In one week I will be embarking on my first (European) river cruise. I will be traveling on the Rhine river from Basel, Switzerland to Amsterdam, Netherlands. I’ve been to Amsterdam before, but not Switzerland. Before the cruise I will take a few scenic trains through Switzerland, including the Glacier Express. Hopefully the skies…
Today was my last day in Doha, Qatar. Fridays in the Middle East are usually quiet… I started the day with working on a few group cruise promotions, then had lunch in the City Center Mall. After lunch I embarked on a journey to purchase a new suitcase since either Eithad or Oman…
My attempt to return from Abu Dhabi to Qatar saga… Check in at Etihad… – Can only get boarding pass to Muscat, Oman – Bags can only be checked to Muscat, Oman — This means that I have to: —– Purchase a visitor visa for Oman (5 Omani Riyals) —– Go through immigration in…
After finding out that the Yas 3000 (Formula 3000) cars were on the South Circuit of Yas Marina Circuit which goes under the Viceroy hotel I couldn’t resist signing up. I’ve driven these cars before, but on the North Circuit which has a hairpin turn. This time the South Circuit is much faster and flowing. …
Today for lunch I tried a Phillipine fast food restaurant that I head about by watching Anthony Bordain…. Jollibee. I had the spaghetti and yum burger. It was good. For dinner I ate at Texas Roadhouse in Yas Mall. They have nice USDA beef. After dinner I signed up to drive…
I embark today on a visa run to Abu Dhabi. Normally this is a simple 40 minute direct flight, however with the GCC countries no longer being neighborly I had to fly through either Kuwait, Jordan or Oman to get to Abu Dhabi from Qatar. My first flight on Oman Air was slightly delayed….
The flights were uneventful. I did enjoy the upper deck of the 747-8i between Washington D.C. Dulles and Frankfurt, Deutschland (Germany). I’m staying at the Marriott Marquis attached to the City Centre Mall (for obvious reasons – I don’t need to go outside to forage for food) Pictures of my room below: …
In the evening I took the “L” back downtown. I got off at Addison first, walked around Wrigley Field and took a few photos. I didn’t stay long because it started to sprinkle. I then continued to the “Merchandise Mart” stop and took dome photos of the “L” train from the 7th story of…
When I arrived at the airport this morning I was pleasantly surprised. Yesterday I slept in and didn’t check in right at 7:21 AM, the result of which was I was 3rd or 4th on the upgrade list (despite my 1K status) and only 2 first class seats were available. I touched the kiosk to…
I’m catching a later flight today to do some actual exploring. Unfortunately pretty much all of the race shops are closed on the weekend. I took an Uber to the airport and picked up a rental car to use for the day. JR motorsports, owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. in Moorseville, NC had their…
Tonight I walked to Dale Earnhardt Jr’s restaurant / bar called “Whisky River”. The food was good – and they had Yuengling on draft. Since Yuengling is still only available in certain states (only as far west as Louisiana) I always make an attempt to find it when I can. I had the Philly…
Tonight I walked down to Mert’s Heart & Soul for dinner. Soul Food In Charlotte It was one of the restaurants featured on Diner’s Drive Ins and Dives. I had the blackened pork chops with red beans and green beans. The corn bread was the best I ever had. Normally cornbread…
Tonight after talking to the folks at visitor information in the Convention Center I went to the Mint Museum which is open until 9 PM on Wednesdays (and has free admission at that time as well). I know what you are thinking – because I was thinking the same thing, but no it is just a…
Noting too adventureous today. I snapped a few photos downtown during the magic hour and in the evening. Picture below is from the park during the magic hour…. sunset was behind me. Photos below are the same, only slightly different post processing in the HDR software.
It was most definitely the longest day at a technical conference. The program went from 8 AM to 7 PM. Our reward was a 90 minute visit to the NASCAR Hall of Fame. It certainly brought back memories. They had Geoff Bodine’s car from 1984 (first Winston Cup win for Rick Hendrick as an owner)…
I’m off to Charlotte, NC this morning. I’m taking the early flight to take advantage of the day to explore – and to go to Charlotte Motor Speedway to drive a stock car….. I signed up for the 3 PM session of the Rusty Wallace Racing Experience. They had a 70% off special…