Update to Arles Update, Largely Involving Bobby Hill

I was slightly let down by my last post. Hopefully this redeems me.

In addition to eating and reminiscing about the genius that is Bobby Hill, we have actually done / seen stuff! What kind of stuff? How about the city of Gordes?!

How about the Abbaye Notre-Dame de Sénanque?!

Yes, if these pictures look old / weird it's because I'm messing around with the iPhone's fancy schmancy filter settings! I am very sorry to any actual photographers in the audience that actually know how to take real pictures sans Siri gimmicks.

Culinary Update from Arles

I have no idea what day it is blog-wise as I'm on holiday thoroughly enjoying bread, wine, and cheese. This is surely a valid excuse. Surely.

And the charcuterie. Oh the charcuterie. Specifically the saucisson pictured at the top right of this plate of delicious meat products.

Again, this blogger app is terrible so you probably can't see it in all of its cheesy meaty glory. Yes, cured meat fans, this combines delicious cured meat with Roquefort cheese. France is awesome. If I stay here much longer, gout will surely set in. Cue Bobby Hill in a Rascal.

Au revoir! 

Day 424 - 5 Random Things About Our Trip to London

At some point this week, I'll go into full-recap-mode...but for now, here's a few thoughts.

Sometimes, English is Hard to Understand

I've gotten so used to Danes speaking English that it - at times - was almost impossible to understand the various the English accents bombarding me in London. It was - at times - like this. I am ashamed.

David Mitchell's 3 Point Pen Policy

Ceviche

So, yeah, there's a Peruvian place in Soho called Ceviche. It is awesome. You should go there. Personal favorite? Note; I did not take this picture, I stole borrowed it from Paul Winch-Furness. Please visit this review featuring this picture, among other great ones.

It is Sakura Maru. It is salmon marinated in satsuma / mirin / chili / other stuff. It is delicious. You should order it.

Please and Thank You and I'm Sorry \ Thank You for Your Hospitality

I know that it has been a year in Copenhagen, but this was refreshing. Others routinely held doors for me and thanked me when I did so for them! Others noticed my need to pass / walk by and *gasp* moved out of the way without me asking! Someone accidentally bumped into me in the Underground and profusely apologized! Twice! Everyone stands to the right on Underground escalators!

Thanks Londoners!

Musicals, Musicals, Musicals

Much like NYC, there are always a ton of musicals going on in The Capital. There are the ones that  you would probably expect - Phantom of the Opera, Lion King, Mamma Mia, Book of Mormon, etc. There is a Michael Jackson musical, a Queen musical, and a The Bodyguard musical. There is also this musical.

Day 421 - Math by easyJet

Cup of Heinz + Ham Sandwich = Twix

Today we arrived at London-Gatwick without any issues. Transport from the airport to Victoria was about 30 minutes by train - pricey but comfortable and convenient.

We're staying at the Holiday Inn Mayfair, very central. At this point I would probably add some links but this Blogger iPad app is horrible. So horrible. Horrible enough that I just considered spending $5 on a new app. Maybe I'll give in tomorrow.

We wandered around Carnaby St, doing some window shopping, and made our way to Mother Mash for some much needed lunch.

http://mothermash.co.uk/lunch+dinner.pdf

Tasty. You pick a style of mash, a meat or meat pie, and a gravy. The pile of mash was massive. Emily and I went half and half with a lamb pie and some Moroccan sausages.

Day 420 - Possible / Probable London Food Itinerary

Breakfast / Brunch / Food in the Morning

The Breakfast Club
Regency Café
Duck & Waffle

I'm particularly excited / entrigued by Duck & Waffle. It's sort of weird that I'll have had Duck and Waffles before I've had Chicken and Waffles. I am a fancy guy.

I think we still need one more breakfast place.

Lunch

We'll be headed to the Tate Modern at some point and as such were looking for lunch somewhere in the area...

El Vergel
Masters Super Fish
Tsuru

Other than this I plan on pubbing it as much as possible. Please lavish me with meat pies.

Dinner

Sadly, most of the places I had my eye on have no bookings - I am a terrible planner. These should be good though.

MOMO
Ceviche

We'll have dinner in High Wycombe on Saturday and there weren't a ton of options. We went with Eat Thai. It sounds / looks good.

Day 413 - Plan this Magical Mystery Tour

In a mere eight days, Emily and I will be off to London for a long weekend. This was Emily's idea and she was nice / thoughtful enough to snag tickets to see Derren Brown's latest show "Infamous" in Wycombe. Yes, I am going to London. To see a magic show. And like a whacked-out-on-caffeine-pills Jessie Spano, I couldn't be more excited.

"Magic show" is probably underselling things. When I think "magic show", my mind travels back to hazy memories of Cub Scout banquets and junior high assemblies. The picture is a bit fuzzy, but I'm sensing...The Great Chezaday!



If you grew up in the Naperville area in the 80s, chances are that you have seen Chezaday in action. I don't remember very much about the show other than the sawing-a-woman-in-half section and the fact that Chez and his assistant were always decked out in something sparkly and possibly silver. This was probably my first experience with a real live stage magic act.

At any rate, I really do love magic. I remember watching Penn and Teller's "Cruel Tricks for Dear Friends" at a friend's house when I was 8 or 9. I particularly remember being duped by the "Super Kleener" bit.



On some level, that's what's fun right? Deceiving others is fun but it's also fun to be willingly - or actually unwillingly in this case - deceived. I take that back, it's probably not that fun to be unwillingly deceived. It's fun in retrospect. I digress.

I've never been big on breaking things down to their small bits or taking joy in the "oh that's so SIMPLE, THAT'S how they're doing it" aspect of watching magic. Mostly I like to be transported to a place where even though I KNOW I'm being deceived, even though I KNOW it's not "real", I don't care. It's magic to me.

In this vein, close-up magic - card manipulation, etc - is probably my favorite genre. The idea of an artist doing things with his / her hands with such shocking speed and dexterity blows me away. It really is magic. Back to Penn and Teller - "The Cups and Balls".



I mean, they're using clear cups. You can see everything they're doing. They tell you everything that they're going to do and when they do it, it's so seemingly effortless and amazing that it still looks like magic.

So who is Derren Brown and how does he fit into all of this? For the uninitiated, Derren is a magician, illusionist, sleight-of-hand-artist, mentalist, showman, and renowned parrot enthusaist. I think that I originally stumbled upon him whilst listening to the old XFM Ricky / Steve / Karl shows.







He also did an American version of his UK TV series "Mind Control" which appeared on SyFy.



This is a very old clip - great hair! - but anyway, I was hooked and went back and watched pretty much all of the TV series and specials and everything I could find. It was the stage shows that really got me.

They really are fantastic. He does such a wonderful job of presenting these illusions / tricks / manipulations in a fun / memorable / sometimes creepy / always amazing way. Derren really is an amazing showman / performer, and these performances highlight his skills wonderfully, specifically the way that he can control a room. So for many years I have wished for a US tour that never materialized.

Now as I live in Denmark, it's easy to hop on over to jolly old England and catch a performance and I am very much looking forward to "Infamous".

That is - however - the only plan we really have. We have both been to London before and have visited the more popular tourist attractions. So, I ask you loyal reader...what would you do on a long weekend in London? What would you eat? Where would you go?

I almost forgot, how could I fill an entire post with stuff about magic and not include this?

Day 334 -- What?! We have a blog? and we went to Spain?

So it's been a long time since we last updated our blog.  We have no excuses.  But I hope to make a few posts updating you on our first autumn in Denmark.

In early September Collin and I spent a long weekend in Barcelona.  We've always wanted to go to Spain and this was a great introduction to the country.  It was three days of hot sunny weather, delicious food and amazing sites.  The highlight of the trip was dinner at Tickets, a tapas bar by the former head chef of elBulli, Ferran Adria.  We just sat at the bar and ate whatever amazing things they brought us starting with the famed elBulli olives.  

Click here to watch a video from the New York Times of Mark Bittman and Jose Andreas enjoying Ferran Adria's olives.  They are truly indescribable.  

Collin popped up in many places that night.

In addition to our unforgettable meal at Tickets, we enjoyed some Gaudi architecture includng both La Sagrada Familia and Casa Battlo.  Casa Battlo was especially cool because we went at night and sat on their rooftop and listened to some amazing Spanish guitar.

        

 These shots are the ceiling of the cathedral  

 And the following shots are outside Casa Battlo

We also visited the Picasso museum which was great, and had a drink at the beach on the Mediterranean. We stayed at Casa Camper, an awesome, funky, boutique that included a hammock in our room and a rooftop where we could relax and enjoy breakfast and snacks.

rooftop of the Casa Camper

enjoying our 2 euro bottle of wine

view outside our bathroom window

The last few shots are of the amazing marketplace, La Boqueria.  And my cousin Maggie was right, the fruit smoothies were delicious!   

Day 199 -- Amsterdam

Summer appears to be in full-swing here.  Today was a beautiful, sunny 25 C (high 70s for our fahrenheit friends). A lot of people have left for their 3, 4, or even 6-week vacations which makes the work place pretty empty, and the city streets as well. I have a lemon tart chilling in the fridge, and I finally purchased some rum today so Collin and I enjoyed mojitos and dutch gouda (fresh from Amsterdam) as a small appetizer. While he prepares the grill for some chicken for dinner I thought I would try a brief update on my trip to Amsterdam.

For those of you who do not work in the field of hemostasis and thrombosis (and let's be honest, that is probably 99% of you), this past week was the International Society of Thrombosis and Hemostasis (ISTH) conference held every other year, and this year in Amsterdam.  ISTH is the first large conference I ever attended way back in 2003 in Birmingham, England.  Since then I have had a mixed track record of attending:  2005 was in Sydney, sadly (or happily?) that was just before my wedding so attendance was not possible, 2007 was in Geneva but I was too new in my post-doc and not allowed to attend.  2009 was in Boston.  That I did attend and had a great time. 2011 was Kyoto...that's sad that I did not get to attend that and a long story, but one that involves Baxter and their travel rules...which brings us to 2013 and Amsterdam.  I actually thought I would not be able to attend since abstract submission is in January and I had just started at Novo but fortunately they let me go anyway!!  yay novo.  I enjoy this conference both for its vast scientific information but also as a chance to see old friends and former colleagues.  I'm only sad that more of my former colleagues are no longer working in the wonderful world of blood.

I left Friday night for the conference which started at 8 am on saturday morning.  Yay for living in Europe and being able to attend European conferences without being jet-lagged.  THAT was a very nice experience.  Our flight on Friday was delayed -- I later found out that Friday was the busiest  travel day at the Copenhagen airport due to schools ending and summer holidays starting.  I suppose that had something to do with our delayed flight, and it turns out, at least 4 of my danish colleagues got their bags lost somehow during the 1 hour flight to amsterdam...but I digress.   We arrived at our hotel in a pouring, wet Amsterdam at 10 pm.  Because I had left the house around 5 pm I had not had dinner yet, nor had my two traveling companions.  so after checking in to our hotel we took off to find some dinner...surprisingly hard for a Friday night, I guess it was after 10 then.  We eventually found a bar/cafe still serving food and had a heineken and a goat cheese salad.  It was not very good but I was hungry and tired so I didn't care too much.

Saturday was a long day of meetings, and lunch at an italian restaurant next to the convention center that had some of the worse service I have ever seen.  Saturday night a large group of us went to the city centre for dinner at In De Waag, a castle-like building in the middle of the Nieuwmarkt area of Amsterdam.   It was enjoyable and good company.

photo courtesy of In De Waag website

After dinner one of my colleagues led the way to the tram back to our hotel.  This involved walking through some alleys in the middle of the red-light district.  That was certainly an interesting experience.  I do not have any pictures to share.

Sunday was a slower morning at the conference so I actually skipped out and checked out the Anne Frank house.  Fortunately for me, I am aware of what QuestLove of the Roots experienced when he visited Amsterdam....extremely long lines at the Anne Frank house.  So I planned on getting there a little before it opened at 9 and wait in line for a while.   When I got there, there was already a fairly long line, and they opened late.  I ended up being in line until 10 am and spent as much time in line as I did in the museum.  I probably went through the museum faster than I should have -- mainly because I was meeting someone for lunch and needed to get out.  Luckily I had just re-read the book the week before I left so that helped me a lot.  The museum was very interesting and I definitely recommend it.  Be aware of long lines though, and maybe book tickets ahead of time online if you get a chance.

church outside that Anne mentions hearing when she is in hiding

line outside anne frank house

more of the line

After a wonderful lunch with former colleagues/friends from Illinios, I actually decided to visit the Van Gogh museum since our restaurant was right next door.  Once again, I only had an hour to spend there but this was one of my most favorite museums.  Of course it helps that I am a big fan of his work, but I also enjoyed all the more "science-y" (for lack of a better word) aspects there..how they have learned what they learned about his work, etc.  I also really dug his copies of famous Hiroshige works.

Hiroshige on left, Van Gogh on right

Hiroshige on left, Van Gogh on right

It's still unclear to me if what I saw was a special exhibit or the permanent exhibit, but I wish I would have had more time and highly recommend it to anyone else in Amsterdam.

That was the end of my sight-seeing.   The rest of the week was busy with seminars and meetings.  

Sunday night was the official opening reception.  This usually showcases local talent and included an act of strength and dexterity where a man and woman moved around each other by holding each other and balancing.  It was pretty impressive.  At one point he laid flat on his back and put his hand up.  She laid on his hand so she was parallel to the ground.  Then he stood completely up, keeping her parallel to the ground the whole time with just his hand/arm.  Another time she balanced upside down on the back of his neck with her neck...neither of them holding each other.  Other acts included ballet, classical music and a rousing drum duet with a jazz drummer  (Han Bennink) and a rock and roll drummer (from Golden Earring; Cesar Zuiderwijk).  They both were fun to watch, and Han Bennink was especially entertaining, playing while sitting on the floor, and putting his foot up on the drum, and other various oddities.  

Wednesday night was the all-congress party...always a good time.   This is a giant party celebrating all things Dutch.  There were break-dancers and flowers-on-stilts, jazz music, cabaret music and the headlining act: Golden Earring.  I did not know who Golden Earring was when I heard they would be there, but Collin quickly informed me they were the group behind the 70s rock hit "Radar Love".  Below are a few pictures from the party including a short video of radar love.  You can't see much in the video since I am short and was in the back, but you can hear the melodious sounds of Golden Earring.  

Han Bennink

Dutch break dancers?

Golden Earring

The conference ended on Thursday, and I made it home in time to celebrate the 4th of July with Collin with cheeseburgers on the grill and American beers.

And I will end with a shot of my lemon tart....

Day 171 - Frederiksborg Slot

And here we are, a week later, with recap of day three of Michael's visit to København.


View Larger Map

We began the day with the Train to Hillerød to visit Frederiksborg Slot (Castle or Palace for our American friends). The oldest parts of the castle are from the era of Frederik the II in and around 1560, but it is best known for the additions / new construction done by Christian IV in the early 17th century. I hope to do a DotW on Christian IV this week. He is, perhaps, the best known of all Danish Monarchs if not certainly one of the most interesting.

So the palace. It is situated on on small island - which I'm assuming was constructed for the castle - in the middle of lake, with acres of carefully planned garden behind.

Apologies to the Facebook-ers that have already seen these pictures. Here we go.

These pictures are as you enter the main courtyard - it was a great day for taking pictures. This fountain is fairly surreal, we'll see more of it in a bit. The tour of the interior is self guided and - thanks to Michael's student discount card - was only 60 kroner. I'm fairly impressed with the relative cheapness of museums / landmarks as compared to everything else in Denmark. The palace also houses a museum of Danish National History. 

One of the oldest sections of the palace that still survives - a massive fire in 1859 destroyed much of the interior - is the The Castle Chapel. It exists today pretty much as it would have from the period of Christian IV.

For some reason, I always take pictures of ceilings. It's just my thing. Here we go.

The top floor of the museum is a modern art collection. It included this picture of Danish national treasure Kim Larsen!

Kim was in the super-famous-in-Denmark 1970's band Gasolin'. I challenge you to not get this stuck in your head. It's Jutlandia.

There was also this look at modern day København.

If you look closely at the bottom of the picture, you'll see these!

Every pizza place in København uses these boxes. When making pizza in Denmark, it is important not to wear pants. You should probably also yell mamma mia in your best Mario voice. Especially if you're the hungriest.

The gardens are pretty amazing.

We walked through the gardens for a bit and then had a nice lunch at a small cafe in the garden.

As we made our way back through the castle to get to the train station, I took some more pictures in the courtyard.

I am childish and this amused me endlessly. Even Michael looks worried.

Next, it was on to Helsingør to Kronborg Slot - the castle of Hamlet. Stay tuned.