El Gaffney » travel

Unnecessary Quotations

Seth — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:36:00 +0000

This is a nice thing to wake up to. An IOI-featured site, featuring a picture of mine from Cusco, Peru. It’s funny, I went there and still am not sure if I should roll with an ’s’ or ‘c’ in the city’s spelling. Regardless, I love the title they picked for their post.

See “The” Restaurant where I brought in this new year here.

Speaking of pictures, if you enjoy taking photos and want a chance to win some Jittery Joe’s coffee, check out Photojojo for a contest related to the theme of yesterday’s post.

Improvise/Nap

Seth — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:21:00 +0000

Getting my Blackberry last month has caused two things to happen:
1. Others to question my manhood (it’s the Red Curve)
2. Me to take more pictures (the quality is good enough for blogging/tumbling)

The above is an example of the second. (Though if the kid had woken up, I suspect he may have had a comment on the color.) It was in Charlotte’s airport at 7 in the morning as we rode out (flew out?) a delay…from none other than LaGuardia. We make do with what we have. He had a big hooded sweatshirt. I had a VitaminWater, clients on each side, and a fake I’m not tired at all. I normally get up this early and seize the day. smile on my face. And that’s why I took a picture of him and not of me. It was a great example of, as Ideo would say, a “thoughtless act“…and I’m not creepy. It’s just that, as Faris would say (in an insightful and timely post as I was working on Olympus), my camera helps me see.

Oh yeah, and the reason I titled this post Improvise is so I could link to this video.

Peace Out 2007, USA, and Friendster

Seth — Tue, 25 Dec 2007 15:22:00 +0000

I’m leaving in a few minutes for Peru and will see you all in 2008. But I did a little clean up before leaving…

I can’t imagine how frustrating receiving this form must be.

Happy holidays and an early happy New Year!

"Welcome Home"

Seth — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 13:39:00 +0000

After 10 days in Israel, I’m back to my other Jewish homeland – Long Island. It was an incredible trip with fun, respectful, and inspiring people…both Americans and Israelis. Israel is no longer a faceless place across the ocean, and being Jewish is no longer a switch I turn on and off based on situations or convenience.

Thank you everyone on my Israel Outdoors trip. I look forward to seeing you all soon.

Sababa.

Shalom.

Where I’ve Been #1

Seth — Thu, 04 May 2006 15:57:00 +0000

The Brickyard – Indianapolis Motor Speedway. No racing, but got the track tour in a Corvette and went through the racecar museum.

Weak Week Delay

Seth — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 04:41:00 +0000

Back in the U.S. for good now… actually since late Thurs night/early Fri morn. Venezuela was a wonderful place to end the viaje with its delicious local dishes, sunny days (which I experience through windows in the office and at outdoor lunches) and beautiful scenery on our two long rides from and to the airport (pictured above). At higher points in the drive through the mountains there was about 10 feet of visability with the fog that you can see at the top of this pic. And for the record, the ride back didn’t feel nearly as Proof of Life-esque. The local team was extremely hospitable and outgoing and took us out for drinks – they’re known for their rum, so I had to sample it – and talked frankly (Steven A. Smith style, except it was interesting, not annoying) about the country’s current situation with Chavez. For someone who’s pretty politically uninformed, I knew the basics of his reign, but stories of mandated folk music on the radio and pictures in restaurants coupled with the powerful images of ranchos (shacks built up on top of each other on the hills) and other obvious poverty really were quite moving. Overall, it’s hard to ignore the hardships and condition of the lower class in the countries I visited (especially close to the airports), but while parts of Caracas were incredibly nice, the poorness was impossible to deny. I had a fantastic trip and memorable experience and will be back in the U.S. and Minneapolis now after spending the weekend in Akron, Ohio at my friend’s wedding. More on this coming shortly…

Last Stop: Venezuela

Seth — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 01:58:00 +0000

Left Sunday morning for Miami. Watched Georgetown lose on cbssportsline.com last night in the Hilton near the airport where I slept. Got on a plane at 7:30 this morning to Venezuela. On time. So far so good. Until we (Kim, Purina’s head of research for Latin America, and I) arrived here. Were supposed to have a car waiting, but that’s wasn’t in the car(d)s. Finally got in touch with the driver and he was running a couple hours late. Yes, a couple hours. No, why would he call? Yes, we probably should have just taken a different taxi. No, it wasn’t that simple. Because the major highway/bridge is not open, it takes anywhere from 1.5 to 5 hours to get into downtown Caracas. So, we waited it out… until of course we got a call from Nestle Venezuela saying the driver would not, in fact, be coming to get us. 12PM in meeting spot at airport. 2PM have another car set up. 215 on the road in a Ford SUV. 215-345 winding up and around the mountain, through haze, enclosed by steep mountain on our left and all types of vegetation on our right. 4PM first view of Caracas (the Western and poorer part according to our driver). 515PM arrive at the Embassy Suites. I would go into the drive, but I’ll wait until I’m back in the U.S. to explain (and compare it to one movie in particular) so as not to freak my parents out any more than they should be. So the actual drive took about 3 hours – about average. At the hotel, went for a little run on the treadmill – was inspired by the other man in metallic light green spandex on the bike next to me. (Not metallic mint green like the convertible(s) that pulled up to the Sac O’Suds conveeenyence store. (Ralph Macchio went to my Middle School.)) Then went out to a restaurant in la castellana and ate some serious arepas and cachapas and drank melocoton juice. Now I’m back and feeling fat and tired and watching VH1 top 60 something video countdown – #56 is The Calling “Wherever You Will Go.” And I know this was probably said thousands of times before but probably not in the last year: How does this kid who looks like Aaron Carter have a voice like Creed’s lead singer? And speaking of Latin TV, why does every other channel have 1 of 2 shows on it: One is completely hectic with sirens going off, a live studio audience, 2 MCs – 1 short, pudgy old man in a suit and one 30 year old hot woman with fake boobs and minimal clothing and The Other is a soap opera with 2 characters with similar but less extreme features arguing about something very serious as the camera moves from close up of face to face. At least there’s soccer. Time to sleep.

Back from Colombia Update: Still Alive, More Tired

Seth — Fri, 10 Feb 2006 02:33:00 +0000

Meet Michel. Friend of my friend, Omar, from college. Met him a couple times in Madrid when I studied abroad. Other than that, haven’t seen or heard about him in 5 years… until during an IM conversation with omarp7, I learned that Michel now lives in Bogota. So I got his number (the easy part), and after work on Wednesday figured out how to call his cell phone from my hotel (the hard part). (The kind of easy and kind of hard part was deciding to actually holler at him – didn’t really know him at all and would have been completely content going to the pool in my hotel and getting a decent night’s sleep.) Back to the story though, he told me to meet him at his apartment (pictured above – yes, you get even more for your money than in Minneapolis) and we’d go out from there. And that’s what I, and we, did.

First we went to dinner at a nice little restaurant around his apartment (Calle 81), had some Club Colombian beers and empanadas. Then we picked up a friend of his and made our way to the center of town (26th Street) where we went to a bar/club called Socorro. There we quickly switched from beers to a bottle of whiskey, which you buy from the bar with a few plastic cups of ice, and went into the basement to dance it up to the spinning of some British DJ whose been living in Bogota for the past 15 years. Yes, you will get some details that you don’t care about at all, but some time down the line, I may be trying to find out the DJ’s name and be looking for a Latin American rather than European name. You will also get the story as a list of events because 1. my English gets worse and worse the longer I’m out of the country and 2. I’m too tired to recount the events so that you feel like you were there. Lo siento. At about 1, I considered leaving solo, but at the suggestion was handed a beer and told that we had to go to one more place, “the Wednesday night hot spot in Bogota,” before heading back to the hotel. And once again, that’s what I/we did. More drinking (whiskey straight in plastic cup, bottle in Michel’s back pocket) and more dancing until about 3 when we all (thankfully) decided to leave. (I may have had to get picked up at 5AM for my flight, but they all had to work full days, getting up only a couple hours later. Michel for the EU.)

Sorry about the lack of details, back let me say one more thing before I go (to sleep). I started off this post saying meet Michel, with the full intention of introducing him properly. I know I’ve failed, but at least understand this: Not only did he go out of his way to show me a great and authentic time (though out in Bogota at 2AM, there’s not really a “touristy” thing), but he made me feel like we’d been friends for those 5 years, during which we probably never even heard each other’s names. I was not just a guest or a guy he was bringing along, but a friend. He would not let me pay for a thing (minus the bottle of whiskey, which I insisted I had to do for the experience of being handed a bottle from behind the bar), he made sure I was having fun and made sure I felt included even if I couldn’t keep up with the Spanish. So, though he’ll never see this (though I should learn to never say never since I probably didn’t think I’d be partying in Colombia on a Wednesday night), I want to say thanks to him and let you know how much respect and care I was treated with in the “scary, gang/ kidnapper/ drug dealer infested” city. So, hotel a little after 3. Up a little after 5. Cab at 5:45. Flight at 9. Home at 6. Goodnight.

P.S. Update on Bahamas advertising: With posters coming down and others continuing to be stolen, The Bahamas has now made selected campaign creative available for download (legally) on their website. Use the link to the right or click here to go directly: http://www.bahamas.com/bahamas/about/general.aspx?sectionid=135762&level=2&lid=HOMEFMA_135787

Colombia Update: I’m Alive

Seth — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 04:05:00 +0000

And in the Hotel Casa Dann Carlton on Calle 94. Got in at around midnight last night – had to deplane after boarding in Houston because of faulty brakes – one of those times you’re happy to get the f off and walk across the airport to a new gate. Seriously, the announcement went something like this 15 minutes after boarding: “Hi, this is the captain speaking, we’re currently experiencing an issue with our brakes, they’re not completely working, and we have a team below the aircraft working on the issue. I’ll get back to you with details once I know if we’ll be on our way or have to get a different plane.” And even more seriously, when he announced 8 minutes later that we’d be deboarding and going to another gate to a plane without problems, everyone within shouting distance from me was complaining, huffing and puffing and really pissed. Sure, it sucks, but what’s crazy was that they didn’t seem nearly as (visibly) upset when the first announcement was made. If the captain got on and said, “Great news. These brakes should hold up at least til we land in 4 and a half hours. So let’s leave 15 minutes late rather than 50!”, would there have been cheers? This may be a good time to recap my travel issues over the last 3 weeks, not that you care, but because you may be surprised that I’ve remained so calm throughout (or you won’t, but I am and I want to brag, and yes, you just have to take my word for it)…
Brazil: Arrive at Caesar Business 2 hours late (9AM) only to be told that there is no room for me yet. They think it should open in an hour or so. Can I use your business center? Sure, internet cards are “x” reias. You’re kidding. Give me one for the hassle. No, okay, I’ll go take a walk in my jeans and sweater and carry my laptop because I don’t trust you.
Chile: Arrive at Hotel Intercontinental at 11PM. Sorry, we don’t have your reservation. Why, it was made with these people from Nestle. We have theirs, just not yours… and we’re completely booked. It was made with this person by the same person. Call your manager. Okay, we can get you a room tonight, but not yet. Go to the bar and wait. 1AM, your room is ready, but you have to check out tomorrow, we are full. Check into other hotel mid-afternoon the next day.
Argentina: Can I have a late checkout my flight’s not til 10PM? Sure, it will be $100. You’re not full, can I just stay til 4 or 5 or so. Yes, for $100. But a night is only $150… okay, just hold my bags while I walk around the city sweating and getting blisters (my sneaks are packed) for 6 hours and then overcharge me for the cab to the airport. Thanks.
Mexico: Minneapolis to Houston – sorry running a little late because there’s a problem with the pressure on the plane. Actually, new plane, new gate, but not too late. No big deal… yet. I only have 1 hour to get off the plane in Houston and get on the plane to Mexico though. 45 minutes from land time, 35 from deplane, told I won’t make it, sprint across airport, on tram, sprint more, make it just in time. Way back, Mexico gate changed 3 times. Had a full row to myself though, until a dude not only sat in the aisle seat, but put his large carry-on under the middle seat in front of us. Thanks Dick. (Dick was not his name, but that’s what I’m calling him – capital D.)
Colombia: Minneapolis to Houston – no problem!!! Houston, you know the drill. Got into Bogota at 11PM, supposed to have a car. Not there. Phone – not working. Took a taxi, which was fine, but was a little nervous since I was told that our Citibank team never rolls around without security and in an armored car.
So anyway, now I’m here. After a day of 3 groups, starting at 8AM and ending at 9PM. Hopefully will have a chance to see the city tomorrow. Then get on a 9AM plane Thursday morning, supposed to get back to MN at 5PM. I’ll take the over on that bet. Looking like a promising or even “cant-miss”miss in Houston with only 1 hour to get across the airport and through customs. Either way, as I said, it’s all good… I’m chill. Though that word makes me a little annoyed. Relax.

Pittsburgh Loses

Seth — Mon, 06 Feb 2006 04:33:00 +0000

Georgetown beat Pittsburgh 61-58 this morning (or afternoon depending on time zone and how late you sleep on weekends). Hit up a bar Champp’s (yes, 2 p’s) in Richfield, MN – a little outside of Minneapolis. Total local bar, but after a couple Sunday mornings in a row there, we’re totally in with Barb, the bartender. Only people interested in watching ESPN Full Court games – Big East action – and I was clearly the only person in the entire bar excited when Gtown hung on to oust the #9 team in the nation (barely). So threw back some brewski’s, celebrated quickly and more quietly then normal, and came back to the pad for a solid 2 hour nap. Watched the Super Bowl with a bunch of peeps at a friends house. Pittsburgh won that less important game. At least that city won’t be totally depressed tonight. Off to Colombia in the A.M.

Oh Mexico

Seth — Sun, 05 Feb 2006 22:31:00 +0000

Now do you see why Ricardo’s “really proud of my Mexican heritage” and thus decided to make maracas and churros and wear a poncho on his multiple NEXT dates? Note yellow billboard – this is why I’m there – Pedigree, spending like crazy and stealing share from all Purina’s brands both high and low priced. View’s from my hotel room at the Intercontinental in Mexico City. Thinking about bringing my racquet next time. Tampa Bay Bucs cheerleaders were staying there as well… don’t know why since I didn’t want to interrupt their breakfast… and I was too much of a wimp to approach the table of 15. 4 countries down, 2 to go.

First Half Recap

Seth — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 16:12:00 +0000

Here’s the link to my photos/fotos from Rio, Santiago and Buenos Aires. I’m off on a quick trip to Mexico City tonight. I’ll try to get a shot of me in a sombrero before leaving but can’t make any promises since the city is actually quite modern. Hope you enjoy the show. Email (or comment I guess) if you have any questions about what each picture is of. I should know, but was definitely too lazy to label each of the 90 shots.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=plax7en.2qzrctvb&Uy=-lgaotf&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0

And Drink Plenty of This

Seth — Sun, 29 Jan 2006 21:34:00 +0000

That’s right. Apple Gatorade. If there was going to be any sneaky smuggling back into the U.S., it was going to be with this product. Note: there’s really no other way to smuggle than sneakily, but I’m giving a shout out to my sneaky steals in bball games as well as to John Turturro in Mr. Deeds, whose sneakiness was constantly being underestimated. I bet he and Liam probably drank a bunch before rolling too. So this, and the Pomelo flavor, kept me going during my tour of the city. The ultimate electrolaxative. Perfect for a hungover morning. Sorry, but it’s true. Photo: Gatorade Manzana in Patio Bullrich mall.

Three Amigos

Seth — Sun, 29 Jan 2006 17:57:00 +0000

I’m Lucky Day, I’m Dusty Bottoms, I’m Ned Needlender… and together we are the (smack, smack, smack, uh huh cough)… So, Thursday night went to dinner in a really cool, up-and-coming area called Las Canitas with Hernan, the local Purina brand mgr. (right) and his friend Ramiro, who’s currently doing his residency (left – in case you were confused by the chest hair). We stuffed ourselves with provoleta, chorizo, and of course, steak and were barely able to muster up enough energy to go to a bar for a couple drinks right after. Dinner and drinks discussion, during which they spoke in English and I, in Spanish, included the World Cup – they have some respect for the US team but still didn’t believe that anyone in the US really likes soccer, Women – both single, they wanted the opportunity to test their luck with American women (I got a flashback to Love Actually at this point), and Work – but only as it related to how much they got to sleep each night and how often they went out during the week. Additional conversation included more sports, food, and travel and excluded politics, our favorite romantic comedies (don’t tell them about Love Actually) and where I bought my jeans. Overall, the highlight of my time in Buenos Aires, though my 5 hour/15 mile walk the next day came in a close second.

Welcome to Buenos Aires

Seth — Sat, 28 Jan 2006 18:31:00 +0000

Here is Avenida 9 de Julio, the widest avenue in the world, which runs from Plaza Constitución to Avenida del Libertador and up to the northern suburbs. Though it doesn’t matter how wide it is from a traffic perspective when hundreds of Argentinian protesters parade across it as I witnessed this Friday. What were they protesting? No idea, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a pro-EEUU demonstration.

So I’m back in good (c)old Minneapolis now. Just watched Georgetown manhandle Cincy. And am planning on unpacking, napping, and updating you on the rest of my time in BA.

Proving My Age, Again

Seth — Sat, 28 Jan 2006 18:27:00 +0000

An an ariel (7th Floor) view of the Caesar Business hotel’s pool on the 2nd floor. I couldn’t help it.

What’s My Age Again?

Seth — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 04:08:00 +0000

Was Blink 182 traveling on business trips when they wrote this song? Or were they getting tattoos and piercings? Well, either way, Megan was a huge fan of this number, and it leads me to my big question of this late evening: Why do I continue to tell people that I’m 25 when asked “how old are you?” in any work environment? Does this extra 9 and a half months make me more legit? Does the big two-five make mean that now I’ve graduated into adulthood? Those 23 and 24 year old young professionals living the crazy life don’t know about responsibility – paying the bills, feeding the kids. Honestly, I get the same reaction every single time – surprised look, asking really? To which I turn slightly red, do an awkward 4-5 abbreviated nods, and contemplate asking how ancient they are. Instead I break the more awkward silence and inquire, “Why, how old did you think I was?” And the answer is always the same, so always as unsurprising, yet just as confounding – “25, 26 or so.” Then why do you look so astonished!?! So, now the real question: Why do I lie? If I said 24, I’d get the same thing. So why do I put myself in the position to get caught? I’ve asked myself this before, but now that I’ve written it down, it really makes no sense. Okay, I’ll stop. Though, if Kiran asks me if I have Missy Elliot’s first CD, I’ll continue saying I bought it and lost it. (Pointless inside joke since he doesn’t even know I have this blog. I haven’t told him since he’s been living on a tropical island for the past 2 years so wouldn’t be as impressed with my pictures of beaches. Talk about doing med school right!) If you work with me, then here it goes: I’m 24. If you’ve never asked, thanks, and now you know the truth. If you have, you shouldn’t be reading this. Back to the rant…

The real real questions are why do these people feel comfortable asking me that and why don’t I ask them right back? I guess the new response could be, “Not old enough to be asking you your age.” Or maybe, “Old enough not to be your son… unless of course you had some crazy high school years.” This would preempt the even worse, but thankfully very rare response to the question I haven’t asked, “I’m old enough to be your mother.” No, men don’t answer that. But yes, they do ask the question about 1/3 as often. Their response: The closed-mouth half-smile/smirk abbreviated-nod that says, “I remember that age. Life was good.” Then I open my computer and show them pictures of Rio, cornrows and co-ed flip cup.

In and Out

Seth — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 03:57:00 +0000

Don’t you feel like you were in Rio with me? Okay, maybe not. But at least I gave you a little taste of the culture. Well, here goes the exact opposite for Santiago, Chile. Got in Sunday late at night, to the hotel at about 11PM, they didn’t have my reservation at the Hotel Intercontinental, persuaded them to put me up for just one night even though the hotel was full, waited another hour and a half to get into my room, woke up early for focus groups, had them all day, checked out of the hotel and into another called Plaza el Bosque, had a nice dinner, slept, woke up early, groups, had a nice lunch, and left for the airport at about 4PM on Tuesday. That said, from this and my last quick visit, it is an amazingly safe, clean and picturesque city with tree lined streets and surrounded by mountains. Unfortunately I didn’t get to take many shots. Here’s one I snapped from the top (17th) floor of my second hotel. Apologies Jay, if you thought this post was going to be about your second favorite movie (behind Notting Hill). We can talk about Hugh when I get back to the U.S.

To Sum It Up

Seth — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 04:49:00 +0000

Life was good in Rio. I got down to business and to the business of gettin’ down. And I definitely will return for Carnaval when I can afford it outside of a business trip. Though there’s nothing like good clean business… and a little monkey business. Name that movie. No chance, huh? Back to School – conversation between Thornton Melon and Dean Martin. Next trivia: Who else makes an appearance in that movie and is responsible for the name of this blog? Answer coming upon my return to the U.S. Photo: Me eating Biscoito Globo on Ipanema Beach, where I also drank coconut water (and ate its “meat”), Matte Leão (a nice cold tea), and of course, a lime caipirinha with sake. That’s all for Brazil. Beachseth Out.

One Last Stop in Rio

Seth — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 04:31:00 +0000

On my final day in Rio, I decided to go to Corcovado to see Santo Cristo and the beautiful view, both of which are shown above. From up you could see the whole city: Sugar Loaf (Pão de Açúcar), Rodrigo de Freitas lake, Gavea’s Rock (from where people jump to fly with asa delta – hang-gliding), and all the various beaches I’ve been bragging about for the last few days. I got some pretty good shots of Sugar Loaf, the soccer stadium, some long bridge (like the one they blew up in the original Bad Boys), and other parts of the city, but will save those for KodakGallery (formerly known as Ofoto). Furthermore, it’s fair to say that besides for my brief Copacabana association, I didn’t think about Bar Mitzvahs that long. And for those wondering: yes, of course my first inclination was to replicate his pose, but using better judgment, I decided against it and stood respectfully in front of JC. After all, Jesus was a Jew, so I was in good company. In all seriousness though, it was extremely powerful (and gigantic and way up high) and it was the perfect place to finish my trip. If you don’t believe me Google Earth it or use Google Maps to get there. Those are the best. Verdad eso. Doble verdad.