Finally!

Bone Marrow Bob got his first courier trip of the year. He was antsy to get on the road again. Destination - Portland, Oregon Portland is not one of Bob's favorite cities but he found a few things to like. First, its all about the food. Only in Portland would they come up with Hillbilly Bento. There is some exceptional food in this city. The oysters are fresh as they come and slide down easy with home brewed Dead Guy Lager. Other things to like about Portland - free metro, no sales tax and great shopping. You don't even have to leave the airport to find beautiful art that Portland is known for. Did I mention no sales tax? Austin's airport has got nothing on PDX. They have live music and pretty good food.

It was a quick trip as usual. As Bob was headed toward his car to go home he spied the 4:20 to Frankfurt(a flight he often takes). He was glad he was not on it since the Iceland volcano had erupted. That plane might still be flying around somewhere.

Italy in February

Its been a long dry spell for Bone Marrow Bob. There have been no courier trips since August. That's the nature of the beast. You never know when the next trip might be. There were a few last fall but most of them got postponed or cancelled. Don't ask. There are some on the horizon, however, so stay tuned. In the meantime Surfer Bob was tired of sitting on the shelf so he up and went to Italy again. This time, Rome and Venice and places in between. Three coins in a fountain and check out all the people having their picture taken in St Peter's Square. A photo op Bob could not resist. Surfer Bob paid homage to Alaina in Siena. Here he is in front of Il Duomo where Alaina took one of her most beautiful photos. There were many churches and art museums to see and as much as Bob is a fan of the Renaissance, a trip to Venice would not be complete without a visit to the Peggy Guggenheim with its fabulous collection of 20th century art.

Oh the grande canal, the gondolas, the bridges, sigh.

Paris

Surfer Bob has always wanted to go to Paris, with or without marrow. Last week he went without.

He had to have an iconic picture taken in front of the Eiffel Tower, a la the Travelocity gnome or the yard gnome in "Amelie". He hit all the hot spots, the Louvre, Sacre Coeur, Notre Dame, Champs-Elysees, Arc de Triomphe. Pretty much saw as much as he could in 4 days. Of course, he ate his way through Paris. The boulangeries were amazing. What happen to the cheese course in the restaurants? They don't exist any more. Paris is getting so modern. There are too many museums to see them all in a short time so a rainy Sunday found Bob at the Musee D'orsay, a veritable who's who of Impressionist artist. The collection makes the Art Institute of Chicago or the Met look second tier. And everyone in Paris was there to enjoy free museum day. A trip to Paris would not be complete without some evening culture. The ballet was performing at the Opera Garnier. The opera house was built in the mid 19th century and is a rococo wonder. Here Surfer Bob does his best impression of the phantom.

There's no telling where Bob will turn up next.

Salt Lake City

Bone Marrow Bob can not stay still! Three days after he's back from vacation he's on the road again. Doesn't the Mormon Tabernacle Cathedral look a little like Disney Castle? The side view is taken from the visitor center, which was the only way to get a photo. BMB was approached to convert but the lady was a little taken aback by his appearance and backed off. Didn't Brigham Young have any imagination when it came to setting up a city? Couldn't he have come up with better names for streets than East, North, 900,etc? It makes Temple Drive sound unique. Here's a fact that you may not know if you are over a certain age, High School Musical is filmed at East High School. Located on East Street(see above) in Salt Lake.

The Radisson at the airport has its good points and bad points. Good: free happy hour served by maybe a distant Mormon relative, Tyler Savage.

Bad: the swimming is dry. What is it about airport hotels that they can't fill the pool(see Phoenix)

Trip Advisor

Well, purely on vacation, Surfer Bob went to the wine country. Napa Valley, to be exact. Here he is surfin the grapes. The food, wine and weather were all great.

A few trip advisory notes and observations: if you go to Frankfurt you can skip the doubledecker bus tour especially if it is at 4:00. The tour guide can be stereotypically German in his delivery," on the right.... on the left...." no stops for pictures. My favorite...last stop, get out enjoy and walk back to your hotel.

New York is still expensive in the dead of summer. You might think twice about staying at the Hemsley Park Lane. The rates and location are good but the interior is a little smarmy. Apparently it is for sale just as soon as Leona's will is out of probate.

Wondering what happen to Sarah Palin after she left office? I think she is a flight attendant for AA , and I might add, she is not doing any better at that job than governor.Ok so maybe it was just someone who looked like her.

Impossible Germany

It's really not impossible, that's just the name of a Wilco song. It was a very brief trip and the donor went over and above what most donors are asked to do. I can't go into details because who knows who reads this blog and might possibly figure out who's stem cells went to whom so I will leave it at that. I will say I wasn't sure of my flight until the very last minute, like when I was on the plane.

Don't you hate it when you go to Europe and all the sights are covered in scaffolding? This magnificent castle is half way surrounded. The good news is I've already seen it.

This cat sculpture guards the gate to the old city of Heidelberg. HE's holding a mirror but since I don't read German I don't know why.

Frankfurt has many wonderful museums. One I didn't go in, but Bob couldn't resist getting his picture taken with this character, is the Museum of Characaturas.

Italy in the Spring

BoneMarrow Bob loves the international trips! This time it was back to Milan. Actually the clinic was outside of Milan and finding it would have been next to impossible if not for Bob's driver, Adrian. Here's my plug.... if you need a car and driver in Milan go to:  www.MILANOBYCAR.com  It is competitively priced and excellent service.

After the drop, its all play for Surfer Bob. The roof of the Duomo is a good place to hang out. I don't need to mention that Milan is the fashion capital of the world. Surfer Bob could use a new red designer suit but, let me tell you, the prices are no cheeper in Italy. But what a selection, Vesace, Armani, Brioni, Dolce and Garbana , the list goes on. Ah, la dolce vita!