Bethesda Trolley Trail

Start of the Bethesda Trolley Trail (aka North Bethesda Trail) off of Tuckerman Road.

Friday night M* and I walked five miles from Rockville into Bethesda via the Bethesda Trolley Trail (a flat path that is really a connection of a number of shorter trails through neighborhoods and over two freeways). We first did this walk by accident the previous Sunday—when we realized that we had already completed half of the walk and it would be the same distance to get into Bethesda as to turn around and return to my mom's place, we continued on knowing that we could take Metro back and hoping that my mom might be in the area to give us a ride.

View of the 270 freeway from the pedestrian bridge near the start of the trail.

On Friday, we were without a car, but invigorated by our walking/ cycling experience in Cambridge, we decided to walk to a recently well-reviewed restaurant in Bethesda. While taking Metro was an option, returning to a car dominated lifestyle has been making us feel a bit lumpish, so we were quite happy to get the exercise. As we got started a bit later than planned, instead of most of our walk being before sunset, the sun only made an appearance for the first 15 minutes of our excursion. Even without a flashlight M* and I managed to find our way along the path—it's a bit hard to escape the glow of suburbia along the trail.

Our destination—Nark Kara

We were quite hungry when we arrived at Nark Kara—a reasonably-priced, well-reviewed Thai restaurant. M* and I sensed something was wrong upon entering—there were empty tables but no one seated us or another couple for a while, diners were waiting without menus or water, exasperated glances followed servers as they frantically moved from the kitchen to the dining room. It turns out that getting seated was much faster than any other part of the dinner—water, menus, ordering, drinks (didn't come out until after our appetizer which took about 40 minutes while), food. However, the staff was so nice (we got free mango ice cream for dessert) and apologetic (our server did explain that something was wrong, but neither M* nor I could fully understand) and M* and I were in no hurry (we've gotten a bit used to the lengthier European dinner). Some people walked out, some demanded to speak to a manager, some complained loudly, some were just passive aggressive. Those who did stay long enough to receive their meal were mostly very pleased with the result. My Prik Khing was excellent—the green beans were bright green with a good crunch and the dish had a nice spice level—although it took two tries as the first was missing the kaffir lime leaves.

After over two hours in the restaurant, we walked over to the Bethesda Metro and trained it home. As it was after 10pm and it was hat/scarf/mittens weather out, we didn't even consider taking the Bethesda Trolley Trail back. I must say, getting around without a car made us feel healthier and a bit nostalgic for Cambridge.

Happy Halloween!

Inspired by the pumpkin festival at Schloss Ludwigsburg near Stuttgart, Germany, I went with animal themed pumpkins this year. I only wish that I could have entered the creations into my friend Eric's annual pumpkin carving contest. As it is in LA, I didn't think that the monkey, fish and mouse would fare well on the trip.

Me and my monkey.

The German made monkey that was my inspiration.

Our three animal pumpkins: mouse, fish and monkey.

The mouse and fish from Ludwigsburg. I just realized yesterday that the mouse was not a cat. Maybe it could go both ways.

Me and M* arranging my creations.

Since I thought this was originally a cat, I thought the girls wouldn't mind its presence. From their reaction, I should have realized that it was a mouse pumpkin.

Cedar Island, Virginia

We took two trips to Cedar Island, a barrier island bordering the Atlantic Ocean, when we were in Wachapreague last weekend. Carolyn and Adam took us out on Saturday in their 19 foot Carolina Skiff, and then we made a stop during our Captain Rick ecology tour on Sunday.

Carolyn showing off her very large welk shell.

A mature sea turtle finds its final resting spot.

M* had fun chasing ghost crabs back into their holes.

Hermit crabs can be found in the waters on the bay side of the island.

Unfortunately, we found many balloons on the beach. They can be fatal to certain sea creatures.

Skipper Adam, me in full iritis gear (blue blocker shades and cap) and Carolyn.

M* got a lovely Flock of Seagulls hairdo while riding on the bow.

Birds of Wachapreague

Here are some of my brother-in-law's photos from our nature boat tour around Wachapreague Inlet and Cedar Island—his zoom was far superior to mine in capturing the birds that Captain Rick, our guide, pointed out. I saw a few of these species last year when my sister and I explored a different area of the Virginia Shore with Captain Rick, but it's going to take a bit of training before I can identify a bird that doesn't have unique plumage and isn't sitting close enough for me to carry out a thorough inspection.

Double breasted cormorant sunning itself by the Wachapreague Marina.

The red-billed royal and caspian terns.

The marbled godwit walks amongst the oyster shells.

The peregrine falcon perched by its nest—the plastic abode was provided by a local authority.

A group of unidentified shore birds.

The whimbrel has a bill curved at 58°—the perfect angle to raid fiddler crab holes.

And finally, the oyster catcher—the favorite amongst our group.

The Other Cambridge

A lot more fast food and traffic lights and far fewer cows in this Cambridge.

Driving to my sister's shore place in Wachapreague, Virginia (population 235), we passed Cambridge, Maryland. After our time in England and our travels around Europe, we realized how many towns and cities in the U.S. were named after places settlers had emigrated from. Out a sense of nostalgia or our need to use the bathroom or a mixture of the two, we stopped at the McDonald's in Maryland's Cambridge. M* went all native and got the Egg McMuffin Breakfast Meal.

M* enjoying his Egg McMuffin.

AC/DC Without A Hint of Hipster Irony

You know you're back in Maryland when...

you are at the bank, and the mobile phone of a tank-top and shorts wearing fella indicates a call with AC/DC's Back in Black. I just can't imagine such a thing happening in the UK (even though the band is Australian), and in L.A. it would be more of a hipster statement of retro, average joe coolness (like drinking Pabst beer, listening to Journey and sporting trucker hats—thank God that trend has past except for the few who still embrace that tired brand of Von Dutch) than a declaration of a longtime fan.

Kitties!

Luckily Titchou and Brea have forgiven us for abandoning them for the year at "Grandma's."

Titchou is mesmerized by the camera.

Brea is such a glamour girl.

Goodbye 29 Owlstone Road!

Copenhagen—President and Protest

We were walking through Copenhagen's City Center, when we saw a queue of people. Following it to its start, we learned that people were waiting to meet Bill Clinton and have him sign his new book. Since he was set to arrive in a few minutes, we waited around to see him and his Secret Service agents alight from their vehicles. I decided to do join the locals thrusting their hands forward for a shake (the rest of my family has met him, so I figured it was my turn), and M* got a video of Bill (unfortunately, I did not make it into the clip).

Copenhagen—Red Life District and Graffiti

The reviews of our hotel did not mention that the hotel is located right on the edge of the red light district. M* found this out during his interview, when a potential future boss asked him where we were staying. I also had picked up clues such as the Bunny Club strip joint on the same street as the hotel.

Shop right around the corner from our hotel.

The area is actually in the process of gentrifying, and we didn't see much more than a few sex shops and strip clubs. We were also told that Copenhagen is an extremely safe city. With hotel prices around $300/ night in this area, I expected a slightly different neighborhood ambiance. Still, with the train station four blocks away, the hotel was very convenient.

American graffiti in Copenhagen.

The other surprise of our trip was the graffiti—the presence of it in most neighborhoods and the amount of it that was in English. As we were told that the Danes are some of the happiest people (according to some study), I was a bit surprised by the large quantity and the anger displayed by it. Perhaps I've just lost my edge after spending a year in the pastoral setting of Cambridge.

New take on 'Make love, not war'?

At first I thought this meant a call to rise up against gay people, but I checked, and it refers to the struggle by gay Muslims for acceptance.

Copenhagen--First Impression

Not the New Yorker that I'm used to.

While waiting for M* to return from his interview, I walked from our hotel to the Strøget, which is a series of streets known for good shopping. Well, I should have expected globalization to have left its mark on Copenhagen, and I, unfortunately, saw mainly stores that one can find in most large cities: Zara, Urban Outfitters, Ecco, H&M.

The Strøget begins with a 7-11 on one corner and a Burger King on the other.

I had read or heard that Copenhagen was a lot like Amsterdam, and I can see it a bit in the architecture of the older buildings. However, it's Amsterdam with fewer canals, more advertisements and neon signs, and a 7-11 or American fast food establishment (McDonalds, Burger King, KFC) in every block. I'm expecting that once we explore more of the city, we'll discover a more authentic Copenhagen.

Ads like these that cover soulless office buildings in Los Angeles--that I can handle. It's such a shame that these lovely, historic buildings are used to hock mobile phones, airlines and financial services.

On another note, our hotel (AXEL Hotel Guldsmeden) is conveniently located by the central train station and Tivoli Gardens. However, the famous gardens are closed until 12 October when they reopen completely decorated for Halloween.

Tivoli Gardens decorated for Halloween. Getting past the gate will have to wait for another visit.

Off to Scandinavia

Polse, a Danish hotdog, is quite popular in Copenhagen.

M* and I thought we'd have almost a week in Cambridge to relax, visit with friends and sightsee, but tomorrow and Tuesday we will be in Copenhagen. It's all for a good reason—M* has a job interview that could relocate us to Denmark or North Carolina. Neither of us has been to Copenhagen, so instead of him flying back to the UK directly after the Monday interview, I'm flying with him in the morning and we'll stay until late Tuesday. I hope to get a feel for the place, and determine how easy it is to get around speaking English.

I'm glad that Copenhagen is often described as a vibrant, dynamic, energetic or exciting, as the weather is often described as wet and rainy. M* and I already had a hard time coping with the wet, cold English summer. If Copenhagen is where we end up, we certainly will be making frequent weekend trips to warmer destinations in Europe. I just hope that easyJet expands their service from Copenhagen airport.

Back in the UK

We're back!

We actually feel quite lucky to have arrived back in the UK yesterday, as a severe storm blew over the Dubrovnik area Thursday night. Howling winds kept me from any form of sleep, and our 5:30am ferry from the island of Sipan was canceled (we later found out this only happens two or three times a year). We were able to hire a private boat to take us across the Kolocepski Channel to the small port of Slano, and there the hotel had arranged for a car to take us to the airport. The 44 kilometers was the most harrowing auto journey that I've ever experienced—we had to travel through the storm bombarding Dubrovnik. The two lane road snakes along the coastal cliffs high above the seaside towns, and it can be an adventure in the best of weather. On Friday, rain and mud were pouring down the mountain side onto the road—stranding some cars and requiring mini bulldozers to clear the route of stones washed onto the road. Since a portion of the mountains around Dubrovni were devoid of vegetation due to recent fires, fears of being pushed over the cliffs by a mudslide certainly crossed my mind. Our 22-year-old driver commented that he's never seen such weather before, but that didn't stop him from talking on his mobile. Still, he got us to the airport in one piece, and I tipped him heartily for it.

Anyway, here's a picture of M* and me high above the Old City of Dubrovnik taken by our taxi driver on the day we arrived. The weather was much better that day.

Amsterdam—Around Town

Today was our first full day in Amsterdam, but the morning was spent sleeping in. Although we didn't have jet lag to recover from, we did have post-moving exhaustion.

Me outside of Van Gogh Museum (guidebooks said we would have to wait in line for tickets, but we got right in).

As we are staying in the museum district, we walked over to the Van Gogh Museum and spent the afternoon there. Before meeting up with our Los Angeles friends, Abe and Frank, for dinner, we walked through Vondelpark, one of Amsterdam's main parks, and Oud Zuid, a very nice, residential area of the town where our accommodation is located.

We saw a few herons in Vondelpark. They did not seem bothered by people or dogs.

After being in Cambridge, we are used to seeing people on bicycles. However, Amsterdam is a much larger city and, though old, it's younger than Cambridge, which allows more of its streets to have room for cycle lanes. We do see more people cycling while on mobile phones and with friends and children catching a ride sitting 'side saddle' on a back rack.

Cycle commuters in Vondelpark.

Large, lovely buildings in Oud Zuid

While residential, Oud Zuid has a number of fancy shops—like this bakery.

Frank and Abe have been to Amsterdam a few times, and they made a reservation at Tempo Doeloe, the best Indonesian restaurant in the city (yes, there are quite a few). It was a fantastic meal filled with spice, heat, coconut, anise, coriander, meats, vegetable, and general deliciousness. Since it's been over a year since we've seen Abe and Frank, the meal was that much more special.

Abe in front of our newly served dinner—spiciest dishes on left, mildest on right.

Abe and me outside Tempo Doeloe.

We did pass on desert, in favor of touring the red light district. It's one of those things you just have to do. Still, it's a little disturbing to hear people negotiating with a woman in the window and then have the black curtain drawn. At least the women are unionized with access to medical care.

Amsterdam—We Arrive

The photographer never gets in the photos—sigh. Good thing M* photographs well and is a willing subject (usually).

M* really likes the tile outside of our accommodation.

Lovely, wooden canal boats by our accommodation.

M* outside the Rijksmuseum—it's as close as we got, as the museum had just closed.

We bypassed the restaurants in touristy Leidseplein, and, luckily, stumbled upon Casa Peru.