what's going on?

50 years ago, Marvin Gaye's album  'what's going on' was released.  

In 1971,  the Vietnam war was  raging.  Marvin Gaye's album was the most poignant of the times.  It's message hasn't receded a bit in 50 years.  I believe it's more timeless than the Beatles, Jimi H, Rolling Stones, Moody BLues, ++.  We'll be playing this album 50 years from now.

https://youtu.be/iyQtUEwRIzQ 

The title song 'what's going on'  is about a Viet Vet returning stateside (in 1970) and being totally confused about what was going on with the hippies, the government, our leaders, protests, racial inequities, +++ 

The song Mercy, Mercy me was about blacks being mistreated by cops - as if mistreatment is a synonym for killing!! ... and here we are 50 years later 

Marvin used his soul seduction style and sexuality to persuade us to stop the war, to no escalate, to take care of mother earth and all her creatures - to love each other and to RESPECT each other.

1971 was the first 'calm' year after a decade of all kinds of happenings.  From assassinations' (JFK, MLK, Bobby Kennedy, ++), to riots (Watts, Harlem, Dem Convention++) to wars (Vietnam, Cuba crisis, Cold War ++), disasters (Love Canal, 3 Mile Island, ++)  the hippie 'Love' culture, to protests after Kent State... on an on. And the music ...THE MUSIC ... Tracked all our pain, sorrow, confusion.  Was 1971 the Year ‘Music Changed Everything’? https://nyti.ms/3bXqIF9

I lived through those and participated in some.  I don't remember too much soul searching at the time, but it felt right - and 50 years later it still feels right.  Have we made progress??  not much.  But YES, there are many signs of hope and wonder for a good future.  We've still go relatively clean air

To this day, i still shed many tears when i listen to these songs - they are soothing and unsettling at the same time.  i can't think of any album or songs from the 60's/70's that has continued to be so progressive, timeless and current as 'what's going on?'. 

So 50 years on, have we made any progress?  Up to last year - NO.  But after George Floyd's savage death from the knee of a grinning cop (Derek Chauvin) and all the protests, riots and public outrage - perhaps we are on a better road.

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Where is the love and compassion that Marvin espoused us to? 

But the white supremists are more alive now than since the 50's McCarthy era - so the overall answer is a resounding No, NO, hell NO - we are going backwards with new hi-tech companies aptly named FANG (Facebook, Apple, Netflix, Google++) encouraging such crazy lies, we have dug our hole SO deep that it may have to result in some sort of civil war type confrontation.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/09/entertainment/whats-going-on-anniversary/index.html

Mother, mother
There's too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother
There's far too many of you dying
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today - Ya

Father, father
We don't need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today

Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me, so you can see
Oh, what's going on
What's going on
Yeah, what's going on
Ah, what's going on

In the mean time
Right on, baby
Right on
Right on

Mother, mother, everybody thinks we're wrong
Oh, but who are they to judge us
Simply because our hair is long
Oh, you know we've got to find a way
To bring some understanding here today
Oh

Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me
So you can see
What's going on
Yeah, what's going on
Tell me what's going on
I'll tell you what's going on - Uh
Right on baby
Right on baby

Camino 2020 prep

I am about to walk the Camino again. I promised myself this 5 years ago when I did the whole main one. Now at almost 70 years young... I'm in better shape than 5 years ago.  Lighter weight, 2-300 miles backpacking then last two years on the PCT.

best eco-shoes!

I recently ran across this super eco shoe:

SAOLA is just entering its second season of retail sales, so it's still pretty new to the game, but when it comes to ticking all the eco-friendly criteria, you can tell right away that this company isn't messing around. From top to bottom, its shoes make my tree-hugging heart sing. Consider this:

• The uppers are made from 100 percent recycled PET, despite looking like suede. Each pair contains 3-4 recycled plastic bottles.
• The insoles and outsoles are a plant-based foam made from algae. Not only does this clean up the environment and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, but it also makes a super-light shoe that weighs 40 percent less than its conventional lookalikes. Rubber panels add grip at high-contact points on the bottom, and there's a layer of comfy cork on the inside (removable if you want another kind of insole).
• The laces are 100 percent organic cotton.
• Three percent of profits will be donated to environmental conservation projects. Currently, the ones being supported are the Surfrider Foundation, One Tree Planted, and Save the Turtles. You can choose which group you'd like to support when you make an online purchase.

To be honest, I haven't felt this hopeful about an eco-friendly fashion startup in a long time. What SAOLA is doing is cutting-edge and ingenious; I'd even call it revolutionary, something that has true potential to reshape an industry that's notoriously damaging to the environment and workers.

If SAOLA can consistently turn out fashionable, functional shoes with great sustainability specs at such a reasonable price point ($99-$109), then there's no excuse for other companies not to follow suit and clean up their own production methods. Shoes made from recycled and biodegradable materials can, and should, become the new norm. Learn more on SAOLA's website.

© SAOLA -- Women's Atakama shoes (used with permission)

Italy, Munich, Bitburg and home...

The long hiatus on this blog was due to internet and computer issues. It was kind of a nice break, but back on the saddle into documenting some of the happenings on this trip.

Italy

Italy is a respite in time.  They resist many external changes and tend to stay very, very much in their own nationalistic traditions.  Heck, some

mountain shops still accept Lira's... imagine that while the currency is not longer honored by any bank, the Italians retain their own currency as a sign of pride and resistance.
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Newsflash:  Italy's election yesterday:  they just went WAY farther right than Brexit or Trump... yikes!  they (and most of Europe) are really, really fed up with all the refugee

immigrants and cultural clashes on so many levels. I like what one of my friends said: 'if we want immigration to work, we need integration (not immigration) focus'   https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/ap-explains-populist-surge-leaves-hung-parliament-in-italy/2018/03/05/eb95a7ca-208e-11e8-946c-9420060cb7bd_story.html  
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The northern Italian Alps, Dolomites, Sud-Tirol, whatever you call them - are Gorgeous.  Non-Stop Grand Tetons.  The AirBnB I stayed in felt like it was surrounded by heaven-seeking peaks.  Every single window had it's own special composure of a specific peak/mountain range.  And when you walk through Merano (or any of the hundreds of little towns in the Alps) you always overshadowed, watched over by these gorgeous angels.

The little town of Merano sits about 50 kilometers northwest of Bolzano. Both are deep in the northern Italian Dolomites. Merano… wiki here… was the summer home of Queen Katherine II and is a picture perfect little Alpine village that is somewhat stuck in the past, oh! So Italian with some Germanic

tendencies. It’s part of ‘SudTirol’ or southern Tyrolean. Until WWII it was part of Austria but was annexed to Italy by the politicians as part of the WWII treaty. The nice thing is that the people never really noticed this. So you still have an uber-strong germanic presence which the Italians don’t mind. As a matter of fact the rest of Italy delights in being able to go to a foreign country (Austria) without leaving italy.

Merano has a goergeous river that runs through the middle of the city that hasn’t changed for 1000’s of years. It is still focused on being people friendly. There are only two bridges for cars. Both sides of the river are lined with wide open pedestrian zones dotted with charming cafes, pastry shops, bakeries and touristy shops. Countless olc wrought iron benches line the river sides. It is usually filled with people walking, kids playing, and various social activities. In the middle of the city is a brand new Thermal bath complex with a modern hotel. Super enjoyable!  

Munich

Munich continues to be Germany’s most popular city for techies, beer & soccer, gateway to the Alps, and the capital of Bavaria. It is a thriving megapolis of …. people… wiki here…. I’ve been coming to Munich every year since 1992 and it has just grown more hectic each year. Subways, buses and trams are crowded all

day, tourists continually flock to the MarienPlatz GlockenSpiel Kathedral and it continues to evolve as Berlin’s counterpart in the south. The weather in Munich is SO much nicer than northerly (and way colder) Berlin. The ‘sound of music’ alps are a stones throw from Munich.

Munich was also the first large western city that demonstrated successfully one can eliminate ALL cars from the central district and create a more thriving people-oriented commercial districts where the merchants also thrive. Initially the main pedestrian zone was a huge failure, but its continual persistence paid off a decade after it started and now merchants have higher per square meter revenues from pedestrians than from the previous car zones. And it’s more peaceful & comfortable, less pollution and noise…

My airBnB in Munich was the best of the whole trip – by far. Easy to get to – 200 feet from the Tram stop, an extremely hospitable host who disappeared right after I got there on a weekend trip. Hi-speed wifi (although my laptop was down the entire time).

Trier

This is the oldest city in Germany. It was founded as the northern most outpost of the Roman empire. The gateway to the main old town is the ‘Porta Nigra’

which are the tall remnants of a roman Colosseum. It is also the birthplace of Karl Marx. They are celebrating his 200^th anniversay this May.

Trier is a charming little town situated along the Mosel River which is an important and popular wine growing area in Germany. It is close to Luxembourg, and …. wiki here….

My parents live in Bitburg – a little town 45 km north of Trier, so I am very familiar with Trier over the years having toured it countless times with my folks. I do enjoy the quaintness of its compact size.

Bitburg

This is very my father settled 45 years ago upon his return to his homeland. I’ve been visiting him regularly alongside my adjunct-professor gig in Austria since 1992. He passed on in 2012. My step-mom is wonderful 92 years young lady who I’ve grown close to over the years and enjoy visiting. The main purpose of this entire Euro18 trip is to come spend time with her – she believes she’s on her last legs.

After WWII the American AirForce picked Bitburg to one of its main European hubs. There are two military airports here. One (Spangdau) is still in full operation. I hear at least five fighters take off and land each day… doing something in Poland with NATO I am told. Years ago, fighters took off from here for daily sorties and other havoc & death creations in Iraq and other ‘rich’ targets ole Rummy imagined. Politics aside, I wouldn’t be coming here if it wasn’t my parents home. Bitburg is a tiny little town high up the ‘Eifel’ plateau. Just to the north of here the famous Battle of the Bulge was fought and there’s a certain chakra around here that goes back eons.

Bitburg is home to Germany’s largest brewery: ‘bitte ein bit’ is the sound bite for Bitburger Pils, and if ever watched a soccer game you’ve seen their ads.

I enjoy shopping the stores here and know my way around every nook & cranny and usually load up on my last European goodies. I stock up on toiletries and other ‘negative chemical free’ products that the germans are the best in the world in with their ‘precautionary principle’.

the remains

I still have two more cities to go before the flight home. One is Bad Breisig where a good friend lives, whom I met at the Sieben Linden ecovillage several years ago. And then I return to Barcelona for a couple days before my flight. I learned a long time ago to always be right next to the airport a day before a discounted international flight is scheduled. When Murphy shows up on that flight – it can create the worse havoc I’ve ever experienced traveling – and it’s quite nice to enjoy a restful day before a long flight anyway.

Personal note

In one week I will be back home. What a whirlwind of a trip! The last two weeks have been delighted by Dolomite peaks, urban beauty & beastiness, trains & buses & trams, rooms in AirBnBs and a lot of walking in old cities’ pedestrian zones. But these two weeks have also been marred by no internet access, virus on my laptop (ubuntu!), and one big experience back in time.

By some measures this could be the definition of a few weeks well lived. By other measure (and by me) it’s a definitive big ‘why’? I’m getting a bit leary about travel – have been fortunate to have done a lot of it in my life and when I was younger it had a certain novelty and excitement about it. But the drudgery of

late and canceled planes have been replaced by the drudgery of security and the ever suspiciousness of our police state. We have truly evolved over the last two decades into a constant surveillance and ‘guilty until proven innocent’ state of affairs. It’s bad enough in our own backyards where we are accustomed to it and accept it without complaint or notice and travel more and more each year... we are willing lambs to the sacrifice...  

onwards through Deutschland...

from Cologne to Stuttgart to Munich to Merano... german train city… ahhh the pleasures of efficiency and prompted.  i like to take my time at train stations and

enjoy the myriad of people and cultures rushing around... it's grand central station (NYC style) at each major stop.

Yesterday's ride from Cologne to Stuttgart was uneventful... the same ole pushy crowds railing for the first empty (non-reserved) seats and then proceeding to eat all variety of foods and drinks bought at the train station.  I treated myself to a 'bratwurst & broetchen'  a german staple from my childhood 

that used to have me drooling before the plane took off at SFO.  Now it's just a disgusting taste-bud memory exercise that I find a bit disgusting after the initial aromatherapy is done. 

It snowed in Stuttgart last night only about 2" but it was cold and wet and busy... easily found my friend's house and very welcoming reception and delicious dinner and conversation.

Had a wonderful cafe and kuchen (cake) today with weisswurst and a bit of fresh air and relaxation... tomorrow onwards to Munich with a 3 hour transfer stop to enjoy the Altstadt (Old town) and then the incredible gorgeous train ride through half of austria (the Alps section) and the norther Italian dolomites.  I've been on

the train dozens of times of the last two decades+  and consider it to be one of the best train rides in the world...

1 suitcase = 2.61 people

(please see note at bottom)

Checking in with Air Ryan yesterday I noted how many people were max'ing out on their carry-on luggage. If you paid for checking a bag, it's likely to have cost you over 2.5x as much as your seat ticket.  
It's quite the game - maybe the comedy series 2 and a half men would be appropriate here?  nah.... 
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Of all the games played in the travel industry minimizing people to faceless, add-on commodities to help make a Wall street earnings call - this is one of the worse:
The game of carry-on bags. It must be 35x20x20cm and if you paid extra (only $7.50)for a carry-on cabin bag it must be 55x40x20cm.  And they can't weigh more than 10kg (22lbs).  It's unclear if that's together or just for the cabin bag.  But wait!  There's an important part missing: your coat.  Several years ago, we (frequent travelers) figured out how to route around these increasingly crazy regs:  stuff your coat pockets with the heavy stuff as needed.  Of course that means you need a sturdy coat with lotsa pockets.  My outdoor parka fits nicely.  On my last trip it weighed over 30 lbs stuffed with heavy 2Euro coins, 16 oranges, batteries, power supply, swiss knife, etc.  What a pain to carry it around.  But you only need to get it past the gate admitting flight attendant, then you're free to stuff it back into your luggage. At the end of everything - it's still the same weight on the plane, right?  So why the hassle?  As usual, follow the money.
In 2017 USA airlines racked up $4.2 billion in extra baggage fees alone.  The number outside of ticket sales was $28 billion.  I think you get the picture... the airlines have a new business model:  what can we get away with outside of selling seats from point A to B. They call it 'ancillary sales'  i call it 'nickel & diming customers to death'. 
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A friend suggested we can pretend to be pregnant.  Not clear if males qualify.  I can see a whole new market here:  a kangaroo style belly

pouch bag that one can wear comfortably loaded with all kinds of heavy goodies.  There's an added advantage here - you may even qualify for early boarding, and get people to give up their seats on buses and trains (a big maybe!).  
Of course all this applies to discount airlines only - mostly, and not on Tuesdays.   With my millions of airmiles I've accumulated a few lifetime gold/platinum/tritriklium cards that entitle me to untold riches: like three free checked bags weighing no less than 32kg each - which means I have to do a lot of shopping to fill them all, and I end up with countless new suitcases on each trip. 
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Back to the 2.61 ratio.  For my return trip from Euroland to Spain to Stateland, I decided I would buy RyanAir's check luggage add-on feature.  And what a feature it is!  I paid $18 for the actual flight about 2 months ago.  I then added priority boarding which includes a seat assignment and extra cabin bag.  But if i go over 10kg (22lbs) oopps... there's that pesky $100 charge.  Guess what one checked luggage bag cost?  $47.00   That's 2.61x more than what I paid for a seat for my body.  Heck, couldn't we just agree that a luggage bag is a person, and can I have a seat (@ $18) for it?  We've figured out how to make a bodyless corporation into a human being, why not the same for a luggage bag?  

We all know how to convert that into inches right?  2.54 cm = 1 inch.  You divide by two and add 1/2 of that, or was it multiply by 1/2 and add 2 ?? 

And then of course we know what size that approximates:  a breadbox.  Try again... if your bag doesn't fit into the preformed metal bread box located at the airlines' departure gate - your screwed.  Really screwed.  They'll tag your bag, scan your ID/boarding pass which is directly linked to your credit card and send you a wonderful surprise when you're back at home from the airport:  a $100++ fee for that 'last minute' bag. 
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Let's face it, all of these are counterproductive.  The only reason - and I do mean the ONLY reason - for it is competitiveness.
A decade ago I saw a documentary about 'the future or life, thriving...' or something like that about a german exploring the reason why so many people are stressed out, depressed, and generally unhappy with their lives - it all boiled down to competition.  the only reason why most organizations did what they did was because in order to survive they had to compete.  There was no possible way for all organizations to call a cease fire and relax, enjoy making their product and/or service and allow their employees to retain some human'ness dignity.
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Now if it was 2.16 (instead of 2.61) then I would be in total uber-admiration of the airlines because it would give them equal billing with mother nature herself.  2.16 is the golden ratio: aka Fibonacci series.  It's the ratio that governs the planet & moon orbits, our body's ratios, petals of a rose, etc.  And if the airlines ever adapted to this, well then they would really be a 'force of nature'.  stay tuned... 


Note: I welcome any comments you may have on this... (I'm thinking about submitting it as a publishable article in some magazine/newspaper op ed)

German Karnival

Cologne:  I'm so glad I missed this!  German Fasching Fest - or their equivalent Mardi-Gras:  it's said to the second largest after Rio... it was yesterday - yeah!  Nothing like sharing space with crowded, drunken germans looking at a float parade - ha!

But their parade floats do make some audacious political statements:

last year:

this year:

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Walking through Koln today was wonderful... not too many people and easy directions all the way to the big Cathedral.  It is poignant to look at the WWII pictures of 70 years ago and the utter bombing destruction around the Cathedral... quite a miracle that there were no errant bombs and the two domes

were still standing after everything around it was leveled... even sadder that 70 years later we continue to the same thing:  witness Alepo... etc.   But i digress.

Once again tho, finding my way back from the train station once again eluded me... round and round i walked with limpy leggy asking people who had no clue where a street a couple blocks from them was.  

It is nice to be back in Germany...  i was here every year since 1992 doing business and teaching in Austria and a short gig with TU Munich.  The last three years' hiatus was good to reset my ground-hog day repetitiveness.  I don't miss the air travel at all... but it's a heck of a price to pay for a few weeks of enjoyment.  At least in Barcelona yesterday the airport security was so, so much more benign and efficient than our TSA.  i still don't understand the craziness of how we can allow a 90% failure rate by OIG at our airports... we truly are apathetic and nothing has changed in 4 years (first discovered?) and the press is fast asleep at the wheel... or maybe we just assume its (as some idiot? says)  'fake news?  we wish... 

Ok... back on a more upbeat blog here, since I'm not doing airports for another 2+ weeks.  It was so cool to see the first ICE bullet train pull in today. I

remember watching the speedometer go up over 280 last time I was on one... and on Saturday I get to watch it again... wheeeee.  If you've ever been on one, you know about the first time you pass another high speed train going in the opposite direction within a couple meters of each other... it's almost like a sonic boom!