Friday, April 30, 2010

Going Cuckoo

Did you know that (A) cuckoo birds exist in places other than clocks, and (B) they sound EXACTLY like said clocks?

Well, I thought the cuckoo bird was just a little wooden bird that came out of cuckoo clocks on the hour and made a happy little "cuckoo" sound.  I had no idea it was a real species of bird until I heard a very distinct "cuckoo" coming from the woods behind my house.  Haven't seen the actual bird yet, but I doubt someone has put a loudspeaker in the woods with a random track of cuckoos, so I have faith that we have a pair nesting somewhere nearby.

They make that lovely and well-known sound, but apparently some species of cuckoos are con-artists.  The scientific term is "brood parasite."  This is where the mother cuckoo bird clears out part of the nest of another species (yes, that means the other bird's eggs) and lays her eggs in this other nest.  Then her job is done.  The other mother will raise the cuckoo bird as it's own.  This is a good argument for nature vs. nurture - since the adopted cuckoo bird will grow up and do the exact same thing - without training from parents.

Happy Friday everyone!

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Rick Steves radio segment on Bulgaria

Shannon and I made it back from Spring Break, and survived (barely) the week after. We're pretty glad all of this unpronounceable Icelandic volcano mess didn't happen a week sooner or we (and my dad and Tom S) would have had some epic travel adventures. I'm hoping to post some pictures and stories from spring break soon, but first I need to write a test, do LOTS of grading, get quarter grades figured out, and write comments. It will be a busy week.
To tide all you Bulgaria-philes over, here is a link to a Rick Steves radio segment on Bulgaria.
http://www.ricksteves.com/radio/streaming/program202.asx
For those that don't know Rick Steves, he has made a career on telling Americans how to see Europe, with NPR radio shows, PBS TV shows, and a series of guidebooks to Europe. Watching the videos makes you think of your dorky uncle showing off his European slideshow, but all of his recommendations have been excellent.
Thanks Spike for sending the link. Rick interviews a Bulgarian tour operator in his studio, and picks up some bits of culture and key spots to visit. Several of the highlights she mentions are places we've taken our visitors (Sofia, Rila Monastery, Plovdiv), some are places we've been to but haven't been able to take visitors (Koprivshtitsa), and some are on our short list of places to go (Black Sea coast, Veliko Turnovo). One place she didn't mention but that Spike can assure you is really cool: Belogradchik, with an ancient fortress built into nifty Bryce Canyon-like rock formations. That will be a future post as well.

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Moroccan Cacophonies

This post was inspired by a day in Morocco when there were too many horrible smells to be able to breathe without gagging.  But don't worry!  For the most part this stream of consciousness is positive - I had a week of beach and surf vacation in Morocco after all...

A CACOPHONY OF SOUND:
surf pounding on the beach; 2-stroke outboard engines starting up at 5 in the morning; the few seconds of unexpected silence after a set of waves has come through; music from the restaurant - Traveling Wilburys, reggae, techno; singing vendors; the call to prayers; fish vendors; so many different languages; meows, barks, yelps; sea gulls and song birds; camels squeak?!; food vendors; bargaining; so many different accents: British, Irish, Scottish, French, Australian, American, Bulgarian; woops and hollers; motor bikes; trucks; pebbles moving in the waves; instructions: "Ready? One, two, three, stand up!"


A CACOPHONY OF TASTE:
salt water after getting a face full of wave; mint tea; verbena - this is the taste of Morocco to me; fresh oranges and bananas - the best I've ever had; falafel; hummus; fresh everything; tagine; pizza; brownie sundae

A CACOPHONY OF TOUCH/FEELINGS:
sand between the toes; how soft the sand is when you first sit down, and how it compacts and hardens as you stay there; the sticky feeling of your skin and hair after you get out of the ocean; cold water; hot air; powerful waves; sore and tired muscles; even sorer muscles!; nap on the beach cocooned by the warm air and soft sand; belly flop into the surf; sun burn; sand in your teeth; sun rays; fog/mist; wet and cold wetsuit; then the warm wetsuit for a few moments (wink); cool evenings; stretching; that feeling of weightlessness when you catch a wave; cold fingers - loose rings - had to take them off so I wouldn't lose them in the surf!; the tickle of a beetle crawling on your foot; fear, nervousness, excitement, pride, joy, happiness, relief; bruises; scrapes; relaxation

A CACOPHONY OF SMELLS:
ocean; fish; salt; dirty engine; burning trash; rotting carcass of a large, unidentifiable marine creature (> 1 meter); mint; dinner!; camels; horses; cigarettes; bleach; clean sheets

A CACOPHONY OF SIGHTS:
View from our balcony

 View from my spot on the beach - note the camel...

Pretty rocks and sand

The top floor of our hotel/hostel (Jaime doing some grading)

Fishing boats on the beach
Goats in a tree

Rich, Jaime, me, Jo (our instructor), and Will

Check out the size of that wave! 
 

Saturday, April 3, 2010

balkan express (night train to istanbul)


apologies for bad spelling and hemingway-style brevity, but i'm writing this from my phone on the train to constantinople. having fun with tom (dad) and tom (not dad) in the balkans.  we walked all over sofia on thur and tday we went to rila monastery before driving to plovdiv.  i think plovdiv is one the coolest cities you've never heard of - roman ruins,beautiful BG architecture  and a lovely pedestrian mall.  (dad said before we got there: "a mall??? why would i want to go to the mall when i'm in europe?") now we are crammed into our triple-bunk sleeper cabin as we roll towards asia. whee!  i miss my wife, but i'm sure she'll have a great time in africa without me.  above is a pic of dad on his train bunk.    looking forward to the 3am border crossing!

Bring it, Spring Break!

So, Jeff and his Dad and his Dad's friend, Tom, are off to Istanbul on an overnight train tonight.  They will be traveling in Turkey and Greece for the next 8 days - a whirlwind trip!  I suppose that's not unexpected when Jeff has done the planning (tee hee).

I, on the other hand, am going to one place and one place only.  With a beach.  And surfing lessons.  And meals provided.  I might only move when I get in the water - otherwise I will be lounging on the beach beneath a sun umbrella and doing absolutely nothing.  In 24 hours I will be in Agadir, Morocco at Surf Maroc.  My first visit to the African continent!  Have to go through Milan, Italy tonight though.  Maybe we'll see an Easter service at the Duomo.

Meanwhile, today I had a few things that needed to be printed, so I took a lazy walk around campus and enjoyed the cacophony of the happy birds and the pungent scent of the blooming trees.  I wish I could send the scent over the intertubes, but alas, that technology is not available to me yet.  The scent in the air IS spring.  Heady and wonderful and flowery and sweet.  I could stand among the branches of the tree and inhale all day (but I might miss my flight if I did that!).  I don't know what kind of trees these are that are producing such beautiful and wonderfully scented flowers.  Apples? Cherries? Dogwood?  I tried to take some pretty pictures to show how neat the white flowers look on the trees on campus.  I expect most of these flowers will be gone by the time I get back from Spring Break.

Happy Easter everyone!

Enjoy a short walk through campus:
(The last image is of the swimming pool on campus - looks like it's ready for summer)