After a few hectic days in gay Parie we packed our bags checked in with Air France (an experience in it's self) and flew to Portugal. I'd forgotten this was the home of the first great European explorers. The pace of life was more relaxed and the weather much warmer. The Portuguese are encouraged to learn English because tourism is a great part of their economy. We stayed at The Sofitel (rated 5 Stars) which had much larger rooms. It had other challenges to deal with, but a breath of fresh air compared too the Hobbit quarters of Paris. One thing I learned on our trip is that Europeans are really energy conscious and like to use technology to confuse most of us from the new world. It took a while to understand the light switches and we never did really figure out the shower controls. Another confusing feature was that the ground floor was always zero in the elevators. But, I personally enjoyed our short time in Lisbon. Not as many sight s to see, but all were very interesting. The food was much different, and the bread wasn't quite as good, but the Port wine was very good. We always ended the day with a night cap and a sweet.
Yesterday was a light day on the golf course due the monthly member guest. Only four showed for a quick round and a spot of lunch. The SD's prime rib dinner on Wednesday was well attended with over 100. The prime rib was very good, and the cheese cake great. Saturday will be a return our standard game. Personally I haven't played Saturday golf for a month and am looking forward to it.
I'll wrap up the trip in my next post.
CC
PS- One comment about checking in at Air France. It seemed like everything that could go wrong did. Everything is automated with very little help. My boarding pass wouldn't print; my luggage got stuck on the conveyor; another conveyor wouldn't move. You get the picture.
Friday, May 29, 2015
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Road Trip
The Nurse and I took a day and made the trip to Normandy to where the invasion of D-Day started. It was a very moving experience. Once you see the terrain the American forces faced you asked yourself how they ever managed to gain a foothold and eventually move inland. The only remnants on the beaches are the bunkers, pillboxes, bomb craters, and some ruins in the ocean. The area is now a resort area like we would expect along our Atlantic shore. The visit to the American Cemetery is difficult to describe it's a small version of Arlington National Cemetery and strong statement on the sacrifices our troops made. Remember 90% of the first wave on shore was lost.
We made the trip as part of a private tour. There were only five of us in the van which allowed us to get to know our guide. It was over 500KM round trip and took over 12 hours. I'm sure our guide worked time as cabbie in Paris. He never drove the speed limit and never missed an opportunity to pass a vehicle on a narrow road. But, he was a wealth of information and we learned a lot. The day ended with us having French onion soup, wonderful bread and wine at our favorite sidewalk cafe. Comparatively speaking Mancy's soup is just as good.
Back to daily golf. We had a good group show up yesterday. Eleven plus Seth. For the second time this year my group won. We "ham and egged" it well and thought we would win by a wide margin. But, -23 was just a good score, and enough to hold off all others. I finally sat down and counted the SOTD money and am happy to report we are again over $100 in the pool. We are due for a winner and had several close calls yesterday.
More about the trip tomorrow.
CC
We made the trip as part of a private tour. There were only five of us in the van which allowed us to get to know our guide. It was over 500KM round trip and took over 12 hours. I'm sure our guide worked time as cabbie in Paris. He never drove the speed limit and never missed an opportunity to pass a vehicle on a narrow road. But, he was a wealth of information and we learned a lot. The day ended with us having French onion soup, wonderful bread and wine at our favorite sidewalk cafe. Comparatively speaking Mancy's soup is just as good.
Back to daily golf. We had a good group show up yesterday. Eleven plus Seth. For the second time this year my group won. We "ham and egged" it well and thought we would win by a wide margin. But, -23 was just a good score, and enough to hold off all others. I finally sat down and counted the SOTD money and am happy to report we are again over $100 in the pool. We are due for a winner and had several close calls yesterday.
More about the trip tomorrow.
CC
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Continuing
After a much needed night of (fitful) sleep our second day in Paris began with a great breakfast of bread, pasties and all that go with a continental breakfast at our hotel. We had decided on taking a half day guided city tour to ensure we covered the major tourist sites (and frankly I had no desire to try to navigate my way around such a confusing place). As it turned out this was an outstanding idea. I would probably be still stuck on the Metro if left on my own. Our driver/guide was very good at scaring the hell out of me as he weaved in and out of traffic while barely using his horn or cryptic language (which I presume was derogatory comment on some one's lineage). I will admit I never saw one accident my whole time in France or Portugal, and can't explain why. But I digress.
The tour covered almost all the major sites. We had a few problems thanks the President of Singapore. I don't know whether he was in town for official business or shopping but his motorcade screwed up traffic, and we seemed to be in his path periodically. I will give the French credit, they take terrorism seriously. Their security people (police or military) have the most up to date gear and they looked like they wouldn't hesitate to use it. I was a bit taken back by the military patrolling Notre Dame. They were in full battle dress with assault weapons.
At the conclusion of our tour we were deposited at the Louvre and thrown the mercy the hoard of tourists trying to get a glimpse of the famous art work. I basically saw three things. First the Mona Lisa. Since it was a total mob scene that was from thirty feet. I refused to get into a shoving match with half of China. Second was the Venus and third was the Winged Victory. The last two from uch closer vantage points. It took almost two hours to see these three works due to the size of the museum and our inability to agree on how to read the map guide. So we called it a day and took the Metro back to the hotel. We didn't get lost in spite of ourselves (and thanks to some helpful Parisians). However, before going to our room we stopped at one of the many Cafes for an adult beverage and a bit of people watching.
I have a lot more to tell but must go get the mail now.
CC
PS - Twinkle Toes are the greens to your liking now? I noticed a big change from 10 days ago. Or maybe it was jet lag kicking in.
The tour covered almost all the major sites. We had a few problems thanks the President of Singapore. I don't know whether he was in town for official business or shopping but his motorcade screwed up traffic, and we seemed to be in his path periodically. I will give the French credit, they take terrorism seriously. Their security people (police or military) have the most up to date gear and they looked like they wouldn't hesitate to use it. I was a bit taken back by the military patrolling Notre Dame. They were in full battle dress with assault weapons.
At the conclusion of our tour we were deposited at the Louvre and thrown the mercy the hoard of tourists trying to get a glimpse of the famous art work. I basically saw three things. First the Mona Lisa. Since it was a total mob scene that was from thirty feet. I refused to get into a shoving match with half of China. Second was the Venus and third was the Winged Victory. The last two from uch closer vantage points. It took almost two hours to see these three works due to the size of the museum and our inability to agree on how to read the map guide. So we called it a day and took the Metro back to the hotel. We didn't get lost in spite of ourselves (and thanks to some helpful Parisians). However, before going to our room we stopped at one of the many Cafes for an adult beverage and a bit of people watching.
I have a lot more to tell but must go get the mail now.
CC
PS - Twinkle Toes are the greens to your liking now? I noticed a big change from 10 days ago. Or maybe it was jet lag kicking in.
Monday, May 25, 2015
Tale Of Two Cities
Unlike the beginning of the novel it was the best of times over the past week. After a smooth flight from DTW we landed in Paris to sunny skies and mild temperatures. After clearing immigration and a white knuckle ride in to Paris (by private shuttle) we arrived at our hotel on the edge of the university district on a narrow side street. Since we couldn't get in our room we stashed the bags and headed off to see some of the city. I will admit I stuck close to those of our group who thought they knew their way around since I didn't have a clue. I tried dropping bread crumbs as way of leaving a trail, but didn't count all the pigeons. You can ask the Nurse what we saw. All I'll say we walked what seemed forever saw a lot of old buildings, a big park, lots of people, and cafes which they wouldn't let me stop at. We finally took a break some where around the Sorbonne for lunch at a nice little spot where I could people watch. After a nice break it was time to try to find our hotel. Surprisingly we made it back without asking for directions.
My thoughts on the accommodations are mixed. Great staff, completely modernized, but our room was made for a Hobbit. How they squeezed a king size bed in was an engineering miracle. The bathroom was about the size of a closet. Not surprisingly I found it difficult to sleep most nights since I thought the wall on my side of the bed was closing in (about a foot away from the bed). The breakfast provided was very good. Too bad I can't have it served to me like that everyday.
I'll let this serve as Chapter1 to my tale and write Chapter 2 tomorrow.
CC
PS - Being the holiday weekend we are trying normalize ourselves as quick as possible and plan to hit the links this afternoon. Hope the jet lag doesn't kick in too quickly.
My thoughts on the accommodations are mixed. Great staff, completely modernized, but our room was made for a Hobbit. How they squeezed a king size bed in was an engineering miracle. The bathroom was about the size of a closet. Not surprisingly I found it difficult to sleep most nights since I thought the wall on my side of the bed was closing in (about a foot away from the bed). The breakfast provided was very good. Too bad I can't have it served to me like that everyday.
I'll let this serve as Chapter1 to my tale and write Chapter 2 tomorrow.
CC
PS - Being the holiday weekend we are trying normalize ourselves as quick as possible and plan to hit the links this afternoon. Hope the jet lag doesn't kick in too quickly.
Thursday, May 14, 2015
A Teaser
The weather has been teasing us for the past week or so. Just when you think it has finally made the turn towards Spring we get hit with another cold front. In retrospect I guess that is pretty normal, but it is certainly hard on these aging bones. Speaking of aging bones a couple of former members (we all know) were guest recently and remarked on the fact none of the "old guys" were around. Our retort was that they were looking at them. Plus if they were still at the club they would be part of the group. One was heard to murmur under his breath that was a sobering fact.
Tuesday was pretty much of a freeze-out. Yesterday was a little different. The sun kept peeking out and the wind laid down for the most part. I finally guessed right and picked the right partners, and won the daily game. That was in spite of my poor play, But Twinkle Toes was on fire and found remnants of his old self. Seth joined the group and actually called his birdie on 18 before teeing it up. I can predict the double bogey but not the birdie any longer.
I checked on all the walking wounded and all seem to be doing well. TTS continues to go to rehab and make positive progress. The SD is getting back to normal after having an a-fib event.The rest of us just pop the "golf candy" and play on.
Looks good for today, but real iffy for Inter Club on Friday.
CC
Tuesday was pretty much of a freeze-out. Yesterday was a little different. The sun kept peeking out and the wind laid down for the most part. I finally guessed right and picked the right partners, and won the daily game. That was in spite of my poor play, But Twinkle Toes was on fire and found remnants of his old self. Seth joined the group and actually called his birdie on 18 before teeing it up. I can predict the double bogey but not the birdie any longer.
I checked on all the walking wounded and all seem to be doing well. TTS continues to go to rehab and make positive progress. The SD is getting back to normal after having an a-fib event.The rest of us just pop the "golf candy" and play on.
Looks good for today, but real iffy for Inter Club on Friday.
CC
Friday, May 8, 2015
Technology
Yesterday I was driving up Ford Rd. and attempted to change Sirius radio stations using a voice command. It so happened that I sneezed in the middle of trying to tell Marilyn (the female voice of Sync) what station to tune to. You guessed it she, tuned the radio to HUCU. I didn't even know such a station existed. If you think this was a one time thing, think again. OTR's i-phone has a term of endearment for him. If it doesn't understand his command it will respond with "I don't understand Numb Nuts". Then at other random times it will call him Numb Nuts without any provocation. These things are starting to scare me. Especially when you think about the ads for cars that perform a number of safety functions without driver input. And, we all know they are working on cars that will drive themselves (not just parallel park like mine does).
Back to golf. The LR Dr. was OJTing yesterday and a came up with a crazy format that favored the chosen few. Needless to say I wasn't in that group. Gilhooley and I were paired up with T Squared, who turned into a real load. He was wearing the high handicappers costume instead of his normal one. Oh well it was only $5.00.
The SOTD almost had several winners, but they all came up one dice short. The pot grew by a respectful $13.00. The LR Dr. is trying a new tack. Instead of using the "one and done" convention he now applies that concept a monthly basis. It didn't help him even come close.
See ya,
CC
PS - For all you La Creme consumers. The Anderson's is selling it for $15.00. They say that is the lowest price in history of the area.
Back to golf. The LR Dr. was OJTing yesterday and a came up with a crazy format that favored the chosen few. Needless to say I wasn't in that group. Gilhooley and I were paired up with T Squared, who turned into a real load. He was wearing the high handicappers costume instead of his normal one. Oh well it was only $5.00.
The SOTD almost had several winners, but they all came up one dice short. The pot grew by a respectful $13.00. The LR Dr. is trying a new tack. Instead of using the "one and done" convention he now applies that concept a monthly basis. It didn't help him even come close.
See ya,
CC
PS - For all you La Creme consumers. The Anderson's is selling it for $15.00. They say that is the lowest price in history of the area.
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Coastal Golf
The desert isn't the only place where you can get target golf. Much to the dismay of OTR and myself we found a course just off HHI where we had a number of holes where we had to play to target areas. No easy task when the wind is coming off the ocean at about 20 mph. It kinda took all the fun out of it. Then throw in a fairway mower that wouldn't get out of the way and you really get your rhythm screwed up. Or, at least that's the excuse OTR used. I have to concur about the wind but not the mower since I couldn't hit that far. Plus if you throw in several forced carries and the score tends to balloon skyward. Actually OTR found the solution in a "wee nip" to calm the nerves. Personally I'm not much of a scotch drinker but I certainly helped put a big dent in a bottle of Chivas during the week. It didn't help the golf game, but I slept better some nights.
It took most of yesterday to get back into the swing of things back at the ranch. I find it hard to understand that the USPS is going broke based on the volume of mail they were holding for us. Now granted I could throw most of it away, but it filled up reusable grocery bag. I also found out that Fed Ex will drop off undeliverable packages with the USPS after several attempts to deliver to the house. Is that a new program?
I'm not sure about golf today since showers are predicted. But, will plan on lunch at a minimum, and maybe a few range balls.
CC
It took most of yesterday to get back into the swing of things back at the ranch. I find it hard to understand that the USPS is going broke based on the volume of mail they were holding for us. Now granted I could throw most of it away, but it filled up reusable grocery bag. I also found out that Fed Ex will drop off undeliverable packages with the USPS after several attempts to deliver to the house. Is that a new program?
I'm not sure about golf today since showers are predicted. But, will plan on lunch at a minimum, and maybe a few range balls.
CC
Sunday, May 3, 2015
A Long Ride
It seems like I've been away longer than a week. But, for some reason know only to the computer Gods I couldn't access the "new post" function with my tablet or Mrs. OTR's computer. Maybe they were trying to tell me something. Anyway we are now back in our friendly surrounds and happy to be home after a long 13.5 hour trip on Saturday. To say my butt was numb was understating it, but the drive overall was easy unlike the trip down. We decided to take the turnpike East to I77 and then head South. That went well for about thirty miles, Fremont to be exact where they had everyone get off because of a construction closure. Who in their rigth mind plans something like that for a Friday? That little detour cost us an hole, but not a big deal since we only planned driving about 500 miles. We got to HHI without any delays on Saturday, but had heavy traffic all day. After doing some shopping for provisions and other items we checked in to our place right before the monsoon started. I have never seen rain like that. Locals said they got 9 inches between Friday and Sunday. It was so hard OTR almost hat to pull off the road on the last 20 miles of his drive. You know it must have been bad when a trucker says that (ask him to show the video).
I have to state that what happens in HHI stays in HHI (for the most part). I will say we had a lot of laughs, played some golf (not so good at times), and ate plenty of good food. Once the rain moved on we got to get out and walk the beach and enjoy the sun. The temperatures were a little cooler than normal although we did have one day in the high 80's. One day of mostly rain so OTR and I could hit all the local golf stores. We also had to take him out to get retreaded (find flip flops) so he could go to the pool in style.
Time to sign off so I can go catch up on recorded TV with the Nurse. There'll be more later on the trip.
CC
PS - I see that while I was gone the SOTD was active but no winners.
I have to state that what happens in HHI stays in HHI (for the most part). I will say we had a lot of laughs, played some golf (not so good at times), and ate plenty of good food. Once the rain moved on we got to get out and walk the beach and enjoy the sun. The temperatures were a little cooler than normal although we did have one day in the high 80's. One day of mostly rain so OTR and I could hit all the local golf stores. We also had to take him out to get retreaded (find flip flops) so he could go to the pool in style.
Time to sign off so I can go catch up on recorded TV with the Nurse. There'll be more later on the trip.
CC
PS - I see that while I was gone the SOTD was active but no winners.
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