Travel Archives

29 May 2007Quick Turnaround
I made it home safely. The cats didn't seem to destory anything (Mak is purring on my lap as I type this. I've unpacked, showered, now I have 18 minutes before the taxi shows up to take me to Oakland...
29 May 2007Quick Turnaround
I made it home safely. The cats didn't seem to destory anything (Mak is purring on my lap as I type this. I've unpacked, showered, now I have 18 minutes before the taxi shows up to take me to Oakland...
28 May 2007The End is Near
In about 10 minutes I'll board my NWA flight from Tokyo to SFO. 9 hours of pure ambien induced bliss awaits. Then I have a whole 2 hours before I have to get to Oakland airport to fly to Boston....
27 May 2007The Art of Satay
" align="left" alt="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/189/515288901_1e5a53e00b.jpg?v=0" class="image" /> I first ate satay at this street side vendor when I was in Bali in 2002. I stayed for 3 weeks just down the street in the Tebesaya section of Ubud and would pass...
27 May 2007Bangkok & Bali Photos...
...are now posted on Flikr in their new feature, called collections. This is something that users like me have been asking for, for a long time now. Sets of sets. So this set or collection has about 10 sets with...
25 May 2007All Jacked Up
My feet are killing me. They have been since the first day in Bangkok where I walked all over the place with sandals that I hadn't worn in a long time. I didn't think there was a problem with them,...
22 May 2007Delayed
I'm in the Bangkok airport waiting for Thai Airways steerage class flight to Denpasar (Bali). There's been a delay (for "technical reasons" which is never good) so I have time to catch up and put some photos on Flickr. There...
20 May 2007Japan Layover
Just landed in Tokyo for a little layover. It's surreal being here. Japan is just such an odd place. It's hard to describe. I might do a better job if I wasn't so out of it. I couldn't sleep much...
19 May 2007Bangkok, Bali, Boston
I'm sititng in the Northwest Airlines WorldLounge at SFO about to embark on another journey. I was invited to speak at a meeting in Bali. Pretty sweet. It's not til the 28th, but I decided to take some well needed...
14 March 2007Return form Austin
The return from Austin could have been a major nightmare. It almost was. But alls well that ends well. Here's how it went down. I got in a taxi to head to the airport and it's bucketing down rain. We...
08 February 2007Impression of Vancouver
Ok, so I've spent most of the daylight (what there is of it) inside, so my impressions of this city might be a little biased, but if I had to describe the city with one word, I'd go with "clean"....
05 February 2007Off to Vancouver
I'm headed up to the great white north for the Web Directions North conference and a weekend of skiing with Russell, my brother (returning from last season's nightmare) and few other friends and colleagues. They actually have snow up here...
28 December 2006Off to LA
I'm heading down south to see the family, ring in the New Year and celebrate my dad's 70th birthday. I haven't been to LA in more than a year and a half. It should be fun to hang out with...
06 October 2006Half Dome on Cloudy Day
30 June 2006Ruud Gullit at the Ristorante Bellavista
Rutger and I were walking home from dinner at Sing Sing, a very trendy Asian fusion restaurant/bar in his neighborhood last night. I was taking pictures of some of the interesting cafes with their tables spilling out into the sidewalks...
29 June 2006Land of Bicycles
It's hard for someone who's not been here to get a sense of how many bicycles there are. I thought there were a lot in Oxford, but that's nothing. Here in Holland and more so in Utrecht which is a...
29 June 2006Day Trip to Utrecht
It's easy to get the wrong impression of Utrecht. The train station is adjacent to the largest mall in the country and you have to make your make through a mass of stores and throngs of people to get to...
27 June 2006Final Destination: Amsterdam
I arrived in Amsterdam two nights ago for the final, non-corporate funded leg of the trip. I'm staying with good friends Rutger & Marielle (and orney cat Dickie) in their beautifully remodelled townhouse about 15 minutes south of the central...
25 June 2006City of the Dead
Photos of the incomparable Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris are up now. The place is simply amazing. I walked around for 3 hours in the rain on the ankle breaking cobble stones streets that connect up the dozens of districts,...
18 June 2006Sleep Deprived Mongoloid
Im not to get into details now, but suffice it to say that Ive been running a massive sleep deficit since last Saturday when I got home at 3am and realized that I had to catch a 920am flight from...
17 June 2006I'm Outta Here
The flight is boarding now. Finally. I'm off to the gate. See you's all in Barcelona! ;)...
17 June 2006More Traveling
I'm off to Barcelona this afternoon. I'll be there for 5 days so I should have time to catch up on some writing, but I've thought and said that before. I have a few hours before my flight to roam...
04 June 2006Trouble on the Tube
The trip from Heahrow to Phil's place in Bounds Green was supposed to be a breeze. He's on the same line (Picadilly) that runs out of the airport. Granted, it's 30 odd stops, but no changing trains, figuring out what...
04 June 2006Long Days
I'm having a little trouble getting my body adjusted to this new time zone. Part is due to the flight. I slept, but only under the influence of Amien and not very well or long. Then my first morning here...
04 June 2006Arrived in UK
I arrived safely in London. Spent a pleasant afternoon hagning out with my old friend from Santa Cruz, Phil Duggleby, his wife Margaret and their lovely 9 month old ginger haired daughter Lucy. I'm off to Oxford tomorrow for the...
25 May 2006Europe in June
I'm headed to Europe for work for almost the entire month of June. I'm leaving June 2nd. Spending the weekend in London. Working a few days in Oxford. Heading over to Paris to meet with some colleagues. Flying to Basel...
16 May 2006I love New York
I don't know how else to say it. I really don't. The city is just so great. I love the buidlings, and the people and the energy and the musuems and the subway. There's so much to do. There's so...
10 May 2006Hotwired!
Trying to find a reasonably priced hotel in New York isn't easy. I lokoed around a few sites and finally decided to take the plunge and go with Hotwire. I've looked at Hotwire for years, but have bought anything from...
09 May 2006Headed to the Big Apple
I'm off to New York for work tomorrow. Going to stay the weekend. My brother is coming up from DC. Should be fun even if the forcasted rain shows up. I haven't been in the city since 2003. I love...
11 March 2006Austin City Bats
There are bats living in Austin. How cool is that?...
09 March 2006Austin Bound
Headed to Texas for the annual SXSW Interactive Conference in Austin. I'm pretty excited I've never been to Austin before, I've heard great things and I haven't seen my good friend EM Stock since she moved her in 2001 after...
14 December 2005Leaving CR
Our flight home is at 12:45pm local time today, which means we have to grab a taxi to the airport around 10:15 or so. It sucks ass, but we have to head in the reverse direction to Miami first, go...
05 December 2005Alajela to La Fortuna
Just a quick note to let everyone know that I landed in Costa Rica and everything is fine. flight from Miami was quick, 3 hours. We spent one night in a town, alajela near the airport and then took a...
28 November 2005Costa Rica Itinerary
Our Costa Rica itinerary is basically set. We're leaving Sunday, landing in San Jose and avoiding the city, heading directly for a Heredia, a town in the midst of the coffee plantations. Then we head for three nights in La...
10 November 2005Finally, A Vacation
I've been working here more than a year, but since a good chunk of that, 10 months or so, was as a contractor and I didn't accrue PTO or vacation time, I didn't take any vacations. NO VACATION FOR MORE...
20 August 2005Back East
I'm off the Philadelphia for a week of lovely SAP portal training followed by a weekend in DC visiting my brother. Hard to believe but this will be the first time I've been on a plane in almost two years...
22 February 2005Home But Not Thrilled
THE CLOUDS NEAR BUELLTON I can sum up the drive home in one word: SUCK. The drive down to LA was a pleasure cruise compared to the nightmare of the return to the Bay Area. First of all there were...
18 February 2005Cruisin' on the 5
Ok, so I broke a few state laws on the way down south and maybe some federal ones too, but I got here in one piece even if I didn't make the best time in world. I have driven Highway...
18 February 2005Driving to LA
I'm off to Los Angeles for the weekend to see family and friends, most notably my cousin Michelle who's dying from cancer and is making her last trip around the world to see everyone. Michelle has lived at Kibbutz Ketura...
28 May 2004In San Diego
I'm down at the ass end of California visiting some friends, going to a party, generally hanging out and escaping from Northern California. I like San Diego for the weather, the variety of neighborhoods and it's proximity to Mexico, but...
30 April 2004Destination Walnut Creek
After being woken up with little whiskers in my face, I packed up the little mess I made in the motel, checked out and left the gleaming casinos of Reno behind on my way to Walnut Creek, CA. That's, right....
29 April 2004Taking Cats Across State Lines For Immoral Purposes
THE SNOWY PEAKS OF NORTHERN NEVADA Ok, so it was not exactly immoral, but if the kittens had their way, it would definitely be illegal. They made their feelings about the trip known early and often. Just as I had...
20 January 2004Driving in Cars with Cats
Driving 13 hours with two insane kittens was never going to be a picnic, but add in icy roads over 13 thousand foot passes and you end up with the ingredients for a nasty adventure. At first I had...
19 January 2004Hitting the Road
I've got everything packed except the kittens. I'm sure they're going to be thrilled once they find out what's in store for them. New Address: Andrew Hecht 2437 Chamonix Lane Apt A3 West Vail, CO If everything goes well,...
13 January 2004Road Trip
I'm putting the new wheels to the test and taking off for a short trip to LA and San Diego to pick up a few things and visit some friends. It will be nice to get out of the freakish...
06 January 2004Visit Samoa Week
Ok, so it's not Visit Samoa Week. I doubt there even is such an animal. However Hurricane/Cyclone Heta is visiting the islands. My friends and former colleagues are probably taking cover and cursing the weather. I only hope that...
29 December 2003New Year's Eve
This New Year's is going to be rather sedate, I'm afraid. There's not much happening here in Sedona, Arizona. I'm going to be at home with a close friend and it's going to be very low key. We'll just have...
11 November 2003Cult of Don
Don George has a dream job. He gets to travel around the world and write about what he sees and does for Lonely Planet. He also gets to interview famous travel writers. Before I left for Samoa, I was able...
06 November 2003Feel Free to Move About the Country
I had a rough time getting to Arizona. It started when I woke an hour late, which is a congenital problem with me. I run around the apartment chucking my stuff into bags because, like the idiot that I am,...
07 October 2003LA Haze
07 October 2003Long Journey
After two long flights from Samoa, I finally landed in DC in the wee hours this morning. The journey was not uneventful. It seemed like everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. Seriously wrong. CATASTROPHE When I left...
06 October 2003The Inexhautible World
As you are not unaware, I am much traveled. This fact allows me to corroborate the ascertion that a voyage is always more or less illusory, that there is nothing new under the sun, theat everything is one and the...
12 August 2003Cleopatra's Sister
I really enjoyed this book, although I was laughing at it initially. The book is divided into two parts. The first has three types of chapters that alternate: those that follow Howard's life, those that follow Lucy's life, and...
07 June 2003Army of Fools
The Tahitian Princess pulled back into Apia Harbor this morning disgorging slow moving tourists all over the island. I met one couple out in front of MD's Big Fresh supermarket by the entrance to the harbor. They were a meaty,...
03 April 2003Paul Theroux Interview
"Flying from one capital city to another is not travel to me. Travel, especially in Africa, must be overland and must involve the crossing of borders — negotiating on land, usually on foot, the national frontier. That experience teaches a...