Hamburg, beyond Hell

Hamburg wasn’t all bad.

Actually, after we got a reasonable amount of sleep we could see what there was to see in the city. And, from the size of the beer I’m holding, celebrate survival. Sure it wasn’t long, but we did get a flavor of the place. In planning the trip and reminding myself NOT to do it all, in the spirit of collaboration, I suggested that each of us take 2 cities, and be our family’s travel guide for that city. All things considered, the plan worked fairly well.

Hamburg was in the plus column on that idea. It was Alice’s city (thank heaven! After our ‘lost souls in Germany’ experience neither Patrick nor I would have had the energy) and she suggested that we three go to the Rathaus. It was a pretty easy metro (my generic term for any city’s subway system) trip. Click here to see some pictures. The Hamburg Rathaus is the city hall and has been since 1897 (thank you, wikipedia). Around the Rathaus is a pretty dynamite shopping area. There were very high end stores. But also Starbucks and H&M, and even Europe’s version of Best Buy called Saturn (only pronounced with 3 syllables, like sat-u-run). This store was important to us because it allowed us to buy a GPS.  Think we needed it?

Alice bought a few things at a store called Zara; Patrick got his GPS. I bought someone close to my heart something close to her heart (I think). History, architecture, coffee with an incredibly friendly English-speaking manager of a Starbucks who’d studied at Brigham Young University and a badly needed item. Not bad.

Back near the Holiday Inn Express of Our Nachtmares, we had dinner at Schweinke’s (and beer). It was nearby, had a decent menu with decent prices and the name reminded me of my good friend Bill in Madison. Big portions, average food, friendly waitress, menu in English. Not a terrible way to finish off the day (and post).

Except for two items. First, this picture. (see right) It was indicative of the feeling of bewilderment I encountered in Europe. The lazy American running into signs she couldn’t read. If this sign in the Rathaus was telling me not to enter or the way to the women’s room, I had no idea.

Second, this one (see left), or a display in a book store (think Barnes & Noble). Those funny Germans. Finding the Grim Reaper to be a source of entertainment and a thing to purchase for children! Hmmm…..

Gott Nytt År

Back to Europe – or more precisely, Scandinavia. After a few days in Gothenberg and collecting a 2012 flamenco red XC70, we left for the south. Malmo, actually.

Malmo is in the far southwest of Sweden – across the bridge from Copenhagen. Copenhagen was our desired next stop but the cost of hotels and the fact that I was trying to find a place for New Years Eve night, reduced options. When I heard of a good deal at a Hilton in Malmo, across the water, I took it, figuring we could just cross the bridge to visit Copenhagen.

Well, that didn’t happen. I learned too late, that while there is a bridge, it costs nearly $100 to drive across it with a car and three people. About $60 for the bus. So, we settled to visit Malmo and drive through Copenhagen on the way to Hell (er, uh, Hamburg).

That was fine. Malmo’s pretty cool, actually. Lots of history, charming neighborhoods, and a kick ass New Years Eve celebration. We spent the day of the 31st strolling the city streets, visiting the grounds of Malmohaus, then Lilla Torg for dinner (with a town square that features a huge lamp), ending at the Opera house for fireworks and to ring in the new year.(see picture above).

What was cool about that was how people came prepared with glasses and champagne, and the amazing fireworks display at midnight. It went on and on, surpassing whatever I’ve seen on the Fourth of July, including in Washington, DC.

Still in the game

I’ll get back to the posts about Europe and the trip to Volvo country, but thought readers who flock to ModelMom for adventures of my teenage daughter in the modeling world might be interested in her gig today with Regis Hair Salon.

Yes. Even though she’s an honor student at an R-1 university, my daughter continues to identify herself and collect some cash in modeling. I’ve said it before, but it’s made me stop laughing at the part in Top Gun when Kelly McGillis tosses her hair, steps off of Tom Cruise’s motorcycle and announces that she’s a nuclear physicist.

And yes, Regis Hair Salon which to me, means, mall cuts. But hey. It’s good money and all she needs to do is to have good hair DNA (thanks to her parents), sit in a chair and let two stylists work on her hair for an industrial video. Half a day’s work while she’s on break between fall and spring semester.

Nice work if you can get it.

Hamburg, or Hell?

Ok, let’s just get this over with. I’ll start with the worst part of the trip and then we can move on.

Hamburg, Germany. There’s a specific street in it that only appears every 100 years. It was hidden the night we got there.

Part One of the day from and to hell started with a doubly long drive. We traveled from Malmo, Sweden to Hamburg on New Year’s Day. A stop in Copenhagen allowed us to briefly see a couple highlights of that city – including the changing of the guard at the palace – grab a slice of pizza (I know, don’t say anything) and figure out how to get to our next stop. GoogleMaps showed us 4+ hours to Hamburg that included putting the car on a ferry. Experiencing the steep cost of crossing bridges, we searched for the land option. Google told us it too was about 4 hours so that’s what we chose.

HUGE mistake. It wasn’t 4 hours, it was 8 hours. And a $30 fare to cross a bridge mid-Denmark. Plus gas which, in Europe is like $10 a gallon.

We rolled into Hamburg about 9:30 at night. This wouldn’t have been so bad if we could have driven right to the hotel. Which we could have done if the road the hotel was on existed. Which it didn’t. So no directions or maps would have helped.

We searched for (are you ready?) 5 HOURS looking for the hotel. No we didn’t have GPS, but we did have a detailed city map, highlighted maps from at least 3 gas stations or hotels, written driving directions with street names, spoken directions from Germans who spoke 5 words of English but tried very hard, two adults with 100 years of finding places, and an 18 year old… asleep in the back. It was just incredible. We followed everything closely, followed signs, turned where we (thought we) were supposed to, read street numbers… and still nothing.

Making it worse was that we were looking for a pretty obvious place – a Holiday Inn Express. So you’d think there’d be a commercial green and white sign out front to let us know we’d found it. (see picture)

Which we did see on two other places – a Holiday Inn and another Holiday Inn Express. Finding them, we sought first information then in desperation at 1 and 2 in the morning, a room, hoping they’d honor the reservation at a sister hotel in the chain. In both cases, they were happy to give us a room (for 20 euro or about $30 more) BUT said that we’d also have to pay for the room at the hotel we were booked in, based on the way the reservation was made (I’m looking into it).

I am WAY too cheap and too stubborn to pay for two hotel rooms in two establishments when i can’t find one of them (and lose $100) and demanded that we keep looking. After now, nearly 13 hours in the car, and seriously strained marital relations, it was tough. Patrick was ready to sleep in the car. I would have kept driving all night. We compromised to try one more time even though, even hotel clerks were no longer staffing front desks so we could ask if we were close.

The trick was to find a hotel that directed us a different way. A wonderful, kind, English-speaking and very well attired clerk at the Crowne Plaza (part of the chain that owns Holiday Inn) knew right where it was. He pulled out a map with the hotel identified and showed us the driving route. Getting to the street from a different way, we found it.

At that point I didn’t even want to think whether the street was obvious or not. It was 3 fricken o’clock in the morning. We’d found the place that had our reservation and could collapse.

Except that I needed to find the credit card that I lost… but that’s another circle of this hell.

All in all though, we were safe, dry, and had excellent transportation. With a clearer and well rested mind, I realized that we should have just hailed a cab and then followed it to the hotel.

Oh well. Oh, Hell.

European Observations

We’re back. It was a long/good/adventuresome/nerve-wracking/family bonding/stimulating trip. I’m so glad we did it. It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t easy all the time. But it was, in a word, great. (I didn’t select to use the Arc de Triomphe for nothing)

I have good notes on every day. For now though, a thumbnail overview of what we did, and observations about Europe compared to the U.S.

What we did:

Days 1-3: Gothenberg, Sweden. Main objective: Get the new car.
Days 4-5: Malmo, Sweden, with a dash of Copenhagen. New Year’s Eve. Fireworks at the Opera House. Pizza in the capital of Denmark?
Days 6-7: Hamburg, Germany. In word, Hell. And shopping.
Days 8-9: Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Rembrandt and Van Gogh (only pronounced “van hoff.”). No cheese, though.
Days 10-11: Brussels. No mussels, but a peeing little boy, waffles with chocolate… and more chocolate.
Days 12-14: Paris. It is just that wonderful.

Now for my observations about Europe in no particular order and somewhat in comparison to the U.S.:

- they all dress more fashionably than we do. Even the babies. (sigh)
- there really are fewer people who are obese. (but see #5 below – in short, a region of contradictions)
- the toilets don’t have handles, they have push buttons.
- they are more sensitive about saving water and electricity (wind generators are in every country – see right) – but less thoughtful about fur.
- they smoke more, are more liberal about sex (the same magazine covers as in the US but that show boobs instead of just cleavage) and kids 18 can drink.
- they don’t eat peanut butter
- they heat tea water with an electric pot
- their light switches are buttons
- in general, people are friendly. They don’t always make eye contact but I didn’t run into one person who refused to answer a question or help me with directions.
- they all don’t speak English and those that don’t don’t seem to care much.
- their instant coffee and sugar packets, like their cars, are efficient and practical. Long, thin tubes for sugar. Their autos are like station wagons (small and regular sized), no massive SUVs, Hummers, and really not that many sedans.
their bread and pastries really are wonderful.

I could go on, but these are the main things. By the end of the trip, I was glad to get back to my own language, currency, and not needing to look at street signs or maps to know where I was. But the exposure to history, art, other cultures, languages and societies  – and do it all with my family – was tremendous!

Volvo Day

Yesterday was Volvo Day in the beautiful, if overcast and slightly rainy Sweden.

We woke to start the day with the most bountiful breakfast buffet ever – part of our hotel deal at the Radisson Blu. More on that soon. Then we were picked up by yet another driver with Volvo, and taken this time to the campus area for the company, just north of the city.

As we entered the complex, there are a number of buildings – factories, office buildings, an IT center. All with a bit more style than in the US. (I’m reminded of these slight, yet important differences – with food, style, design, history – beyond the apparent language difference.) The Volvo welcome center (or whatever it was called) is all clean, white and gray metal. Oh, that’s something else – buildings that are not old, and historical, are very Ikea-like in their clean lines. We are greeted by the receptionist, then by a very nice middle aged gentleman named Pelle, who goes over the necessary details before bringing out our car (registration, insurance, etc. while we’re in Europe).

The car rolls out in what looks like a cross between a showroom and a garage. And it’s beautiful! (Also – pictures soon to come. In the limits of my iPad updates, I’m constrained on some features) We chose Flamenco Red (we like colors on our cars) but it’d been half a year since deciding. Pelle goes over features about the car, then urges us toward lunch.

Yes, another perk. Lunch. Not terribly fancy (and we were still full from breakfast) but good. Swedish meatballs (and NOT like the ones at Ikea), boiled potatoes, loganberries and a sweet roll. Soon, we join a small group of other Volvo buyers, to go to another building for a safety demonstration. Usually, folks in our situation would get the factory tour. And we’re sorry not to see the factory. But it’s not possible since they’re on break. But the safety demo is very interesting. Safety being the numero uno Volvo value – and a major reason the car is interesting to us. We learn about all the safety things that Volvo started – like seat belts.

Then, we leave. with our New Car! Pelle gives us driving directions back to the hotel. Patrick braves Gothenberg traffic, signs we don’t understand and high speed highways. Once parked, we leave New Car, and find the evenings’ entertainment. Don’t get too excited – we just go to the local mall and find a little grocery store and get a few munchies. It’s a real challenge not understanding any of the words or the prices. Kind of exhausting, actually. The secret of this trip will be pacing.

Day 1 (or is it 1 1/2?)

We’re here! I’m writing this from downtown Gothenberg, Sweden in the Radisson Blu hotel. It’s a bit after 11pm their time Tuesday. We left Minneapolis at 7 pm Monday which, with three plane changes, time changes and a long overnight flight, ending in a country in which I’m surrounded by nothing familiar except my family, seems not at all like yesterday. 

The trip though, was pretty straightforward. Molly – good friend, neighbor, and caretaker of Princess Audrey in our absence – dropped us off at the airport and our trip to Chicago was fine. The airport, for the day after Christmas, was not that busy. It was the trip to Copenhagen (leg #2) that raised concern #1.  Scandinavian Air wouldn’t allow Internet check in, and I wasn’t quiet sure how that would work since we also had to go to another terminal on the other side of O’Hare. I know, silly. Of course, it was fine. We even got rid of our bags. 

The SAS trip to Copenhagen was a nice reminder of what sardine cans US airlines have become. Roomy with nine across 2 + 5 + 2 seats. Friendly crew. Wide range of entertainment options at every seat (movies from the recent, last Harry Potter to On Golden Pond [1980]) plus TV, music and games), pillows and blankets, free headphones, and FOOD! About an hour into the air and we are served a hot dinner: rice, green beans and some kind of chicken mixture. Wheat roll, cheese, tabouli salad, apple dessert, and free wine. About an hour and half before we landed, back they came with yogurt, a sandwich, orange juice, coffee. Amazing. Sleeping for the 8 hour flight was a little hard just, seat wise, but everything else was clearly not a US experience. 

The final leg was to Gothenberg. A LONG walk through the airport to the gate – which felt even longer with a heavy backpack and about an hour’s sleep. A short flight to Sweden. Then a short walk to baggage claim, where we were greeted (are you ready) by a nicely dressBut the weather is nearly identical to Minnesota, including the lack of snow and warmer than usual temperatures, Volvo is treating is really well, and we are here!ed gentleman named Mickey holding a sign that said Volvo on the bottom and Patrick’s last name on top. He. was. our. driver. Get us.

And a good thing – between the high speed highway and the distance, the drive to the hotel would have been costly and a challenge. Mickey dropped us off at the Radisson reminding us that another Volvo nice person would pick us up at 11 in the morning. 

Concern #2 (which at this point seemed like a minor detail) was that the travel agent had booked us in a room for two people (there are 3 of us). Rooms in Europe are small, charge by the person and require scrutiny when you’re told there are two beds. Discovering this a few days earlier, i’d made phone calls and changed the reservation to a room for 3. It was more expensive than what Volvo paid for (by about $20) and we weren’t sure whether that was OK. But with no sleep, I just didn’t make it a problem. I simply told the desk agent that I’d pay the overage with a personal credit card. Of course that’s how it would be handled. The agent was just fine with it, promptly handed us our room keys and shared that breakfast was served between 7 and 11. 

Nice. 

And once in the room, we collapsed, each of us sleeping about 4 or 5 hours. Unfortunately Patrick came down with one of THOSE headaches and stayed in bed. Alice and I ventured  out for a bit of food. Things are in Swedish language and money so it takes some doing to figure things out. One, things are expensive. But two, everyone speaks English. 

But the weather is nearly identical to Minnesota, including the lack of snow and warmer than usual temperatures, Volvo is treating is really well, and we are here!

Car Trip Extrordinaire

Happy Holidays, everyone. The Walker-Lampani family is about to embark on yet another family trip. Only this one’s a doozy. We’re off to Sweden-Denmark-Germany-The Netherlands-Belgium and France. Gotherberg-Malmo/Copenhagen-Hamburg-Amsterdam-Brussels and Paris for the big city stops.

I know.

Our trip is sponsored by Volvo. Kind of. Volvo has this overseas delivery program that covers your trip to Sweden to pick up your new car (the catch is that you have to actually buy a car from them). We were in the market to replace the 1998 Volvo wagon and after much deliberation and test drives, decide to again buy a Volvo. And take the car company up on their offer to fly us to Sweden.

The deal is that they pay 2 round trip tickets to Gothenberg and a night’s stay at the Radisson there, to get the car. Then, once you have your car, you have transportation and can go wherever for as long as you like, bring the car to a port for delivery to the US, and fly back home. Six weeks later you get your new car at a local dealer.

So, we’re flying to Gothenberg tonight (overnight, actually considering the distance), staying there for a few days (as loyal Volvo owners they are comping us 3 nights at the Radisson), then visiting sites for two weeks, ending in Paris on Jan. 7 and flying home on the 10th. Alice is going, of course, and we purchased a 3rd ticket for her to join us.

No complaints

It’s not going to be a white Christmas in Minnesota.

I don’t care.

We’re below average for snowfall in the state for this month and there’s no snow on the horizon.

I’m glad.

No snow means easy travel, no shoveling, and carefree trips to wherever in the final moments of and during the holiday. For us it’ll mean, picking up carry out Christmas Eve at the Chinese restaurant and getting to the movie theater Christmas Day (and wherever else Alice will go with her friends).

To me it’s about the season and celebration and feelings, not about some Hallmark, Bing Crosby idea of frozen atmosphere. We’re in Minnesota. We see it enough. A lot. And if it didn’t snow at all, that’d be fine by me.

But there are people complaining about the gray-green Christmas soon to come. Let ‘em complain. No snow means that everyone will get to wherever they want to get a bit easier and what we don’t need is more stress.

Here’s a tip though: If you really want to see snow, go to Google.com and type in “let it snow.”

The end of California

It’s technically winter and what better time to visit (revisit) our family’s trip to California and well, finish the darned thing.

When last I wrote about the gold rush state, we were in Santa Cruz making our way from San Francisco to Monterrey. We saw lots of very cute, cool and laid back sea lions in Santa Cruz. A boardwalk and sandy beach.

Next stop, Monterrey. Home of Cannery Row of Steinbeck fame. More recently of a world famous aquarium and – the real reason for our visit – whales. Preferably Blue Whales. Alice loves whales and her wish was to go whale watching for high school graduation and this is a primo feeding areas for this marine life.

Monterey in August is also primo tourist area. And the cost of hotels ain’t cheap. But we’re more about place than …

I have to interrupt this blog post to say that it’s snowing on my laptop. I just opened iTunes and Celtic Christmas album for a little background while writing and there are virtual snowflakes slowly working their way down my screen. Odd. Nice.