Travel in Style back

Slam & Click

Istanbul, Februari 22nd - 24th. I am in Istanbul and this is the ultimate slam & click stay at the fabulous Hilton. The weather is awful, cold and windy and all I want to do after my meetings is get to the hotel and watch season three of Six Feet Under that I have brought and order room service food. In the morning I go to the hotel gym and take a swim and that is as social as I am during this trip. Northern Europe is preparing for Spring and Spain and Portugal are already experiencing above 20 degrees, but Turkey is just plain miserable!

Travel in Style

Amsterdam - Zurich - Istanbul, 19 february. This is the second time in a month or so I am doing this Swiss flight to Istanbul and next week am will be doing it again. I take the bicylce to the train station around 7:30, the train to the airport, have coffee in the business lounge, fly to Zurich while having a glass of champagne and a meal, have a glass of wine in the business lounge in Zurich, have more champagne and wine and a meal on my way to Istanbul. I want to sit on the sunny side of the plane overlooking the alps and I am enjoying every second of it, from the bicycle ride to the touch down at Istanbul. After that I have a mood swing as soon as I gwt to the immigration line, wher e I have now discovered the one immigration agent that is notoriously slow in comparison to the others, and I am always in his line. Not to mention the totally frustrating system for lining up, so unfair, I cant stand it. And again today I almost lost it, not helped by the champagne hangover. I almost broke the 'golden rule' "do not upset anyone in a uniform". Also I have decided that I will not drink more than one glass of champagne between Amsterdam and Zurich and no wine in the Swiss lounge in Zurich, because the it so much better to just get drunk until flying over the alps on my way to Istanbul. But what's up with premium travel? On all sectors there was just one other passenger in the Business class cabin and even I was upgraded? I am afraid these are the last days of flying in style, because the business is certainly gone. But as long as it lasts I love being the only one there.

Big Decision

Amsterdam, February 13th. Today I have made a big decision in my personal life.

First Good Signs

Zandvoort, February 14th, 2009, BDI = 8. Its Saturday and it is a beautiful day. Sunny, cold, not too much wind and very clear. The colors on the beac hare so vivid today, almost magical. And how wonderful to see that the beach club operators have started to rebuild the clubs and a few are already open.