27 May 2009 – In which I cross back into Europe or, should I say, into the real world.

Rrrrring! It is 7 AM, and the receptionist – as instructed the other day – wakes me up. Two and a half hours and a breakfast later, I board the ferry to Kos. Turkish boat this time (Cos-Bodrum Express Lines, as spelt with red letters on its deck), more expensive than the Maria Star (for no apparent reason), and with more passengers. A lady hands out leaflets advertising short tours of the island of Kos. As the price is reasonable and as I have not seen the island yet – apart from the port area – I decide to give it a go.

And, there he is. Nested among bottles of olive oil, local wine and cinnamon syrup, incarnated in a beach towel, El Comandante carries on his guerilla warfare against capitalist pigs in the mountains of Greece. I ask the girl selling this cultural icon what she thinks of Che Guevara. “Good man” – she says, welcoming me to the real world.
I am hungry, and I choose not to choose the chosen restaurant of the tour (most of the tour operators, all over the world, be it Greece or Cambodia, benefit from directing their customers to a particular restaurant – which may, or may not be, a tourist trap). Che’s presence makes me wonder whether the local gyros, made from the flesh of capitalist pigs, slowly roasted and spiced up with thyme, is any good. Tip: If hungry in Greece – that is, hungry, not in search for local gastronomical delights – go for the gyros. It is inexpensive and filling.

Taverna
eucalyptus
Lake
Asklepion
Cats
Water
Back to the city
Hippocrates platane tree sycamore?
City walls
Back to the port cafeteria, communist commercial

Read more »

25 May 2009 – In which I take part to Operation Barbaros(a), and I meet the man with the best job in the world (no, not the Australian one).

Boat trip! That is what the conference program said, and we all "had to comply" with! In all honesty, nowhere else than in this conference of anarcho-capitalists have I seen so much self discipline and punctuality. I believe the biggest delay we ever had was something like 5 minutes. Everybody was on time!

Read more »

23 May 2009: Kadikalesi Fishing Village, near Bodrum

"To be in Bodrum and not to go to the Körfez Restaurant in Kadikalesi seems to verge on sin, especially if you prize fish and seafood" - says the popular wisdom (i,e, Bodrumlife.com). The conference organisers are well aware of this. After the group photo...

... we board the coaches who take us a few kilometers west of Bodrum, to the Kalikadesi Fishing Village ...

... where one can use the lovely scenery for photo-ops with professor Hoppe, Christian Michel, and Robert Groezinger ...



... and to basically enjoy life!

Read more »

23 May 2009 - Meanwhile, in Romania …

I may be away from Romania, but I still have work responsibilities (telecommuting means that you can be away when you work, but also that you have to work when you are away). One of my functions is that of Ambassador (that is, National Coordinator) for the StarPeace project. StarPeace is an initiative affiliated to the International Year of Astronomy whereby astronomers from neighboring countries hold public star parties in the same time, celebrating the beauty of the sky. For the western side of Romania, my idea was to associate a StarPeace event with the Triplex Confinium meeting (an initiative of the Danube-Cris-Mures-Tisa Euro-Region, whereby people meet at the triple border point between Romania, Serbia and Hungary). I first contacted the Timis County Council suggesting that astronomers from the three countries, from clubs in the counties neighboring the border, would meet, too, and organize astronomical meetings and star parties. The County authorities were happy indeed, so I then contacted my old friends and collaborators from the Antares Astronomy Club in Timisoara, - namely Andrei Juravle - and two astronomy clubs in Hungary and Serbia (the latter through our Hungarian friend, Tibor Asztalos) They all agreed to participate and involve the public.
So here I am, away yet there in spirit, for an event I grandfathered yet whose practical organization is in the hands of some trustworthy astronomers. I am curious to see the echoes of the event but, if it is as good as the poster made by the Antares club, then I can only be delighted.

Read more »

21 May 2009: Hotel Karia Princess

It is curious how Bodrum has a different climate to Antalya, where I vacationed two years ago roundabout the same period of the year as this conference. May is, still, off-season. I tried with the tip of my thumb the pool water and, whereas there are braver souls who enjoy a swim in cool water, I am not one of them.

Read more »

20 May 2009: On to Bodrum

0:30 – We were supposed to stop for 20 minutes at Santorini – but we were half an hour late. Not a problem, even if I would arrive 30 minutes late in Kos, I would still have plenty of time before boarding the next boat. Not too much to see of Santorini at this time of night – but I will have some time to spend here when I will return to Romania.

4:30 – Note to self: when I will have more money to spend when traveling by ferry, I shall not book an economy class seat, but a berth. Some other people were more inspired, and brought some bed sheets with them. I had no idea until now that I traveled next to the mummy of Pharaoh Ramses!

5:00 – We arrive in Kos, birth place of Hippocrates, father of medical science. I head to the port, which is much smaller than Piraeus. The only ting open at this time of the morning is a cafeteria serving Greek pastries and coffee. Next to it, there are several booths for ferry tickets to Bodrum.

6:00 – The first salesman arrives – a mustached Greek. I was told before that there are two departure times for Bodrum: 9 AM and 4:30 PM. I buy a one-way ticket for Bodrum from him, on the “Maria Star”, a ship that carries both regular passenger as well as tourists that wish to visit Turkey for a day. When the salesman sees my passport, he sarts talking to me in Romanian – turns out that in the 1970s, he was married to a Romanian lady in Constanta! He then gives me a medical questionnaire from the Turkish authorities – authorities are scared of the Swine Flu epidemics (Nea Gripi, or the New Flu, as it is called in Greece).

6:20 – Morning has broken (as in the song), birds are singing (really!), and the port of Kos is a beauty at this time. Apart from some boat passengers, the birds and some snails, nobody else is awake.

6:27 – Wake-up time for cats. As we are in Hippocrates’ town, and ancient medicine had as a symbol two snakes climbing a cup, the cats behave in a similar way – in Kos, they come in pairs and sit on cup-like flower pots.

6:40 – Bed (chair …) time for me. Next to me there is a pair of young Koreans who tour the world. After Bodrum, they are headed to Istanbul. Pitty they did not stop in Santorini or another Greek island.

9:30 – After the border formalities, we board the “Maria Star” and in 70 minutes we cross to Turkey. I first have to buy myself a visa from a kiosk in the immigration office, and then I head to Karia Princess, not before being informed from a poster, in four languages, including Romanian, that I can call for free 157, a hot line, when in danger.

11:30 – I finally arrive to the hotel, meeting place of the Property and Freedom Society. The shower – first thing I hit when going in the room - transforms me from a backpacker into a posh gentleman. Then, the bed invites me to have a proper rest …

19:30: Dinner time – I meet several like-minded paleo-libertarians, and we chat about the gold standard and some other politically incorrect topics. Now, this is music to my ears …

Read more »