Roadtrip Italy, August 2014

Piazza San Marco, Venice

This year, we went to Italy on a roadtrip, but also stayed a week in a house we rented in Umbria (near Perugia) with friends.
Saturday 16 August: Departure from Copenhagen Airport and arrival at Munich Airport. We rented a BMW 640d, M styling convertible in Munich and drove straight to Venice. We drove through Austria and enjoyed the scenery and arrived in Venice late in the afternoon. We had a lovely dinner at a restaurant and had a nice walk around town, where we saw the Piazza San Marco (square) etc.
Sunday 17 August: Waterbus on the Canal Grande. We saw the Ponte di Rialto (bridge), and a lot of other Venice sights as well. We departed Venice and drove to Lake Garda, where we had a nice lunch in the sun. Afterwards, we drove to Milan and checked in at our hotel in the Eastern part of Milan.
Monday 18 August: We saw the Duomo of Milan (cathedral) and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II (shopping mall).

Relaxation, Empoli house

Tuesday 19 August: We departed Milan and drove to Cinque Terre (rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera, comprised of five small villages). Afterwards, we drove to the house near Empoli in Tuscany that we had rented for a couple of days. We were greated by the owners of the house (who occupied the house next to ours) and were given a tour of both the house and the magnificent vegetable garden, which we were encouraged to use.
Wednesday 20 August: We drove to Pisa and picked up one of our friends and relaxed the rest of the day at the house.
Thursday 21 August: Trip to Florence. We saw the Ponte Vecchio (bridge) and walked around the old part of town.
Friday 22 August: Trip to Lucca. We walked around the old walled part of the town. Late in the evening, we welcomed some of our friends.
Saturday 23 August: Departure from Empoli and then we all traveled to the next house close to Lake Trasimeno (4th biggest lake in Italy), near Perugia.
Sunday 24 August: Relaxation at the house.

Stelvio Pass

Monday 25 August: Short trip to Lake Trasimeno.
Tuesday 26 August: Trip to Perugia and Assisi (know for St. Francis of Assisi).
Wednesday 27 August: Relaxation at the house.
Thursday 28 August: Trip to the "wine town" of Montepulciano and Bagno Vignoni (hot springs).
Friday 29 August: Relaxation at the house.
Saturday 30 August: Departure from the house and travel towards the Alps (Bormio).
Sunday 31 August: Trip to the Stelvio Pass (mountain pass in Northern Italy, at an elevation of almost 3.000 m). Afterwards we drove to Munich and handed back our car and then went back home to Copenhagen by air.

Independence for Scotland - Yes or No?

A referendum on whether Scotland should be an independent country will take place on Thursday 18 September 2014.
My opinion? I think Scotland should vote No.

A little history: Scotland and England united to form the "Kingdom of Great Britain" in 1707, by virtue of the Acts of Union. From 1801, the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland" and from 1922 the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland".

Why Scotland should vote no:

• Scotland gets the best of both worlds: A powerful Scottish parliament with power over things like schools, hospitals, police and transport and Scotland gets the strength and security of being part of the UK, one of the biggest economies in the world
• Influence and impact: As part of the UK, Scotland is on the UN security council + more than 250 UK embassies and consulates worldwide help Scots companies and travelers
• More security: The UK armed forces are one of the best trained in the world. As part of the UK, Scotland is protected by an army, navy and air force far bigger than Scotland could pay for on its own
• Keep the pound: Today, the UK pound is the currency in Scotland and the mortgages in Scotland are backed by the Bank of England. If Scotland leaves the UK, it would have to set up a new currency from scratch or join the Euro, leaving the Scottish people with higher mortgage bills and trade with the rest of the UK will become more costly
• More jobs and more customers: Scotland is a country of 5 million people, and sells its goods and services to a home market of 60 million customers. The SNP government's own figures show that Scottish firms sell twice as much to the rest of the UK as to the rest of the world combined
• Strong ties: There are strong historical and contemporary ties between Scotland and the rest of the UK from the Reformation and Union of Crowns to Scottish involvement in the growth and development of the British Empire and contribution of the Scottish Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution. Almost half of the Scottish population have relatives in England, almost a million Scot-English live and work in England and 400,000 Anglo-Scots now live in Scotland

source (facts above): bettertogether.net

Book recommendation NO.2: "The Shah", by Abbas Milani

I have just finished reading "The Shah". It is very recommendable.

My book review: This biography is about the last Shah of Iran and traces his rise and fall and his role in the creation of the contemporary Islamic Republic. The author brings a new set of facts from a variety of sources, such as recently declassified British, American and Iranian documents and hundreds of interviews which makes this book relevant to the current democracy movement in Iran and to U.S. –Iranian relations. The book is also a deeply researched portrait of the shah’s private life, which included three wives, alleged mistresses and extravagances in palaces etc. The author lets the reader make up his/her own mind and establishes a base for readers to form their own opinions. Sum up: This book is about a man who modernized Iran and in doing so ensured his own downfall.

Details: "The Shah". Author: Abbas Milani. Publisher: Palgrave MacMillan, 2012.

Quotes of the month - 2013

December 2013: The only way to do great work is to love what you do (Steve Jobs, 1955-2011)

November 2013: Be yourself; everybody else is already taken (Oscar Wilde, 1854-1900)

October 2013: If you put the government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in 5 years there would be a shortage of sand (Milton Friedman, 1912-2006)

September 2013: Always aim high, work hard, and care deeply about what you believe in. When you stumble, keep faith. When you're knocked down, get right back up. And never listen to anyone who says you can't or shouldn't go on (Hillary Clinton, b.1947)

August 2013: Some see private enterprise as a predatory target to be shot, others as a cow to be milked, but few are those who see it as a sturdy horse pulling the wagon (Winston Churchill, 1874-1965)

July 2013: We will stand on principle or we will not stand at all (Margaret Thatcher, 1925-2013)

Michelle Obama for U.S. Senate?

Is it possible that Michelle Obama would run for a seat in the U.S. Senate in 2016? The next time the people of the state of Illinois have to choose a senator is in 2016 when the incumbent Mark Kirk (R) faces reelection. Perhaps the first lady wants to run for that office and follow in the footsteps of Hillary Clinton?

Why she is going to run:

• She is popular, not only in the USA, but especially in her home state of Illinois.
• Everybody knows her, especially in Illinois – and for good things.
• The USA loves political dynasties, look at the Bushes, the Clintons and the Kennedys.

Why she is NOT going to run:

• She would have to spend the last year of her husband’s presidency campaigning. (However, Hillary Clinton did that in 2000).
• Unlike Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama has never taken a position on anything that is controversial.
• If her husband, President Obama’s popularity decreases, her own popularity might decrease as well.
• In 2016, her daughters would be teenagers and they have never seemed happy with campaign life.
• She has stated several times that she is not interested in politics…

Nobody knows until December 2015, when candidates have to file entry papers :-)

Book recommendation NO.1: "Prague Winter", by Madeleine Albright

I have just finished reading ”Prague Winter”. It is highly recommendable.


My book review: Former US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright tells about her early childhood in Prague, Czechoslovakia during the turmoil of Nazi occupation; her life in London, UK during World War II and the onset of the Cold War, when she lived in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. The book is very personal and a combination of an autobiography and a drama. A serious work of history, where Albright traces her family’s history and touches upon the fact that she was raised Catholic and learned about her Jewish heritage as a 59-yearold – one month before she took office as Secretary of State. The reader learns that Albright lost several family members at Theresienstadt and Auschwitz. Finally, she also gives a thorough insight in the cultural and political history of the region and of the multilingual, blended heritage of Czechs, Slovaks, Germans, Hungarians and others.

Details: "Prague Winter: A personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948". Author: Madeleine Albright. Publisher: Harper Perennial, 2013.

Why Aston Martin is classy

Not much of a fan of cars, but I surrender to Aston Martin. We have rented an Aston Martin DB9 while on holiday in Provence and this car is high quality, exhilarating to drive, has a stylish design and Aston Martin is also featured in many of the James Bond movies.

Trivia: 0-97 km/h (60 mph) time of 4.1 seconds. Top speed 295 km/h (183 mph). Engine V12. In 1982, Aston Martin was granted a Royal Warrant of Appointment by the Prince of Wales. The company holds the warrant to this day.