Random Musings about my European Vacation, 2004

A retrospective travel journal by David Minh

When I was a kid, my dad would ask me to write travel reports about our family vacations. These reports served the dual purpose of preserving a memory and being writing practice. I only did it a few times, but there's no reason I can't resume the tradition.

This journal is my answer to friends who ask, "What was your trip like?" Feel free to browse. (Click on any photo to view a larger version.)

4-23 Paris When I first came to Paris in late 2001, it was the middle of winter and it was freezing. This time, it was spring and it was beautiful and I had an easy time seeing why people liked the city. I had arrived at just the right time; it wasn't cold any more, but the torrent of summer tourists hadn't arrived yet. Crowds of people were walking around, but most were speaking French and seemed to be actual Parisians.

Since it was not the peak tourist season, I didn't expect trouble finding a place to stay, but both the hostels I checked at were full. It didn't seem to affect my demeanor much. After informing me about the vacancy situation, the receptionist asked me "Why are you smiling like everything is okay and good?" I didn't answer her, but it was because I was in Paris, a strange foreign land different from America and where people looked, talked, and smelled differently. And all I had to do to get there was hop into a big cultural warp called an airplane and sit for eight hours as it crossed the Atlantic. Still, excitement couldn't sustain me infinitely. After finding a hotel room, I took a nice nap before wandering about the city. I wandered a lot that day, so much that my behind was sore from all the walking I did.

The Notre Dame (Our Lady) Cathedral

The Montmarte District

One of the places I wander to was the Montmarte district. I like it. In addition to the pedestrian walkways lined with small shops, there is a plaza full of artists hawking their wares and offering portrait services. I stood and watched these portrait drawers with a combination of admiration and pity. I wondered if these craftsmen really wanted to draw and paint other things in a more original manner. I was reminded of Nikolai Gogol's "The Mysterious Portrait," a short story that I read a few months ago. In the story, an artist who once had talent is corrupted by money and success, pressured to quickly churn out flattering portraits of rich people. Before my eyes, however, were people who didn't have money and made a living painting for tourists and idle Parisians. Maybe they made enough to survive, and there are plenty worse jobs, but I doubt that it is the desire of an artist's heart to live that way.

The road up Montmarte leads to the Sacre Coeur Cathedral, which is situated on the highest point in Paris. It certainly has a unique architecture vaguely reminiscent of a mosque. On this particular day, jovial crowds gathered in front of the church. They weren't there for the church, but mostly because of the view over Paris. Two ensembles of singers stood on the steps leading up to the church. One male group was actually trying to sing some sort of melody. A group of females also sang, but it mostly seemed like they were just trying to interject into the other song. Yet the male vocalists were remarkably tolerant towards the women. Maybe it was a bizarre composition. Further down the steps, a group of people were sitting and singing along with a guitar accompaniment. Could they be singing Christian worship music, I wondered? Soon, somebody in the group switched places with the guitarist to a general applause. He started belting out a John Denver folk song with a French accent!

The Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart) Catherdal

4-24 Paris, Lille, Belgium, and Germany

My parents arrived today, and we made breakneck speed northwards. Sure, we had intended to take our time, but after we rented our car, we drove and kept going. We stopped at a cathedral here and there, took some pictures, and ate some meals. For lunch, we stopped at a popular bakery, the only place in village where one could buy food to go. Our sandwiches were pricey and looked diminutive to the American eye, but their quality made up for the lack in quantity. For the French, taste and freshness are virtues of good food. Americans just want a lot of it. The discrepency between French and American attitudes towards food partially explains why we are so fat.

Among my college friends, the ability to large quantities was viewed as an important aspect of masculinity. Some of us may be cursed to a short lifetime of obesity.

Consume, consume, consume! That is the American edict, and the ability to consume is a tacit American value. We use up energy disproportionate to our population. We drive SUVs and minivans while our European contemporaries drive small sedans. Our rich people build opulent mansions whose space they could never occupy. Everything we buy is packaged, so we produce massive amounts of trash.

Look what passes for art these days!

Speaking of trash, my parents and I got into a big mess near Anthwerp, Belgium. We got lost for a while, and I was forced pop in and our of the car to ask people for directions using my limited French. We also had trouble finding a hotel, but we were rescued by an event not unlike a deus ex machina. We called my cousin Mai in Germany, and her husband Thien said we should just come over and stay with them.

4-25 The Clan Well, I have relatives in Germany. I have relatives everywhere. See, I'm Vietnamese, and there was a big war that ended about thirty years ago, and now Vietnamese people are all over the planet. My relatives spent the day together in Germany. How did we communicate? I don't have any German, and for most of my German relatives, their English wasn't strong. Vietnamese was the lingua franca. The last time I was in Germany was about 10 years ago, when my brother and I came a stayed with our aunt for about 5 weeks. We were supposed to learn some German, but we ended up practicing our Vietnamese most of the time. Our more courageous and fluent relatives practiced their English with us.

In the morning, Thien and my cousin Linh took my parents and I to Cologne, famous for a large cathedral. My dad spent some time explaining to Linh that the ornate decorations on the cathedral were primarily a Catholic obsession, and not all Christians concerned themselves with such matters.

My cousin's six-year-old son, who called me uncle (scary thought), kept on asking me to kick around a soccer ball with him. Little did he know that Americans like myself don't really play soccer and I don't really know how to kick a soccer ball properly. Ignorance is bliss.

4-26 Holland In terms of distances, driving between European countries is like driving between American states; we were able to make a day trip to Holland. We stopped in Amsterdam for lunch, but that's all we did there. At my nephew's request, we had McDonalds, where he was satisfied by a meal of French fries. After the meal, my dad and him had a long running debate over whether French fries or chocolate were better. Well, it wasn't really a debate, just a back-and-forth affirmation of their personal preferences.

Keukenhof

Next, we went to Keukenhof, a famous flower garden. To keep him from running all over the place, I became my nephew's horse. He was happy that way. I guess we spoiled him that day, but that's what distant relatives are supposed to do when they visit, isn't it?

4-27 Trier This city has a long history going back to the Roman times. When I think of ancient sites, the picture that goes through my mind is that of abandoned ruins. Yet, people still live in Trier, and that's what made it feel strange. People were playing soccer in a field next to an old Roman bath. An protestant church holds services in what was formerly a Roman hall (right picture). As with many European cities we encountered, Trier has a pedestrian town center (left picture). They are composed of an odd mixture of historical sites and modern commercial business. They certainly have more charm and character than a typical American strip mall!

4-28 Nancy and Luxembourg We reached Nancy, where my dad fulfilled the official purpose of this trip: to attend and give a talk at a mathematics conference. My mom and I went sightseeing around the city.

Today was the first real test of my manual driving skills. Before this trip, I had never used a stickshift before. It didn't come to me quickly, because I didn't initially understand how gradually I should let go of clutch, particularly in the lower gears. More than a few times, I would make the car jerk around a bit before stalling, eliciting an audible reaction from my mom. Therefore, my dad would insist on taking over the driving responsibilities in the city. It was a Catch-22 situation. I wouldn't learn until I could practice driving in the city, but I couldn't drive in the city unless I knew how to work the stick proficiently. However, I enjoyed the freeway. Much of the landscape was lush and pastoral. The roads curved just enough to make it interesting, but not enough to make it dangerous. Barring traffic, I could drive reasonably fast (especially in Germany, where the speed limit isn't enforced.) Lastly, I didn't need to shift gears very much. I finally figured out stickshift today. After I dropped my dad at the university, I drove around in circles around the relatively empty campus, practicing the art of stopping. I got the hang of it and I drove my mom around Nancy successfully. The only situation where I still had trouble was accelerating from zero on a upwards slope.

Our rental car (photo taken earlier)

Luxembourg, our destination in the latter part of the day, is only about an hour away from Nancy. The center of the city if situated on the top of a hill, and there is a dramatic steep drop surrounding this core of the city, making the scenery quite distinctive.

4-29 Strasbourg We headed east towards the German border, stopping briefly in Luneville, a town that wants to be a tourist attraction.

I felt a vague sense of familiarity about these trees in Strasbourg. They look like the trees on the UC Berkeley campus, in lower Sproul. I've always been told that the Berkeley trees were genetically engineered, but I doubt that these are the same; Europeans aren't enthusiastic about genetic engineering.

Strasbourg. A view of the river. The bridges rotate to let boats through.

Three heads are better than two.

"Don't ruin my reputation," he said. Homelessness had something to do with it.

A nice cafe in a plaza where we had dinner and watched people.

My coworkers will get a kick out of this. For some reason, Argonne National Lab has a ladybug infestation. They crawl all over the place and always get in the way. For some reason, Europeans seem to love ladybugs. They cast chocolate figurines and sell ladybug souvenirs. They name restaurants after them. Imagine, an eating establishment named after an insect! Here is the evidence.

4-30 Freiburg Continuing east to Switzerland, we stopped in Freiburg, where there was a market outside of that catherdral. They sold some quality bratwurst there, and I consumed copious amounts of the German sausage.

One of my college friends used to throw "cheese parties," and I am sure that this would delight him. Because they are selective, Europeans generally favor shops that specialize in particular items over supermarkets that have everything.
	By now, my dad and I had surmised that my mom's favorite activity was to shop for postcards and souvenirs. To her, it was even a priority over actually seeing the sights. Her obsession mystified us.

5-1 Zurich, Rheinfall, and Stein am Rhein

My cousin Linh took the train and met us at Konstanz, a city on the Swiss-German border. He graciously acted as our tour guide and translator for the weekend. Our first stop was Zurich. It wasn't a good time to come; it was Labor day and everything was closed except for churches and restaurants. In the afternoon, we went to Rheinfall and Stein and Rhein before coming back.

Grossmunster, the church where protestant reformer Huldrych Zwingli had his start.

The stained glass windows at Fraumunster, another church across the river. They were created by Marc Chagall in the 1970s.

What can I say? I love croissants.

This hotdog seems eager to be eaten. I am not.

Rheinfall, the largest waterfall in Europe.

In this building overlooking the waterfall, you can change your perspective. I always thought that viewing the world through colored lenses was a figurative expression.

Stein am Rhein. Many of the buildings here are painted elaborately.

How's this for a surf spot?

The Tower of Pita

In Stein am Rhein, we had Turkish food for dinner. I like to call Turkey "the Mexico of Europe." Mexico and Turkey are south of the United States and Europe, respectively. Many people emigrate to from both to their northern neighbors. For the average consumer, their food is relatively cheap and the portions are large. They both like to wrap food in flat bread. The parallels are endless.

The view from Museggmauer, Lucern's medieval city wall	5-02 Lucern If you had to pick a place to be abandoned by your family, Lucern wouldn't be a bad choice. My parents and cousin had to get back to work, but I'd asked for another week off. I spent the next week touring Switzerland and France, backpacker style.
	The first hostel I stayed at was across the street from this lake, not a bad locale for budget accommodation. On the other hand, you can't go wrong finding a place in Lucern. It's just a beautiful city. Well, the whole country is beautiful. Switzerland seems like the ideal country. I'm sure it has its faults, but they aren't aesthetic and I didn't see them.

Would an ideal country involve itself in military conflicts? If the ideal country was in an ideal world, then there wouldn't be wars and the question would be moot. On the other hand, if the ideal country were surrounded by warring nations, should it join a particular side? One can argue that if aiding one side would have beneficial effects for mankind, than the country may even have a responsibility to join that side. Unfortunately, foresight is muddled. Joining a war may just be a needless sacrifice and merely complicate the battle between morally equivalent adversaries. Historically, Switzerland has decided to stay out of wars. Consequently, there aren't many Swiss war heroes or Swiss monuments commemorating them. This grieving rock is a rarity, and it doesn't even memorialize the deeds of the Swiss army. Rather, it honors... mercenaries.

A neutral country still has fortifications, and the medieval wall behind Lucern is impressive. It is fun to walk on, and its free.

Another nice free thing is seeing how wildlife differs in another part of the world.

View from Kapellbruke, Lucern's famous covered bridge

Duck,

Duck,

Goose!

I enjoyed seeing this duck. It is a simple pleasure to see a seemingly ordinary animal in a new way. It reminds me of a Bible verse: "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" Matthew 6:25-26 (NIV)

Lake Lucern by night, across from the hostel.

I had a chat with a man from Singapore working in technical sales support for a computer company. He was a bit sick of his job because it took too much time. It seems like most people I've met while travelling are sick of their jobs. I wonder if it is because people who are sick of their jobs want to travel or because a lot of people are sick of their jobs.

5-03 Mt Pilatus

Today was nice day, and it would turn out to be the last one that I would see on this vacation. I took full advantage of the weather by heading for the hills - Mt Pilatus, specifically. Mt Pilatus overlooks Lucern and Lake Lucern in one direction (left), and the Alps in the other (right). It is accessible by a gondola and also a railway, depending on the weather.

When I came up the mountain, I was surprised to see many ravens. I was even more surprised to see a large flock gathered at the summit. When I came closer I realized it was because an old Swiss man (For simplicity, I'll call him Bird Man) was feeding them.

As a biologist (sort of), I know I shouldn't have done it. But Bird Man was already doing it when I came, and continued to do it after I left. Upon seeing the delight in my face, he literally poured raisins into my hand. He motioned that I should raise my hand up and open my palm flat so that I could be a bird feeder. Now, I truly know the meaning of the word ravenous.

On top of Mt Pilatus, this is a "high church." It must not think that accessibility is a necessity.

I must have felt that taking the gondola was too easy, so I walked some of the way down the mountain. It was a pretty nice walk.

5-4 Grindewald Grindewald is a small town on the way up to Jungfraujoch, which is the highest train station in Europe. Jungfraujoch is a tourist mecca, but I decided not to go up. The tourist information center has a live webcam from the summit, and all that was visible was a bunch of clouds. I decided it wasn't worth the expense.

It was the low season for tourism - between the winter ski season and summer hiking season - and Grindewald was pretty desolate. Still, I met a few fellow backpackers. One of them just graduated from UCSD, where I will be going in the fall. He knows somebody I know from there. Small world.

If you ever have trouble telling your animals apart, here is a simple solution.

5-5 Bern Bern has a nice town center, but those were losing their ability to impress me. I went to Einstein's old house, where he stayed when formulating the special theory of relativity. Unlike his science, his lodgings weren't anything special.

Chateau de Chillon, Switzerland's "most visited castle"

5-6 Montreux and Lausanne The tour books make everything sound so easy - just a short 45 minute walk along the lake. True, it wasn't a particularly strenuous walk, but it feels weird to be doing it when nobody else is around. The weather might have had something to do with the lack of crowds. Inside the castle, there were some tourists, but there was still plenty of room.

A courtyard in the castle

A view from the castle

Lausanne, by the lake

Arc de Triomphe

5-7 to 5-10 Geneva and Paris I didn't do much sightseeing in the last few days of my vacation. Instead, I loitered at my relatives' places in Paris. They were very nice. I had the opportunity to practice my French, particularly with French spouses who don't know Vietnamese. My French was rated passable, but not good. I can live with that.

Lunch with relatives

Snail

It is fitting that this random jaunt to Europe came during a year of being a nomad and travelling around. Right now, I am taking a vacation from vacation and trying to be a productive member of society.