I heard, and read, many a story of people traversing the globe in order to
make some sense of the world in which they live, or perhaps it was because they
were bereaved by the world in which they lived so that set out with the hopes
of finding a better, more inviting one(a place to call home). In these modern
times, the internet has become a popular place to find such event records. No
longer do we have to wait for the person to perish to read in their diary
of the failure of their search, but now technology allows us to have our
optimism killed with the click of a button.
I write this diary as a personal record, so I can remember (even after I have
lost the ability to do so) all the things I have discovered. And so that you,
the hapless wanderer in cyberspace(essentially on the same quest as I) do not
have to fall victim to the same errors I have made.
I left Edmonton totally unprepared for the eight hour flight ahead of me, I
had not eaten enough and I had stayed up late trying to pack. I have come to
the conclusion that I am not supposed to be a jet-setter. DANGIT, and I was so
hoping*sigh*. Although I do suppose that if the world revolved around me, than
I would not have to travel out into the world, as it would come to me.
I walked into the all familiar(and somewhat small, although it appears to be
going under some major renovations to expand the international wing) Edmonton
and by a major bout of coincidence the first person I talked to after the
check in lady was going to be on my flight *shrug*.
The flight was quite uneventful, i just curled up and read about Ishmael's
sojourns on the open seas, and watched the inflight movies("telling lies in
America" and "The man in the Iron mask"....I was so hoping for a showing of
"Titanic"*shrug*). Anyway, as I was saying the flight was uneventful, no power
losses to the engines, no lightening strikes, no 9 missing minutes(which for
you non x-philes would correspond to an alien spaceship ripping a whole in
the side of the plane and performing grotesque experiments on you, and then
placing you back in your seat).And to top it off I couldn't even get to sleep.
Stupid economy class seating! I am surprised that there isn't more on
plane riots from all those people crammed into their seats in the back of the
plane. Who would stop them? A lady stewardess? Ha! And those people who
occupy the first class seats have probably not worked a hard day in their
life so I am sure they could not quell the impending onslaught of the
"lower class".
Anyway on with the story...we landed in the London Heathrow airport, and the
first thing that I noticed was its size. It had 4 separate terminals, and I
thought Vancouver's airport was big. Then again the age old axiom goes
"its not the size that counts but how you use it". I took the time
between my connecting flight to browse around the terminal. And once again I
was taken aback, my views of Canada being dashed against the White cliffs of
Dover. I knew the Canadian dollar was bad against the american one, but I was
not prepared for how it stood up(or failure to stand up) to the almighty
English pound.$2.50 Canadian for 1 Eng. Pound Oh my Country, how we
have fallen from our once great financial podium.(That is of course
assuming that we once had a podium to stand on, my 22 yrs of age is nothing
to build an arguement on*shrug*. But hey I can rant, and rant I shall!)
The only thing left to mention was the picturesque decent into the Geneve
airport, I felt at home. Mountains at last, how I missed you. I went to pick
up the rental car I had reserved and you would not believe the trouble I had.
Turns out they wouldn't accept cash, they wanted to block of my credit card.
And as you know, me being the poor starving student I am did not have enough
money on my credit card to suffice the europeans. So if you book a car in
Canada or the US and they tell you to pay the rest when you get there, make
sure you have room on your credit card!
And the evening and the morning of the first day.
Day 2, Monday July 7th,1998.
Today was the first day at CERN, it was spent mainly in paperwork and red
tape. THe usual, name , date of birth, have you at any point in time faked
citizenship and snuck across borders with the soul purpose to sell
government secrets, and if so would you like to be recruited by the secret
swiss intelligence? And my all time favorite question....are you having fun
yet?
After finishing the day hard at my computer terminal, i decided to take the
night to observe my surroundings. CERN is located just beside Meryin,
Switzerland, strategically placed beside ample graoe fields. I am sure that the
fields which I saw are not privately owned, but instead are owned by CERN
itself. Due to all the hard working physicsists to which it has become home,
and as any selfrespecting person knows the best way to keep a physicist happy
is to keep his glass more than half full of his favorite wine(or beer for us
younger ones who do not have the distinguished taste buds, we may have had them
at one point in time but the student kraft dinner staple surely killed them!)
My hotel is located in a quaint village which heralds by the name
Ferney-Voltaire. The town is named after the apparently famous write
Voltaire*shrug*. He couldn't have been that famous since I have not read
anything by him. And as we all know the world revolves around me =) It is
situated in France, literaly a stones throw away from the Switzerland
Duone(or border).I walked from my hotel into the heart of Ferney, a walk
which took a good 10 minutes. It is everything you ever wanted in a
stereotypical french village. If it wasn't for the cars and street signs you
could have easily stepped back in time and not noticed anything different.
It had your atypical french building,complete with the window shudders, and
the authentic cobblestone streets. The village has been around longer than
Vancouver has and I am sure it hasn't grown since! Many of the building on
the outskirts of the city have been abondoned for some time and in makes
me wonder why they haven't been demolished. I guess the French, take some
strange pride in the history..a history that is somehow depicted by decriped
old buildings.
And a few things of noteworthy value, the cars are indeed smaller, although
this rule does not apply to the larger cities, only to the smaller villages.
Everyone speaks french, Ack..and to think I dropped french in high school
becuase Ithough I would never use it. And the bathrooms, how can I forget the
bathrooms. The one room in my house which I visit everyday, it calls to me,
it has a smell all its own..a mix of handsoap,bleach and stale air. Ah, there
is nothing like it. We even have material to read strictly in this room.
Literature which doesn't belong anywhere else in a house, you know things like
vogue, GQ, readers digest...war and peace. It is the room where we can say
goodbye to our beloved pets, it is the one room we can lock ourselves in and
annoy the rest of the family by doing absolutely nothing. How many secrets
are locked within its hallowed walls.
I'm back, as I was saying there are a few differences between the European
bathrooms and the North american ones. The first is the lofty throne. There
is not a simple handle on press on the front of it. From the styles I have seen
there are press panels on the wall, or on the top of the water tank, or even a
little handle to pull on the top of tank. The second is the faucet, the faucet
is placed well above the sink, so it is quite easy to get your hands to
close to the faucet and spread water everyhwere.
All in all it seems like a nice place, but I wouldn't want to live here.
Day 3, Tuesday July 8th,1998
I did the necessary safety course at CERN, before I am allowed to work in the
PIT I had to have this course. Now I have the requirements to spend 8 hrs a day
working 100m underground. And with it being the summer months, with the long
and hot days, I decided to venture over to Geneve for the remainder of the
evening. For a city(not the metropolis I imagined) which is home to the UN and
many other international buildings, I am surprised to see the name of the city
spelt so many different ways. Given that some interpretation would be necessary
for the more symbolic languages, you would think that it would be constant
among the germanic strains. All these flourishing languages makes one wish
for the days of your when you could get all you needed by grunting, and
clubbing things over the head. To get a woman in those days must have been
as easy as using a vending machine today. Spy a woman you like, club her over
the head(not to hard mind you, as I am sure woman were as unforgiving then as
they are now) and drag her back to your abode(albeit some cave, or an office
on the 70th floor of the sears tower. To which you have been abolished because
the current SO is having a bad day. Now why is it that woman take it out on
their SO's. If a guy is having a problem, he either (a) Goes and kicks a
dog(b)sucks dead bunnies up a straw(thanks Henry) or (c) or go beats up his
best bud.
Now imagine a woman having a bad day. The man comes home, notices the distress
in the woman and ask whats wrong. She will then retort with the one statement
do not have an answer..."if you have to ask me that question..." she then
storms out of the room and locks herself in the bedroom and curls up with a
harlequin romance brooding over how insensitive men are. And the man, who if
you note has not got two words in edgewise is automatically delegated to spend
the rest if the evening on the couch, and somehow try to manage to catch enough
sleep so that the boys down at the constructions sight don't know he was
getting any the last night. Since it is pretty well understood that a man was
created to only sleep in a bed he will obviously be read and harassed by the guys at work. At which point he will get annoyed and go out and kick some womans
dog. To which she will get annoyed and take it out on her SO when he gets home and the cycle will repeat itself all over again.
Now where was I, ahh yes. I arrived in Geneve at roughly 8:30PM, with still
some daylight left. Geneve is a very beautiful city, the old city is set on
the base of Lac Leman, out of which flows a river which flows still deeper
into the city. And since I arrived in typical guy mode, no plans, no map I up
and decided to venture further into the heart of Geneve. The city itself has
been around quite along time(or so the brochure says), and is even more
stereotypical than Ferney-Voltaire. I wandered past bakery's and
coffeeshops(No starbucks that I saw) through streets that wer only wide enough to fit two grown men abreast. And much to my surprise. the place abounded with
old water fountains. I passed one fountain that had its origins around
1850 or so, and it was still working. I was quickly reminded of the ancient
roman public baths(don't ask me why I just was) I also managed to find the
perfect contemplation spot, equivalent to the place I hold so dear down at
Wreck Beach. It is an elevated park which leads to an art gallery(I think)
on one side, the other side looks between/over buildings directly at the
300 ft water jet in the center of Lac Leman. But by now it had gotten to
dark and my camera wouldn't work so I dedicated to take this picture another
time. After pointless wanderings for a little more, and by this time the area
was as dark as the night I happened upon what appeared to be a play.And after
scoping out the scene it seemed to be put on by a nearby university, which
of course, was named after some saint. All in all it was a great tour of the
city, but the problem with aimless meanderings is that it is very easy to get
lost, and (brilliant me) I did. And with the 3/4/5 story building rising
abruptly from the already narrow streets I could not direct myself back
to the lake because I could not see it *shrug* So once again I had to murder
the french language and actually get directions
What I have failed to mention is that I showed up in the middle of a World
Cup Soccer game(Brazil vs. Holland, in case you were curious). All around
Geneve there were these public tents set up, complete with large number of
kegs selling overpriced beer, and eachone complete with a projection of the
game, and with many smaller TVs outside the tent for those unlucky enough
to get a seat inside.
Once I made my way back to the main bridge(Pont du Mont Blanc), I decided to
wander through the party down there one lst time before I would head back
to the hotel.Barely I stepped two feet into the party grounds when I was
accousted by two young lovely ladies who (to my dismay) only asked me for
a phone card, and what team I was cheering for. After much small talk related
to phone cards and such, it came out in the conversation that I was from
Canada. When I told them where I was from, I was not prepared for their
response. Natasha told me that her sister was goign to UBC and was living
on the 15th floor of Gage, and since I was dogged tired by this time I didn't
pry for any more details, but it is totally possible tht I knew her sister
*shrug*. Never before had I such a reason to sing "Its a small world after
all", well except for that trip to Ottawa to visit the Ex last Canada day
where I ran into my coworkers in the international art gallery. But anyway, I
told the girls that I was just here to work at cern and Anna said she had a fr
iend who worked here one "Martin Wilburs"( I looked him up but couldn't
find him). Geneve reminds me much of Vancouver in that it is a melting pot of societys. Natasha(who is currently working at the Body shop, and not quite
done high school) is originally from Australia, and Anna(who wants to go
to Stanford)is originally from Sweden
It was quite nice to actually carry on an in depth conversation with someone
outside the work force.
Day 4, Wednesday July 9th,1998
I decided to return to the hotel early today, I want to make sure that I can get to CERN on time tomorrow for a tour of "The Pit". An intimidating name to say the least. I have always wondered at the need of Particle physicists to label their experiments with cute little titles(usually an acronym). Is it a simply to bring the experiment down to a laymens level so funding will become more available or is it something more(or less) complex. The fact that I cannot reconcile this issue is an indication that at this moment I am not a full fledged particle physicist. Anyway back to the issue at hand, as I was saying I wanted to get to bad early since the night before I got lost in a main city in the foreign country I feel I need to make up for it. Imagine that, me being responsible =)
At the office today was quite uneventful, I got my filmbadge(a device used to measure radiation exposure), a sticker for my car(so I don't keep getting pulled over at the gate or border and having people jabber at me in French), and my CERN ID# 50141. It is true folks, I have become yet another number.
Well today I made my first outreach to someone at CERN. Mind you it wasn't much of a foreign outreach since the fellow spoke impecable English as he studied at UCD(a college in southern California). I was in one of my moods to try and integrate myself with the Swiss culture so I tried a drink that I was not familiar with at home, it was a disgusting drink called 'Force 4'. After much deliberation,debating and deciphering(since neither of us spoke german) we determined it to be a de-alcoholized beer. This lead to the mutual praise of Switzerland: a land where beer is cheaper than pop and more prevalent than milk.
This is definitely not a healthy society. And over a plate of local lab cuisine we swapped stories about excursions(or lack thereof)into the local area. I read a sign today for 'Ultimate Frisbee'(although it was CERN oriented), I was still impressed thinking "Yes, they do play sports besides Soccer, there is hope for this continent afterall =)"For all those out there who do not know what UF is lemme give you brief rundown. It is a mixture of frisbee, and that handball game you played as a kid. For more info click here. I went to the location where they were supposed to be playing and to my dismay they were not there(I went on the wrong day actually*sigh*) So I did a quick drop into St. Genis Poully to take a look around. It is a nice little place, but it is even smaller than Ferney-Voltaire.
As it is possible to be lonely surrounded by people of your own nationality, it is even easier to be lonely in a place where you do not speak the language. This is my first press to wanting to by a book on speaking french
The philosphy of the number is an interesting one. We are all afraid at being lost in a system were we cease becoming people and becoming a number. Now we must ask ourselves, what makes us a person? That which makes us a person, is that which makes us separate and distinct from everyone else. Now in todays society we are no longer categorized by 1 number but by many. We have the SIN, we have our drivers license, we have student numbers, ID #'s at work. Is the fact that we are several numbers which separate us from other indivudual areas enough to make us into individuals once again?
Yet another day to sit and enjoy the French country side, or make that would enjoy the french country side if I could pull my car off the road. Which I can't since the roads are TOO thin. Its no wonder the cars here have to be made so small, nothing else could fit!! Well this is what it was like on the road to the pit anyway.Now the drive to the pit is courgeous, GEneve is in a valley of sorts, and relatively flat with mountains on either side. Much like a mixture of Alberta and British Columbia, with the summer weather of Alberta. The road to the pit is littered with many small French Villages(as the pit is on the french side of the border). My only complaint comes as that of a young man, there are too many speed bumps on this stretch of road. Now before you go critisizing my driving technique I shall be quick to point out that the french drivers are even worse than me. Now if you know me you may ask how is that possible, but trust me it is. It seems there are people out there who are eager to socialize with perfect stranger physicists. Today I was joined by a group of Spanish folk, most of which spoke english, except for the visitors.We talked about Spain and many of the stereotypes(which reminds me I saw a bullfight on TV a few weeks later and it was absolutely horrific!), and of course our mutual hate for the US*grin*. But they told me something that I never expected to here about Spain.It appears that even Spain has a strong celtic influence in the region just above Portugal.(Wow Celts are everywhere..they even be in Canada).
During the course of the dinner I made some passing reference to the WorldCup and my new-found friends were quick to explain to me that it was the most watched event in the world. They asked me to join them to play soccer with them in St.Genis Poully, and once again I couldn't find the proper people playing any sports....at this rate I am going to wither into nothingness before the end of my trip.
But now I make a new vow, one which I hope I can keep, to try and talk with at least 1 new person everyday(which shouldn't be hard to do at meals). I am sure it would be easier if I was living in the hostel, but I will have to use my outgoing personality and make due.
And on a more personal nanrcissistic note, I got my CERN ID Badge today. And I actually like the picture, it is probably the best picture ID I got, it has me looking quite pale and a most smashing young man ;)
Day 6, Friday July 10th,1998
I decided to leave work early today so that I could see Geneve in the day time(and still get back early enough to get sleep before my first shift tomorrow which starts at 7 AM * ack *). But anyway I got into the city at roughly 4 PM with the intention of going to 'PAYOT'(the swiss equivalent to Chapters, and buying a basic French-English book. Unfortunately I parked far from the city center and I had to walk along Lac Leman(A walk which is very similar to the walk along the seawall in Stanley Park, Vancouver). And during this walk I noticed that the peninsula which harbors the lighthouse was packed with people. So I paid my 1.00 CHF to get in(I got the ticket from some strange wind up thingy near the entrance). And then I was treated by one of Europe's perks. A large percentage of the young attractive women were topless! And everyone was being civilized; there was no groping, no stares that were any longer than normal, everyone was behaved. It just goes to show you that North America has some catching up to do. I was going to ask the woman who were with me on the jetty (in case you were curious I was topless as well but reading 'Moby Dick', and no pun was intended) a good place to eat but I chickened out(the girls were approached by some big{ger} guys so I played in safe). By this time I was starving as I had not eaten lunch yet, and as I was leaving I noticed a food desk. I ordered a plate of nachos and a coke(8.80 CHF) and had a seat at a table with another young man, and listened to the live french band.
Calling upon my keen powers of observation I noticed the fellow watching his watch, as if waiting on someone. I ended up asking him where to find the bookstore, my accent murdered the pronounciation so he at first had no idea what I was saying * smirk *. We got into some idle chit chat, what do you do, where you from, weather etc. We were eventually joined by two of his lovely friends. Stephanie(who is a nurse and spoke un peu d'anglais) and Sophie the joker( who didn't speak english but wants to go study in California. Once they arrived we talked about life(jokes), food,sun and language. They let me try a french meat called 'Vashe', a dried meat from a cow which tasted like salami(sort of). They helped me quite a bit with my french, and now I have a penpal to boot. I look forward to meeting more people. Thanks marty. We parted ways(enchante, nice to meet you) and I headed hom. It was a good day.(Even if I didn't get to my intended destination)
Day 7, Saturday July 11th,1998
Today was quite uneventful(Quel chance), but I did manage a few noteworthy things. The PIT was uneventful except for the typical radiation spikes and high voltage warnings. I went to Geneve to go to the Payot knowing that I could make it before it closes. It seems Geneve closes early even on a Friday. I picked up a french verb dictionary and a phrase book(28 CHF). I do have an interest now in learning the language, and it would be cool if I can. Learning the language of love would definitely by an asset =) The sky was clear today so the drive from OPAL to Geneve was beautiful: the france country side, the geneve skylline, layered mountains...it was picture perfect After I bought the book I decided to treat myself to some Hagen-Daz at a little store on Route-de-France(I had the bounty hunter 6.90 CHF). As I was enjoying the sun(being my typical cool self). I heard the couple behind me talking to their baby in both english and french(at a level I could understand). I made some passing comment on raising the baby bilingual, I got corrected.. trilingual. She was french/English he was Iranian/English. So we got to talking about Switzerland(the man had relatives in Canada, Montreal of Course). Apparently Geneve is like Vancouver, in that you would be hard pressed to find someone who has routes here. People tend to move here from abroad, and it is these people who give Switzerland in friendly atmosphere. Rumor has it is that the natives of the area are quite cold. Right now it seems to me that the only thing to do in Geneve is see the old city and the beach.
Day 8, Sunday July 12th,1998
It is quite annoying for it to be Sunday and not be able to go to church, I thought I would sing to myself to help feel better but only a few songs came to mind. I really need to get myself a chorus book. I have an address of a few churches here in Geneve but without a map I am at a loss. So I am sitting here early on a Sunday night (8 PM) listening to some classical music reminiscing on what I have done for the day. 'Twas my second day in the pit and the server at UoA is still down, and if things are quiet in can get quite boring. I am really surprised I haven't gotten any further into Moby Dick. I actually did my first good deed down in the pit. During my tour I heard a strange buzz from one of the HV electronics, the experts came and replaced it. Had it gone down we would have lost measurements from a portion of the SI detector. I went back to the office with the intention of writing a few emails before dinner and going home. I logged into yahoo to check if Megan was on perchance, and maybe get some christian fellowship with it being the Lord's day and all. As coincidence would have it I ended up chatting briefly with a fellow from Edmonton. But I never got the edge or Location * shrug * Then somone walked into the chatroom that got my attention 'Quarksey_1', my spidey-senses went off and I thought, finally, a fellow physicist. Now things get stranger, her name is Ursula and she lives in North East Switzerland(the German part). She is 19 just finished shool and wants to be a chef, and will be travelling in France for the next 3 weeks. But hey a single christian would be a cool person to write to and work on my french with. 2 penpals in 2 days, Woohoo !!! Switzerland is so friendly, unfortunately the 'puter crashed so I couldn't officially say au revoir.
Thinking this filled my quota for meeting people in CH I was prepared to leave for the day when I finally talked to that girl across the hall. Her name is Isabella, from Montreal and she has been here 6 months as a grad student.
The day started out quite poorly. I don't know what happened, but I woke up with a major headache, both my eyes as well as my stomach hurt. But as the trooper I am I went in to work, but by the end of the day I was burning up. And I didn't have any asprin with me because I thought that customs would give me a hard time. Lets hope it goes away so I do not have to resort to drugs(But whoever said that was a bad thing? =) Work was boring as usual, the file server is still down at UoA. The only major problem during the shift was the computer failure, everything went down. I can see it now some physicists out there right now are Poed because they lost 1 hr worth of data Anyway, on my way back from the PIT I stopped in Versonex to go to the Pharmacy. I missed the main parking lot and ended up pulling into some private parking spot(I figured I wouldn't be here too long). Before I had a chance to get out of the car some old lady was right in front of my door so I could not get out, and she started jabbering at me in French. She spoke no english and was only semi-literate which made the conversation quite one-sided. Since I didn't know how to politely say go away she talked all the more. From what I gather she was trying to set me up with a young bilingual friend of hers who was about to get back from vacation. She also mentioned about the lack of nice men in the village(how did she know I was nice?). I was only saved when her neighbour, the owner of the parking spot, came home. He was a younger man about my age, and he spoke good english. So I asked dhim to tell her I really had to go, and I got to the pharmacy only to find it was closed. ARGH, I hate this country and its time schedules(stupid lunch breaks).And I was extremely sore from sitting in my car hunched over the steering wheel for two hours listening to her!!!
Day 10,11, Tuesday,Wednesday July 14th,15th,1998
I got slack in keeping my diary these past couple days. I have been doing the 1500-2300 shift done in the PIT, and I have been trying to change my sleep patterns toward sleeping during the day since I have to do the graveyard shift on Friday.
There really is quite little to say since I haven't gone out sight-seeing these past few days, I guess it is because I'm getting accustomed to the surroundings here. If you think about that it is kind of scary,it only took 10 days to habituate to a whole new country.(Wahoo, I got to use a term in learned in Psych class). My french is also starting to fail(if that is at all possible) since I haven't had the chance to practice it. Ohwell * shrug *
I sent a few postcards back to North America today, it is really quite surprising how little you can actually say on them. The postcard is quite an interesting concept. There is just enough room to say how lovely it is where you are and that you wish the recipient of the card was with you. If you read between the lines you are basically saying ," Don't you wish you had holiday time, because I am here having the time of my life and you are stuck behind your desk." If you think about it the postcard could be the ultimate tool of revenge. Send the postcard to some enemy in jail, and the best thing is you don't even have to say anything and you would get your point across * evil grin *. Then there is the irony of the ability to mail order postcards, send them to someone and get the same effect.
I guess there is always something to write about. I wrote my longest email ever on Tuesday(when phys was down). It was 24 K and was sent to my best friend back in Vancouver, Alison Cole. It was almost as good as a person to person talk, and I ranted so much that it was a blast to write.
But now I must go needs plan a trip.
Day 12, Thursday July 16th,1998
As my 6 day break fast approaches, I find myself getting more and more worried about being able to pull this trip off. I have my flight booked to Edinburgh, but with no means of transportation once I get there it gets complicated.It is a lot of money to spend($440 canadian) especially if I don't go to the places which are the main reason I want to go; namely Glenfinnan and Culloden.If I try to bike around I do not think I can make the entire trip. If I hitchike I do not get the exact freedom I want(as the wait between rides may be long), but there is the possibility that it _ could _ be quicker. Decisions, decisions... I guess I could always cancel these plans and go to Holland * shrug *. Go to my own homeland and hunt down my roots.
Day 13, Friday July 17th,1998
Today was a strange day, not so much eventwise but timewise. It just felt wrong to be up most of today doing stuff knowing that I'd be pulling an allnighter. But I had a few errands to run during the middle of the day that just couldn't wait. I finally got the car rental/creditcard thing fixed up, I also went down to Le Gare (the train station) to scope out a possible site to meet Chris and karen when they get in. I'm thinking maybe Bogart's on Rue des Alpes(open till 2 AM). Strange how the pubs are the only thing open late at night. I also picked up my plain ticket to Edinburgh so there is no turning back now......... its going to be a financially tight trip, but hey what trip of mine hasn't.
The hardonic festival started today; a music festival starring the up and coming musicians out of the physicists. It ain't no Edgefest or Lilith fair, but I am sure itwill be fun just because its different.
I got pulled over at the border today: got the bag/wallet/pockets(what pockets??) checked. I was informed that I can only stay in france 6 nights with a swiss car company. The border officials are conspiring against me I say.
But if I write any more I am going to fall asleep. G'nite.
Day 15, Sunday July 19th,1998
Before I am bombarded by new entries for my diary when we land in Edinburgh I feel it necessary to recount the last days(or last couple days) events.With the night shifts things(mainly time) get really screwed up. After approx 6 hrs of sleep I woke up to a day 1/2 done. I headed to the CERN prevessin site for the final night of the Hardronic festival, and I wanted to hear LHC. A female vocal group which sings about physics. ;) It reminds me of my days in physsoc which were spent physics caroling in the hallowed halls of the UBC physics department(Oh those were the days). So I managed to get my laundry done(you need clean clothes for the trip right?)at a french Laundry matt, and still get to CERN for 7:30PM. However as seems to be the trend in physics it started late and the line up of performers was screwed and I had to leave before they came on *sigh *. I did manage to meet some people last night. Joan and Jessica from the windy city, who were equally bad with Canadian geography as I was with American, there were a couple of Andreas's from Norway and a few other names which ellude me right now. It would have been a boring night without them.. thanks guys =)
I finished my shift without as much as a whimper from errors. So I ran back to the hotel and hastily packed my belongings, arranged my backpack dumped the car at CERN and hopped a bus(#9,then #10) to get to the airport.With my excessive yawning which was transferred to the person next to me, I started up a conversation with her. It was mainly about the poor British service but it extended to all parts of life during the trip to London. She told me she was visiting family in Suisse and was now returning to work back home just outside London as an insurance agent. Her name was Ben and when I told her I was going to put her pic on my web page she told me to put this quote under her "That broad I picked up at the airport and stripped nude on the plane." I guess it was a good thing I sat next to her on the plane *grin *. She gave me advice on both London and Scotland and once we landed we went our separate ways.
Ever since I was a little kid I can remember wanting to visit Scotland. I guessed the TV babysitter I had when I was young placed it in a good light. But seriously who upon any exposure to Scotland has not fallen in love with it. Just to be in the country with the rolling hills, the gorgeous Lochs, great food and friendly people....not even mentioning the awesome accent.
As of this moment I am sitting at the side of a local Safeway with my fellow backpackers,in Fort William waiting to Catch a bus to the Bonnie Prince Charlie monument in Glenfinnan.
I flew into Edinburgh on Sunday, and wandred around the old city taking in some of the culture. I wandered into a tourist store and got a quick history lesson from the proprietor. He really knew his stuff. I find Scottish history fascinating, I dunnit know why I can't stand Canadian history(or serious lack thereof). Anyway, I stayed in one of the Scottish youth hostels that night, which was located in University dorm rooms....situated on Cows gate. And as luck would have it, it was only a short walk to the Grass Market ;)
I woke up bright and early since I got to bed nice and early(9PM) the night before, and I wandered more around Edinburgh till about noon.I hiked up through Hollyrood Park, to the top of Arthur's seat. It was a great view, 'twas a pity that the weather wasn't any better. It has been the wettest summer for decades. I went back to the hostel picked up my itty bitty backpack and headed out for the trip of a lifetime....
I caught the airport bus out of the city(3.20 pounds) and from there I bussed, hitch hiked, got driven by a police cruiser to Stirling. Just a helpful hint for all you prospective Scotland visitors, there is no hitching on the Motorway. It is illegal for somone to pick you up, but it is legal to hitch on all other streets. Just be wise were you hitchike as the streets are quite narrow and there really is no room for somone to pick you up. I fell prey to this dilemna. I ended up walking for Km upon Km as I wasn't hitching from a good 'pickup' position.
Stirling is an awesome city, I do believe(think) the castle here is the official residence of the Queen when she is in Scotland. The old Stirling has a gorgeous stained glass chapel and the castle in just breathtaking. From the castle, where there is a statue of Robert the Bruce, you can see the William wallace monument. I never thought I would say this about a graveyard but it was beautiful, with all the impressive monuments which occupy the yard I can see how the Gothic scene would start. I finished my first roll of 39 film here, and bought two more. I have a feeling I will be spending alot of money on film.
I walked the 45 minute walk to just outside Stirling and continued my journey. It turns out I was hitchiking from a bad place, I was just outside a gathering of Travellers(gypsies and stuff). But by the end of the day, 2 hitches and 1 truck driver(who was really into Numerology) later I made it into a small town called Tundrun. By this time it was almost midnight, and the traffic was very sparce(only truckers really) so I had to splurge and spend the night in a hotel(25 pounds Ack!).
I hitched a ride to Glencoe this morning, this is where the Cambell's slaughtered the MacDonalds. It wasn't as eerie as I expected, but the view was absolutely breathtaking. I walked the 5 km or so into the next town and hitched a ride to Fort William. (where you can pick up a Gondola to go up part way of the biggest mountain in Scotland, Ben Nevis)
Day 3, Wednesday July 22nd,1998
I took the long bus ride up to Kyle of Lochalsh, I chickened on hitchin because the pickings that day were just to few and far between. So we drove through the beautiful highlands of Scotland, over the rolling hills past a few lochs(some made by man) and arrived in Kyleakin( on the shores of Isle of Skye) just prior to 9PM. The bus ride took slightly less than two hours. With the only local bar closing in just a few minutes I rushed over with some other travellers and occupied a table in the 'Castle Moil Pub'. Th 3 fellow travellers were natives to the 3 sides of the UK and were just touring Scotland. Phil/Karen were just finished School, and Mike was an insurance guy I learned about Scottish ways, Scottish Alcohols(reds, hooch, and others), and scottish terminology(mainly referring to women, chicks and mooses) and various other life important things ;) Mike was at the end of his trip since he laid down his new bike, all three of them had just awesome motorcycles.(I was most definately jealous). Mike if you are reading this I hope you got it all figured/sorted out.
I woke up the next morning and headed to Eilean Donan Castle, only about 10 minutes away by bus. I basically ended up throwing away 1/2 my return trip ticket since the bus pass is not transferable. AS soon as you get off somewhere it cannot be used again *sigh*. But the citylink bus service is very good. The Eilean Donan castle belongs to the Clan McRae and was blown up from the inside by the English shortly after the Jacobite uprising. It was rebuilt in the early 20th century. The castle is awesome, it makes for some awesome pictures. Highlander I, starring Christopher Lambert was filmed here.
I worked my way up to Castle Urquhart(on Loch Ness), which was destroyed around the same time as Eilean Donan but never was rebuilt. It was not as impressive as E.D. castle and was not as easy to get good pictures since it was surrounded by trees and was far off the road.
It was a shame I couldn't get to Castle Tioram down in the Moidart, but it was just too far off the beaten path and I new I didn't have alot of time on my hands. Next time *sigh*
I hopped the bus to Inverness, and managed to make it to the New and improved Hostel(which is _very_ nice BTW) after getting lost by the directions I had been given. I went down to the castle which was built around 1800 and got some pictures of the sunset, and talked to a fellow traveller who was from Spain. Right now I am in the hostel room, after enjoying a nice shower and trying to gather my thougts and plan my trip to Culloden Battlefield tomorrow.
Day 5, Friday July 24th,1998
As I sit here on the corner of Bridges & Chamber St, just off Royal Mile, in the 'Number one Brassierie' listening to U2 and savoring my Hot chocolate, I recollect the events of the Last couple days. I am forced to accept the fact that my trip is almost over.'Tis sad because there is so much left to see:the Isle of Skye, the Northern Highlands, Glasgow, Castle Tioram...but I cannot afford to stay any longer *sigh* I am definately going to have to come back.
Since I stayed up the night before last a little longer than I wanted to I decided to sleep in at the Inverness hostel. While waiting for the bus to get to Culloden(this bus was very unreliable) I ran into another Canadian who was an anthropologist and was headed for some burial mounds just beyound the moor. As was typical of my trip the weather wasn't too good, it was raining and overcast. I have come to the conclusion that a low cloud cover is the best way to view Scotland, at least the western parts anyway which I think are more beautiful. It adds that eerie, haunting effect to the view. Pure sunlight would place Scotland in a whole(pardon the pun) different light.
It is hard to see how a battle could be fought at Culloden, with the vegetation I saw there it would be nearly impossible to manuver. Upon hearing the stories about the '45 you could not help but pity the highlanders and feel sorry for Bonnie Prince Charlie. The highlanders most definately had courage, but not a very good military strategy.
I returned to the city and after wandering around a bit I decided to head to a Pub called Malloys. I was told via email by a lady who had just visited Scotland that they had a good Chili Con Carne. It is located kity-korner to Maroys jus across from the train station. The barkeep seemed surprised that the reputation had left the little town. If you ever do go to Inverness I recomment you go there and tell him the Canadian who got sent by the Aerican sent you.*smirk* Unfortunately I had to rush the meal and chug the cider so I would be on time to catch the bus back to Edinburgh.
It took about 4 hrs to get back to Edinburgh(via Perth), the scenery was nice but admittedly I like the west coast highlands better. I was surprised to see the same front desk guy who had checked me in, and better yet he remembered my name. So if you ever go and stay in the University of Edinburgh youth hostel say hi to Andy for me(Jeff de Jong). Since the sun had not set yet, I asked andywhere the best place to watch the sunset would be and he immediately suggested Calton hill(not to far from the hostel). But he cautioned me that it can get quite rowdy up there at night.
So I got up to Calton hill, where there is an unfinished replica of the Greek Pantheon(due to lack of funding I am told). While watching the sunset(which was gorgeous as you were overlooking the city) I was joined by an older couple from Central USA and a younger fellow from Australia. Who is currently working at a bar in London(Go figure). After the sunset we discussed the finer points of tourism and going off the beaten path to actually enjoy the company of the natives of the land you are visiting. There is nothing worse than going to a foreign country and spending it with other foreigners. I did eat my own words later that night as I decided to take one of those haunted tours of Edinburgh, it was both scary and corny at the same time. The tour finished late and at this point I still had not had dinner so I grabbed some food from a Fish and Chips place in the Grass Market, it wasn't too bad.
I woke up, now on my final day here, and walked around Edinburgh a little more, I wanted to go to the castle but it was flooded with tourists and there was no way i was going to pay 6 quid to get in. There is also a tartan weaving mill not far from the castle and they had this deal where they would dress you up in traditional scottish garb and let you take the pictures. Seemed intriguing, but with no money left I couldn't
After I finished my not so typical scottish breakfast yesterday, it was still before noon and I didn't want to get to the airport just quite yet. I'm trying to spend every last minute I can in the Scottish ambience. So I grabbed my bag, which has now gotten quite heavy, and hike up the Stony Crag I saw on the way to Arthurs seat. It was just an absolute gorgeous and sunny day, the way a day of a hike should be. This peak gives a better view of Edinburgh than does Arthurs seat. It was hard to believe that it took less than one hour to et such a gorgeous view of the city. Since I still had plenty of time left, and I could still feel my feet I decided to venture to all three peaks of Arthurs seat. The lowest two peaks were sparce in their population, but the highest peak was kind of crowded.(much more than my first time here, I gues it all depends on the time and the day). Just as I was getting to the top it started to rain (just my luck). And as everyone headed away from the hills, I(being of west coast Canada upbringing) decided to rough it out. So quite quickly I was the only one left on top in but a meer drizzle. After bathing in my steadfastness I decided to head back down.
During the decent I stumbled upon two ladies snuggled up behind a coat trying to hide themselves from the wind and rain. So like any decent guy, seeing they were alone, I asked if I could joing them and soon we were immersed in some chatter. They were two sisters; one works in Edinburgh and the other is visiting from Australia. Anni, the oldest, works as an X-ray person, while Jill is finishing her degree in communications back in Australia. But she aspires to be a photojournalist back in Australia. And as the age old axiom goes 'Time flies when you are having fun', I had to go catch a plane, and they had to leave as well. So we said goodbye and made our separate ways down the mountain. As fate would have it we met again towards the bottom of the mountain, at which point they twisted my rubber arm and convinced me to join them for a pint at a pub where Anni used to work.(What is spending a little more money, who needs money anyway).
So we talked a little more about Scotland, and travelling in general and how hard it is to actually meet new people who would become friends. At this we exchanged addresses and emails, and I got myself a pen/e-pal from Australia. So now I guess I am going to have to make a trip to Australia ;) Soon anni had to go to work, and I had to go catch my plane, and exchanging pleasantries we parted ways *sigh*.
The flight back to Geneve was delayed and by the time I got back to my hotel it had closed. And not knowing how to call the person to the front desk I was forced to spend it in my car. Not very comfy, and it got extremely warm, but I did manage about 5 hrs of sleep. I noticed a huge change in the friendliness of people as soon as I landed in the London airport. I think I like the people, and the weather back in Scotland. I have a dream now to someday call that country home!
Sunday July 26th,1998
When you don't go out and wander around not a whole lot can happen, but I can make a few observations about my surroundings today. Having spent the last week in a wet Scotland wearing mostly jeans and a sweatshirt, I arrived to an extremely warm Swizterland and was forced into shorts and T-shirts. This doesn't seem to bad except for the fact that I sweated up a storm in my bed. I think I am going to have to Christen Lac Leman with my presence.
Anyway my shift was boring as usual but on my way back to CERN I noticed something that I thought was out of the ordinary. I drove right past a pair of Ostriches, no it wasn't a zoo or anything, just a farm. I was told the weather her last week reached up to 39 C, ouch makes me glad I was in Scotland. Although I have been told that there is a region in Northern Scotland where you can plant palm trees outside and they will grow because it never gets below like 5 C because of some strange weather Phenomena.
I wasn't planning on really talking to anyone today, but I was joined for dinner by the lady I replaced on SLIMOS this morning. Her name was Hagar and she was a Masters student from Isreal(and she was in the same building as me). So after making a fool of myself by applying middle east stereotypes we had quite a lovely conversation. We compared style of education(3 or 4 yrs), our love(or lack thereof) of Geneve, the philosophy of a web page and the need to make one. For the life of me I couldn't come up with a good answer.
Wednesday July 29th,1998
Be careful what you ask for because you just might get it.
After returning to the sweltering heat(which I have been told has been happening over in Western Canada as well), I wished it would cool off.Well yesterday we got rain and it cooled off considerably. Enough for a cold virus to work its way into my system. With the luck I've been having I'll probably cough and hack all the way back to edmonton.
I drove out a little into the french countryside today(right past a McDonalds), and I will admit I underestimated it. The french country side can be quite lovely. now if only the people could be just as friendly. I was driving into Geneve today since my shift didn't start until 3PM, and I ran into my first bit of road rage.I clearly had the right of way, i was in the lane to go straight thru the light, and he was in the right turn lane. He didn't turn and he was working his way into my lane totally oblivious to my presence. I had to pump the breaks so I wouldn't hit him because at this moment I couldn't find the horn. So I made some gesture along the lines of 'What do you think you are doing', in the polite way possible. And at the next light he leaned out his window, and starting using colourful french metaphors to describe me.
Another day, yet another story to tell my grandkids.
Friday July 31st,1998
Being friday and all I would have had the right to go out and party down in Geneve, but instead I choose to have a Rendez-vous with some friends of mine back from UBC, Chris White and Karen Chen. They have come to Europe not on business but for pleasure. I hate them! I ended up arriving late at the train station due to some horrendous traffic and some strange parade of bladers and cyclists who enjoyed dwelling in intersections. How can a small town get so busy. We tried to find a cheap place to eat, but no such luck. we ended up ordering a hot and spicy pizza from Pizza Hut which cost us about $50. Idon't see how a young person on a date here could survive. Karen wanted to get stopped at the border to have her passport stamped, but Chris and I managed to dissuade her. Women, can't live with them, can't shoot them *smirk*
Sunday August 2nd,1998
At the moment I am on board my connecting flight from London Heathrow to Edmonton(after a 2 hr flight and a 4 hr wait in the airport), so in just over 8 hours I will be back on my native soil. I am filled with mixed emotions both happy and sad. I like it here but it is time to go home, even though I know I won't get home for quite some time. That is unless I can get those retroactive airmiles thingy. My carry on bag is now full of dutyfree small gifts for friends and family. I'm just too nice *grin*, but I must remember to send postcards to the new friends I have made in Europe.
After not writing in my diary for a couple days and not really doing anything worth while, I now have something to write. I have mentioned previously that Chrs $ Karen spent the night, and we(they??) decided that since I have a car we should do some travelling in Suisse. And after much bickering about where to go, it was decided that we would go to Interlaken, because as Karen so elegantly put it "It has lakes!" ;)
After stacking up on the necessities: bagets with Cheese&Salami, and these horrible tasting chinese noodle flavored chips we headed out into the unknown. Well OK we had a map so it wasn't exactly unknown, but since the world revolves around me *grin* and I haven't been there yet LOL. It was roughly 216 km to Interlaken(the German part of Suisse) so it should have only taken a couple hours, but I have never seen it rain that bad here. There were lakes forming on the street, lightning, and the only thinsg I could see were the street markers directly in front of me and the rear lights of the nearest car.
We got totally lost in Bern so we decided to pull off to the side of the street until the rain stopped, this is where Chris wanted to go in the first place. it is a small city, but it is actually the Capital of Switzerland. It was named after the first animal tha was hunted and killed there, yup you guessed it, the bear. And they do have a bear pit there too. So after taking a few pics and being scared away by a Michael Jackson beverage we headed up to Interlaken. We arrived only to catch the end of some parade which marks the day as some national holiday. After sampling local cuisine(a hotdog made from a hollowed out baget), and wandering around sufficiently enough for Chris to give up hope a finding a lake to swim in we just sat around and enjoyed the local scenery. but once the rain clouds were spotted approaching us we thought it wise to head back to Geneve.
Our luck was good such that we had mostly sun on our way back so we were able to see the Swiss countryside that had elluded us on the drive up. It was quite a lovely country side after all.
It was a nice way to spend my last day in Europe, to spend it in the company of Friends.