Precious daylight

The last few nights my sleep was dictated by jetlag and a persistent flu. Last night I made a ten-hour trip to dreamland, the first good sleep after returning to Finland. But it came at a price. When I opened my eyes just before 3pm, I looked out the window to see if its cloudy or sunny. It was cloudy - and dark. I missed the last 'day' of this year. Only another 17 hours to wait until the next daylight. 

After 'breakfast' I went out for some fresh air and took my camera along. The first thing which came into my mind was reflections. Christmas decorations and street lamps were reflected by the snow. In the horizon a band of orange and grey clouds told their story about city centers, roads and parking areas.

Reflections - perhaps there is a bit of a cloud and a lamp in each of us.

A cloud's reflection can tell the story of one or more lamps. Every cloud does so from it's own point of view.

A lamp is the only one who knows its full, true story. It spreads the light into many directions and clouds, but rarely all of it to one.

I'm curious and excited about the future, especially about possible daylight when I'm awake!
Happy New Year :)

Creatures of habit

Coming home is always nice. After a long journey, my wife and I arrived on Wednesday. Six months ago I couldn’t imagine being for months in North America and a week before returning to Finland I felt a bit of melancholy leaving the States and our friends there. So naturally it was a bit odd to open the door and step into the ‘old life’. As for timing, Christmas seemed to me the best moment to go back home after being away that long. Santa’s helpers made sure we a warm house, the fridge with food and a Christmas tree in the back yard.

During the first 24 hours back in Finland I learned that I’m more a creature of habit than I would have thought. After some hours of sleep I woke up and made my way from the bed to the toilet. Familiar territory or so I thought. For starters I ran into the corner of the bed and then into a chair. But the biggest problem was flushing the toilet. No, not what you think, it did work fine. In the Varsity the flush lever was on the left side and needed to be pushed. So - out of habit and still very sleepy - I tried to push that lever at least five times. Then I started to realize I’m in Finland. So I tried other places, no luck. Then it dawned on me to turn on the light. Hooray, I found the lever and noticed that I actually have to pull this one.. Back to bed I went.

In the afternoon we picked up our cats. I should mention that I love driving cars. And still, I managed to stall the engine five times on the way because I got used to automatic gear without a clutch. Against the odds the cats got home safely..: )

So why am I writing all this on Christmas Eve/Day? Because I feel the need to express myself not using my voice. During all the time abroad I wasn’t sick a day and I’m thankful. Two days back home and my voice went on vacation, but a fever keeps me company.

So I’m stuck back home but hey, that’s why we have internet… Merry Christmas!

Christmas tree

...not (just) a place to sleep..

Right now is our last night in the Varsity, our home for the past months here in College Park. My wife and me are "playing" Tetris, trying to fit all our stuff into the luggage. The kindergarten kids in the apartments above us have a big party with disco music, shouting, jumping and running. It is 2.55am on Tuesday "morning" and our multiple complaints did not make any difference. We called the lobby, of course only the answering machine spoke to us with very inspiring words (you can listen to them below... :).

A week ago my wife and me went for a walk through the College Park neighborhood. We found a street called Fraternity Row. Alpha Kappa Omega, Phi Kappa Tau, etc. I felt like in a movie because I only have seen and heard about these fraternities in US high school movies. Yes, I used to watch those back in the days. I hoped for some secretive action against a neighbor or maybe see some ambitious newcomers to perform some silly test for membership. Unfortunately nothing was happening this time, perhaps it isn't all like in the movies.

The experience here in the US for my wife's group with people from South Africa, Singapore, Morocco, Mexico, Israel, India, Argentina and Finland is coming to an end. But this is not goodbye to new-found friends, we only say "See you". On graduation day with many emotional moments it was more clear than ever that this was a very special journey for all. I enjoyed very much to get to know many different persons and discuss about basically everything. It has given me a lot to think about in the weeks and months to come.

Graduation Day

Fraternity...

...row

Which one to choose..?

Call the lobby:

Valley of Fire

When I knew last spring that I would go to North America for a longer time, I was looking forward to seeing canyons, arches, deserts and other nature miracles. Browsing the internet, I found a road trip passing through many nature parks in Utah and Arizona (Grand Circle Road). I got extremely obsessed with photos of colorful sandstone formations in very rural areas. The effect those pictures had an on me is difficult to put in words.

So I started to plan, but – as so often in life – plans change. We had nice trips with our international group, I went to Canada and had the road trip with my sister. There simply wasn’t enough time to see everything. In Las Vegas I reserved one day to take a rental car and see one of those miraculous places. But which one?

I heard from many people that Grand Canyon is something ‘you have to see’. The four-hour drive each way didn’t scare me off, but I would rather spend more time than just a few hours. Maybe it will be during the grand circle road trip with my wife someday in the future..:)

Finally I decided to visit the Valley of Fire, some ninety minutes away from Vegas. With an early start, I stayed there almost seven hours, saw more than half the park and took some 800 pictures. Only a few other tourists could witness me shaking my head in disbelieve again and again. It truly was the best day of my autumn (so far).

Let me take you through my day..

Alone in the desert

First view

A mummy on the rock

Natural arch

Petroglyphs at Atlatl rock

Atlatl rock

Beehives

View at Beehives

Curious antelope ground squirrel

View near Visitor Center

Laughing Monkey

Hike to Mouse's Tank

Two small people

Road to Rainbow Vista

Rainbow Vista

Road towards White Domes

The Fire Wave; reward after long search

Fire Wave

Fire Wave before sunset

Love those colors

Silica Dome and Fire Canyon just after sunset

Arlington National Cemetery

On Wednesday my wife and I went to visit Arlington National Cemetery. It is a military cemetery and located in Virginia, just two miles from the White House and North of the Pentagon. After collecting a map from the visitor center, we made our way through thousands of marble headstones. It was a special experience. The autumn sun, the cool temperature and trees without leaves created a perfect atmosphere.

After a short walk we came to the gravesite of John F. Kennedy. We were surprised to see that the site was kept very simple. A small area of laid stones surrounded an eternal flame and the engraved plates of JFK, his wife Jacqueline Onassis and their two children. As a small addition, a series of quotes were marked in stone a few meters away.

From there we went to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to witness the change of the guard. As we were walking back to the car, we noticed seven soldiers in uniform with rifles. A funeral was about to begin. An official came to us and said, no pictures of the coffin were allowed. We had a quick chat and learned that funerals are on four days a week, 5-6 each day.

Then horses pulled a carriage with a coffin covered by the US flag. The seven soldiers performed a three volley salute and a bugler was playing Taps. All was just like in the movies, or I should better say, the movie funerals are done just as the real ones.

During my flight from Vegas to Washington, I got to know an US attorney. We discussed many things and he told me how he never gets emotional except at the Arlington Cemetery. For me, the cemetery was a calm place full of history. The change of the guards was just an interesting thing to see, but the trumpet solo at the funeral was very moving.

View from Arlington Cemetery to Lincoln Memorial

Inside the cemetery

Countless marble headstones

Gravesite of John F. Kennedy

Another view

Autumn work

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Change of the guard

Three volley salute

Show us your moves!

December 6 is Independence Day in Finland and St Nikolaus in Germany. My wife and I had a little get-together for our international group on that day. We served ginger bread and Glӧgi, the Finnish version of mulled wine. We had a short official part where my wife talked about the Independence Day and we listened to the National Anthem of Finland. Then all of us shared nuts and chocolate, which St Nikolaus brought us (beforehand).

After my return from Las Vegas I struggled with the three-hour time difference. On Tuesday ‘night’ I went to sleep at 6.20am. On Wednesday I discussed this with my friend E Pei from Singapore. His comment was: No sympathy, don’t care. I’m sure some of you readers share his opinion.. ;)

E Pei and I planned for a long time to see a NBA basketball game during this autumn. Unfortunately we couldn’t make it because of the lockout. A disagreement between team owners and players regarding salaries (what else) delayed the season start to Christmas Day. So we had to come up with another plan and went to see a college basketball game on Wednesday night.

Maryland Terrapins played against St Mount Mary’s, here in College Park. The 18,000 seats of the Comcast Center were just half filled, perhaps because of the heavy rain. One section was dedicated to reporters and commentators only. I’m still amazed how popular these college sports are, unthinkable back home. College basketball is played 2x20 minutes and the first half was rather boring because the Terrapins had an early lead and were never in any danger. Highlights were two slam dunks; those boys jumped really high.

The half-time show was really fun. In addition to the cheerleaders there were a few coupons give-away competitions for someone in the audience. The best one was ‘Show us your moves! Dance for your dinner’. Everyone could dance to some disco music and the cameras searched for the best moves, shown on the screen. As it came down to two, the cheering of the audience decided on the winner. Seems I have to do some work on my moves, I didn’t even make it to the screen..

During the second half a thing called momentum turned around the game. The home team was too sure of victory and suddenly they trailed. That woke up the audience and the atmosphere was now great! Just one second before the end, Maryland was leading by one single point and scored two more points for a 77-74 victory. Great drama, go terps!

Press box in Comcast Center

Some action

Cheerleaders in action

Mascot having fun

Show us your moves!

Unreal reality, really..!?

It was a ninety-minute flight from San Fransisco to Las Vegas. As the plane began its descent, I saw nothing but the desert, mountains and some dusty roads. Suddenly a suburb appeared nestled by dark asphalt roads. In the backyards I recognized swimming pools and palm trees. Then I saw the strip with its casinos and hotels. The first thing inside the airport were the slot machines. Welcome to fabulous Las Vegas!

Once I got settled in the Mirage, my home for the next days, I went to explore the hotel/casino. It felt like being in another world, so many rooms, restaurants, slot machines and table games under one roof.

Seventeen of the 25 biggest hotels in the world are located on the Las Vegas Strip (by the number of rooms). During my stay I visited many just for sightseeing. It was unreal to walk in short distances to places resembling Egypt, New York, Paris, Italy and more. I felt like being in a sort of Disneyland. Well-known ‘landmarks’ outdoors were the Eiffel tower, Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge, Piazza San Marco with the Campanile, Rialto bridge and the Colosseum. Exploring those resorts was not always simple. The buildings are huge and a couple of times I couldn't find the door I came in. Luckily they have maps :)

I discussed with some locals about the life and it didn’t sound all that good. It didn’t seem to be a place to live with a family. On the other hand, I can’t say much about the Vegas life between the desert and the strip.

At sunset some casinos started free outdoor attractions, like the volcano show outside the Mirage. The Fountains of Bellagio were my personal favorite; music in combination with water fountains.

During the evenings all casinos offered different shows and concerts. I went to see Love (Cirque de Soleil). This show was all about the Beatles. There were some breathtaking moments while some artists performed high above the stage.

More than a couple of days in Las Vegas without traveling to a National or State Park is a stretch. Many things start to be the same just in a different suit. But for a couple of days it’s great fun..!

View from the airplane

Fountains of Bellagio

Volcano at the Mirage

Eiffel tower

Shopping mall of Caesars Palace

New York, New York

Caesars Palace

The Venetian

Excalibur

The Mirage

Who called Spiderman?

High-five!

Almost like Venice..

Part of the strip

The lobby of Caesars Palace

Inside the Luxor

In New York (, New York)

Gondola inside (!) on the second floor!

I had to take this one