EclectEcon

A New Promotion from Delta Airlines??

The juxtaposition of these two items in the seat-back pocket made me laugh:

I don't recall ever having to pay for those bags in the past.

[reminds of the 1950s Shelley Berman skit about flying]

Electric Car Sinkholes

Despite pronouncements by politicians in both Canada and the US to the contrary, J.D.Powers has recently announced that even with the various gubmnt subsidies, electric cars are going to be priced waaayyyy out of line with the prices of other cars for the next decade or so. See this and see Mark Collins' Canadian take on it, too. It sounds as if the electric car is yet another example of gubmnt failure overwhelming any hint of market failure. 

Maybe it was karma, but the Volt’s launch coincided with publication of a 72-page report by J.D. Power and Associates that confirmed, in devastating detail, what many other experts have found: Electric cars still cost too much, even with substantial federal subsidies for both manufacturers and consumers, to attract more than a handful of wealthy buyers – and this will be true for at least another decade.

What little gasoline savings the vehicles achieve could be had through cheaper alternative means. And electrics don’t reliably reduce greenhouse gas emissions, since, as often as not, the electricity to charge their batteries will come from coal-fired plants.

The Obama Energy Department has suggested that, with the help of federal money, manufacturers can ramp up mass production and bring the price of electric-car battery packs down 70 percent by 2014 – thus rendering the cars more affordable.

If it will eventually be profitable for firms to increase production, and if there is a reasonable chance that the prices of battery packs will drop by 70%, they why on earth is the gubmnt involved? Why isn't private capital being invested in the production of electric cars? If you think the answer is that doing so is too risky for the private sector, then it is also too risky for taxpayer investment, too. Gubmnt intervention in this market will distort capital markets even more, attracting scarce capital away from other, more efficient uses.

What is worse, the intervention of the gubmnt in a portion of the market means that others will be very reluctant to enter this sector the auto industry. Who knows how much subsidy will be available for different producers, and who knows whether or how much favouritism will be shown toward GM with gubmnt programmes? 

 

Pirates? in Saskatchewan? "...on Regina's Mighty Shores"?

At Saskatchewan Roughriders football games, the crowd has a great time singing along with a song about pirates in Saskatchewan. When I first heard the song, I was both amused and confused. Pirates? in Saskatchewan? Huh?

The song is about a prairie farmer who lost his farm to the banks and can't find a job anywhere, so he decides to become a pirate on the Saskatchewan River. No matter that Saskatchewan has the booming-est economy in Canada; no matter that there is no branch of the Saskatchewan River going through Regina, home of the Roughriders; fans here love the song. Here's the chorus:

And it's a heave-ho, hi-ho, comin' down the plains 
Stealin' wheat and barley and all the other grains 
It's a ho-hey, hi-hey farmers bar yer doors
When ya see the Jolly Roger on Regina's mighty shores

Regina's mighty shores??? In the city itself there's Wascana River/creek, but it's pretty hard to think of that as mighty (except maybe where it's dammed up to form a bit of a lake). But who cares? It's fun. 

The song is called "The Last Saskatchewan Pirate" by The Arrogant Worms (when I first heard it, I thought maybe it was by Stompin' Tom, but it isn't). The full lyrics are here.

Catch-22 at the Gubmnt Passport Office?

Our four-and-a-half-year-old Canadian passports will expire in less than 6 months. Hence, as many of you know, we will have trouble using them to fly internationally. So we looked into renewing them, only to find:

The Simplified Renewal Application Process allows Canadians to renew their passports without resubmitting proof of Canadian citizenship or supplementary identification and guarantor information. Some conditions apply.

Canadians who meet the following eligibility criteria are now able to benefit from this process:

• Their most recent passport:
  • Must have been valid for five years;

 The most recent passport must have been valid for five years but we have to renew them after 4 1/2 years. So just how does anyone qualify for the simplified renewal process?

addendum: Despite the confusion, I went to their website and there was informed that we can use the simplified passport renewal process if the passport I am renewing is

• no more than six years old and
• is/was valid for at least five years.

Okay. That works. But that past perfect tense in the opening page sure left me scratching my head. I understand now that the minute the old passports were issued, they were valid for five years, but I sure was confused; quite frankly, I had no idea that Canada issued passports with anything other than five-year validity.

Some Reflections on My First CFL Game

Fun things: 

• wading through the sea of green outside the stadium before the game, selling souvenirs. What a mass of happy people!
• entering the stadium and seeing almost nothing but green and white (the team's colours). Mostly green with a bit of white, but with some people wearing black shirts with Rider logos, too. There were a few pockets of fans supporting the Winnipeg BlueBombers, but not many.
• the feeling of belonging one has when being a part of a large group of 40-50 thousand people. I know it can be dangerous, but it also generates a type of euphoria, too.
• playing in a band at a football game. What fun. What memories from high school and from my few years with the UWO marching band.
• The flags, the watermelon hats (and bras!), the other amusing hats and signs. Sorry, no photos. 

Other observations:

• Concession prices. I understand but I'm stunned every time.
• the noise! Wow! I'm taking earplugs to future games. An old friend called my cell phone during the game, but I couldn't have taken the call even if I'd heard the ring. 
• Quality of play: I strongly suspect that any top-twenty NCAA team could beat any CFL team more often than not. It's hard to tell, though, because Canadian football is different: 3 downs, not four; wider and longer field, the backfield is always in motion; no yards rule; one point for a touchback, etc. Or maybe (I hope I am not ejected from the pep band for this) it's just that the two teams I watched on Sunday weren't very good that day.
• It may not seem possible, but it seems to me that last two minutes in Canadian football take longer to play than the last two minutes in either the NFL or the NBA. I think 3-down football, with its more frequent possession changes (and the resulting clock stoppages), contributes to this sense.

Living in Regina, Saskatchewan, reminds me in several ways of a very brief visit I once inadvertently made to Lincoln, Nebraska, on an autumn game day. In both places, everyone wears the team colours, especially on game day. In Lincoln, all we saw was red and white; in Regina, everyone was wearing green, mostly Roughriders shirts, hats, flags draped around them as capes, and other paraphernalia. In Lincoln, people were loud and boistrous, waving and honking their horns. Pretty much the same thing in Regina .... perhaps a bit more subdued (not much, though).

After the game, I changed out of my pep band uniform before Ms. Eclectic and I went out for dinner. I didn't think about it until we were in the restaurant, but I was wearing a pale blue shirt, and Ms. Eclectic was wearing a dark blue sweater over a pale blue shirt. Nearly everyone else in the restaurant was wearing Roughrider green shirts or jerseys; I'm sure some of them must have thought we were from Winnipeg (whose colours are dark blue and gold). I wonder if that contributed to the mediocre service we had.....

I'll have a chance to play during at least four more home games for the Roughriders this fall. And then the pep band regularly puts in an appearance at the Grey Cup (non-stop playing at different venues for several days, I'm told) no matter what teams are playing in it. 

Update: In the comments, Steve asks about the ticket prices, so here are some further thoughts:

The games are all pretty much sold out. It looked to me the last time I checked as if the prices were much higher than I would have thought, but given that they sell out at those prices (people drive in from all over Saskatchewan to watch the games), maybe the prices aren't high enough! Next home game, if I get a chance, I'll ask some of the quasi scalpers what tickets are going for. 

The stadium here in Regina isn't much smaller than SkyDome, and the population base is MUCH smaller. You'd think, then, the Argos should sell out in Trono, too. I guess the Argos don't sell out because they aren't very good. After all, one of the important determinants of the demand for tickets to sporting events is fans' expectations about whether the home team will win.

Also there is an immense sense of both belonging and stakeholdership (if that's a word) among the people in Saskatchewan. That must contribute immensely to their willingness to buy tickets, attend rallies, buy jerseys, etc. 

No, the pep band doesn't pay for its tickets. But if all I wanted was to attend and watch the game, given where the pep band seats are (low in the endzone), maybe I should quit the band and try for a media pass instead. 8-)

Best and Worst Airports?

This is clearly a measure of which airport is comparatively best and which airport is comparatively worst [h/t Jack]. In my experience over the past 75 years, all airports are worse now than they used to be, primarily because of the long line-ups for the security checks. I would gladly pay $25 more just to be able to breeze through these checks. 

But according to this article, in the US, these are the (comparatively) best airports:

• Houston
• Orland
• Minneapolis/St. Paul
• Portland OR
• Providence RI

I have been through Houston a number of times over the past few years. I must agree, all things considered it is a pretty okay airport. But it didn't have "free" wifi (as does Ottawa) the last time I was there, which would have made it even better. 

Recently I have had an opportunity to use the Flint, Michigan, airport. It's pretty okay, too. I especially enjoyed having a beer for breakfast there on a recent trip.

Worst airport? I'm not a big-time world traveler, but I'd say both Gatwick and Islay compete. Gatwick because it is SO busy and confused and frustrating. Islay because the security guards have so little to do that they take every opportunity to explore every conceivable (and inconceivable) security threat.

According to this article, the worst airports in the US are:

• New York City (the article lumps all of the airports there together)
• LAX
• St. Louis (I guess things have changed since the last time I was there... 15 years ago)
• Washington, DC (both airports lumped together)
• Boston

What makes a good airport for me?

1. short, efficient security lines.
2. "free" wifi
3. cheap food with a wide selection
4. convenient, cheap parking

Economics and the Quality of Hotel Toilet Paper

During our recent journey to Regina, Saskatchewan, from Clinton, Ontario, Ms. Eclectic and I stayed in a number of different upper-middle to high-end hotel suites (she is NOT a cheap date!). My memory may be failing me, but it seems to me that the quality of the toilet paper in these establishments has deteriorated over time. Every one of the places we stayed (Hampton Suites, Shoreline, Country Inns and Suites, Hyatt Suites, and Staybridge Inns and Suites*) provided what I would consider mediocre single-ply toilet paper. [recall that I prefer thick, strong, two-ply tissue].

Why would the somewhat higher-end hotels provide such mediocre toilet paper? They provide all sorts of amenities, including shampoos, newspapers, complimentary breakfasts, toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, etc. if you want them. I would think that higher quality toilet paper would be a part of the overall upscale package they offer.

Two explanations have occurred to me, but neither is entirely satisfactory:

1. Not many other people care about the quality, strength, thickness, or feel of hotel toilet paper. The stuff provided is certainly better than that provided in many public institutions and is at the very least adequate. In other words, I'm an outlier with my own preferences, and the extra expense for the hotels would not be justified in increased demand for the hotel services.
2. People, including hotel staff, would steal the better stuff but theft is much less of a problem with lower-quality toilet tissue. Some people have told me that this explanation applies to the facial tissue provided in most places, too. I'm not convinced, though; if this explanation is correct, there should be rampant theft of hotel-provided shampoo, soap, etc.

*I have excluded our stay at "Perfect Inns and Suites" in Estevan, Saskatchewan. It isn't in the same category as the others. Nevertheless, its toilet paper quality was just about the same.

Best Bagels in the Universe

As I have posted several times before, the best bagels in the universe are made at Carmelli's  in Golder's Green in NW London, England. They have a dense, chewy texture that is tasty and substantial (see here and here for two of my previous postings about their bagels). The fact that this is at least my third posting about Carmelli's reveals how much I like their bagels.

In the summer of 2009, I made two trips to Carmelli's: the initial exploration and a final expedition, just before returning to Canada.

This summer, I made three trips to Carmelli's. The first one is described here. The second one occurred while Peggy was visiting me. We caught a field trip bus from the castle up to London, then took the tube to Golder's Green, where we bought a half dozen cheese, two salmon (for Peggy), a dozen plain, and a dozen poppy seed. We were on our way to a cricket-match field trip to Lord's Cricket Ground, and I planned to share the bagels with my students, whom we were meeting there.

We met the students at 11am and after all the greetings and introductions, I passed out the bagels. They all agreed the bagels were the best they had ever tasted. They raved about them so much that the students who had passed on the initial offering asked if they could have one, too. Those who were lucky enough to claim a bagel early got the ones with creamed cheese; those who received bagels later got their choice of plain or poppy seed (both were still warm from the bakery, in my shoulder bag!). As I said, they all loved them. I must say, I had a poppy seed bagel and because it was so warm and fresh I really enjoyed it even though I still prefer the plain bagels from Carmelli's.

I had maybe a dozen bagles left when I boarded a castle minibus that afternoon to return to Herstmonceux. I passed out most of these to people on the bus, who gratefully received them and thoroughly enjoyed them. As you might imagine, the few bagels that were left by the time I was back at my residence disappeared quickly.

But that was not my last visit to Carmelli's this summer. My third trip came en route to Heathrow airport. I bought some plain bagels with cheese for the journey and a couple of salmon bagels for Ms. Eclectic, along with two dozen plain bagels for home. The plain bagels with creamed cheese saw me through a long journey home (lucky thing the customs officials don't have salmon-sniffing dogs!). And the two dozen plain bagels were divided into small groups and frozen. We now have four plain bagels left. We have totally enjoyed them in part, thanks to information provided in the comments by MA here.

If you are ever anywhere near London, England, budget enough time for a visit to Carmelli's. You will not regret it.

Hiking in the Yorkshire Dales

During my last weekend in England, I visited with several different friends in Yorkshire to go hiking/walking in the Dales. I had been preparing for these hikes for the past several months, hoping I would be able to keep up with my friends who are much younger and much fitter than I am.

On Friday, after collecting me from the train station in Skipton, Stuart and I walked to the daycare centre to pick up his delightful daughter. That walk alone was about 38 miles uphill both ways, or so it seemed. After making that walk, I had my doubts about what was to come.

Saturday morning, Stuart and I took the train from Skipton to Dent. As we emerged from the train, we felt a mist. I burst out laughing because last year, when we hiked up Ingleborough, we went through a driving mist much of the time. This year, we were planning to "conquer" Whernside, the third (for me) of the three peaks challenge.  

To meet the challenge, one is supposed to complete the hike around all three peaks, a total elevation change of 5000', total distance of 25 miles, in under 12 hours. Friends Duncan and Gaynor have done the challenge several times, raising money for charity, and Stuart has been up and down each of the peaks many times from many different directions. 

My own plan was more modest: One peak per year. Maybe about 8 hours per peak. Photos from our hike up Whernside are available here, from the publicly accessible photo album on my FaceBook page. The third photo shows the driving rain we went through to get to the top (Stuart and I described it as "walking into a hurricane"). The last few show us in a fairly giddy mood on the train after the hike. Total distance was about 11 miles, elevation change about 2100 feet, time about 6 hours. We made it to the train station in time to have a pint at the pub before returning to Skipton. We sure had fun. 

On Sunday, Duncan and Gaynor picked me up for a day of hiking at Malham Cove, up to Malham Tarn (small lake) and then down to (not through!) Gordale Scar (small canyon) and Janet's Foss (waterfall). We had a wonderful time, and it was great spending time with them again, but I was really tired by the end of the two days....so tired I fell asleep in front of a tv before the World Cup final ended. Here are some photos from Sunday's hike.

What a terrific weekend!

My Visit to Islay, Scotland, at the end of June

It has taken me quite awhile to organize my photos from various travels this summer. Over the long weekend of June 25-28, I flew from Gatwick to Glasgow to Port Ellen (on Islay) in Scotland, mostly to make a pilgrimage to the distilleries of some of my favourite scotch whiskies, but also to do some hiking. 

Photos from the trip, with some running commentaries, are available here. 

Some overall reflections:

• Islay is difficult to reach by someone who has limited time and doesn't drive. The flight connections were not great and bus/ferry connections are difficult, too.
• Arranging a guide was a good plan. She was knowledgeable and pleasant (and relieved that my goal wasn't just to drink as much as possible). 
• When it comes to hiking, trust the ordnance survey maps. If they don't show a trail, there probably isn't one there.
• The trip confirmed my preferences for scotch whisky that is peated during the malting process. And it confirmed which ones I seem to have drifted toward: I especially like Lagavulin (16-year-old) and Caol Ila. LaPhroaig and Ardbeg are okay, and I don't care at all for Bruichladdich.
• It is amazing how small the major world-class distilleries are.
• Peat harvesting is common on the island and a fascinating process. 
• The population of Islay is about the same as the population of Clinton, Ontario!
• Seven-mile beach is spectacular! If you go to Islay, make time to visit it. My favourite time during the visit was walking alone on the beach, facing into the wind, flying my kite. 

Busted by a Narc Sniffer Dog at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport

It's the truth. A customs officer led a cute little dog on a leash through the line-ups as we waited to clear customs and immigration. She had the dog sniff all the carry on bags, and when he got to the area where I was, he was quite confused. He started sniffing my bag and the bag of the woman behind me in the lineup.

Well, I wasn't worried, since I knew I had no illegal drugs with me, but I wondered if some of the aromas I might have picked up while hiking in Yorkshire might have confused the dog. And the young couple behind me didn't seem at all concerned either.

 They don't allow photos there, but I wish I could post a photo of the dog. It was small, cute, and was wearing a thing over its back that identified it as an official customs dog.

 It turned out that the dog correctly identified that I had an uneaten apple with me and the woman had an uneaten banana. Both were illegal and were confiscated on the spot. Fortunately, we were not imprisoned or fined.

 side note: That was a truly dumb routing. I should have been more careful in planning the trip, but flying from London (Heathrow) to London (Ontario) via Chicago means having to clear customs and immigration twice, having to collect your bags in Chicago, and  re-clearing security there. The wait to clear customs and immigration took over an hour, all so I could connect to a flight to Canada. Fortunately, I had a long lay-over so it didn't bother me all that much. I had almost enough time to go into Chicago for pizza, but I didn't have to because Pizza Uno is available at the airport.

The Third of the Three-Peak Challenge

There are three peaks near each other in the western portion of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The three-peak challenge is to follow a fairly set trail, up and down a total elevation change of  more than 5000 feet, reaching each summit, over a distance of about 25 miles. And do it all in under 12 hours.

My first year in the Dales. I went up Pen-y-Ghent (one of the three peaks). It was on that hike that I met Duncan and Gaynor, who, indirectly introduced me to Stuart. Last year, Stuart and I went up Ingleborough (another of the peaks). This year (actually, today) he and I will be going up Whernside. I figure I will have taken about 8 hours for EACH peak over the three visits. I guess that means I don't quite meet the conditions set for the Three-Peak Challenge.

You can see all three peaks in this photo, taken last year when Gerard and I hiked up Rye Loaf Hill. Pen-y-Ghent is on the right, Ingleborough is farther away on the left, and Whernside is the farthest away, near the middle.

 

Fortunately the main social events on the peaks today seem to be focused on Pen-y-Ghent, so I won't be embarrassed by all the young folks passing me. Stuart, bless his soul, has planned the route for our walk so that we have a climb of "only" 2013 feet over a distance of 10 miles. He also planned it so we end at a pub!

Tomorrow, if I can still walk, Duncan, Gaynor, and I will do some more walking around Malham Cove. Since I met them three years ago, Duncan and Gaynor have walked the three-peak challenge twice!

It's sunny now, as I prepare for today's hike. But the weather forecast is gloomy with alternating heavy rain and sun, which means we'll be layering and unlayering quite a bit.

More from Kapuzinerberg

The mountain/hill, Kapuzinerberg in Salzburg, Austria, is a very nice place to walk and hike. There are old fortifications in some places, a monastery, and beautiful views of Salzburg. I have been told that some people rent Segways to take up there, but I'm not sure I would want to count on their making it up some of the hills; also, they might detract from some of the pleasure of ambling and enjoying the sights. Kapuzinerberg is on the north side of the river, and here is just one of the views of the Fortress, on Monchsberg on the south side of the river:

And, I was told, this is THE abbey from the Sound of Music:

The above photo was taken with a 12x zoom lens. Here it is, wider angle, with Untersberg in the background (recall that Untersberg is the mountain down which I hope never to descend again).

  

Shortly after I took those photos, I chanced upon a chamois, grazing along the edge of the trail:

Yes, that is a real, genuine chamois, not a Sham-Wow!

After wandering along the southern side of Kapuzinerberg to the east and following some old fortress walls, I turned north and returned along the northern side of the mountain/hill. Here I was able to enjoy the views of the "newer" portions of Salzburg, including this intriguing building that I had seen near the train station when I arrived.

 

    I liked it, even though the bright colours clash terribly with the typical architecture of the city.

 

Stefan Zweig, on Kapuzinerberg in Salzburg

Last month while in Salzburg, I spent an afternoon wandering around on Kapuzinerberg, a small near-mountain on the north side of the river, across from the Fortress. It felt like a mountain while I was walking up the trail, but when I looked at it later, from Untersberg, I realized it is more like a really big hill. There is an active monastery on the hill, and there are shrines all along the main path.

 

I was mildly amused, as I walked up the hill, to see this, a US mailbox:

As I was taking the photo, a young man emerged from the property and explained to me that this was the former villa of Stefan Zweig, a Jewish poet and author who fled Austria when the Nazis came to power in 1934 and who lived in the United States briefly. I doubt that there is any connection between his having lived in the US in the early 1940s and a new US mailbox, but the coincidence intrigued me nevertheless. 

Up a little higher, nearer the monastery, there is a tribute to Zweig, a plaque and a bust:

 For more on Zweig, just google him. Or start here.

Is it a guy thing, or is it just my usual, phenomenal immaturity?

We were on a geography field trip to a place called Devil's Dyke near the village of Fulking. I thought this sign was funny:

 

I'm told there have been similar problems around the village of Uckfield.

 

Tea at Scolfe's

As I have mentioned before, there is a wonderful country tea room, Scolfe's, in Boreham Street, just a short distance from Herstmonceux Castle where I'm teaching for the next few weeks. I planned one of my walks yesterday so that I would pass Scolfe's just in time for a late lunch. I am so glad I did.

I had been to Scolfe's once before, last year, and had thoroughly enjoyed my visit. The tea room is in an ancient building (probably built in the fourteenth century, before the castle was built). For more on their site and history, see this.

Sometimes Scolfe's is so busy, you need a reservation. This is particularly true on Sundays. Other times you might be lucky and find a table without a reservation, as happened for me. 

Scolfe's does not serve a full afternoon tea like those I have reviewed in the past (see the links below). Rather, their specialty is various teas and lunches. A sample menu is available here.  But I will make an exception and include them in my list, as I did with The Pump Room in Bath a few years ago.

Both times I have been to Scolfe's I have been very  impressed. First, even though it is a small tea room, they provide lapsang souchong tea; many tea rooms this size do not have it available. 

Second, even though they serve the tea in the pot (generally a no-no because of the bitterness that develops after some time), they serve it in small porcelain pots, covered with tea cozies to keep it hot, and one ordinarily finishes a pot before it has a chance to develop the bitterness that comes from over-steeping. Furthermore, they provide you with additional hot water, should you wish it; and, best of all, they will bring you a fresh pot at no charge whenever you like.

Third, the scones at Scolfe's are near perfection, at least for my tastes. They are home-made, on site. They appear to have a bit of whole-wheat flour in them, which suits me. And they are served warm. Not only that, but they are served with clotted cream AND with what seemed to be pectin-free home-made strawberry jam. The entire scone experience was probably the best I have had in all my expeditions... both times I was there.

On this visit, I also had what was billed as "summer pudding", a collection of fresh fruits in a tart-sized bread cup, turned upside down in a bowl. It was very good. But the best part was the ice cream it was served with. It was delicious, creamy, locally farm-made, fresh ice cream. I don't know that I have ever in my entire life had better ice cream. Offer to pay extra for an extra scoop. You won't regret it.

I have enjoyed my two visits to Scolf's so much that I am putting them in my top category, even though they do not serve the full, proper English afternoon tea. That's how good they are!

Later this week, The Lanesboro. Next week, The Grand Hotel in Eastbourne. And a pilgrimage to Islay in between.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

My previous reviews, ranked in order of preference:

      These three were superb. Highly recommended:

• The Four Seasons, London, England
• The St. Regis Hotel, Houston, Texas
• Scolfe's Tea Room, Boreham Street, England (this review)

Those in this next group were okay. I would consider returning to them, but those at the top of the list much more so than those near the bottom of this section:

• Claridge's, London, England
• The Dorchester, London, England
• The Ritz, London, England
• Brown's, London, England
• The Pump Room, Bath, England
• The Windsor Arms, Toronto, Canada
• The Boathouse, Guelph, Canada
• Langdon Hall, Cambridge, Canada

These next two were unacceptable:

• The Royal Crescent Hotel, Bath, England
• The Queen's Hotel, Portsmouth, England

Hiking in the Alps: Untersberg

I have hiked in mountains before, including trails around Lake Louise and Jasper in Alberta; also trails in the Peaks District and the Yorkshire Dales in England. So after having hiked up and down in the hills around Salzburg [Monchsberg to the south of the city; Kapuzinerberg to the north], I was looking forward to a longer hike in Untersberg, just south of Salzburg. 

My plan was to take a bus to St. Leonhard, take a cable car up to the mountain range, then hike along the range and down into Germany and take the bus back to Salzburg. It looked like about an 8 - 10 mile hike. I knew there would be some ups and downs along the hike, and I had a detailed topographical map, along with some descriptions of the trails from several different guide sources online.

I probably should have realized from the reactions of so many people that my planned hike was going to be quite an undertaking.... the receptionists at the hotel, the person in the bookstore who sold me the topo map, my Segway guide, the couple I met walking in the hills the previous day, and the person who sold me the cable car ticket. They all seemed a bit skeptical in their tone, if nothing else. Nobody looked at me and said “you’re joking”; it was more like, “oh, that’s quite a hike!” The couple I had met the previous day warned me that all that going down would make my thighs sore (as it had theirs).

I couldn’t see it. I had done a 16-mile circle walk in the Peaks District last year, with a bad foot even, and it wasn’t all THAT bad. But I should have read the warning signs in their reactions.

When the cable car reached its upper terminal, I realized it wasn’t really the top. I knew from the maps that it wouldn't be the top, and yet I didn't envision how much farther up I had to go just to reach the first peak. But I stopped to take some photos even though it was pretty hazy. In the foreground below, on the lake, you might recognize the mansion that was used in The Sound of Music. And on the right is the Fortress, where I attended the concert Sunday night.

 

That photo was taken with the zoom lens. Here’s what it really looked like, just to give you some perspective: 

 

You can barely see the mansion. The fortress is on the closer of the two hills. The farther hill is actually across the river. At the far left tip of that farther hill is a monastery for which that hill is named. Those two puny-looking hills are the two hills I wandered around on for the previous two days and was so proud of myself for going up and around on. Well huh! They weren’t much compared with Untersberg.

I had to go up and down over some pretty loose gravelly type rock to get to the first peak, Salzburger Hochthron, where the cross is in the distance in the photo below. The keeners from the cable car were long gone by the time I got there, and most older folks just sat on the cable car side of the yawning ravine rather than go over to the first peak. The path the entire way was just a bunch of loose, irregular marble gravel. Lumpy but loose, so I skidded a bit. I was grateful to have had the walking stick with me. This walk, I could see, was going to be nothing like the one in Jasper, where took a cable car up quite a ways and then followed a well-groomed trail to the peak (which was more like what I was expecting .... Hah! Was I ever wrong about THAT!)

 

Yup, there was a bit of snow here and there. Despite the rain followed by a heat wave in the area.

I started out wearing my jacket, a shirt, and a t-shirt. After not long at all (probably right about where I took the above photo), I removed both the jacket and shirt and finished most of the rest of the hike in just my t-shirt.

So I went down the ravine and back up the other side to the peak. It really wasn’t all that bad, but two things combined to make it worse: the elevation, while not super high, had me breathing harder than I expected. And the loose stuff that seemed like scree was very difficult on slopes (and there were NO flat places along the trail, believe me!)

On the peak area (where you can see the cross in the above photo), I looked for a geocache but couldn’t find it. So what’s new, eh?

At the very peak, I looked around, and when I saw the next peak on my planned route, I did an internal gasp. I wish I had taken photos so you could see what I mean (I have a video, but it's 200mgs and will require some editing). The trail there was NOTHING like mountain trails I’d been on before... This one is very rugged (if it exists at all), and much of it appeared to be along the edge of a ridge with a zillion-mile drop. Gulp. I thought, well, let’s give ‘er a shot. After all I’d bought only a one-way ticket on the cable car. 8-)

So I started down into the next ravine on the other side of that first peak. It was really rough going. Lots of rocks and essentially no trail at all. It was worse than the south side of Pen-y-Ghent, the first peak I went up in Yorkshire. I got down to the bottom of the next ravine and realized I’d still be out there at midnight if I tried to complete my original trek plan. So I looked at the topo map and looked around me. I saw a big green line on the map that looked like a wide trail going all the way down. It didn’t look too bad so decided to go down that way. Little did I know what I was taking on, even though I should have. Here’s the map, pieced together from a website:

 

The cable car is the black line with dots that goes in from the right. Hochalm is the hut at the top where the cable car ends. There’s a semi-serious dip (shown in the photo above) between it and Salzburger Hochthron, the first peak along the ridge. And the "trail" I took down is the green wiggly line. Where I had intended to walk was quite a long way along the ridge, wwaaaaaayyyyyy beyond what is shown on this map.

There was nothing dangerous or anything about the trail I ended up taking. It’s just that it was a 1200-meter drop ski run. You know how those very steep ski runs look in the winter Olympics? Imagine walking down one of those slopes! After a 100 meters or so, my knees were yelling at me to call a cab. 

The top part of the trail was especially difficult because it was mostly that loose marble scree and very difficult to walk down without slipping or falling. I must say, proudly, I never fell once. But I think the walking stick saved me plenty of times.

I got down to about 1500 meter elevation (started at the peak at about 1860) and took a break for a sandwich and some nuts and fruit. I also realized about then that I needed to drink more and drink it faster. So I did. Unfortunately, I ran out of water before the end (despite drinking a lot before I left and despite carrying about 2 ½ litres with me), but at least I got a bunch into me. At around this point, I started seeing more grass and less marble gravel, and of course the grass was much better for my knees. Here’s a typical portion of the trail/ski run:

 

Even now, when I look at those tiny, tiny little houses at the bottom and realize how far I had to walk down that slope, my knees begin to hurt all over again.

At 1400 meters I came across a set of alpine huts. 

 

The agony was deepening. I sort of wished I might seriously injure myself so they’d have to heli-lift me off the hill. Another hundred meters on, I saw a guy in the distance, running up, then down the hill. I was impressed. He was the ONLY person I saw the entire way until I reached an asphalt road.

I was taking more frequent and longer stops with every 50 meters that I descended. And when I felt safe doing it, I walked backwards to take some of the stress off my knees (a technique Brian and Eric used last year after Maggie and Petru made us walk down a steep embankment at Beachy Head, near Eastbourne).

 Here is another view of the “von Trapp mansion”, the monastery, and the fortress.

 

Finally, at about 1000 meters, I could see a gravel road that I had been expecting, based on the maps. I figured the slope there wouldn’t be nearly so steep as it had been up on the ski slope but I was concerned about walking loose, slippery gravel.

Would this be heaven at last?

 

Well, it was hard packed, so the going was much easier. 

Up on the ski slope, I’d been listening to, and singing along with The Sound of Music much of the way down. On the gravel I listened to and “sang” along with Mozart horn concerti. I think that really helped. All the sudden I realized my knees weren’t hurting, but maybe it was just the Vitamin I, too.

After a zillion descending switchbacks on the gravel (logging?) road, I reached a parking lot and an asphalt road. I figured it would all be easy from then on. But it wasn’t. Instead it was all downhill from there! This was one time “all downhill from there” was NOT good. 

So I stopped, finished my snacks and rested a bit. Finally I reached the village at the bottom (Furstenbrunn) where, as luck would have it, a city bus was waiting. It took me right to the heart of Salzburg. 

If there hadn’t been a bus there, I’d have tried to figure out how to call a cab, regardless of the expense. I was SO tired from the hike that I started to drift off on the bus. Fortunately, I caught myself and from then on forced myself to stay awake so I wouldn’t miss the stop where I wanted to get off.

The sign at the top of the ski slope said it would take about 2 ¾ hours to get to the village at the bottom. I figured maybe 3, really, given my age and condition. It took me 4. I was worn out, done in. 

Side note: the sign at the bottom says it would take 2 ¾ hours to get to the top, too, but one of the guide sites on the internet says to allow at least 5 hours to go up, no matter which route you take. Given the pain I was in, I almost wish I’d gone up instead of down the mountain.

I didn’t make my originally planned hike, but I did make an arduous hike; I certainly didn’t conquer the mountain. But it didn’t completely conquer me, either. I’ll be generous to myself and call it a draw.

Taking a Segway Tour in Salzburg

I have seen videos of people on Segways, and I have seen security personnel in larger malls riding them. They look like so much fun that when I came across a site advertising Segway tours in Salzburg, I immediately wrote to them to book a reservation for a tour. They said they wouldn’t do a tour on Monday morning (my first full day in Salzburg) unless they had at least two people. I wrote back and asked about paying more and having a private tour. They agreed, and I met them at Mozartplatz to get riding lessons and to start the tour. We met at 8:30, and the tour lasted until about 10:45.

My guide, a young woman named Katia, had been an exchange student in California and spoke perfect California English (but without using “like” every third word). She was easy to talk with. Learning to ride a Segway took me less than five minutes. Lean forward to go faster lean back (not pull back on the handle) to slow down or brake, tilt the handle in the direction you want to turn. Dead easy. Keeping it steady in one spot while Katia described things required some practice, but overall it was a snap. Here I am at the end of my 5-minute practice session before the tour started:

Already, after less than five minutes practice, I felt comfortable enough to wave. Later that morning, other tourists stopped to take photos of me waving to them as we went past them. What a hoot!

It was a cool morning, and we moved fast enough that I was glad to have my windbreaker on, especially up on the hill and in the shade of the trees. Unfortunately, these units have speed governors on them, so the top speed was "only" about 20 km/h. 

We scooted around town, taking bike paths wherever possible. Katia was a little brief in her explanations and descriptions, but she is used to groups and I think having just me made it a bit harder for her. I know that for me to teach economics to just one person when I am used to performing for large groups would require quite a transition.

Then we bombed up the hill [Monchsberg, the southern of the two hills in Salzburg] where the fortress is and sailed along the paths on the “mountain” over to the modern art museum, the ugly, pale, rectangular building in this photo:

 

I had a strong urge to buy some paint and return to paint various colours on some of the bland rectangles of the building.

I had intended to get Katia to take a video of me riding the Segway, but forgot, dammit. It was SUCH a blast.

There are dens, houses, pubs, monasteries, even parking garages blasted into the rock of the hills:

 

 

The parking garage (above) was blasted out of the northern hill/mountain in Salzburg, Kapuzineberg (named for the monks who still have a monastery there).

Segway tours in Salzburg: about 2 – 2.5hours, 65 Euros each in a group, 85 Euros for a private tour. Expensive but loads of fun and worth it for the experience alone. I sort of wish I had rented one to go off on my own that afternoon. But no matter. Stan and I are doing a 3-hour tour of Vienna on Segways on Friday (today). Maybe we can video each other on them!

It Was Flawed; It Was Perfect... dinner and concert at the fortress in Salzburg

Last Sunday evening, a few hours after I arrived in Salzburg, I attended a dinner concert at the Fortress, which is on the southern hill or very small mountain, Monchsberg bordering old Salzburg. Some comments, in reverse order (sort of):

The concert was great. It was performed by a string quartet, joined by a pianist for one number. They started with the Dvorak “American” string quartet. Even if people don’t recognize the name of the piece, the opening melody which repeats over and over and over again (it is Dvorak, after all) sounds vaguely familiar to most concertgoers.

Throughout the concert, the tuning was nearly impeccable (no mean feat, given the temperature changes in the room). And the precision of the timing was very impressive most of the time.

It was clear from the start that the cellist is the heart and soul of the group. He set the tempos, the openings, the finishes, everything. He also played with more emotion than the rest of the quartet. And his dynamic variation added considerably to what might otherwise have been a flatter performance.

The lead violinist was superb. She had far less emotion to her playing than, say, Jennifer Orchard or Scott St. John, both of whom I have seen play many times over the years. But she performed flawlessly.

The second violinist seemed very good. His body language conveyed more of a workman-like manner. At the same time, second fiddle is a role with which it is often difficult to do much more than that. I was very impressed with his devotion to the sound of the ensemble. His precision in fitting his part in with the others was better than I have seen in many string quartets. As the concert progressed, it became clear that his talent was far greater than his rather stiff (or maybe timid is a better word) appearance might have suggested.

The violist seemed the weakest of the bunch. She was still very good, but a few times, mind you only a rare few, she was a bit out of synch with the rest. And she, like the cellist, conveyed much more musical feeling than the upper strings, and her tone was superb.

For the second piece, a pianist joined them for a version of a Haydn piano concerto. Despite her obvious talent, I didn’t much enjoy her playing for two reasons: first, she had far too little dynamic variation for the piece. Second, she and the cellist obviously disagreed about the appropriate tempos. Whenever she could (i.e. on her solo sections), she played faster than the quartet, trying to drag them along. Her glances at the cellist would have killed, had they been daggers. Actually, I found that dynamic amusing.

At the intermission, I tried to ask some of the other English-speaking guests about the tempo clash, but they didn’t seem to notice it. But then, they all applauded after each movement of each piece, too.

Other points: she played from music, which is odd for most concerto performances; most soloists have their music memorized. Also she seemed more intent on showing how technically capable she was by playing the piece fast, versus imbuing it with richer musical interpretation. Maybe that was just her interpretation of Haydn, but it seemed uninspired at best.

I asked the members of the quartet later about the apparent clash in desired tempos. The principal violinist smiled and said you’ll have to ask him (referring to the cellist, who spoke very little English).... they are partners. But she did agree that there had been a difference of opinion about the tempos.

Before the concert began, I took this photo of the town of Salzburg, through a window in the concert hall:

During the intermission, many of us were struck by the colours and effects of the lighting in and on the town below the fortress, so we took turns at the windows, taking photos:

Also, for some reason, the lighting in the hall intrigued me. Here is a photo I took of one of the chandeliers (after about ten attempts to get this effect):

The concert finished with Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. Again, the quartet did a fine job. Excellent tuning and precision. It was especially fun to watch the two violinists co-ordinate their timing so well. Again, I’d have liked to hear more dynamic variation from the ensemble, and in the killer cello entry of the first movement, my own preference is for a rougher, harsher entrance. But I’m probably wrong about my interpretation. After all, it is supposed to be night music, not the Surprise Symphony. The group did an encore, a delightful Mozart allegro.

Yes, there were flaws in the concert. But still it was perfect for me; I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The group was technically terrific and created a wonderful feeling. I know this type of thing can become very glitzy and touristy, but they avoided all those pitfalls. They didn’t announce or talk about each piece (my preference, though increasingly every conductor seems to think s/he is the next Leonard Bernstein at the young-people’s concerts). And they really were very good, despite the negatives I pointed out above. I was very glad I went. Hats off to a fine group:

The next day, I mentioned to a woman in the tourism bureau how much I had enjoyed the concert. She said, “You were lucky, I guess.” That means that sometimes the groups or concerts don’t get such rave reviews (which is what is intended here; I hope that comes through). I would note, too, that this same woman tried to steer me to a dinner concert the next night, where actors in period costumes perform arias from Mozart operas between the courses. No thanks.

· Dinner before the concert was on an open patio at the fortress. The setting was spectacular:

In the background you can barely make out a mountain range called Untersberg. Here is a better photo of the mountain range. There is a cable car that goes up to the peak that is the most prominent in this photo, but the peak to the right of that one, called Salzberg Hochthron, is quite a bit higher. More about my escapades up there in a later posting.

The food was okay. Not great, but okay. I had an apple schnapps to start. Then white wine (with sparkling water), followed by beef aspic, potato soup that was too salty, and vegetable strudel.

This is what the dessert looked like:

A bit too gimmicky for my tastes, and it made me a bit concerned about what to expect from the concert. What a relief it was that the concert turned out to be so good.

And then we all got to climb about 150 steps (or so it seemed) to the hall where the concert was being performed.

· The walk up to the fortress before the dinner and concert. In part as training for future hikes, I figured I would walk up to the fortress and look around a bit before dinner. The hotel clerk said I should allow half an hour. Guide books say it takes maybe 20 minutes. I think I did it in less than ten minutes. Most of the people who were walking up stopped and either didn’t go on up or went back down to take the cable car up. However, at one point I was passed by a guy walking rapidly, carrying his daughter on his shoulders! I was impressed.

Here is a photo from down by the river of the fortress looming over the town of Salzburg. The concert was in a room on the very top floor between the two turrets.

All this happened on my first afternoon and evening in Salzburg. I left London, Ontario, Canada at noon the day before and then flew to Vienna on an overnight flight on which I was surrounded by six different children, five of whom caused a bit of a fuss at one time or another during the night; and the one behind me kept kicking my seat (though he did cut down on it when asked). Anyway, I was pretty tired on Sunday. I managed a very short bit of naps on the train from Vienna to Salzburg, but I was still afraid I might fall asleep during the concert. I think it is a tribute to them that I didn’t.

Dinner, concert, cable car, admission to museums in the fortress: 57 Euros inclusive. And well worth it.

My Day in Ottawa (June 1 to testify about eliminating the penny)

I was in Ottawa a week ago, testifying along with others about why Canada should eliminate the penny. Those who watched the proceedings on CPAC said we were all pretty persuasive. Besides that, I had fun, and I enjoyed meeting the other witnesses and a few of the senators before whom we were testifying. Here are some photos from the day:

I was quite moved and pleased by the Canadian support for Israel. Alternating flags all down Wellington Avenue [update: oops, Wellington Street] and elsewhere.

 

Here's the plaque on the building where we testified:

At Phil's suggestion, after the session and before my plane left Ottawa, I did some geocaching. Coincidentally, one of the microcaches had a flattened penny in it!

I'm in Salzburg right now. More about this trip when I get a chance (i.e. a break from touristing).   

I Walked to Goderich Last Week

According to my Garmin Vista hcx60, it was about 12 miles. Why on earth would I do such a thing? There were several reasons:

• A number of years ago, on a whim, I issued a challenge to my granddaughters to walk to Goderich with me. They wisely declined the challenge.
• In the spring and summer, I often spend time in England, and while I'm there I do quite a bit of hiking. I realized that if I was going to do any more hiking there this summer, I needed to get into better shape. I also needed to assess my current hiking stamina to see how much more work I need to do to get ready.

Several friends in England have encouraged me to get in touch with them while I'm there next month to go walking/hiking, especially in the Yorkshire Dales. In the past I have sauntered on 12 - 16 mile-long hikes (the Seven Sisters along Beachy Head, the 1066 Trail, and of course hikes in The Peaks District and in Yorkshire Dales) with little difficulty (generally well-planned with stops at a pub or two along the way, when possible). I don't want to let these people down by not being able to keep up this year.

Some observations:

• I absolutely love the open footpath system in England which gives walkers the right of access across fields so long as they stay on the footpaths, don't harass the animals, and close the gates they use. I don't even mind it if the farmers have altered the paths to follow fence lines instead of cutting diagonally across a field. I am slowly building up a collection of Ordnance Survey maps, showing the footpaths in various areas.
• Without a footpath system like that, I mostly just walked along the highway between Clinton and Goderich. It was terribly unpleasant, compared with hiking on common footpaths. The dust and noise, not to mention danger, from the traffic made the walk unpleasant. And to top things off, the walk was on the left side shoulder of a crowned road, meaning I was walking lop-sided the entire distance.

I recently purchased a ScottEVest packable windbreaker, a very light jacket that is loaded with pockets. I thought it would be perfect for the hike. I hooked up my earbuds through all the loops of the jacket so I could listen to podcasts while walking. And I filled my 3L Platypus hydration system with about two and half litres of water. I loaded this water-filled pouch through one of the pockets to the back of the jacket, hoping I wouldn't need a backpack for the walk.

That plan didn't work so well (I'm glad I found out here at home, before trying it in Austria or England). 

• Two and a half litres of water weighs a lot. Having that weight at the bottom in the back of a jacket is not a very comfortable weight distribution. I kept the jacket mostly zipped up to help with weight distribution (until I had drunk most of the water). That wasn't a big problem so long as the weather was cool (it was about +10C when I began the walk).
• But after an hour or so, as the temperatures rose and as I generated more body heat, I was stuck, having to keep the jacket zipped up. Of course I dealt with this by drinking the water pretty quickly, to reduce the weight, and that probably wasn't all that bad a result anyway.
• Also, I realized that if I took the jacket off, I would have to take the earbuds out of the intricately woven system that is otherwise very convenient with this jacket. So I left the jacket on for the entire walk, but I unzipped it after I had reduced the weight of the water considerably.

In other words, as much as I like many aspects of the ScottEVest windbreaker, it does not substitute well for a hiking pack. Three other improvements I hope they will make:

• the cuffs on the sleeves are elasticized. They should be velcro to make for easier tight or loose fits.
• too many of the pockets have vertical zips along the side instead of horizontal zips across the top, making it too easy for things to fall out of them.
• some reflective tape on the sleeves and back would be nice for increased safety.

According to the Garmin GPSr, I averaged about 3.7 mph for the first part of the walk (to Holmesville, for those familiar with this area). After a short rest there, I slowed my pace considerably, averaging 3.3 mph for the entire walk. After that, Ms. Eclectic met me at Tim Horton's for coffee, we went shopping at Walmart and Canadian Tire, and then she took me to lunch at Bailey's on The Square in Goderich. 8-)

Overall, I'm glad I pushed myself to do the walk. But I won't do it again. There are several hiking trails around our area that are fun to walk and that are much safer and more pleasant. Getting to them isn't all that easy, unfortunately, especially on foot, so I will probably have to drive to them. 

And an aside to Stuart, Duncan, Gaynor, and John: I think I'll be okay next month.

. . .

Are Airplanes TOO Safe?

Last spring, Jerome (a regular reader of EclectEcon) wrote to me asking if maybe airplanes are too safe. His argument employed a straight-forward use of the concept of opportunity costs: perhaps we could save more lives and improve the lot of more people if fewer scarce resources were devoted to the safety of airplanes. These scarce resources could be redeployed elsewhere, making people better off. His initial e-mail said, in part,

We hear again and again that flying is statistically speaking the safest form of travel.

It seems to me that flying as a form of travel is TOO safe. The public as a whole seem to demand that the risk of a fatal accident be dramatically lower when they get into a plane than they do when they get into a Taxi. The regulatory framework then ensures that this is what they get. Speaking personally I don't need that. I would be happy to get onto a  plane that killed people with roughly the same frequency as say a drive on the Interstate freeway in a VW beetle. My risk tolerance doesnt really vary based on my chosen mode of transport

This got me thinking about how much of the cost of an airline ticket is due to the regulations that ensure this higher degree of safety. ...

It seems to me that if airline safety were less tightly regulated than it currently is, those passengers who require their flights to be orders of magnitude safer than their drive to and from the airport could choose to fly on airlines that stress such high safety levels and those who don't (like myself) could save considerable amounts of money. ...

This question, along with the economics underlying it, seem very compelling to the economist in me. At the same time, I know I would not opt for the risk allocation that Jerome would.

More below the fold.

Atop Rye Loaf Hill in the Yorkshire Dales

Last May I spent a few days in the Yorkshire Dales. One of those days was spent hiking up to the top of Rye Loaf Hill with a former colleague from the castle. Here is a photo he took of me up there. I'm still over-awed by the beauty of the Yorkshire Dales. I expect you can see why I hiked more and blogged less back then.

In the background, you can see all three of the famous "Three Peaks" from the Yorkshire Dales. On the right in the photo is Pen-y-Ghent, which I hiked up two years ago. The peak on the far left is Ingleborough, which I hiked up with Stuart just two days before Gerard and I went up Rye Loaf Hill; only that day we faced a driving foggy mist, not gorgeous sunshine. And in the far distance, looking more like a mound than a peak, is Whernside, which I have not yet been on. .... Maybe next year....

I Love the Landscape of Saskatchewan

I recently returned from a short visit with various relatives of Ms. Eclectic in Saskatchewan. It was my third time in the province, and I must say, I love the landscape of the province.

Most people think of Saskatchewan as flat. They make jokes about its flatness, such as alleging this is a topographical map of the province:

But for the most part, the province isn't all that flat. Sure, there are some places just as flat as Illinois, but really Saskatchewan is filled with wide open spaces and rolling hills. And the rivers have deep banks or small canyons (called coulees) that add to the beauty of the province.

Scotch Therapy!

Ms. Eclectic has long maintained that scotch therapy is the best way to deal with colds or the flu (see this, for example). And now we learn that Russian physicians are advising travelers to drink whiskey to deal with possible swine flu infections:

Russian soccer fans heading to Wales for next month's World Cup qualifier have been urged to take unique precautions to ward off swine flu: drink Welsh whisky

"Welsh whisky is on offer to Russian supporters as a disinfectant," Alexander Shprygin, head of the national team's fan club, said Monday. "This will relieve any symptoms."

We both concur with one of the comments on that story: is there some way to convince our drug plan to cover single-malt scotch if we get the flu?

More: But I guess it is possible to overdo it:

People who consume, on average, more than one alcoholic drink daily face a significantly higher risk of developing six types of cancer, according to sobering new Canadian research.

But as Ms. Eclectic also says, she had cancer before she started drinking much. So maybe the direction of causation is reversed? 8-)

Another Pilgrimage: Whitehaven Mansions

Perhaps this was an odd pilgrimage to make while I was in London last May:

Do you recognize the place? A clue is in the title of this posting.

The person who took the pictures with me in them had no idea why the building might be important for anyone. When I asked him, "You know why I want my picture taken here, don't you?" he replied, quite correctly, "because you're a tourist?"`

Answer below the fold.

Herstmonceux Castleand the International Study Centre

I am presently in Southeast England, where I am teaching an introductory course in microeconomics for the International Study Centre at Herstmonceux Castle:

Regular readers of EclectEcon will remember that I have taught here before. In fact, this is my third visit to teach at the castle. It is a wonderful experience, with small classes and a variety of interactions with students, staff, and colleagues. I am delighted to be back here.

Here are some views of the inner courtyard of the castle:

Panache: An Allegedly 5-Star Restaurant

While in Quebec City, Ms. Eclectic and I had lunch at Panache, a restaurant that is highly rated by most reviewers. One person told us after our experience that Panache is a five-star restaurant. Nevertheless, we were unimpressed.

The salmon tartar we had as an appetizer was okay, I guess, but I'm not all that keen on it. More disappointing, though, were the entrees. Ms. Eclectic's chicken something tasted more like something than like chicken. It was just plain weird; I don't mind unusual sauces, but to completely distort the flavours seemed unnecessary and ridiculous. And my rolled pork was way too dry for pork. It was clearly over-cooked.

Two other points: the wine is tremendously over-priced, and the chocolate-pastry desserts, while tasty, were hard and dry. Quite frankly, I wonder whether for entrees and dessert we were served leftovers from the previous day or two.

Not only were we unimpressed with the meal, but we were so put off by the experience that we decided we would probably not enjoy staying at the Hotel St. Antoine, which we had been considering for our next visit to Quebec City.

Even though I am the self-proclaimed chair of the PLO, I certainly expected different and better than what we experienced.

Others may rate this restaurant highly but in my view, the emperor had no clothes.

Photos from Quebec City

We love visiting places "slightly" off season. Last April and May, we traveled to the Maritimes, ending our journey in Quebec City in early May, well before the onrush of tourists for the summer. We had an excellent time there with our friend, The Interpreter, and so we decided to return during the university's February break. We timed it just so we would miss all the visitors for Carnival. Again we had a wonderful time. Here are some photos (all taken on my iPhone and hence not all that great) from our visit.

The Hotel Frontenac from our suite at Hotel 71 on the night of our arrival:


And the next morning:


From up on the Plains of Abraham during one of my early morning walks:


During our stay, there was quite a blizzard. Here is a snow pattern on the roof of the Museum of Civilization, from our suite:


And here are two street scenes. The Rue St. Anne, during an early morning walk,


and Rue St. Paul that evening:

The Hotel Carter in Manhattan

Has anyone stayed there? Jack recommend that BenS consider it because it is near the theatre district. Fortunately, he also sent a link to the reviews. 527 out of 803 reviews gave it only one star. See this for the reviews.

Update: I am confident that Jack was not serious.