#42 Boston - From Bizarre to Ridiculous March 25, 2006

That is one way to describe the "social"event at the 4th Annual Conference on Targeted Anticancer Therapies in Amsterdam. While the organizers dazzled us last year with the "Boom Chicago" improvisational comedy troupe, this year's offer was so bad, there are almost no words to describe it. The venue itself was pretty cool - t'Breugelhuys - a hovel, rustic in nature, just like in the good olde days; the food set up to fit the mood and era as well - home-made loaves of bread with a knife sticking in it on every table, beer straight from the vat in the wall, and lots and lots of meat and potatoes. So far, so good, right? However, the performance that took place simultaneously (Rembrandt's dream - http://www.partycompany.nl/2003/uk/themaproducties/rembrandt.htm) was a different story. The "actors", most of which were dressed as if they had come in from a distant planet (at best), engaged in some sort of performance rituals that involved major screaming and sociopathic behavior that should be treated with major psychopharmaceuticals as soon as possible. The desert for example, was "announced" by the three most horrible dancers ever seen by mankind, dressed in yet another version of the bizzaro couture that dominated the evening, screaming "ice, ice, ice" to the more than bewildered look on the face of most of my colleagues. It was not pretty.

A group of us decided we had enough and hightailed it out of there before it could get any worse (yes, I believe that was possible) and headed straight for the Red Light District (http://www.amsterdam.info/red-light-district/) so that we could check out the "coffee" shops (http://www.coffeeshop.freeuk.com/) and the prostitutes in their glass cages (would not want to miss that, right?) Quite the sight and the five of us had let's say a very interesting evening - but as you know, what happens in Amsterdam, stays in Amsterdam.....

Time to switch countries on Petra's EU tour - next stop Germany, visit the folks and such. I was welcomed with spring-like temperatures and a full social program that included a brunch with the Schocki Club and a lovely walk through the foothills of the Blackforest (http://www.tompgalvin.com/places/de/baden_wuerttemberg/black_forest.htm) in and around the charming town of Lipburg. Hang gliders provided a lovely background as we explored delightful paths through the vineyards and caught up on the latest and greatest in our lives. This part of the Southern Germany, the Markgraeflerland is known for its wines, in particular specific grapes that are grown only here, such as the Gutedel (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gutedel). A visit to my old college town of Freiburg (http://www.freiburg.de/) rounded out the trip and provided much needed relaxation in between two business trips.

A word in between on traveling on low-cost airlines in Europe. In general they are great, and if you plan it right, you can fly from Amsterdam to Barcelona for about 45$. Tip #1 - they limit the weight you can check in to 20 kgs/ 40 pounds. That is not too much, my friends - in particular if you carry conference materials with you. After forking over wayyyy to many Euros for "excess" baggage on one of my flights, I wised up. Only clothes into the suitcases, all the other stuff goes in the carry-on bag (for which they interestingly enough do not limit the weight). Here I sat in my brother's house weighing my suitcases on the bathroom scale (a first for me), but I did manage to budget the weight down to 19.5 Kilos!! Yesss!! Of course, I could barely lift the carry-on bag off the ground, but who cares about that. Tip #2: It is first come, first serve (at least with Easy Jet) and don't believe for a second that your fellow travelers including grandma over there would hesitate to kill you over a prime seat on the plane. Even when the plane was not in sight yet, travelers were lined up and piled against each other like sardines - elbows turned into weapons. What a zoo!! Gosh people, relax, take a chill pill!! (And that coming from me...)




Now - Barcelona. What can I say that would even come close to adequately describe this absolutely marvelous city. OH MY GOD!! It is stunningly beautiful, charming, stately, fashionable, a marvel of architecture, cosmopolitan, culinary, historical, funky, hip, traditional - you MUST, MUST, MUST come and visit!!!

I don't even know where to start, but architecture seems like a good place - in particular the style of Antonio Gaudi (http://www.greatbuildings.com/architects/Antonio_Gaudi.html) - Spanish Art Nouveau, buildings with curves, exultant design and dazzling arrays of colors and mosaic - starting with the marvelous La Pedrera - (which happened to be around the corner from my hotel) (http://www.gaudiclub.com/ingles/i_VIDA/fotobras/pedrera/pedr3.jpg) , La Sagrada Familia (http://www.sagradafamilia.org/) - which once renovations are finished will span several city blocks, and my favorite to date - La Casa Batllo (http://www.casabatllo.es/) (a private residence) - to name just three of his amazing works I had the pleasure to visit. His emphasis was not only on natural forms, but also on the very innovative use of light as an architectural concept. Gaudi himself was an interesting character - with all the playfulness and vibrancy in his work, he was quite an austere character in private life, never married, always dressed in black, the serious kind, you know. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoni_Gaudi).

In Barcelona you can find something marvelous on every corner, from the Santa Maria del Mar in the old Gothic part of town (Bari Gothic) - http://www.bcn.es/turisme/english/turisme/llocs/10.htm to the absolutely stunning concert hall, La Palau de la Musica Catalan, another monument to the modernist architectural movement (http://home.palaumusica.org/), Designed and built by Architect Louis Domenech i Montaner in the 1905, it is quite stunning and its concert hall is known to have spectacular acoustics.

Another mention has to go to Las Ramblas - the most well known shopping mile in Barcelona, where street vendors (who would want to buy a pet chicken in the middle of Barcelona?) mix with art sculptures, haute couture and gothic architecture (http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.com/albums-en/ramblas/index.html).

Nearby, the Museu Picasso (http://www.museupicasso.bcn.es/index.htm) on the Carrer Moncado features in its permanent collection many of the early works of the artist, and convinced me even more that this man was a genius. I am a big fan of cubism as you know, but seeing his art work as a 14-year old was quite impressive. The highlight of the collection is "Las Meninas" - a collection of 58 pieces where Picasso created his own versions of this famous paiting of Spanish painter Diego Velasquez (http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/velazquez/velazquez.meninas.jpg). Of particular note in the series is Infanta Margarita, the eldest daughter of the new queen. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:PabloPicasso_Meninas.jpg

Food, food, food, fantastic, fantastic food! Wine to die for, tapas, ham from Serrano- the best in the world -fish fresh caught, presented at the table for approval, then cooked in piles of salt - unbelievable! Two highlights in particular - the very contemporary Arola restaurant in the Hotel Arts (overlooking the Mediterranean, the Port Olimpic and a giant fish sculpture)(http://www.ritzcarlton.com/hotels/barcelona/) which provided a chef's menu that I will dream about for years to come and Botafumeiro (http://www.botafumeiro.es/) with its most delectable Galician cuisine.

Best culinary experience - Barcelona is obsessed, obsessed, obsessed with chocolate - and their Xocolata Desfeta - a hot melted chocolate is sooooooo good, I am tempted to say it is better than you know what.....

I have to say a thank you here to my colleagues in Spain who treated me like royalty, in particular Miriam and her family (hi Roberto, Mark, Iker, Nerea) who invited me into their magnificent Barcelona home and showered me with kindness.

My friends, I am back in Boston for about one week during which I have to move house, so it is going to be hectic. Next Friday will find me back on the road again, attending a conference in Washington, DC.

Hola!!

pet:)

#41 Boston - Those Hungry Germans - March 17 2006

Can't take them anywhere, eh? Immediately upon my arrival here in Amsterdam Wednesday morning my translation skills were engaged by the staff of the Bilderberg Garden Hotel The place is under construction, you see, and the contractors are German with no Dutch or English language skills (go figure!). So here is the situation: The hotel gave them a breakfast, set it up for five people; two of them showed up, ate the 5-people portion, left, then the other three came and demanded more food. Now I had the pleasant task to tell them that there will be food for 5 people the next morning, but they better show up all at the same time, none of that splitting up nonsense. I must have been very good at this diplomatic venture - as a result of this the contractors and I have become instant friends and we high-five each other each time I come in the door.(http://www.gardenhotel.nl/uk/gardenhotel/).
The construction atmosphere has led to some lamenting on the part of my fellow conference attendees, one of whom compared his room to a crackhouse, which might have been a slight exaggeration. My room is wonderful though, and the hotel deserves a snazzy rating nevertheless. The only peculiarity maybe are the floor buttons in the elevator, which need to be rubbed (no kidding!) in order to be activated.


I arrived in Amsterdam two days ago to a very chilly but sunny day. Following a 3-hour power nap I headed to the city center to see what kind of tourist activities I could cram into the half day I had for myself.
First on the menu was the Rijksmuseujm (http://www.rijksmuseum.nl/index.jsp?lang=en), a venerable institution where the city houses treasures by Rembrandt, Vermeer, Caravaggio - you name it. Before you get to the masters though, the exhibit leads you through Holland's past as a maritime superpower. Among the highlights is a 4-meter (12-foot) ship model of a 79 Dutch Gun-of-War which was built in Visselen (Flushing) for William III, Prince of Orange. We learned about the Battle of Terheide, painted by William van der Welde), the Dutch East India Company (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_East_India_Company)) and Holland's hay days in the colonies. For someone who gets nauseous just by looking at a boat, I have this almost unhealthy fascination with boats and ships, so I was quite pleased in this place.
On to the masters - I always have had a strong passion for Dutch painters but I would not have counted Rembrandt among my favorites. Well, that has changed now - some of his astonishing work has definitely spoken to me - in particular "The Night Watch"(http://www.abcgallery.com/R/rembrandt/rembrandt27.html) and "Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem (http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/r/rembran/painting/biblic1/jeremiah.html), which young Rembrandt van Rijn painted when he was just 23 years old. Holy smokes!
My heart stood still though for the exquisite works of my most beloved Dutch painter, Johannes Vermeer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Vermeer), who as they say"is known for his distinctive portrayal of light"". Four of his creations were on display at the Rijks - "The Kitchen Maid"and "Woman Reading a Letter" among them.
Honorary mentions have to go to Nicolas Maes, Henrik Avercamp's "Winter Landscape with Skaters" and, a new favorite, Frans Hals (http://www.franshalsmuseum.nl/index_en.html), who was apparently known for his more relaxed portrait style, something that was quite unusual in his days. Says the audio guide": "Grinning broadly was not the thing done for people with self-control...."
A separate side exhibit called "Really Rembrandt?" took a look at 13 paintings that were at one point or another assumed to be Rembrandts. Initially Rembrandt was thought to have painted almost 700 works (which seemed a bit much), but thanks to a series of investigations using techniques such as X-ray and pigment analysis, many of them were re-attributed to other artists, known and unknown, and now only 300 are official Rembrandts (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rembrandt).
Leaving the museum, it was time for a little exercise, so I walked the streets of Amsterdam, passing some of the famous coffee shops (favorite: "Mellow Yellow"), a men's clothing store named "Sissy Boys" and of course, the famous flower market, where one could acquire not only six million types of tulip bulbs but also a fair selection of cannabis seed (not that I would do that...).
I then hopped on a boat (yeah, you better believe it) and joined a cruise on Amsterdam's famous canals, the Grachten (http://www.grachten.nl/indexeng.html). What a fabulous adventure! Our took took us past some of the 2500 houseboats the city hosts - they come in every style imaginable - from elegant chic to big bulky whaling boats to the ever-popular overgrown-weed style and even the "remnants of World War II" models. Driving along the canals past the old merchant houses of Amsterdam was spectacular, and made me fall in love with this charming place all over again.
The city dazzles with internationalism in particular when it comes to food - so far I have been to a Uruguayan steakhouse and a Indonesian-Tibetan place - both of them stellar. Actually there seems to be an addiction to steak going on, I have never ever seen that many steakhouses in one city, it's ridiculous!
The ride over the big pond needs to be mentioned as well - Northwest Airlines was super! The plane was brandspankin' new, the entertainment featured 30-some movies - sorted by comedy, drama, independent and shorts. Even better, everyone had their own remote control. With all these diversions, the flight went by in a jiffy and three movies later, we landed in Amsterdam!
OK, briefly to the weekend prior in Boston - mostly dominated by packing and the continuing tale of the mean landlord, but I also had to throw in a Half Marathon for Good Measure. In "The Run To Remember" (http://www.bostonsruntoremember.org/boston/index.html) more than 8000 runners honored 280 Massachusetts police officers who died in the line of duty. The weather held up nicely and thanks to Stephanie who kept me on track, I finished with a decent effort of 2 hours 7 minutes and 58 seconds, a pace of 9:46 per mile, similar to my first Half Marathon experience in October. It was a bit of a struggle and I gave myself the afternoon off from packing, and got nicely re-aquainted with my couch.
The weekend was finished off very pleasantly with a visit to the IMAX theater at the Museum of Science to see the movie "Wired To Win - How to Survive the Tour de France". Quite an interesting documentary which follows two riders of the Tour and explores how the brains of high-caliber athletes function.
Friends - I gotta go, the conference is in full swing - lots of science to absorb, people to meet. More on my adventures in Europe soon.
Cheerio,
pet:)

#40 Boston - @!@!#!@#!@#! March 10, 2006

Here's a tip for you: avoid landlords that are lawyers - they have leases tighter than the bark on a tree!! Mine now has decided to increase the rent for the replacement tenants I had found and to ask them to sign a two-year lease. This of course made those wonderful folks who were looking to set up shop in my current abode cringe, and I pray to the high heavens that they will come up with an agreement. My lease of course makes me responsible to either find someone or pay up until June, yikes! @!@!#!@#!@# (Pat knows what this stands for, right??) I have now posted the studio on every website under the sun, or at least a few of them, and pretty much everyone at MGH knows about it as well....
I need this like a hole in my head!! Deep breathing Petra, deep breathing..... aaahhh. Ommm.... Ommmmm....

This fits right in with a horrendously busy week - I had so many big projects at work, sometimes doing two of them in tandem, and in between I packed, I ushered, I ran, and even had time to pop in a few movies. I don't know why and how I am still standing up!!

Let's start with the last weekend though - after just having returned from Jacksonhole, and once again been confronted with the frustration of a snow-less Boston, I hightailed it up to New Hampshire in search of some of the white stuff. Most of the way up to Franconia there was nothing, not a flake in sight, but as soon as we hit Plymouth - Jackpot!! It was fabuloso!! It snowed from Friday night through Sunday morning, wonderful magnificent snow, fluffy and light as feathers. A group of friends (Peter, Kimball, Elaine and myself) had accepted the kind invitation of our friend Rick to spend a weekend at his family's new house up in Franconia and it turned out to be just a divine couple of days. It is a spectacular house with a view of Mt Lafayette - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Lafayette_(New_Hampshire) and Mt Cannon (http://www.cannonmt.com/index.php) right near the Franconia Inn (which offers a whole slew on winter activities - http://www.franconiainn.com/).

We initiated the weekend with a snow hike up the Bridal Veil Falls trail, which we had hiked last fall, but it took a while for my hiking memory to come back and I remembered the trail as one of my first hikes up in New Hampshire. I was reminded again of the story of Bette Davis, who got lost here, rescued by a local farmer, and eventually married him. After his death in a tragic accident a few years later, she put a memorial plaque on a rock in the river with the inscription "To Arthur Farnsworth, Keeper of Stray Ladies, From a Grateful One".

In the afternoon we decided to make use of the all the snow and head for Bretton Woods, a location I had so far only known through my previous work (hi IRN!) as the birthplace of the evil World Bank and the IMF, but you know what? This place is not too shabby (http://www.brettonwoods.com/). It is quite a snazzy little mountain resort with the spectacular Mt Washington Hotel (http://www.mtwashington.com/hotelinformation/index.cfm) built in the Spanish Renaissance architecture style by none other than industrialist Joseph Stickney, a New Hampshire native. Apparently he had made his money in coal mining and on the Pennsylvania Railroad, and must have had a few dollars left over. Poor Joseph though unfortunately died just a short while after the place opened in 1902, and his wife went on and married some French prince with a fancy schmancy name and lived happily ever after. The hotel of course was famous for the Bretton Woods International Monetary Conference in 1944, where delegates from 44 nations established the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, set the gold standard at $35.00 an ounce and designated the US dollar as the backbone of international exchange.

We decided for the afternoon to make use of Kimball's skills as a bona fide cross-country ski instructor and embark on a little journey, this time trying out cross-country skating (also called "free-style"). Whereas you go straight with the classic style X-C, for skating the skier pushes "one ski outward with the ski angled, so that the inner edge of the ski is driven against the snow, much like an ice skater"(Wikipedia says so). The skis are different (thinner) and it is a little harder to learn it, but then again you can get much more speed once you know what to do. I did reasonably well, but this might not be the sport for me! I think the traditional way is the way to go in my case. But hey, you have to try, right? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-country_skiing).

Needless to say we were exhausted afterward, and after a quick stop at the Mt Washington Hotel for some hot cocoa (or in some cases Hurricanes), we headed out in search of Chinese food, which almost got us to Vermont. Thankfully we spotted a place in Littleton (not without some risky driving maneuvers on my part) and ended up with a decent dinner. The evening ended on a funny note including a very compassionate beer-filled session of Taboo, even though I could not understand why Elaine took the cards away from me..... Congratulations to Peter for his vivid depiction of Silicon Valley - we would have never guessed it!

After a maaahvelous buttermilk pancake breakfast courtesy of Kimball (where we also consumed three kilos of turkey bacon) it was time to head toward Bretton Woods again, this time the boys decided to go cross-country and Elaine and I opted for downhill. I wanted to apply my newly acquired skiing skills, and after a slightly jittery beginning, I did quite well considering the typical New England skiing conditions (Motto - "It's dicey when it's icy"). I have some learning to do, but I am getting there! Practice, practice, practice!

Back in Boston, as mentioned, the week has been a bit hectic. Tuesday night I joined Ellen and Patrick for Boston Cares ushering duties at the Huntington Theater - the play was "The Hopper Collection" by Mat Smart, the story of a married woman who is obsessed with having once met New England artist Edward Hopper (http://images.google.com/images?q=Edward+Hopper&hl=en&lr=&rls=GGLJ,GGLJ:2006-10,GGLJ:en&sa=N&tab=ii&oi=imagest) . I actually ended up leaving half way through the play - periods of yelling and the woman screaming like a buzzard alternated with utterly boring scenes - just not how I want to spend the evening.

So - I am heading home now! The upcoming weekend will be taken up with packing, and a little Half Marathon on Sunday - "The Run to Remember", which honors policemen and firefighters fallen in the line of duty. I am heading out to Europe (Netherlands, Germany, Spain) on Tuesday for about ten days, so my next write-up will be sent from the ever charming city of Amsterdam.

On that note, Goede Avond!

pet:)

#39 Boston - I can ski!!! March 3, 2006

Miracles do happen! I have graduated to parallel skiing and I have the fabulous teachers at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in Wyoming to thank (http://www.jacksonhole.com/). Two days of lessons with John and Grant, and yours truly zipped down the hills like you would not believe! I am exaggerating a bit of course, as the zipping was interrupted by some tumbling and sitting down, and the occasional bout with altitude sickness - but compared to last year's performance which included my eyes open to the size of grapefruit convinced I would die trying to get down the mountains, this was stellar!

Of course, the snow was wonderful out there and made it easy to learn. The ski instructors - John, whose stoner-dude attitude got the level 3 class relaxed and ready to ski and Grant, telemark skier extraordinaire, who taught us (class level 4) how to perfect our turns and show good form (it worked most of the time). As soon as the altitude sickness hit (Day 3) and my legs collapsed I retired to the patio of the Four Seasons Hotel, sat in one of the most comfortable Adirondack chairs in front of the open air fire place, enjoyed the mountains and let the sun shine in my face.

Jackson Hole and the Grand Teton Mountain range are one of the most spectacular places I have ever been to - the 40-mile mountain front is the youngest section of the Rocky Mountains (http://www.nps.gov/grte/). The scenery is simply stunning, it really takes your breath away. The town of Jackson is located at 6200 feet, and in the ski village you can head up the mountain in various lifts or the gondola to up to 10,000 feet. Of course, the highest peak is the Grand Teton with 13,770 feet (4198 meters) surrounded by 12 other pinnacles of at least 12,000 feet. There are lakes, meadows the size of small countries, beautiful wildlife to look at and tons and tons of snow.

Actually on our first day Sophie, Lisa, Roger and myself decided to go snow shoeing and joined Ranger Amy from the US Forest Service for a little tour of the area with some education on nature thrown in. We learned about the buck-and-rail fence (http://www.thevisualrecord.com/dbphotopages/photopage.php?photo_id=682) - a traditional method of fencing, where the poles do not need to be dug into the ground (important in winter when the ground is frozen) and were taught that the lodgepole pine is used to make telephone poles (and buck-and-rail fences). My favorite topic for the day though was the hounds tongue(http://www.agf.gov.bc.ca/cropprot/weedguid/houndst.htm), a so-called noxious weed. Its flowers send out seeds that are covered with hooked prickles that stick to you better than Velcro and it contains toxic alkaloids that can cause liver damage in grazing animals. Upon hearing what this vicious little plant can do, we immediately labeled it an obnoxious weed, alongside some of its equally threatening colleagues, such as the Dalmatian Toadflax (who makes up these names??), the Spotted Knapweed and (my favorite, no contest) the Ox-Eye Daisy, whose name sounds like a wild women who shoots people ("Watch out for Ox-Eye Daisy over there, she'll shoot ya!"). We learned about ermines and chiselers (a ground squirrel - http://www.fotosearch.com/AGE044/c63-428306/), and saw impressive moose and elk (at the National Elk Refuge - http://www.fws.gov/nationalelkrefuge/).

Aspen trees were abundant, and I learned that Aspens reproduce (yes, this is the juicy part of the update) in clones. Many of the Aspen tree stands you see are one organism - we were told that in Aspen, Colorado there is a 90-mile stretch of Aspens which is one organism. The largest living thing in the world is an Aspen Tree in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah. It's an Aspen with a recorded 41,000 trees off of one root stock! Apparently the roots (called "suckers") of the tree are having a field day underground, and keep reproducing like rabbits!!

As you can see we had a good time, skiing, cross country and snow shoeing - no activity was left out. Of course we did not hold back on the social front either. It is a must to go and spend some time in the mountain resort's rowdiest place -the "Mangy Moose" - it is packed to the ceiling with skiers (mostly guys - so this is where they all are...) and wannabees; large quantities of beer are consumed and there is some dancing going on as well. The town of Jackson provides some very sweet distractions also including the "Million Dollar Cowboy Bar" where you can sit on a saddle bar stool and enjoy some good old fashioned line dancing, and the "Silver Dollar Bar" at the traditional Wort Hotel (http://www.worthotel.com/) whose S-shaped bar has 2,032 uncirculated 1921 silver dollars embedded in its surface. Good beer is everywhere including the local Snake River Brewing Company's specialties, the Wildlife Mighty Bison Brown Ale from Victor, Idaho and "Fat Tire" from Fort Collins, Colorado. (Best beer find during the trip though was the Polygamy Porter from the Wasatch Brewing Company in Utah with their motto "Why Just Have One! Take one Home for the Wives!" - http://www.wasatchbeers.com/)). On the culinary front I tasted both buffalo and elk for the first time at the most charming Sweetwater Restaurant in Jackson, and the meal was followed by a pleasant stroll to the town square famous for its park with entrance arches made from antlers shed by elk.


The stay was made even more agreeable by Lisa's family who welcomed us into their mountain home and spared no effort to make us feel comfortable. We were treated like royalty - Susan and Roger, you are fantastic!! Their home is located in Wilson, WY - literally two miles down the road from Teton Village, and every morning after I woke up, I opened the blinds and there were the mountains - bam! Dramatic views greeted us every day. Life is good.

OnTuesday two very very very bumpy flights brought me back to a seriously chilly Boston, where temperatures had been hovering in the upper teens and lower twenties. I am cruising through the week and am ready for my next adventure this weekend - a trip up to Franconia, New Hampshire for some snow-related activities or hiking, depending on what Mother Nature has to offer.

Folks , I am signing off . Hope you are all out having fun and look out for me on the slopes. No Green Trail is safe!

pet:)