Amalfi - Wk. of July 2

After landing from Russia at 8pm, I had time to quickly add some additional clothing to my bag, go to work for a few hours the following morning, and then board a flight at 4pm to Rome to start my next trip.  My initial flight was delayed 5 Hours, but I still managed to get a run in in Rome and start my laundry as I had recently sold my washing machine in Switzerland; it was a long, late night!  Fun fact in retrospect while editing this from this US is all flight delays/cancellations within the EU are regulated by laws so there tend to be less delays and you're compensated!

Views of Rome at night while on a midnight run

The following day, Melissa and Terry arrived from Minneapolis and I led the group on a self-guided walking tour of Rome to show them the Pantheon, Castle of the Angel, and the Vatican.  The last time that I was in Rome was in 2010 on my first trip to Europe so I tried my best to cover some of the major sites of the city with the limited time that we had; however, the city is so impressive and it's never possible to cover everything as there is a historic landmark everywhere you look!  The following day, we went on walking tour of historic Rome (Roman Forum and Colosseum); we also had the added unplanned bonus that all museums in the city and the forum were free as it was the final Sunday of the month.  

Are you not impressed!

Following our sightseeing, we rushed to the train station to get to Naples to use as our home base for the next few days while sightseeing the Amalfi coast area.  The city is the birthplace of pizza, has great seafood, and access to some gorgeous locations (Capri and Amalfi); however, I will warn others that arriving at night can be difficult when trying to navigate.  

Naples Piazza del Plebiscito

The following day (Monday), we had planned a day trip to Pompeii and Vesuvius.  The size of Pompeii and the level of preservation from the ash/lava was very impressive; there was much more to the site than I had originally anticipated and after hearing of the volcanic blast within history class.  In addition to the city, we hiked to the top of Vesuvius for views into the caldera and to reach a great vantage point over the Bay of Naples:

Main street of Pompeii

Vesuvius Caldera

Bay of Naples

On Tuesday, we took ferry day trip to the island of Ischia where we hiked to the top of the island to Mt. Epomeo, which was 789m.  This took a few hours and it was quite hot!  To celebrate the days accomplishments, we went to Sorbillo pizza once returning to Naples.  Supposedly, this is the best pizza in the city of Naples so we had to try it while in the birthplace of the food, but this is widely contested.

Top of Mt. Epomeo

Castello Aragonese d'Ischia

Pizza!

On Wednesday, we packed up to ferry to Capri; we had some minor 'excitement' in the morning where the housekeeper came to collect the keys of our apt. 1 hour early and spoke no English so this was a bit of a rude awakening, but humorous in retrospect.  We reached Capri later that morning and the first impressions were the island is a mountain protruding directly from the sea with very little flat terrain.  We took a taxi to the other side of the island to Anacapris where our hotel was located and were dropped off at the bus stop.  This was slightly confusing at first as we were dropped off only to then wait for our hotel driver.....Our hotel then picked us up in a jeep as it was located midway up a very steep hill that taxis are unable to reach; the actual hotel was great while the journey took some time.

Sunset from the hotel

Birthday cake in Capri

After getting settled, we went to the Grotto Azurri and also hiked to Monte Solaro, which was 589m.  Note to other travelers that this can also be accessed relatively easy by chairlift.

Traffic jam to get into the Grotto Azurri

View from Monte Solaro

View from Monte Solaro of the Grotto Verde

The following morning (Thursday), we took the ferry to Positano and bused to Praiano where we were staying for the evening.  We spent the afternoon relaxing on the beach after moving relatively quickly the prior few days.  

Arrival in Positano

On Friday, we hiked the 'Path of the Gods.'  The trail head to start the hike is not the easiest....From the Amalfi coast area (Positano, Praiano, Amalfi, etc.), one must take a bus to the trail head and this is a very windy road into the mountains so it was nice to have a flatter hike after several days already and no one was feeling great after the long, windy trip.  The scenery was quite pretty even when cloudy; it was very nice to have some shade from the sun.

Once completing the hike, we bused to our hotel and took a taxi to Saltano to then take a train to Rome as Melissa and Terry were to fly home the following day while I would go to Florence.  The day was a bit of a whirlwind given the cities of the Amalfi coast are connected by small, mountain roads that are serviced by buses on hourly routes; however, when the buses are full they will not pick up additional riders so give yourself extra time!  I was getting quite nervous when not seeing a bus, having one then drive by, then finally getting home!

Within Florence, I visited the Uffizi and Galleria dell'Accademia as they were closed during my first visit to Rome in 2010:

David

View from Galleria

Although this was a short trip, we covered many sites with lots of hiking and meals of pizza!  I had a lot of fun, but after a string out-of-town trips the prior few weeks, I was ready to go back to Geneva to relax a few days while working.

World Cup - Russia

The morning after landing form Copenhagen, I boarded a flight to Saint Petersburg for sightseeing and to see the World Cup.

I had purchased 4 tickets during November before teams were known and based only on the venues as I knew that I wanted to visit both St. Petersburg (SPB) and Moscow (MSC).  When the teams were drawn many months later, we were very lucky as the matchups that were randomly drawn for our tickets were Brazil vs. Costa Rica and France vs. Denmark.  We also later found out that there was a 2nd set of Americans that we knew working at PwC CH that had the same games as us so had a large travel group.  We had planned to be in SPB from June 19 to June 23, then take an overnight train and be in MSC from June 24 to June 28.

Arriving in Russia was much easier than anticipated!  As part of the ticket application process, ticket holders would apply with their passport for a Fan ID that then allowed free entry into the country rather than going through the lengthy, expensive passport process.  The trip immediately started with adventure as I landed at the airport and boarded a bus into the city.  Within the first 10 minutes of the ride, the bus rear ended a car and we were forced to de-board into a downpour to try to figure out where to go next. I then boarded a random bus heading the correct direction that then terminated at the metro station (much too early).  I then tried to take the metro, but was unable to purchase a ticket without smaller bills without waiting in a long line.  I then defaulted to Gett, which is Russia’s Uber with success.

St. Petersburg

While visiting St. Petersburg, we went on a free tour, Hermitage tour, Canal tour, went to the fan zone, went to the soccer game, and I covered some ground on my own while running throughout the city.  Everyone in the city was very welcoming and we even met a PwC colleague from SPB for dinner that I had worked with in Istanbul during the prior year.

Church of the Savior on Blood

Hermitage

Excellent weather for the canal cruise

Biggest shock of the city was adjusting to the White Nights as the sun would ‘set’ at midnight and then ‘rise‘ around 3am; however, generally there was almost constant daylight I felt.  This shifted our dinners to around midnight after the last WC game of the day and bed time to 3am....

St. Petersburg Stadium

Costa Rica vs. Brazil

Moscow

We arrived in Moscow after an 8 hour overnight train on Saturday night to arrive at 6am on Sunday morning; the train ride was not too bad, but we still arrived on little sleep and much too early before sights and restaurants were open.

Similar to SPB, I went on the free walking tour, Kremlin tour, and toured the city on foot while on runs.  Moscow was further south so we experienced normal day lengths and it was very hot!

Red Square

St. Basil's Cathedral

Inside the Kremlin

France vs. Denmark

The city is about twice the size of SPB and feels more of the business center of the country than the cultural focus of our first stop.  The red square, Kremlin, and Basil’s cathedral were extremely impressive along with the ‘Seven sisters’ and other architecture of the city.  Kevin and I also did a day trip to Sergiev Posad to get a taste of the golden ring cities, which was also a fun excursion as we had only experienced large Russian cities before then.

Sergiev Posad

Vareniki (Russian Pierogi)

The atmosphere of both cities was very fun, exciting and different than what I had expected.  Granted we were travelling during the World Cup, which I would equate to March Madness in the US.  In every city, everyone is watching every game at every bar with fans dressed in the jerseys of their favorite teams.

The country was more similar to the US than most other Western European countries that I have visited; for example:

1) The people speak primarily one language.

2) Both are almost entirely self-sufficient on their own and would not need to rely on the products of others

3) Atmosphere of restaurants is similar where there are sports bars with people going to support their favorite teams.

4) Conveniences - Stores are open 24/7 and the metro comes every 2 minutes.  
5) Gett is the equivalent of Uber and is everywhere; similar to the US, this an opportunity for amateur drivers to practice their racing skills...

5) Technology - For at least the cities we were in, everything felt very modern.

6) Both landmasses are large.

Definitely would recommend people to visit!

1st Half of June - Staff Weekend, Dubai, Beirut, and Copenhagen

Following the Israel trip, I spent a few weekends in Geneva to relax with friends before the beginning of summer when the area becomes a ghost town with many people traveling and I also would need to prepare for my return to the US

Wkd. of May 26
Saturday was Cave Ouverte in Geneve (Satigny).  Cave Ouvertes are wine tastings that are hosted by local villages, typically during the spring and fall harvest, where the wineries of that region will open their cellars for tastings.  As many of the cities surrounding Geneva, and in Switzerland, are small, wine-producing villages this can be a fun event with friends.  For 20-25 USD, a glass can be purchased to taste any, or all, of the wines and you can typically walk between the wineries.  These are always a fun event as many of the expats will go together and picnic as well.

Wkd. of June 2

On Saturday, I started the biking journey around Lake Geneva with Manu, Melissa, and Mandy.  This has been a bucket list item of mine since moving to Geneva!  I rode with Manu until Lausanne and then joined the others to go to Montreux where we would stay the night and then continue through France and back to Geneva.  The trip requires about 4-5 hours of leisurely biking each day with plenty time for pictures, coffee, and lunch breaks as the route is not hilly.

Biking Crew

Freddie at the end of day 1 in Montreux

Sunset in Montreux

However, the trip does require some luck....

On day 2, I managed to get a flat tire and thought that I was prepared as I had brought a replacement inner tube; however, I accidentally had taken the tube for my other bicycle that is not the same size.  Luckily Melissa from our group had a patch kit to fix this or I would have been taking a boat home.  In addition, we also managed to win the race home against the rain.

Chateau de Chillon

Nearing the half-way point

End of the bike with the worst sun burn ever that follows me all summer!

Wkd. of June 9

On Saturday and following the prior nights PwC year-end party in Vevey, I drove 1.5 hour drive home to then swap with an already packed bag and immediately board a 3pm flight to Dubai.  This was a complex set of events to make a flight, but we made it.  

We had a work site visit in Dubai and I wanted to do some sightseeing after a very short trip the prior year.  On Sunday, I spent the day sightseeing Geneva with my replacement (Matt) before the remaining team members arrived.  Going to Dubai can be overwhelming as it has a western feel, but is in the desert so the temperature is always over 100; this is not a runner's city!  There is tons of money invested in the city as evidenced by the skyline that is full of new buildings; our hotel was near the top 20 tallest in the city and was still taller than the highest in Detroit.

While sightseeing, we went to the Dubai mall to see the Burj Khalifa; the mall was similar to any US mall with the same stores only on a much larger scale with an aquarium and ice skating rink.

Burj Khalifa - Way too tall to fit into a normal photo!

View from the top

The remainder of the week was working Monday through Wednesday and team dinners at night.  Our trip was during Ramadan so finding food options was not always easy if before sun down; for example, most restaurants in the food court of the mall were closed midday.  Any restaurants that were open would have all views blocked to avoid the public view of food.  Ramadan also changed our working hours as the work day is 6 Hours by this month.  With the extra free time, running outside for marathon training was out of the question with the heat so I did a lot of treadmill running.

Lebanon

From Dubai, I went to Beirut as it’s more-or-less on the way back to Geneva...

When landing in Lebanon, I did not have any issues with getting through customs; however, while on the runway at 1am, I had a minor homeless scare.  The hotel that I had originally booked had noted that their front desk was only open 8a-8p so I had to search the Internet and call a hotel to make sure that I had somewhere to sleep for that night.  I ultimately was able to find a place and didn’t lose much time; the whole process made me quite thankful of smart phones.

The following day (Thursday), I walked around Beirut following a self guided GPS map; however, it was not until dinner when trying to find a venue to watch the World Cup game and for dinner that I discovered the beach and the Marina.  For anyone going to Beirut, I would highly recommend this area.  I found a nice restaurant and felt like I was one of the few Americans they’d seen as I had about 5 waiters at my table, got free appetizers, and a free dessert; I felt as if I had to be rolled home!

Lebanese appetizers during the World Cup

Beirut Harbor

Appetizers at dinner

Lebanese Cotton Candy

The following day, I took a bus tour and it was good to see some other tourists and hear of their stories.  As always, once travelling to one location, I always learn of so many more sites within a country that I would love to visit again.

Beirut's Blue Mosque

Baalbeck Temple

Anjar

Going into this trip, I was slightly worried from reviewing the news; however, I really enjoyed travelling to Lebanon.  The food is amazing and it’s quite different from any of the other Arab/Middle East countries that I have visited previously.  For example, Lebanon has mountains and greenery; it’s highest peak is over 3KM so there is skiing!

Wkd. of June 16

From Beirut, I flew to Copenhagen for the last destination of the trip before returning to Geneva.  Getting to cool, normal weather was a great change of pace!

Having been to Copenhagen before and with a friend that had also been to the city before (Heather), we spent most of our time watching the World Cup, running, and catching up.  On Saturday, we did go to the Viking ship museum in Roskilde where several original viking ships have been preserved along with replicas of fully re-built ships.  During the visit, we did a sailing ride where a group of 16 or so tourist row a Viking boat out of the harbor and then set sail to do a few tacks.

The other “highlight” / notable event of the trip was I stepped on glass within the first 30 minutes of arriving in Copenhagen and removed some, but not all glass from my heel.  I did manage to go to Roskilde on one foot the following day and then sadly decided that a hospital visit would be needed.  The Danish health care system was great!  There is a generic phone number that a future patient calls to then quickly describe the issue and the operator will then route you to the closest hospital and make an appointment for you.  We arrived at the hospital, which was less than 1KM from where we were staying, and had a minimal wait before seeing a nurse.  

The glass was removed with some pain, but I would not have had the nerves or flexibility to perform what was needed.  It was also odd that we then walked out of the hospital with no paper work, credit card, or insurance so I’m interested to see what happens next.... I did ask reception to confirm that I was not just overlooking something and confirmed that nothing was needed.

After a relaxing weekend, I flew back to Geneva to then do some mass laundry and pack for Russia the following day.

Israel - Wk. of May 19

With Monday off in Switzerland (Whit Monday), I used the long weekend to visit Israel, taking advantage of my location and somewhere not easily accessible directly from the US.

Going into this trip was a bit nerve wracking with the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem and the news earlier in the week that headlined the riots in the Gaza Strip as being one of the worst days in recent history in the country.  I planned to be nowhere near this area, but did take extra precautions of calling my hotel several times prior to my flight to understand the situation and was assured that where I would be going was ‘business as usual' without heightened risks.

Upon arrival, my first impression was the country was very westernized and much easier to navigate than trips I've take to other Arabic countries.  At border control, the country does not stamp your passport, but gives you what appears to be a business card to evidence that you have passed customs, as there are several countries in the world that will reject entry after one has travelled to Israel.  Even though the country did seem easy to navigate at first, I did still manage to travel the wrong direction on my first train from the airport.  Rather than going to the Tel Aviv center, I went inland was very happy to be traveling with a smart phone so that I could then determine how to get to Jerusalem instead.  I arrived an hour later and relaxed and grabbed dinner.

On Friday, I had an early start with a 7:30am tour to the West Bank to see the Jordan River, Jericho, Bethlehem, and Ramallah.  The temperature variation between the cities was surprising as it was over 100 in Jericho and near 90 in Ramallah.  

Jericho Cable Car

Baker in the streets of Ramallah

Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem

West Bank Wall

For Saturday/Sunday, I did several tours of old town Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives and added some of the highlights below:

Armenian Cross / Knight Templar

Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem

Jewish graveyard on Mt. Olive

Mt. Zion - Compound of David's Tomb and the site of the Last Supper

Inside Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Following the few days in Jerusalem, I spent one night in Tel Aviv:

Beach run in Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv felt like any other city on the Mediterranean with amazing beaches and great seafood.  I only spent one day, but this was enough time to go for a run, jump in the water, and for a great meal.

From my experience in Israel, the most surprising things I felt was the age of the cities, number of dynasties that ruled, the number of times the city has been destroyed and rebuilt, and the number of religions that hold the city as their holy site.  I feel compared to the US that Europe is old while this entire area and history predates Europe by centuries.  

Going to Israel was a surreal experience and I was quite happy that I went and was able to experience all of the history within such a small land area.  Travelling to the area can seem risky at first, but the well-developed infrastructure and welcoming nature of the locals made this an easy destination to navigate that I would recommend to anyone.

London

While slowly adjusting from the end of ski season, I planned two trips to London.

Wkd. of Apr. 28

I flew to London mid-morning on Friday and upon landing, my first stop was for lunch at Chipotle after missing spicy, Mexican style food living in Geneva.  Following lunch and getting situated in the city, I went to the Noel Gallagher concert at Wembley arena.  Not quite the same as seeing Oasis, but this was a fun concert to see in person.

For Saturday, I had a very early tour that started at 7:45AM (this is 6:45AM Geneva Time) to see Windsor Castle, Bath, Lacock, and Stonehenge. 

Stonehenge

Lacock - Lunch

Lacock - House from Harry Potter

Sunday was the flight back to Geneva, but all-in-all a great trip. 

Wkd. of May 5

This was the weekend of the Geneva Marathon races and I registered and ran the half marathon.  Weather was sunny and quite warm; very pretty day, but happy that I was not running the full.  Felt good after the run, but in retrospect, I feel like this should be renamed the ‘cheese Run’ as it’s the first running race subsequent to Ski season where one’s diet consist of a combination of at least two of the following each weekend raclette, fondue, tarteflette, or croque monsieur.

Wkd. of May 12

I returned to London for a long weekend due to a Swiss holiday and planning to meet with friends from Royal Oak that now live in the UK (Adam, Milena, and Kate) to see some familiar faces.

I went to the Harry Potter play in Thursday/Friday and was very impressed; it felt as if it was a movie due to all of the special effects.

For Saturday, we went to the Harry Potter studio tour and it is amazing the number of sets, props, and equipment that was needed for the movies and kept!  The highlight was the full hog warts replica that was used to film all passing shots of the castle in all movies.

Hogwart's replica where all shots of the castle and grounds were filmed during the movies.

On Sunday, I took the train to Newcastle to see the Chelsea vs Newcastle soccer game.  Newcastle has been one of my favorite teams since childhood so this has been one of my bucket list items since moving to Europe.  The team finished in mid-standings this year, but it was exciting to see a win at home.

St. James Park

I’ve been in London a few times since moving and it feels like being back in the US as it’s a large city with English spoken.  Fun place to visit, but I much prefer the weather of Geneva after getting rained on with every trip there.