Think this billboard was made just for me!

And now my next Coca Cola destination is home!

Just for Mr. Brown!

Here you go, Bobby B. A dark Czech beer just for you! Let me tell you, this
place is beer heaven! Wish you were here to enjoy it!

Good grub!

But looking forward to the comfort foods of home!

I want one of these!

Local beer pub emphasizing local beers and holy cow are there a ton of
microbrews in Czech Republic! The beer bottles on display along the top of
the walls remind me of the beer can collecting days in middle school (just
collected cans. Did not drink the contents!). I am starting the eve with an
unfiltered pale lager from one of the CZ microbreweries. Mmmmm good!

Even the business complex has a sidewalk cafe!

This is the courtyard and cafe in the center of the business complex where
IBM's Czech and Central Eastern European HQ's are located. Great place to
eat and hang out on a summer Friday afternoon! Until some dumb-ass smokers
sits down 2 tables away up wind! Their 'personal pollution' ruined a great
view. Oh well, need to get my butt back I the office anyways!

That's Not What I Ordered, Is It?

As they hand me the food I ordered today I am once again reminded of one of
the tenets of international travel. The food you ordered will not be
anything like you are expecting. Unless you had it before or saw it on
someone else's plate what get will not resemble the image you have in your
mind.

In the US, for example, if you were to get the 'fried salmon' you'd
probably be expecting pan fried, lightly seared maybe pink slab o' fish to
be on your plate when it arrived. The last thing you would ever think you
we're going to get would be essentially salmon fish sticks. But, indeed
that is what was on the plate being presented to me with great glee. Huh.
Deep fried salmon. Never had it. OK. Life is about adapting and by-gosh I
can adapt to salmon nuggets! Especially since they gave me tartar sauce for
them. Wha?!

Overall they were fine. They kind of negated the whole notion of eating
something lite and healthy, tho. Gee, wonder if they though of deep frying
smaller pieces and serving 'popcorn salmon'? Could have been worse. At
least they didn't serve it on a slab of fat!

People Are People

And geeks are geeks no matter where you are in the world! Even in Czech
Republic. Hard to see here but the two guys in the center right are "sword
fighting" with some play swords. Glad to say they appeared to be Dell
employees and not IBM'ers. Their fighting style was amateurish and our IBM
sword fighter guys would slice them to bits (ooh, geek humor! God save me!)
Sorry, but this is as close as I could get with my phone. After all, I
didn't want to scare them. They had "weapons"!

Like a Weergin...

...touched for da fery first toime...".

Madonna hits Prague! The concert was held right next the IBM office and apparently some of her crew is staying here at the Hilton. Driving to the office was crazy. The place was cordoned off with police everywhere. It kind of reminded me of one of those concert videos where they show the pre-concert stuff going on wiht the people arriving, vendors setting up and police directing traffic.

Back at the hotel I checked on tickets. There were still some available. The guy told me there were two options - 1000 kroner and 3000 kroner. As I stand there not saying anything the guy asked if the 3000 was too much. "Umm. Dunno. I am trying to figure out how much that is in US dollars!" Well, it turned out to be either $80 or $160. They both were standing - but I think what he was really trying to tell me was that it was all lawn seating so everyone was standing. I was really tempted to do the more expensive seats. But I started to think about it. All told I'd rather wander the city and see the sites - and of course get the Starbcks mug and go to the Hard Rock!

Viva la Revolution!

John Lennon Wall

Not sure why it's here but it's cool. I wish they would somehow restrict
people adding to it. Kind of hard to read it all as people write over other
people's messages

This Looks Familiar

Isn't this from the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland? But there
the dog had the key to the cell in his mouth!

Beautiful Shots Around Every Corner

I am still not off the Charles Bridge!

View from Charles Bridge in Prague

More Prague

Unbelievable

Not sure why US bridges have to be so utilitarian. The bridges and river
views in Central Europe are phenomenal!

Mission Accomplished!

I need to figure out how many Hard Rocks I have been to. I *think* this is
like number 55 or so. This one was way cool. 4 levels with a 4 story atrium
in the middle and a killer glass chandelier shaped like a guitar.

Apparently the 'King of Beers' has a Daddy!

Heard about the controversy for years but this was the first chance to
check (no pun intended!) out the original Budweiser. This stuff tastes
pretty good. I wonder if we can start getting it in the US instead of it's
Clydsdale urine counterpart!

And What Study was Conducted on This?

They take 'Green' pretty seriously in Poland I guess! No one said, though,
that going green had to mean going nicely... TWO towels ONLY! No more or
you will be shot, you gluttonous 3-towel bastard!

NOW we're talkin!

Specialty dessert of the house. Don't know what it is. They don't know hoe
to translate it in English. Hmmm. Living dangerously!

What Comes After Pink Soup?

Veal hiding inside a cabbage leaf underneath some funky looking cream
sauce. It was recommended as something I should try. We'll see!

Pink Soup!

I don't think I have ever had a food that was neon pink! It feels so 80's!
'Wake me up before you go-go!'

Pork Shank. Hmmmmm!

At a way cool socialist era style restaurant. Other than these clearly not
being 'mashed' potatoes, the food is great!

Take That Boudin!

Now this is a bread bowl! This is the starter for the evening, a
traditional soup. Forgot the name. All I remember is the "fermented bread"
part.

Actually tastes pretty good! Potatoes, had boiled egg, sausage. Yea, I'd
say pretty traditional!

Polish Food Experience

So, not that I am into doing restaurant reviews or anything but I have to
say this place seems pretty cool. Inside looks like what I suppose is a
Polish farmhouse (never been in one so can't say if that's the look they're
going for - but it is what they hit on). The waitresses are in peasant
style dresses and blouses and the seating is at old wooden tables that look
more at place in a picnic grounds than the middle of the big city. So, as a
tourist I buy the ambiance!

I am still trying to figure out if I should put the chip dip or the cold
mashed potatoes on the bread they brought to my table. Guess I'll try the
chip dip. The soup from my earlier post rocked by the way!

You know one thing I have learned traveling abroad is that the food will
never come out looking like you expect it to - unless you have ordered or
seen it before. Tonight is no different! My 'veal' does not look like I
would have thought. As to what it does look like, I will leave you to form
your own opinion as my opinion on the looks of the meal is not fit for
polite dinner conversation!

Wow, that was really good. "Hearty" certainly comes to mind, though! I
couldn't even finish half of the main course. No wonder the are so many fat
people here. I could not eat like this every day.

Well if you ever make it to Warsaw I can agree with the reviewers who said
this place, Chlopskie, is a great place to get your 1st experience with
real Polish food. Just remember to bring your appetite!

Sunny Warsaw

View from hotel - not from my room but from my floor

IBM Rate View

I think normally you have to pay extra for the empty abandoned lot view.
But I work for IBM so it is free to me!

Warszawie

One week down and I find myself now in Warsaw Poland. Unfortunately, this Hilton is not located on palace grounds like the one I just left in Budapest, but this has something also very highly valued - an amazingly comfortable bed! This is one of the best beds I think I have ever had in a hotel room. I am surprised to find it in Europe. Usually the king beds are really two small beds smashed together and barely softer than sleeping on the floor. This one, though, I fell into when I got to the room this morning and am having a hard time getting -and staying - out of!

It also has more English language channels - including a very strange VH1. I say strange because they play music videos! I vaguely remember that music on TV thing from the 80's but I thought those gave way to the reality shows. So, another thing I am enjoying about this place! You know I may never leave the hotel room. I wonder if I can just dial in to the meetings this week from my room?

Actually, given my wanderlust - and the fact there is a Hard Rock here - I'll tear myself away from this bed soon and head on out to check out the town.

Kickin' It on a Friday Eve

You know, we need more sidewalk cafes in the US - especially in California!
This really awesome. Instead of sitting in the office or in my hotel room,
I figured I'd head into the Pest side of town and work in some cool
location. Found it! I found the cool little restaurant row we visited the
first night as a team. Found the first bar that took AmEx and sat down and
ordered a beer. Now I am firing up the PC. I tell you life ain't bad!

There comes a time in every trip ...

…where the being away from home starts to get to you. Sure, you normally call it being homesick. Usually it is when you get tired of everything being different. You just really would like to have something familiar to get your bearings and keep a connection back home. For me, this is how my Hard Rock thing came about. When traveling abroad, it was always an oasis of Americana that I could count on for a brief reconnection with home - in the form of food, of course. Sure it is not the greatest food, but after a week or so of strange dishes, even their hamburgers look pretty darn good! And a chocolate malt? I am jonesing for one right now!!

On this trip, this feeling came early, but it was not because I was missing the familiarity and comfort of home. Nor was it the distinct lack of a Hard Rock in Budapest! This time it was because I was in a very romantic city full of charm and history that gave it an ambience that seemingly was designed specifically just for lovers. And you see them everywhere. Holding hands. Kissing. Hugging. And who can blame them. Amazing scenic views, old world charm, horse carriage rides over cobblestone streets, beautiful sunsets, sidewalk cafes, cool summer evenings. This place just oozes romance. I would venture to say that this city is even more romantic than Paris. Don’t believe me? I challenge you to visit both and then tell me what you think!

Unfortunately for me this romanticism is a constant reminder of what I am missing back home, just how much Vicki would love this place, and how great this experience would be if she were here to share it with. Every beautiful old building I see I think how much Vicki would love it. The sidewalk cafes I can only think how we could spend hours there just talking - and looking into each other’s eyes, of course. Looking out over the Danube and the amazing view of Budapest I think of how much better it would be with her there in my arms to share the view. Yep. I hit the “I miss you so much, honey” portion of the trip far earlier than expected. And it is not stopping any time soon apparently! Even as I write this I am sitting in a very old stone courtyard restaurant with red cloth covered tables, mood lighting and live gipsy music playing. And if that weren’t enough the song playing on the radio before the musicians came out was “You’re My Best Friend” by Queen. Thanks! As if I wasn’t already missing my best friend enough!! Then the first song the musicians played was “Hooray for Hollywood” - not romantic but got me thinking of home for sure. That was followed by “My Way”. Since Vicki is a huge Sinatra fan this would have been one of those moments in life that would have taken her breath away. It was perfect – well, it would have been perfect if she had been here with me.

I am figuring about now there are those ready to give me grief about ‘whining’. Now don’t get me wrong. This is not me complaining. I do realize how lucky I am to be traveling the world, seeing the sights, experiencing different cultures and working with people from all over. I fully appreciate and love this part of my job greatly. But there are times when the personal costs of this life get to be a bit overwhelming. Like when I come face to face with how empty my world is – even in the midst of so much beauty, culture and history – when Vicki is not in it. So forgive me for droning on a bit in this post, but this is part of the deal in this life of travel. Tonight I am not home sick. I am heart sick.

Not tonight honey, I have a heartache ...

I am not sure which I was more taken aback by. Their beauty or their brazenness. I wandered into the bar across from the hotel this evening for a beer. It was a rather unassuming place I had seen all week and thought it’d be a cool place to get a drink one evening. I didn’t feel like sitting in the hotel room – and especially in the lifeless, soul-less Hilton hotel bar – so it seemed to make sense to check it out.

When I walked in something felt strange – not right. As I sat there with my beer I suddenly had a woman come up and ask me if it was ok to sit next to me. OK, I didn’t fall off the Hungarian turnip truck sweetie! I knew the game. I was polite though and said sure you can sit there – “Not sure how much company I’ll be though”. She sat down any way. She starts striking up a conversation. I was courteous but not much more. I knew this is how things get started! I even made sure to add in something about “missing my girlfriend tonight”. That almost backfired though. “Budapest girlfriend?” she asks. “Umm, no, girlfriend back home.” Well, not sure if it was cutting to the chase because I mentioned the girlfriend, or if it is the modus operandi for Hungarian hookers, but she just laid it out (so to speak). “We have girls to go into back rooms for strip show and girls to your hotel for sex. Would you like?” Well, let’s not beat around the bush, sweetie, just tell me what you are after! I politely declined, to say the least. I quickly finished the beer and made my move out the door.

I didn't get very far though before being asked by another girl if I wanted someone to go back to the hotel with me. And this one was beautiful. The first woman was nice looking. While her outfit had said ‘hooker’ she looked like she could have been an administrative assistant, or customer service rep – oh, wait she was! This second one, though, looked like she belonged on a disco floor or on the arm of some Ukrainian Mafioso. Very beautiful, very thin and very dangerous! And very direct apparently! Again, I declined the offer and was able to finally get my butt out of there.

Not sure if these women understood that they were barking up the wrong tree. Tonight – and every night – my heart (and all other parts) belong to one person. And, by the way, did I mention I am really missing her tonight?

Watson Come Here ...

So why exactly is there a telephone museum in Budapest? Better yet, why is
there one at all? Well, I don't want to get hung up on that thought. I am
sure it gets ringing endorsements. My guess is it is hard to get through
because it is busy. Hopefully they publish their address clearly, you
wouldn't want to miss it because you got a wrong number. Oh yea! I am all
dialed in on this now! These are coming to you long distance, baby! Well,
I think that about does it for now. I am sure I'll think of more lines
later! Hey, if any come to mind jump in and we'll make this a party line!

Pure Fat

Ok, this is one reason why life expectancy here is 64 years. This, part of
my dinner, is pure FAT. Now, I am not saying it has a lot of fat or full of
fat, I am saying it IS fat! And you are supposed to eat it. Apparently
transylvanians must not have weight issues. Makes sense though, I have
never seen a fat vampire!

Tastes just like bacon - without that annoying meat texture! I think I am
going to hurl!

A Dinner with Bite!

You can order the Transylvania Style Wood Plate but its a pain in the neck.
Its only available at night and costs so much it'll bleed you dry! And it
has no beef on it. The waiter said something about the dangers of wood
steaks.

A Seriously Old Building

This is the church that is the middle of the Budapest Hilton Hotel. The
hotel itself was built by joining 2 buildings on either side of this
church. Actually the church is a facade. No, I am not making a political
statement on churches. This one now is literally only a facade. It is 800
years old and they incorporated it into the design of the hotel. From the
front you see the church front between the halves of the Hilton. Inside
this is a walkway from one side of the hotel to the other. The hotel
building itself is 300 years old and used to be a school. Budapest is an
amazing place. And I have to say this is a pretty cool location as far as
hotels go!

Budapest Beauty

After I settled into the hotel room this afternoon I decide to catch one of
the city tour buses to try and stay awake. (Trying to stay up after you
land is one trick to minimizing jet lag) I have to say I was quite amazed
at how beautiful Budapest is.

The Danube runs right through the heart of the city with the area of Buda
on one side and Pest on the other. And the scene is so picturesque. I know
I have seen it in the movies before! This place has that WWII era feel to
it. Actually I feel like I have stumbled onto a hot set for some post war
spy movie. I keep looking for Sean Connery to come around the corner in his
007 Astin Martin - or even Matt Damon as Jason Bourne in a stolen Mini
Cooper trying to ditch local police and Interpol.

The tour was pretty cool as I got to see just about everything,
location-wise, in the city that I'd want to see. And from the tour
narrative I learned that this place has had several 'owners' throughout the
centuries. It seems every few hundred years they got their butts kicked by
someone else. Hungary, as it is now, is only as old as 1989. Now, I am not
positive but if I had to guess I'd say the men were too sloth-like after
eating this heavy-ass food! It's good, but wow is it filling.

I have to work tomorrow but if I can squeeze some time in I hope to visit
one of the baths the city is so known for. In the meantime, I am going to
finish my beer and head back to the hotel - probably taking a few more pics
of the river view at night along the way!

Here I Go Again

I seem to have a lot of rock quotes going on these days and today is no
different. Off on another adventure. I know this is a business trip and all
but this time it's a bit different as for the most part, these are 3 new
destinations - Budapest Hungary, Warsaw Poland, and Prague czech Republic.

Now I say this, discounting my first excursion into Warsaw which lasted
like 23 hours. We flew in the early evening the night before our meetings.
The meetings went through lunch and we were on our way to the next local
shortly thereafter. So, I don't really count having seen Warsaw.

That 'controversy' aside, I have never stepped foot in - and in fact even
really know nothing about - Budapest and Prague. I have no idea of what I
am getting myself into. I know of 'Hungarian Ghoulash' and now of Hungarian
Paprika. There are supposed to be cool buildings in Budapest and the place
is known for the hot mineral spring baths. And my Cliff Claven fun fact of
the day is that 'Budapest' is comprised of two communities, one lying on
each side of the Danube (I think), named Buda and Pest. Oooh! So last week
I guess I was in Detroitontario and I live in Irvinetustin. Hmmm, that'd
mean I work in Costamesasantaana. Thank God we don't use the same naming
convention here!

Now with regard to Prague, I have heard it is really beautiful and the 'hot
spot' to go. Other than that beats me! Oh wait, there I a Hard Rock here!
Another notch on the ol' guitar case and of course a new t-shirt and pin!

Speaking of HR's, there is one in Warsaw that I am anxious to get to. I was
there before it opened - when they were building it. So this will now
count on my list as one I have been to once I actually 'go to' it.

The god news in all of this is today we have the internet and a cool site
called WikiTravel.com. It is a Wikipedia site and gives you the scoop on
just about any locale you'd be going to. I printed out the info to read on
the plane so hopefully I will know a bit more about these places.
Well, that's all for this post. I'm in the van on the way to LAX. It is
just after 7 am. I guess you could say I have been up since 6. In reality,
though, I had what amounted to a 1-1/2 hour nap that ended at 6. You know,
I gotta get better at the day befores on these trip departures!