Official Blog Notice:
I will be away on a First World safari for the month of July. I will be gone from July 1st to August 5th.
I will be exploring countries with the world's highest standard of living to map them out ... for me anyway, not really for humankind.
I will be traveling with an old friend of mine, a retired Lutheran pastor from Brooklyn, Bill Paulsen. Alas, Michael is not able to join us; the biggest hardship of the whole trip, and my biggest regret.
We will first travel to Norway (where else would a Brooklyn bred Norwegian go first?), to Oslo and surroundings. We will then spend a lot of time in Germany; Hamburg, Nuremberg, Berlin, Frankfurt, Münster, with some possible day trips to Cologne, Munich, Koblenz, and maybe Lübeck. We will then go to France; five days in Paris with a day trip to Chartres, and then to Lyons and surroundings for a few days. Finally, we will spend a few days in Amsterdam and then back to New York.
In all of those places, we will be staying with Bill's friends and family. Paris is the only city where we will be staying in a hotel. We will be meeting another mutual friend of ours, Paul Lane, in Paris. Fortunately, Paul speaks French and knows the city, especially its public transportation since Bill is slightly disabled and walks with a cane.
This will be my biggest travel adventure since 1988 when I spent 2 months in Italy. I've never been to any of these places except Frankfurt (and the airport in Amsterdam; best public restrooms I've ever seen in my life).
Play nice with each other while I'm gone, and I look forward to boring you all with travel stories and lots of pictures when I get back.
Au revoir!
Auf wiedersehen!
Have a safe and lovely trip. I'll miss seeing you on your home ground, alas.
ReplyDeleteI'll miss you too.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely trip. Have a splendid time! I have been to Oslo several times; I love Norway and the Norwegians. haven't spent much time in Germany-- I will look forward to hearing all about it. We'll miss you!
ReplyDeleteNo pics/posts till you get back? {Sad Trombone}
ReplyDeleteBon Voyage, Doug! In Vikingland (etc) be sure to plunder yourself some good times and great art! :-D
I assume you'll put your blog on moderation (so he-without-friends doesn't show up like an overfed seagull and... )
ReplyDeleteIndeed, comments will be on moderation.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to post from over there too, but no laptop for me until (maybe) next year. I'm limited to a very old and unportable desktop, so we'll all just have to wait.
But, I promise to take some really good pictures, and a lot of them.
The trusty digital camera will be going with me.
Promise you will approach the Eiffel Tower (your first time) from the Trocadero side (there is a Metropolitan stop at Trocadero) and walk down the steps with the Lyons mouth fountains showering cool water into the air..be careful it may stop your heart, even a sesoned Florence visitor like you may find the vastness of beauty a bit daunting. Makes me want to cry thinking about what one experiences.
ReplyDeleteNice! If you have a day to spare, go visit the Kröller Müller:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.kmm.nl/?lang=en
Take the designated bus from Arnhem, and at the entrance of the National Park take the free bikes, or if Mr. Bill can't do that, there is other transportation.
I am sure you'll love it
Cheers from Nijmegen