text:
Surviving Death Road: La Paz

I wouldn’t say that there is anything particularly special about the capital city of Bolivia, but it does have one popular attraction that I wanted to experience. From La Paz, you can join a bike tour that takes you on a ride down the worlds most dangerous road, Death Road. I don’t believe it’s still the most dangerous road in the world, but it used to be and the name has stuck with it.

On my overnight bus to La Paz, I met two new travel companions, two Brazilian girls named Mel and Carol. The girls also wanted to tackle Death Road, so we signed up for a bike tour together as soon as we arrived. This was the only thing I was really interested in doing around La paz, but the girls had one more very important activity to take care of while in the city… Shopping.

La Paz is probably one of the cheapest places in South America to buy clothing, souvenirs and everything else. I decided to tag along for the shopping spree. We spent the day going from market to market. It seemed like every stall was selling the exact same things, but the girls, especially Carol, seemed to be able to find new things to buy everywhere we went.

In the end, I got into the shopping spirit as well and bought a sweater and scarf for a few dollars each. This was unusual for me, since I usually don’t buy anything when I travel. I’m glad I did though, since parts of Bolivia and Peru have been quite cold.

Out for Mexican food with Mel and Carol

We had to wake up bright and early for our transportation to Death Road. When we arrived, the road was completely covered in mist and the air was freezing cold. The first hour of the bike ride was a mental battle. I was soaking wet within minutes of getting on my bike and the cold wind was cutting right through to my skin.

Ready for Death Road!

P1600816We stopped for a snack break at a little store along the way. The lady working there had a super cute little kid with her, who had mastered the art of extracting chocolate from tourists. We were all given chocolate in our snack bags. Whenever the kid saw someone pull out their chocolate, he would put his hands out like a beggar and look up at them with the cutest face. No one was able to resist.

Up to this point, I had been thinking that, besides the cold, the road wasn’t nearly as difficult or dangerous as I had expected. Then the pavement ended and we arrived at the real Death Road. The first hour was just a warm up before reaching the world’s most dangerous road.

The winding, unpaved, gravel road, running alongside a shear cliff face was more of what I had expected. Although I didn’t feel that the ride was actually too dangerous, it definitely provided enough of a thrill to get my adrenaline pumping. There were times, while riding over loose gravel that I felt my bike lose traction and my heart would skip a beat, even though I knew the road was wide enough and I wasn’t taking the turns fast enough to actually fall off the road.

Our group on Death Road

One of the most difficult challenges was staying focused on the task at hand of safely navigating my way down the road, while still enjoying the absolutely beautiful scenery at the same time.

I was reminded of a lesson I learned from one of my favourite books, The Alchemist. In the book, the protagonist is told a story. A boy is sent by his father to visit the wisest man in the world. The wise man tells the boy that he doesn’t have time at that moment to explain to him the secret of happiness. He hands the boy a teaspoon with two drops of oil on it and tells him to look around the palace and return in two hours, without letting any oil spill from the spoon.

The boy walked through the palace, never taking his eyes off the spoon, being careful not to lose any of the oil. When he returned, the wise man asked, “did you see the Persian tapestries that are hanging in my dining hall? Did you see the garden that it took the master gardener ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful parchments in my library?” The boy admits that he did not notice any of these things because he was so concentrated on the oil.

The wise man tells the boy to explore the palace once again and to this time, observe the marvels of the palace. The boy picks up the spoon and leaves to explore the palace once again. This time when he returned to the wise man, he proceeded to share every detail of all the marvels that he had seen.

The wise man says, “But where are the drops of oil I entrusted to you?” The boy looked down and saw that the spoon was now empty.

The wise man then says, “The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon.”

Interpret the lesson in this story as you will, but here is how I understood it… The story taught me to enjoy life and experience all the wonders that this world has to offer, without forgetting the responsibility I have to fulfill my life mission, be productive and make a positive contribution to the world.

I love business. I want to be productive and make a positive difference in the world, but I don’t want to be so completely consumed by this that I miss out on experiencing the marvels of the world.

I also love to travel, but I don’t want to be someone that gets lost in the free and easy lifestyle, enjoying every day to the fullest, but has no idea where they’re going in life and is making no contribution to the world.

I was reminded of this story because during the bike ride, I found myself in a situation where I was able to practice this principle. To make the most of the day I had to stay focused on the road, while enjoying the beautiful scenery around me at the same time. And the scenery was beautiful!

RIMG2069When we made it to the end, we were greeted with a cold beer and we celebrated that we survived Death Road! In my opinion, as long as you are paying attention and not being reckless, the ride is not actually dangerous. There were people on my tour that didn’t have much experience on a bike and they were fine.

That being said, one side of death road is a cliff face, so if someone is careless, it can be fatal. 1000’s of people do this ride every month and our guide said that over the past 20 years, there has been an average of 3 deaths a year. The last fatality on Death Road happened 3 years ago, when a tourist was taking selfies of himself, with his Iphone, while riding at full speed.

Survivors of Death Road!

One principle that I’ve learned to be true is that how we do anything is how we do everything. If you don’t believe this, then take a course with PSI Seminars or Peak Potentials and you will learn through first hand experience, that this is very much true. We can use an experience as simple as a bike ride to learn a lot about ourselves and how we show up in the world.

People who are recklessly taking tight corners, at high speeds or passing other bikers when it is unsafe to do so, are probably making reckless decisions in their life and are causing suffering to themselves and/or others because of this.

On the other hand, those who are constantly slowing down, never willing to approach the limits of their comfort zone, are probably doing the same thing in life and therefore not taking the necessary risks needed to achieve the things they really want. Jim Rohn said, “Be cautious, but not too cautious.”

People who spend the entire ride nervous and worried about falling, instead of enjoying the experience, are probably also living their lives in fear and missing out on fully enjoying a lot of the great experiences that are right in front of them every day.

I could go on and on…

As I rode down Death Road, I kept this idea in the front of my mind. I understood that how I was riding my bike was a reflection of how I live my life. I was very aware of how I was showing up. I am not going to share my entire reflection on this experience, but I will share a couple observations I made.

First, I noticed that I consistently found myself in the lead group, but rarely in the lead position. I would usually be the 2nd or 3rd biker, but I tended to hold back for someone to go first. I noticed that the couple times I went first, it was only because the person who was normally in the lead, was not ready to go and no one else was moving to take the front position. That is until I noticed I was doing this. After that I made a point of interrupting my habit pattern and going first more often after that.

I do the same thing in my life. I know that I am capable of leading and when I do I usually achieve great results. However, when there are other people ready to step up to lead, I usually stand back and let them, even if I feel like I am the most capable person in that specific situation.

In my business I have no problem leading. When I am around people who know me and look to me to take a leadership role, I have no problem leading. But when I am with a group of people that don’t know me, I tend to stand back and play small, unless there is no one else that steps up.

The second observation I made is that when the road was solid I felt totally comfortable and relaxed going very fast on the downhill slopes. However, whenever I felt myself losing traction, while riding on loose gravel, I would tighten up my grip on the handlebars and my entire body would tense up. This seemed to put me even further out of control.

Stuart was the fastest rider in the group and seemed to have no problem riding at high speeds, on loose gravel. After the ride, he told me that the trick is to stay relaxed. When you are completely relaxed, you can easily make little adjustments as your bike gets put slightly off course by the gravel. This is much harder if you are stiff.

It’s hard though, because my natural reaction was to tighten up and try to take back control of the situation by force. It takes a lot of courage and trust for me to stay relaxed when things seem out of my control.

Again, I can relate this to my life. I trust myself and will push my limits when results are within my control. I also trust other people when I know that results are within their control. In my business one of my strengths was delegation.

Where I struggle is when the outcome is not within my control. This is why it was always so hard for me to be vulnerable and risk looking bad. Telling someone whom I care about how much they mean to me, having deep conversations, opening up emotionally, approaching girls that I am attracted to, and speaking in public…

These are the kind of situations that always made me tense up though out my life, like I did on the gravel on Death Road. The kind of situations where I have no control over how other people will react. Where all I can do is speak from my heart and trust that everything will work out. And to trust that even if it doesn’t, that’s OK as well, because although I can’t control how others react, I can always control my own reaction to every situation.

We can take any experience and use it as a reflection of our life, to learn a lot about how we are showing up in reality. Making observations like these are not going to immediately change our lives, but the first step to change is awareness. People will never change, until they see the need to.

With awareness, we then have a choice. We can take the necessary, usually uncomfortable actions to change or we can choose not to. For me, sharing personal weaknesses in my blog, like I have above, is not naturally comfortable for me, but its one way I am able to interrupt a habit pattern that is not serving me.

A Day On The Salt Flats: Salar De Uyuni
Out On The Highest Lake In The World: Lake Titicaca

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


Content-Type: application/http; msgtype=response

WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: application/xhtml+xml

WARC-Type: response

text:
UFC 181 Breakdown

This weekend is arguably the biggest fight card of the year in combat sports.

UFC 181 will feature two title matches including the Welterweight and Lightweight Titles.

The majority of the online betting sites have Johnny Hendricks winning the fight between -201 to -250 with an average of -219. Which means you would need to put $219 down to win $100.

While number one contender Robbie Lawler is the underdog going from +160 to +200, with an average of +178. Which means if you put down $100 and Lawler wins, you could earn nearly $200.

Take a peak at the full in-depth look of betting odds for the whole PPV here.

But if you're not into the whole betting thing, check out the EA Sports simulation.

Take it with a grain of salt because the simulation is correct part of the time but also inaccurate.

Article Added: 2014-12-03

Rate this topic:
<-- Previous Article: One Year Deal! | Next Article: White says Rumble is Crazy -->

warcinfo:
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-166-65-126.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2017-26
operator: Common Crawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web for June 2017
publisher: Common Crawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf


WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: text/html

text:
ShareThis Page

Brother: Butler teen gets liver after family makes public appeal

| Saturday, Nov. 10, 2012, 1:14 p.m.
The parents of Adam Snow, Linda and Mel, along with family members (standing from left,) Melissa Westfall, Jamie Snow, Amy Snow, Michelle Kujbus, Nick Kujbus, and (kneeling from left,) Christopher Snow, Kelly Edwards, and Mike Snow were all at Children's Hospital to support the 14-year-old, Saturday, November 10th, 2012. Adam Snow, of Butler, received a liver transplant Saturday morning. Keith Hodan | Tribune-Review
The family of Butler County teenager Adam Snow has issued a desperate appeal for a new liver. On Saturday, he underwent a liver transplant at Children's Hospital. Submitted

A Butler County high school freshman underwent a life-saving transplant at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh on Saturday, just hours after his family made a desperate public plea for a healthy liver.

“All I know is we got a liver, and it'll work,” Linda Snow said of her son, Adam, 14. “In my heart, the word got out to the right people, and our prayers were answered. Whatever it is, it's a miracle.”

Snow said officials did not tell her family who the donor was, how the donor died or whether the family of the deceased directed that the liver go to Adam, whose story first appeared in local media on Friday night.

Hours after that, Linda Snow said, Adam's story had gotten out across the country through Facebook and Twitter. By early Saturday morning, the family had the stunning news: A perfectly matching liver was available. Adam began surgery around 3 a.m. Saturday and ended around noon.

“I've personally never seen a family reach out to the public like this,” said Misty Enos, associate director of community outreach for the Center for Organ Recovery & Education, which coordinates organ donations in Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and a portion of New York. “They're obviously very passionate about their son's life, like anyone else would be.”

Adam Snow, a ninth-grader at Butler Area Intermediate High School, fell ill within the past three weeks, and his health quickly deteriorated. Doctors told the family his liver was damaged by an unknown virus, Snow said, and that her son was at the top of transplant waiting list.

Within the past couple of days, Snow said, doctors told the family that Adam was too ill for a partial liver donated by a living family member. Adam likely had days to live unless a matching complete liver could be recovered from a deceased donor.

One doctor, she said, urged the family to reach out to the community.

“I couldn't just sit there and watch my son die,” Snow said, adding that family members started posting messages on Facebook and other social media sites and making phone calls to local media.

An hour after his surgery ended, Adam Snow's color had improved, his mother said. While doctors are optimistic, she said, they cautioned that it'll be a few days before they can call the transplant a success. Enos said the Snows' public plea “creates awareness for donation and lets the public know how important it is to register to be a donor and be aware of this.”

But the plea also created some confusion, she said, as members of the public called CORE asking why the agency could not give Adam a liver.

“It doesn't work that way,” Enos said, adding that CORE must follow federal guidelines set by the United Network for Organ Sharing, a nonprofit agency that manages the country's organ transplant system under contract with the federal government.

CORE collects information, including age, height, weight and blood type, about donors. Transplant centers provide similar information about patients, along with how sick the patient is. The United Network for Organ Sharing uses the data to determine who is eligible for a transplant and ranks them by urgency.

Enos said a family of a donor can direct an organ donation to a certain recipient, but CORE “can never influence a donor family to do that. We can't have anything to do with that.”

Linda Snow said that her family would like to find the family that donated the liver to her son.

“There just no words or anything you can tell a person,” Linda Snow said, “You're sorry they lost someone, but if it helps any, it's important to us to make sure they know what they've done for us.”

Bill Vidonic is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-380-5621 or bvidonic@tribweb.com.

TribLIVE commenting policy

You are solely responsible for your comments and by using TribLive.com you agree to our Terms of Service.

We moderate comments. Our goal is to provide substantive commentary for a general readership. By screening submissions, we provide a space where readers can share intelligent and informed commentary that enhances the quality of our news and information.

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderating decisions are subjective. We will make them as carefully and consistently as we can. Because of the volume of reader comments, we cannot review individual moderation decisions with readers.

We value thoughtful comments representing a range of views that make their point quickly and politely. We make an effort to protect discussions from repeated comments either by the same reader or different readers

We follow the same standards for taste as the daily newspaper. A few things we won't tolerate: personal attacks, obscenity, vulgarity, profanity (including expletives and letters followed by dashes), commercial promotion, impersonations, incoherence, proselytizing and SHOUTING. Don't include URLs to Web sites.

We do not edit comments. They are either approved or deleted. We reserve the right to edit a comment that is quoted or excerpted in an article. In this case, we may fix spelling and punctuation.

We welcome strong opinions and criticism of our work, but we don't want comments to become bogged down with discussions of our policies and we will moderate accordingly.

We appreciate it when readers and people quoted in articles or blog posts point out errors of fact or emphasis and will investigate all assertions. But these suggestions should be sent via e-mail. To avoid distracting other readers, we won't publish comments that suggest a correction. Instead, corrections will be made in a blog post or in an article.


text:
ShareThis Page

Opponents line up to speak against fracking on Allegheny County park land

| Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2013, 11:30 p.m.

Opponents of extracting natural gas beneath Deer Lakes and other Allegheny County parks urged County Council members Tuesday to ban drilling on county park land before a proposal reaches their desks.

“Fracking on any level is a dangerous practice. Fracking waste, the noise, the water that is taken from our drinkable water supply, the compressor stations and the exposure of our wildlife to these open pits of toxins, these do not belong anywhere, let alone near our parks,” Carrie White of Fawn, a member of Fawn Against Marcellus, told council. More than 50 signed up to speak at the meeting.

County officials are weighing an offer from Huntley & Huntley Inc. to extract natural gas under Deer Lakes Park from wellheads outside the park's borders. It could be months before council considers a proposal to permit drilling. The park spans West Deer and Frazer.

“We need to have our voice heard now,” said Jennifer Myers of Lawrenceville, a member of the Protect Our Parks coalition. “We need to interrupt them even getting it on the agenda.”

The county could receive $40 million to $96 million if Monroeville-based Huntley & Huntley teams with Range Resources to drill for natural gas under Deer Lakes, a Tribune-Review analysis found. Initial offers involving three wells could generate between $5 million and $8 million for the county, money that could go toward maintaining county parks, County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said.

“We're going to take a look at it and see if it makes sense for the taxpayers,” Fitzgerald said. “All of our parks are in dire need of improvements.”

Huntley & Huntley wants an answer from Allegheny County by year's end, said Michael Hillebrand, executive vice president. Fitzgerald did not anticipate a problem with meeting the year-end deadline.

“This is one of those kinds of issues that people get excited about,” Council President Charles Martoni, D-Swissvale, said before the meeting. “It's something that could maybe create a lot of wealth in the region and it could potentially devastate the region.”

Protect Our Parks contends the Wagman Observatory at Deer Lakes would be “crippled” by light pollution. It asked for public hearings on the matter.

Last week, members of council and Fitzgerald toured Cross Creek County Park in Washington County, where Range Resources drills. Council Vice President Nicholas Futules, D-Oakmont, was impressed by the drilling operation and what Washington County was able to fund with money from drilling.

“We'll be able to pave roads. We'll be able to put up pavilions and grandstands,” he said.

Staff Writer Tim Puko contributed to this story.

TribLIVE commenting policy

You are solely responsible for your comments and by using TribLive.com you agree to our Terms of Service.

We moderate comments. Our goal is to provide substantive commentary for a general readership. By screening submissions, we provide a space where readers can share intelligent and informed commentary that enhances the quality of our news and information.

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderating decisions are subjective. We will make them as carefully and consistently as we can. Because of the volume of reader comments, we cannot review individual moderation decisions with readers.

We value thoughtful comments representing a range of views that make their point quickly and politely. We make an effort to protect discussions from repeated comments either by the same reader or different readers

We follow the same standards for taste as the daily newspaper. A few things we won't tolerate: personal attacks, obscenity, vulgarity, profanity (including expletives and letters followed by dashes), commercial promotion, impersonations, incoherence, proselytizing and SHOUTING. Don't include URLs to Web sites.

We do not edit comments. They are either approved or deleted. We reserve the right to edit a comment that is quoted or excerpted in an article. In this case, we may fix spelling and punctuation.

We welcome strong opinions and criticism of our work, but we don't want comments to become bogged down with discussions of our policies and we will moderate accordingly.

We appreciate it when readers and people quoted in articles or blog posts point out errors of fact or emphasis and will investigate all assertions. But these suggestions should be sent via e-mail. To avoid distracting other readers, we won't publish comments that suggest a correction. Instead, corrections will be made in a blog post or in an article.


text:
ShareThis Page

Penn State offensive line steps up game at pivotal time

| Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013, 7:39 p.m.
Barry Reeger | Tribune-Review
Penn State guard John Urschel looks for a Purdue defender to block while leading running back Bill Belton (left) during their game Saturday, Nov. 16, 2013, at Beaver Stadium in University Park.

It took 10 games into the season — and an overmatched opponent. But the Penn State offensive line is finally living the dream of fully realized potential.

“We were having a blast,” guard John Urschel said of the line against Purdue this past Saturday. “That was an offensive lineman's dream.”

While the Boilermakers (1-9) hardly are a fair measure, the Nittany Lions' offensive line has put together its best three-game stretch of the season heading into a game against Nebraska on Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

“It seems like all of the sudden they're clicking on all cylinders,” fullback Pat Zerbe said.

Since a 63-14 loss at Ohio State that was easily its worst performance of the season (not unlike just about every other unit on the team), Penn State's offensive line has paved the way for some numbers.

Over the course of beating Illinois Nov. 2, losing at Minnesota the following week and the Purdue game, the Lions have averaged 243 rushing yards per game and allowed just two sacks.

In the three conference games before that, Penn State's offense produced an average of 91.7 rushing yards and its quarterback was sacked nine times. Even when factoring in nonconference opponents (two of which were very weak), the statistics most affected by the offensive line have vastly improved. Until this recent three-game stretch, the Lions were averaging 151.9 rushing yards and 2.7 sacks against (19 total) per game.

Other statistics that could, indirectly at least, show the line's improvement over the past three games:

• Penn State had just two rushing touchdowns its first three conference games and eight in the three since.

• The Lions netted minus-116 yards (38.7 per game) on the carries in which they lost yardage in setbacks to Indiana and Ohio State and a win against Michigan in October; they've lost just 17 (5.6 per game) in the three weeks since.

• Along those lines — and arguably most telling in conveying the push the line has been getting in the run game — Penn State's running backs have had just four carries that netted negative yards over the past three games.

“Since the beginning of the year we've been trying to keep growing and getting better as an offensive line and as a unit,” center Ty Howle said. “I feel like our offensive line is playing better, and we're trying to keep improving.”

With 47 starts between its members prior to this season (albeit 11 of which by Garry Gilliam had come at tight end), the offensive line entered 2013 as the most experienced unit on the team. Three full-time starters returned, and the top eight on the depth chart are all at least in their third season.

Chris Adamski is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at cadamski@tribweb.com or via Twitter @C_AdamskiTrib.

TribLIVE commenting policy

You are solely responsible for your comments and by using TribLive.com you agree to our Terms of Service.

We moderate comments. Our goal is to provide substantive commentary for a general readership. By screening submissions, we provide a space where readers can share intelligent and informed commentary that enhances the quality of our news and information.

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderating decisions are subjective. We will make them as carefully and consistently as we can. Because of the volume of reader comments, we cannot review individual moderation decisions with readers.

We value thoughtful comments representing a range of views that make their point quickly and politely. We make an effort to protect discussions from repeated comments either by the same reader or different readers

We follow the same standards for taste as the daily newspaper. A few things we won't tolerate: personal attacks, obscenity, vulgarity, profanity (including expletives and letters followed by dashes), commercial promotion, impersonations, incoherence, proselytizing and SHOUTING. Don't include URLs to Web sites.

We do not edit comments. They are either approved or deleted. We reserve the right to edit a comment that is quoted or excerpted in an article. In this case, we may fix spelling and punctuation.

We welcome strong opinions and criticism of our work, but we don't want comments to become bogged down with discussions of our policies and we will moderate accordingly.

We appreciate it when readers and people quoted in articles or blog posts point out errors of fact or emphasis and will investigate all assertions. But these suggestions should be sent via e-mail. To avoid distracting other readers, we won't publish comments that suggest a correction. Instead, corrections will be made in a blog post or in an article.


text:
ShareThis Page

Staal rejects Penguins' 10-year offer

| Thursday, June 21, 2012, 6:06 p.m.
The Penguins' Jordan Staal carries the puck against the Blue Jackets at Consol Energy Center Feb 26, 2012. (Chaz Palla | Tribune-Review)
Penguins center Jordan Staal plays against the Avalanche at Consol Energy Center Nov. 15, 2011. (Chaz Palla | Tribune-Review)
The Penguins' Jordan Staal celebrates his first period goal in front of Devils defenseman Matt Taormina at Consol Energy Center March 25, 2012. Chaz Palla | Tribune Review
The Penguins' Jordan Staal attacks Lightning goaltender Dwayne Roloson at Consol Energy Center Feb 25, 2012. (Chaz Palla | Tribune-Review)

Penguins center Jordan Staal has rejected a long-term offer to remain with the team and is leaning toward becoming an unrestricted free agent next summer, sources close to the negotiations told the Tribune-Review.

The Penguins' offer was for 10 years. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Staal, who is entering the final year a four-year contract worth $16 million, has not ruled out remaining with the Penguins but has told team officials he is open to signing with Carolina if a trade can be made.

“My only comments will be that Jordan is not prepared to enter into a contract extension at this time,” said his agent, Paul Krepelka.

Penguins general manager Ray Shero did not return messages seeking comment.

Staal, 23, is set to be married this weekend.

Many of his Penguins teammates are attending the wedding, and Staal is keeping them up to date regarding his situation with the team.

Staal's older brother, Eric, is the Hurricanes' top center and captain, and Jordan Staal is intrigued by the idea of playing with his brother in Carolina, where their parents now spend the majority of their time.

Younger brother Jared Staal is a prospect in the Hurricanes' system.

Staal was the first draft pick by Shero, who selected him second overall in 2006. Shero said earlier this week that he was not fielding offers for Staal and that re-signing him was a priority along with working out a long-term contract with center Sidney Crosby, whose deal is also set to expire after this season.

Staal scored 25 goals and tallied 25 assists in 62 games last season and finished with a plus-11 rating. He has 120 goals and 128 assists in 431 career games over six seasons.

Rob Rossi and Josh Yohe are staff writers for Trib Total Media. Rossi can be reached at rrossi@tribweb.com or 412-380-5635. Yohe can be reached at jyohe@tribweb.com or 412-664-9161 Ext. 1975.

TribLIVE commenting policy

You are solely responsible for your comments and by using TribLive.com you agree to our Terms of Service.

We moderate comments. Our goal is to provide substantive commentary for a general readership. By screening submissions, we provide a space where readers can share intelligent and informed commentary that enhances the quality of our news and information.

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderating decisions are subjective. We will make them as carefully and consistently as we can. Because of the volume of reader comments, we cannot review individual moderation decisions with readers.

We value thoughtful comments representing a range of views that make their point quickly and politely. We make an effort to protect discussions from repeated comments either by the same reader or different readers

We follow the same standards for taste as the daily newspaper. A few things we won't tolerate: personal attacks, obscenity, vulgarity, profanity (including expletives and letters followed by dashes), commercial promotion, impersonations, incoherence, proselytizing and SHOUTING. Don't include URLs to Web sites.

We do not edit comments. They are either approved or deleted. We reserve the right to edit a comment that is quoted or excerpted in an article. In this case, we may fix spelling and punctuation.

We welcome strong opinions and criticism of our work, but we don't want comments to become bogged down with discussions of our policies and we will moderate accordingly.

We appreciate it when readers and people quoted in articles or blog posts point out errors of fact or emphasis and will investigate all assertions. But these suggestions should be sent via e-mail. To avoid distracting other readers, we won't publish comments that suggest a correction. Instead, corrections will be made in a blog post or in an article.


WARC-Truncated: length

text:
Things to do - general

Bucharest General Information

Known for its wide, tree-lined boulevards, glorious Belle Époque buildings and a reputation for the high life (which in the 1900s earned its nickname of “Little Paris”), Bucharest, Romania’s largest city and capital, is today a bustling metropolis.

Romanian legend has it that the city of Bucharest was founded on the banks of the Dambovita River by a shepherd named Bucur, whose name literarily means “joy.”
His flute playing reportedly dazzled the people and his hearty wine from nearby vineyards endeared him to the local traders, who gave his name to the place.

House of the Free Press

(Casa Presei Libere) Address: Piata Presei Libere 1

An impressive edifice standing in the northern part of the city, since 1956, Casa Scanteii (as it is still universally known) was designed by architect Horia Maicu. There is no doubt that the building is a smaller replica of the Lomonosov University in Moskow – Russia (inaugurated in 1953).
Between 1956 and 1989, the House of the Free Press housed almost all of Romania’s capital printing presses and headquarters of print media companies.
Today, it carries out much the same function but the southern wing is now the home of the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

The Arch of Triumph

(Arcul de Triumf) Address: Piata Arcul de Triumf

Initially built of wood in 1922 to honor the bravery of Romanian soldiers who fought in World War I, Bucharest’s very own Arc de Triomphe was finished in Deva granite in 1936. Designed by the architect, Petre Antonescu, the Arc stands 85 feet high. An interior staircase allows visitors to climb to the top for a panoramic view of the city. The sculptures decorating the structure were created by leading Romanian artists, including Ion Jalea, Constantin Medrea and Constantin Baraschi.

Calea Victoriei (Victory Avenue)

Calea Victoriei is Bucharest’s oldest and arguably, most charming street. Built in 1692 to link the Old Princely Court to Mogosoaia Palace, it was initially paved with oak beams. The street became Calea Victoriei in 1878, after the Romanian War of Independence victory. Between the two world wars, Calea Victoriei developed into one of the most fashionable streets in the city.

Stroll along this street from Piata Victoriei to Piata Natiunilor Unite to discover some of the most stunning buildings in the city, including the Cantacuzino Palace, the historical Revolution Square, the Military Club, the CEC Headquarters and the National History Museum.

Cantacuzino Palace (Palatul Cantacuzino) Address: Calea Victoriei 141
Admission charge

Grigore Cantacuzino was thought to be one of Romania’s wealthiest citizens in 1899. As Prime Minister, it was his wish to have the most elegant residence in Bucharest. Using the designs of architect Ion Berindei, the Cantacuzino Palace was built between 1898 and 1900 in eclectic French style. Combining a neoclassical architectural style with art nouveau elements, it features wrought iron balconies, tall arched windows and a porte-cochere (an elegant wrought-iron doorway) flanked by two lions. Today, the palace houses the George Enescu Museum  .

Revolution Square (Piata Revolutiei)

The square gained worldwide notoriety when TV stations around the globe broadcasted Nicolae Ceausescu’s final moments in power on December 21, 1989. It was here, at the balcony of the former Communist Party Headquarters, that Ceausescu stared in disbelief as the people gathered in the square below turned on him. He fled the angry crowd in his white helicopter, only to be captured outside of the city a few hours later.

The square’s importance stretches back long before the dramatic events of the 1989 Revolution. On the far side of the square stands the former Royal Palace, now home to the National Art Museum, the stunning Romanian Athenaeum and the historic Athenee Palace Hotel. At the south end of the square, you can visit the small, but beautiful, Kretzulescu Church.

The Royal Palace (Palatul Regal)  Address: Calea Victoriei 49-53

Erected between 1927 and 1937 in neoclassical style, the palace was home to King Carol II and to his son, King Mihai I, until 1947, when the monarchy was abolished in Romania. It was inside the halls of this palace that King Mihai, aged 18, led a coup that displaced the pro-Nazi government during the World War II and put Romania on the Allies’ side. Today, the former Royal palace houses theRomanian National Art Museum .

The Romanian Athenaeum

(Ateneul Roman) Address: Str. Benjamin Franklin 1

The work of French architect Albert Galleron, who also designed the National Bank of Romania, the Athenaeum was completed in 1888, financed almost entirely with money donated by the general public. One of the preeminent public fundraising campaigns ever in Romania, the “Give a penny for the Athenaeum” campaign saved the project after the original patrons ran out of funds. With its high dome and Doric columns, the Athenaeum resembles an ancient temple.

The lobby has a beautifully painted ceiling decorated in gold leaf, while curved balconies cascade in ringlets off a spiral staircase. A ring of pink marble columns
is linked by flowing arches where elaborate brass lanterns hang like gems from a necklace. Inside the concert hall, voluptuous frescoes cover the ceiling and walls. Renowned worldwide for its outstanding acoustics, it is Bucharest’s most prestigious concert hall and home of the Romanian George Enescu Philharmonic.

Athenee Palace Hotel Address: Str. Episcopiei 1-3

Built in 1914 by French architect Teophile Bradeau, the Athenee Palace (currently a posh Hilton hotel) was made famous in Olivia Manning’s novel, Balkan Trilogy, as a centre of intrigue and espionage during World War II. British and German diplomats plotted, schemed and spied on each other in the epoch atmosphere of the hotel’s English Bar, while a host of rich and famous gathered and intrigued as their society collapsed around them. The hotel suffered heavy bombing during the war and consequently, was rebuilt in 1945.

Kretzulescu Church Address: Calea Victoriei 47

Nestled amid the other historical buildings in Piata Revolutiei, this small red-brick Orthodox church was built in 1722 by the great chancellor Iordache Kretzulescu and his wife, Safta (a daughter of Constantin Brancoveanu) in the Brancovenesti architectural style. The interior frescoes were executed around 1860 by the famous Romanian painter Gheorghe Tattarescu.

Royal Palace Great Concert Hall  (Sala Palatului)

Located next to the Royal Palace, the concave-roof structure was built in 1960 to accommodate the 3,000 Communist party members who every five years attended the communist party congress. It was on this stage that Nicolae Ceausescu would deliver his vision of a multilaterally developed socialist society. Today, the massive auditorium plays host to various conferences and events, including some of the George Enescu International Festival concerts.

The Military Club

(Cercul Militar National)
Address: Blvd. Regina Elisabeta 21
Standing guard imposingly, this neoclassical masterpiece, designed by Romanian architect Dimitrie Maimaroiu, was built in 1912 to serve the social, cultural and educational needs of the Romanian army. Banquets and official events are still hosted in the ballrooms, while the upstairs area is reserved for the army’s library, as well as offices and classrooms for officer instruction. The main part of the building is off-limits to civilians, but the sumptuous restaurant and summer terrace is open to the public.

The Palace of the Savings Bank

(Casa de Economii si Consemnatiuni / CEC)
Address: Calea Victoriei 11-13

Boasting one of the most impressive neoclassical facades in the city, this structure was built in the 19th century to the design of French architect Paul Gottereanu (who between 1875 and 1900 designed more than 50 buildings in the city, to house the first Romanian Savings Bank. The square-shaped palace has a large central dome with metallic ribs separated by glass, which allows natural light to come in; there are also four smaller domes. The arch at the entrance, with its Corinthian columns, is a highlight of any architectural tour of the city.

Old Historical Center of Bucharest (Centrul Vechi al Orasului)

Lipscani District

Perhaps the city’s unique charm can be best observed in the area known as Lipscani, which consists of a jumble of streets between Calea Victoriei, Blvd. Bratianu, Blvd. Regina Elisabeta and the Dambovita River. A once-glamorous residential area, the old city centre is now slowly being refashioned into an upscale neighborhood.

At the beginning of 1400s, most merchants and craftsmen – Romanian, Austrian, Greek, Bulgarian, Serbian, Armenian and Jewish – established their stores and shops in this section of the city. Soon, the area became known as Lipscani, named for the many German traders from Lipsca or Leiptzig. Other streets took on the names of various old craft communities and guilds, such as Blanari (furriers), Covaci (blacksmiths), Gabroveni (knife makers) and Cavafii Vechii (shoe-makers). The mix of nationalities and cultures is reflected in the mishmash of architectural styles, from baroque to neoclassical to art nouveau.

Today, the area is home to many art galleries, antique shops and coffeehouses. On a beautiful day, you can stroll down the narrow cobblestone streets and imagine the shopkeepers outside near their stores, encouraging people to buy their merchandise and negotiating prices with them. Don’t forget to stop by Hanul cu Tei, which is a rectangular courtyard between Strada Lipscani and Strada Blanari, home to an array of art and antiques shops.

Old Princely Court & Church

(Palatul si Biserica Curtea Veche)
Address: Strada Franceza 25-31
Museum open: Mon. – Sun 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.;
Admission charge

At the centre of the historic area are the remains of the Old Princely Court (Curtea Veche), built in the 15th century by Vlad Tepes, also known as Vlad Dracula. According to local lore, Vlad kept his prisoners in dungeons which commenced beneath the Princely Court and extended under the city. All that remains today are a few walls, arches, tombstones and a Corinthian column.

The Old Court Museum was established in 1972 when an archaeological dig revealed the remains of the fortress, along with Dacian pottery and Roman coins, evidence of Bucharest’s earliest inhabitants. The oldest document attesting to the city’s origin under the name of Bucuresti (Bucharest) was discovered here. It was issued on September 20, 1459 and signed by Prince Vlad Tepes.

Next to the palace stands the Old Court Church (Biserica Curtea Veche), dating from 1559 and considered the oldest in Bucharest. For two centuries, the church served as coronation ground for Romanian princes. Some of the original 16th century frescoes have been preserved.

Manuc’s Inn

(Hanul lui Manuc)
Address: Str. Franceza 62-64
Tel: (21) 313.14.11

Built between 1804 and 1808 by the wealthy Armenian trader Emanuel Marzaian (called by the Turks, Manuc Bey), the inn was witness in 1812 to the preliminary talks of the Peace Treaty that put an end to the Russian -Turkish War (1806-1812). A favorite meeting and resting place for tradesmen in those times, Manuc’s Inn has preserved to this day its old style and flavor. It now serves as a hotel with a restaurant, a wine cellar and a pastry shop.

The Beer Cart Restaurant

(Carul cu Bere)
Address: Strada Stavropoleos 3-5
Tel: (21) 313.75.60

Opened in 1879, this famous restaurant and beer house soon became one of the most popular meeting places for Bucharest’s literati who would gather to discuss matters of their time. Its neo-gothic architectural style is reflected both in the façades and the interior decorations: columns, arches, chandeliers, a wooden staircase, furniture and murals on the walls and ceiling.

National Bank of Romania

(Banca Nationala a Romaniei)
Address: Str. Lipscani 25

The National Bank of Romania (BNR) stands on the site of one of the most famous buildings in Romania: the Hanul Serban Voda, which from 1678 until 1883 was the home of various institutions ranging from a pub to an inn to a girl’s dormitory! After two fires gutted the building, however, the land was leveled and in 1883, work began on the BNR, completed to the designs of French architects Cassien Bernard and Albert Galleron in 1885. Built in neoclassical French style, the building boasts a facade with Corinthian columns and an enormous central banking hall. The passing of time has left its marks on the building, but it remains a classic worthy of admiration.

University Square (Piata Universitatii)

Buzzing with crowds and traffic from early morning until late at night, this area is one of the most popular meeting places in Bucharest. The square brings together some remarkable architectural masterpieces on each of its four corners, starting with theUniversity of Bucharest’s School of Architecture, the Bucharest National Theatre, the neoclassical Coltea Hospitaland its lovely church (1702-1794) and the Sutu Palace, now home to the Bucharest History Museum.

In the middle of the square, on a little island, 10 stone crosses pay respect to those killed during the 1989 revolution. Below the square is an underground passage with shops and eateries, allowing pedestrians to cross from one side of the square to another and to access the subway station.

University of Bucharest

(Universitatea Bucuresti)
Address: Blvd. Regina Elizabeta (near University Square)

Bucharest remains first and foremost a hub of higher education. The University of Bucharest was founded in 1864 by Alexandru Ioan Cuza, ruler of the newly united principalities of Walachia and Moldova. Work on the neoclassical building began in 1857 and finished in 1859.

Between the two World Wars, the libraries and corridors of the University hosted an impressive number of Romanian personalities, including Mircea Eliade, Emil Cioran, Eugène Ionesco, Sergiu Celibidache.

Year-round, you can find book merchants near the University building selling anything from antique books, records, discontinued newspapers and illustrated broadsheets from another age to secondhand books.

Sutu Palace

(Palatul Sutu)
Address: Blvd I.C. Bratianu 2 (near University Square)

Famous for the grandiose balls held here in the 1900s, Sutu Palace was built in neogothic style between 1832 and 1834 by foreign minister Costache Sutu, to designs of architects Johann Veit and Konrad Schwinck. In 1862, the palace was redecorated by sculptor Karl Storck, who created three arcades and a monumental stairway; a huge Murano mirror was added in the hallway.
Only the painted ceilings, the stucco, the parquet flooring and the tile stoves have been preserved.

Since 1959, the building has housed the Bucharest History & Art Museum

Communist legacy

Parliament Palace

(Palatul Parlamentului)
Address: Calea 13 Septembrie 1,
Intrarea A3
Hours: Mon. – Sun.
10:00am – 4:00pm
Admission charge

Built by Communist Party leader, Nicolae Ceausescu, the colossal Parliament Palace (formerly known as the People’s Palace) is the second largest administrative building in the world after the Pentagon. It took 20,000 workers and 700 architects to build. The palace boasts 12 stories, 1,100 rooms, a 328-ft-long lobby and four underground levels, including an enormous nuclear bunker.

The Palace of Parliament it is the world’s second-largest office building in surface
(after the Pentagon) and the third largest in volume (after Cape Canaveral in the U.S. and the Great Pyramid in Egypt)

The crystal chandelier in the Human Rights Hall (Sala Drepturilor Omului) weighs 2.5 tons

Some of the chandeliers have as many as
7,000 light bulbs

When construction started in 1984, the dictator intended it to be the headquarters of his government. Today, it houses Romania’s Parliament and serves as an international conference centre. Built and furnished exclusively with Romanian materials, the building reflects the work of the country’s best artisans.
A guided tour takes visitors through a small section of dazzling rooms, huge halls and quarters used by the Senate (when not in session). The interior is a luxurious display of crystal chandeliers, mosaics, oak paneling, marble, gold leaf, stained-glass windows and floors covered in rich carpets.

Civic Centre (Centrul Civic)

Ceausescu’s building megalomania climaxed with the construction of the Civic Centre, an area located at the south end of the Palace of Parliament along Bulevardul Unirii. Bucharest had taken significant damage from the Allied bombing during World War II and the earthquake of March 4, 1977. However, neither of these events changed the face of the city as much as the redevelopment schemes of the 1980s, when eight square kilometres in the Old Historical Centre of Bucharest were leveled, including monasteries, churches, synagogues, a hospital and a noted Art Deco sports stadium. Some 40,000 people were evicted with only a single day’s notice to make room for the construction of these Stalinist apartment buildings topped with neoclassical follies.

Historic Churches

Apostles’ Church

(Biserica Sfintii Apostoli)
Address: Str. Sfintii Apostoli 1
One of the oldest churches in Bucharest (with parts dating back to the 16th century and a steeple built in 1715), the Apostles’ Church is brimming with some rather strange portraits that are well worth seeing.

Metropolitan Church

(Biserica Patriarhiei) Address: Aleea Dealul Mitropoliei (

Set atop one of the city’s few hills, known as Mitropoliei, the Metropolitan Church has been the centerpiece of the Romanian Orthodox faith since the 17th century. The church was built by Constantin Serban Basarab, ruler of the province of Walachia between 1656 and 1658, to a design inspired by the Curtea de Arges monastery. It became the Metropolitan Church in 1668 and the seat of the Romanian Orthodox Church in 1925.

The Byzantine interior, containing the most dazzling of the city’s iconostasis, as well as a couple of exquisitely carved side altars, bestows great beauty on the services presided over by the Romanian Patriarch. A huge crowd gathers here for the Easter midnight service.

The outstanding bell-tower at the entrance was built in 1698 and restored in 1958. Next to the church, and closed to the public, is the Patriarchal Palace(1708), residence of the Teoctist, supreme leader of the Romanian Orthodox Church.

Stavropoleos Church

(Biserica Stavropoleos)
Address: Str. Stavropoleos 4
The Stavropoleos Church was built in 1724 by the Greek monk Ioanikie Stratonikeas. Featuring a combination of Romanian and Byzantine architecture, it has a beautiful façade and a delicately carved columned entrance. Surrounded by a peaceful garden, it is an architectural jewel, with beautiful frescoes and wood-painted icons. The mass (in Romanian) is worth viewing if you can find room in this small and cozy church.

St. Joseph’s Cathedral

(Catedrala Sfantul Iosif)
Address: Str. G-ral Berthelot 19

Constructed in red brick between 1873 and 1884, this Roman Catholic cathedral
is an architectural masterpiece combining both gothic and Roman elements.
Organ recitals are held every week.

St. Nicolas Church

(Biserica Sfantul Nicolae)
Address: Str. Ion Ghica 9
Built in 1909 by the Russian Tsar Nicholas II for 600,000 gold rubles, this Orthodox Church has a wooden, gold-gilded iconostasis allegedly modeled after the altar in the Archangelskiy Cathedral in Moscow.

Jewish Bucharest

Bucharest is home to one of the oldest and most important Jewish communities in Romania. Sephardic Jews arrived here in the 16th century. Around the beginning of the 17th century, during the Cossack uprising, the first Ashkenazi Jews came from Ukraine and Poland. A sacred brotherhood, a charity box and a prayer house were registered in 1715.

Some of the synagogues built during the 18th and 19th century also featured ritual baths (mikve). By 1832, 10 holy houses had been established. Their number would increase significantly before the end of the century, almost every one having its own Rabbi and cult performers.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Jewish population in Bucharest numbered 40,000 people with 70 temples and synagogues. From this great number, only a few survived the brutality of history – fascism and communism – and two still serve the city’s present Jewish community.

Dr. Moses Rosen Museum of the
History of the Jewish Community in Romania

(Muzeul de Istorie al Evreilor din Romania)
Address: Str. Mamulari 3
Open: Mon. – Wed. & Fri. – Sun. 9:00am – 1:00pm; Thu. 9:00am – 4:00pm
Free Admission

Housed in the magnificently preserved Great Synagogue (1850) in the city’s historically Jewish neighborhood, this museum traces the history of Romania’s Jewish population. The displays include a collection of books written, published, illustrated or translated by Romanian Jews; a small collection of paintings of and by Romanian Jews (many of the same artists’ works hang in the National Museum of Art) and memorabilia from Jewish theatres including the State Jewish Theatre.

The museum also contains a large collection of Jewish ritual objects from Romania, collected by Rabbi Moses Rosen (1912-1994), the late Chief Rabbi
of the Romanian Jewry.

Choral Temple

(Templul Coral)
Address: Str. Sfanta Vineri 9
Tel: (21) 312.21.96

Built in 1857, the red brick temple
(noted for its magnificent Moorish turrets, choir loft and organ) is the largest active synagogue in Bucharest.
Services are held every day at 8am and 7pm.
On Saturday, they are held at 8:30am and 7pm.

Yeshoah Tova Synagogue

Address: Str. Tache Ionescu 9

In a busy side street going towards Piata Amzei from Magheru Bulevard stands the only other functioning synagogue in the city apart from the Choral Temple. Services take place at Sabbath hour on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Bucharest Jewish Community

(Comunitatea Evreilor din Bucuresti)
Address: Str. Sf. Vineri 9 -11
Tel: (21) 313.17.82

Bucharest Museums

Art Collections Museum

(Muzeul Colectiilor de Arta)
Address: Calea Victoriei 111
Tel: (21) 212.96.41
Admission charge

Founded in 1978, the Art Collections Museum, a branch of the National Art Museum, houses private collections donated over the course of time. Collections include European as well as Oriental art works.

Bucharest History & Art Museum

(Muzeul Municipiului Bucuresti)
Address: Blvd. I.C.Bratianu 2
Tel: (21) 315.68.58
Open: Wed. – Sun. 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.; Closed Mon. & Tue.
Admission charge

Housed in the neoclassical Sutu Palace(1834), the museum features some 300,000 artifacts, from coins, books, maps, engravings, paintings, arms and furniture to old traditional costumes. Among the most valuable exhibits are the document attesting for the first time the name of the city of Bucharest, issued by Vlad Tepes in 1459, and a sword set in precious stones that belonged to Prince Constantin Brancoveanu (1688-1714).

Communist Iconography Museum

Address: Sos. Kiseleff 3 (inside the Romanian Peasant Museum)

A compact, but fascinating, cellar room inside the Peasant Museum is home to a collection of communist-era busts (including that of Lenin), paintings and memorabilia.

Cotroceni Palace & Museum

(Muzeul National Cotroceni)
Address: Str. Geniului 1
Tel: (21) 317.31.07 or 430.44.85
Open: Tue. – Sun. 9:00am – 5:00pm; Closed Mon.
Admission charge (Guided tours are available in English)
Guests are received by appointment only; please call for reservations.

A former royal residence built between 1679 and 1681 by Prince and ruler Serban Cantacuzino, the palace was home to King Carol I, who made important changes in its architecture. At the end of the 19th century, Heir-to-the-Crown Ferdinand ordered the partial demolition of the palace, which was later reconstructed by French architect Paul Gottereau in neoclassical style. In 1977, Nicolae Ceausescu transformed it into an official guesthouse with the addition of a new wing.

After 1990, the old wing of the palace became a museum. The Oriental Hall, the Norwegian Hall and the Queen’s Chamber are almost unchanged from the original design and are worth visiting. Very important collection of medieval art also can be seen here. The new wing serves as the seat of the Romanian Presidency.

George Enescu Museum

(Muzeul National George Enescu)
Address: Calea Victoriei 141
Tel: (21) 318.14.50
Open: Tue. – Sun. 10:00am – 5:00pm; Closed Mon.
Admission charge

The museum, housed in the Cantacuzino Palace, displays documents and various objects that belonged to the great Romanian composer and violinist George Enescu (1881-1955), including a Bach music collection he received as a gift from Queen Elisabeta of Romania. A world-class violinist, Enescu studied at the Vienna Conservatory, where he met German composer Johannes Brahms and where he also gave his first concerts. In Paris, Enescu graduated from the French Conservatory in 1899. His best-known works, the Romanian Rhapsodies, earned him national and international fame. In 1936, his Oedipe tragic opera premiered in Paris and Enescu was awarded the French Legion of Honor award for the composition. A member of the Romanian Academy and corresponding member of the Institute of France, George Enescu was the teacher of renowned violinist Yehudi Menuhin. Every two years, the Romanian Athenaeum celebrates the maestro by hosting the George Enescu International Festival.

Grigore Antipa Natural History Museum

(Muzeul National de Istorie Naturala)
Address: Sos. Kiseleff 1
Tel: (21) 312.88.63

Open: Tue – Sun 10:00 am – 8:00 pm (last admission 7:00pm). Closed on Mondays.
Admission charge

Recently renovated, this museum is the largest natural history museum in Romania, housing collections of reptiles, fish, birds and mammals. More than 300,000 artifacts and specimens are on display, including a dinosaur fossil. A whole floor is dedicated to sea life and features examples of whales, dolphins and seals. The museum also contains a beautiful butterfly collection.

Minovici Museum of Ancient Western Art

(Muzeul de Arta Veche Apuseana)
Address: Str. Dr. Minovici 3
Tel: (21) 665.73.34
Note: The museum is currently closed.
Admission charge

In addition to the small renaissance art collection of Dumitru Minovici, who made barrels of lei in the oil business in the 1930s, the museum features Belgian tapestries, Dutch furniture, Swiss stained glass, a complete library and Italian paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries.

Museum of the Romanian Peasant

(Muzeul Taranului Roman)
Address: Sos. Kiseleff 3
Tel: (21) 317.96.60
Open: Tue. – Sun. 10:00am – 6:00pm; Closed Mon.
Admission charge

Opened in 1906, the museum features the richest folk art collection in Romania, with over 90,000 artifacts that trace the colorful and diverse cultural life of the Romanian people. The Pottery Collection includes some 18,000 items, representative of the most important pottery centres in the country. The oldest ceramic item found in the museum bears the inscription 1746. Equally impressive, the Costume Collection comprises almost 20,000 traditional folk costumes, some dating from the beginning of the 19th century, giving visitors insight into the styles and traditions of the Romanian peasants.

The displays dip into all aspects of life in the Romanian countryside. Exhibits of agricultural tools, carpets, icons, furniture, photographs and films build up a complete picture of Romanian folk culture. In one of the galleries, you can see a wooden church and in another, a wooden peasant house. Four more wooden churches stand in the outdoor museum area. In 1996, the museum was namedEuropean Museum of the Year. Visitors can buy regional handcrafts and textiles in the museum’s extensive gift shop.

National Art Museum

(Muzeul National de Arta)
Address: Calea Victoriei 49-53
Tel: (21) 313.30.30
Open: Wed. – Sun.. 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. (May – September);
Wed. – Sun. 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. (October – April); Closed Mon. & Tue.
Admission charge (English guided available)

Romania’s leading art museum was founded in 1948 to house the former Royal Collection, which included Romanian and European art dating from the 15th to the 20th century. Located in the neoclassical former Royal Palace, set amid a wealth of historic buildings such as the Romanian Athenaeum, Kretzulescu Church and the Hotel Athenee Palace-Hilton, the museum currently exhibits over 100,000 works divided into two major sections. Its National Gallery features the works of major Romanian artists, including Grigorescu, Aman and Andreescu. There is also a roomful of early Brancusi sculpture, such as you won’t find anywhere else, demonstrating how he left his master, Rodin, behind in a more advanced form of expression. The European Gallery, comprising some 15 rooms, displays little-known art gems from the likes of El Greco, Monet, Rembrandt, Renoir, Breughels (father and son) Cezanne and Rubens. If you only have time to visit one gallery, make it the Romanian one. It is the most complete collection of Romanian works of art in the country and quite possibly, the world.

National Geological Museum

(Muzeul National de Geologie)
Address: Sos. Kiseleff 2
Tel: (21) 212.89.52
Open: Mon. – Sun. 10:00am – 4:00pm
Admission charge

Impressive collections of minerals and quartz formations specific to the area are found here, including a well-presented geological structure of Romania.

 National History Museum

(Muzeul National de Istorie al Romaniei)
Address: Calea Victoriei 12
Tel: (21) 315.82.07
Open: Tue. – Sun. 10:00am – 6:00pm; Closed Mon. (May – September);
Tue. – Sun. 9:00am – 5:00pm; Closed Mon. (October – April)
Admission charge

Housed in a 1900s neoclassical building that once served as the city’s main post office, the museum offers a great introduction to the exciting history of Romania. Spread throughout 41 rooms, the exhibits recount the country’s development from prehistoric times to the 20th century. The highlight is theNational Treasury Hall where visitors can enjoy a dazzling display of some 3,000 gold items, including jewelry and valuable Neolithic artifacts.

Among the displays are the 12 pieces of the 4th century Pietroasele Treasure Collection. First presented at the 1867 World’s Fair in Paris, it was considered the most valuable treasure collection in the world (the tomb of Tutankamon had not yet been discovered). One year later, the collection was displayed at the Second Annual International Exhibition in London and in 1872, at the International Exhibition in Vienna.

National Military Museum

(Muzeul Militar National)
Address: Str. Mircea Vulcanescu 125-127
Tel: (21) 638.76.30
Open: Tue. – Sun. 9:00am – 5:00pm; Closed Mon.
Admission charge

Founded in 1972, the museum illustrates the most important battles for independence and freedom in Romanian history. The museum features collections of Oriental and Occidental weapons, Romanian and foreign uniforms, military medals and awards, trophies, artillery, canons and airplanes as well as a library of historical military documents.

The centerpiece is the 1989 Revolution exhibit, displaying mainly personal belongings donated by families of soldiers and civilians killed during the upheaval.

National Museum of Contemporary Art

(Muzeul National de Arta Contemporana)
Address: Calea 13 Septembrie 1,
entrance E4
Tel: (21) 411.10.40
Open: Wed. – Sun. 10:00am – 6:00pm;
Closed Mon. & Tue.
Admission charge

Bucharest’s newest museum, the MNAC, as it is often called by museum-goers, displays works of Romania’s contemporary artists as well as many temporary exhibits by international artists. The museum is housed in a wing of the Palace of Parliament, the space which would have served as Nicolae and Ileana Ceausescu’s private apartment (where just the bathroom occupied 680 square feet, while the adjoining boudoir was three times that size).

National Museum of Old Maps & Books

(Muzeul National al Hartilor si Cartii Vechi)
Address: Str. Londra 39
Tel: (21) 230.44.68
Open: Wed. – Sun. 10:00am – 6:00pm; Closed Mon. & Tue.
Admission charge

Though it may not house the world’s biggest collection, this museum is worth a visit, especially if you are interested in old maps and books.

Romanian Railways Museum

(Muzeul Cailor Ferate Romane)
Address: Calea Grivitei 193
Tel: (21) 222.75.20
Open: Tue. – Sun. 9:00am – 4:00pm; Closed
Admission charge

Several engines and wagons are on display in the open-air section of the museum. Inside, you can find an 1869 Morse telegraph, memorabilia, turn-of-the-century pictures and some age-old Romanian railway uniforms.

Storck Museum

(Muzeul de Arta Frederic Storck si Cecilia Cutescu-Storck)
Address: Str. Vasile Alecsandri 16
Telephone: (21) 317 38 89
Open: Tue. – Sun. 9:00am – 4:00pm; Closed Mon.
Admission charge

This museum pays tribute to the works of sculptor Frederick Storck, founder of the Romanian school of architecture, and his wife, Cecelia Cutescu-Storck, an artist and a keen advocate of enhanced recognition for women in the arts. Some 150 paintings and 250 sculptures are featured in the beautiful Storck residence, built in 1913 by a French architect after the plans of Frederick Storck.

Technical Museum

(Muzeul Tehnic)
Address: Str. Candiano Popescu 2 (inside Carol I Park)
Tel: (21) 336.93.90
Open: Wed. – Sun. 11:00am – 6:30pm; Closed Mon. & Tue.
Admission charge

This museum displays some 5,000 exhibits covering a wide range of industrial models: turbines, compressors, steam engines, the cylinder from the first steam engine that was used in a Romanian factory, as well as antique cars and motorcycles.

Theodor Pallady Museum

(Muzeul Theodor Pallady)
Address: Str. Spatarului 22
Tel: (21) 211.49.79
Web: www.mnar.arts.ro/muzsatelit/EN_pallady.php
Open: Wed. – Sun.. 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. (May – September);
Wed. – Sun. 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m (October – April); Closed Mon. & Tue.
Admission charge

Housed in the beautifully restored Melik house, built around 1750 by the rich Armenian Hagi Kevork Nazaretoglu, and currently, the oldest house in Bucharest, the museum features six Pallady paintings, a couple of his sketches and various other art objects.

Village Museum

(Muzeul Satului)
Address: Sos. Kiseleff 28-30
Tel: (21) 317.91.03
E-mail: contact@muzeul-satului.ro
Open: Mon. 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.;
Tue. – Sun. 9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Founded by royal decree in 1936, this fascinating outdoor museum, the largest in Europe, covers some 30 acres on the shores of Lake Herastrau in Herestrau Park. It features a collection of 50 buildings representing the history and design of Romania’s rural architecture. Steep-roofed peasant homes, thatched barns, log cabins, churches and watermills from all regions of the country were carefully taken apart, shipped to the museum and rebuilt in order to recreate the village setting. Throughout the year, the Village Museum hosts special events where you will have a chance to witness folk artisans demonstrating traditional skills in weaving, pottery and other crafts. Folk arts and crafts are available at the museum gift shop.

Zambaccian Museum

(Muzeul Zambaccian)
Address: Str. Zambacian 21A
Telephone: (21) 230.19.20
Open: Sat. – Wed. 11:00am – 7:00pm; (May – September);
Sat. – Wed. 10am – 6pm (October – April); Closed Thu. & Fri.
Admission charge

The museum possesses the private art collection of Krikor Zambaccian (1889-1962). Names such as Andreescu, Grigorescu, Luchian, Pallady and Tonitza are famous in Romania, albeit less known outside the country, but the works, mainly following the Impressionist school, are of the highest quality. There are also several small sculptures that complement the canvases. Although Zambaccian was a big patron of the art of his home country, he also collected European works from artists such as Cezanne, Renoir, Delacroix, Corot, Derain, Matisse, Pissaro, Bonnard, Utrillo and Picasso. The museum preserves the initial display as it was conceived by the art collector himself.

Parks & Gardens

Cismigiu Garden

(Gradina Cismigiu)
Address: Blvd. Regina Elisabeta (across from Bucharest City Hall)

Designed in 1845 by the German landscape architect Carl Meyer, the garden opened to the public in 1860. The name, Cismigiu, comes from the Turkishcismea, meaning “public fountain.” More than 30,000 trees and plants were brought from the Romanian mountains, while exotic plants were imported from the botanical gardens in Vienna. Cismigiu is Bucharest’s oldest park and a great place to stroll and enjoy a break from the hectic city. Set amid green lush lawns and winding paths, the park offers a lake with rowboat rentals, a beer garden, a playground for children, a chess area for amateurs and plenty of park benches for relaxing and people-watching.

Botanical Garden

(Gradina Botanica)
Address: Sos. Cotroceni 32 (across from Cotroceni Palace)
Tel: (21) 410.91.39
Open: Mon. – Sun. 8:00am – 5:00pm
Admission charge

Opened in 1891, the garden features over 5,000 varieties of plants from Romania and around the world. The garden also encompasses a beautiful building in the Brancovenesc architectural style, housing the Botanical Garden Museum.
Here, you can peruse manuscripts, old botanical research devices and a collection of artifacts made of vegetal materials. Locals treat the gardens as a park, and on warm afternoons, you may see more young lovers than plants.
The huge greenhouses are open Tue, Thu, Sat, Sun, 9am – 1pm.

Carol I Park

(Parcul Carol I)
Address: Calea Serban Vodá

This large park is one of the most beautiful in the city and contains a massive monument that once housed the remains of communist leader Gheorge Gheorgiu Dej, as well as the eternal flame that marks the grave of the Unknown Soldier.

Designed by French landscape architect Eduard Redont in 1900s, the park offers pleasant walks down tree-lined paths, a good view of central Bucharest (from the monument) and plenty of photo opportunities. In summertime, the park’s Arenele Romane is the stage for open-air concerts.

Herastrau Park

(Parcul Herastrau)
Address: Sos. Kiseleff 32

Spread over some 400 acres, from the Arch of Triumph to the Baneasa Bridge,
the park is home to numerous attractions, including a boat rental complex, tennis courts, and a rather old-fashioned fairground. In the summertime,
many terraces open up on the shores of the lake.

For an overview of the park, take a ride around the lake on the ferry or rent your own boat. The park is also home to the Village Museum.
The area surrounding the park holds even greater treasures.
The streets between Bulevardul Mircea Eliade and Soseaua Kisileff contain extraordinarily beautiful houses in architectural styles ranging from 19th century neoclassical to 20th century art nouveau and modern luxury villas.
This is where Bucharest’s elite once lived – and still do today.

Bucharest City Break

Bucharest City Break

Bucharest – Flight to / r 2/3 nights in 3 * hotel with breakfast and transfer included from 99 More info


text:
Monday, December 7, 2009

The Artist at Six

Elizabeth's art was chosen as part of her school's "Out in the Town" art exhibit program. Her funky flower piece is described as "like VanGogh" and it's the only first grade art on the wall.

It will be on display at Sheer Designs Hair Salon in Lexington until December 11th. Elizabeth turns seven in a few days, so this is your last chance to get a glimpse of the artist at six!

1 comment:

paradisfam said...

Wow! How impressive, congrats to the Van Gough Birthday Girl!


text:
Thursday, October 3, 2013

Kona Preview & Predictions: Men's Race

October is here, and with the 36th annual Ironman World Championships in Kailua-Kona a week away, I thought it only appropriate to do a preview. Up until a few years ago, any and all professionals were welcome at Kona, and as you might expect, most showed up. Just like any sport, however, you’ve got your “all-stars” and your “benchwarmers.” The dynasty Bulls teams of the 90's had Michael Jordan of course, but they also had Jud Buechler, Stacey King, and Bill Wennington to name a few. All professionals are really talented, but not everyone can be in that upper echelon with the all-stars.

Over time, the increasing number of pros at Kona started clogging up the course, making it more difficult to avoid drafting, among other issues. In response, the governing body that runs Ironman (the World Triathlon Corporation or WTC) decided to change up the game, limiting the pro field to 50 men and 30 women (whether you agree or not, the claim is that the men's field is deeper than the women's). At every Ironman and Ironman 70.3 race throughout the year, pros compete for prize money as well as pre-determined points to be earned based on placing. The top 50 men and 30 women on the points list at the cut-off date earn a coveted spot on the Kona start line.

Here’s the breakdown by country of the 50 men’s pros who made the cut:

Germany: 9
USA: 9
Australia: 6
Belgium: 4
Switzerland, Spain, UK: 2
Austria, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Hungary, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Russia, Slovenia, South Africa:1

Amazingly, The thunder from Down Under has captured the last six World Championships: Chris McCormack (2007 & ’10) Craig Alexander (2008-09, ’11) and Pete Jacobs (2012). Before that, Germany had a 3-year run with the combination of Normann Stadler (2004, ’06) and Faris Al-Sultan (2005). Those two countries will definitely be in the mix again, with Alexander and Jacobs back, along with Germany’s Sebastian Kienle and Andreas Raelert to name a few. I’d actually really like to see Raelert win it… he’s placed 3rd, 2nd, 3rd, 2nd the last four years, and he’s known for being a really classy dude. Last year sponsor K-Swiss offered Andreas and his brother Michael (2x 70.3 World Champ) a $1 million bonus if they finished 1-2, but unfortunately Michael was hampered with an injury.

would like to see Andreas (right) take the title

Here’s a quick summary of who I’d like to see win:

  • Andreas Raelert (Germany): as mentioned, has been close in his first four attempts... would like to see him pull off the win
  • Tim O'Donnell (USA): US Naval Academy grad a long shot, but could be in the mix
  • Andy Potts (USA): met him at St. George and he was really cool to talk to… former all-American at the University of Michigan and 2004 Olympian will be first out of the water as always - hopefully can put it together on the bike/run
  • Luke Mckenzie (Australia): known for going all-in on the bike, usually either has a great race or blows up
  • Craig Alexander (Australia): how can you ever cheer against Crowie? Would be great to see him prove the naysayers wrong at age 40

Andy Potts

Prediction for the men’s podium:

  • Sebastian Kienle (Germany): defended as Ironman 70.3 World Champion in Vegas last month; fastest biker in the field flatted last year, dropping him from a sizable lead to 4th at the finish
  • Eneko Llanos (Spain): mild-mannered guy is always seemingly under the radar, but has been dominant this year
  • Pete Jacobs (Australia): few expected him to win last year, and most probably don’t expect him back on the podium… we’ll see if he’s spent the last 12 mos. partying or training!

Follow live coverage of the race Saturday, Oct. 12th on!

can Kienle pull off the double?

No comments:

Post a Comment


text:
"Welcome to Happysurfer"

Your Road To Succeed Towards Your Financial Freedom
There was an error in this gadget

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?
If I could offer you a one chance, I will recommend millionaire cycler. It can be your dream. ONE must take a chance in a life time. Your will earn $7 per referral, $10 each when they cycle and when you cycle at Cycle A, you will earn $85. You will automatically enter Cycle B. It is a fun game. Plan and Strategize

Read until you are clear on the subject matter. Happy reading. Read FAQ as well. Read the offers. When you are ready please register and pay once, $27 to start your journey to be a Millionaire

Thursday, March 18, 2010

SWOM SWOM SWOM (click to go to site)

For these few weeks SWOM (Super World of Market) took the world like a storm. Internet Marketers around the world meet at the common gound. However, many people in the streets still not aware what hit them. Internet Marketing, Business Online, What??????

Let me show my profile that I wrote for myself to the rest of the members in the world. I hope this will open our horizon that Internet Marketing is here to stay... with us. Prediction are written everywhere now. There will be millions of people across the globe will work from home and gain more than ordinary wage earners.

To know more, visit the site, click --the topic SWOM.. free joining

Zulkifli Md Noor (Gold Member)

Malaysia | Business and Marketing

I'm a happily married, retired power plant general manager of the leading power plant in Malaysia. I used to travel around the world while in office. I have one junior and one grandson, all stay together, in one single home called Serikasih. Now I'm in the mid of another professional task as a consultant; biz online keeps me busy 24/7. I do enjoy biz online and learning fast to pick up with the rest. I believe that this is an alternative to 8 to 5 job, and in fact if we place ourselves well, we can make a fortune. I'm also a Gold Member. My self-proclaimed role is to encourage fellow Malaysians to join the Global Online Marketing Network, and they can start with this wonderful program, SWOM. Regards to biz online, I'm an Executive Affiliate with SFI Affiliate Center. SFI offers various incomes and commissions inclusive residual earning. TrippleClick.com is their mega online supermarket. I also have my own blog that I call a "one stop center" for us to see other websites. My blog is Business Online Happysurfer and wish everyone to visit it. http://tripplestrike.blogspot.com/
Biz Ops I recommend... Add a business

People String
Name: People String
Recommendation: Must-have
My review:

It is a free membership. Can invite friends to join as down lines. Program that builds relationship and we can earn from it. There are many programs within people string that are free and yet generate income.
(Read 58 other reviews)

Name: Triple Click.Com
Recommendation: Highly recommended
My review:

I am involve in promoting Internet Supermarket TripleClicks and SFI Affiliation Center.

Name: Referralville
Recommendation: Must-have
My review:

Referralville offers many programs including SWOM, Big Value Depot, Join 4ADollar, 8 K a Week, Sokule and others. Any of this can be earnings for members
(Read 42 other reviews)

There are several companies involved
Name: There Are Several Companies Involved
Recommendation: Highly recommended
My review:

Please visit my blog. I am promoting to everyone for my blog to be known globally. I call it a one stop center, gateways to visit other sites, where most of them, I secured some agreements, affiliation etc.

Fortune Frontier
Name: Fortune Frontier
Recommendation: Must-have
My review:

It is a prelaunched program. expected to boom. Many variable income offers. It will take off on 1st April. Free enrollment. Expected some payment for upgrading. Get ready AlertPay account.
(Read 59 other reviews)
Edit | Remove

Geo String.Com
Name: Geo String.Com
Recommendation: Must-have
My review:

You won't regret to join GeoString.com. The program gives instant $10.00 upon joining. They give you more if you get down lines. So build your down lines as many as you can. Join me first.
(Read 12 other reviews)

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Internet Marketing

This article is to educate some of us who are still not sure what is going on in this borderless world relates to Internet Marketing. With the introduction of Super World of Marketing (SWOM) where the meeting of Internet Marketers and the enthusiastic income seekers from home, this subject should become more relevant. It is an option for those who want to build businesses (or rather generate income), and at the same time stay at home; i.e. what they all called "fired their own bosses" on 9 to 5 jobs. Let's continue reading..............

Internet marketing, also referred to as i-marketing, web-marketing, online-marketing, or e-Marketing, is the marketing of products or services over the Internet.

The Internet has brought media to a global audience. The interactive nature of Internet marketing in terms of providing instant response and eliciting responses, is a unique quality of the medium. Internet marketing is sometimes considered to have a broader scope because it not only refers to the Internet, e-mail, and wireless media, but it includes management of digital customer data and electronic customer relationship management (ECRM) systems.

Internet marketing ties together creative and technical aspects of the Internet, including: design, development, advertising, and sales. ----click on topic---


text:
Friday, July 15, 2005

the world is fiction

look around - it's wrong it's right it's fucked
can't believe it don't want it won't have it that's enough

tell me - I'm wrong
try to convince me
write me a song
trying to split me

everybody singing - that same old song
making sure everybody knows why they are wrong

turn around
try to awake me
don't know how
cause your sleepin' sound

can't seem to turn my head without a mistake
tell me how much more of this shit can you take

come on down
everybody's sleeping
the parties going strong
close your eyes no peaking

Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Sorry, computer's having "issues"

I am sorry about not posting on Dem. Socialism yet. I will get that up asap. My roomates computer has been down and is still not quite right. It took me 13 minutes to get blogger to load. I will get it up as soon as the computer is functional. I have to reconstruct it when I can.


text:
Citizens Firearms Safety Course

As a service to the people of Troup County, Sheriff James Woodruff offers a Citizens Firearms Safety Course. This course normally offered normally 4-5 times a year between the months of April and October, takes place on a Saturday morning, last about four hours, and is limited to a maximum of 20 people. Attendees are asked to provide their own weapon and ammunition for the class. Those interested should contact Sgt. Stewart Smith at +706 883 1616.

Sign Up For Nixle

Nixle keeps you up-to-date with relevant information from the Troup County Sheriff's Office

Receive Alerts


text:
Sunday, June 14, 2009

Edmonton to Calgary... via Nogales Arizona (part 1)

Monday June 8th 2009

I wake up in the morning after having saturday and sunday off, 20 minutes later getting a call from Darren to meet him at the Shell truckstop on the west end and he'll show me what was fixed on the truck. I get there 45 minutes later, throw my shit into the truck and park my car in the parking lot and give my keys to the cashier inside a sealed envelope for my parents to pick up the car later in the day, as he does not yet have a yard...

I walk back to the truck, just as Darren pulls up, he shows me a few things on the truck that have been fixed, he then tells me that I need to load in 6 hours in Lethbridge, so get going!

The drive to the bridge is easy, with no slow down in Calgary, and I pull into the customer 3 minutes early, take about 3 hours to load, during which time I have the shipper set up my paperwork with Darren back in St.Albert, and he then faxes me the appropriate paperwork to bring the french fries to the Mexican border, there is no manned scales in Lethbridge around 7pm, so I'll need to hope my weights are legal until I can scale my load in Shelby, Montana. I get into Shelby after a five minute delay at the border (SWEET!!!) I scale my load and find out my drives weight is 1300 Lbs underweight, but my trailer is 900 Lbs overweight! So I slide the trailer 3 holes back and weight again to a perfect weight distributed load! I pull down the road a couple more hours to the Dearborn rest area, and call it a night at 11pm, temperature 13c, Great sleeping temperature! 874km driven today

I have a perfect 9hr sleep and head off at 915 in the morning straight south on the I-15, not much happens today, I head into Salt Lake City during rush hour but traffic is realitivity light, and I spend my night on a ramp in southern Utah 23 miles north of Beaver. Another gorgeous cool night for sleeping. 1124 km driven today.

At 8 in the morning I head south to the Flying J in Beaver Utah and fuel up the truck and reefer, then head another 17 miles south and exit at the Utah state highway 20, Its 21 miles long taking me to the US89 south towards Flagstaff, that 21 miles takes me about 35 minutes to drive, with all the hills and steep downgrades, this was what my entire day was going to be like. The rest of the drive in Utah is a breeze, through Panguitch and Kanab, then straight east towards Page, AZ

I should just say here that I have'nt been on this highway from Kanab to Phoenix In about 4 years, and I'll probably never take it again with such a heavy load!

Once I get into Arizona you drive over the Page bridge, beautiful over the Glen Canyon dam over the Colorado river. The scale is on the right hand side and you must slow right down for it, then after that slow down for the actual town of Page, once out of Page I'm climbing again and about 20 minutes later I am doing 65 miles an hour for the first time since entering Arizona... (45 km ago!) At this point I'm reminded of a huge downgrade ahead, so I slow right down and desend it at 30mph, get onto the valley floor and head towards Flagstaff. I pull into the Flagstaff truckstop on the I-40 2.25 hours later after driving through town, at which point I see that Flagstaff was the first city in the world to comply with the dark nights group of people. Huh! So the whole city has low wattage light fixtures. Hope dark nights helped them pay for the upgrade...

Anyways I stay there only for 15 minutes to go pee and grab a Pepsi, then its south again along the I-17 towards Phoenix, the road is straight at 75 mph for a while then you start the desend, slow down to 40mph, get into Camp Verde, then climb at 30mph out of there! AHH I HATE HILLS! Once I summit, Its downhill again into the desert, at again 30-40mph, until I'm finally on flat land driving 75mph towards Phoenix, at rush hour. Traffic there tightens up around the I-10/US60 split, then after that its full speed again into Eloy,AZ where I call it a day, Temp in Eloy is 90f, about 32c, not bad at all, 870km driven today. I sleep with the truck off with no sheets and I surprisingly am comfortable.

The next day I wake up and drive the 2 hours into Nogales through Tucson, head straight for the Mexican border to US customs, have them cancel my travel bond, and head In for 9am delivery, by 11am I'm unloaded. Usually with Mexican loads, they have a trailer that they put the product right back into, not this time however, they put the frozen french fries on the hot dock and left them there... for how long I've no idea! My bills are signed and I head over to the Pilot for a shower and await my next dispatch.

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Milton to Calgary, Via Cleveland, Ohio

So its tuesday morning, kinda tired of sitting around waiting for a load, and apparently Darren is too, he calls me at 8am (Alberta time) and tells me to deadhead (drive empty) towards Lorain,OH , a small suburb of west Cleveland. 3.5 hours later I'm crossing into Detroit over the ambassador bridge, I don't need to present any paperwork for customs since I'm empty, she looks at my passport and asks the usual questions, and sends me on my way in record time! I pay the bridge toll ($13.75 usd) and start heading towards the I-75, which happens to be under construction at the moment. So I follow the detour down Detroit streets, man is this city a dump! I finally get on the freeway after driving a few miles along parallel to it, get up to 60mph south towards Toledo,OH.
In Toledo I bump my speed down to 55mph and get onto the I-280 south towards the Ohio turnpike, traffic is light and I'm soon on the turnpike east headed for Lorain. I get to the shipper 2.5 hrs after leaving Detroit (turnpike toll $6.50), they load 15 huge totes of ashphalt emulsion fluid onto the truck, and I'm on my way. I head east towards Avon,OH where the closest pay scale is. I exit and from there it takes me about 20 minutes to drive 1/4 of a mile because everyone in town is heading to the home opener of the Lake Erie Crushers (AAA baseball). I scale my load (legal!) and headout the same way back west towards the turnpike again.
The turnpike speed limit for trucks in Ohio is 65mph, elsewhere in the state its 55mph, so I get to the end of the stateline and pay my toll of $19.75 (more expensive when loaded) and a few iles later stop to pick up my toll ticket for the Indiana turnpike (It would be great if when you pay at Ohio, they'd give you a Indiana toll ticket too, and vice-versa, this way you would'nt have to stop twice within 5 miles...)
I finish up the Indiana toll ($27) and stop shortly after that in Lake Station,IN, which is considered east Chicago.
Tuesday June.2-1018 km driven

I wake up wednesday morning at 645am (Alberta time) and am on the road by 715, follow the I-80 into Illinois and head north on the tri-state tollway I-294, this tollway makes you stop every 10-20 miles and pay everytime, so I'm up to $16 when I get onto the I-290 west (free freeway) and I then enter onto the I-90 west (tollway) which costs me another $13 to the Wisconsin state line. From here there are no more tolls, I drive a few more hours to Black River falls,WI to fuel up at 1245, and get a T-chek for $125 to pay myself back for all those tolls and a few other expenses. I fuel up and head west, I'm two hours from St.Paul (twin cities) and I'll be arriving there just before rush hour. I get into the twins and the traffic is getting tighter and tighter, but I manage to get out of there and I stop in Clearwater,MN for one of their award winning Nelson Brothers sandwiches, Mmmm mmm! Its 70mph in Minnesota and I make it another 1.75 hours to Fergus Falls,MN, where I park at the Bison ranch truckstop, where you can get bison burgers and steaks! I order a bison swiss chesse mushroom burger, medium rare! (yes, I think I am turning into an American) Finish that up, call my sister and then head to bed.
Wednesday June 3-990km driven.

Thursday morning and i wake up at 415 and on the road by 445, I cross into Fargo,ND around 535, slow down for construction and once i clear the city it`s up to 75mph towards Jamestown,ND where i grab some fuel, and then get off the freeway onto the two-lane US52 northwest towards North Portal,SK. By now my truck is making a growling sound when I shift from 4th to 5th gear, I call Darren about it in Minot,ND and he says he`ll bring me into Edmonton after Calgary delivery. An hour and a half after Minot I cross into Saskatchewan with my paperwork being processed (great!) and take the 39 northwest towards Moose Jaw. Stopping in the Jaw for 30 minutes to grab some oil and A&W, I drive another 2.25 hours to Gull Lake,Sk and call it a night.
Thursday June.4- 1176km driven.

I wake up early friday morning at 330, fuel up and am on the road at 4am, get into south calgary for 830 am, and back into customers yard, blind side it in around numerous cars and trucks, get unloaded and call Darren for instructions, he still wants me in Edmonton, but sends me to a place right beside the Deerfoot casino to load some fruitcups for tonight delivery. I`m loaded up by 11 and I get into the west end by 245 after fueling in Leduc and I park it at the Shell on 170th st and 118th ave. Darren comes over to take a look at the truck, and I tell him i`ll be out of it soon, since my sister will be picking me up.
Friday June.5- 784 km driven

Its now saturday and I presume the truck is in the shop getting some transmission work, should be ready to go monday morning.

Monday, June 1, 2009

Scrase trucking, week one

So its friday, May.22, 2009.

Get up at my usual 11-noon time, and start looking for jobs on line, thinking it'll just be another hit and miss day. So I'm looking on and I find a newly posted ad with a fax number to send a resume to, so I ask my sister to fax it off to the number and 30 minutes later the guy calls me! "Do you want a job?" "Who's this?" I reply, we start talking and he asks me to come into St.Albert for a road test, I tell him I'll be there in an hour, hang up and go get ready. An hour later we meet up at the Rona where hes parked and he walks me around the truck, shows me everything, then we jump in a head off down the road, My shifting is a little rusty as I hav'nt driven a standard in over a year and hav'nt driven at all since December. Anyways I obviously pass as he hires me and tells me the load has to be in portland, OR on sunday. I go home and tell my family the good news and start packing. (Sorry Karen for missing your 25th, as this was that night). The only downside is that hes a small company, so he dos'nt yet have a yard, so I have my parents drop me off at 9am saturday morning. I get to his house and we fill out all the necessary paperwork, blah blah blah.
He then drives me back to the truck where my stuff already is (thanks mom and dad!) and I do the pretrip and I am off!
So I first drive into Edmonton to the ESSO cardlock on 118th ave. to fuel up, his fuelcard is set up in a weird fashion, so I have to call him 3 times before I am authorized to fuel, with that out of the way I head to Acheson scales to shift my load to get er legal and then head down the road.

Im estatic to find out his truck can do 110kph and later will find out 122 kph! Anyways I make it to Nanton in 4 hours and end my day an hour outside of Spokane,WA on an Idaho backroad.

Day 2 is a short one as I cover only 694km and deliver to the small town of Molalla,OR , which is just south of Portland. It takes an hour for them to start unloading, but then about 15 minutes to take all the peat moss off, I then head to a truckstop on the I-5`and call it a day.

Day 3, drive empty to Stockton,CA, all at 55mph (screw you Oregon, California, and all you other 55 mph for trucks states!) I cover the 969km in 11 hours and sleep at the shipper. nothing interesting happened today, it was a holiday monday and the I-5 was empty.

Day 4, Sit, sit and wait some more, I`m picking up cherries destined for Cambridge,ON but they wont be ready until later that nigh Thats OK, It`ll ggive me a chance to get some tacos (authentic Mexican ones), over the day I proceed to pig out with seven tacos carne asada and one pig tounge taco (tounge meat was minced, tasted like regular pork). Ahh tacos! Anyways after being up all day they finally call me and get me loaded up in 20 minutes, at 1230am. So i pull out of the door and park to sleep.

Day 5, I complete my logbook as to show that I loaded this morning so I can gain a logbook reset of hours, then head north on the state highway CA99 towards Sacramento and follow the signs to Reno and the I-80.
about 4 hours later once I`m passed Reno and Fernley, I open it up to 75mph! I fly across the state, fueling up in Winnemucca and stopping for a drink in Wells. Coming back to the truck in Wells, my truck wont start, I give it 10 minutes and try again... Nothing... huh... I call Darren and he figures its either a fuel problem or a sensor (electrical) problem. I try the truck again and it fires to life. I continue down the road into Utah and stop in Tooele (basically Salt Lake City) Making sure Im at a truckstop just incase the truck acts up again.

Day 6, Wake up at 530am, head inside for a shower and start the truck with ease! Start driving through SLC with no backups in traffic and get into Rawlins,WY to fuel up, I leave the truck runnung just in case... another 6 hr drive and I stop in Elm Creek, NE in central Nebraska.

Day 7, up at 430 for an early start, still doing 75mph until the Iowa border, which is 3 hr drive away. I pull it into the Flying J in Gretna,NE to stop for breakfast(Mmmm, biscuits and gravy...) and my truck wont start again! Im told to buy some ether and fire that into the air intakes, that works and I continue into Iowa (70mph) then Illinois (55mph, screw you Illinois!) flew through south Chicago, into Gary,IN for the night.

Day 8, up at 430 am again today, fuel up and start heading towards Sarnia,ON via Michigan, I get to the border and shut my truck off to talk to the customs officer and present my paperwork. My load is'nt in the system even though Livingston told me it was over the phone... jerk! Anyways I try to start the truck... Argggggg! The bridge authority pulls up behind me to push me out of the way, I then use ether again to start it up, and leave it running as I go inside to get my paperwork redone. Which takes two hours... I then head to Cambridge to unload, they have anti-idiling signs everywhere, as I ignore them completly! 5m (Ontario time) I'm unloaded and I drive the 45 minutes into Mississauga to the Freightliner shop and find out it was a sensor. At 8 am they are ready for payment so I call Darren (6am in AB), hes groggy but happy that its done. It is now day 9 (sunday) and I'm told I'll have to wait until Monday for a reload

Day 10 (monday) Told I'll need to wait until tomorrow, but it'll happen for sure tomorrow, so here I sit in Milton,ON, only good thing is that I'll gain another much needed reset.

All together, he seems like a good guy, trying to start in a very competitive market. I drove 4100 miles (6600 km) in the first week, my second week won't be as good, but it'll still be decent at about 3000 miles.