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Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Friday, September 30, 2011
Saturday, August 25, 2007
calmness
this is my first calm day since last saturday, and it feels good. there's just been a lot to do and go to, so I've been busy, but not stressed. but still need some time to just relax and take it easy. managed to do my dishes now at least...
I'm probably going to try to do a google earth overview of this week later on, because it's been just crazy. the highlight was naturally on wednesday, when I went to norway to see norway - argentina and the "love of my life" - lionel (leo) messi:
he's the kinda guy that really makes me enjoy watching football, because he's always trying to go forward, creating something positive and creative with his style of play. there's rarely a time where he looks back and just makes a safe pass. and that's what I like about him, really makes me happy to see him play. and I think it seems he enjoys to play a lot too.
the game in itself wasn't that good, but it was great to see some of my favorite players live. it was definitely worth it, even though argentina lost 2-1. walking home, I took a picture of the really nice sky:
my ticket:
and the obligatory self-picture:
my friend was probably one of the happiest there. he went with his family to the players' hotel, and got to take pictures together with the argentinean players - messi, saviola, zanetti etc... I can tell you they were quite happy about it! he also met up with the president of the world organization for peace which uses football as a tool for promoting peace. he gave this huge flag to put up at the stadium:
it's huuuuuuuge! and I hope it could be seen from the other side, and hopefully also got shown on tv.
all in all, I was really happy about everything that day, from the barbeque, meeting up with people and the game in itself. only got three hours of sleep that night (had to fly back home and straight to work), but it was so worth it. you can see all the pictures here.
I'm probably going to try to do a google earth overview of this week later on, because it's been just crazy. the highlight was naturally on wednesday, when I went to norway to see norway - argentina and the "love of my life" - lionel (leo) messi:
he's the kinda guy that really makes me enjoy watching football, because he's always trying to go forward, creating something positive and creative with his style of play. there's rarely a time where he looks back and just makes a safe pass. and that's what I like about him, really makes me happy to see him play. and I think it seems he enjoys to play a lot too.
the game in itself wasn't that good, but it was great to see some of my favorite players live. it was definitely worth it, even though argentina lost 2-1. walking home, I took a picture of the really nice sky:
my ticket:
and the obligatory self-picture:
my friend was probably one of the happiest there. he went with his family to the players' hotel, and got to take pictures together with the argentinean players - messi, saviola, zanetti etc... I can tell you they were quite happy about it! he also met up with the president of the world organization for peace which uses football as a tool for promoting peace. he gave this huge flag to put up at the stadium:
it's huuuuuuuge! and I hope it could be seen from the other side, and hopefully also got shown on tv.
all in all, I was really happy about everything that day, from the barbeque, meeting up with people and the game in itself. only got three hours of sleep that night (had to fly back home and straight to work), but it was so worth it. you can see all the pictures here.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Friday, August 17, 2007
let's rock!
one of my days in the states we went to the rock and roll hall of fame museum. as no pictures were allowed to be taken inside, this is the only one I have:
the musuem was really nice to visit, and had lots of interesting objects to watch. many original artifacts from the stars and famous artists of contemporary time - michael jackson, madonna, queen, jimi hendrix, elvis, the beatles, etc etc. we saw one movie with a lot of history about rock and roll, and also another movie about the inductees into the hall of fame. it's a very, very, veeeery wide and inclusive definition of what r'n'r is, I must say, but still fun. another interesting note: ringo starr is the only beatles member that has not individually been inducted in the hall of fame.
after a few hours at the museum, it was time to go eat. it was up to me to choose where to go, and I had only one thing to say, in my best al bundy-voice: "let's rock!" we went to hard rock café and had a wonderful dinner, very, very tasty. unfortunately I have no pics from there, but I can assure you it was some good times that we had there.
the musuem was really nice to visit, and had lots of interesting objects to watch. many original artifacts from the stars and famous artists of contemporary time - michael jackson, madonna, queen, jimi hendrix, elvis, the beatles, etc etc. we saw one movie with a lot of history about rock and roll, and also another movie about the inductees into the hall of fame. it's a very, very, veeeery wide and inclusive definition of what r'n'r is, I must say, but still fun. another interesting note: ringo starr is the only beatles member that has not individually been inducted in the hall of fame.
after a few hours at the museum, it was time to go eat. it was up to me to choose where to go, and I had only one thing to say, in my best al bundy-voice: "let's rock!" we went to hard rock café and had a wonderful dinner, very, very tasty. unfortunately I have no pics from there, but I can assure you it was some good times that we had there.
Sunday, August 05, 2007
chicago
my last day of vacation and traveling pretty much ended the same way as it all started, perfectly. I woke up just outside of cleveland (more about my stay there later) at 3.15 am, after having slept for about 3.5 hours. my flight was at 6 am (what was I thinking???) and I arrived at chicago about 6.30 (timezone diff). my bag was the first one out, and now I had about 10 hours until my flight back home. my plan? to visit the House of Worship in wilmette. check out my two previous posts about it: here and here. here's a nice picture:
a few problems presented themselves here. first of all, it'd take me about two hours to get there, despited there being only about 30 km to go. why? train goes into town, and then back out.
then I of course had my huge suitcase with me, weighing about 20 kg. not too fun to have it carrying around with me all the way, so I wanted to leave it somewhere. unfortunately, the check-in didn't open until about 6 hours later, and due to security regulations, there were no lockers at the airport. I'd have to keep it with me all the time.
I took a bit of a chance, going into the hotel by the airport - which just happened to be hilton. went up to the desk, not hoping for much, especially not as I was dressed (very comfy), and asked. naturally they said no, but suggested I could go to the UPS store downstairs and ask. they said they'd do it for $5, and that was definitely worth it. one problem solved, now it was just time to get going. this was about 7.30...
I arrived at almost exactly 10, and went into the visitors' center. I prepared myself by washing my hands and face, and then also visit the cornerstone room:
the cornerstone was laid by 'Abdu'l-Bahá in 1912. I said the Tablet of Visitation for 'Abdu'l-Bahá in there (I was all by myself), and then went into the actual temple to pray. it was just me and another man there, so I decided to try and sit right in the middle, and look straight up at the wonderful dome. looked up at it quite a few times to gather my thoughts and meditate.
as I got out, I was a bit unsure if I wanted to walk out in the gardens to take a few pictures or go into the visitors' center and check out the bookshop. as the weather was a bit cloudy, I went inside, and was surprised to see a couple of friends who had just arrived. we got a bit of a tour of the insides with some very interesting stories, saw a short dvd about the temple (in spanish), and were shown the model architect louis bourgeois built. took him and his wife 8 years to do it:
it's absolutely amazing with all the details, although the actual temple is a bit smaller than the model shows, as it would simply be too big and costly to build.
as I was in a bit of a more rush than they were, I decided to say good bye, go out in the gardens for a last look and a few pictures. here are two that I'm quite happy about:
and then it was time to go to the airport, with a big smile on my face... the temple is absolutely amazing with all the small details and artwork, all over. and with details and symbols from all previous religions, it's really a unifying experience. everyone is welcome :)
check out my gallery of pictures from there.
there were also some interesting experiences from the airport in chicago on my way back, but that's for later...
a few problems presented themselves here. first of all, it'd take me about two hours to get there, despited there being only about 30 km to go. why? train goes into town, and then back out.
then I of course had my huge suitcase with me, weighing about 20 kg. not too fun to have it carrying around with me all the way, so I wanted to leave it somewhere. unfortunately, the check-in didn't open until about 6 hours later, and due to security regulations, there were no lockers at the airport. I'd have to keep it with me all the time.
I took a bit of a chance, going into the hotel by the airport - which just happened to be hilton. went up to the desk, not hoping for much, especially not as I was dressed (very comfy), and asked. naturally they said no, but suggested I could go to the UPS store downstairs and ask. they said they'd do it for $5, and that was definitely worth it. one problem solved, now it was just time to get going. this was about 7.30...
I arrived at almost exactly 10, and went into the visitors' center. I prepared myself by washing my hands and face, and then also visit the cornerstone room:
the cornerstone was laid by 'Abdu'l-Bahá in 1912. I said the Tablet of Visitation for 'Abdu'l-Bahá in there (I was all by myself), and then went into the actual temple to pray. it was just me and another man there, so I decided to try and sit right in the middle, and look straight up at the wonderful dome. looked up at it quite a few times to gather my thoughts and meditate.
as I got out, I was a bit unsure if I wanted to walk out in the gardens to take a few pictures or go into the visitors' center and check out the bookshop. as the weather was a bit cloudy, I went inside, and was surprised to see a couple of friends who had just arrived. we got a bit of a tour of the insides with some very interesting stories, saw a short dvd about the temple (in spanish), and were shown the model architect louis bourgeois built. took him and his wife 8 years to do it:
it's absolutely amazing with all the details, although the actual temple is a bit smaller than the model shows, as it would simply be too big and costly to build.
as I was in a bit of a more rush than they were, I decided to say good bye, go out in the gardens for a last look and a few pictures. here are two that I'm quite happy about:
and then it was time to go to the airport, with a big smile on my face... the temple is absolutely amazing with all the small details and artwork, all over. and with details and symbols from all previous religions, it's really a unifying experience. everyone is welcome :)
check out my gallery of pictures from there.
there were also some interesting experiences from the airport in chicago on my way back, but that's for later...
Friday, August 03, 2007
a disgusting burger
this is the The Coronary Burger Special at dangerous dan's diner:
yes, it is that big. what's in it? here you go: "2 8oz Patties, 4 Slices of Bacon, 2 Slices of Cheddar and a Fried Egg on top. Served w/ Fries and Gravy, Can of Pop and Mayo as a garnish for sure!"
it doesn't look good, it's not aesthetically pleasing at all, it's just huuuuge. but, I finished it!
yes, it is that big. what's in it? here you go: "2 8oz Patties, 4 Slices of Bacon, 2 Slices of Cheddar and a Fried Egg on top. Served w/ Fries and Gravy, Can of Pop and Mayo as a garnish for sure!"
it doesn't look good, it's not aesthetically pleasing at all, it's just huuuuge. but, I finished it!
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
a perfect day!
that is actually how I referred to my first day of vacation when I texted my mom. what was so good about it? let me tell you...
so I wake up at 4.15, after only two hours of sleep. shave, shower, pack the rest of my stuff and get ready to go to the airport. my flight's at 7.10, and I arrive at 9.05. slept an hour on the plane.
my wish was to be able to visit the resting place of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, as I had a 6 hour layover. I had two problems however:
1. it would take me about 2 hours to get there by train
2. I had no idea how to get there
but luckily, I got picked up (go facebook!). and oh how happy I was. not surprisingly, it was raining. after all, it was london. but it didn't matter, going by car there, without traffic, it took us only 45 minutes. so I got to say prayers for a while, and took a couple of pictures. I was smiling pretty much during the entire time prayer session, as I was feeling so happy and grateful to be able to be there. here's a picture of the entrance:
click here for the other pictures of my london day.
so once we were done there, there was still some time left before my flight, so we decided to go visit a friend. he was sleeping (look here), so we got the honor of waking him up. needless to say, he was quite surprised to see me, as we both live in sweden and he was just there for a few weeks to visit family. good fun though :)
we hit up the grill, had a bit of a barbeque, and then it was time for me to get going. got a ride to the airport, and there's a bit of story what happened there too. but first there was something in the kitchen that I really enjoyed, which inspired me to do the same. there were different quotations from the Baha'i Writings up on the cupboards, the fridge, etc, and I thought that'd be really nice. so tonight I decided to do my own, and these are the ones I'm going to print:
And if thou art overtaken by affliction in My path, or degradation for My sake, be not thou troubled thereby.
Rely upon God, thy God and the Lord of thy fathers.
Let deeds, not words, be your adorning.
Be anxiously concerned with the needs of the age ye live in, and center your deliberations on its exigencies and requirements.
True loss is for him whose days have been spent in utter ignorance of his self.
How couldst thou forget thine own faults and busy thyself with the faults of others?
so, london heathrow... first of all, I don't like it. being such a populated airport, I was expecting it to be a whole lot fancier and flashier. well, it wasn't. in the waiting hall, you could see the fans in the ceiling, and it was generally just looking unclean. not too nice...
anyways, in the security check, they had tv screens informing us passengers that they've started with random x-ray scannings of people. as I was standing in line, I see a security guy walking around checking the line for people to choose. I just knew he'd pick me. sure enough, I was "randomly selected" and got a full-body x-ray scan. had to stand in some weird positions, 3 scans done, but in return I got to skip through the whole security line, so it was good :)
this is where I sent a text to mom and said that everything was just perfect. I hadn't even known if I'd get picked up in the morning, so everything beyond that was just excellent. in addition I got to have some barbequed chicken, and got to meet good friends. and also, I found out that I'd actually be on the same flight back to sweden with my friend. yay! had something to look forward to :)
plane was late about an hour and a half, information was quite bad, but got on the plane and no problems there. during the flight I saw two movies, 300 and blades of glory. reviews of those will come later.
got to toronto, and here's some interesting stuff... I was asked to go into a special line/place a total of 3 times before I finally got out. off the plane, everyone was asked to show passports to police standing and waiting. showed mine, and I was asked to step aside. show my passport, and was asked why I am in canada. answered wedding and showed the invitation (good thing to bring it with me!). then it was okay, and I could move on.
again more border control, and I was asked to go into the immigration office. answered same question about why I was there, showed the invitation, was asked where I was staying (no idea, was getting picked up!), and then if I had tickets for leaving the country (great way to make me feel welcomed...). had the ticket information on a printed paper, so that was no problem either. then he asked me what I do and stuff. after a while the guy was quite nice, and even asked me what I thought of stockholm. naturally I told him he should come visit, it's really beautiful, especially in the summer :)
I get out, and right there another police woman is standing checking the paper I had with me all the way from leaving the plane (some info about me and stuff). she makes a big blue mark on it, and I have no idea what it means...
go get my luggage, and another control, tells me to turn right. get there, show my paper to another police, and they say that the woman wanted to check my luggage, no idea what or why.
so I go sit down, listen to some music, and see the police come with two guys in handcuffs. a bit scary...
she finally comes, x-rays my suitcase and bag, and says thank you and lets me go. all in all it took me about an hour and a half from leaving the plane until I got out (it took 30 minutes in israel...), and I get picked up here too :)
about 45 minute ride back, absolutely beautiful sunset. wish I had taken pictures of it... socialize a bit, introduce myself to pretty much everyone, and mingle a bit with the people that are already there. I'm quite tired though, and at 11.30 I go to bed, after being up for about 26 hours. but I'm happy :)
so I wake up at 4.15, after only two hours of sleep. shave, shower, pack the rest of my stuff and get ready to go to the airport. my flight's at 7.10, and I arrive at 9.05. slept an hour on the plane.
my wish was to be able to visit the resting place of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, as I had a 6 hour layover. I had two problems however:
1. it would take me about 2 hours to get there by train
2. I had no idea how to get there
but luckily, I got picked up (go facebook!). and oh how happy I was. not surprisingly, it was raining. after all, it was london. but it didn't matter, going by car there, without traffic, it took us only 45 minutes. so I got to say prayers for a while, and took a couple of pictures. I was smiling pretty much during the entire time prayer session, as I was feeling so happy and grateful to be able to be there. here's a picture of the entrance:
click here for the other pictures of my london day.
so once we were done there, there was still some time left before my flight, so we decided to go visit a friend. he was sleeping (look here), so we got the honor of waking him up. needless to say, he was quite surprised to see me, as we both live in sweden and he was just there for a few weeks to visit family. good fun though :)
we hit up the grill, had a bit of a barbeque, and then it was time for me to get going. got a ride to the airport, and there's a bit of story what happened there too. but first there was something in the kitchen that I really enjoyed, which inspired me to do the same. there were different quotations from the Baha'i Writings up on the cupboards, the fridge, etc, and I thought that'd be really nice. so tonight I decided to do my own, and these are the ones I'm going to print:
so, london heathrow... first of all, I don't like it. being such a populated airport, I was expecting it to be a whole lot fancier and flashier. well, it wasn't. in the waiting hall, you could see the fans in the ceiling, and it was generally just looking unclean. not too nice...
anyways, in the security check, they had tv screens informing us passengers that they've started with random x-ray scannings of people. as I was standing in line, I see a security guy walking around checking the line for people to choose. I just knew he'd pick me. sure enough, I was "randomly selected" and got a full-body x-ray scan. had to stand in some weird positions, 3 scans done, but in return I got to skip through the whole security line, so it was good :)
this is where I sent a text to mom and said that everything was just perfect. I hadn't even known if I'd get picked up in the morning, so everything beyond that was just excellent. in addition I got to have some barbequed chicken, and got to meet good friends. and also, I found out that I'd actually be on the same flight back to sweden with my friend. yay! had something to look forward to :)
plane was late about an hour and a half, information was quite bad, but got on the plane and no problems there. during the flight I saw two movies, 300 and blades of glory. reviews of those will come later.
got to toronto, and here's some interesting stuff... I was asked to go into a special line/place a total of 3 times before I finally got out. off the plane, everyone was asked to show passports to police standing and waiting. showed mine, and I was asked to step aside. show my passport, and was asked why I am in canada. answered wedding and showed the invitation (good thing to bring it with me!). then it was okay, and I could move on.
again more border control, and I was asked to go into the immigration office. answered same question about why I was there, showed the invitation, was asked where I was staying (no idea, was getting picked up!), and then if I had tickets for leaving the country (great way to make me feel welcomed...). had the ticket information on a printed paper, so that was no problem either. then he asked me what I do and stuff. after a while the guy was quite nice, and even asked me what I thought of stockholm. naturally I told him he should come visit, it's really beautiful, especially in the summer :)
I get out, and right there another police woman is standing checking the paper I had with me all the way from leaving the plane (some info about me and stuff). she makes a big blue mark on it, and I have no idea what it means...
go get my luggage, and another control, tells me to turn right. get there, show my paper to another police, and they say that the woman wanted to check my luggage, no idea what or why.
so I go sit down, listen to some music, and see the police come with two guys in handcuffs. a bit scary...
she finally comes, x-rays my suitcase and bag, and says thank you and lets me go. all in all it took me about an hour and a half from leaving the plane until I got out (it took 30 minutes in israel...), and I get picked up here too :)
about 45 minute ride back, absolutely beautiful sunset. wish I had taken pictures of it... socialize a bit, introduce myself to pretty much everyone, and mingle a bit with the people that are already there. I'm quite tired though, and at 11.30 I go to bed, after being up for about 26 hours. but I'm happy :)
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