Spring break

I took a break from the recent gray days and worked on some pictures from last spring. This is the same garden from the Shoals Garden Tour that I posted about before. The "more pictures later" part only took me eight short months! Oh well.


I'd never been on a garden tour, so I wasn't sure what to expect. But this garden alone was worth the price of the tour. It's difficult to believe that all of this was on 3/4 acre.


Calla lily.


So much of what I love about this garden is the hardscaping. This purple wall was a favorite feature, and if I ever build a garden, I'm now convinced that I'd want to include a lot of statuary. (I think this is Apollo.)


Piney path.


Cherub planter.


Shady rest.


From the more traditional front of the house, you'd never guess that all that was going on in the back.

The garden has its own web site.

Veins

A fallen leaf backlit by the Sun.

'Tis the Season!

Today was the first time we've ridden our roadbikes since December, and it was a wonderful 27 mile ride. The weather was not as nice as we'd hoped (very windy and the temperature10°F lower than the forecast promised), but at least the snow was gone. I wore two layers of wool, thin gloves and a hat. Other than my nose running, all was good. Using the trainer over the winter certainly paid off, and I did not feel as out of shape as I'd anticipated. The trainer has also taught me to use lower gearing and spin faster. While it's been somewhat annoying to "reprogram" my style of cycling, I think it's ultimately better for me in the long run.



I took theBianchi onthe start-of-the-season ride, because Iwas excited to finally test it for real - going as fast as I wanted without worrying about ice patches. I am now more impressed than ever with its handling. It is faster than my other bikes - which may very well be from the more leaned forward position it places me in, but the difference is noticeable. It is also more comfortable than any other roadbike I've ridden with the exception of my Rivendell. The positioning feels just right, and the ride is cushy over bumps. Since the roads are completely messed up from the snow right now, I got to test this aspect of ride quality more than I would have liked, and it really was great. My problem with roadbikes that feel harsh over pot holes is twofold: First, it's painful. And second, it's difficult to control the bike if it bounces, especially with narrow tires. So when a bike is able to "swallow" pot holes and road bumps, it makes me feel a great deal safer and more confident. Not sure whether it's the tubing, the geometry, or the wheels of the Bianchi that are responsible for the great ride quality (it's not the tires, because at least 2 other bikes fitted with identical tires felt worse), but whatever it is, I'm glad.



Though my ideal standover height would be 2cm lower, I don't feel that the top tube clearance on the 54cm (center-to-center) frame is a problem. There is a gray cable that runs along the top of the toptube, and that contacts my inseam. But the toptube itself does not - there is probably 5mm of room there.



One benefit to riding this larger frame, is that there is no toe overlap. Were I to fit this bicycle with fenders, there would be - but as is, my foot clears the front wheel completely even during the most extreme turns possible (I've experimented). This is another aspect of the bike that makes me feel confident on it. I can handle toe-overlap on bikes that I know have it, but when given a choice I prefer no overlap.



The Co-Habitant was back on his Motobecane as well, and we were well matched speed-wise with me on the Bianchi. And I know what you're thinking: That poor man, riding the same beat up old roadbike while I luxuriate in choice. What can I say - I agree. Believe it or not he has been impossible to convince that he needs a new bike... until now. It is very likely indeed that he will have a new steed this summer, but I will leave the details a mystery for now. In the meanwhile, I'm just glad that both the weather and our work schedules have finally cooperated and we were able to ride together again. Hurray for spring!

Geneve working, bonjour! (and airport nightmares)

The week in Geneve went rather quick. I was very busy; I was in a training and I had several meetings spread throughout the week as well. I have never really posted much about my work life in this blog which is a conscious decision by the way but while on the plane to Geneve, I thought of taking a foto of my daily work outfits, which is not as fashion forward as compared to outfits on other blogs out there. My work outfits are mainly business conservative.

And because I have been busy throughout the week I only remembered to take a foto of my outfit on Friday, the last day. A colleague took a foto of me another day so I’ll wait for that and post soon.

Last day work outfit. I go around at work, at my clients and business partners in similar business outfits. A bit boring but safe =), I try to liven up my outfits with colours sometimes.

My flight, Amsterdam - Geneva was actually at 07:00 Monday. I drove to the airport very early that morning, however, I missed my exit because it was very dark. It was misty and it was raining. I couldn’t see the road and the signs clearly. I ended up entering the private terrain of Schiphol which is only meant for employees. It was a drama because I held up tens of cars waiting for their turn to get into the premises. In order to get inside you must have the employee parking pass. Of course I do not have it. It took some time to get everyone out of the way so I can back up the car and go away. In shame =(

Which meant that I got to P3 Schiphol parking (for long parking) late. Found parking at 311 row which is a loooong walk to the bus pick-up area. Walking under the rain in my business suit, high heels, a large luggage, a hand bag and my work-laptop bag and 1 hand holding the umbrella is a challenge. I thought about P1 and P2 parking at Schiphol but cost-cutting is a priority in many companies nowadays.

When I arrived at Schiphol the queues at the security for Schengen states were a CHAOS. I began to worry about the long lines. There was as well a long line at the self-service baggage drop-off but the lines to the security gates were KILOMETRES long! In short, it took me a frustrating and agonizing 1 hour to stand on the line. I MISSED MY FLIGHT.

Schiphol Amsterdam Airport is the biggest and busiest airport hub in Europe and they only have 1 security gate for all Schengen states? Unbelievable. I thought this is supposed to be a world class airport? Schiphol is a mean jungle on its own if you are not familiar with it. Just from the security gate, it can take 15 to 20 minutes or more to reach your boarding gate. I always see people running every time I am at Schiphol. It is a massive airport.

Anyway, I went to the transfer desk to rebook my flight but since I am on a local within Europe flight I had to wait 45 minutes before being entertained. There were so many people that missed their flights that morning and the international intercontinental passengers who missed their transfer flights were their priority. I did small chat with a man who missed his flight to Helsinki. He said the last time he missed his flight was to Croatia and there was only 1 flight each day so he had to go home.

Now, the nice thing about flying with KLM is they have several flights to Geneve in a day so I was booked for the next flight at 09:30.

Flight was uneventful, an hour and a half. I finally arrived in Geneve and waiting for my luggage to appear at the baggage carousel. There were still more than 30 people waiting for their bags to come out when suddenly the baggage carousel stopped moving. Huh? What is happening?

An airport personnel who speaks little English motioned all of us to go to an office. By this time we knew our bags were missing, they did not make it to the flight. Apparently, there was something wrong with the baggage belts at Schiphol. But I could hardly believe that more than 30 people in the same flight were missing their bags?! It was definitely a WTF moment.

Then a group from a local TV network carrying lights and a camera rushed to the scene to interview people. I hate to be on TV so I avoided them. They eventually came to our line and asked me if I speak French. I said no in an unfriendly way and quickly turned away. Glad I did that because they further interviewed the woman behind me, in English. Geez, I do not want to appear on Geneva TV. Yikes.

For the record, this is my second time that KLM lost my bag. The first time was a flight from Manchester to Amsterdam several years back. I received my bag 2 days later.

After filing a lost luggage report at Geneva Airport, I happen to meet a colleague who was travelling from Cairo via Amsterdam. He was on the same flight and lost his bag as well. He overheard the name of my hotel which is the same hotel he was staying and saw my calling card when I gave it to the airport personnel. Luckily, I got my bag that night, delivered to my hotel. He got his the next day.

Sigh. What a great way to start a work week in a different country.

Although the beds were comfortable, I did not like them because they have rollers underneath and because they are 2 separate beds they slide easily away from each other. I prefer a 1 big bed!

My hotel is located near the airport which is also near to our headquarters. It’s a business hotel and for this price I could have stayed in an upscale lavish boutique hotel. Everything is expensive in Switzerland. To give you an idea, a 2-star hotel for example will cost you 120+ Euros. A 4-star or business hotel would be double the price.

I took the tram every day. It’s just 1-stop to our office. I could have walked but not in my high heels. Geneve Tourism is giving away free public transport cards to tourists and business visitors. You get the card at the hotel during check-in. And recycling is very much alive in Geneva.

The trams are also equipped with video screens showing the route and what the next stop is. Very handy.

I didn’t really took many fotos of Geneve but there will definitely be more stories soon!

Come! Zivy!

See more about Ziva or Zivy as we sometimes call her at http://thepuppytale.blogspot.com/

A beautiful morning in the Badlands

After my recent visit to Nebraska, I took a slight detour on the way home to visit the Black Hills and the Badlands of South Dakota. I arrived in Badlands National Park in the late afternoon hoping for some nice sunset conditions, but it was not meant to be. The day ended much the same way it began: with overcast skies, high winds, and very little color in the sky. The following morning was a different story. The wind had died overnight and was nothing more than a slight breeze, and the heavy cloud cover had disappeared along with the wind. What remained were some very intriguing clouds that added a lot of interest to my wide-angle landscape shots of the Badlands.

Gretton - Harringworth Lodge - Gretton

With Barry. 6.5 miles. Snow still underfoot, though melting. Cold wind from west. Misty.



We followed the Jurassic Way east from Gretton, along the farm track and across the fields. We turned right before we reached Harringworth Lodge, where a permissive path is marked in a gap between two pieces of woodland. This took us to a surfaced track where we turned left again, and carried on until we met the road from Deene to Spanhoe. Another left turn, ignore the path to the right, and continue until there is another path indicated in both directions. We took the left-hand path, across the middle of a large field with a house and a few outbuildings on the right. At the other end of the field Harringworth Lodge and Lake come into view at the bottom of a short descent.





We saw a distant hare, and closer, some hardy long-horn cattle. Then a herd of deer crossed our path, from the woods on our right. Maybe we disturbed them with talking? A while later on the other side of the lake, we found a couple of sheep stuck in the bars of their feeder, wedged by the sheer quantity of thick wool. Nobly rescued at Barry's insistence, they dashed away, without even saying thank you. The farmer arrived in his Land Rover, so I guess they'd have been fine.





(more later)