Tag: #folksytravel

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Japan – food and drink

these are from my last trip in Japan.

It’s not creepy, it’s just creap, short for creamy powder, the equivalent of coffeemate
Elegant salmon with scallops and ……
This is my breakfast in the Wakayama business hotel . Not really exciting
This is a little more exciting, breakfast in one of the Toyoko Inn Hotels
Some really excellent beef
Miso ramen down the famous Sapporo Raman alley which is the host of the famous Sapporo Ichiban
Way too many people lined up for the most famous Ramen so I went down the alley a little bit and had some excellent Ramen which you see above
And one of the underground stations you can buy sandwiches in the machine
And the hotel you have machine delivering soft drinks and coffee and tea for breakfast buffet
In the subway station you can buy all sorts of things including baseball caps in a machine
You can buy ice cream also from this famous prefecture well known for dairy products, Hokkaido
In Asahikawa this Tonkatsu restaurant was featured in a television presentation and the food was excellent
This is the tonkatsu (deep fried breaded pork cutlet) with a little bit more sauce than most people use. Excellent food
Sapporo was the place this country loved learning and producing German style beer. This large and very long park has months long beer festivals.
Each company has their own large area
Even Craft beers are present
Even this very famous Munich beer company is present
Meanwhile, back in my old neighborhood sushi restaurant …
You could see the name of the restaurant with the phone number. Everybody here is a lot of fun
But after the sushi restaurant we went to a Thai nightclub serving some of my favorites
Another breakfast, not fantastic but good enough to fill me up to start the day
In Okachimachi, Tokyo you can find this famous Chinese Gyoza restaurant
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Dacau Munich – a dark past

I did not realize how close this prison camp was to Munich but when I saw on the map I had to visit. Below is a link to information about this camp.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dachau_concentration_camp

The famous gate
The entrance where everyone came in
This place is massive. I decided not to walk around the whole area. Visiting the one main museum building and maybe one or two others is sufficient for the history. The rest is a walking tour.
These dots represent supporting sub camps. When I saw this map I found it a little difficult to believe after seeing even the massiveness of this main camp.
This photo above and the photo below are the infirmary areas which were also massive. But the infirmaries were not just for healing people they were for human experimentation as well.
Probably not a relative but the closest to where my family lived. I need to keep looking in other places.
This massive book contains every registered prisoner.
This poster was at the train station
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Dundee Scotland

I have heard about Dundee since I was a little kid but I can’t remember exactly why I know the city. There is a lot of history here but I didn’t find it all that fascinating. It is a quiet and beautiful place on an ocean Inlet.

The facilities were OK but the sign indicates just how much attention this place pays to Reception. Only one time, when I checked in, did I meet who I thought was the owner. No one appeared over the next two days to greet me or anyone else.
My hotel room was very much like many of them I occupied so far in Scotland. They tend to be old houses refurbished, keeping the same small room characteristics of old houses, building separate bathroom facilities for each room and then renting them out. I found it interesting and comfortable
Looking at Dundee from the other side of the bridge
After this breakfast, scrambled eggs with cheese on top and the only sauces of ketchup and “brown sauce”, I decided to go out and buy my own sauces and bring to breakfasts. Soy sauce and sriracha sauce are necessity for me.
This photo reminds me of San Francisco
Actually, I found the breakfast choices kind of amazing and the chef who I was thinking probably is also the owner, the husband of the lady who checked me in, was really extremely helpful and flexible in how the food was prepared.
On the second morning I got smarter and just decided on Scottish smoked salmon with these eggs. I found some soy sauce
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Rome Vatican

I guess I don’t need to explain what this monument is. But I will give a hint, “entertainment”.
The arch of Constantine
The arch of Titus
I hope the game pieces don’t come alive
The former government buildings
Castel saint’Angelo
It’s amazingly small, I guess for small thoughts
Trajan’s market
The motorcycle rental shops love to rent Vespas, the stereotypical style is still in fashion
St. Peter’s Basilica
Inside the Vatican museum
The Sistine Chapel, accessed through the museum
you can see the Hebrew with the Latin. My understanding is that Hebrew was used only in the religious arena and the intelligence spoke Greek since this was formally a Greek influenced area of the Mediterranean. The local people probably spoke Aramaic
I don’t know the significance of the pinecone
Vatican City area
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Scottish Highlands – Castletown & Thurso

Up until about 1400 years ago the Picts were living here pretty much alone. Here is one of their famous stones.
the breakfast was fairly plain but the salted ham was tasty and the black pudding was also very nice. You can see I needed to add some soy sauce which I carry with me to give the necessary flavors. On the left is a small bowl of raspberries, blueberries, blackberries with some yogurt on top
Local old town people called this restaurant “the Indian”
You can see Castletown is a very small place with one gas station
I suspect these people were getting on the small boat to go to the neighboring island, not serviced by ferries
I don’t yet know what kind of “bowling” is going on but there is a huge grass area in the back so it might be something like bocce
Several markets like this had an unbelievably high percentage of rosé type wines I guess that is in demand in Scotland
Look at what all the Shop needs to do I hope this is keeping them busy enough
In the distance you could see the small island of stroma
Thurso has a small railway station with a train once a day that takes you all the way to Inverness
The local church of Scotland
They must’ve had trouble with kids playing with a ball in this area?
This old central government building is now a library
How “wee” can you get?
The town’s World War I memorial
I guess they are famous for their Flagstone
The water is cold like it is in Monterey but outside it is very cold as well, like the coldest day in Monterey. I can’t imagine going swimming here, not after living in Thailand for so many years
The new houses in town. Well, relatively new
This is the post office, newsstand and the general store, another multipurpose business
This is not a roll-on, roll off ferry. The cars have to turn around to get off
I was told this is one of the old ferries. The “more modern” one is on loan to the Hebrides since their new fleet is still on order..
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nuremberg – The court and the city

This is the room where the criminal court for war crimes against the second world war government was held. It was built specifically for the trials
Is there any other good name for a hotdog stand?
Above the door you can see the individual panels of the different districts defined by the Lords or the church. This isSt. Lawrence  basilica
An ancient artwork
Again the coat of arms of the different fiefdoms
A campari spritz which so many people seem to be drinking in the afternoon and the evening
Different from a Campari spritz but you get to know how they are made
The Hauptmarkt|
Schöner Brunnen
Iconic fountain with Gothic church spire
A very tasty spaghetti Bolognese
This just strikes me as funny. It’s a Vietnamese restaurant advertising Japanese Ramen and avocados which are so popular, plentiful and cheap in Laos. Most of the Asian food restaurants we have seen in Europe are run either by Vietnamese or Chinese immigrants
Albrecht Dürer, sometimes spelled in English as Durer, was a German painter, printmaker, and theorist of the German Renaissance. Born in Nuremberg, Dürer established his reputation and influence across Europe in his twenties due to his high-quality woodcut prints.
You see these extended rooms with windows and I was not able to ask anybody why they’re built this way but I suspect it’s for watching what’s going on
This one has a night in shining armor watching out for everyone
The castle
The view from the castle and the photo below explains the different sites
This was a very delicious orange sherbet with some fruit and …. just so delicious
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Verona – AIDA at the Arena

these opera productions in the arena in Verona seem to be very popular. There must’ve been 8000 people there.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aida

You can see this giant mesh behind the stage is really a hand with fingers which move. It was a very interesting set and very lavishly Done

here is the link to the famous triumphal March.

https://youtu.be/l3w4I-KElxQ?si=R-gLhPIsZfiPNzGq

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Porsche town

near Saltzberg, about an hour by bus, is a Porsche museum and a little town called Mattsee. The museum was closed on the day I went there but I found the town to be very interesting and beautiful with a nice nice lake and area for people to go boating and to go in the water. I don’t know a direct link to Porsche but I would recommend looking up information if you’re interested in the history of that car manufacturer. If you want to go to the museum I would recommend checking the day and times it’s open before you go.v

https://www.salzburgerland.com/en/mattsee/events

The castle is just a very large house and I couldn’t go inside. I’m not sure it would be all that interesting.

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verona – Basilica di San Zeno Maggiore

just go visit this place. It’s so beautiful and has such an amazing history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_San_Zeno,_Verona

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_San_Zeno,_Verona

The original bronze doors
St Zeno is here.

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verona – around town

if you have ever heard of Shakespeare and his play called “Romeo and Juliet” then you have heard of the city of Verona in northern Italy not far from Venezia.

This is supposedly the home and the balcony of Juliet. I say “supposedly” because this house is not where she lived. At least this house, if you believe she ever existed, was not owned by the family at the time. And it is questionable the Shakespeare ever saw this house . I have been told by Verona residence, good friends of mine, that the house owned by the family was actually downtown and is now a shop.
You’re supposed to touch the boob. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s an Italian thing.
This is just a neighborhood bar and coffee shop where some Verona friends and a friend from Lake Garda gathered for a spritz and a glass of wine.
https://www.visitverona.it/en/poi/statue-of-camillo-benso-count-of-cavour

MUSEO CIVICO DI STORIA NATURALE below

It look of waking up early in the morning
This is a huge mosquito

MUSEO DI CASTELVECCHIO below

This is the tower which you can climb for the view