The week after the Marine Ball, I headed to Berlin for a three-day FAWCO board meeting, followed by the Region 5 meeting, with participants from all over Germany as well as the board (with members living in Dubai, Saudi Arabia, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany and the president of the FAWCO Foundation who lives in England). They are an amazing bunch of women and I'm really honored to be working with them and with FAWCO.
Our board meeting was held in the home of the FAWCO president in Berlin. Our meetings last the entire day and, naturally, discussions continue over dinner.
We were invited to attend a performance by Robin Goldsby, a friend of mine who lives in Cologne. She is a piano player and author of many books about music and combines the two in a very entertaining performance in which she reads excerpts from her books and performs her music (for more about Robin go to http://www.goldsby.de/robin/index.php). We were privileged to attend her performance at the Steinway showroom in Berlin.
We had dinner at a traditional German restaurant where I ate crispy pork knuckle (and beer) and also ate at an Australian joint where I had a kangaroo burger! Although the burger was, well, edible - and I'm glad to have tried it - I wouldn't recommend it over a regular beef burger :)
Oh yeah, we had some more beer - this is Germany after all!
After our board meeting we moved into the city center to the Hollywood Media hotel where the Region 5 (Germany and Austria) meeting was held and attended by 32 women spanning the region. Friends from all over Germany attended and it was such a delight to spend time with such a fun group. Although we had many hours of meetings, we had time for a bus tour of Berlin with special stops at the Holocaust Memorial and the Berlin Wall Museum. It is strange to think that it was only in 1989 that the wall was torn down. We also visited the Ronald McDonald house in Berlin which is strongly supported by the AWC of Berlin. My friend Angelika, a native west Berliner married to an American, and the president of the AWC Berlin, was recently honored by the city of Berlin, as one of its 200 most inspiring citizens. I'm privileged to know her.
That eveing we gathered at the Hard Rock in Berlin to celebrate our friendships and have a bit of fun - and yes, a bit more beer :)
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
Happy 236th Birthday
This year we attended, for the third time, the annual US Marine Ball, celebrating the 263rd birthday of the United States Marine Corp. It is always a big event, a formal dinner with about 200 guests, including civilians, military personnel (from all branches) and their spouses, employees from the embassy and consulate and other distinguished guests. There is a cocktail hour before guests are seated for dinner, which is followed by a formal military service, led by the most senior embassy official (last year the US Ambassador, this year the US Deputy Chief of Mission) and a somber reminder of marines lost and stories of marines. Both the oldest and youngest marine in the room are acknowledged. After the ceremony there is music and dancing and lots of merriment. It is particularly rewarding to see the young marines enjoying themselves - and always a delight for me to be photographed with them in uniform :)
Many of my AWC friends regularly attend, and it is always a fun evening.
This year we met some new friends and did lots of dancing. At about quarter after midnight our cab arrived to take us home to get to bed in order to be ready for a wine tasting on Sunday afternoon!
What a weekend.
Girls in the Dam
In October, friends from the States had plans to visit Amsterdam, and we caught up for an evening. I know Sheila and Michelle from college, and Hollie is a friend with whom I worked at Midnight Networks. As it turned out, Michelle and Hollie were attending the same conference, although they've never met. Small world
Sheila and Michelle were staying at the Citizen M hotel in Amsterdam - a cool, self-serve, "pod" hotel.
The rooms are all exactly the same, with one very large bed, a shower with a circular, clear glass door, and a toilet, with a circular, frosted-glass door. The concept is an interesting one, and works well - the place was modern, safe, clean, new, comfortable and efficient. The remote operates the lights (including the color), the temperature, the window shade, the tv and the alarm clock. Cool stuff.
This artwork is a bit tough to see, but if you look closely you'll see the artist's depiction of what might be happening in each of the rooms...Sheila was bit shocked when she took a good look! This is Amsterdam, after all :)
We had a late night with a few martinis so I stayed with Sheila and escorted her to the airport the following morning and heading back home on the train.
What a delightful reunion!!!
Two days later I headed back into Amsterdam to meet Hollie. From central station I took a tram to the Leidseplein. As I stepped off the tram I was struck from the left from a full-grown Dutchman who was running past the door at speed. I was knocked backwards into the steps and then fell forward onto the ground. I scrambled away from the tram, afraid that it would move before my feet were clear. I realized that my phone, which had been in my hand, had been knocked away and I bent to look under the tram for it. I think the woman standing in front of me thought I was collapsing. I'd twisted my knee, but was ok - more shaken than anything.
The perpetrator had apparently seen the phone fly out of my hand and had retrieved it. He handed it to me and said something in Dutch, which I didn't understand, but presumed he'd asked if I was ok so I said, "I'm alright, I'm ok, I'm ok" - but he said, "oh, you speak English - just make sure you have everything" - not "geez, I'm awfully sorry, are you ok?"!!! Anyway, moments after the tackle, it was better than ever to see Hollie and give her a hug - and have a large beer!
I'd wanted to return to the restaurant where I'd had dinner with Sheila and Michelle earlier in the week as Sheila and I had both left our umbrellas behind. Nothing that couldn't be replaced - and I certainly own more than enough umbrellas - but retrieving the lost umbrellas would feel like a coup. It was just a few hundred yards away so we headed there. Sure enough, the owner recognized me before I asked and handed me both umbrellas. Certainly we'd thought we'd never see them again - umbrellas the kind of things prime for losing :)
We walked back to the plein and settled down for some beer and a catch-up while we enjoyed the interesting people-watching that Amsterdam offers on a Saturday evening.
Feeling hungry, Hollie and I headed back down the street where the Argentinian restaurant is and considered the menu. And then we walked a bit further to find what turned out to be a spectacular Indian restaurant where we enjoyed a delicious and spicy meal! It was kind of special as, it was Hollie and the Midnight Networks crew that introduced me to Indian food - and it has been a favorite of mine since.
I headed back, not too late, accompanied by about 20 German tourist on the tram, to Amsterdam Central Station to catch the train home. Always a pleasure to see Hollie, always!
Here's a film capturing the fun visits:
Sheila and Michelle were staying at the Citizen M hotel in Amsterdam - a cool, self-serve, "pod" hotel.
The rooms are all exactly the same, with one very large bed, a shower with a circular, clear glass door, and a toilet, with a circular, frosted-glass door. The concept is an interesting one, and works well - the place was modern, safe, clean, new, comfortable and efficient. The remote operates the lights (including the color), the temperature, the window shade, the tv and the alarm clock. Cool stuff.
This artwork is a bit tough to see, but if you look closely you'll see the artist's depiction of what might be happening in each of the rooms...Sheila was bit shocked when she took a good look! This is Amsterdam, after all :)We had a late night with a few martinis so I stayed with Sheila and escorted her to the airport the following morning and heading back home on the train.
What a delightful reunion!!!
Two days later I headed back into Amsterdam to meet Hollie. From central station I took a tram to the Leidseplein. As I stepped off the tram I was struck from the left from a full-grown Dutchman who was running past the door at speed. I was knocked backwards into the steps and then fell forward onto the ground. I scrambled away from the tram, afraid that it would move before my feet were clear. I realized that my phone, which had been in my hand, had been knocked away and I bent to look under the tram for it. I think the woman standing in front of me thought I was collapsing. I'd twisted my knee, but was ok - more shaken than anything.
The perpetrator had apparently seen the phone fly out of my hand and had retrieved it. He handed it to me and said something in Dutch, which I didn't understand, but presumed he'd asked if I was ok so I said, "I'm alright, I'm ok, I'm ok" - but he said, "oh, you speak English - just make sure you have everything" - not "geez, I'm awfully sorry, are you ok?"!!! Anyway, moments after the tackle, it was better than ever to see Hollie and give her a hug - and have a large beer!
I'd wanted to return to the restaurant where I'd had dinner with Sheila and Michelle earlier in the week as Sheila and I had both left our umbrellas behind. Nothing that couldn't be replaced - and I certainly own more than enough umbrellas - but retrieving the lost umbrellas would feel like a coup. It was just a few hundred yards away so we headed there. Sure enough, the owner recognized me before I asked and handed me both umbrellas. Certainly we'd thought we'd never see them again - umbrellas the kind of things prime for losing :)
We walked back to the plein and settled down for some beer and a catch-up while we enjoyed the interesting people-watching that Amsterdam offers on a Saturday evening.
Feeling hungry, Hollie and I headed back down the street where the Argentinian restaurant is and considered the menu. And then we walked a bit further to find what turned out to be a spectacular Indian restaurant where we enjoyed a delicious and spicy meal! It was kind of special as, it was Hollie and the Midnight Networks crew that introduced me to Indian food - and it has been a favorite of mine since.
I headed back, not too late, accompanied by about 20 German tourist on the tram, to Amsterdam Central Station to catch the train home. Always a pleasure to see Hollie, always!
Here's a film capturing the fun visits:
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