The Big Curry Experiance

Can you imagine, I've never made a curry* in my entire life. At least not until yesterday. Inspired by Nigella Lawson - IMHO one of the sexiest most beautiful women that ever has blessed planet earth with her presence - I forced Toño go down the curry road with me.

First, we went down to the butcher to get some tender beef Ragoût. Where I live, we call this Voressen (literally pre-eat). This does not mean that someone else eat it before. No, this term derives from the good old times when one meat course in a meal was not enough. I.e. one had a ragoût as appetizer. At Migros, we then got all those exotic ingredients like wok oil, coconut milk, green curry paste and fish sauce.



It was just great**. We both liked it. We definitely have to experience more of this curry universe.



We accompanied the curry with a bottle of Mas du Soleilla "Les Chailles" 2005 from Coteaux du Languedoc. Its acidity could keep up with the hotness of curry. Beware, not every wine from that area is capable of this.



While cuing for today's lunch ingredients (poached salmon - picture above), there was an Asian boy looking at a huge fish head at the fish booth while, delighted with joy, calling his mother. Malay Fish Head Curry! I'm not sure whether I'm ready for this. Nonetheless, I'm happy for any recipe in this direction.

* besides of Riz Casimir, the characteristic Swiss dish from the 70es, which Swiss refer to as a "curry dish".
** Well, I love almost everything with luscious peas.

Flowers for Blocher

A man arrives at the gate of the Swiss Federal Palace with a bunch of flowers and asked to see Dr. Christoph Blocher to congratulate him to his re-election as Federal Councillor. The security guard told him that Dr. Christoph Blocher has been voted out of office.

The men left, however, he came back the next morning, again with a bunch of flowers and the request to see Dr. Christoph Blocher to congratulate him to his re-election as Federal Councillors. The guard said again that this is not possible because Dr. Christoph Blocher has been replaced by a woman.

The next morning, the man came again. "Why are you coming again and again? I've told you already twice that Dr. Christoph Blocher has been voted out of office", the guard asked him. "Well", the man replied, "I just can't get enough of hearing the good news".

And The Winner Is...

It's really surprising and hard to believe, but there are still some companies which value loyalty. One of those is Transa.

Transa is a Swiss shop, selling outdoor gear. Everything started 30 years ago with some folks, who had a penchant for trips through the Sahara by Range Rovers. Such an endeavour requires some special equipment, which is hard to get. One thing let to the other, Transa was founded and has been a flourishing business ever since.

The folks of Transa decided to share the joy with their loyal customers. Some weeks ago, Toño and I enjoyed a lovely complimentary evening with fine Maghreb cuisine and a theatre show. There we also filled a competition form.

Yesterday, word came through that I actually won. It's not the main price but a handy backpack by Bach:

Frantically Cookie Bitching

I was late, it was intensive, however, Cookie Bitching 2007 is accomplished.

On Friday, I started with the ones for my clan. It took 24 hours to get those done. I was still baking when the guests arrived for Saturday's dinner party*.



Then on Sunday, we had the traditional Swiss Rover Cookie Contest. These were the winner cookies (unfortunately not mine):



We were so knocked out, we had to skip a Christmas party on Sunday night. This is a first.

* Luckily, the guests brought the food - the kitchen was quite a mess.

Any Wahle To Hunt Down?

One of the most tedious tasks - sorry Tom Peters - projects of this year is over. Yesterday, I managed to clear the last hurdle in becoming a Certified Senior Project Manager (IPMA Level B). It was an interview by two assessors, who had to challenge my knowledge and experience in steering a doomed and complex project through hideous shoals and gruesome adversity to shining success and smashing victory.

I reckon, I was convincing enough. Already today, I had a letter in my (snail) mail box, confirming the certification and inviting me to the certification party ceremony.

Are facing abyss with your project? gomad.ch might be your deliverance!

Diva Relaced By Woman

I have no idea who made it, but I reckon this is the most popular picture on Swiss blogs right now:



The Swiss parliament has deported the biggest diva of Swiss politics (Christoph Blocher) from the cabinet and has replaced him by a real woman. Blocher is the mastermind behind the plot, which tries to turn Switzerland into Europe's heart of darkness (read more about). This will not stop him but it is reassuring to have people in the government who know the term dignity not only from the dictionary..

L'entrecôte Café de Parise

Last weekend we went with some friends to commemorate the defense of Geneva in 1602 against the hideous Savoy by a bowl of vegetable soup, which provided enduring freedom, wealth and protestantism. The event is called L'Escalade.



However, one can not only live of vegetabel soup, chocolate cauldrons and marzipan, so we went to a restaurant, which is located next to McDonald's and Burger King and which is pround to have an even simpler menu. The place is called Café de Paris and features only one item on the menu, which has been invented in 1930: Salad, French Fries and Entrecôte Café de Paris. All you can choose is wheather you prefer your sirloin steak à point, saignant or bien cuit, and your choice of drink.



We accompanied the menu with a bottle of Gamaray, a wine variety from Geneva with a dark and intense colour, and a rather animal note. It matched perfectly.

Me Senator

At least there is a bit of a reward for the deprivations. Today, I was awarded Senator status with Miles & More.



If I counted correctly, there were 41 flights this year. When I asked my boss the other day, if there were some more, he said Why do you ask me? Flip a coin!

Plätzli

We had to take countermeasures against the tendencies I developed in Canada. We did this by having Plätzli on a bed made of vegetables, salad and apple:



We deviated from the original recipe by using chard instead of spinach, and by choosing veal over pork escalopes. I don't particularly like pork and I think it causes arthritis.

Cut stem and leafs of the chord in slices, blanch them in simmering water and shock them with ice water. In a wide pan we fry a chopped onion, add the chord and two table spoons of water. After about ten minutes, add chopped chicory, a sliced apple and some skimmed cream. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Boil it up and let it cook briefly.

Added later on Rob7534's request: We had a bottle of Jacquesson 1996, this is one of the best yet affordable vintage champagnes.

Going Bionic

It seems to be true, global warming is a fact we have to deal with. One of the side effects is that the weather will be much extremer. But as we know, there is no bad weather - only bad equipment.

When it comes to waterproof and breathable fabrics most people still choose Gore-Tex™. But remember, we have to deal with the threats of the 21^st century, and Gore-Tex™ is so last century if not last millennium. Thus I decided to go bionic for my mew exposure to nasty weather gear by choosing howies^®' Long Way Home Jacket:

Around whole collar and front arm panels, it has Schoeller’s fabric called reflex which looks black in day light but becomes a large reflective area in the dark. But the real stand out thing about the jacket is it uses the bionic (sfx: six million dollar man music) C-Change™ membrane from Schoeller. It was voted ‘2006 Frost & Sullivan Award for product innovation of the year’.

It’s clever stuff. You see during activity, the structure of the C-Change™ membrane opens as body moisture levels rise. Excess heat can escape to the outside air. Which makes it great for those long rides home. Correspondingly, when you’re cooling down, the structure of the membrane closes, retaining the heat directly at the body.

Battening

One of the disadvantages of business trips is that one is constantly eating out without taking care to exercise - with the usual side effects on the waist line. Here are some related experiences from our winterly trip to Canada in arbitrary order:



If you ever make it to Montréal, see that you can dine at Ouzeri St Denis (4690 Rue Saint-Denis). This restaurant claims that its Mediterranean cuisine is recherché. Whatever, I enjoyed those chunks of lamb covered in a spicy feta cheese sauce before Mr. Mac could roll me back to the car.



I like to taste local brews. In British Columbia I discovered Kokanee which sported the most stylish label.



In a Chinese restaurant in a Japanese settlement called Steveston village in Richmond, a city in Greater Vancouver, we had (among other things) a huge platter of most tender scallops. In Switzerland, such an order would consume the family food budget of an entire week.



Tim Hortons is a Canadian institution. When we went there, we caused some confusion among the staff, because a) we had first to consult the menu, and b) did not know which dishes on the menu are not served before 11 am.



Québec is not only the home of Cidre de Glace, but also of Apple Vermouth. There seem to exist no limits for apples in Québec.



Avoid Sandwich Chaud au Poulet, it was the worst thing I eat since an Indian pizza that tasted like cardboard. There supposed to be an even worse Quebec delicacy called Poutine, or heart attack in a bowl, as it is also referred to.

Well in 24 hours I will be back in Switzerland and again subject to Toño cooking.

Facing the Out-stretched Palm

I'm a guest here in Anglo-America and it's not for the guests to complain about the cultural behavior of their hosts. However, I will do it anyway, because it's about money and when we Swiss know anything then it's about money. But I'm not alone, as I could read in Monocle's November issue, where the editor in chief wrote:

I know I'm partly to blame because too much time spent in Asian hotels has made me intolerant for mediocre north American service delivered with an out-stretched palm.

Yes exactly, I'm complaining about the tipping culture.

I don't mind paying a fair price for the service, but why can't this be included in price listed on the menu? The same goes for the various taxes. I'm not interested what the single items cost. All I'm interested in is the bottom line and an attentive service. It doesn't help when I know my waiters name (I don't do names anyway) and I don't need him/her constantly in my face. And last but not least, I'm useless when it comes to mental arithmetic.

Dear Anglo-American restaurateurs,

Please pay your staff decent wages, include the taxes in the prices on the menu, and don't expose me to mental stress.

Sincerely,
gomad.ch

Sliding to Work

Did I mention that Hertz gave us a car with four season tires despite the imminent danger of a blizzard?

Kohbunny is Evil and Help Wanted

While aimlessly surfing the internet, I discovered that daring artist Terence Koh* has closed down KohBunny, because KohBunny seems to be EVIL!!



* better don't follow this link at work - viewer discretion is advised.

No Bad Weather - Only Wrong Gear

Next to our hotel is this river, which we always call lake by mistake. It's unusually wide and calm from a Swiss' perspective. Whatever... last week it was crowded like Boxing Day at Walmart with geese.

Suddenly one morning, we heard noises like in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Looking up, we saw the sky darkened by migrating geese. We are talking here of zillion of geese passing by. We stood there for minutes watching the endless trail pass.



We better should has taken this as a hint. The temperatures dropped significantly since the passage. We are now at -12 °C. Taking the wind into account, it feels like -23 °C. And for this night, 15-25 cm of snow are forecasted.

You may say that I've been to Siberia and thus must be used to far lower temperatures. Well, this is a business trip and I'm here in proper business attire.

However, cold means dry snow. When we came here two weeks ago, everything was covered in damp snow, which was awfully bad for my feet in leather soled shoes. Because of fear or slip and fall, they make me walk like a penguin (desperate note to self: get some flash looking business shoes with rubber sole - if there is something like this).

By the way, I'm terribly missing my goose down feather duvet. I don't like hotels that leave you with just a blanket.

And did I mention the icing rain that made us chip the ice of our car for half an hour after work?



It's time that this trip ends.

So Bored I'm Doing a Meme

Departed from my deriously beloved Toño for the second consecutive weekend and inspired by the conversation with Mr.Mac over breakfast at Tim Hortons, I'm doing a meme from my hotel room's toilet.

The Soundtrack of my Life!
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc.)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that's playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool ...

Opening Credits - Ritz 107 - Fischerspooner

Waking Up - Such A Shame - Talk Talk

First Day at School - I Love Paris - by Cole Porter, covered by Les Négresses Vertes

Falling in Love - Yernanjá - Joyce

Fight Song - Satisfied, Prince

Breaking Up - English Summer Rain [Freelance Hellraiser remix] - Placebo

School Ball - Dulce Compaiñía - Julieta Venegas

Life is Good - Broken Face - Pixes

Mental Breakdown - Dum Dum Girl [12" mix] - Talk Talk

Driving - Wrong Turn - Jack Johnson

Getting Back Together - A Different Corner - George Michael

Wedding - Meds - Placebo

Paying the Dues - Too Far - Kylie

The Night Before the War - Allison - Pixies

Final Battle - What Have I Done To Deserve This? - Pet Shop Boys

Moment of Triumph - Readymade - Beck

Death Scene - Te Voy A Mostrar - Julietta Venegas

Funeral Song - American Angel - George Michael

End Credits - After You, Who? - by Cole Porter, covered by Jody Watley

In conclusion: feel free...

First Night in B.C.

We arrived at Vancouver. So far, I spent the second time in my life about four hours in British Columbia. The first time it happened back in 1983 when I was attending the 15th World Scout Jamboree in Alberta, Canada.



Back then we made a hike (when I saw my first bear in wilderness - but this is another story) which led us about a mile into British Columbian territory. However, we went back to sleep to Alberta.

This time I will spend two nights here. Sadly, there will be no time for sightseeing. There will be an important sales pitch for us tomorrow. I have to go to bed now, we must make a good impression. Keep your fingers crossed.

Loo to the World

It's not even a week, but it already feels like ages that I'm here in Québec.

The weather is rather bad, but there anything not much more than work. However in the evening, I try to see what else is happening out there in the world. But the only place, where I get a wireless connection is next to the loo...

Another Trip

Everything is confirmed. I'll abandon Toño again and he will have to celebrate the first Advent Sunday without me.

Tomorrow, I'm going to fly to Montreal in Canada. Thanks to side trip to British Columbia, I might at least reach Senator status (unlike last year).



I've decided to finally start with Ryszard Kapuściński's Travels with Herodotus. I reckon, this is the appropriate dissipation for a traveling senator.

Noviembre Cálido

We had the swimmers over for dinner on Saturday. They are the best guests imaginable. They do not only swim hard, they also know to valued their creature comforts - i.e. they also eat and drink hard.

Toño surprised them with Tacos Dorados with Salsa Borracha and a delicious Mole (see last picture). The salsa for mole is made of chocolate and then different hot chilli peppers.



We concluded the weekend with something completely different - i.e. a Russian soirée on the theme Troika with a piano player, a baritone and a reader.

It's Prickling Again

I can't remember when I heard Let's Get Brutal by Nitro Deluxe for the first time (it was released in 1986), but I still remember the prickling sensation I experienced in my back and on the back side of my arms.

This week, I experienced exactly the same when listening for the first time to LCD Soundsystem's newest track 45:33 (stream it).

Although some complain that LCD Soundsystem sold their soul to Nike for this, I don't mind, they gave me this prickling sensation back.

...just don't love your bike

Yesterday, I received this email:

The lesson is, "It's ok to love your bike, just don't love your bike!"
[link]
Love, S
xxx

Well, I have to admit that there was a certain erotic element involved, when I bought my GT Zaskar LE



I just could not sleep anymore before seeing this bike. It happened that was already in bed when I had to get up again to cycle to this bike dealer to get a climbs of this jewel. Well, we did finally come together. Although I can't deny a certain sexual attraction, I can affirm that I never actually shagged my GT.

Crusing The Globe

As I learned during today's apéritif, it might be required for me to head to Québec in due course.



I don't know about Ms.Mac but Toño will not be pleased to hear this. But let's cross that bridge when we come to it. At the moment, I will have the chance to taste more of this:

Getting Pissed By Entire Italy

Well so far, the conference was not that exiting, however, I got sufficient wine.



At lunch I shared the first bottle with two Spanish exhibitors.



Then early evening, my boss and a colleague of mine arrived and we went for an apéritif to a local bar. There are plenty of bars in Genoa, however, it turned out to be difficult to find a decent restaurant. With the help of another barkeeper, we found a small seafood restaurant. They did not have a written menu and none of us speaks any Italian. We just nodded and grunted somewhere in the list the waiter was reciting and got some delicious dishes which we washed down with plenty of wine.

The one for dinner was a Lagrein form Alto Adige. The one for dinner was a Nero d'Avola from Sicily. This means that I manged to get pissed within a few hours by entire Italy.

Finding Bristol Palace

I'm in Genoa to attend a conference on maritime systems and technology.

I arrived yesterday evening, and of course, had all the details on how to get from the train station to the hotel printed out. Who was I to know that Genoa has got 2 main train stations, Principe and Brignole? Needless to say that I left the train on the one which was not on my map.

Nothing fitted. Instead of a brief stroll, I was wandering along countless splendid palazzi and working girls for 100 minutes until I reached Hotel Bristol Palace. Although travelling light, I was completely soaked.



Why I did not take a taxicab? I loath sitting in a taxi on my own and I loath taxi drivers. I should have brought Toño along. He is a) the best company imaginable and b) he speaks Italian.

Sunday Roast

Last weekend was so cliché November. The flurries on Friday were fun but then it turned wet and stormy. So it was far from odd that we made a Sunday Roast.

The starter was a beet root soup with horseradish cream.



For the main course, we went for a tender veal roast, which Toño marinated with honey, lemon zest and rosemary.



Toño roasted it at low temperature for 2.5 hours in the oven. Meanwhile, he severely cut his finger while chopping the beet root, which let to major confusion. However, somehow, the side dishes made it on the plates anyway.



Well for desert, we went then for something a bit more basic.

On The Wagon

Toño and I are in deep trouble. Our wine cellar is almost completely dried-out.



But it's autumn and Zürich has this wine fair called Expovina, which is located on 12 ships on the lake of Zürich. Toño has to be there quite often to represent his caring employer, i.e. Toño works in the wine business. Hence last Saturday, he received the task to get us a.s.a.p. off the waggon again.

He ordered 6 bottles of each wine:

1. Châteauneuf-du-Pape "Fiancée" Domaine La Barroche, 2004
2. Château Sainte Eulalie "La Cantilène" Minervois, 2005
3. Mas du Soleilla Les Chailles, 2005
4. Domaine des Soulanes Jean Pull, 2005
5. Dominio de Atauta Cosecha, 2003
6. Torresilo Cosecha 2005
7. Finca Terrerazo Cosecha - Tierra de Terrerazo 2004
8. El Perro Verde, Rueda DO, 2006
9. Murice Grianza, 2003
10. Cantos de Valpiedra Cosecha, 2005
11. Lanzaga Cosecha, 2004
12. Las Rocas Cosecha - Calatayud DO, 2005
13. Norton Privada, 2004
14. Weinert Malbec, 2003
15. Enrique Foster Malbec Reserva, 2004
16. Perdriel Single Vineyard, 2004

I reckon, this should bring us through the next three months.

Lick This Bag

Steve Jobs is supposed to have said You know a design is good when you want to lick it. I'm currently licking Monocle's Overnight Bag:



It's made by Porter in Tokyo. The bag comes with a laundry bag, a pouch for toiletries and pouch to store a bag when you get back to your pied-à-terre.

Datating the Criticity of Planification

A former boss of mine just had to endure a meeting with some French blokes. Here an extract of his informal report:

Anyway, we like to poke fun at the Indians for their sometimes strange English ("prepone" etc) ... they are but beginners compared to the French.

New Franglais classics include :
- "Datation" : which I understand means something like the process of Time Stamping
- "Criticity" : I guess priority

and as absolute winner
- "Planification"

Cover Boy

My deriously beloved Toño's picture is featured on a magazine cover:



Toño's wearing a Hanro T-Shirt and a Dockers Shirt. Grooming by Figaro Coiffeure Alex Schulzke.

Vogue Hommes will be next.

Milk from Grass

I don't know if other cultures reached such refined levels as well, but the Danish have choices of milk, I've never seen before:



On the left, you can see standard milk. Available in various shades of fat. On the right, you can see milk produced by cows, which grassed on a meadow. How inovative is that. They can even charge more for this special kind of milk.

Harbour Bath

København has this amazing bath in the harbour I heard so much about. The last time I was in København, I spent an entire Sunday looking for it. Well today I learned that I missed it by about 250 meters - i.e. I found it today.



Here are some more pictures of this jewel made of wood.

Of course, I was far too cold to take a dip. However, when I was approaching, there where some young blokes jumping from the stepped tower. They must had a key. When I finally arrived, they were gone and the gate closed. I found the bath but missed the chance to take it.

JDS, one of the architectual teams working on it, are planning a harbour bath for Dublin. This reminds me of favourite book At Swim, Two Boys. And talking of reminders: I'm missing the other one and long for a swim with him.

Shore Leave

The first week of work at sea is over. Yesterday evening, we were brought ashore in a rubber dinghy and drove straight to København, were we checked into a hotel in the heart of the red-light district. How cliché-ridden is that...

Sailing Again

I'm back in Denmark facing two weeks of sea trials. In other words, I'm again parted again from my deriously beloved Toño.

Hot, Safe and Fair

Finally something positive about condoms. Hot Rubber is introducing condoms made of Fair Trade latex.

Now you can shag around* knowing that the fabric saving your health is produced under human working conditions, without exploiting child labour and with the least possible impact on natural resources.



This is my favourite add by Hot Rubber from the late eighties. The tag line reads Who stays over night...

* not that I would do a thing like that...

Spoiled Boys

This summer, I managed to get twice an upgrade to business class on a round trip to Los Angeles for Toño and me.



Well, this weekend I've got my payback.

Toño's caring employer is the organizer of the award show for the cream of the crop of Swiss wines.

Yesterday was the award show, followed by a gala dinner at the 5-star Bellevue Palace in Bern. The dinner went over 5 courses and was accompanied by 10 short-listed wines. Toño did not only manage to get me on the guest list, we also got a complimentary room.

Good Citizen

I've fulfilled my duties as a citizen by sending my ballot on time.

I'd stopped pondering and put first all The Gays™ on my list and stuck then to the closest-match recommendation of the internet. There was one (1) correlation, i.e. on bloke made it twice on my list. To my surprise, my ladies quote is over 50%.

I reckon, I'm not much of a prophet by prognosticating that my ballot will hardly correlate with next parliament.

But till you feed us...

Switzerland, Europe's heart of darkness, is called to the polls in a week. Because I hate to get up early on Sunday mornings, I have to make up my mind now, so that the Swiss snail postal service can bring my vote to the ballot box in time.

Although we can't submit our ballot via the fabulous internet, I used an on-line service to make up my mind. Who wants to be a sheep that let itself influence by election propaganda. It has to be kind of objective. First I had to answer a bunch of questions and was then presented with a spider map, showing my political position.



I could also see where I am standing with respect to the candidates who are running for parliament in my constituency.



As you can see, I'm kind of a tree hugging leftist liberal. My position tells me that I should be a teacher or journalist. Far from it. I develop naval weapon systems. And unfortunately, almost all of the dots surrounding me, support the initiative which wants to prohibit Swiss enterprises to export any defence equipment. Switzerland has no sea. If we can't export, I'm out of work.

What I'm supposed to do? Shall I vote against my attitude or put people into power who want me to lose my job or make me to abandon my ship?

Macheath says in Brecht's Threepenny Opera: You may proclaim, good sirs, your fine philosophy. But till you feed us, right and wrong can wait!

The Next Thing

There is this trend to combine chili with chocolate. Forget it! The truly flabbergasting experience lies in pepper covered with chocolate.



If you put one of these into your mouth, the chocolate melts away, giving you the sweet experience you're expecting. But then, as soon as you bite in the tiny ball, your taste buds are sent into another dimension.

50 Years

I would like to mark the 50-year anniversary of the Sputnik launch with the song Fred vom Jupiter, which always reminds me of the Sputnik telemetry signal.



In less than 4 years we can celebrated another 50-year anniversary.



Gagarin, who is always watching me at work, is patently waiting for that one.

Porcini with Knöpfli

As a tribute to autumn, I went for a porcini dish.



Actually a quite easy one with Knöpfli (or Spätzle).



But because I made everything from the scratch (except grinding the flour) it took quite long. But we don't have autumn every day.