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Saturday, June 11, 2011

Savored in all of its Mediums

It can be a sealed container of emotions, a flowing stream of ideas, or an abstract, obscure vision. It can represent a distant past or an unforeseen future, sometimes simultaneously. It can be created by staying in the lines, thinking outside the box, or modeling the successes that have come before. It can be a concept, a production, a tangible piece of work, even a college degree. It can be timeless or completely outdated, often transcending generations and not only existing in spite of language barriers, cultural values, and educational backgrounds, but thriving all the more. It is art - almost impossible to define, but present around us, beyond us, and in us. One of the most incredible things about Europe is that art is, literally, everywhere - from the architecture, to the cuisine, to the storytelling and the proper fine arts. And when we get to escape work and immerse ourselves in places we haven't yet been, the arts have a way of standing out, making us feel alarmingly alive and yet humbled at the same time. Having recently returned from Budapest & Vienna, we can say that we fancied Budapest quite a bit, and absolutely fell in love with Vienna. Both cities are alive with arts of all kinds, Budapest clearly a bit more "Eastern" as far as European cities are concerned. Both are captivating in their own ways, Budapest in its prideful, prosperous ascent from its relatively recent communist past, Vienna thriving with both historical tales and present-day charm, regal and stunning, yet not at all pretentious. In our five-day exploration of these two cities, we can proclaim, without doubt, that we thoroughly enjoyed the arts....

The Art of Healing

As Bryan frequently says, "When in Rome..." and when in Budapest, one must absolutely indulge in their thermal spas, a staple healing fixture in the daily life of the locals. And indulge, we did...taking a break from our usual 8-10 hour days of walking and exploring, to rest our feet, soak up a bit of sun, and relax in the pools, both indoor and outdoor...

The Szechenyi Baths, Budapest

The Art of Theatre & Dance

With both Budapest & Vienna world-renowned for their opera, music, and ballet, we decided that our trip would be incomplete without some sort of fine arts experience. Once we discovered that the Opera House in Budapest did not have any performances on during our evenings of availability, we were determined to experience the Opera House in Vienna. At the end of a very long first day in Vienna, we arrived outside the Staatsoper just as they opened the doors for the evening. We headed straight for the ticket counter, and with tickets upwards of 150 euros for seats, we opted for the standing section tickets, at a nominal 4 euros each, for the ballet "Homage to Jerome Robbins," commemorating the U.S. choreographer known for his direction of Broadway's West Side Story and Fiddler on the Roof. Expecting the standing section to be a bit of a hectic mess, we were pleasantly surprised to find the standing section rather organised in rows, with padded rails to lean on. The inside of the Opera House was stunning, mostly filled with dressed-up locals in the expensive seats, and casually-dressed, English-speaking tourists in the standing section, fit for a king and comfortable for the commoner as well, much like the rest of Vienna. The way in which sleek ballet dancers and an illustrious orchestra can tell a story, with no words, is absolutely incredible...which, incidentally, was quite lucky for us, being in a non-English speaking Opera House.

The Art of Enjoying Wine & Local Fare

With a few of its suburbs known for their production of white wine, Vienna (from the word Wien, meaning wine) has a leisurely, relaxed approach to the enjoyment of wine. Certainly not for those who are pretentious about their wine, the suburbs of Vienna are dotted with Heuringer wine gardens, restaurants outfitted with outdoor patios and shaded gardens, created especially for the consumption of locally-produced, refreshing white wine served up by the mugful, alongside traditional Viennese Wienerschnitzel, sausage, and potatoes. Vienna is also a city defined by its cafe culture, boasting a number of both simple and quaint, elegant and extravagant cafes, having served the likes of Mozart and Beethoven, offering beverages and desserts of all sorts, including the infamous Viennese sachertorte, an apricot-filled chocolate cake. Art is truly alive over a gorgeous slice of apple streudel and a rum-spiced hot chocolate, enjoyed within four walls once graced by the live music of Mozart.

Heuringer wine garden in Grinzing

The Art of Storytelling

As we've gotten older, Bryan and I have both further developed our love for history, attracted to the rich stories, the intriguing architecture, and the ancient remains, adding texture and depth to the paper and print history textbooks that we've studied over the years. Having read about the magical area of the Danube River valley known as the Wachau, about an hour train ride outside of Vienna, we arrived at the train station, took the next train to Melk, a small medieval town on the Danube, and hopped aboard the Brander river boat. For approximately two hours, the river boat meandered along the Danube River, through the Wachau valley, with crippled medieval castles perched on the hilltops, fields of apricot orchards and wine vineyards, and charming riverside towns steeped with character. Thanks to a bit of narration on board, we learned of Richard the Lionheart's imprisonment in the castle of Kuenringer, and the tales of mystery and death in the 13th-century Burg Aggstein. Indulging a bit of my own family history on this trip as well, having remembered my grandfather's story about his family and its Austrian roots, I had a lovely time posing for a few photos outside of Cafe Drechsler in Vienna (an alternative spelling for Drexler), just for my Grandpa Jerry. And lastly, what artistic image is more reminiscent of storytelling than the quintessential horse-drawn carriage, as seen throughout the cobblestone streets of Vienna?

Benedictine Abbey, Melk

Kuenringer Castle on the hilltop

Medieval towns in Wachau valley, along the Danube

For Grandpa Jerry...

Outside the National Library, Vienna

The Art of Perspective

In cities like Budapest and Vienna, graced with architecture of worlds old and new, perspective can be enjoyed from many angles, various heights, and numerous vantage points, offering up enough architectural gems for even the healthiest of appetites.

Stephansplatz, Vienna

A View of Pest, Budapest

The Chain Bridge across the Danube, Budapest

Matthias Church, Castle Hill, Budapest

Heroes' Square, Budapest

Budapest by night

Regardless of how you define it, enjoy it, take it in, or revel in it, art can be appreciated and savored in all of its mediums, shapes, and expressions, from food to architecture, to storytelling and a way of life. How fortunate we are, to be in the presence of art.

-B&B

"Let me ask you something, what is not art?" ~Author Unknown

Sunday, May 22, 2011

The Tour

I thought if I made it to 25 without being in the back of police car then I had succeeded. Well 4 years later, about 6 months shy of 30, it finally happened. What's even scarier is it wasn't in my home country or even my adopted country. It was while traveling abroad in Croatia....

However, they were actually taking us to one of Croatia's best football pitches (ahem - soccer fields) for our second match of the week.

Let me backup a bit. A few months ago I finally started playing soccer again. A buddy of mine Fergus, who is the boyfriend of one of Brandina's coworkers Ruth, introduced me to their Football Club called the Old Sedcopians FC. We play other clubs every Saturday, all over London and it's full on - 11 vs 11, 90 minutes, restricted substitutions. After every game, both teams meet up in the local pub and the home team provides some sort of after-game meal - bangers and chips, pasta, chicken, and of course a few pints...can't beat it - well that's what I thought at least, until I got the Croatian invite.

Every year the club puts together a "tour" to another country, complete with custom jerseys and polo shirts (mine of course says "The American" on the back), a few games with some of their local teams, and plenty of leisure time. They've been to Latvia, Munich, and La Herradura in Spain, among others, and this year they decided the Croatian Islands were in the cards. To be specific, we stayed on a small island called Preko, about a 20-minute ferry ride from the Island of Zadar. When they asked if I wanted to go, I really didn't think twice - an opportunity to play some soccer in the Croatian Islands - umm count me in.

View Larger Map

There were just a few hiccups:

1) I missed my flight out.
All 17 of us were booked on the same Wednesday evening flight, but we were all arriving to the airport a bit differently due to jobs, location, etc. After I arrived at the train station, the ticket machine couldn't find my train ticket, and the staff weren't very helpful. This resulted in 2 missed trains that would have gotten me to the airport with plenty of time. Instead, as my train pulled into the airport, I sprinted to my gate, grasping 2 bags, my laptop, my belt, and other miscellaneous items I snagged after security, and watched, gasping for breathe and cramping up a bit, as my plane pulled away from the gate. 5 minutes too late - damn.

I went home and figured out a round-a-bout way to get to Zadar, including a 6am flight the next morning, and multiple planes. Fortunately, I wasn't alone in this journey, as another teammate missed the original flight too.

We made it to Preko, just in time for our first game - thanks to the crazy taxi driver that literally let us off at the ferry ramp, and talked the ticket collectors into letting us run on for free.

2) I recently started a new job at Healthy Planet, albeit 3 days a week (blog to come later...), so I had an interview scheduled for another part-time position at FoodCycle, for Friday morning - the Friday while I was in Croatia. As a forward-thinking organisation, they happily agreed to conduct the interview via Skype. There was only one place nearby on our island that had wifi, and it was the bar we had partied at the night before (called Luna by the way, the same name of the bar we frequent when in Sacramento). I was impressed to see the bartender there the next morning, as I'm sure he thought the same about me, though I was quite refreshed and ready to rock the interview, as I had kept it quite tame the night before.

The quietest place was in the outside seating area, overlooking the harbor, so I set up shop, and hoped for the best. The interview went great, and the panel even enjoyed my unplanned soundtrack in the background...thanks Luna ;). I had one of those surreal moments, where you just realise how amazing life is sometimes. I was asked in the interview, "If you could do anything in your life what would you do?" As I thought about my answer, I peered over my computer, looking at the harbor and the ocean just steps away, and a wave of euphoria came over me. I said, "You know, not to brag or anything, but I'm kind of living that moment right now. I'm sitting steps away from the ocean in Croatia, interviewing through Skype." I went on to add how I want to (and will) improve our broken food system, but nonetheless, it was an amazing feeling. The interview ended, and while I wasn't sure if I would get the position, I was confident that they liked me. The song Loco-Motion came on, and I sipped on my beer, as I soaked in the tranquility of an amazing morning.

Which finally brings me full circle. On the tour, we were treated a bit like celebrities. We had apartments right on the water, feasts everywhere we went, and even a police escort to our game on Zadar, the practice field that the National Croatian team uses. The Deputy Mayor even came to watch our game and feasted with us afterwards.

It was a fantastic weekend - delicious food, beautiful weather, some quality football, and plenty of good times.

Oh yea, the results - We won the first game 1-0, and lost the second game 7-1. Though to be fair, our second opponent consisted of current and recently retired special forces police officers. Can't win em all.

One of our hosts bbqing our post-game feast

View from our apartment balcony

Luna Bar - Site of the Skype interview and homage to my Sac friends and family

Fresh squid....delicious

Fisherman cleaning his freshly caught fish

While I'm on the topic of sports, and to be honest, while I'm writing a blog (a rare feat Brandina will attest too), I thought I'd include a few more sports photos. I've somehow made it a habit to photograph sporting events, whether professional, local, or cultural, through-out our travels.