Too Political For This Blog?

I was sitting in Bangkok airport waiting for my flight to Dusseldorf when news came through that Osama Bin Laden has been killed. Within moments of the first rumours coming through on BBC, there were signs of cheering outside the White House, congratulations all around, and of course the self-congratulatory message from Obama followed soon after. The scenes from outside the White House looked as though a massive crowd of people had all together won a major lottery. Quite amazing I thought. But in all this, I had two thoughts:

Diving the Similans

There is something quite magical about a country where people will quite happily try and rip you off to your face, but if you turn your back, they will not steal a penny from you. This is what I love about Thailand. Since my first visit to the country I've loved the place. On my first night there I went out for dinner at a restaurant just down the road from where I was staying. Having flown through the previous night I wasn't exactly 100% awake, and when the bill arrived, I left THB 180 (or at least I thought I did) on the table and left. A few metres from my room I hear someone calling after me - the middle aged waitress who had served me had run a couple of hundred metres after me to chase me down. I had mistakenly left THB 580 (~AU$18) on the table instead of THB 180 (~AU$6). Wow! Talk about service!

Nang Thong Beach @ Khao Lak - all to myself!

Wave Rock

Not quite on the childhood wish-list, but Wave Rock is something that has been mentioned for many years. In fact, 12 years ago when my mum and I drove across the Nullarbor, we considered 'stopping' at Wave Rock along the way. It was only a couple of hundred kilometres off the main road, but with over 3,000km ahead of us, we figured there would be enough driving. So it got put off. And now, finally, I made it there. There are some natrual formations in Australia which are extremely spectacular - Uluru is one of them. And then there are some which are definitely interesting, but one has to also appreciate the clever people who turn them into big tourist attractions. Wave Rock falls into the latter category. It was definitely interesting, and something qutie fascinating to behold, but on a totally different scale to something like Uluru or The Great Barrier Reef. Either way, it provided a great excuse for a proper family outing and a good flight.

Childhood Wish Come True

Throughout my childhood (ie., prior to the age of 25) there were a number of places I decided I just 'had' to go to, or experiences I had to feel, at some point in my life. Slowly slowly, I've been checking them off my list. Seing the Leaning Tower of Pisa and wandering around Venice were 2 items on that list that I managed to check off quite early, but others lingered on. Some of them I'm guessing I will never manage - such as walking on the moon or another planet, or even just piloting a jet beyond Mach 1. Now at least, another one is checked off - visiting the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington DC.

I could easily have spent a day at this place (and probably another day at the Udvar Hazy - the second Smithsonian Air & Space Museum in DC), but time was short and the crowds were almost unbearable. However, the main Air & Space Museum was amazing and seeing some real classics 'in the flesh' was quite an experience. Most notable, of course, was the Wright Brothers' Flyer. Talk about an impressive machine! Anyway, this is a place I would recommend for anyone who has even the slightest interest in aviation or aerospace - there are classics, early passenger aircraft, and modern day UAVs. The only dissappointing thing, is the reality, that so many of the aviation and technology advances advances on display are all related to finding better ways to kill people in war...

The weekend I spent in DC was the start of a 10 day work trip to New York (that obviously being a side trip). DC was absolutely packed as it was Spring Break and the Cherry Blossom Festival was in full bloom. Quite an amazing site (the cherry blossoms, not the throngs of people). DC is a rather interesting city - somewhere I could probably spend a week. The Holocaust Museum was the other main attraction I went to - extremely impressive (both the museum, and the fact that it was so packed!) It's a museum which although focuses on the Holocaust, deals a lot with genocide in general and they had an interesting exhibit which encompassed the recent atrocities in Rwanda and South Sudan.

Most of my time in the US, unfortunately, involved me being at work and dealing with the frustrations that are my job. Thankfully though, I got to spend the week with a good friend so it half felt like I was on holiday, and not just working. I had what is now my favourite New York experience of seeing a Broadway show (this time it was Catch Me If You Can - a musical I thoroughly enjoyed) and eating more than I need to. Of course there wasn't much idle time - between the working, eating, Natural History Museum and visit to Coney Island, there was only a bit of time left to sleep. A great trip overall. Not least because after the trip there was only 3 days back at work before heading off to spend 2 weeks of beach weather with my beloved Jessie...

The Highline - an old, disused elevated train line running along Western Manhatten has been converted into a park.

Back on the slopes

5 months since my operation and I decided it's time to try snowboarding again. On a total whim, I went with  a friend to the southernmost ski resort in Sweden, Vallåsen. It's a very small resort, with only a ~120m worth of altitude, and sitting not far off sea level. Most of the snow there was artificial, yet no worse than conditions I have typically been in, in Australia. With some last minute shopping on Friday night I picked up a pair of wrist-guards to ensure I didn't break my wrist again. After spending many hours researching what to get and where to get them I ended up just grabbing pretty much the only pair in my size available anywhere in Copenhagen. Thankfully, they did the trick! Though in actual fact, I didn't really test them out too much and spent most of the day on my feet, which was a pleasant change. I think perhaps I am finally getting a bit better, have a bit more confidence, and despite how I thought I would feel, I'm less nervous about falling now that my hands are protected!

Anyway, a great day was had by all (short of sore leg muscles the following day), and now I'm ready to hit the Alps!

'tis better to have discovered rubbish, than to never have discovered at all

I don't know what it is about frozen ocean that fascinates me so much,
but it just does.

I'm going to begin with a tangent to a tangent here. The first tangent is the title of this entry, the tangent to the tangent is that up until now I had always quoted the real words from the quote as coming from Shakespeare, thinking it was from Romeo & Juliet. And it was one of my favourite quotes. For some reason, I decided to research it tonight and much to my disappointment I discovered that the words come from Lord Alfred Tennyson, and not from Shakespeare! So much for thinking I actually absorbed the one Shakespeare play I studied at school...

Back to the original tangent... A friend of mine told me not to bother with the Viking Museum in Roskilde as it is a waste of money. I think they were bang on actually. The Viking Museum is a large building hosting a collection of 'pieces' of 6 Viking boats that were excavated from the fjord in 1962. They were 'put' there by the Vikings to create an underwater barrier to prevent sea based attacks on Roskilde. The 6 ships are in various states, but in general, without the steel frames and some imagination, there really wouldn't be that much to see. However, WITH the steel frames and imagination, I did still find it fascinating seeing wooden constructions that carried dozens of Vikings, thousands of miles, many hundreds of years ago. Something about old 'stuff' always fascinates me...

The 'on board' dunny on the reconstruction.

In fact, a reconstruction of the largest ship (built in the museum's shipyards) recently completed a voyage to Dublin and back (it was thought the original was constructed in Ireland). The was a special exhibit on this in the musuem which was quite interesting, and it definitely reminded me how glad I am to not be a Viking sailing the choppy seas 1,000 years ago!
 
So back to my tangent. I had been told the museum wasn't worth it. And at DKK 75 (that's the special 'winter' price) I honestly think it was a bit of a rip-off. However, that's pretty much standard in Denmark I guess - that things are a rip-off and it's just a part of life. But, my point is, despite even thinking to myself that the museum may not really be worthwhile, I still wanted to go. It's not like I didn't have the money or the time, it was a beautiful day to be travelling to the country-side anyway, and, well, I thought to myself afterwards, 'tis better to have discovered rubbish, than to never have discovered at all.

And I think that philosophy pretty much explains so many of the things I do in life, and so much of why I do things. But finally I have put it down in a single line, one explanation of why I feel I need to try everything at least once, why I want to travel to so many places (even the ones that may not be so exciting), why I seem to want to chop and change jobs and careers, why I want to live in different cities, and why I am who I am.

The important things in life

I spent the weekend in London. This was one of the great attractions of moving to Copenhagen for this job, the ability to travel easily and cheaply. To not have to spend 4 hours on a plane just to get to the other side of the country, never mind a different country, and to be able to do so with pocket change. Anyway, I made use of some super cheap flights and had a fantastic weekend in London. The best part about it though, was that there was zero tourist aspect to it, and it was purely to spend time with an old childhood friend, and some family. The two days there made me realise what are the things that are really good about life, and what is really required to make me feel good about myself. Friends and family.

So yet again I have learnt the lesson to not let 14 years (but practically, more like 25 years) pass between catching up with friends. That, and to make time for family because they are the ones who always welcome you with open arms, who will always make time for you, always be interested in you, and always make you feel loved.