Messages

I am in favour of Amsterdam. It is easy to get to from here. :-)

When: Perhaps one of the long weekends in the spring? We already have other plans for Easter.

Other preferences?

From my city, Amsterdam is the easiest accessible location outside Norway & Denmark, so there is a significant chance that I would join. But NOT on the Easter weekend, due to family plans and the usually super expensive tickets.

Who will be the surprise team?

Do you still want to know? 

appropiate car

You mean the Jaguar or the Audi?

[BÖFF!!!]

BÖFF!!!

Well in Europe the weather is unpredictable no matter where or when you go.

Amateur meteorologists (Akoss Poo & I) may disagree.

Just 

Italia VS Argentina, June 1st, 15:45 GMT-3 in Wembley Stadium, England.

Surprisingly (at least to me) great performance from Argentina, even if Italy might have taken the game less serious. Will this be Messi's year in the national team, while he is giving up to be successful with PSG?

Norway does not require any vaccination or COVID test from visitors, but if you are coming to Europe in November, I would rather recommend the southern countries. Here in the northwest, it is certainly the part of the year with the shittiest weather. With some luck, you can also catch a dry and mild late autumn in Central Europe.

[122° 31' 31" W]

The plans of my boss for business trips in 2022 include Saudi Arabia (probability: 90%) and the USA (70%).

The plans have been realized, so it's time to update my statistics.

My personal coordinate records also need an update after travelling much further West than ever before.

North: 68° 48' 12" N, 16° 32' 55" E - Harstad, NOR, 2014
South: 34° 48' 57" S, 58° 32' 31" W - Buenos Aires Ezeiza airport, ARG, 2019
West: 37° 53' 49" N, 122° 31' 31" W - Mill Valley, USA, 2022
East: 22° 45' 06" N, 59° 19' 44" E - near Qualhat, OMN, 2017

Altitude: ~2940 m - Mt Etna, ITA, 2014

The plans of my boss for business trips in 2022 include Saudi Arabia (probability: 90%) and the USA (70%).

The plans have been realized, so it's time to update my statistics.

Countries where I spent at least a night (sleeping on a bus/train does not count), with the number of nights:
Hungary: ~11000
Norway: ~3600
Germany: ~35
Slovakia: 22 (+countless day trips --> more time than in FRA/KSA/ROM)
France: 24
Saudi Arabia: 24
Romania: 23
Sweden: 13
Greece: 13
Italy: 11
Poland: 11
United Kingdom: 11 (of which England: 8, Scotland: 3)
Denmark: ~10
Czech Republic: ~10
Austria: 9
United States: 9
Netherlands: 8
Israel: 8
Oman: 8
Slovenia: 8
Albania: 7
Spain: 7
Portugal: 6
Argentina: 5
Belgium: 3

Country I visited for a day trip:
Croatia

Country I 'visited' only for transit:
Latvia (transfer between flights, not leaving the airport)

Countries I have only flown over:
Bahrain
Belarus
Brazil
Bulgaria
Canada
Cyprus
(Greenland)
Iceland
Iran
Iraq
Kuwait
Lithuania
Morocco
Qatar
Switzerland
Turkey
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
Uruguay

To enter Argentina, I would need to travel by plane. I would also need flight transfer. I would have to meet the COVID rules of each country I enter.

I would be considered non-vaccinated, since I have two doses of the Russian vaccine, which is recognised in very few countries and now, even less.

Many countries don't care about it anymore. Norway raised all COVID-related restrictions already in February, meaning that travellers can enter the country without any vaccine pass and face masks are forgotten. It is the same for the UK. Neither the Netherlands (where AMS is a typical transfer airport to the Americas) require vaccination for EU citizens, although wearing a face mask is still compulsory on flights to/from there.

And I would not refuse a trip to Namibia, but that's rather because its perfect conditions for astronomical observations.

If you go to Namibia, be sure to contact JTK and KHR first. They grew up there (as you may already know).

THAT I did not know, or have completely forgotten!

Usrin, how could that happen?  KHR and me will be travelling to NAM this summer again. Finally after 5 years (stallin Corona!).

Good question.

I am planning a trip to the S hemisphere in May/June 2023, if the world is not going down the drain. (That is already dry season around latitude 20-30°, nights are long, and more interesting parts of the sky are visible than in July/August.) The destination will depend on my actual workload and budget. If I get enough money and at least 3 weeks free, I would travel to ARG and combine astronomy with hiking, sightseeing and maybe ghost hunting, erm, meeting local pipsqueaks. I think it is not worth travelling there for a shorter time... missed a lot in 2019, when I had only 6 days. So with less time and money, I would rather spend 1-2 weeks on an one of the 'astrofarms' in NAM, rent a telescope and focus entirely on observing the southern sky. (KHR & JTK: sorry, but it seems easier to skip other attractions in NAM than in South America!)

Anyway, I would definitely travel south in 2023. There are too many unknowns in my own life and in the situation of the world for keeping such dreams for the further future.

Happy? Excited? Not happy? Rigged? Going to storm the Országház? Fleeing to Ukraine?

The German sight of the Hungarian election outcome:

My sight of the Hungarian election outcome:

Germans should not forget that Orban got an awful lot of support from Merkel & her government through EU funds and investments, despite all their nice words on the importance of democracy. What really counted was that Orban made Hungary a paradise for German companies, providing cheap workforce, low company taxes, weak environment laws and easily bribed officials.

Present state of my coin collection:

I'm keeping three coins (Argentinian 1 peso, Omani 50 baisa and 25 baisa) for your collection.

Still keeping them, now together with 1 Saudi riyal and 2x25 halalas (old and new version).

I only gave them 3 out of 8. (Have done some minor things and didn't want it know) they never found any of it.

Until now...

I've got it, I've got it, oohoo, I've got it.
I'm hip, I'm cool, I'm only two years late.

What? If I've been waiting for something for two years I'm damned well gonna celebrate it.

Maybe have some friends over, throw a party...

I had COVID a month ago, just one month after my 3rd dose of Pfizer. I did not have any other symptoms but sore throat, mild coughing and runny nose.
The virus was brought home by my son (13), who got a single dose in October. Neither he was very sick, but had fever and headache in the first 1-2 days.