To TA or not to TA

Here I am 65 minutes before my second and last exam, and I don't really want to study anymore. Bev, I understand the desire to blog before an exam, though I will give you props, as it sounds like yours was much harder than mine.

It's tough to muster up the desire to study when A) the exam is open book, and B) when I've done this studying thing before and I've paid my dues!! But, I have to do well in Spacecraft Dynamics since it's my supervisor who teaches the course! urgh!

At the same time, I have to decide whether to take a TA position. Remember Dynamics (SYDE 182, for all you UW alumni)? Yeah, I've been asked to TA Dynamics. I want to, but I've got 3 courses of my own this winter, plus my thesis. But the way I see it, I did the same amount if not more during undergrad, so I should be able to handle this. Famous last words...

58 minutes left.

Almost half done...in a way

Today was the last day of lectures at McGill, which means I'm half-way done the course work of my Master's degree. So, in 4 months, I will probably never have to take a class at school, EVER again. I say probably, because lately I've been feeling more and more that I want to get out into the world and make something of myself. Not that I wouldn't necessarily have that opportunity in academia, but can I really have the same impact stuck in my office reading papers and trying to add a fraction of a new idea to the already massive pool of ideas out there in astronautics??

Yet, grad school could be a means to an end. If I prove myself here, I could end up with the research job in industry or the public sector where I contribute to ideas that actually go into space. Instead of my control systems looking good on paper, it actually goes on the satellite.

And lets be honest: there's the ever present risk of landing a desk job in industry, where you're stuck in an office/cubicle reading reports and trying to increase the company's profit margin by a fraction.

I'm ranting...and I haven't sorted out all my thoughts just yet. But, I think the moral here is that I should work hard now so that I can work even harder later in life at a job that I truly enjoy.

Birthday Celebrations

My sister and I celebrated our birthdays together this past weekend, as I was unfortunately sick in October. Celebrations included a dinner out on Saturday night and dinner with grandma on Sunday night with (oooh!) triple-chocolate cake (my fav!).

Dinner out was at a restaurant off the island of Montreal, in a town called Repentigny. Condensing a long story, the restaurant is owned by a guy who used to be a waiter at our family's favourite Italian restaurant in Little Italy. My sister insists that we go all the way to Repentigny for the sake of tradition.

Now, let me ask a question. As this was also my birthday celebration, why should I have to endure an entire evening with my sister's boyfriend who was also invited?? Why do I have to sit across from him as he puts his arm around my young, innocent, impressionable sister who is ONLY...20 years old. Ok, so I'm over-reacting, and she is an adult, and he's not a bad guy. He is an engineer after all. We did find common ground when we started talking about beer, something any self-respecting engineer can relate to! Nevertheless, I'm still having trouble with this whole boyfriend thing. I still see Meaghan as the little 8 year-old who used to follow her big brother around.

On a totally different train of thought, there was just a federal bi-election in Repentigny. The Bloc Quebecois MP won an easy victory. However, this MP is a former male prostitute turned Roman Catholic priest turned politician. All the power to him for rising above selling his body for a living, but really - only in Quebec would this happen!

Back to the real world - thank goodness for great friends

I've been back from Europe for exactly 20 days now. After getting over the initial jetlag, life quickly jumped back into reality, the previous month almost fading into dream-like status: did I really do all those things, see all those places, meet all those people??

...well, I've got the photos to prove it! And yes, once I have them organized, I will post them for your viewing pleasure!

Back to work now. Boy, I forgot how tedious computer programming is! The lack of excitement is a shock to the system. I think I'm more antsy sitting at my desk, these days. After a month of walking everyday for 8 hours in some of the most historic and beautiful cities on earth, sitting on my bum for 8 hours in front of a flickering CRT, no windows in sight, and fluorescent lights above me must be some form of cruel and unusual punishment.

Perhaps I'm being unfair to my job. It provides me with money after all...

Money I can use to visit my university friends in Toronto, which is what I did last weekend. The occasion was Rohit and Arvind's joint birthday, as well as the departure of Rohit and Aasthaa for Seattle to start the next phase of their lives. While I missed out on the clubbing at The Docks, I was lucky to be a part of the recovery the next day. I arrived at Ankur's apartment at 10:30 in the morning, and I'm sure there were 8 passed out humans on his living room floor, still fighting the effects of the drink. Sitting there, chatting with those that could communicate, I felt extremely comfortable, in the emotional sense. It just felt natural to be with these people, whom I'd grown close to over the last 5 years.

That day, we ate sushi, caught a free show with Amy Millan at the Harbourfront, then spent a lovely evening at Rohit's house, with yummy Indian food and good conversation. This was a perfect weekend break.

Final post from Europe

My last day in Europe!

A brief update before I finally have access to free internet!!

Jeff and I have been in Munich for 2.5 days - a great Bavarian city, known for its beer, though we both would argue not as exciting (historically) as Berlin.

We saw a museum exhibit devoted to football (soccer); we went on a free walking tour; we saw the infamous Hofbraühaus; I was in heaven in the Deutsches Museum (Sci & Tech Museum); we "enjoyed" ourselves on the pub crawl last night. Then, today was quite sobering as we visited the concentration camp at Dachau. Last thing we did was stock up on some Munich merch' and enjoy a litre pint at the Augustiner Biergarten.

Back to Canada tomorrow.

Tchuss!

An alternate eternal city

Berlin is still an amazing city. So much to do. Jeff and I both wished we could have stayed longer, but we'd committed to a schedule.

Despite some pretty crappy weather, we managed to squeeze in a lot over 2 days. We arrived in the afternoon, after ze efficient Germans got across the border from the Czech Republic. First stop was the Jewish Museum - much different from the one in Prague. This one chronicles the 2000 year history of the Jews. It's housed in an unusually modern building, and yet again there was a lot of information to absorb. I think what hit me most was how the fortunes of the Jews were just starting to turn around when WWI hit, followed by the regime of the Nazis. Almost overnight, public opinion towards the Jews reversed itself.

Then, we had a great dinner of Schnitzel at a restaurant off the beaten path, clearly were a lot of locals dine. The tables are long and wooden, almost medieval. Jeff finally found a beer he liked - a weissbier, Erdinger.

The next morning, we received another history lesson at the German History Museum. There was sooooo much to see here; 2 hours wasn't nearly enough. I personally spend too much time in the medieval section that I zipped through the Napoleanic years, the formation of the German republic, and the first world war in like 5 minutes. Again, it still shocks me how an entire continent can become so consumed with nationalism to start WWI. Yes, Germany bears part of the blame, but certainly not all of it.

BTW: I snapped a cool photo of Napolean's hat and sword from the Battle of Waterloo!

Then, we went on the New Berlin Third Reich Walking tour, where our charismatic tour guide Mike took us an historical journey through the rise of power of Hitler. This tour was less for sightseeing than it was for information. All the placards around town that are in German, Mike explained vividly with stories. We saw the Russian War Memorial, situated oddly enough in West Berlin on the former field of battle in front of the Reichstag (Parliament Building). We passed the former Luftwaffe Headquarters (Air Force), which mysteriouslz survived the bombing raids of the allied forces. We also took a tour through the Topography of Terror exhibit, situated in the excavated prison cells of the former SS and Gestapo. We saw chilling images of Hitler, Heinrich Himmler, Hermann Goering, and Reinhardt Heydrich - the butcher of Berlin who was poised to take over as leader of the Nazis. Amazingly, his grandfather was Jewish!!! I also saw the most frighting picture to date (until we go the the concentration camp in Munich) - a picture of SS soldiers holding pistols to the back of peoples heads, smiling.

The evening was a little more upbeat - we ascended the TV tower and had alcoholic ice cream sundaes in the revolving restaurant. That wasn't our original plan, but once we got up to the restaurant, we decided to stay.

The next day, we went on the Free Walking Tour with the New Berlin company; our guide was Jasoni. This was a repeat for me, as I did this last summer, but basically we got a crash course on the history of Berlin and saw the key sights like the Brandenberg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie and Museum Island. The climax of the tour is the story of how the Berlin Wall Fell in 1989. Essentially, a press conference blunder by "The Big Shabowsky". I can explain that in person, if you don't already know!!

Right now, I'm in Heidelberg for a quick stop. We explored the spectacular Heidelberg Castle this morning, which includes the curious Apothecary (a.k.a. Pharmacy) Museum. Kind of a chill out day before we head to our last stop in Munich, where there is tons to do. I've added a lot of scenic pictures to my collection of desktop backgrounds!

Update to the beer list:

• Kroningberg 1664 (Zermatt)


• Erdinger (Berlin)


• Berliner Pilsner (Berlin)


• Paulsaner Munchen (Heidelberg) - a Munich beer, so I'm a little ahead of the game!

Ongoing Beer List

• Mythos (Athens) - Meh
• Peroni (Rome) - Horrible aftertaste, like wet ass
• Rugenbrau (Interlaken) - Tasteless, good for chugging
• Zipfer (Salzburg) - excellent, local microbrew
• Budvar (Ceske Budejovice) - worthy of the many international accolades
• Pilsner Urquell (Prague) - like Budvar, stronger aftertaste
• Velkopopovicky Kozel (Prague) - strangely sweet dark beer
• Krusovice (Prague) - stronger taste than Budvar, but still good

Done with Prague; toured the Jewish quarter and got schooled on Judaism; saw an oversized metronome, not sure why; Charles Bridge; Church of St. Nicholas and St. Nicholas Church (yes, they are different); then today, Old Prague Castle, with the changing of the Czech guard (to music!!), spectacular views from the Great Tower of St. Vitus' Cathedral, and amazing display of heraldry in the Old Royal Palace.

And, lot's of beer tasting!

Off to Berlin tomorrow; expect beer list to double if not triple after the pub crawl!

P.S. Mom, I'm not an alcoholic, I swear!

Happiness is spelled B-E-E-R

We've experienced some serious weather extremes over the past few days. We were in Salzburg, Austria for 2 days. The first day, we visited the largest ice caves in Europe, where the average temperature inside is zero centigrade. The caves are formed due to the trapping of cold air in a 42 km deep cave. Rain and snow falls into the cave and then freezes to form these incredible ice sculptures. Needless to say, we bundled up.

The next day, we encountered warm continental weather: 28 degrees. We visited the fortress of Salzburg, high atop the hill alongside the river. Then, to Mozart's birthhouse and then his later residence. To cap it off, we attended a wonderful Mozart concert in the Golden Hall of the fortress. A string quartet performed a four movement piece. Then, there was a piano concerto, followed by Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. A real throwback to band days in high school. I also had this surreal feeling listening to concert. It couldn't have been more perfect: listening to Mozart in the music capital of the world (well maybe that's Vienna, but this is a close second). Forgot to mention: we bit the bullet and watched The Sound of Music - also filmed in Salzburg. It's on EVERY night in the hostel at which we stayed.

Right now, I'm in Prague where stuff is SOOO cheap. However, we made an extremely important pit stop along the way - to Ceske Budejovice, the home of the ORIGINAL Budweiser Brewery (aka Budvar, aka Czechvar).

I plan to drink a lot of beer over the next few days.... ;-)



Me in front of Mozart's Birth House



Me loving Budvar

Me drinking Budvar

MAAAAANNNNUUUU

Finally, some cheap internet with a USB port. I will attempt to post some pictures here, and explain the title of this entry!

After Florence/Pisa, Jeff and I headed to Venice for the day. It was stinking hot - like 45 degrees celsius, so it was particularly miserable. However, we saw some key sites, like the Rialto Bridge, the Venice version of the Bridge of Sighs, and Piazza San Marco with all the pidgeons. It was quite cute to watch the little toddlers chase the birds around.

Venice was a must see, but the heat and the smell of the canals kind of deterred from the day. We then experienced our first overnight train. I was in a couchette with 2 other Canadians, but Jeff got stuck with 5 female Asians!!! At the risk of sounding politically incorrect, the Asians run amok in Europe!!

We arrived in Geneva the next day. I have to say that Switzerland is the most awesome countrz we´ve been to yet. Everything is so clean, the trains arrive and depart when they say they will, and they speak French!! That day, we rented two bicycles for free and biked around town to see the Flower Clock, the Jet d'Eau, and the United Nations building - just as impressive as the one in the New York City.

Next, we got a well deserved break from the heat, as we travelled into the Alps to the little town of Zermatt, for some spectacular views of the Matterhorn - the tallest mountain in the Alps. We took a cable car up to 2500 m then did some hiking around. Jeff shouted "Ricola", as I captured it on video!! Later, we caught a concert by the local youth band in the town centre - it was such a throw back to band in high school. They even busted out the massive alpine horns!

An unanticipated stop in Interlaken was next on the bill. Basically, Interlaken is the "EXTREME SPORTS" capital of the world. As soon as we arrived, Jeff and I went White Water rafting. Our guide, was the illustrius Manu, the largest beast of a man I've ever seen, who is now earning his own Internet reputation as the usurper of the Chuck Norris joke: Manu sleeps on a bed of nails - face down! I saw Manu pick up a female Asian with one arm!!!

The next day, we went Canyoning, which is the most extreme of all. First, we repelled down a cliff face, then we proceeded to jump off ledges within a canyon in narrow and shallow pools of water - basically taking our lives into our own hands. I have pictures to prove I did this, but they're on DVD, so I'll share when I get back.

That night, I partied hard with the friends I met at our Hostel, Balmer's Herberge. Met lots of Canadians. They love EXTREME sports!!

As I said, Switerland was the best part of the trip to date. Right now, Jeff and I are in Salzburg Austria, where we will culture-afy ourselves.

Tchus!

And now, in reverse order ;-)

Me and Jakes, my Canyoning guide.


The Alpine Horns
The Matterhorn

Proof that I hiked in Zermatt

Me in front of the Jet d'Eau in Geneva



Me on the Rialto Bridge

Fast Update

Went to the village of Fiesole and saw some Etruscan and Roman ruins (really cool) and so an incredible view of the city of Florence and the Tuscan countryside.

Then, we went to Pisa and took the obligatory silly photos in front of the Leaning Tower - which by the way, leans quite a bit! It makes my chest hurt as an engineer ;-) !!!!!

Off to Venice for the day, then an overnight train to Geneva, where we finally get to test our French. Then immediately to Zermatt for some fresh mountain air. Won't have access to internet for awhile, but all is well and the knee is feeling much better.

Florence is just as beautiful as I remembered it

...except around the Mercato Centrale - quite filled with litter unfortunately. Unless you want to haggle for cheap wares, steer clear!

First thing we did today was visit the Galleria del'Accademia, which houses the famous David by Michelangelo...and some other paintings...;-) Truthfully, David was absolutely stunning. I cannot comprehend the attention to detail - the musculature, the veins on the inside of his elbows, the haunting gaze. All this in a single block of marble. How did Michelangelo do it without making a mistake??

Other things: saw the Duomo and went to the top of the bell tower, Ponte Vecchio lined with the jewelry stores, went to a small Leondardo Da Vinci exhibit, but missed out on the Museum of the History of Science, which we were both looking forward, too. It closed at 13:00. Maybe we'll swap our walk in the morning for a proper visit tomorrow, before heading off to Pisa.

As good as Italy is, can't wait to get out of this heat!

The Streak is Alive at 5 out of 5

... that is 5 out of 5 nice places we've stayed at. If I haven't mentioned it before, the two places in Greece were awesome for the price. Guesthouse on Santorini was top-notch, hostel in Athens was party central, Naples was only 1.5 months old so spotless and brand new, Rome was expensive, but clean, and now Florence is quaint and the price is right.

Alas, no photo updates, because this computer is running ghetto Windows 98 that doesn't understand what a digital camera is. However, picture in your mind the following things, which we saw in Rome over the past day and a half - Rome may not have been built in a day, but the highlights can be visited in one:

• St. Peter's Basilica: third time that I've seen it, but still quite impressive.


• Santa Maria della Concezione: a freaky crypt, where all the decorations are constructed of human bone.
  
• Piazza Navona: for lunch and people watching
• The Pantheon: extraordinary for the concrete dome erected BC
• The Vittorio Emanualle II Monument and the tomb of the unknown soldier
• Free Art Gallery filled with gorgeous landscape modern art; name eludes me, but trust me - it's there!
• Palatino: the original site for the foundation of Rome
• The Roman Forum
• The Coloseum

After, we met up with Jeff's friends and our former classmates, Chris and Lara for a 4 course Italian meal - Primeri (Pasta), Secundi (Meat), Salad, Dessert, then we had gelato, had more liquor walking along the boardwalk of the Tiber, got lost, ended up at Circus Maximus where a whole bunch of homeless backpackers were playing bongo drums, then finally made it home.

This morning, we quickly went to see the Catacombs outside the Roman wall. These were extremely cool, both figuratively, and temperature wise - at least 15 degrees cooler than outside. Geez it was over 40 degrees yesterday!

Impressions of Rome: you can always find something new to do there, in my case the Catacombs and the Palatine Hill. But, it is a dirty city, to be quite honest, nothing compared to Florence, where we are now.

Tomorrow, we intend to have a yummy Tuscan meal.

A quick hee hee: Jeff peed in the bidet!!!!

Trevi Fountain legend is true!

Roughly, 11 months ago, while on my European co-op, I tossed a Euro coin in the Trevi Fountain. As the legend tells it, doing so will forever draw you back to the Eternal city.

I've now been to Rome three times this year!!!

Quick message: Jeff and I just arrived in Rome, after spending a pleasant day in Herculaneum, just outside Naples. We saw the archaeological site and went up to the caldera of Mt. Vesuvius. Hung out with our new friend, Ben, frome Sydney, Australia. Pics to come.

Ciao

I got my gimp leg to Italy

Unfortunately, my knee hasn't gotten better. I'll entertain any suggestions that people may have... Jeff says Tiger Balm.

Not much has happened in the way of excitement. I took Sunday easy, then went out for dinner in Athens with three of our roommates - Lindsay, Kelly, and Alicia from the US of A. We took some amazing pictures at night from the rooftop bar of our hostel. They light up the Parthenon at night! I'll post the pics this week hopefully.

Jeff and I have been travelling for 36 hours. Train from Athens to Patras, Patras to Brindisi, Italy via a really ghetto ferry (hey, we only spent EUR 42 and I had a great nights sleep), then to Naples via insanely slow train. We are now official Eurailers.

Tomorrow, we'll do a quick day trip to Herculaneum, then it's off to the Eternal City for a couple of days.

Ciao bella!

Athens is Freakin' Hot

Here I am sweating bullets trying to focus on my computer screen and trying to come to grips with the price I just paid for a hostel in Rome.

Anyways, updates since last posting: Jeff and I stayed an extra afternoon on Santorini. We took a boat to the caldera and hiked up to the top. Didn't see any fumes, but took some cool pics. Then, we took a dip in the rusty hot springs, which died my swim trunks red. Finally, we took an agonizing 10 hour ferry from Santorini to Athens, after which we got ripped off by an Athens cabby who took us to our hostel. First, he took us on a wild goose chase. I guess we can blame the language barrier, but apparently, there are two Makri streets in Athens.

Yesterday, we did the typical tourist things - saw the Acropolis and the surroundings, walked to the 1896 Olympic Stadium, and ate too many gyros.

Today, we went on our guided tour to Mycenae and the Temple of Agememnon, Corinth, and then the Theatre of Epidaurus. It was a small, older crowd on our tour, but they were almost all Canadians. I also finally had a decent, 3-course Greek meal - Moussaka, Souvflaki and rice, and Greek salad.

So, just to make mom worry, I've strained my knee and I'm having trouble walking up and down stairs. Not sure how to make it better, aside from rest. I'll get plenty of that on Monday during our 12 hour ferry to Italy.

Now, for some pics:



Sunset in Ia, on Santorini



Me posing in front of the Santorini Caldera



Me in front of the Parthenon



Me in front of the Lion's Gate at Mycenae

Until next time...

Travel Woes (nearly) and Beautiful Weather

I'm coming to you live from the island of Santorini, where it is now 11:21 pm and it is a comfortable 20 degrees (give or take).

Some news on my travels. We left Montreal late on our Air Canada flight - figures ;-), arrived in Frankfurt to find our transfer to Athens was oversold and a flight attendant was sick and four passengers were kicked off the plane, along with their luggage. Needless to say, we left Frankfurt 1 hour late. We then bee-lined across Athens to the port of piraeus, sprinted with our 60 L bags on our backs to the "superjet" to take us to Santorini. Some speedboat - it took longer than the flight across the Atlantic!!!!

First impressions of Greece: lots of construction, but all very historic in style; very little obvious vegetation, except for the clearly artificially planted palm trees, and narrow streets. We'll see what more Athens has to offer tomorrow.

We were greeted by the extremely friendly, George (go figure), when arrived at Fira, the capital city of Santorini. We are staying at his guest house, which might as well be a hotel - it's really nice, and the location is perfect. I had a good sleep last night, while Jeff suffered through my snoring.

Today, Jeff and I took a bus to Pyrgos, walked up to the monastery on top of the hill and snapped some great pictures of the island (to be posted when I have more time...11 min left at the internet cafe...). Then, we walked to the Santo Winery and got drunk at noon...I jest...no seriously. Jeff had to carry me out! ;-) Then, we went down to the black-sanded beach of Perissa, so lot's of beautiful foreign women and swam in the cool, clear waters of the Aegean. I also napped and got random sunburns in unusual places.

Finally, we took the bus to Ia, famous for the views of the sunset, which were absolutely perfect in the cloudless sky. It was very romantic - why isn't Jeff a beautiful Greek woman????

That's all for now. I'll try to check in again from Athens.

Quick Props...

...to Rohit and Arvind for the blogging idea and the sidebar tracking of my Euro-trip progress.

T-minus 18 hours.

T-Minus 29 Hours

The count down jumped quite a bit since my last post. Since then, Jeff and I have been working hard, planning this crazy trip. We start on the Island of Santorini in the beautiful Aegean Sea, return to Athens for 3 days, one of which we spend on a day trip to the Peloponnese to see the ruins at Mycenae, the Theatre at Epidaurus and the Strait of Corinth.

My feelings are really mixed right now: certainly part excitement, but also part anxiousness. With the exception of our first week in Greece, this is pretty much an unplanned trip. We have a start point, an end point, and some dotted lines written in pencil in between, but THAT IS IT. We'll see how Chris copes with living in the moment!

The most important question: can I fit everything in my 60L back-pack??

My First Post: T-Minus 73 days

So, it's about time I jump on the bloggers bandwagon...especially since I'll be going to Europe in T-Minus 73 days. Yeah, it's a ways away, but with most of my friends over there right now, I'm getting pretty anxious.

More to come as Jeff (my travel companion) and I finalize our itinerary.