SOFA CHICAGO

Went to the SOFA art show in Chicago. Since the show is called the Sculpture Objects and Functional Art Fair, there wasn't much paintings. Surprisingly, there's quite a lack of "functional art" as well; unless, you classify those $4000 wooden bowl functional art. Seriously though, would you use a $4000 bowl to toss a salad? I think not. One of the most equisite pieces I saw was this display of miniature kimonos, rugs, exquisite chinese robes, etc. completely made out of tiny beads by an artist named Madelyn Ricks. Wow! My sister makes minuature purses out of beads, I should ask her to try to make these instead. Much more profitable. They are worth much more -- like in the range of $10000 to $15000. Wow!

Sticker Shock in the Emerald Isle

So, other than the sticker shock with $8 soups, here’s a run down of the other shocking prices:

Taxis starts at £3.00
Appetizers are about £4.95
Entrees are about £14.00
A simple rain coat cost £70.00
A linen bag for groceries is £12.00

The exchange rate is about 1 USD to £2.00

Spending pounds in the Emerald Isle

I suppose I should have better checked the weather before I left. I was thinking that the weather should not be too different than Chicago. Of course, now I realize that Northern Ireland is a little further north than Chicago. I didn’t pack an umbrella or a sweater. I did have my sport coat and I could have sworn that I packed my rain jacket. In any case, it rained almost every day while in Ireland and it was much colder – hovering around high 40’s to low 50’s. I had my sport coat on everyday and for the most part, it was sufficient since it was just a short taxi ride to the office. However, the sport coat was not enough for Saturday. It started raining on Friday night and lasted well into Saturday. I decided to take a walk and I was drenched through the coat and all about 15 minutes into the walk. On Saturday, I had to break down and get another rain coat. And what a sticker shock that was when I checked out the prices. The cheapest rain jacket I could find was about £70. That’s $170 USD!!! OMG. That really made me appreciates the shopping scene in the US. Most things are expensive in the UK. We go out to dinner and the prices on the menu seems pretty normal until you remember that you are actually seeing the prices in GBP (£). So, a £4.95 bowl of soup is actually like an $8 bowl of soup in the US. I guess it is possible to eat cheaply but as a visitor without a car, it would be quite difficult to know the cheaper places to go. The front desk at the hotel is no help at all when it comes to asking for restaurant recommendation or anything like that. In fact, my first shock came from the hotel when I had breakfast on Monday morning. The breakfast buffet at the Holiday Inn in Belfast charges £18.95 for breakfast alone!!!!!

To the Emerald Isle

Saturday 9/27 to Sunday, 9/28, 2008.

The flight to Belfast was quite enjoyable. It was not as long as the flights to Asia – that’s for sure. I even got upgraded to Business Class at the expense of 15,000 miles but I guess that is what Premier status on United is for. The whole business class experience is quite different than economy. The seats are highly configurable – the incline, the leg rest, the head rest, reading lights, and on and on. United Airlines still really needs to up its antics on their entertainment system as so many airlines are now on the entertainment “on demand” standard. The United Airlines model offers multiple channels on a regulated start schedule. The meals in business class are a totally different experience. The flight attendants actually offer courses starting out with appetizers and salad, entrees and then dessert in three separate trays with real silverware and porcelain plates. Hot towel was served before meals and unlimited alcoholic beverages – not that I drink or anything. I actually got some sleep and rest on the flight and was none too worse for the wear of flying across the Atlantic Ocean and arrived in Belfast quite refreshed.

Had heard some horror stories about Heathrow Airport but I guess if you arrive at 5:30 in the morning and that there aren't too many other flights arriving that you should be pretty safe. The airport is quite big and so it took quite a while to get from the terminal where the flight arrive to transfer to the domestic terminal where my connecting flight to Belfast would be. The gate at Heathrow was quite perculiar in that there really wasn't a counter or anything and I started to worry about 20 minutes before the flight departed. Just as I was getting up to go check, the announcement came that the flight was boarding. I guess I am still TYPE A!

New York City

Went to NYC for Labor Day weekend -- mostly to visit friends and family. Not a big fan of NYC because it seems crowded all the time. This being Labor Day weekend, the crowd condition just seems exacebated -- good thing I stayed out of Mid-town. Lower Manhattan/Chinatown was not any better but it was a little more manageable. The other reason why I don't like NYC is the exorbitant hotel prices -- again made worse by this being Labor Day weekend. I stayed at the Chelsea Inn -- it was in a pretty nice neighborhood and pretty convenient to everything but the place was run down, old and dingy. My "room" was only six feet wide and about 18 feet long with a double bed and a TV. The worse part -- I had to share a bathroom that is in the hallway. Yuck! Maybe I will stay in Brooklyn the next time I go to NYC or maybe not go to NYC anymore. Yes, I am spoiled!

A Day in the Park

Sunday, 8/24/2008, was a beautiful day. Not too hot and not humid at all. Since I purchased a new Nikon D60 and my friend, Ben, purchased the Cannon Xts, we decide to put our photogrpahy chops to the measure. We spent a lovely day with a few other friends walking around Lincoln Park, the Conservatory and the Zoo and took some pictures. You be the judge.





It was really hot in the Conservatory/Green House but I think it was well worth the effort.

Part 3 to the Journey of 2 Parts

So, the famous rant about the journeys of 2 parts now has a part 3. Because of their delays and equipment failures, all passengers on that fateful flight to Narita, Japan was offered a discount voucher. So, I was thinking that I would use that discount voucher to purchase a ticket to New York City to visit my cousin who just had a baby girl (Yeay!!!!). So, I booked my flight on United.com and when it came time to pay for the ticket, I could not find a place to enter the voucher code. Ok, time to read the fine prints. Therein lies my rant -- the fine prints indicate that in order to validate the "authenticity" of the voucher, it must be turned in at a ticketing counter or mailed to the office in Detroit. I guess there must be tons of these vouchers floating around or something. And, to compensate you for the inconvenience of a delayed flight or equipment problem, they give you more inconvenience -- having you drive to the airport to get a ticket issued. I should charge them for gas. And because the flight is less than 14 days away, I couldn't mail it to Detroit. Sigh! I guess I really felt like being cheap (hey, New York is expensive) so I drove to the airport -- it was a $150 voucher so it was nothing to sneeze at! Finally, after an hour and a half drive round trip, I finally have my ticket. NYC here I come!