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Month: June 2008

HELP BANKRUPT OLYMPIC AIRWAYS

By: | Post date: June 30, 2008 | Comments: 9 Comments
Posted in categories: Greece, Personal
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I endite a tale of wrath.     I endite a tale of woe.I endite a tale with purpose.     I purpose that you too will HELP BANKRUPT OLYMPIC AIRWAYS I come to fly at nine.I come with flights of wayfarers.I view the flights departing.I queue with Salonica–Stuttgart.(“Wir können alles außervon Athen, ausgezeichnet, ausfliegen.”) HELP BANKRUPT OLYMPIC AIRWAYS Salonica–Stuttgart standsa […]

Berlin: A first report

By: | Post date: June 29, 2008 | Comments: 3 Comments
Posted in categories: Countries
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The Berlin experience started with me getting off the plane, and into the ramp tunnel thingy they attach to the plane, manufactured by a company based in Baden–Württemberg. Krämer, I think. The company saw fit to advertise not just itself (Krämer Men installing lightbulbs, Krämer Men cleaning up a party, Krämer Men being Krämer Men), […]

Berlin: A chronography

By: | Post date: June 29, 2008 | Comments: No Comments
Posted in categories: Countries
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It was quick, but very much worthwhile. In fact, reporting on Berlin will take up several days of Greek downtime. Be warned, my German is a lot worse than my French, which impose a layer of haze in my interaction with the outside world. I was sublimely lucky that Gert and Laura were prepared to […]

Englandaganza, Stop 10: London

By: | Post date: June 28, 2008 | Comments: 3 Comments
Posted in categories: Countries
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I didn’t do much more in my last two nights of London. Well, strike that: I got sloshed my last night in London. Where by “sloshed”, I mean “had a plastic cup of white, a pint of ale, and a bottle of perry, in the space of, oh, seven hours?” And caused much consternation at […]

Englandaganza, Stop 9: Brighton

By: | Post date: June 28, 2008 | Comments: No Comments
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Having given up the ghost in Oxford town, I wasn’t going to be that productive in the remaining time allotted. My Thursday meeting was with Rob, who had done the initial consulting with us on the PILIN project, and had given us some analysis that helped us tie things up at the end of the […]

Englandaganza, Stop 8: Oxford Again

By: | Post date: June 26, 2008 | Comments: No Comments
Posted in categories: Countries
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Ech, I’m over this. There are no photos from this leg, even though Oxford will be hurt that I took so many photos of The Other Place. I did note, at least, that the tourist placards on Oxford are themselves in Oxford font: Not being prepared and guidebooked-up — and indeed, not feeling like being […]

Englandaganza, Stop 7: Cambridge

By: | Post date: June 25, 2008 | Comments: 2 Comments
Posted in categories: Countries
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Arrived in Cambridge Monday night — and got a cab to my accommodation. My accommodation was a while away. So much away, that the road exhausted Cambridge, and took me to an industrial park next to Cambridge Airport. (Yes Cambridge has an airport. Who knew.) As I already had found, the UK takes the “park” […]

Englandaganza, Stop 6: Hull

By: | Post date: June 23, 2008 | Comments: 1 Comment
Posted in categories: Countries
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As many do (including David Davis’ opponents), I come negatively disposed towards Hull, so I don’t know if I will be getting much of it. Let’s see: Didn’t get to catch Durham cathedral on the way out of Newcastle. Didn’t get to photo Durham either, as I’m too lazy to get the camera out mid-flight; […]

Englandaganza, Stop 5a: Still Newcastle

By: | Post date: June 23, 2008 | Comments: 1 Comment
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A disgrace and an embarrassment, and a sign of the times to boot: once safely ensconced in the hotel (2 pm) — I did sod all. No tourism, no work; just TV, catching up on Blogger plugins, and perusing Facebook. Blah. And this all with a Tuesday deadline hovering over my head. Deadlines tend to […]

Englandaganza, Stop 5: Newcastle

By: | Post date: June 22, 2008 | Comments: No Comments
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I set off from Oxford to Newcastle (via Brummingham) with much fear of being roasted alive by ale-swigging Geordies. My doom came at the hand of Midlanders, long before I set foot in Newcastle. After judicious use of shuteye on the first leg of my journey, I was preparing to settle back to three hours […]