were looking for some proper Manhattan girls… like in Sex and the City… but turns out they don’t exist – which although we were disappointed most definitely worked in our favour.

New York

 The price of drinks that we did buy were extortionate… I got two vodkas and sprite and was charged $48 – makes me feel physically sick. So we just had to get hammered before we went out.

 The best night out in New York was when I stole a broom and flew in to the lift with it trying to convince everyone that I was a witch. Good times.

the broom

 Our hotel in New York was gorgeous and right off Time Square but I am pretty sure there was a crack den on the corner. On every corner of every block in NYC there are hot dog vendors… but the queue for this one was massive (and their hot dogs weren’t that great) hence coming to the reasonable conclusion that it was a crack den.

Dani and Jade in NYC

 We did some proper sight seeing in New York… all the touristy things – went to see the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Crystal Building, Ground Zero, etc and we did some serious shopping… where I financially fucked myself – we spent so much money shopping in New York that I had to bring an extra suitcase home with me… it was great!

  There was also the ‘sky-blue man’ in New York. The sky blue man was clearly a white man… the thing that tells you when you can cross the road. But when we were saying… I need to wait for the white man – we were getting funny looks – like we were racists or something – hence the introduction of the sky blue man.

Central Park

 We also went on the Sex and the City Tour in New York and blew some money in the Pleasure Chest – best money we ever spent.

The Pleasure Chest

 Another highlight of New York was going to the free Whitney Houston concert in Central Park… the most so real thing ever.

 Back to Atlanta

Jade and I headed back to Atlanta for the final stint of our summer … which was by far the best summer ever. On the way I was forced to through Jade’s Aaron Carter CD out the window: which she is still not happy about.

Although it was coming to the end of our trip I still hadn’t quite mastered driving on the right hand side of the road… and whilst on the phone wound up driving on the freeway in the wrong direction – seeing the big signs “WRONG WAY”.

I was happy to go back to Atlanta because it meant that we got to spend some more time with Aaron (my best American friend) and we had fun.

Our final mini adventure was a weekend in Tennessee with Bridgette and her family… well it was meant to be with Bridgette and her family – but she ended up away playing football the whole time… so we got to spend the weekend with her family.

This is where I got myself a bracelet buddy – Katie-Mae and decided to show the American boys how to play pool. I totally wiped the floor with them all.

Bracelet Buddies

 Jade and I had such a laugh with Bridgette’s mum and dad. We had a big party for the boys and girls football team – but the Pikeville people are strange. Lol. All the girls grab each others boobs and the boys are just odd – we even had to pull out another round of the Cheeky Girls to lighten the mood. Lol.

 But in coming back from Tennessee we most definitely got a laugh. We dropped off Bridgette’s Gran and she gets out the car… pulls her pants to her ankles and start peeing in the front garden – her explanation being that she didn’t think she would make it up the stairs. Hilarious!

 Happily we had a great few final nights in Atl… we hit the karaoke bar (but I didn’t even get to sing) and had a giggle. Thanks for a great time Aaron… you made my trip!

 Thank You…

 Mum and Dad – For paying for the flights

 Aunt Catherine – Giving us a place to stay in Atlanta

 Bridgett – For being the party finding Queen of the world and keeping us entertained

 Lisa and Dani – For being the best best-friends in the world

 Aaron – For keeping me entertained and showing me a great time: you made my trip (and will always be my American BFF)

 And last but by no means least…

 Jade – Wouldn’t have happened without you gorgeous!

HMS Beagle's world changing voyage shown on a Mongolian stamp

Which of the beautiful postage stamp scans in our Darwin stamp book best shows his voyage? For me, amongst the many beautiful pictures of the HMS Beagle, this dramatic and storm tossed tiny boat (known as a coffin brig to its sailors for its sinking ability in high seas) conveys what life on board must have been like, rounding Cape Horn. Darwin was not a great sailor despite the many clever devices he created for catching and surveying marine life. His Beagle diaries document many days of seasickness in his tiny cabin. Hopefully Sandie Robb, co-author of this stamp book and her RZSS team didn’t expereince such rough seas working on linking the Falkland schools with ones in Scotland (see blogroll weblinks).

 What teaching tips could you take from a dramatic black and white illustration like this?
Looking at the other Beagle stamps scanned and published in our stamp book, which would you choose to use on a front cover of Darwin’s amazing book Voyage of the Beagle? Many stamps are based on illustrations by the expedition’s wildlife and ship artists at the time, so could be used to make  a timeline, illustrated map  or narrative (story book) of the journey.
You could find out more about the HMS Beagle (see the Darwin 200 website) and other ships of the time of sail, many of whose crew and ships served through the age of Trafalgar and wars with Napoleon. How are they different from ships of today? What was life like onboard a sailing or navy ship then compared to the navy ships or wildlife cruise liners of today?
What happened to the HMS Beagle? Some people believe her remains are buried in mud on the Essex Marshes and want to excavate her, introducing the exciting topic of archaeology. There are plans to rebuild the HMS Beagle as a replica and Sarah Darwin, his descendant is retracing his journey on a sailing ship at the moment with an atmospheric tour of her  ship on http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8232395.stm .  We’ll include more on the weblinks with these in future blogs.

Designing stamps as a class activity is another topic we will look at in this blog and also the modern painters and artists that we have worked with during Darwin 200 at Newquay Zoo.

Quest’è la storia di silvan

che v’era fascinato delle acque

così che vi leggea della marina

e vi cresceva a mucchi la paura

sedea e immaginaa dalla banchina

di sol trovarsi in faccia a tal creatura

temea e desideraa tal’avventura

così salpò in barchetta in solitario

in do’ l’amico suo nullo vedeva

e a furia elli scrivea in suo diario

che giunta v’era l’ora d’esser grande

di farsi forza e non trovar più scuse

vibraa pront’a gettarsi in tra le onde

finend’avvelenato d’un branco di meduse.

Brig – Lipari, 2 agosto 1977.

a lillo, quasi uomo

East to West on the Glacier Express

Chris Walters

Introduction

Land-locked Switzerland is not hard on the eye. Although it has the shape of a small piece of fractured glass, this is a part of the world romanticised as pristine, peaceful and imbued with the kind of scenic splendour that sends tourist promoters into an orgy of cliché reciting and trumpet blowing. Surrounded on all sides by countries of seemingly greater notoriety: France, Germany, Austria and Italy, Switzerland is itself not without intrigue. Steadfastly neutral (famously so, since the Second World War), Switzerland has refused membership of the European Union, and yet it is also ‘Bank to the world.’ If that was not enough, these kids also have more guns than cow-bells, and yet not anywhere near the level of gun-related crime of places like North and Central America. There are dichotomies as far as the eye can see, and I am sure they are fundamental in ensuring Switzerland maintains its quintessential ’swissness.’ In global terms, Switzerland might be a modest dollop, but it would take a lifetime to discern what makes it tick.

Fortunately, this is not a geopolitical dissertation, and for those looking for something a little more healing, there are the Alps … arguably the world’s prettiest fence. The Alps keep the Germans in the north and the Italians in the south, and it is no sweeping statement to claim that they walk away with a fair share of the credit for Switzerland’s reputation for geological eye candy.

Formed by a series of east-to-west mountain ranges that actually run from Slovenia all the way into France, this unbroken train of towering peaks, massifs and valleys ensure that any journey between northern and southern Switzerland (and Germany and Italy, for that matter) will prove a certain crowd pleaser. Although a number of international routes thread the mountains on a north–south axis, there exists only one rail journey that runs east to west through the Swiss Alps. Also known as the world’s “slowest express train” (trademark registered), the Glacier Express is a trek that links the famous alpine resorts of St Moritz (in the canton of Grisons) and Zermatt (in Wallis), at the foot of the iconic Matterhorn. Famously, it spends far more time ascending and descending steep mountain grades, bridging deep gorges and burrowing into spiralling hillside tunnels, than actually attempting any of its journey with anything approaching true speed. It is an express only because it completes the journey in one hop with few stops, and if there ever was a train to support the argument that the journey is more important than the destination, the Glacier Express is it.

Running the rail

Switzerland—even with a sizeable percentage of its landscape busted and broken up by craggy mountain ranges—possesses more railway lines per square-kilometre than any other nation on earth. That being the case, it will not surprise readers to learn that the Glacier Express is far from the only scenic rail journey in Switzerland. But—and this is the important bit if you don’t have time to do a lot of them—it is perhaps the longest, most varied, and potentially the most famous. It will deliver serious bang for a serious buck.

The narrow-gauge railway network of Grisons is operated by the celebrated Rhaetian Railway (or Rhätische Bahn), and composed of a whole series of scenic lines stretching east into the Engadine Valley region, and south across the renowned Bernina Pass into northern Italy, via the highest ‘through’ rail route in Europe. In other words, these people know how to sell pretty train trips, and the Glacier Express is their big name ticket.

Setting forth

            ”Umm…,” I finally began with due wit, “I need to pay for the reservation AND the ticket.”

            ”Your Eurail Pass, covers the ticket price.”

            “Are you sure?”

            I was pretty sure I’d checked this.

            “Yes, the pass will cover your journey.”

            “All the way through to Brig?”

            “Yes.”

            (pause)

            “Okay. Thanks.”

The smugness I felt for ‘cheating’ this rather sizeable financial spank was quashed 24 hours later when the train conductor shook his head sadly and confirmed that I had indeed been misinformed. The problem was that I was already on the train, in First Class, and about ten minutes into the journey when this fear was confirmed. Fortunately me and my credit card were able to make payment for the ticket on the spot and all was well. It turned out that my Eurail Pass was fine on the section of the journey managed by the Rhaetian Railway (as far as Andermatt), but for the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn stretch beyond Andermatt to Brig, I could only claim a 25 per cent discount.

Meanwhile, the train was rolling northwards, away from Filisur. Slowly descending the pass down through Thusis en route to Chur. Not only is the Albula a world-renowned train ride in its own right—even without the star-attraction of the Glacier Express—it is now also a UNESCO World Heritage area. From its origins alongside No.1 platform at St Moritz at 9.04am the Glacier Express trundles north and eventually dives into the 5.8-kilometre Albula Tunnel. The alpine expanse it emerges into is one of the most spectacular railway routes on the planet. Beyond Preda, the train threads its way down the steep valley through spirals, snowsheds and tunnels, and across vintage stone-arch viaducts and around sharp, dizzying curves. Through the village of Bergün (destination of a fantastic winter toboggan run down from Preda) the line adheres to topography not far removed from what may have been imagined by a particularly inspired model railroader with more money than sense and a worryingly impressive collection of felt.

Hugging mountainsides like a dear friend, the train peddles a wandering descent through pine forests and past isolated chalets before calling at Filisur at around 10.00am … I say ‘around’, for while the Swiss reputation for timekeeping is well-earned, a minute or two either side of the ‘advertised’ is the reality of it. This little village forms a junction to the railway line from Davos and is also home to the world-famous Landwasser viaduct, just north of town. Potentially the most recognisable bridge in Switzerland (if such a thing can be claimed with a straight face), the Landwasser is a tall, arched, stone-brick construction that carries the train out of a curved tunnel buried within a sheer cliff, across a deep, narrow gorge and over to a mountainside, along which the railway clings, stretching its sinuous descent into a true examination of the sanity of engineers. It might seem odd to describe an old bridge as a work of art, but when you see it, you’ll understand.

Through Tifencastle and Thusis we roll, before meeting the east–west line at Rheinenau-Tamins. As the name suggests, this junction station rests on the bank of the Rhein, and east of here, the Glacier Express fairly races along the river flat into the city of Chur. The capital of Grisons, Chur is the oldest city in Switzerland, and birthplace of celebrated artist H R Giger (whose works probably sent more nightmare-plagued sleepwalkers into therapy than any other designer of modern times … have you SEEN ‘Alien’??). Chur is also home to a major railway terminal that serves both the standard-gauge Swiss Federal Railways (with a direct link to Zurich) and the Rhaetian Railway narrow-gauge lines, including those heading on to Landquat and Arosa. Here the Glacier Express does an about face, departing again at 11.15am to retrace its steps back to Rheinenau-Tamins. From here, we shun the Albula Line and set out along the Rhein Gorge and points west.

Tourist brochures describe the Rhein Gorge as Switzerland’s answer to the Grand Canyon, however if you’re looking for a more realistic comparison, it is much more akin to Utah’s Zion National Park. The jagged, ice-encrusted cliff faces, pine forests and the winding river route ensure that we remain sealed off from the ‘real’ world, until briefly rejoining civilization at townships such as Ilanz and Trun. And yet, the train is now climbing again, heading for the Rhein headwaters, and by the time we slow to a stop within the terminal hall at Disentis, we are once again in an alpine landscape.

Here we bade farewell to the Rhaetian Railway and a cog-wheel locomotive of the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn—owners and operators of the route west from Disentis, through to Brig and Zermatt—takes its place at the head of our train. Unlike the Rhaetian Railway, the steepness of many sections of the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn route requires a third rack-rail in order to ensure the train can be controlled on the sheer grades. This is not a landscape in which I wish to dwell terribly long on the notion of a runaway train!

By now lunch has been served on the train, and for passengers in First Class, this takes the form of opulent meals served directly to their seats. Personally, I had to restrain myself from devouring the medium-rare steak that I had been blessed with, all in the name of savouring the moment. Too the local ‘Wallis’ white was greeting the pallet like a leg finding its missing foot, particularly after the second ‘mini’ bottle. Here was the ultimate guilty pleasure, sumptuous food and drink brought to my seat, while the world outside seemed to unfold just for me. Now this—as much as it was burning away a gapping chasm in my credit card statement—was a holiday!

Second Class patrons were disembarking to stretch their legs and capture some happy snaps of the train and Disentis Station, while those of us in First Class leant heavily against the window, clutching our full bellies and moaning quietly while wondering if the chocolate mousse or the cheese cake would be an ideal desert choice.

The tall, panorama-style windows stretch right up and curve over into the roof of the stylish, distinctly modern carriages of the Glacier Express, and there are few details of the landscape not open to us. Here and there, as the train continued to ascend towards the summit of the Oberalppass (2033 metres above sea level), tourists and skiers can be found line-side, pausing to watch as our blood-red express cut through this white and blue winter wonderland.

The carriages on the Glacier Express were commissioned during 2006, and come with all the latest ‘mod cons’: plush seating, panorama windows, climate control, wood-panelled fold-away tables and multi-channelled audio. With the aid of headphones, we can tune into music or an audio-tourist guide detailing the sights and history of the journey as it unfolds. This ‘guide’ seemed to spend an inordinate amount of the journey pausing for long, unplanned breaks, as if to choose its words carefully, although as we pulled into the ski-resort of Sedrun, it did inform us of the new Gotthard base rail tunnel, being built through the mountain around 800 metres beneath us. It was almost impossible to imagine such an environment as our express hugged the contours of steep ski-fields and deep gorges, ever on the climb.

Oberalppass found us stopping to cross the eastbound Glacier Express from Zermatt, however a full stomach and my third bottle of chardonnay ensured I was content to observe the ritual from my seat. The landscape here was one of near-infinite white, dotted only by coal-black rocks and a few buildings almost completely enveloped in deep snow-drifts. Even the lake, along which we were now skirting, was entirely iced over and completely still. Beyond Oberalppass, we entered the gloom of a long snow-shed (a reminder that avalanches have ruined a few lunches in this part of the world), while the rack rail retarded our descent to a snail’s pace. But then, who on earth wouldn’t want this journey to linger in the senses.

We were now in the canton of Uri (second of the three cantons through which the Glacier Express passes) descending towards the village of Andermatt and the top of the original Gotthard Pass. I’d visited Andermatt a week earlier, and the fierce snow-storm-conditions of that occasion could not contrast any more dramatically with the pristine blue skies of today. The view, as we gingerly climbed down the mountainside was nothing short of astonishing. The carpet of white left the town appearing ‘toy-like’ and surreal. Despite being only around seven kilometres from Oberalppass—as the ‘crow flies’—the descent into Andermatt took us almost half-an-hour as the train spiralled down the exposed flank of the mountain. That this route was considered a good place to lay down a set of rails seemed a distantly demented notion, but I don’t for a moment imagine many of us onboard are ungrateful for the effort.

Andermatt was barely discernable beneath ice and snowdrifts, as we slowed into the station at 12.49pm. Alongside, a shuttle train connecting with the Swiss Federal main line down the pass at Göschenen was awaiting departure. That we were only 15 minutes from one of Switzerland’s busiest international rail and road routes seems very difficult to appreciate.

The valley east of Andermatt found the Glacier Express travelling at speeds more appropriate to its name as Realp was neared. Here we plunged into the route’s second major ‘base’ tunnel: the 15.4-kilometre Furka bore. This tunnel was completed as recently as 1982, and replaced a vulnerable ‘open’ pass route over the Furka, that was so at the mercy of snow drifts and avalanches that it was closed off during the winter months completely. These original rails remained in situ, however, and now form a ’summer’ only tourist railroad operated by vintage steam trains.

The tunnel is also used by dedicated car-shuttle trains intended to shift road drivers between Realp and Oberwald, and as the Glacier Express pulled into the latter, we briefly exchanged glances with one of these special trains loading up in an adjacent siding. Oberwald also found us now in the canton of Wallis, and from Münster down hill through Fiesch the railway took us through a continuous string of quaint chalet villages, each dominated by the charming cliché of a towering Swiss chapel. Gradually the snowfields began to lose ground to verdant green hills populated by bells, cows and cows with bells. The valley we were now in was forged by the Rhône and gradually we were drawing closer and closer to the cascading rapids of this glacial river, following its track east down through Morel.

The gorge was now crowding us on either side, and the train was now in the shadow of a wintry afternoon. The deeper we descended the more I felt like sunlight was naught but a rumor to these villages.

Snow cover was spasmodic at best as we hit the outer edge of Brig, and we rattled across the Rhône, bypassing the old rail route through Naters. Emerging from behind the large rail yard, side streets and the ridge-line above the famous Simplon tunnel, the Glacier Express slowed to a crawl as it eased into the forecourt of Brig’s expansive rail terminal at 3.23pm.

Here I disembarked, but for the express, the journey was not yet over. Beyond Brig lies a fast, flat race along the river plain to Visp, and the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn narrow-gauge rails shadow the Swiss Federal standard-gauge main line all the way. Despite the humble nature of this section, it was not until this last missing link of track was completed between Brig and Visp in 1930, that the Glacier Express was actually born.

At Visp, the train turns south, entering the Matter Valley. Almost at once the train is ascending again … the first climb the Glacier Express has faced since departing Oberalppass over three hours earlier. Stalden finds the lineside villages shrinking away once more as the train ascends towards the evocatively named St Niklaus. Randa, meanwhile, displays evidence of landslides and avalanche damage that forced a deviation of the railway in 1991, while Tasch is the second last stop for the train, but literally the end of the road for motorists, for Zermatt itself is ‘car free.’ On approach to their final destination, the passengers get their first view of the pyramid-like peak of the Matterhorn looming out of the scenery on the right hand side of the train. After hundreds of kilometres of Alpine peaks, also so uniformly varied, the savage ruggedness and sharp blade of the Matterhorn comes as a shock to the sense. Before long, the Glacier Express is swallowed by the gloom of Zermatt’s bunker-like railway terminal at 4.52pm, and the journey is over.

Down the line

True, if you have undertaken the entire journey, almost eight hours have elapsed, but little of that time could be described as having been endured anything but blissfully. This particular journey was undertaken on Christmas Eve 2008, well into the winter season. On this day the author traveled between Filisur and Brig, however the St Moritz–Filisur and Brig–Zermatt sections were experienced on separate occasions prior to this trip. Each of the rail routes traversed by the Glacier Express are served by regular passenger train services, usually at hourly intervals between the general hours of 7am and 9pm. Some of these trains often have Glacier Express-type panorama carriages on which seats can be reserved, however the expresses themselves are the only train services that run the entire route.

As an example, the alternative option for the author on that Christmas Eve—over the same Filisur to Brig route—would have involved using regular train services requiring a changing of trains at Rheinenau-Tamins, Disentis and Andermatt. While this can actually enhance the adventure of the trip, save you a fair bit of cash, and provide an opportunity to ’stretch one’s legs,’ if you’re towing a significant amount of luggage—and looking at connecting to the first available train at each change-over—then the ritual can get very tiresome, very quickly.

The other alternative worth considering is to break the journey up over several days. Brig, Andermatt and Disentis are all reasonably large villages, each possessing a number of attractions and a host of tourist facilities, while Chur itself is one of Switzerland’s most important centres, and a significant tourist draw in its own right. Breaking the journey for a night or two at any of these locations would not be trial by any means, and for those of you a little nervous about tying your tongue around German, Italian, French of even the Romansh dialect found in many parts of south-eastern Switzerland, relax—you don’t have to try too hard to find locals happy to converse with you in English.

Brig in particular tends to be overlooked as a major tourist destination, despite the fact that it can be pretty handy as a base to explore many parts of the country. Day trips to places like Basel, Bern, Lucerne and Zurich can made quite easily from here, while the Italian border is only 20 minutes south of town through the Simplon tunnel. Of particular significance, Milan is only two-to-three hours away by train.

When, where and how

So when is the best time to go? Well, this is not a part of the world prone to having ‘bad hair days,’ nor is any one season a particular let down. It is this author’s opinion that Summer in Switzerland—and indeed throughout much of Western Europe—can be a bit of a tourist crush. However, the shoulder season of Autumn is somewhat underestimated, but potentially spectacular thanks to the Fall colours on show, during October particularly. Spring brings out the wild flowers of course, but the snowy splendor of Winter is hard to pass up. Yes, Swiss winters are cold, especially at the higher altitudes, but from the train, you’ll never notice.

The Glacier Express runs twice a day in both directions during Winter and four times a day during the Summer season, although not all trains—in both cases—run the entire St Moritz–Zermatt route (some services start/end at Chur or Davos in the east and Visp in the west). International flights to Zurich allow a fairly easy connection by train south to Chur to pick up the Glacier Express, while international rail services into Switzerland from both Italy and France allow a direct connection with the train at Brig. For more information on connections check out:

http://www.sbb.ch/en/

http://www.raileurope.com.au/

The Swiss Pass grants unlimited travel over the entire Swiss Federal Railway network for set periods, and similarly on both the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn and Rhaetian Railway networks (which co-manage the Glacier Express). Check out the Swiss Travel System website for further details:

http://www.swisstravelsystem.ch/en/

Meanwhile, the Eurail Pass offers similar entitlements, although in the case of the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn, only a 25 per cent discount is offered for travel on their system stretching from Andermatt (and Göschenen) through Brig to Zermatt. For more information, check out:

http://www.eurail.com/

However, in the case of both Passes an extra supplement applies to the Glacier Express itself (as well as certain other ‘big name’ trains and rail journeys in Switzerland), and reservations for this train are compulsory.

As mentioned, the Glacier Express is far from the only train that operates on the St Moritz–Chur–Brig–Zermatt route, and so a number of travel options are available. Then there is the quandary of choosing between First and Second Class, on any of the trains along this route. For those on a budget, traveling Second Class on the Glacier Express (or via regular train services) is certainly going to be easier on your wallet. Yes, it is true that First Class affords the traveler a bit more room to stretch out, however Second Class on these trains hardly equates to cattle-truck conditions, and so in effect the only real comfort advantage of First Class is that it is often not as crowded (except during peak seasons). As a guide, the current pricing—without taking into account any travel pass reductions—for the complete journey between St Moritz and Zermatt is 221.00 Swiss francs for First Class travel, and 133.00 francs in Second Class. However, two surcharges—that do not apply to regular rail services along the same route—are payable to travel on the Glacier Express. The first of these is the Summer and Winter surcharges, which cover the premium onboard services unique to these the expresses. For the Summer season trains, this equates to the full 71 francs that also covers a three-course meal, and 30 francs for those not partaking of the lunch. The equivalent charges for the Winter season are 54 and 13 francs respectively.

The second surcharge exists in the form of a booking fee, and as mentioned above, reservations on the Glacier Express are compulsory. The actually cost of this can depend on the method of booking and through which outlet/agency you deal, but usually equates to around 20 francs per passenger. For those readers now developing nervous tics in the face of some of these costs, it is worth mentioning that you can bring your own lunch and snacks on board the train, or alternatively purchase something a little more affordable from the onboard Railbar/Panorama bar. These facilities also stock an interesting, if expensive assortment of souvenirs, and I don’t mind admitting that I handed over a wad of cash for a model Glacier Express carriage, which I now cherish.

Side trips

The journey in itself is a spectacular experience, but if you hunger for more, the Glacier Express can be considered a ‘gateway’ to other journeys, notably the Bernina Express from Chur/St Moritz to Tirano on near the Italian border, and the Gornergrat Bahn, a cog-wheel railway that takes skiers, hikers and tourists up into the mountains above Zermatt (and overlooks the Matterhorn). Both are a marvel in their own right, and if need be, can be enjoyed as day trips from St Moritz and Zermatt respectively. For more information try:

The Bernina Express:  http://www.rhb.ch/index.php?id=33?&L=4

Gornergrat Bahn:  http://www.gornergrat.ch/home/

Conclusion

The Glacier Express usually runs all-year round, however during the 2009/2010 Winter season, it will not run at all between 19 October 2009 and 12 December 2009. For more information relating to timetables, ticket prices and on-train services, check out the following websites:

http://www.glacierexpress.ch/theglacierexpress.php

(official Glacier Express site)

http://www.seat61.com/GlacierExpress.htm

http://europeforvisitors.com/switzaustria/articles/glacier_express.htm

I’ve travelled on trains across three continents, and numerous countries, through all manner of terrain and to a variety of destinations. I can say, without hesitation, that the Glacier Express route is certainly one of the most healing, and easily one of the most spectacular and compelling.

- End -

If I can’t call you Ma’am is it OK if I call you Evil Witch Queen?

Wicked Witch of the West?

Wacky Bitch then?

I think you will agree, Dragon Lady,  Ma’am is much, much better than the alternative.  I am sorry for you if your  close personal friends only called you ma’am as a term of derision.  Don’t be so insecure.

Say, what kind of friends  do you have any way?

AL Bundy

No Ma’am

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• ***************************

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
How to Find a Job

Alternative Job Hunt

Job Search
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• ***************************************************************

Flower of Life

• ***************************************************************

pink moon

Moon Signs

• ************************************************************

Runes and Moons

Zazzle!

Love

NoBullArt

Angelic Verses

DeviantArt

Rumors of Angels

LuLu

Valentines

CafePress

Luck

Squidoo

Digital Art

Angel Sightings

Cyber Rainbows

How to Buy a Rainbow

Selling Rainbows

• ************************************************************

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How to Find a Job

Alternative Job Hunt

Job Search

Job Search for the Older Worker

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<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Flower of LIfe

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I’m hanging out in World History… Just chilling.

Today, I’m actually going out shopping~ we’re gonna buy my prom dress today! I have one on hold at Macy’s that Cindy helped me pick… It’s short but it’s really, really cute! Cream & violet~ I love it. <3 But, just to be on the safe side, I’m gonna look at some other, longer dresses in different colors…

Somtimes, I wish I had gone to prom last year… But, I’m going this year =) and I have the best date~

So… after the AP test, we went to the mall-Chris, Saagar, Cindy and me. And after chilling there, Chris & I went to his house, where we watched some random tv. Meerkat Manor & G4 haha~

The weather yesterday was so weird though… Anyway today looks good
. I’m not worried… =)

I can’t wait to be out of here though!!

This has… been… a busy break…  Which is weird.  Usually I sleep away spring break…  Anyway, I’ve… kept pretty busy! XD

Okay.  So.

Friday

I went for a walk (^o^)v  And… I ended up walking so far that… I found the end of the boardwalk…?  Apparently, there’s more after the point where I stopped, but…  it was blocked off, because it had… become… decrepit =(  There also apparently a Twilight Zone section in AC… It’s like… suburbia.  In Uptown.  Weird, huh?  And a bayfront Aquarium.  It was super freaky…  Eventually I got home |D

Saturday and Sunday

Actually, not much happened Saturday~ ^o^ ♪  It was a relaxing day.  Which was good; my feet hurt a little from the day before and I was exhausted.  But Sunday was Easter!! Yay, Easter~~!  I got plenty of chocolate and jellybeans in my basket…  And we had ham for dinner, and all was right in the world.

Monday and Tuesday

Another walk around day…  Although I was really scoping out jobs in the back of my mind.  Johnny Rockets is still hiring, I think…

And Tuesday?  Well, Tuesday… My mom took me, my sister, and my sister’s friend to the Philadelphia Art Museum to see Cezanne…

Maybe it’s just me…  But I wasn’t really “feeling” Cezanne, or any of the artists he inspired… except maybe a few pieces by Mondrian.  To be frank, I just wasn’t impressed for most of the exhibit.  Rather apathetic.  The pieces I felt anything towards… Mainly, I felt anger.  For no real reason, I felt legitimate rage at several pieces of art that have done nothing in particular to me, personally.  But whatever.  It was a trip to the Art Museum.  |D  Speaking of which, they totally changed it around from last time.  But I was able to find Prometheus this time!  That was good… And my mom and I argued whether all art is really a penis…  I still contend that it is.

Anyway, afterwards, we went out to eat…  At one of my favorite places ever ^_^

I really love eating at Johnny Rockets… ♥  I ate a lot for me, too–fries, onion rings, 2 chicken wings that burned my mouth, 3 out of 6 chicken tenders… And I drank all of my milkshake.  Seriously, for me, that’s like… eating a 5 course meal.  I eat like a bird =(

Anyway…  It made me seriously contemplate getting a job at Johnny Rockets…  I think I will apply at the one in AC.

Then we went home.  Yay home!  I slept the rest of the day…

Wednesday – Friday

Okeydokey, Wednesday was a really rainy day.  So I just kinda stayed inside all day and played Pokemon ♥

Thursday, though… I was determined to get out again, since it was sooo sunny!  So, I did…  I ended up taking a bus~  I aimed to get to the terminal at 1:15… But, unfortunately, I got there at 1:31.  Too late to get my intended bus…  So I wandered around the walk a little bit.

Cavo Crepe Cafe, and H&M are the big ones here

I ended up sitting on a wall and then going over to McDonalds |D  Yeah, I’m lame…  BUT, luckily, I caught the 2:30 bus to… Brig ^o^  I guess where I was going is pretty clear, so… Yeah.  I went to go hang out with Chris.  We worked on some college-y-type-stuff for a little bit and then watched some movies, and just hung out ♥  It was fun, though~

Unfortunately, I woke up yesterday with a foot in major pain.  I must have hurt a muscle in my foot or something…  =(  How depressing, right??  Right.  So, I had to stay in yesterday…  I just played Pokemon again all day.  Laaame, yes, but fulfilling, I suppose.  I caught myself a Giratina…  Yay Giratina?  Yay.

Today

I’ve got some plans to hang with Jess today ♥  And maybe later, Chris too ♥♥♥  And tomorrow?  Maybe I’ll call up Edwin and we can hang out!!  But I have some minor English homework… Oh well.

Also… before I forget…

NEW PHONE NEW PHONE NEW PHONE

And isn’t it AWESOME?!  It’s a Propel =D  Chris was very, very jealous.  The new phone definitely wins over the old pay-as-you-go Verizon.  I don’t even mind having my old number.

Anyway…  Jess & I are gonna go out soon, so… “Dewa mata” is best in this situation ♥

So.  It’s been…  a long week.

Back to the beginning, then.

Sunday was lame, no one cares about Sundays.  But Monday was cool.  I didn’t actually have play practice, so I ended up going over Chris’ house haha.  Somedays, he actually amazes me with his level of awesomeness…  We watched Wolverine and Friends, no lie.  Gambit was in that episode… So, uh, after proclaiming Gambit to be “hot,” I had a deck of cards thrown/dealt at me.  That… would be my boyfriend ;D  I ended up leaving around 7:30-ish.  Good Monday.

Tuesday was school -> practice -> ballet.  I got character shoes!  In ballet, I mean, because our number for the recital is Bolero, and, well it’s hard to do all those arabesques one after the other…  Also, character shoes are just cool.

Wednesday was lame.  Thursday was yesterday.  Play practice was quiet…  Well, not really.  I am still receiving my props for beings awesome…  I have AccompanEase on my computer, still.  I need to figure out how to get the midi from the AccompanEase to a CD…  And, of course, there’s a lot of other stuff that happens on a day-to-day basis, I’m just kinda passing it over due to its importance level.

Today was Friday…  Jess and I want to go out tonight.  I’m already ready to go (lol).  I kinda don’t wanna be home tonight ♥

Oh, I got my financial aid package from Drexel…  $27,500…  Total unmet is $29,691, so… we’ll figure that out.  If I go to Drexel.  Seton Hall is a possibility… ♥

by Brian

8oz. Burger Bar – West Hollywood (near Melrose and Fairfax)

So… I’ve been trying to eat healthy lately, but that all went out the window Friday night.  I went out to this little restaurant that was formerly known as Table 8.  The head chef decided to turn the concept of a fine dining restaurant into a boutique burger bar (whatever that means).  Anyway, for those of you who know me, I love me some burgers.  And since I’ve tried going vegan, I’ve consistantly shown my willingness to break down and eat the bad stuff at least once a week.  (See my first post here)

The way I was manipulated this time was through the power of  Where Magazine which was magically sitting on my desk, folded to the page which contained a write-up on 8oz.  Because I really have no hope of being 100% vegan, I have decided that for the good of the blog that I will allow myself to cheat only if I write a post about it.  That means, no midnight Jack-in-the-Box runs, or casual flings with the Vons cake section.  I won’t bore you with all the details of all the healthy stuff I eat, because who wants to read that?

So I strolled into 8oz at about 11:30pm, knowing that the kitchen was closing at midnight.  The place was not packed, but there were a fair amount of people eating and having fun at the bar.  I honestly expected it to be more of a scene and was stoked to see that it was pretty chill.  Not exactly what you’d expect on Melrose on a Friday night.

The decor of the place was pretty simple, we sat ourselves along the wall in the front of the restaurant.  Most of the people had collected in the bigger booths at the back.  There was also this sad wooden table that seated about 6, but was empty at the time.  It looked like something on of the waitstaff saw at a yardsale and decided that he would be the one to give it a good home.  Regardless, it kinda worked because the rest of the place looked like a collection of elements from the five or six restaurants that this location has been over the past few years.  Seeing it all together was like looking at the rings inside a tree stump.

So analyzing the decor really isn’t my thing, let’s talk about the food.  After checking out the menu, I decided to go for the Suds and Slider Sampler (mainly because I can’t say no to alliteration) and an order of the fries.

Before we jump into the review, I would like to share some scientific data I found on burgers:

Bring on the Panda!

My sliders were made of 3 different meats: boar, beef and lamb.  I had never had a burger of anything other than beef, but I was definitely a fan of the wild boar.  It was seasoned well and had a texture similar to a pulled pork sandwich.  It was chunky, but in a good way.  I thought the beef burger was pretty average, and given another chance I would pass on the lamb.  I guess I’m just not that into lamb.  It had an aftertaste that I wasn’t a fan of and the seasoning, to me, was off.  Still, if the only way I can get the boar is to get the slider sampler (which currently is the case), then I guess I’ll deal with the lamb.

Each of the sliders was paired with a local beer that I had never heard of.  The boar was paired with an IPA that was really on the hoppy side, which I prefer.  The lamb came with a porter which drank more like a stout (think guinness with more of a bite) and had a chocolatey finish.  And the beef slider came with a “lager” which was very complex and darker than your average lager.  All in all, I really enjoyed the beer, and the 5oz sampler sizes were more than enough to compliment the sliders.   I actually caught a little buzz off the beers too, which isn’t all that surprising considering I rarely drink these days.

I also tried the regular burger and was a little disappointed.  I think that what sets this place apart is the little things like heirloom tomato ketchup and some of the more exotic sides, which are optional add ons that I didn’t get.  Still, they did seem a little cheap with the house-cured bacon I ordered, which I could barely see, let alone taste.  The fries were knockoffs of Islands in look and taste, except they were way salty.  Maybe it’s to get you to drink more?

I grabbed a couple of their cupcakes to go (chocolate and carrot) and said goodbye to 8oz.  I honestly don’t know if I’ll ever get a chance to try the heirloom tomato ketchup, fried mozzarella or the charred escarole (all toppings they offer).  If I do go back, I’m definitely going exotic with my burger.  For something standard, stick to In-N-Out.

P.S. – The cupcakes were pretty freakin’ good.  Save room.

Likes

• Toppings you can’t get anywhere else
• Great microbrews
• Kitchen open ’til midnight

Dislikes

• Cheap with the bacon (Better restaurants have been firebombed for less.)

Okay, first off, I had 92 page views today??

Really??
Why?

Well, anyway…  Today was surprising!  Exciting!!  Fun!!!  I totally forgot I even went to school today, that’s how amazing today was xD

After school, I went over to Chris’ house, where we watched TV and hung out, and that was… really, really fun~!  xD  It’s always fun spending time with my boyfriend, though ♥

Anyway, what was going on (I passed out at one point.  That bed is just far too comfy) was that there were plans to go to some Asian Festival Party thingy…  These plans eventually came to fruition, because me, Chris, Saagar and Cindy went to an Asian Festival and got delicious Chinese food.  Through Cindy’s Azn Connections, we got smuggled in.  And then I saw ALL these people I know who were just chilling and eating food |D  And all these people piled food on my plate and I had to eat it all…  (I ate most of it!!)

And then we went ice skating!!  I haven’t been ice skating in like 6 years, so it was pretty amazing.  I was surprised that I could still balance after all that time…

…More surprising was finding out how good Chris was at skating.  Like… out of the four of us, he was by far the strongest skater.  I was kind of amazed. (and it was really kind of cute ♥)

So, we skated around and around and around and around until Cindy and I were like “@_@ WE CAN’T DO THIS ANYMORE GUYS” and the guys went around another time and then joined us in taking the skates off.  So we went home~

So… uh, now I’m here.  And I’m really, really tired @___@  Also, I kinda made off with Chris’ hoodie…  So, uh, it’s gonna be mine for the weekend at least.  Pwhee~ ♥

I can’t wait to drive.  Because when I can drive, I’ll drive my ass over to Brigantine.  All the fucking time.

Except when I need to sleep.  Like today.  Because, to be honest, I passed out on the couch.  I was talking about counting something with Chris, and the next thing I know, I’m asleep on my couch and my cellphone is next to me and I’m all disoriented.

I need popcorn.  I wanna finish watching Dreamgirls because I really love that movie XD

Kann die Schweiz ein Walliser Supermodel verkraften?

Haha, that was fast, ne?

So.  We left off on June 1, 2008, correct?

Yes.  June.  June was a thousand times more interesting than May could’ve ever been.  You would’ve thought I was depressed and dreary, right?  Well… Things… got interesting for me very quickly.

I’m doing some very basic editting of the story of 2008, so, I’m sorry for that.

Anyway, June.  June, June, June.  The first day of June was incredibly bizarre–inbetween my dance recital, random texts from random people, and Friendly’s, I should’ve known that June would be a strange month.  But I was too busy in my emo corner to care at the time.

That is, until I started hanging out with two very interesting guys, who go nameless for the time being, but if they were to read, they’d know who they are.  According to my LJ, I went to the beach for the first time in… a while (I worked all the summer before)!  I know for a fact that I was texting while I was at the beach, and that there were interesting things going on all around me during this time.  I was giving advice sometimes, and trying to make it through my days, slowly, but surely.

Somehow, I did.  I definitely made it through.  And you know what else I did?  I flourished.  I had friends, and happiness.  Brief, fleeting, silver linings.  Because, naturally, with happiness, drama follows.  There was huge drama.  When I think about it now, it was silly, but at the time, it was spectacularly huge.

One of my fondest memories, I can’t share here.  But it makes me giggle every time.

Another good thing in June was June 18–the R.E.M. concert.  Despite the smell of marijuana in the air, it was a delectable cocnert.  Modest Mouse even opened!  It was great.  My phone died during that concert, though, a recurring theme in my life.

There was also something really great about June that I can only kinda suggest, and not talk about fully.  I spent a lot of time walking.  By a lot, I mean a lot.  With Laur, with Jess, with… the two interesting guys.

It was…  well, I kept being tiny, I guess, so whatever.  I enjoyed it a lot, though, especially the days I ended up on the Boardwalk.  There’s something really nice about those memories.  Ichi-ni-san, aside.

*sigh*  Nostalgia isn’t fair.  There was always miniture drama, you know?  But it still was precious to me.  It still is.  Every memory, the ones I recorded in diaries, or the ones that just stick out in my memory.  For instance, for anyone who knows what this day could be, the day after Camp Rock came out.  That day is always going to be in my memory, whether it’s supposed to be or not.  I think I twirled around too much that day.

Moving on, though, to July.  July was fucking AWESOME.  First of all, I went to Philadelphia for the last days of June and the first days of July (June 30 – July 3).  We stayed at the Sheraton, I went to Chinatown and the Franklin Institute and all these other amazing places and it was GREAT!  Every second I spent there is etched vividly into my cranium.

I texted a LOT ;D  I had lots of people to text, you know.  On the 3rd, I also went to the Camden Aquarium.  I saw PENGUINS.  PENGUINS, I tell you,  PENGUINS!  I got people I cared about souveneirs…  Jess got this necklace, and Laur got a narwhal… My two guys got rock candy, but…

Ah, here’s where my story gets interrupted, and names can be used again.  July 4th rolled around.  I had plans to see fireworks with Jess and Laur… and… somehow, I ended up inviting Chris.  As friends, kinda… sorta.  I don’t remember my intentions anymore.  I was confused at that time.  Shit was going on.  But I can’t regret it.  Not at all, not ever.

You can imagine what happens next, but for the unimaginative, due to a massive cuddlepile on a blanket on the beach during fireworks and the fact that a fifth party was absent from the gathering (Berlin was supposed to be there!  We wanted him there too!!  But he had family time, so it was just the four of us),  I received an impromptu kiss that I never saw coming (perception aside) and, shortly thereafter, a new boyfriend (according to my LJ, posted a little after midnight on July 5: 

…

Best night ever, yes? I got a new boyfriend~~~

[lyrics to a Japanese song that is very happy-go-lucky]

So yeah)

However, this was… suddenly… not… the best thing for my little group of friends.  Well, it was, because I was happy again, but there were… circumstances… that… yeah.  It’s very confusing.  Not worth getting into here.  But, overall, although some things were lost and broken, I realized I had to get on with my own life, pioneering a new path for myself… Since clearly, I diverged from the path everyone expected me to travel upon.

Like Robert Frost, I believe it’s made all the difference

I also turned 17 in July, on the 18th.  I went to the mall with… with the July 4th crew =)  We shopped around, we talked a lot, it was fu~n.  Not the tea party I really wanted, but I survived!  As always! ♥♥

I also got my Driver’s Permit in July.  Yay!

Mooooving on to August.  August was quiet, kinda.  I worked a lot, and I spent time with Chris.  I also mourned the departure of Curtis from Mgay.  But, in the end, he still gave me my KAT-TUN CD.  I am forever in his debt.

(Just don’t tell him hahaha)

I also saw The Jonas Brothers in concert… Yeah.  That was cool =P

The next month is… September.  A new school year began.  It was messy, for a school year, you know?  I had new, tough classes.  Everyone told me senior year was a breeze.  They LIED to me.  I wasn’t even taking Calculus and it was still depressing.  Ugh.

But… There was a silver lining, as always.  And it’s name was Drama Club.  We did Our Town, by Thorthon Wilder.  I was cast as Mrs. Gibbs… a challenge, since I’m not used to playing anyone older than approximately 25.  Mrs. Gibbs was oooold.  She had two kids!  Ew.  But… I did it anyway (haha).

Then October thundered in.  October was definitely strange, when I think about it, especially since I define October as having bad scientific puns and tangerines.  But at this point, most memories are already on the blog, right?  Haha.  I reported being on a “Mikan” kick.  Probably most important for me was getting my pointe shoes (weren’t there like 12 entries dedicated just to ballet?)…  Ballet is actually a huge part of my being.  

There was a minor issue with a scary incident.  But freaky shit always happens around me.  Woo Woo Squad, fo sho.

However, the end of the month was, by default, amazing!  Why?  Because I went to FLORIDA!

Because I went to Florida.  Yup.  That made my life 1000x better than it ever could’ve been.  First, we went to St. Augustine, and visited with my cousin, George.  He’s apparently the first “Mr. Man” (which is what we call Pumpkin/Aztec, our cat).  My mom’s… weird, I guess.  After St. Augustine and the creepy ghost tour and the Alligator Farm, we went to DISNEYWORLD.  Yeah!!

Disneyworld was the best 4 days of my existence.  I went on roller coasters, I did crazy stuff, I ate food galore, I WENT TO EPCOT, I had the most amazing time of my life IN EPCOT, and it was great.  It was just… great.

So… from there, we reach November.  November definitely drained me, overall.  Obama won the election, as we all know.  I discovered kao moji.  I fell asleep with my boyfriend (this actually happens a lot).  I wrote something like 15000 words for NaNoWriMo.  There was Homecoming, where I had a blast.

Blonde hair is... blonde

I dyed my hair blonde.

This was definitely mentioned around time for Homecoming, ’cause it was done the same day.  My homecoming dress was purple.  I really liked it.  And my hair looked good.  I decided to become a better person, although that was totally unrelated to anything going on in my life xD

As stated on the actual Homecoming entry: there was nothing in the world that could’ve brought me down that night.  I was just too happy.

Also that month was Thanksgiving.  Chris came over for that… Met my grandma (she doesn’t remember… She’s kinda… old).  There were more Our Town practices, they were fun.  (The picture above, with the blonde hair, is from November 29, the Saturday practice).  

Other stuff happened, not discussable, though, haha.

Finally… December.  December has been… interesting, to say the least.  Inbetween performances of Our Town (everyone–I very sincerely mean everyone–apparently went to go see).  Josef the Commmunist Christmas Tree went up.  I took the ACTs (I got a 30, btw).  Cast Party for Our Town was incredible.  My first time at Friendly’s in 6 months!  So much changed in that time, you know?

Christmas came and went, and I got things I wanted and things I wasn’t expecting.  I learned that I love to bake… and cook in general.  I made dinner for the family for the first time in ages–and it wasn’t Chicken Parm!

So, overall… How was my year?

Despite the drama that crept in and out without warning… This year was overwhelmingly ☆ positive.☆ 

So here’s to next year!

The next time I update this, I’m posting a list of resolutions for 2009 ☆  That’ll be my last entry in 2008.

Count on it!

————————–Pman-Design is blogging here————————–
Startseite Schweiz und Deutschland

Secretly, I’ve been writing a lot of poetry.  It won’t leave the Pillow Book, but I’m just putting it out there.  Poetry, it would seem, is a great way to let stuff out–whether it’s excess guilt, self-hatred, or the immense feelings of love I have.  And, so, I suppose it’s a healthier way of dealing with things than just bottling them up inside and waiting for the top to blow off in a furious stream of blasts and booms.

So, anyway, I had work today.  Yeah, that sucked.  But it was okay, because it’s so slow…  I spent my day reading Grendel and making fun of Ryan celebrating that I was back at work after two weeks.  And I won’t be back there until next Saturday.  Winter hours =]  Sucks for my wallet, but, it’s GREAT for having freetime!!

Speaking of which…

So, yesterday, I ended up spending a~l~l day with Chris (￣∇￣)  Yeah, I know…  Silly~  What ended up happening was that when I went to tell my mom “hey, sup, catching the bus”, she found a bunch of trivial chores for me to do and then said, “Oh, well, I’ll drive you!”  Well, that was all fine and good, but she WOULDN’T GET A MOVE ON, and we had a bus to catch at 1:30… Which, of course, we missed, because I was late. (ノД`)

But… I guess that ended up being okay, anyway.  Because Chris and I spent an hour walking around The Walk, which we haven’t done in a while.  Not since… September-ish.  Anyway, we walked up and down for a while, and chatted about all the people Chris had seen there while he was waiting for me, and then we went and checked the costs at the Cavo Crepe Cafe (crepes = (⌒o⌒) for Krissi)… But we decided it was far too much.  So we went to KB Toys and played with foam swords a little…  (ﾟ□ﾟ)  We’re goofballs.  Then we grabbed some food at McDonald’s (because we were hungry… yeah) and, at 2:30, caught a very, very crowded bus to Brig.  I had to stand, so, we ended up in this kind of protective hug thing… Until I got a seat.  And shortly thereafter, he sat next to me until we got to the proper stop~  And then we walked…  And then we got to his house…

Where we watched WALL-E and chilled and stuff (ﾟ∇ﾟ)   And, eventually, you know, ate dinner.  And, then… well, I watched House on USA, but Chris kinda… fell asleep… (｡_｡；)   He’s really cute when he sleeps though, so it’s all okay by me!

So, anyway, I ended up getting home at about… 11.  Yeah.  So I kinda crashed into bed, since, for once, I WASN’T THE ONE WHO PASSED OUT ASLEEP!!!  Yay!!

Alright.  Moving on.

Actually, yesterday really was a great day…!  (≧∇≦)  I can’t imagine a better way for me to spend a Friday, really, than curled up with my boyfriend, watching movies and stuff.~  So, really, it was a good day.  I can only hope the good feelings continue on and on and on~!

Also, gotta keep going on my NaNoWriMo.  ”Never Give Up de ikaneba!”

So, I can’t let myself mope about all the time, right?  So I’m going to make today a really happy day, no matter what my tarot says! (I haven’t checked it yet, actually)

According to iTunes, “Baka ni Shinaide” has about 8 full plays, which is an amazement for me.  I usually get sick of songs.  There are a few exceptions, of course–I can’t get sick of Arashi’s “truth” no matter how hard I try–and I guess that’s okay, overall…  Maybe it’s just that “Baka ni Shinaide” is a more dancey version of “Sayonara Hageshiki Koi,” my third favorite Berryz Koubou song ever (“Sakura wa Raku sa” and “Warera! Berryz Kamen” are always gonna be my favorites, I think).

Anyway, today, I’m either hanging out with Chris, or with the Woo Woo Squad.  I think I might hang with Chris during the day–provided I don’t pass out–and then the Woo Woos tonight.  That seems fair, doesn’t it?…  I think it’s pretty fair.  I hope.  (・∀・)

Anyway, I’m uploading all the pictures I took on vacation to my facebook right now!  (≧∇≦)  They’re all such fun pictures~  There’s like a billion from the Alligator Farm, ’cause I took so many while I was there.  Already, there’s at least 30 pictures uploaded, and there’s still some more to go!!  It was a really fun trip~

Okay.  So.  My NaNoWriMo is up to 3000-something words now, at last.  But, I want to have 10,000 by Monday, so I’m on track again.  Man, NaNoWriMo is killer on the nerves… But I love it regardless.  My story hasn’t any full plot yet, so far, it’s just been a lot of “thinking” on the main character’s part.  She’s all “FFFFFF I’M IN A MESS” and trying not to let anyone know, at the moment.  What a main character.

Oh, so, anyway… I hafta head out soon; I’ve gotta get to the bus terminal somehow (*´▽｀*)  I ♥ my boyfriend, that’s why I do stuff like… braving the evil, dreaded bus… Just for him.  Yay public transportation…?

Walliser Supermodel Urs Schmidthalter aka. John Mallone macht Werbung für ‘Speedo’ in den USA!