Europe - The Flight

The only way I think I'm going to be able to translate the trip onto this blog is going to be in bits and pieces, so I'm going to start at the beginning and work my way through. And believe me when I say that the flight was an adventure in itself!

We arrived at DIA just after 8am for an 11am flight, per our instructions for international travel. This actually worked out, because I discovered when I arrived at the airport that I was on the same flight not only with my roommate Brandy but with a couple of our other friends as well. After getting our special bag tags and sending our luggage along to be loaded, we grabbed breakfast and prepared for the initial leg of our flight: from Denver to Houston.

That flight was actually very smooth, and I had the pleasure of sitting beside two of the guys in our chorus - David & Alex - both of whom were knowledgeable, sarcastic, and completely entertaining. Not having met either of them before (rehearsal is all about singing and we don't really get to socialize much outside of those who sit right beside us), it was a good start to the trip getting to know some new people.

We landed in Houston and for some reason, there were a chunk of us who had only received boarding passes for the first leg of the flight. This meant that we had about an hour to get to the next gate (not a problem) and get our new boarding passes for the transatlantic flight (a little more of a challenge - there were a lot of us). Once that was squared away, we boarded the Air France plane (a 777 - 3 seats, aisle, 4 seats, aisle, 3 seats) and got settled. I was near the front in a middle seat on the left side of the plane between two people not in the chorus and far, far away from the rest of the crew. Not really an issue, since I had hopes of sleeping my way across the Atlantic so that I'd be ready for the 8 hour time change when we got to Paris. After a 40 minute delay on the runway, we were off!

Well, it didn't take long for me to realize that sleep wasn't really going to happen for me. First, I was tired but I was also kind of jazzed up for my first-ever transatlantic flight! Then, there was the food. I like food, and wasn't going to accidentally sleep through the dinner meal...and I'm glad I didn't. The food was really very good, and I learned that they give you wine (or various other adult beverages) on these long flights. I asked for water, and then the guy next to me asked for red wine and I exclaimed to him,"You can do that??" He laughed and said,"This is Air France, of course they have wine!" And I immediately asked for one to go with my dinner...awesome!

After dinner, they dimmed the lights and I decided to grab some shut-eye...before I discovered the movies in the backs of the seats. They had everything, so I thought I'd watch until I dozed off, but no such luck. Unfortunately, I must have picked some bug up on the first flight because 1/2 way through the 8.5 hour flight my nose started running and I was blowing my nose like mad. I tried to hide it and just rest, but felt even more self-conscious because the woman on my other side was wearing a mask and I just KNEW it was because of people like me, lol.

The rest of the flight was uneventful, although 8+ hours of sitting is tough. We arrived in Paris with only 30-45 minutes to make our connection due to the delay out of Houston, and we had to run nearly the full length of the airport. I have NEVER been in an airport that size - I swear it felt like miles. We had to all go through and get our passports stamped, through security again because we had to switch entire concourses, and though most of us were running by the time we got to the assigned gate there was no plane.

We all lined up to get reassigned to a different flight and discovered that we were going to be stuck in Charles De Gaulle for 6 more hours before our next flight. None of us had slept, I was sneezing and blowing my nose to beat the band, and now we were stuck in an unairconditioned bomb-shelter looking airport. As cool as I've always dreamed Paris would be, you would never know by their airport!

(Me being grateful to be on the ground in Paris)

My friend Sheri had everything you could ever possibly need (it's so good to have friends who pack that well!), and since my cold seemed more like allergies we thought it would be a good idea if I tried a Benedryl. Um...wrong move, lol. I went catatonic about 1/2 hour after that - the poor lunch waitress had to ask me 3 times if I wanted gas in my water or flat before I understood what she was getting at. All I can say is that after that, I could have slept anywhere and the chairs with my backpack as a pillow were perfectly acceptable.

Finally - FINALLY - we caught our connection to Budapest and I don't think there's ever been a group of people so happy to arrive. We had been travelling for nearly 25 hours at that point, most of us with very little sleep. We collected our luggage, pulled money from the ATM, and hopped on the coach where our courier told us we were 20 minutes from the hotel and we should have a little more than an hour to get ready for dinner.

(Brandy, me, Melissa and Sheri - finally there!)

Then, the bus driver got lost. 20 minutes turned into 40, and by the time we got to the hotel we had 35 minutes to get both roommates through the shower and back onto the buses for dinner.

Let the record show that people could tell who all traveled on Air France - we were the ones who looked like we'd been through a battle and might take your head off when asked how our flight was. The groups on Lufthansa and British Airways had both been planned better - they had left several hours after we did and arrived several hours before.

But, thank God we got the nice restaurant that night...because that helped make the misadventure worthwhile. I'll take up in Budapest on the next entry :-)

Return!

I am back from all the craziness that has been this summer! Europe was probably the most amazing thing I have done to date in my life, and I will detail out the trip once I have a second to get all regrouped. This last weekend was my friend Colyn's wedding up in Red Feather, which was like something out of a fairy tale...the scenery was some of the most beautiful I've seen in Colorado (Beaver Meadows Resort), and the bride and groom just glowed at each other. It was so clearly a wedding that was meant to be and I was sooo excited to be part of it. Plus, it helped that the entire wedding party just clicked, so even when the Colyn and Aaron were off doing their own things, we were still having a blast!

More on all this later, with pictures once I get my new upgraded camera and get my computer worked out so that I can download the 900 pictures I now have on the memory card!!

(Photos of Colyn and Aaron & of the group doing the scavenger hunt the day before the wedding)

19 Minutes Book Review

I just finished Jodi Picoult's book 19 Minutes for a second read. This book is powerful, and especially so for someone who was only slightly removed from Columbine in 1999. As I get older, I find that difficult subject matters such as those discussed in this book affect me more and more. All I can figure is that I'm now at a place where I can better understand - and allow myself to feel - the emotions in the storyline. The fear, the changed lives, and the humanity are all so convincingly portrayed - and so much of it brings ghosts of reminders from news articles read in the past. Last time I read this book, I must have been more protective of myself and did not allow myself to be pulled into the story. This time I cried.

It's well written, the way all of Jodi Picoult's books are...but this one is hard to read as just a story when so much school violence is splashed across the news. Truly, it's a thought-provoking storyline taken from an unusal angle and is worth the read; however, I do think with this particular book it's important to know what the storyline is before starting, so that you can mentally prepare.

Anyone who wants more details let me know...always happy to discuss books!!

Orphaned Tweets

I have failed, utterly and completely, at my test on Twitter. I go on there once a week (if that) and poke around, but just don't see the point of having an account since I don't feel the need to project my every activity to all of cyberspace. I will admit that I like seeing what the celebrities are up to, and have been following some of my favorite authors...it's neat to think that someone so well known could potentially have a personal conversation with you. But otherwise, I'm happy with my Facebook investment and will probably let my Tweets fade away into oblivion.

Here's an interesting article about Twitter, which discusses the fact that most of the tweets are made by very few. And some of the orphaned tweets listed made me smile. Enjoy!

http://www.slate.com/id/2219995/

Mahler II

Over the weekend, the Colorado Symphony Orchestra and the CSO Chorus wrapped our 25th Anniversary season...and what a way to go out. Mahler's Second Symphony in C minor - The Resurrection Symphony - was performed Friday, Saturday and Sunday this past weekend, and it was my first experience of the piece. I am grateful to have been able to perform the work under Maestro Jeffrey Kahane - his understanding of the piece and his explanation to the audience prior to the start of the performace was a wonderful bonus.

If you're unfamiliar with this music, it is a HUGE work. Nearly every section is doubled, and it was hard to believe they got all those people onto a single stage. And there is so much happening in the music that it took me until Sunday afternoon to truly enjoy the performance. I think I was so overwhelmed the first two times we went through the piece that I had trouble absorbing everything that the music had to say. This actually leads to an interesting note that was mentioned in the introduction. In the score, Mahler noted at the end of the first movement that "there is to be a pause here of at least five minutes". Maestro Kahane projected that there might be two reasons for this - 1. the music was so new and unique for its time that the audience could take at least that long to recover from what they had just heard or 2. Mahler wanted the audience to experience a little of what eternity might feel like!

While the chorus plays a small part in the symphony - we sing only in the final movement - it brings the beautiful lyrics, full of hope, to life.

In English (text is sung in German)

Rise again, yes, rise again,

Will you My dust,

After a brief rest!

Immortal life! Immortal life

Will He who called you, give you.

To bloom again were you sown!

The Lord of the harvest goes

And gathers in, like sheaves,

Us together, who died.

O believe, my heart, O believe:

Nothing to you is lost!

Yours is, yes yours, is what you desired

Yours, what you have loved

What you have fought for!

O believe,

You were not born for nothing!

Have not for nothing, lived, suffered!

What was created

Must perish,

What perished, rise again!

Cease from trembling!

Prepare yourself to live!

O Pain, You piercer of all things,

From you, I have been wrested!

O Death, You masterer of all things,

Now, are you conquered!

With wings which I have won for myself,

In love’s fierce striving,

I shall soar upwards

To the light which no eye has penetrated!

Its wing that I won is expanded,

and I fly up.

Die shall I in order to live.

Rise again, yes, rise again,

Will you, my heart, in an instant!

That for which you suffered,

To God will it lead you!

If you ever have the chance to attend this concert, it's worth the two hours of you life to hear it at least once. And if you're like me, it's worth giving it a second and a third chance, since so much can come of it each time you listen!

Here is the review from the DenverPost - http://www.denverpost.com/entertainment/ci_12533305.

Royal Arch Trail - Chautauqua Park

It is finally time to celebrate the return of hiking season! After a spring when the Colorado weather couldn't decide if it was ready to move toward summer or if it was going to stick with snowy winter, we seem to have reached the warm weather with the afternoon thunderstorms. I personally have no complaints about this landing place, since I happen to have a huge soft spot for rain showers!

To usher in summer, I decided that it was time to kick the hiking into gear this weekend and check out a new trail. As luck would have it, an old friend was also available to come explore with me, which just made the adventure that much better. I'm not opposed to hiking alone - in fact, I will do it with no hesitation if that's how things shake out for a particular day - but I happen to think that having the opportunity to catch up with a friend while enjoying the scenery is not one to be passed up! Even through the huffing and puffing that goes with a first-of-the-season hike, there are few venues that make it so easy to share stories about work, kids, family, and hopes/fears for the future.

So onto the hike.

After researching a truckload of trails in and around Boulder, I stumbled onto Royal Arch because it happened to be the right length for the time period we had set aside. The trail is 3.5 miles, and everything I read suggested we'd be finished with the round trip in about 3 hours. The descriptions of the trail varied from moderate to strenuous, but because of the fairly short distance I decided that we'd be fine even if it were a more difficult hike.

The trail started at the Chautauqua Park entrance, which I'd been trying to avoid because I'd heard that parking was difficult. However, I'm so glad that we wound up here because with all the hiking I've tried to squeeze in over the last couple of years, I'd never visited Chautauqua Park. For anyone not familiar, my friend hit it right on the head when she said that this is where every major photo of Boulder you see is taken. The parking lot is right on a beautiful meadow that leads straight up into the famous Flatirons.

From the trailhead, the path leads up Bluebird Road to a shelter for picnicking before it begins to hit the incline. Unfortunately for us, all the descriptions I read said nothing about stairs...but we realized right away that we were in for more than some standard switchbacks. Most of the "stairs" were rock outcroppings in the trail which later on changed to log steps hammered into the earth - most likely to help with erosion, what with the pitch of the trail. Regardless, the end result was a lot of stepping up to get to our end destination.

Even with the unexpected stairs, this is a beautiful hike. The majority of the trail winds through trees, with the occassional small creek crossing. Once you pass the false summit (which fooled me, and from what I could tell fooled some of the other folks we encountered on the trail), there are sweeping views of Boulder and the surrounding area just there for the taking. And when you finally reach the end point of the hike, the Arch and the views offered are completely worth the effort.



This is definitely a heavily populated trail, but the trip didn't seem to bottleneck until close to the end of the climb where the trail is more narrow. However, there are plenty of places to step off and let people pass if so inclined.

My personal take on the trail is that I would do it again - it's a good workout, and even having to park on a side street allowed for easy access to the park. My only hesitation would be the amount of people on the trail - as unlikely as it would seem, I actually ran into a co-worker headed up as we were headed back down. Since we work in south Denver (a good 40 minutes from Boulder), that was definitely unexpected!

Overall, though, a great hike with a good friend followed by lunch at The Sink (if you've never tried it, it's a fun novelty in Boulder - great pizza & beer, but that's another blog) made for a wonderful Saturday...and I can't wait to do it again!

Twilight Book Review

Twilight has become a pop-culture phenomenon, one which I completely ignored until recently. Like with the Harry Potter series (which I eventually fell in love with), I didn't want to be one of the early adapters who jumped on the bus just because everyone around me was adding to the buzz. I had seen the Twilight trailer in the theatres last summer and had written it off as another lame teen flick with very little to say - and that was the last I gave it any thought until it showed up in office conversation.

From time to time, I find it useful to give in and watch a certain TV program or read a certain book just so that I have conversation currency with the people I see every day. In this case, there are two women in my office whose company I truly enjoy who were both taken with the series, so I finally decided to give in and borrow the first book. I knew that the series was intended for young adults, which I didn't hold against it since some of the best literature I've read is directed to that audience. However, I went into the series with very little expectation, not even knowing the basics of the plot.

I was shocked and somewhat embarrassed to discover that early on in the first book, I was captivated by the images I was given and the way the storyline was woven. The star-crossed lovers theme is as old as the hills, and yet the twist of involving the supernatural world completely sucked me in. I had never watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel, never been drawn in by the promise of vampires (Interview with a Vampire may be the one exception), and I was tearing through this story like there would never be another day to read.

I wanted to know more about Bella and the things that drove her - her feelings, and I was intrigued by Edward and his obviously difficult interest in Bella (really, in a teenage relationship it's hard enough to get anything to go smoothly - and that's without the challenge of wanting to kill the one you love). Maybe it was the intensity of their seemingly doomed love at first sight experience that so caught my imagination, or the description of the two stubborn personalities that made up the main characters...but the end result was that I couldn't wait for the second book.

I understand what the nay-sayers see - the books aren't technically the greatest writing the world has ever seen. And it's not a book that's really intended to set either character up as a role model - Edward has some stalking tendencies that, if you took the fantasy element out of the story, would be extremely disturbing (sneaking in the window to watch her sleep, anyone?) while Bella becomes so obsessed that she blows off all other experiences and relationships. But the book isn't intended to be a moral guide to teenagers - it's not only fiction, it's fantasy! At a certain point, once you've suspended reality I think it's key to suspend it all the way and just see the world as the author intended you to see it.

And in this case, while I was surprised at how attached I became to the series (I expect I'll write something on the three other books and the movie here shortly), I think that it's not a bad thing to find an escape that allows you take a step away from real life and enjoy the romance and adventure of characters who spark the imagination.