Thought I should let any non-tbr members know that there is going to be a Languish meet in Cortina d'Ampezzo on 7th through to the 11th of May :cool:
The barristers, myself, Tamas, Syt and Ank are definites for this trip and other languishites in good standing are invited to join in the fun.
I'm particularly hoping that we can meet up with pedrito on this trip, let us know if that will be possible pedrito :bowler:
I don't think he's on that often, so you may want to PM him. :)
Quote from: Caliga on March 30, 2009, 06:57:49 AM
I don't think he's on that often, so you may want to PM him. :)
? nah he's on during the week, just unlike many of us has a life that keeps him away on weekends. :P
Quote from: katmai on March 30, 2009, 07:09:45 AM? nah he's on during the week, just unlike many of us has a life that keeps him away on weekends. :P
Oh. :blush:
What is this tbr you speak of?
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on March 30, 2009, 02:14:38 AM
Thought I should let any non-tbr members know that there is going to be a Languish meet in Cortina d'Ampezzo on 7th through to the 11th of May :cool:
The barristers, myself, Tamas, Syt and Ank are definites for this trip and other languishites in good standing are invited to join in the fun.
I'm particularly hoping that we can meet up with pedrito on this trip, let us know if that will be possible pedrito :bowler:
TBR sanctity means nothing to you? Classy. :thumbsdown:
Is there a new TBR in this revamped board?
Quote from: The Larch on March 30, 2009, 02:50:39 PM
Is there a new TBR in this revamped board?
Yes. PM Neil, Jacob and/or Katmai.
Hmmm, sign me up for a definite maybe...
And if we get pedrito to come and play that would be awesome.
Quote from: The Larch on March 30, 2009, 02:50:39 PM
Is there a new TBR in this revamped board?
Sorry, only one Iberian allowed.
Quote from: The Brain on March 30, 2009, 11:30:00 AMTBR sanctity means nothing to you? Classy. :thumbsdown:
Actually, I really like the international Languish meets. Especially the type of meeting where you're not required to have posted a sincere, heartfelt thread, featuring pics of yourself shaving your balls in TBR two years in advance, in order to attend. :P
I could drive there in about five hours...maybe I should do that. But I could probably only come for the weekend. Why do you meet in a ski resort? :huh:
I'd probably only know the Tuesday before because it depends on whether I get a company car for that weekend or not.
Quote from: Grey Fox on March 30, 2009, 03:02:43 PM
Quote from: The Larch on March 30, 2009, 02:50:39 PM
Is there a new TBR in this revamped board?
Yes. PM Neil, Jacob and/or Katmai.
Don't PM me, for the love of god. Kat and Jake are in charge of deciding who is cool enough to be let in, and who is such a fag that they must be booted. It would take a lot for me to get involved in Back Room politics.
Quote from: Zanza2 on March 30, 2009, 05:43:22 PM
I could drive there in about five hours...maybe I should do that. But I could probably only come for the weekend. Why do you meet in a ski resort? :huh:
I'd probably only know the Tuesday before because it depends on whether I get a company car for that weekend or not.
The mountains provide excellent material for really tiring death-marches :cool:
Also, I hate dragging round museums with a hangover :D Culture is best done in a smaller group.
Would be great if you could join in the fun.
Quote from: Legbiter on March 30, 2009, 03:39:10 PM
Quote from: The Brain on March 30, 2009, 11:30:00 AMTBR sanctity means nothing to you? Classy. :thumbsdown:
Actually, I really like the international Languish meets. Especially the type of meeting where you're not required to have posted a sincere, heartfelt thread, featuring pics of yourself shaving your balls in TBR two years in advance, in order to attend. :P
Hope you can make it Legs :cool:
That would be amazing if Zanza and Legs could make it. :w00t:
Remember Euros - if I'm coming from Yukon to be there, you have a much shorter trip. :contract:
Btw, I won't be able to make it due to job constraints, so if anyone wanted to go but wouldn't, because they didn't want to run into me, here's your chance.
Bumping since I saw Pedrito lurking around.
So languish proposes a meet in Italy, and "coincidentally" the country is hit by earthquakes?
Bumping for Pedrito (who I've been PMing).
oh okay, after all the bumps I've finally seen the thread :lol:
As I wrote to BB, I know Cortina fairly well (lets' simply say that it's a bit of a second home for me) and I can give you all the info you'd like about the place.
It is a very beautiful ski resort in the eastern Alps, without a doubt the nicest town in the Dolomites. it's pretty near to Venice airport (1 1/2 hour by car), and easily reached by train+bus, too.
During winter it's a renowned ski area, there's an ice hockey stadium and (for you, BB!) in a couple of weeks they'll host the World Curling Championships for mixed teams.
During the summer it's a wonderful valley surrounded by high mountains (the Tofanas ridge, about 3200 meters high; the mount Cristallo, the Antelao) where trekking is a pleasure.
All this natural beauty has a downside, though: Cortina is a "jet-set" town, not different from Sankt Moritz or Gstaad in Switzerland, so during high season it's always chock-full of the rich and famous, and of other millions of people: luckily, May isn't high season, so Languishites should be able to snatch a hotel room at prices that are not a burglary. OTOH, during offseason not all hotels and restaurants will be open for tourists.
Things to do in Cortina:
- take the cableway to the Tofana peak (3000+ meters) and enjoy a fantastic view of the valley
- trek around the Tofanas to search for trenches and remains of WWI battles between the Alpini and the Austrians
- buy and wear a pair of lederhosen (Tyrolian short suede pants)(when I was a kid I had a pair of those :blush: )
- have the guts to eat at least one of the local specialty plates (joking here, they're delicious)(I hope there are no veggies/vegans at the meeting)
- gather a nice group of friends, go to the right place and have a grolla all together; the Grolla is a big wood container with six to eight "mouths", filled with hot coffee, sugar and the strongest spirit available. You drink it by passing it around the table, and everyone must take a sip. I strongly advice to find a place to drink it that's the nearest possible to the hotel, or at least that doesn't require a car trip!
If anyone needs directions about hotels and restaurants in town, what to to and where to go, I'll be more than happy to help them: I'm pretty confident I will meet you folks at least on friday 8 :)
(diplo relations with the wife, right now: +180 ;) )
L.
Picture of a girl drinking from a grolla:
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi132.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fq2%2FPedrito2007%2Fgrolla.jpg&hash=f29969d91a8400c877469b20d9a5fed67264f656)
L.
I knew it! One :angry: smiley and Pedrito finally answered. :p
Alas, I won't be able to make it. I'll be in Norway during that weekend. So down a shot for me guys, really wish I could have been there. :(
I'm pleased to see that pedrito vindicates my boosting of Cortina as a good place to visit :cool:
He even acknowledges that it is a "jet-set" town. I've always called such places "James Bond" destinations, as one would not be surprised to see them filming a Bond movie there. In addition, a "James Bond" destination and it's visitors are not quite as sophisticated as they like to think, which makes for good people watching, one can always hope for a really startling display of wealthy vulgarity :D
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 08, 2009, 01:48:52 AM
I'm pleased to see that pedrito vindicates my boosting of Cortina as a good place to visit :cool:
He even acknowledges that it is a "jet-set" town. I've always called such places "James Bond" destinations, as one would not be surprised to see them filming a Bond movie there. In addition, a "James Bond" destination and it's visitors are not quite as sophisticated as they like to think, which makes for good people watching, one can always hope for a really startling display of wealthy vulgarity :D
I'm heavily partial towards Cortina ;)
And yes, at least some scenes of a James Bond movie (don't remember which one, though) were shot in Cortina; it was one of the 1960s movies, with Sean Connery as mr. Bond.
@Barrister: I replied here before your :mad: smiley! :mad:
L.
guys it's obvious pedrito hasn't been responding as it's his way of saying he doesn't want to meet you.
Dollar is at a much improved rate and you still don't get across the pond :huh:
You, sir, are the Alaskan CdM :contract:
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 08, 2009, 02:51:43 AM
Dollar is at a much improved rate and you still don't get across the pond :huh:
You, sir, are the Alaskan CdM :contract:
As you can attest I do get out a bit more than mr deMoney.
Sides i have trips planned for 10 days in San Diego and weekend in Hawaii already this summer so even with flights to Frankfurt being under $700 no way i can pull off this trip.
Has anyone checked our planned hotel with Pedrito? (whatsitsname)
Also, pedrito, I will be going by car. Anything particular to look out for? :)
@Katmai
I'm going to start making my way back over to North America once Ank is back over there, it seems crazy to say to him "let's go on a US roadtrip" while he's stationed over here :D
So, hopefully, we will have the nucleus of a really good group of roadtrip mates come spring/summer 2011 :cool:
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 08, 2009, 03:02:45 AM
@Katmai
I'm going to start making my way back over to North America once Ank is back over there, it seems crazy to say to him "let's go on a US roadtrip" while he's stationed over here :D
So, hopefully, we will have the nucleus of a really good group of roadtrip mates come spring/summer 2011 :cool:
Rent one of these and you have me onboard:
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.volkswagon-cars.com%2FVW%2520bus.jpg&hash=88567410823d7035d746af85443fcc618720db30)
:cool:
Yeah, Pedrito; me, Tamas and Ank are booked into the hotel Montana on the Corso Italia right in the centre of town (right next to the church belltower that starts tolling at 7 am :P). Not sure if the barristers have booked there or not.
Triple rooms have been booked and will be under-occupied as we are not sure if they have 3 beds each or 1 double and 1 single. Understandably we are all in mortal dread of the mere possibility of having to share a bed with another Languishite :D
So, we can legitimately put you up for the night if we spend the friday evening eating and drinking. Which I'm guessing will be what happens.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 08, 2009, 03:11:39 AM
Yeah, Pedrito; me, Tamas and Ank are booked into the hotel Montana on the Corso Italia right in the centre of town (right next to the church belltower that starts tolling at 7 am :P ).
Oh thank god i'm not going for sure now!
Quote from: Tamas on April 08, 2009, 02:57:00 AM
Also, pedrito, I will be going by car. Anything particular to look out for? :)
If you come through Austria, you can stop at Magdalensberg, not far from Klagenfurt, and take a look at the roman era settlement there: it was an iron mining centre, there's a pretty nice reconstruction of the different activities that were performed there and, IIRC, a small museum with materials excavated from the site.
If you come through Slovenia, Trieste is a very beautiful city and the Miramare Castle is worth a trip.
Along the road from Venice to Cortina, passing through Longarone an looking to the right, you'll see a high dam nested in the mountains: it's the infamous Vajont Dam, theatre of one of the most terrible tragedies of recent italian history: during October, 1963 literally
half of the mountain behind the dam slided into the artificial lake, and generated an immense wave that jumped over the dam and crashed over the town of Longarone. the town was wiped away, and there were more than three thousand deaths :(
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on April 08, 2009, 03:49:33 AM
If you come through Slovenia, Trieste is a very beautiful city and the Miramare Castle is worth a trip.
:wub:
Trieste must be the most underrated city in all Ialy.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 08, 2009, 03:11:39 AM
Yeah, Pedrito; me, Tamas and Ank are booked into the hotel Montana on the Corso Italia right in the centre of town (right next to the church belltower that starts tolling at 7 am :P). Not sure if the barristers have booked there or not.
The town centre is very small, so the hotel position is scarcely relevant; it should be a nice place to stay. The bell tower plays a nice melody several times a day, though ;)
The two cableways, one to the Tofana and the other to Mount Faloria are within walking distance from your hotel.
But the noteworthy hikes are in the surroundings of the town, so a car to reach the starting points will be useful (there's a minibus service to most of the tourist destinations, but I know very little about it - you'll have to ask to the hotel concierge): how many cars will be available? If I can reach you on friday, my car will be available - if anyone dares to take a trip with a Real Italian Driver (R) :menace:
this evening I'll post a couple of the most beautiful trekking itineraries around the valley. I assume the type of hike will heavily depend on the hangover conditions of most of us ;)
L.
We will be fine for cars then, BB is hiring one and Tamas is bringing his over from Hungary :D
I do have the 1:25,000 map of the area for planning deathma..... ........er....... strolls, but I'm sure you know more than I do about the best walks. There are a fair selection of dodgy knees in the group :P, so a transverse walk will probably be preferred to ascent/descent type walks.
Maybe the best easy trekking experience in Ampezzo is the Travenanzes Valley hike, a long but rewarding stroll, almost completely downhill behind the Tofanas ridge. The starting point can be reached by a two-hour uphill walk from Falzarego pass or by taking the Lagazuoi cable ride, from Falzarego too. From there it starts a fantastic walk along the Travenanzes creek that runs beside the Tofanas and through WWI theatres. From the path you can see trenches and buildings of the italian forces, and you'll have a magnificent view of the Tofanas and the surrounding mountains. The only problem is that the end of the path is very far from the starting point, so one must take the bus to get to his car again.
Another beautiful hike is around the Cinque Torri and Falzarego pass, magnificent scenery and WWI memories here, too.
Or down the Mount Cristallo, I love it :wub:
Moreover, Cortina is crossed by the old train route that went from Calalzo, some 40 kilometers downhill, to Dobbiaco/Toblach in South Tyrol: it's a very easy and nice stroll through the woods, and can be done by mountain bike, too: I suggest doing it heading towards Dobbiaco.
L.
Being one of the dodgy knees, I am all game for everything mostly downhill. :D
Some excellent options there, like the sound of the WW1 remnants as well, very Languish.
What will the weather be like btw? I haven't been to Cortina so early in the year before.
For that matter what will the weather be like in the rest of Italy that time of year?
There'd still be ice on the lakes in the Yukon that time of year.
It's a long skinny country with lots of mountains, so it will vary quite a bit. Most of my visits took place in july and august when, although hot, it never got as bad as in Spain or Greece. For most of Italy I expect may will be ideal :cool:
I was going up and down on a couple of steep mountainsides in Slovenia, checking out trench remains. It was awesome, so I am very much looking forward for this. :)
All we need to finalize is room distribution. The photo of the 2 bed room seem to show two single beds, altough not clear. I have inquired in e-mail, no reply yet.
We've booked our car yesterday, but not hotels yet. We need to move on it ASAP.
As I'm asking Pedrito questions here - from Cortina we're going to spend a couple days at or near Venice. We have a car so we're obviously not staying right in Venice, but can you recommend either a specific place or type of place to stay with relatively easy access to Venice?
Quote from: Barrister on April 08, 2009, 10:49:52 AM
We've booked our car yesterday, but not hotels yet. We need to move on it ASAP.
As I'm asking Pedrito questions here - from Cortina we're going to spend a couple days at or near Venice. We have a car so we're obviously not staying right in Venice, but can you recommend either a specific place or type of place to stay with relatively easy access to Venice?
If you want to book an hotel in Venice, you can leave the car in one of the parking lots at Piazzale Roma, in the immediate outskirts of the city, in the middle of the lagoon; but you'll have to sell a kidney to pay the bill of two days of parking.
Other options: I advice NOT to sleep in a hotel in Mestre: although the city's the nearest to Venice, it's really ugly and there's nothing to do there.
You can book a hotel in Padua, my home town: it's 35 kms west from Venice, you can very easily reach the Serenissima by train (half an hour), and Padua itself is a nice city with lots of things to do and see.
Or you can go and sleep in Treviso, about 35 kms north of Venice, but it's way smaller than Padua and there's very little to do there.
The best and most romantic way to sleep around Venice is try and book a room in one of the hotels along the Brenta river Riviera, where some fantastic 1700 Palladian villas have been transformed in "charm hotels". I'll check what I can find about them and report in a couple of days.
L.
About the weather:
May is probably the best time of the year to trip through Italy; the weather is usually warm, with daytime temperatures in the 20° to 30° C degrees interval and sunny days and evening light until 7.30 p.m.
Rain shouldn't be heavy, march and april are usually the rainiest months.
In Cortina, though, things are a bit different: usually spring and fall are very rainy and windy, and night temperatures can fall down to about 4-5° C; during the day, if the weather is sunny, temperatures of 20 to 25° C can be reached, but a single cloud over the sun is enough to make them drop by 5° degrees
I strongly suggest: weatherproof garments, at least some wool sweaters, a waterproof jacket and a pair of solid shoes or boots.
Consider that the past winter was the most snow-heavy of the last 50 years, with more than 8 meters of fallen snow during the entire season; there's still a lot of snow on the mountains and in town, so in May there will be heavy thawing (is this correct?) and probably part of the trekking itineraries will be closed.
My sister will go skiing there for the Easter holidays, I'll ask her to bring me some information about opening times of cabins and cableways.
In case of heavy rain, I'll bring my Settlers of Catan and maybe even Risk! :P
L.
If the worst comes to the worst we'll have to pile into the cars and drive somewhere of cultural significance :o
Or have a really long lunch...........stagger........ :bowler:
I shall bring my umbrella btw, that way I will be provided for all eventualities :bowler:
Quote from: Pedrito on April 09, 2009, 03:39:40 AM
In Cortina, though, things are a bit different: usually spring and fall are very rainy and windy, and night temperatures can fall down to about 4-5° C; during the day, if the weather is sunny, temperatures of 20 to 25° C can be reached, but a single cloud over the sun is enough to make them drop by 5° degrees
I strongly suggest: weatherproof garments, at least some wool sweaters, a waterproof jacket and a pair of solid shoes or boots.
You're talking to a Yukoner. If it's hitting 20-25C I'm breaking out my shorts and sandals. :cool:
Quote from: Barrister on April 09, 2009, 11:51:43 AM
Quote from: Pedrito on April 09, 2009, 03:39:40 AM
In Cortina, though, things are a bit different: usually spring and fall are very rainy and windy, and night temperatures can fall down to about 4-5° C; during the day, if the weather is sunny, temperatures of 20 to 25° C can be reached, but a single cloud over the sun is enough to make them drop by 5° degrees
I strongly suggest: weatherproof garments, at least some wool sweaters, a waterproof jacket and a pair of solid shoes or boots.
You're talking to a Yukoner. If it's hitting 20-25C I'm breaking out my shorts and sandals. :cool:
Pussy you should be wearing shorts and sandals at 4-5c
Quote from: Barrister on April 09, 2009, 11:51:43 AM
You're talking to a Yukoner. If it's hitting 20-25C I'm breaking out my shorts and sandals. :cool:
No visible toes allowed over 1000 meters a.s.l.! :mad:
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on April 09, 2009, 12:19:33 PM
Quote from: Barrister on April 09, 2009, 11:51:43 AM
You're talking to a Yukoner. If it's hitting 20-25C I'm breaking out my shorts and sandals. :cool:
No visible toes allowed over 100 meters over a.s.l.! :mad:
L.
I live well over 100m elevation, and I have visible toes from time to time...
I think Pedrito now knows what kind of northern hicks are going to be invading Cortina. :lol:
Quote from: Pedrito on April 09, 2009, 12:19:33 PM
Quote from: Barrister on April 09, 2009, 11:51:43 AM
You're talking to a Yukoner. If it's hitting 20-25C I'm breaking out my shorts and sandals. :cool:
No visible toes allowed over 1000 meters a.s.l.! :mad:
L.
He can wear black socks with sandals if that makes you feel better?
Quote from: katmai on April 09, 2009, 12:24:23 PM
Quote from: Pedrito on April 09, 2009, 12:19:33 PM
Quote from: Barrister on April 09, 2009, 11:51:43 AM
You're talking to a Yukoner. If it's hitting 20-25C I'm breaking out my shorts and sandals. :cool:
No visible toes allowed over 1000 meters a.s.l.! :mad:
L.
He can wear black socks with sandals if that makes you feel better?
:bleeding:
L.
Okay, white socks then. :(
heh-heh :P
I was wandering around the Gran Sasso d'Italia once, in my usual slovenly middle-class Englishman going to a pub gear, when I arrived at the Rifugio Duca d'Abruzzi, a kind of cafe-restaurant at 2,388 metres; it had an excellent view of the precipitous Corno Grande (which would be a real climb instead of a walk).
There were some immaculately attired Italian alpinistes at the refuge, from some mountaineering club in Rome, who were absolutely horrified :lol:
I think that they were worried that we (my wife was with me) were going to attempt the Corno Grande without any proper gear or preparation. The alpinistes gathered round us and long conversations about the strong wind and other dangers ensued. We assured them that the refuge was the highest point for our day's walk and that our next destination was the Campo Imperatore (there is a hotel there where Mussolini was freed from back in WW2, the Skorzeny thing), but I think they still thought we were raving eccentrics of the first calibre :cool:
Hehe, that altitude is just a bit higher than where I live. 7220 feet altitude, even Katmai survived here.
Quote from: PDH on April 09, 2009, 12:43:51 PM
Hehe, that altitude is just a bit higher than where I live. 7220 feet altitude, even Katmai survived here.
I was born in city at 5,281 ft./1,609 m and lived in Breckenridge 9,603 ft./ 2,927 m <_<
Quote from: katmai on April 09, 2009, 01:00:45 PM
I was born in city at 5,281 ft./1,609 m and lived in Breckenridge 9,603 ft./ 2,927 m <_<
I can make up numbers too.
The Euros have been ordered... :shifty:
Quote from: Barrister on April 09, 2009, 01:54:21 PM
The Euros have been ordered... :shifty:
Finally got some of those Ukrainian mail order brides eh?
Quote from: Valmy on April 09, 2009, 01:55:40 PM
Quote from: Barrister on April 09, 2009, 01:54:21 PM
The Euros have been ordered... :shifty:
Finally got some of those Ukrainian mail order brides eh?
And don't you dare tell my wife about it. :zipped:
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 09, 2009, 12:39:07 PM
I think that they were worried that we (my wife was with me) were going to attempt the Corno Grande without any proper gear or preparation. The alpinistes gathered round us and long conversations about the strong wind and other dangers ensued. We assured them that the refuge was the highest point for our day's walk and that our next destination was the Campo Imperatore (there is a hotel there where Mussolini was freed from back in WW2, the Skorzeny thing), but I think they still thought we were raving eccentrics of the first calibre :cool:
I have to dig up a colleague's photos of a group of Chinese in the Alps at 2500 m in winter, at subzero temperatures, wearing nothing business suits and shirts, not even buttoning their jackets.
Is there a way to buy austrian and/or italian highway tickets online?
What is a highway ticket?
Quote from: Barrister on April 11, 2009, 01:27:29 PM
What is a highway ticket?
Road charge. Mandatory on Austrian Autobahn; tourists can get tourist versions that are valid a couple weeks.
Pedrito, do you have any info on how to reach this hotel of ours? I need intel about the number of beds in the 3-bed rooms (2 or 3), to see if I can take up RH's offer on joining them.
Quote from: Tamas on April 11, 2009, 01:26:07 PM
Is there a way to buy austrian and/or italian highway tickets online?
In Italy there are no highway tickets, but a toll booth system: you take the ticket while entering the highway, and give it back (usually with a load of cash) to the operator (or to the counter) while exiting. There are automated doors that accept credit card payments, too.
L.
Ok, I've got some news from my sister, who was in Cortina last week:
there's still a lot of snow, the ski areas are still open and will close after Sunday, 19 april. This means that around that date all the cableways, chairlifts and most of the huts will close for off-season.
In the Cinque Torri and Falzarego Pass area there's an open air WWI museum that's open year-round, so this should definitely be the most interesting area: http://www.dolomiti.org/dengl/Cortina/laga5torri/estate/index.html (http://www.dolomiti.org/dengl/Cortina/laga5torri/estate/index.html). it's about half an hour by car from the town centre.
I've made a couple of calls to restaurants I know, but they all will be closed during our visit :mad: : i'll look for other dining places, and keep you posted.
L.
bugger!
Didn't realise it would be so snowy up there so late in the season :(
Usually it isn't, but this year it's been extremely snowy. Like that only the elder remember a winter like this. And all I've got was one measly day of skiing during all the winter... :cry:
But I'm confident that a couple of weeks of fine weather will speed up the melting, and the hike paths will be accessible. Sure, we'll have to bring our "backpack food" and could not count on hut restaurants. Hut restaurants, mmmmmhhhhh....
L.
Holy crap this is coming up fast. :o
Pedrito - any ideas on staying near Venice?
And if Cortina is a little too snowy it seems like there'll be plenty of spots we can visit within an hours drive...
Yeah, if the weather disappoints we'll just have to get into the cars and visit some cultural centres :cool:
Barrister, I've been to Venice three times. The first two times I stayed out of town, the third time I stayed in Venice itself. That third trip was incomparably superior to the others. It is more expensive of course, but given the amount of money a trip like this already costs it is well woth it IMO.
Quote from: Pedrito on April 07, 2009, 05:54:52 PM
Picture of a girl drinking from a grolla:
L.
Italians never heard of a straw?
Quote from: Barrister on April 16, 2009, 10:34:31 AMPedrito - any ideas on staying near Venice?
For staying, Mestre > Venice.
I stayed at this place last time I was in Venice :
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g187870-d555225-Reviews-Ai_Mori_d_Oriente_Hotel-Venice_Veneto.html
The best thing about it was the location, in Venice but away from the tourist maelstrom. Service and room were both perfectly fine, it is a bit pricey though :huh:
RH (and Pedrito) - can you think of anything we could bring from Yukon for your kids when you return?
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 16, 2009, 10:41:31 AM
Yeah, if the weather disappoints we'll just have to get into the cars and visit some cultural centres :cool:
Barrister, I've been to Venice three times. The first two times I stayed out of town, the third time I stayed in Venice itself. That third trip was incomparably superior to the others. It is more expensive of course, but given the amount of money a trip like this already costs it is well woth it IMO.
A trip like this is already a huge strain on our finances.
Quote from: Barrister on April 16, 2009, 12:51:58 PM
RH (and Pedrito) - can you think of anything we could bring from Yukon for your kids when you return?
You might have to give examples of stuff you can get in the Yukon that is not generally available.
Quote from: crazy canuck on April 16, 2009, 02:04:23 PM
Quote from: Barrister on April 16, 2009, 12:51:58 PM
RH (and Pedrito) - can you think of anything we could bring from Yukon for your kids when you return?
You might have to give examples of stuff you can get in the Yukon that is not generally available.
Two categories really:
-Nature stuff. Feathers, fur, claws, gold nuggets/dust. We gave our nephew some rabbit pelts and a bear claw necklace for Christmas and he loved them.
-the same general stuff you can get anywhere else, but says "Yukon". Shirts, hats, socks, toques, whatever.
-theres also local/native art or clothing, but I'm not as sure a kid would find that interesting.
For kicks I was also going to bring a bottle of Yukon Jack liquor, or maybe Klondike Vodka, for the adults while in Cortina...
Just checked with Sam and he's pretty keen on the bearclaw necklace (you do mean the +8 agility one?), as for Ted a t-shirt would be the best I think, something with a nice Yukon theme (size 8 or maybe 9 years, big lad for his age).
Thanks for the offer BB, appreciate it :cool:
WTF Beeb didn't bring me anything we he came to visit <_<
Quote from: katmai on April 16, 2009, 03:04:39 PM
WTF Beeb didn't bring me anything we he came to visit <_<
When you come to Vienna I'll buy you a beer. :)
Quote from: Barrister on April 16, 2009, 01:28:30 PM
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 16, 2009, 10:41:31 AM
Yeah, if the weather disappoints we'll just have to get into the cars and visit some cultural centres :cool:
Barrister, I've been to Venice three times. The first two times I stayed out of town, the third time I stayed in Venice itself. That third trip was incomparably superior to the others. It is more expensive of course, but given the amount of money a trip like this already costs it is well woth it IMO.
A trip like this is already a huge strain on our finances.
Yeah, this sort of thing is expensive, OTOH the experiences are priceless :cool:
Quote from: Barrister on April 16, 2009, 12:51:58 PM
RH (and Pedrito) - can you think of anything we could bring from Yukon for your kids when you return?
Regulation curling stone, just toss it in the carry on.
They can probably get their own brooms.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 16, 2009, 02:53:13 PM
Just checked with Sam and he's pretty keen on the bearclaw necklace (you do mean the +8 agility one?), as for Ted a t-shirt would be the best I think, something with a nice Yukon theme (size 8 or maybe 9 years, big lad for his age).
Thanks for the offer BB, appreciate it :cool:
No prob - we can definitely come up with something like that. :canuck:
If I'm going to steal their dad I can try to make up for it...
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 16, 2009, 04:12:04 PM
Quote from: Barrister on April 16, 2009, 12:51:58 PM
RH (and Pedrito) - can you think of anything we could bring from Yukon for your kids when you return?
Regulation curling stone, just toss it in the carry on.
They can probably get their own brooms.
Actually every curling stone in the world comes from a quarry in Scotland - I bet RH could more easily get a regulation stone than I could. :(
A Moose panache?
Just finalizing our itinerary:
After coming back from Rome, I'm not quite sure where we should spend the last few days of our trip. :o We're heading back north, need to be heading back towards Germany, but we're fairly open.
Any particular recommendations? We will have already seen the mountains/lake country, Venice, and Rome...
The Tuscany/Umbria regions are on your route back, some very lovely places there.
The biggest tourist draw is Florence of course, mid-May could be a very good time to visit, the place gets horrendously overcrowded at peak season; but it is a "must do".
There are smaller places like Siena and Perugia that are well worth a visit. I stayed at a little place called Castiglione del Lago once, it is on a hill overlooking Lake Trasimene, scene of one of Hannibal's victories against the Romans. From there it is an easy drive to Siena, Perugia, Assissi and a score of smaller places of interest.
Further north you have Ravenna, very good for Byzantine stuff apparently, though I have not yet been there myself :(
If it's more than one or two days I'd suggest basing yourself in Bologna.
Really nice town without the mass tourism, and you can get to Florence, Parma, Ravenna, Mantua, Padua, Verona and tons of other interesting places within an hour or two.
The guidebook I read said Bologna has the best food in Italy and absolutely nothing to see.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 17, 2009, 02:32:15 AM
The guidebook I read said Bologna has the best food in Italy and absolutely nothing to see.
:blink: Which guidebook is that?
Quote from: Maladict on April 17, 2009, 02:42:21 AM
:blink: Which guidebook is that?
Let's Go series. I exaggerate with *absolutely* nothing.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on April 17, 2009, 02:54:59 AM
Let's Go series. I exaggerate with *absolutely* nothing.
I should hope so. Isn't Let's Go the one that's written entirely by teenagers?
Quote from: Maladict on April 17, 2009, 03:06:36 AM
I should hope so. Isn't Let's Go the one that's written entirely by teenagers?
College kids.
Quote from: Barrister on April 16, 2009, 08:05:47 PM
Just finalizing our itinerary:
After coming back from Rome, I'm not quite sure where we should spend the last few days of our trip. :o We're heading back north, need to be heading back towards Germany, but we're fairly open.
Any particular recommendations? We will have already seen the mountains/lake country, Venice, and Rome...
Tuscany, no further questions allowed. For how long would you be there?
About the accomodation for BB and lady:
I second RH's opinion about staying in a hotel in Venice; it surely is more expensive, but it's way better for living the city. Unfortunately, as I live about 40 kms from the city, I don't know any hotels there because I've never had need of them. If you want a little less expensive accomodation, you can choose a hotel in Mestre, but it's a fugly place, and you'll need to go to Venice by bus or train.
About the presents for the kids: I thought the bear necklace gave +8 to Strength, not agility :P I believe my 3yo will be enthusiastic about it; for the girl, that's 5yo, I'll ask her. And thank you BB, it's really a nice idea :hug:
About the rest of your trip: Florence is definitely a must see: you'll see wonderful works of art, churches and the Uffizi museum (Botticelli, Giotto, Piero della Francesca, and many more); I'd suggest a visit to the Boboli gardens, too, very nice formal gardens where you can relax a bit.
In Tuscany other worthwhile places are: Siena, Lucca (very nice small walled city) and San Gimignano, a small medieval town famous for the many towers.
In Umbria, Perugia is beautiful, and some small centres like Assisi, Gubbio and Cortona are worth a visit, too.
In the Emilia-Romagna region, Bologna is a nice place to visit, although not comparable to Florence; in Ravenna there are the mausoleums of Galla placidia and Theodoric and the church of St. Apollinare in Classe that are filled with fantastic mosaics of the byzantine era.
My city, Padua, is a nice place, if you like gothic art there's the fantastic Scrovegni Chapel, almost completely covered in frescoes by Giotto.
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on April 17, 2009, 03:16:15 AMAbout the rest of your trip: Florence is definitely a must see: you'll see wonderful works of art, churches and the Uffizi museum (Botticelli, Giotto, Piero della Francesca, and many more); I'd suggest a visit to the Boboli gardens, too, very nice formal gardens where you can relax a bit.
In Tuscany other worthwhile places are: Siena, Lucca (very nice small walled city) and San Gimignano, a small medieval town famous for the many towers.
If he doesn't take a picture with the Leaning Tower of Pisa I fear he won't be believed if he says back home that he visited Italy. :P
And in Florence I'd recommend the Bargello museum, in the former barracks of the town, which has amazing sculptures, and for the :nerd: it has a collection of antique weaponry, so you can picture yourself holding a fucking huge halberd.
Thanks Pedrito.
We're finallizing everything. We've booked into the same hotel as everyone else in Cortina. Unfortunately while we'll spend much of the day on Sunday with you guys at some point in the evening we're going to take off towards Venice. But we will be in Cortina on Thursday night, all day Friday and Saturday, and much of Sunday.
Oh that's fine, I know that me and Ank have to get an early start on the monday anyway, and Tamas has to drive all the way back to Hungary. So sunday evening was always going to be a bit quiet, it makes sense for you guys to relocate to Venice ready to get going there on monday morning.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 17, 2009, 10:28:32 AM
Oh that's fine, I know that me and Ank have to get an early start on the monday anyway, and Tamas has to drive all the way back to Hungary. So sunday evening was always going to be a bit quiet, it makes sense for you guys to relocate to Venice ready to get going there on monday morning.
Indeed. I will need to get some healthy sleep time on Sunday night, with that 800km trip back home on Monday.
Mean Streets - A primer of italian driving habits
"Traffic lights are perceived as: a rule, in Milan; a suggestion, in Rome; Christmas decorations, in Naples"
Nicola Mancino, president of the Italian Senate, 1996-2001
A feeling of shock and hopelessness pervades the unwary foreigner who rents a car and immerses himself in the seemingly endless stream of traffic on the roads of the Bel Paese. Not unlike Cairo or Mumbai, despair fills the hearts of those watching the driving behaviour of most part of the italians.
As a notable member of this caste :P , I will share some of the secret tricks needed to survive in the urban jungle.
Always remember that adherence to traffic laws is strongly linked to three factors:
a - the dimensions of the urban centre: big city, bad behaviour.
b - the latitude of the urban centre: southern city dwellers are wild outlaws in respect to their northern counterparts.
c - the size of the vehicle: almost everywhere, bicycles and mopeds will act like crazed molecules in a Brownian motion diagram.
Behaviour in the city:
- while wandering around, be VERY careful of bikes and scooters: they usually don't obey to traffic lights, and bicycles almost everywhere use to run on pedestrian sidewalks
- in southern cities, traffic lights are REALLY an option: it's not unusual for a foreigner to stop with the red light, and be immediately horned by the driver behind him that wants to cross the street and doesn't give a fuck about the lights.
- contradictory signals can be easily spotted around, the usual reaction is simply not obeying to anyone of them.
Behaviour on the highways:
- highways are used as high speed tracks by all kinds of vehicles, including heavy trucks; for cars, the 130 kmph limit is usually laughed upon; trucks don't care about limitations to surpassing, and easily break the 80 kmph speed limit.
- in the last couple of years, though, the police set up a lot of speed traps along highways and routes, so don't be fooled by our manic behaviour and remain inside the limits (130kmh for toll highways, 70 to 110 kmh for non-toll freeways and regional roads).
- there are A LOT of heavy vehicles on the highways!
Hope this is useful, ;)
L.
It seems that driving in Italy is quite similar to driving in Montreal.
I'll not be able to make it. :(
Quote from: Zanza2 on April 20, 2009, 11:05:02 AM
I'll not be able to make it. :(
deadbeat :mad:
There are North Americans on this very board who drive that far just to get their breakfast :P
Quote from: Zanza2 on April 20, 2009, 11:05:02 AM
I'll not be able to make it. :(
:angry:
All our rooms are booked, except May 6th. Still trying to find a place just across the border, but not actually in Cortina. :pinch:
We have rooms booked in Venice May 10-12, Rome 13-16, San Gimigniano May 17-18, and Como May 19.
I'm quite looking forward to San Gimigniano - little village in the middle of Tuscany. Unfortunately with so little time we'll barely get a whiff of Florence I'm afraid.
If the projected invasion route will be down the Brenner Pass coming from Germany and austria, I can suggest sleeping in Merano/Meran, along the Isarco river valley, a beautiful and quiet town in the heart of the area where the best wine in the Alps is produced :mmm: ; but it's quite far from Cortina (a couple hours by car along the Val Pusteria).
Else, you can sleep in Dobbiaco/Toblach, a small nice town about 30 minutes from Cortina; if you need, i can make a couple of phone calls and look for a room.
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on April 21, 2009, 07:25:47 AM
If the projected invasion route will be down the Brenner Pass coming from Germany and austria, I can suggest sleeping in Merano/Meran, along the Isarco river valley, a beautiful and quiet town in the heart of the area where the best wine in the Alps is produced :mmm: ; but it's quite far from Cortina (a couple hours by car along the Val Pusteria).
Else, you can sleep in Dobbiaco/Toblach, a small nice town about 30 minutes from Cortina; if you need, i can make a couple of phone calls and look for a room.
L.
Thanks P - I'll see what I can find in Merano. A couple hour drive is absolutely nothing.
So the countdopwn is on. I'll be seeing you guys in 14 days (15 for Pedrito). :w00t:
:w00t:
I can't wait. I hope this company trip of mine will not interfere at the last moment.
What will be the definitve lineup of the meeting?
And what size of t-shirt do you guys usually wear? :shifty:
L.
We are down to 6, but I think they are now certainties :
Barrister and Mrs Barrister, me, Ank, Tamas and yourself.
I'll go for a L or XL t-shirt :cool:
Ok, some news about the weather:
in Cortina there's still so much snow that they've decided to keep open the ski areas until the weekend of May, 3. It is an exceptional decision, since usually in Italy the ski season ends after the Easter holidays. On the pistes there are still 3 to 4 meters of snow so, even in case of intense melting in the next two weeks, deathmarches are to be ruled out of the program :(
Night temperatures fall to 2-3° Celsius, while during the day they reach 15° Celsius.
Next monday I'll call a guy I know who lives there and ask him precisely about the weather.
L.
On a vaguely related note:
anyone of you having recently been to Mexico? having snizzles? runny nose? :unsure: :P
L.
Astounding weather conditions, I'm beginning to wonder if pushing for Cortina was a good idea :(
Well, if the worst comes to the worst we will just have to visit Verona, Padua and Venice. Or maybe there are lesser places nearby that are nevertheless very interesting, what is Trento like for example?
:( Well RH, who would have thought you could still ski there on May Day.
I am still eager to meet you guys, altough with me having to be on a plane toward Berlin on the 11th, things got more thight for me time-wise.
Pedrito, any chance, or even need, for us to relocate the base of operations somewhere lower but still in the general area? Altough on pictures that town and the sourroundings look lovely, would hate to miss it.
Well we're all either driving, or are flying in to Venice, so if we decide to we can certainly move the meet. Why not stay somewhere in or near Venice? I know RH wanted a somewhat quieter trip, but I promise we won't force you to see 5 museums per day or anything...
I just checked my hotel reservation and would have to pay 50% anyway if I cancelled now :huh:
Quote from: Barrister on April 27, 2009, 10:59:43 AM
Well we're all either driving, or are flying in to Venice, so if we decide to we can certainly move the meet. Why not stay somewhere in or near Venice? I know RH wanted a somewhat quieter trip, but I promise we won't force you to see 5 museums per day or anything...
I would still prefer a smaller town. I bet we could still arrange plenty to see for those 2 or 3 days, especially with cars, while still having some quality drinking and eating time as well.
There is just no way I'll drive in Venice, so if we move there, I need to switch to flying machines.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 27, 2009, 11:07:59 AM
I just checked my hotel reservation and would have to pay 50% anyway if I cancelled now :huh:
Just WTF. :huh:
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 27, 2009, 11:07:59 AM
I just checked my hotel reservation and would have to pay 50% anyway if I cancelled now :huh:
Ah. Well that answers that.
Quote from: Tamas on April 27, 2009, 11:08:59 AM
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on April 27, 2009, 11:07:59 AM
I just checked my hotel reservation and would have to pay 50% anyway if I cancelled now :huh:
Just WTF. :huh:
It seems 20 days notice is required to get all of it back.
Though, I'm still keen on staying there anyway, it's a nice base and we can take good daytrips. Pity about the Italian WW1 fortifications though :(, that will have to wait for another time.
Well, let's say that Cortina is a forced choice indeed: 50%! :huh:
Around the town there're only other ski resorts and small rural towns, so we will have to drive at least one hour to reach some interesting place.
Trento is a nice city, but it's at least 2 1/2 hours from Cortina. There's the nice Buonconsiglio Castle, and an interesting art museum in nearby Rovereto.
I know nothing about Belluno, the city nearest to Cortina.
I'll check other possible trips this evening and keep you posted.
L.
Thinking about it, it is only the one day that needs to be accounted for.
We gather on thursday evening, there will be too much drinking (always is on the first night of a Languish meet) so we will want a slowish day on the Friday. Cortina and it's environs will be fine for that.
Saturday was going to be deathmarch day, so we need an interesting trip on that day. There are places such as Feltre, Possaggno and Asolo that look very interesting. It would be about a 2-hour drive to that district which argues for a civilised and sensible Friday night with an earlyish start :cool:
On the sunday the Barristers are planning to relocate to Venice anyway. If we are tired of Cortina they could make an early start and the rest of us could come along for the day, or not, if we wanted. Alternatively, if we are not tired of Cortina then there is no problem anyway :D
My company trip forces me to leave on Sunday morning btw, as it turns out I fly away from Budapest on Monday. :(
I have had further thoughts, since Tamas has to leave on sunday morning; why don't we all make an early start that morning and the barristers + me and ank can go to Venice. I can book a hotel for that night for me and ank as the extra cost for one night is perfectly acceptable.
Yes, I think that may be a good compromise. Who knows, I might even be able to get my money back for the 4th night we were to saty in Cortina anyway. It also gives us a leisurely start on the monday.
I concur with RH about having a nice quiet friday strolling around Cortina and adjacent areas. WWI fortifications are not to be definitely ruled out, maybe some parts of them can be accessible despite the snow: I'll ask the tourist office.
For Saturday, I won't be with you :( but I suggest going either to Feltre (don't know the place, but it seems a nice small city) or to Asolo, a beautiful town with interesting remains of a medieval castle built, IIRC from my uni days, upon an older roman settlement.
About thursday evening: probably I'll arrive to Cortina in the late afternoon, I'm looking for a good restaurant that serves local food for dinner. Some place not far from the hotel should be advisable, to avoid eventual DUI charges :P Be warned, though, that restaurants in Cortina are pretty expensive, so you won't be surprised if the bill will be around 50 euros per person, excluding wine <_<
L.
Pfft those temps for Cortina are shorts and chanklas weather
You all should go Ski then.
Ank and I arrive at Venice (Marco Polo) at around 2pm, the plan is to cab it to Treviso and catch the 16.14 to Calalzo which arrives there at 18.25. If there is a convenient bus (likely) we will catch it, otherwise another cab to Cortina. So, the reason I mention all this is that we are not going to be ready for dinner until sometime between 20.00 and 21.00.
WTF two hours Treviso-Calalzo! Italian trains <_<
Usually the bus departures from Calalzo are linked to train arrivals, after 18.25 though the next train would be at 19.00, arriving at 19.58
Otherwise, if I can leave the workplace soon enough, I can come and catch you at Calalzo station (i'll be the guy with the FU JARON sign, obviously :D ) and bring you to Cortina by car.
Now that I think of this, 2 PM in Tessera is too early for me, but maybe I can catch up with you even in Treviso.
L.
Hmmm......... :shifty:
Sounds to me like you are going to overtake our train :D
In which case, how about us waiting in some sensible place and meeting you for the drive to Cortina? That would be more convenient for both parties, the only risk being that you get delayed at work and we get drunk in a sleazy bar in Mestre or Treviso :P
Ok, I've booked a hotel in Venice for sunday night, which gives the break a far better structure. Don't know why I didn't do this in the first place :huh:
This hotel is at the head of the Grand Canal about 200m from S. Lucia station, a very convenient location and therefore rather expensive, but it buys me and Ank an afternoon, evening and morning in Venice............so worth it IMO. The hotel was also recommended by 75 out of the 75 guests who wrote a review of it. I expect that all these "guests" are relatives of the hotel proprietor though :P
Okay, so we booked a "room" at a campsite that is supposedly a 10 minute boat ride from Venice, but we'll work it all out in Cortina how we do the Sunday. I agree I think it makes a lot more sense.
So how do we go about meeting up in Cortina on Thursday? Perhaps leave a message at the front desk since we're all staying in the same place? But whose names are the rooms in?
Pedrito, can you suggest a good lounge/restaurant that you could easily sit and waste a couple of hours waiting for the rest of the party?
And thankfully this year we won't be subject to terrible Czech and Polish roads so we should be able to make it on time...
Quote from: Barrister on May 02, 2009, 02:57:56 PM
So how do we go about meeting up in Cortina on Thursday? Perhaps leave a message at the front desk since we're all staying in the same place? But whose names are the rooms in?
Pedrito, can you suggest a good lounge/restaurant that you could easily sit and waste a couple of hours waiting for the rest of the party?
Will you be logged here on monday/tuesday? On monday I'll make a couple of phone calls and will give you some names/addresses of restaurants.
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 02, 2009, 04:04:44 PM
Will you be logged here on monday/tuesday? On monday I'll make a couple of phone calls and will give you some names/addresses of restaurants.
L.
Only Monday is guaranteed. Flight is noonish on Tuesday (which is probably early evening in Euroland), so I'll try to check the site Tuesday am, but no guarantees.
The hotel Montana has a bar, that we could hang around in, but it's probably a bit crap like many hotel bars :P
The Hakluyt/Tamas/Ank room is booked under my name.
It may be useful to set a time, I think it's going to be quite late (8-ish?) before me and Ank turn up. Tamas could turn up at any time, it's a long way from Hungary and I don't think we can say which hour he will arrive.
Thinking about it, if we plan on having a really nice meal then friday evening is probably best, thursday evening is going to be a bit unpredictable.........might be best to get cheap food and drinks.....
@Barrister. Talking about bad roads, they are generally good in Austria and Italy, but it is still a crossing of the Alps, very beautiful scenery :cool: but subject to unexpected delays.
Well, for meeting up, I am planning to arrive VERY roughly around 6PM on Thursday. I have RH's phone number from two years ago, will ask for Pedrito's in PM. :)
And yes driving through the Alps is just awesome, scenery-wise. One of the disadvantages of Syt not coming is that I will have no one taking pictures from the car so I could show off the road I will be travelling. :(
Oh, and RH, whichever of us reaches Calalzo first should give the other a call, I might be able to pick you up along the way there.
My phone is MIA, I use it so rarely that I have forgotten where it is :(
Also, it was always a very primitive device, steam-powered and only working in the confines of the British Empire c. 1906.
I do have Ank's number, but i don't think that works abroad either :D
I like the Timmelsjoch pass btw, much quieter than the Brenner, probably a lot slower.
Dammit people, enter the 21st century and have some phones. :P
I still have your number from the Paris trip btw, unless it has changed...........
We should get into Calalzo at 18.25, but it's no trouble to get a cab..........I still think it makes sense for me and ank to link up with Pedrito in Treviso...........but he won't talk to me about it.........maybe because his car is a Fiat 600 :P
http://www.muzeum-motoryzacji.com.pl/photo/FIAT%20600.jpg
:lol:
Yes, my number is the same
Quote from: Tamas on May 02, 2009, 05:36:44 PM
Dammit people, enter the 21st century and have some phones. :P
Tracy just got a new phone (a nice Blackberry Pearl).
I wonder if Northwestel has any roaming deal in Italy... ;)
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 02, 2009, 05:15:05 PM
The hotel Montana has a bar, that we could hang around in, but it's probably a bit crap like many hotel bars :P
The Hakluyt/Tamas/Ank room is booked under my name.
It may be useful to set a time, I think it's going to be quite late (8-ish?) before me and Ank turn up. Tamas could turn up at any time, it's a long way from Hungary and I don't think we can say which hour he will arrive.
Thinking about it, if we plan on having a really nice meal then friday evening is probably best, thursday evening is going to be a bit unpredictable.........might be best to get cheap food and drinks.....
@Barrister. Talking about bad roads, they are generally good in Austria and Italy, but it is still a crossing of the Alps, very beautiful scenery :cool: but subject to unexpected delays.
Well I think we plan to meet starting at 8, but I'll be prepared to sit until 10ish even. If Pedrito could suggest a place that would be ideal (and not the hotel bar), but otherwise the first to arrive should leave a note at the front desk for the others.
:cheers:
I expect someone to kick someone else in the groin in my name, otherwise I shant be happy.
Quote from: katmai on May 03, 2009, 04:02:53 AM
I expect someone to kick someone else in the groin in my name, otherwise I shant be happy.
But Marti isn't coming... :(
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 02, 2009, 05:43:18 PM
I still have your number from the Paris trip btw, unless it has changed...........
We should get into Calalzo at 18.25, but it's no trouble to get a cab..........I still think it makes sense for me and ank to link up with Pedrito in Treviso...........but he won't talk to me about it.........maybe because his car is a Fiat 600 :P
http://www.muzeum-motoryzacji.com.pl/photo/FIAT%20600.jpg
...speaks the guy with the steam phone :P
I should be able to be in Treviso around 4.00 p.m. , so I can pick you up and reach Calalzo around 5.00 p.m., wait for Tamas and then from Calalzo to Cortina it's about 40 minutes.
Bring with you your motion sickness meds :menace:
For BB and lady, that will be waiting for us: Bar Lovat, beside the Ciasa de Ra Regoles, just down 50 meters from the church, is a nice place to have an
aperitif, they make excellent sweet pastries :mmm: ;
otherwise, another nice place is Pane Vino e San Daniele (Bread, Wine and Prosciutto: the name says it all ;) ): going right along the Corso from the hotel, it's about 150 meters after the church, a bit hidden down a stair on the left. After a quick search, it's at 137, Corso Italia. I discover from the site that they make kitchen service too :huh:, I've always seen only big wooden plates filled with delicious prosciutto...
L.
Excellent. So sounds like we should aim for more like 6ish, and we'll look for each other in either of those spots.
Thankfully this time we've almost all met before so there's no need to worry about figuring out who we are...
The plan comes together :cool:
@Pedrito, where and when would be a sensible place to meet? Our plane is scheduled to land at the airport at 14.05, so we'll be clear at about 14.30and can get a cab to a convenient meeting place. Glancing at the map Treviso and Mestre both look fairly convenient, but I have no idea of local traffic conditions (except they are generally very busy)..........
Tamas is driving over, so rather than waiting for him at Calalzo we may as well meet up in Cortina itself...........though I guess he'll need me to get access to the hotel room.
Rich, I can't find direct bus connections to Treviso, so you'd be forced to take a taxi, highly unadvisable considering the costs.
But there's a bus service from the airport to Mestre train station, http://www.atvo.it/index.php?lang=en&area=23&menuid=35 (http://www.atvo.it/index.php?lang=en&area=23&menuid=35), the bus leaves about every half hour (check the timetable, I think 14.24 or 14.51 could be good for you). The price is € 3 per person including luggage, and you should arrive in Mestre in about 20 minutes.
In the morning I'll be at a business meeting in Bologna, leaving around 14.00 I'll be able to reach Mestre around 15.45, 16.00, so you shouldn't have too many rounds while waiting in the shady station bar :P
I don't know the station and its surroundings, so can't point a nicer bar than the station one.
I'll send you a pic of yours truly in the PM so you can recognize me
L.
Shady railway station bars are one of the natural habitats of English dilettantes and American sp..... ..... naval personnel ;)
Yes, the proposed arrangement works for us, thanks for taking the trouble to drive into Mestre to pick us up; that can't be a favoured route. As long as the station isn't vast it shouldn't be too difficult to identify each other, I'll pm you Ank's phone number.......it may work........I'm not sure.
Have you seen a photo of either/both myself and Ank? I think most of them have probably been posted in the back room, not sure if any have here.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 04, 2009, 05:27:50 AM
Shady railway station bars are one of the natural habitats of English dilettantes and American sp..... ..... naval personnel ;)
What about bars for inmigrant communities? Those work well too. :lol:
I'll be in Venice during that weekend on a family trip, so if you're finally going to be in the Serenissima at some point maybe, only maybe, I'll be able to sneak out for a beer or five. ;)
We should be in Venice sometime on the sunday, so if you wanted to meet up then sunday evening is the (only) time to do it :cool:
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 04, 2009, 06:56:35 AM
We should be in Venice sometime on the sunday, so if you wanted to meet up then sunday evening is the (only) time to do it :cool:
Coolness. :cool: Can you provide me with a phone number? I had the ones from Marty, Brazen and Syt from Brussels, but none of them will be present. In case I can get away, I'll give you a call.
Last day in the office. Checkd the clock a dozen times, and it's not even 9am... :(
Quote from: Tamas on May 02, 2009, 05:23:43 PM
Oh, and RH, whichever of us reaches Calalzo first should give the other a call, I might be able to pick you up along the way there.
LOL, my UK phone will not work on the continent. I have a German phone although I have no idea what the number
is without my cheat sheet. I'll try to get online tomorrow and leave it with whoever needs it.
Quick trial that turned into a guilty plea.
Now I'm printing out maps of our hotels in Italy.
This should be good, BB. I'm looking forward to this trip, and I can try out my terrible, rusty Italian as well. :lmfao:
Quote from: AnchorClanker on May 04, 2009, 02:26:54 PM
This should be good, BB. I'm looking forward to this trip, and I can try out my terrible, rusty Italian as well. :lmfao:
I'll reply with my horrible english, both spoken and written!
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 04, 2009, 02:28:28 PM
Quote from: AnchorClanker on May 04, 2009, 02:26:54 PM
This should be good, BB. I'm looking forward to this trip, and I can try out my terrible, rusty Italian as well. :lmfao:
I'll reply with my horrible english, both spoken and written!
L.
Vorrei imparare il lingua Italiana! :lol:
Quote from: The Larch on May 04, 2009, 07:13:25 AM
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 04, 2009, 06:56:35 AM
We should be in Venice sometime on the sunday, so if you wanted to meet up then sunday evening is the (only) time to do it :cool:
Coolness. :cool: Can you provide me with a phone number? I had the ones from Marty, Brazen and Syt from Brussels, but none of them will be present. In case I can get away, I'll give you a call.
Er.......we don't have phones that work on the Continent :huh:
Hmmmm........I wonder if BB's phone works there?
I am so certain our phone won't work there we're not even bringing it.
We seem to hit a logistical bottleneck in the phone area. :lol:
If you have a GSM phone, it will work.
My phone worked in Cuba, ffs.
Quote from: The Larch on May 04, 2009, 03:25:33 PM
We seem to hit a logistical bottleneck in the phone area. :lol:
I'm the only one leaving on Tuesday. You have until Thursday for the rest. If you can get a phone nomber from Ank or RH (or even just send us your number and we'll call from a land line) we should be able to set something up. :)
Leaving work. :yeah:
:cheers:
@the Larch : send us your phone number, we'll ring you up on one of those old-fashioned landline things :cool:
Quote from: Pedrito on April 07, 2009, 05:54:52 PM
Picture of a girl drinking from a grolla:
(https://languish.org/forums/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi132.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fq2%2FPedrito2007%2Fgrolla.jpg&hash=f29969d91a8400c877469b20d9a5fed67264f656)
L.
What's up with the burn out?
It's a wooden mug filled with hot black coffee and liquors, so if one isn't able to drink from it without spilling some of the content, it will leave stains on the wood. Moreover, the hot alcohol releases vapours that are set on fire by the waiters, and flames come out of the side mouths.
That's the reason of the burnt wood.
L.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 05, 2009, 12:19:59 AM
:cheers:
@the Larch : send us your phone number, we'll ring you up on one of those old-fashioned landline things :cool:
PM sent. ;)
Pedrito, will you be on Sunday as well? We can debate Italian politics and the velinopoli scandal while we're at it. :lol:
Quote from: The Larch on May 05, 2009, 06:07:58 AM
Pedrito, will you be on Sunday as well? We can debate Italian politics and the velinopoli scandal while we're at it. :lol:
:weep:
In proper Languish manner, I will immediately hijack every attempt to discuss our clownesque politics during the whole weekend.
But I won't be there with you on Sunday, I'll be going to Milan. <_<
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 05, 2009, 07:03:46 AM
Quote from: The Larch on May 05, 2009, 06:07:58 AM
Pedrito, will you be on Sunday as well? We can debate Italian politics and the velinopoli scandal while we're at it. :lol:
:weep:
In proper Languish manner, I will immediately hijack every attempt to discuss our clownesque politics during the whole weekend.
But I won't be there with you on Sunday, I'll be going to Milan. <_<
L.
Pity then. Give them the background and I'll finish them off on sunday. :P
Alright, my GPS has been uploaded with a supposedly recent map of Austria and Italy, and it claims that the trip is only 622 kilometers. I am planning to leave around 8AM, so unless something unexpected happens, I should make it to Cortina by around 5PM.
Which pass are you using?
Looks like a fast route to me apart from the last hour or so, which will be on busy mountain roads, easy to get behind a slow-moving vehicle.
Just checking the details of mestre station, (I have a morbid fear that it is the same size as Waterloo station, ie our plan to meet-up will miscarry :lol:)........
It seems it is of moderate size with only one bar/buffet. The "Buffet Cremonini".
http://www.grandistazioni.it/cms/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=167472ceeae7b110VgnVCM1000003f16f90aRCRD
So, pedrito, I guess that's where we will be, or smoking cigarettes outside the station entrance :D
I think I may have eaten there. :cool:
Quote from: Caliga on May 05, 2009, 09:31:34 AM
I think I may have eaten there. :cool:
How does it compare to a Kentucky gas station :D?
Better arancini.
Okay, so I did have time to check Languish Tuesday morning. :)
See you guys on Thursday.
See you later BB :cool:
Have a good flight and a safe drive across the alps.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 05, 2009, 09:09:01 AM
Which pass are you using?
Looks like a fast route to me apart from the last hour or so, which will be on busy mountain roads, easy to get behind a slow-moving vehicle.
:huh: :lol: :menace: :italiandriver:
about the station meeting: it will be a sure shot, good; I'll be the fat balding guy driving a SW BMW with the "FU JARON" bumper sticker ;)
@ Cal: with all the good restaurants that there are in Italy... :mad:
L.
Chill bro, I've also eaten here: http://www.ristoranteitrepini.it/dove_siamo.htm (http://www.ristoranteitrepini.it/dove_siamo.htm)
:)
Quote from: Caliga on May 05, 2009, 09:44:53 AM
Chill bro, I've also eaten here: http://www.ristoranteitrepini.it/dove_siamo.htm (http://www.ristoranteitrepini.it/dove_siamo.htm)
:)
Oh, that's better :) . If you ever decide to return to Italy, consider Princesca and yourself invited for a nice dinner.
L.
These misfortunes happen whilst travelling, it's quite likely we'll have something to eat there as well. The flight is split in two, so instead of lunch I think we are getting two snacks :(
Though I will be starting the day with a full English breakfast of course :bowler:
@ pedrito
Awesome. :smoke: Where are you again, Padua? I think the closest I got to there was Verona.
Quote from: Caliga on May 05, 2009, 09:51:37 AM
@ pedrito
Awesome. :smoke: Where are you again, Padua? I think the closest I got to there was Verona.
Mestre is about 20 kms from Padua, Verona is 90 kms. But before the new highway surounding Mestre was open, it was easier to get to Verona than to Mestre: damn trucks clogging the roads.
L.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 05, 2009, 09:51:20 AM
These misfortunes happen whilst travelling, it's quite likely we'll have something to eat there as well. The flight is split in two, so instead of lunch I think we are getting two snacks :(
Though I will be starting the day with a full English breakfast of course :bowler:
Hmm. I'll probably have a pint of milk and The Independent, as per usual.
It briefly seemed I might be able to come at least till sunday, but alas, it has been shot down by the Powers That Be.
:face:
Sorry, Syt. It would have been good to see you again.
Looks like it will be a bit chilly, but I'm not in the mood to further stuff the backpack.
I'm bound and determined to live out of a backpack and not my suitcase, which is getting pretty tattered these days.
Off to Manchester @ 1714, should arrive the same time as RH at Manchester Airport station.
You know it is a Languish meet when everybody cancels at the last minute. :(
Aye, see you in the hotel bar about 8 - 8.30 pm :cool:
Got an entertaining picture of agent "pedrito" which he sent me, I've printed it off so that we can wander around Mestre station tomorrow asking if anyone has seen him :D
Light reading for the trip : The Exploits and Adventures of Brigadier Gerard by Conan Doyle, which I've never read as yet.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 06, 2009, 09:43:13 AM
Aye, see you in the hotel bar about 8 - 8.30 pm :cool:
Got an entertaining picture of agent "pedrito" which he sent me, I've printed it off so that we can wander around Mestre station tomorrow asking if anyone has seen him :D
Light reading for the trip : The Exploits and Adventures of Brigadier Gerard by Conan Doyle, which I've never read as yet.
I've just started
The Noble Revolt, but that's too large to haul around on the trip. I'll have to grab something smaller,
as I expect to read the Archaeology magazine before I get to Manchester.
OK, I've packed this week's Spectator and The Economist and expect to pick Private Eye up en route.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 06, 2009, 09:43:13 AM
Got an entertaining picture of agent "pedrito" which he sent me, I've printed it off so that we can wander around Mestre station tomorrow asking if anyone has seen him :D
:blush:
After that party I went home totally shitfaced, you can not imagine my wife's reaction...
L.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 06, 2009, 09:57:54 AM
OK, I've packed this week's Spectator and The Economist and expect to pick Private Eye up en route.
I'll have
British Archaeology and
Vanity Fair, so we should be good for reading materials.
Well everyone will know me except for Pedrito, who, in the unlikely case of being alone in Cortina, should look for a geek in a black Corolla with a Hungarian license plate. Should not be that much of those around the town. :D
I'm off then, see you guys later.
I prolly won't log on before I leave tomorrow morning, so see you either at the meet, or when I get back.
I survived my first Languish Meet! :w00t:
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 08, 2009, 01:21:39 PM
I survived my first Languish Meet! :w00t:
L.
If someone wasn't kicked in the nuts I won't be happy :angry:
Quote from: katmai on May 08, 2009, 01:22:37 PM
If someone wasn't kicked in the nuts I won't be happy :angry:
For the time I was there (unfortunately it was only 24 hours) no one was kicked in the groin.
But I bet that, in the remaining time they'll spend together, they'll have plenty of occasions to do it.
I escaped before the irreparable could happen :yeah:
L.
I am back home! A few remarks:
- Pedrito is a cool guy. And no, not only because he gave us awesome "O NOES ITS LANGUISH!!" t-shirts
- My take on northern italy: women are hott, food is very good, wine is excellent, drivers are not THAT bad after you realized they are just crazy enough to do anything. Then you just adopt to the fact that it is impossible to predict the next move of any one vehicle, and go with that.
- Languish people are still excellent company.
- Syt sucks because he did not come and thus could not take pictures of the awesome scenery with my camera while I was driving. So I had to.
I am also so glad I went by car. The freeways had very sparse traffic so I had a blast speeding up and down while listening to loud music, and the mountain roads were simply beautiful with all those little towns, mountains, and forests, with the roads in generally very good condition, making them just as much as a challenge as to become fun.
Short summary of events:
- I arrived first on thursday. Upon checking this fact at the hotel reception, I went back to my car and found 3 suspicious people walking toward me. Turned out it was Pedrito, Ank, and RH. The Barristers soon followed.
Thursday was mild but fun drinking, über-expensive but quite excellent dinner, and good conversations.
- On Friday we did the meet's death march, which was not that long horizontally, but quite deathmarchy vertically. That neighborhood is stunningly beautiful. This was also the day of (somewhat) extensive drinking. Considering my alcohol intake was close to my personal (and somewhat meager) record, I think I did a reasonable job in defending my atheist view against 2 agnostics and a protestant.
- On Saturday we descended on the southern plains with our cars, checked out some towns and ruins, then went back to Cortina on our separate ways. The GPS vs. paper map battle was won by GPS, altough the Italian roads managed to confuse even that piece of computer technology.
- On Sunday I came home, while the rest of the crew went to Venice.
A big thank you goes toward Pedrito for being our de facto host, which altough sadly only lasted for a day, made it possible for this meet so be so much fun. Thank you!
Quote from: Tamas on May 10, 2009, 11:19:42 AM
I am back home! A few remarks:
<Snipping all flattering comments out>
( Thanks T., I'll buy you a round whenever we'll meet again :lol: )
Yeah, although I was there only for the first day it was really nice to meet all of you IRL: finally I'm able to connect some of your avatars to real people, and this I liked a lot ^_^
Some remarks on your remarks:
Thursday night, you say "mild but fun drinking", I say I went to sleep almost completely drunk! I blame the morning business meeting, the long drive from Bologna and the extra concentration that was needed to keep up with your always interesting but pretty fast conversations :blush:
the t-shirts are really nasty, I only hope you had a good laugh when you saw them!
Where did you go on Saturday? To Asolo, as planned, or to other places, maybe out of discomfort because you couldn't find the right route? Italian Road System :yeah:
If you got some good pics, please post them, I'd love to see them!
Really happy having met you, and looking forward to another Meet somewhere else, next time I promise I'll stay more than 24 hours (damn allergy that hit the daughter made me go away too soon at all! <_<)
L.
Hooray!
Tamas you better have kicked or been kicked in gonads by someone!
I am sorry katmai, no groin-kicking happened, altough BB did make us climb a huge-ass hill, if that counts. :P
Pedrito, we went to Asolo on Saturday, yes, then some other place 25kms from it, named Mar-something, I could not memorize the name for more than a few seconds. :P It was the place where they do those bi-yearly human chess games.
Which reminds me: Italian parking tickets. In Asolo, we had to roam the streets looking for a shop which sells them. You could tell our majority were anglo-saxon because we actually did, a group of Hungarians would had realized they would be Fighting Teh System by not paying and just ignoring the check with the fine they would receive. And in that other town, our combined brainpower was not sufficient enough to figure out how the parking ticket machine works. So we did not buy any.
I can upload some pics (maybe only from Berlin tonight or tomorrow), but I think the guys would prefer them to stay in TBR, so hereby I convince Katmai to let you in. If he won't, I'll just PM you direct links.
The place is called Marostica, nice castle there;
about the parking tickets: I like the idea of the new HPTP (Hungarian Parking Dissidents Party) :lol:
QuoteI think the guys would prefer them to stay in TBR, so hereby I convince Katmai to let you in
that would be cool, thanks :cool:
L.
Tricky Dick's steam powered monstrusity must have finally broken down, as he didn't bother to call me yesterday when I was around there. Either that or the bastard forgot to call me. :cry:
I remember the guys discussing you, so it had to be a cellphone issue. For a bunch of first worlders, they sure ignore that particural area of technological advance, btw. :P
When I'm not there, no-one has a functional mobile phone or a watch <_<
Also: pics plz.
The hotel I am staying at in Berlin asks for like one goat for each 5 minutes of Internet access, so probably no pics until end of this week.
Back home now, pretty tired after my exertions :)
As Tamas remarked, Pedrito made an excellent host, pity he was only with us for 24 hours though.
@the larch, we didn't forget you, but the lack of mobile phones was a problem with getting in touch. I'd also put your number on a post-it which I stuck in my guidebook. The guidebook that either the barristers now have or is lost. They left us at about 1900 on sunday, at which point we forgot about you ;)
Quote from: Brazen on May 12, 2009, 04:31:47 AM
When I'm not there, no-one has a functional mobile phone or a watch <_<
I had the phone, and in fact was bombed with calls and messages from home, just ask RH how many times my phone rang <_<
I have to keep up with my "living italian stereotype" image ;)
L.
You guys (especially Tamas) need to learn to use your cell phones as tethered modems. ;)
Love to see pics, but evidently Kat and Jake have decided I'm not cool enough for TBR anymore. :weep:
It's because they are convinced their phone won't work on Continental Europe :rolleyes:
Quote from: Grey Fox on May 12, 2009, 05:09:12 PM
It's because they are convinced their phone won't work on Continental Europe :rolleyes:
Godjeebusdammit, what do you think the point of a quad-band phone
is, you guys??? :P
Quote from: DontSayBanana on May 12, 2009, 04:53:19 PM
You guys (especially Tamas) need to learn to use your cell phones as tethered modems. ;)
Love to see pics, but evidently Kat and Jake have decided I'm not cool enough for TBR anymore. :weep:
And you are missing all those cool pics!
Pedrito was certainly a pretty convincing Italian :cool:
He started well by drinking a coffee in 0.8 seconds at Mestre railway station, then drove at 100mph most of the way to Cortina whilst holding a cigarette in one hand and fiddling with his mobile with the other. He also talked constantly about food and wine :P
@Pedrito, my family say many thanks for their presents. What with those, the presents from the Barristers, and the gear I brought back, there was quite a festive air when I got home. There is one problem though, somewhere along the line my "Oh Noes! It's Languish!" t-shirt has gone missing :cry:
Quote from: DontSayBanana on May 12, 2009, 04:53:19 PM
Love to see pics, but evidently Kat and Jake have decided I'm not cool enough for TBR anymore. :weep:
I suppose we should be happy for the reality check at least.
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on May 13, 2009, 12:42:08 AM
Pedrito was certainly a pretty convincing Italian :cool:
He started well by drinking a coffee in 0.8 seconds at Mestre railway station, then drove at 100mph most of the way to Cortina whilst holding a cigarette in one hand and fiddling with his mobile with the other. He also talked constantly about food and wine :P
@Pedrito, my family say many thanks for their presents. What with those, the presents from the Barristers, and the gear I brought back, there was quite a festive air when I got home. There is one problem though, somewhere along the line my "Oh Noes! It's Languish!" t-shirt has gone missing :cry:
You should blame italian wine for the loss of the t-shirt and the travel guide :P
L.
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on May 13, 2009, 01:28:35 AM
Quote from: DontSayBanana on May 12, 2009, 04:53:19 PM
Love to see pics, but evidently Kat and Jake have decided I'm not cool enough for TBR anymore. :weep:
I suppose we should be happy for the reality check at least.
:huh: I thought all of the original KAPLand regulars were pretty much guaranteed lifetime admission.
Quote from: Caliga on May 13, 2009, 02:25:18 PM
Quote from: Peter Wiggin on May 13, 2009, 01:28:35 AM
Quote from: DontSayBanana on May 12, 2009, 04:53:19 PM
Love to see pics, but evidently Kat and Jake have decided I'm not cool enough for TBR anymore. :weep:
I suppose we should be happy for the reality check at least.
:huh: I thought all of the original KAPLand regulars were pretty much guaranteed lifetime admission.
Not the case. I've been put on ignore by the "in" crowd for years.
Quote from: Caliga on May 13, 2009, 02:25:18 PM
:huh: I thought all of the original KAPLand regulars were pretty much guaranteed lifetime admission.
You thought wrong, when Kap decided to pull plug on his site the discussions with Ank about moving over to Languish sub fora it was decided that to be TBR member one had to have had a minimum of 200 posts at Kapland to get in.
Now if since the unexpected move to here a person lost that said access, well it's not like Neil or I have posted before telling people to PM me for access. :rolleyes:
Quote from: katmai on May 13, 2009, 02:37:47 PM
You thought wrong, when Kap decided to pull plug on his site the discussions with Ank about moving over to Languish sub fora it was decided that to be TBR member one had to have had a minimum of 200 posts at Kapland to get in.
Wow, I wonder what I posted about back then. I don't remember posting all that much.
Quote from: katmai on May 13, 2009, 02:37:47 PM
You thought wrong, when Kap decided to pull plug on his site the discussions with Ank about moving over to Languish sub fora it was decided that to be TBR member one had to have had a minimum of 200 posts at Kapland to get in.
Interesting... I never knew that.
Quote from: katmai on May 13, 2009, 02:37:47 PM
[Now if since the unexpected move to here a person lost that said access, well it's not like Neil or I have posted before telling people to PM me for access. :rolleyes:
I asked you directly in WoW and have made frownie faces several times when the subject comes up, hook me up already. Pretty please with a cherry on top, as the Wolf would say.
Sucks to be a name changer (/password forgeter)
Eddie/Peter/Teach/Wiggin is begging too much, do we want him in TBR?
:P
Quote from: lustindarkness on May 13, 2009, 03:01:27 PM
Eddie/Peter/Teach/Wiggin is begging too much, do we want him in TBR?
I'm not begging. I'm angry with myself that I have nothing better to do than stick around when I'm unwanted.
:lol:
I survived 2 weeks in Italy.
Rich I have your guidebook.
Jetlagged as hell - details to follow eventually.
:w00t:
In the past two weeks I've compulsively read local newspapers to see if there were news about a couple of canadian tourists being robbed/their car stolen/hit by a crazed scooter driver/poisoned by toxic pizza.
Did you enjoy your italian holiday?
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 22, 2009, 03:10:45 AM
:w00t:
In the past two weeks I've compulsively read local newspapers to see if there were news about a couple of canadian tourists being robbed/their car stolen/hit by a crazed scooter driver/poisoned by toxic pizza.
Jeeze P, they didn't make a great impression on ya? Wishing such ill will on em.
:P I was afraid about how my fellow citizens could treat them.
BB and lady are nice people :hug:
L.
Welcome back BB and Mrs :cool:
Hope the rest of your holiday went well.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 22, 2009, 03:10:45 AM
:w00t:
In the past two weeks I've compulsively read local newspapers to see if there were news about a couple of canadian tourists being robbed/their car stolen/hit by a crazed scooter driver/poisoned by toxic pizza.
Did you enjoy your italian holiday?
L.
Yes, very much enjoyed the holiday. :w00t:
Rather than do an AAR (which would be pretty dull, honestly), I'm just going to type a few thoughts/anecdotes:
-Ank/Rich/Tamas, why did we largely order beer in Cortina? I did the same the next night or two after you left, and generally found Italian beer to be expensive and mediocre in quality - a poor combination. But once I switched and starting ordering house wine (vino rossi del cassa por favour) like the Italians did I realized it was good and cheap - a most excellent combination.
-Rich, you're missing out by not seeing Basilica San Marco. It was amazing. I'll take it over the Cistine Chapel or St Peter's any day. And the line at least for us wasn't bad at all, under 10 minutes to get inside.
-Ank - we went back the next day to see the Naval Museum (all of us went the day before, only to find it was closed on Sundays). You'd think we'd have learned to check the guidebook before showing up. But no - we arrived on Monday to find that it was only open in the morning. :frusty:
-Food. Perhaps we went in with too high of expectations. But initially we were somewhat disappointed with the food. We were finding it to be similar to what we'd find in Canada, pretty average in quality, and very expensive. But as it went on we made a bigger point to get away from tourist areas (except we found that all of Venice is a tourist area) and then yes, we did find some very good, reasonably priced food.
-White wine gelatto. :thumbsup:
-I am SO GLAD we parked the car in Rome. There was no exaggeration about the drivers there. Northern Italy I could manage though.
-I remembered people like Caliga and Crazy Canuck saying their favourite parts of Italy was the lake district. I could see why, but personally I think I left my heart in Tuscany. After staying in camp grounds in Venice and Rome (which were fine by the way, although not at all fancy) we stayed in an agroturismo in San Gimigniano, Tuscany. The price was only slightly more than the campgrounds, it back right into the vineyards, and the food was superb. We had been planning to take the car and then drive to Siena that day, but we enjoyed that town so much we just stayed there.
-But also without a doubt one of my favourite moments on that trip was the late-night wine-driven religion debate in Cortina. That was the one moment in felt like a languish thread come to life (but with an absence of ad hom attacks). I'd definitely love to do something like that again.
Quote from: Barrister on May 22, 2009, 12:36:36 PM
-But also without a doubt one of my favourite moments on that trip was the late-night wine-driven religion debate in Cortina. That was the one moment in felt like a languish thread come to life (but with an absence of ad hom attacks). I'd definitely love to do something like that again.
:yes:
Quote from: Barrister on May 22, 2009, 12:36:36 PM
-I am SO GLAD we parked the car in Rome. There was no exaggeration about the drivers there. Northern Italy I could manage though.
:lol: Told you so. ;)
Quote-I remembered people like Caliga and Crazy Canuck saying their favourite parts of Italy was the lake district. I could see why, but personally I think I left my heart in Tuscany. After staying in camp grounds in Venice and Rome (which were fine by the way, although not at all fancy) we stayed in an agroturismo in San Gimigniano, Tuscany. The price was only slightly more than the campgrounds, it back right into the vineyards, and the food was superb. We had been planning to take the car and then drive to Siena that day, but we enjoyed that town so much we just stayed there.
:) Tuscany is really stunning, and San Gimignano is truly a charming place. :)
Quote-I am SO GLAD we parked the car in Rome. There was no exaggeration about the drivers there.
:lol: Even Milan that's pretty up north is unmanageable.
Quote-I remembered people like Caliga and Crazy Canuck saying their favourite parts of Italy was the lake district. I could see why, but personally I think I left my heart in Tuscany. After staying in camp grounds in Venice and Rome (which were fine by the way, although not at all fancy) we stayed in an agroturismo in San Gimigniano, Tuscany. The price was only slightly more than the campgrounds, it back right into the vineyards, and the food was superb. We had been planning to take the car and then drive to Siena that day, but we enjoyed that town so much we just stayed there.
I'm glad my suggestion has been a good one ^_^ Siena is a wonderful town too, well you'll visit there the next time you'll come to Italy - possibly during the Palio race days.
QuoteBut also without a doubt one of my favourite moments on that trip was the late-night wine-driven religion debate in Cortina. That was the one moment in felt like a languish thread come to life (but with an absence of ad hom attacks). I'd definitely love to do something like that again.
I couldn't be there :cry:
L.
Where are the pics you ravenous pot-bellied whorescum? :mad: ;)
Interesting fact: the all-big gun portion of dreadnought design was first articulated by an Italian.
We knew our engineering back then :cool:
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 22, 2009, 04:51:22 PM
We knew our engineering back then :cool:
L.
To some degree. Still, because they left in the reciprocating engines, they would not have been true dreadnoughts.
Footnote: 2009 marks the 200th anniversary of Andreas Hofer's rebellion for independent Tyrol (and against modernization/Age of Reason). South Tyrol is also still an issue; recently the vice mayor of Bolzano/Bozen said in an interview he views the 9th September 1943 (when Nazi troops arrived) as day of liberation.
Kind of weird that this is still an issue in the age of EU. :huh:
Quote from: Syt on May 23, 2009, 01:53:59 AM
Footnote: 2009 marks the 200th anniversary of Andreas Hofer's rebellion for independent Tyrol (and against modernization/Age of Reason). South Tyrol is also still an issue; recently the vice mayor of Bolzano/Bozen said in an interview he views the 9th September 1943 (when Nazi troops arrived) as day of liberation.
Kind of weird that this is still an issue in the age of EU. :huh:
Not really. Can you imagine how bad it must feel for a group of Germans (even low-grade Germans like Austrians) to be trapped in a country full of Italians. Imagine that you work for a tiny subsidiary of a corporation, you and two of your friends. Now, years and years ago you were sold by a somewhat efficient corporation to a corporation run and staffed entirely by retards. Now, all of the sudden, you and your two buddies are the only non-retarded people working at the new corporation. How would you feel?
Quote from: Syt on May 23, 2009, 01:53:59 AM
Footnote: 2009 marks the 200th anniversary of Andreas Hofer's rebellion for independent Tyrol (and against modernization/Age of Reason). South Tyrol is also still an issue; recently the vice mayor of Bolzano/Bozen said in an interview he views the 9th September 1943 (when Nazi troops arrived) as day of liberation.
Kind of weird that this is still an issue in the age of EU. :huh:
I was surprised to find that German was still largely spoken in the south Tyrol and in Bolzano/Bozen. Heck in Cortina I think Rich and I at one point were surprised when Pedrito ordered a German white wine - only to look carefully and discover it was south Tyrolese "Italian" wine.
Saying that South Tyrolians speak German stretches the definition a fair bit, though. ;)
Quote from: Neil on May 23, 2009, 07:06:39 AM
Not really. Can you imagine how bad it must feel for a group of Germans (even low-grade Germans like Austrians) to be trapped in a country full of Italians. Imagine that you work for a tiny subsidiary of a corporation, you and two of your friends. Now, years and years ago you were sold by a somewhat efficient corporation to a corporation run and staffed entirely by retards. Now, all of the sudden, you and your two buddies are the only non-retarded people working at the new corporation. How would you feel?
It depends. If my wage (i.e. tax reductions) is way higher than the one of people around me, if my office (i.e. region) has special laws and regulations that give me the largest of autonomies, well, maybe I could accept it.
OTOH, who says that low-grade germans (or germans at all) are better than italians?
L.
Quote from: Pedrito on May 23, 2009, 07:47:10 AM
Quote from: Neil on May 23, 2009, 07:06:39 AM
OTOH, who says that low-grade germans (or germans at all) are better than italians?
L.
low-grade Germans do