Where's Fab?

Diving in Cebu

2009-08-25T19:43:00.001+01:00

Last weekend I was in Cebu, Philippines, for some diving with a few friends. Very, very nice.

We spent the day on this interesting kind of outrigger boat, apparently called Bangka:

They're fairly fast, and very smooth on the water. (I assume that this outrigger is used (rather than keel boats as in HK) because on one hand, there's lots of space, but on the other hand, the water can be very shallow.) Anyway, the water and weather were brilliant:

So, we went on two dives. A nice relaxing current moved us along, and we saw a variety of fish.

(I still have pretty bad sunburn on the areas not covered by the shorty wetsuit.)

We engaged in some (presumably ecologically questionable) fish feeding, and had clouds (schools? I love collective nouns, the English revenge for Chinese measure words...) of fish around us, among them a particularly greedy large yellow one that we dubbed the "investment banker fish".

Excellent dinner afterwards at this place called abacá:

On a side note, we had lots of fun emulating Asian poses, such as "Pointing":

Taxes, Sailing, and some edifying links

2009-05-13T15:35:00.001+01:00

Just finished my Hong Kong tax return in under 18 minutes. You copy over a few numbers from your pay slip, apply a few deductions, and that's it. The top tax rate for salary tax in HK is 15% this year (last year it was 16%, but hey, the government made too much money, so they just returned everyone half of the tax they had collected (subject to a cap)). No taxes on capital gains, interest, etc. Can't complain, really.

(US citizens and green card holders pay US taxes, of course... (unless they're lucky enough to be dual citizens, and reside outside the US). And, if give up your US citizenship, or give up your green card (or the government rescinds your gree ncard!), you are subject to an exit tax of some 40% or so on your net wealth...)

On a different note, I've just completed sailing class (HKSF, level 1&2), that was a lot of fun. And great people, too. I'll carry on with it. The first two days the weather was awful, but the last two days it was brilliant. Mediterranean. Really nice.

Finally, a couple of good links (or, to be more precise, first two links to boring virtual presences representing good real places, then three links to good websites representing no real place):

Enoteca - my favourite restaurant in HK (well, it's just across the road, too, but the pizza and tapas are tasty, and the staff very friendly, and they have a good selection of wines open, as the name implies).

Chilli Fagara - Sichuan food. Spicy. Good for Western visitors (and me), in my opinion, in that it gets the spices and taste right (as far as I can tell), but has (what Westerners would consider) proper meat, rather than the mix of bones and skin and tendons that seem to be characteristic of authentic Sichuan food.

Kiva - Allows you extend a micro credit to a borrower in a developing country.

CouchSurfing - Allows a traveller to stay on someone else's couch, on a reciprocal basis.

Stickk - Allows you to enter a binding contract to help you fulfill a commitment to yourself, e. g. to lose weight, quit smoking, etc.

The etiology of "The shrimp fucks the cabbage"

2008-05-15T16:54:00.001+01:00

here at the wonderful Language Log.

My first computer :-)

2008-04-25T10:43:00.006+01:00

Just found an old bill from the Vobis Data Computer GmbH: I bought my first computer, a wonderful Sinclair ZX81, on 11 Oct 1983 (when I was 11 years old). It cost 148 DM, or about 75 EUR.

It had 1 KB of RAM, a membrane keyboard, and a graphical resolution of 44 x 64 pixels. I computed Mandelbrot sets on it (Apfelmännchen) - it would plot one pixel every few seconds. The CPU (a Zilog Z80 running at 3.25 MHz) had to render the screen, and there was a FAST mode that would disable screen rendering and run computations 4 times as fast. Storage was on a MC tape recorder.

The 16KB RAM extension cost 85 DM. The MacBook Pro I'm writing this on, 25 years later, has about 125000 times as much RAM (a compound growth rate of about 47% p.a. - remarkably close to Moore's law!).

Spiderman

2008-04-15T13:44:00.001+01:00

This guy climbed up the Four Seasons today during lunch, and why not? (You'll probably have to click on the picture to see him - there are better pictures out there, I'm sure:)

Highlights from the JP Morgan conference call on the Bear Stearns acquisition

2008-03-17T17:54:00.003+01:00

Mike Cavanagh - JPMorgan Chase - CFO:
Okay, I think we're going to take just one or two more, operator.
Unidentified Participant:
Hi, this is (inaudible). I'm an individual investor. I was just wondering how this valuation helps the Bear Stearns shareholders rather than go through a Chapter 11 and an orderly liquidation of the assets of the company?
Mike Cavanagh - JPMorgan Chase - CFO:
I'm afraid you have to ask that question to Bear Stearns.
Unidentified Participant:
Well, I vote not to approve the sale.
Mike Cavanagh - JPMorgan Chase - CFO:
Okay. Next question, operator?

and, close to the end:

Susan Katzke - Credit Suisse - Analyst:
Okay. And just to clarify, does Bear Stearns own its building?

Bear Stearns shares traded at $170 a year ago, now they're bought by JPM for $2 a share because of (mostly) mortgage write-downs, and analysts worry whether that price at least includes the building...

HK humidity, culture, mango

2007-09-29T14:56:00.000+01:00

Just bought a dehumidifier. It is hot and humid here. Also got a water filter, so I don't have to carry bottles of BonAqua from the 7/11 at the corner anymore - waste of plastic, really.

Last weekend, I had lunch with Jack (whom I know from London). His wife now works with my ex-colleague Philip - small world... After a goooood lunch, I strolled back to the Star Ferry terminal. On the way, I dropped into the HK Cultural Center. They have a free performance every Saturday afternoon, it turns out - I still haven't quite figured out how the HK economy works (however, apparently a third of tax revenues come from the financial sector - my colleagues, in other words). This week, there was a Mexican Mariachi band. It was fun - so far, I had only seen them on markets and streets in, well, Mexico. They play very rhythmic and passionate music, and in Latin America, will immediately have everyone dancing, or at least twitching. Here, in HK, nobody of the (predominantly elderly Chinese) audience was moving or swaying in the least. A classical clash of cultures moment. However, next a pretty Mexican couple appeared on stage and danced, and soon everyone was clapping and getting into the swing of things.

Just opposite the ferry terminal, there's my favourite Chinese sweet/dessert spot: 許留山 (Xu Liu Shan - little remember mountain?). Wonderful mango/coconut/aloe/grapefruit pudding-drinks. I had two. Internationally, they're known as Creation Dessert, and Xiaochen introduced me to it in the (significant) China town in Milpitas, California. I suggest to skip the items containing "Crystal Snow" (seems to be a mix of frog fat and frog ovaries, extracted from the whole reproductive tract...) and "Bird's nest" (an actual bird's nest, composed of "interwoven strands of salivary laminae cement", that is bird's spit).

This Friday, Thai dinner with Bjoern - his girl friend is moving here this weekend, so we bid farewell to his bacholorhood. Saturday, dinner at Enoteca on my street, then dessert (Tiramisu) at Peccato - the best Tiramisu in HK I've encountered so far (it still falls short of the one Almudena prepares though).

Back in HK

2007-09-13T20:45:00.000+01:00

Monday had Thai/Malaysian food and then drinks in LKF with Ling and a couch surfer, including some fun live music by a South African band.
Tuesday, I finally met Neil - we had been playing telephone ping-pong for a while. We ended up in the Gecko just under the escalator - great live jazz, really enjoyable, and this rather unique Irish Whiskey, Connemara. It's peated (that is, the malt is dried over a peat (Torf) fire), and as such somewhat of a hybrid between Irish and Scotch. Now, I'm a big fan of pure pot still (that's what a year in Ireland does to you), but this Connemara is really rather intriguing. (Ironically, the only distillery in Ireland that produces "Scotch" type Whiskey is the only one that's actually Irish owned. Go figure.) A very pleasant evening. Wednesday went to the grand opening of Q bar in LKF with Paul - swish club, then pizza close to home.
Thursday some random hedge fund function in the Dragon-I ("Overrated, bad drinks and lots of people with attitude (bankers and too-skinny models)" - indeed. The next quote captures the spirit of the place perfectly - I think the irony is not intended: "People always say they don't like Dragon-I and that it's superficial and full of vapid people, but I always seem to have fun there!"). Then, however, great simple dinner with Ling and Neil in the Enoteca. To top it off, we had a quick drink at home: some Calvados and some 1994 Middleton Very Rare - now we're talking pot still (mostly). And from there, it went all downhill... :-)

Notes in passing:

One hour after I landed in Paris CDG recently, I was still at the luggage belt waiting for my, well, luggage. One hour after I landed in HKG on Sunday, I was at home (with my luggage).
To get home, I had taken the Airport Express (around EUR 10) and then a cab (around EUR 2).

In the week since arriving from the airport, doing all of the above and working full time, I haven't had to use any form of transport at all (except walking and the escalator). No cars, busses, nothing. It's all just around the corner. Another reason I like HK.

Friday, then, was dedicated to work and sleep. Saturday a junk trip with some colleagues (including my excellent ex-colleague Philip) and friends. Visibility was rather bad, but jumping from the boat and (attempts at) wakeboarding were great fun nevertheless. Afterwards with Ling to the FCC ball - black tie, cocktails, dinner, and fantastic live music with Sérgio Mendes . He played his classic hits, and some newer stuff ("Bossa-Hop"). The keyboard did collapse on his knees at one point, and lamentably he walked out during the encore, leaving the (great) band to finish the song. 5am the guys had to catch a plane back. A fun night. Then to Hardys in LKF, where Ling's uncle Rudy performed on stage. And from there, it went all downhill... :-)

Qingdao (青岛）

2007-08-28T19:05:00.000+01:00

Last weekend I was in Qīngdǎo (青岛, "green island" - very original. Note that while it's reasonably green, it (like man) is no island) in Shāndōng province (山东, "Mountain East").

In 1897, two German missionaries were hacked to pieces in Shāndōng. So, Kaiser Wilhelm II sent the German navy to occupy the area. Next year, the Chinese government leased the bay to Germany for 99 years (same year it leased Hong Kong to Britain for 99 years), but canceled the lease in 1914 (but not the HK lease).

So, anyway, the area was under German administration for some 15 years, and, needless to say, has since been home to China's largest brewery, Tsingtao Brewery (very original), which, incidentally, held the Qingdao International Beer Festival in Qingdao that very weekend I happened to be there with my good friend Ling to study Mandarin.

Here, I'm practicing how to order a beverage in Mandarin (普通话):

Here, I'm practicing how to consume a beverage in China:

They had quite a number of huge beer tents there, Paulaner, Weihenstephaner, Erdinger, with wooden benches, beer, barbecue, and a stage with singers and entertainers of dubious quality - just like the Oktoberfest. Of course, they also provided equally attractive non-alcoholic beverages (EANABs) for teetotalers, such as Bud Light. (Note: EANAB is not a term I made up. Every year the Stanford German Student Association organizes an Oktoberfest. When submitting the 3 or 4 party application forms one has to submit in Stanford to have a party, we have to agree to provide EANABS (that is, not just water or Bud Light, but juice, smoothies, et cetera. For the excruciating details, see this "party" planning document, appropriately hosted by Stanford's risk management department. Another note, while we're at it: We also organized an annual "Feuerzangenbowle" in December. We'd watch the movie (a fun old film with Heinz Rühmann), and prepare and drink the eponymous traditional Christmas drink. Until, well, one year the administration realized that the Feuerzangenbowle is an alcoholic (!!) drink. Now, there is a guideline that events at Stanford may not be promoted with alcohol, and in particular not contain references to alcohol in the title. So, we had to rename our traditional Feuerzangenbowle where we watched "Feuerzangenbowle" and drank Feuerzangenbowle from "Feuerzangenbowle" to "Traditional German Pre-Christmas Movie Evening" or something like that. Land of the free.)

I wasn't sure what food I'd get here (note the 2nd picture):
so I bought a lamb (I hope) kebab with wonderful cumin from this very funny guy instead.

Next to all the beer tents there was a fun fair, and they had the "Ranger" there, which I fondly remember from the annual autumn fun fair in Moers, Germany, years ago. It got stuck occasionally up-side-down. This one here did, in fact, display warning signs in stern German.

Next day, we braved some more dangers,

including

an incredibly hot (as in spicy) Sichuan (四川) dinner. (Note: surely no accident that the language of England has no word for hot (as in spicy), and has to resort to "hot" (as in warm) instead to describe the somewhat similar sensation). Anyway, this food was seriously hot; in fact, I experienced the tingling numbness in my mouth caused by Sichuan pepper (the "ma" in málà (麻辣)). (The dish was called "Kung Fu Beef".) All Sichuan food I had previously eaten (in the USA, HK, and mainland China itself) was just a weak knockoff. Fun Fun. Another Sichuan food experience.

an evening in a Karaoke Bar. Not necessarily my cup of tea - nothing against Black Label with Green Tea, but this whole singing thing is not my thing.

Some sailing the next day. The 2008 Olympic Sailing Regatta will be held in Qingdao. So, we rented a 6m boat from a local club, and went out for two hours with Teddy, the lovely Bulgarian from the club, and Xiaoqin, the Chinese instructor. A good morning. It was relaxing and peaceful, and we were tempted to jump in the water for some swimming, but then saw some huge jellyfish. Not so appetizing.

Oh, and we also missed our initial flight with Dragonair to Qingdao Friday morning, as we were both out late on Thursday evening. So, survived a flight with China Eastern instead.

Beethoven.

One more thing: Ling speaks Cantonese very well, but Mandarin less so (he grew up in England). Now, when the cab drivers talked to us and realized that there were a few select phrases I (foreign devil) could utter (after lots of practice), while Ling spoke freely, but hesitantly with a Cantonese accent, they'd berate him without end how on earth it was possible that my Mandarin was better than his. Very entertaining, and certainly gave my study motivation a boost :-)

Korea: More

2007-07-19T17:48:00.000+01:00

The Peace Museum:

The Seoul Dano Folk Festival 2007 was fun. I enjoyed the singing:

So did this guy:

Most of all, I liked the drumming. Sounded good, looked good.

Traditional hair washing. Don't ask me.

Here, a time capsule is buried. I reached out for aliens.

Korea: Temples

2007-07-18T23:00:00.000+01:00

Here's the main gate of the Changgyeonggung 창경궁 royal palace, one of the "Five Grand Palaces" of the Joseon Dynasty. When the Japanese occupied Korea during the world wars, they rather cheekily turned this whole royal palace and gardens into a zoo.

A view from the queen's quarters:

And from above (it's really pretty!):

Now, here's an astronomical observatorium. It is not quite clear to me how being elevated by about 2 meters contributes to clearer observation of the skies (smog?), but so be it.

This now is the Jongmyo Shrine 종묘, part of Korean's UNESCO world heritage.

The buildings are quite stern and elegant; lamentably one cannot enter.

Outside, people are playing some version of Draughts (Checkers) (the English version of which, incidentally, has recently been weakly solved).

When I have a question, I ask the bears.

2007-06-12T15:45:00.000+01:00

I have arranged this charming set of figurines in my office cubicle (ok, it's not a cubicle, it's "the floor"). The scene is an allegory on War and Peace.

Anyway, when I have a question, I ask them. Often, by the time I've described the problem, it has vanished. Otherwise, I ask my excellent colleague Philip.

Next weekend I am in Korea.

Transport in Cambodia

2007-06-10T18:31:00.001+01:00

So, over Easter I was in Cambodia. Beautiful country.

Now, there is a lot of traffic on the road. A lot. Trucks, cars, tuk-tuks, motor cycles ("motos"), bikes, pedestrians. Cairo and Paris are generally known to have the worst traffic in the world, but Phnom Penh competes valiantly.
The system used for collision avoidance is the same sophisticated and time-honed system applied in aviation under VFR (visual flight rules): See and avoid. So, traffic lights, lines on the road etc. are considered mere recommendations.

The safest way to cross a street is to close your eyes, step on the street and walk at a steady speed on a straight line to wherever you want to go. People will just anticipate that and drive around you. If you commit the beginner's mistake of stopping, looking, or even just hesitating, everyone else will get confused and run into you.

In most places, turning is a 5-step-process:

you look in the mirror,

you indicate with your turning signals,

you look over your shoulder,

you wait for a gap in the traffic,

you turn.

In California, the first three steps are generally skipped. In Cambodia, the fourth one is skipped, too. You just turn, traffic or no traffic. "See and avoid" takes care of the rest. In the picture below, we're turning left through the oncoming traffic. As you can see, the closest moto has already begun to swerve to his left as to avoid us.

Most people were wearing a baseball hat for crash protection, so did I.

Now, there are many modes of transport. For example, to transport a family of four, you take a moto:

To transport four mattresses, you take a moto:

To transport a monk, you take a moto:

To transport gas and other explosives, you take a moto:

To transport a moto though, you take a bus:

HK Arts Festival

2007-03-05T16:18:00.000+01:00

When I see performing art, there are two indicators I like it:
I am engrossed and smile obliviously, or I am engrossed and sob obliviously.

Currently, the HK Arts festival is going on. Shows I've seen so far:

Camut Band: Wonderful percussion-rhythm-dance show. In a similar vein to STOMP, but sufficiently different as to be original. Joyful and funny. I was smiling all the time.
(For some reason, flamenco dancing just moves me deeply. This did, too. It was a display of pure skill, performed with emotion. Deeply human.)

1984: Directed by Tim Robbins. Very bleak. Set in the same dark scene throughout. Not quite as gripping.

SF Jazz Collective: A band composed of composers. Some Thelonious Monk, many original compositions. Technically perfect, I am sure (cannot judge, really), but as some of the joy of listening to music comes from recognition, I found it not quite so engrossing. There might have been many allusions, but I didn't get them. In fact, quite a few people left during the show.

Youssou n'Dour: Senegalese singer. Great concert. Extraordinarily stirring. People got of the seats and danced (among the first was the delightful elderly Irish lady next to me, who pointed to her knees and said "they need some stretching" before she got up and danced). The poor ushers were totally overwhelmed and tried in vain to keep the crowds within bounds. As he pointed out during the show, Africa is not only poverty, AIDS, and war.

Back in HK, Friends, Gocarts

2007-03-04T21:14:00.000+01:00

Just been back in HK for two weeks, and already two old friends from Germany have visited (independently). Here's Jamil and me in front of my office:

Yesterday, Olaf and his wife called unexpectedly - they had just arrived in HK for two days. We went to Stanley market and the peak - the view was very good this time, then had a few drinks in the Four Seasons, and I went off to the Youssou N'dor concert. Afterwards, drinks in Fong's and the Kee club.

Today, Sebastian, Jörn and I went gocarting in Zhūhǎi 珠海 in China (close to Macau). It had rained, and there was a lot of skidding and sliding. For a short period in the last race, I was first - then I made a mistake and was overtaken, and then my gocart died. Heaps of fun nevertheless.

London, cooking

2007-01-22T23:27:00.000+01:00

Arrived in London Sunday morning at 5. Very nice flight (new BA business class). Very nice hotel. Adjusted to time difference (=slept). Today Monday first day at work in the London office. Great colleagues. Concentrated, productive, collaborative work. Interaction with sales/structuring/trading. About thrice a day somebody volunteers to get coffee/mocha/hot chocolate for everyone. Team lunch/dinner/bowling/go-carting all coming up. (Can write in full sentences with declension, but no want. Chinese influence.)

In the evening, I went to the Reebock gym (conveniently located between work and hotel). Great - haven't been to a good gym in ages (the Goldman gym was nice (nickname: "NASDAQ 5000 memorial gym"), but the Stanford gym sucks utterly). Then cooked: Chicken breast fillet with mango, sun-dried tomato, onion & garlic (lots), and Gouda cheese. By way of enormous will power, I could resist adding Pesto (it wasn't self-made anyway, more walnuts than pinenuts); I did, however, throw in some Applewood smoked ham. The result was better than it sounds - try it (it might help if you're hungry, though). Added a nice South African Pinotage (pleonasm), and a Campari Orange for dessert and good measure. Good night!

Flat in HK

2007-01-19T23:14:00.000+01:00

Looked at more flats with several agents. Can be any two of cheap, nice, big, centrally located.

This one I like best so far (it's nice and centrally located, hence small and expensive):

First week in Hong Kong 香港

2007-01-14T17:19:00.000+01:00

I love this city. It is vibrant, varied, crammed, noisy, smelly, garish. In other words, wonderful. (Obviously, matters of taste enter the picture here.) Surprisingly, it also has very secluded and quiet places, great hiking and beaches (or so I am told).

An auspicious weekend
After my first week of work, on Friday I met Sebastian, whom I haven't seen in over 30 years - we grew up as neighbours in Buenos Aires. It was a fun night in the Armani bar, and later in some bar in Wan Chai with Jörn and a really quite entertaining band (from the Philippines, as many bands here). Saturday, after recovery, I visited some more flats, then went to a concert in the Hong Kong Cultural Centre: Debussy's Le Mar, Ravel's Piano Concerto in G-major, Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and American in Paris. In my usual provident ways, I arrived about 15 minutes before the performance and stood in line at the box office, hoping I'd still get a ticket. The woman in front of me talked briefly to the clerk, then, apparently having received a negative answer, turned around and announced a free ticket - her husband couldn't make it. Now, I considered that a good omen (on the downside, it doesn't exactly help to overcome procrastination). Splendid seat, too - saw the pianist's hands fly over the keys. Beautiful concert.
After the concert, taking the Star Ferry from the Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui back at night, I was overcome by a bit of nostalgia, if not sorrow, when I realized that my father (who died in 1994) had surely often taken the same ferry, and maybe been in the very same seat, when on his first expatriate assignment with Lufthansa exactly 45 years ago.

Sunday I walked around the area of my hotel a bit, West Point (Sai Ying Pun, 西營盤, Xīyíngpán), up to HK university. Its museum had a wonderful calligraphy exhibition by Venerable Master Hsing Yun, a Buddhist monk. Edifying. Two pieces caught my eye: a very simple small one with only two characters: 放下 (fàngxià) - "Let go." And the one above, simply exhorting: "Give people confidence, give them hope, give them joy, give them comfort." Quite so.
Many recent graduates and married couples were taking pictures on the university grounds - the buildings snugly nestle up the wooded hills.

Next, I took the Peak Tram up to (guess - ) the Peak. Great views (modulo the smog). And who did I met up there? Gerstein, the Russian pianist of yesterday's concert. A friendly fellow, now American citizen, speaks German really quite well.

Later, I walked through Soho and checked out my new neighbourhood. Had dinner in a little neighbourhood restaurant: Argentinean steak with chimichurri. The guy at the open grill, a very friendly Canadian, turned out to be running this place and the French rotisserie next door. I think I can live here. On the way back to the hotel, I walked through a few narrow alleys, down the hill, past Western restaurants and lively food stalls, then took the tram west. At one street corner, an older man had a tiny stall. I don't know what he was selling, but he was dancing on the streets with considerable grace and poise, in a slow manner reminiscent of Tai Chi, all the while guiding pedestrians across the street.

All in all, I like it. Gershwin's American in Paris evokes a young man strolling through the streets of Paris with light-footedness and expectancy, and maybe a tinge of nostalgia and home-sickness. Certainly resonates with me.

Flat hunting
Expensive, small. Apparently, for some reason, as soon as there is enough space to have a reasonably sized room, the Hong Kong developer will turn it into two rooms. (One of the reasons is, of course, that these flats very often house families with children, not single expats.) I have seen some potentially very nice places that were marred by tiny rooms. I've considered having a bed custom made to fill the entire room, but tested and found that I could only lie diagonally. So, no.
Some flats are rather old and decrepit, some very new and nicely done - though I found too much ugly wood, brass and marble in quite a few places. All in all, though, the situation is by far not as bad as it is made out to be - you can find a reasonably sized reasonably priced flat in a very central location (where "reasonably sized" means "pretty small, but just enough" and "reasonably priced" means "for expats" - not on the average (10 000$ HK/month) or minimum (<4000) wage). Well, and forget a house or garden. Going further away from the centre will only save you some 10%-20%, unless you consider considerably further out.
I finally found a small, but pretty place in a fantastic location - Elgin Street in Soho ("South of Hollywood Rd"), maybe 10 minutes commute on the escalator to work. If all goes well, I will likely take it.

Public Transport
Hong Kong island is compact, and blessed with an excellent public transport system. So far, I've taken cabs, busses, minibusses ("Public light bus"), the tram, the Peak Tram, the Star Ferry, and last but not least the splendid escalator, and not yet exhausted the supply of public transport. In addition to being comprehensive, efficient, and convenient (the MTR (metro, subway, tube, underground) is airconditioned, unlike London's tube), it is incredibly cheap - a ride in the tram costs 2$ (HK), or about a quarter (US), the upper deck of the Star Ferry from Central (Hong Kong Island) to Tsim Sha Tsui (Kowloon) costs 2.20$ (HK) (a 5 cent fare increase in 1966 sparked riots). You can pay cashless with the Octopus card, similar to London's Oyster card. Most cab rides on Hong Kong island will cost about 2-3$ (US). I've only ever owned a car when living in California - definitely no need for it here, and good riddance.

Disadvantages (or not)
When researching different places in Asia, I encountered a few frequently mentioned drawbacks of Hong Kong: the air pollution, the "rudeness" of the people, the hot and humid summer, the crowds. I can happily report that I don't care. The air pollution is not too bad, one hardly notices when in the streets of the city. Sure, if you go up the peak, or up the elevator in a hotel, and try to look over to the other side, you will notice. But it hardly affects me. As for the rudeness of the people, I must say I have not experienced any yet. Granted, it is a crowded and hectic place, and people will bump into you on occasion - they won't necessarily stop or slow down only because you do. But it is still very civilized. People will hold the door open for you, cab drivers won't run over you (this is not a matter of course). People even stop at a red pedestrian light! As such, I found the concerns others seemed to have a bit overblown.
Summer weather - remains to be seen. I've been quite happy in the humid heat of Saudi Arabia or Namibia, so I am moderately optimistic. I am told that the typhoons can bring rather strong rain. In fact, when a "black rain" warning is raised, it is company policy to require employees to stay put where they are - at home, or, well, at work. Under certain circumstances, "black rain" turns exchange settlement days into bank holidays (another instance where the real world obtrudes uninvited upon the developer of financial software...). Anyhow.
Oh, and the crowds? I love them.

Random points of note

The number keypad of ATMs (cash machines) is inverted (mirrored along the horizontal axis). Currency rule of thumb: 10 HKD = 1 EUR.

Cats speak Chinese - they say māo (high, level tone), rather than miau in German or meow in English. Incidentally, 猫 (māo) is the Chinese word for cat. Lamentably, I don't know the Cantonese pronunciation, so I can't really tell whether they speak Cantonese or Mandarin.

Sunday is the day off for amahs, maids, mostly from the Philippines or Indonesia. Several hundreds gather at the lower end of the (roofed) escalator walkways for a picnic, while many of the younger ones gather in the "New Makati" bar (named after a suburb of Manila) in Wan Chai to dance and frolic, starting in the early afternoon, as I read in The Economist.

I've encountered a few people that don't speak English, but nearly all of them did speak some Mandarin (as far as I could determine - mostly, they seem to understand what I say, but I have barely a clue what they answer).

Arrived in HK 在香港到了

2007-01-05T20:17:00.000+01:00

Very relaxing city. Arrived Friday afternoon.

The famous escalator - want to live close to here (can get to work in under 10 minutes walking then).

View from the hotel room (onto Kowloon, through smog):

What every man ought to do

2006-12-24T18:49:00.000+01:00

So, I finally succumbed and did what every man does in his life (except quiche-eaters): Get a remote-controlled helicopter.

It really is rather difficult to get the hang of it - helicopters are inherently unstable (while fixed wing aircraft are mostly inherently stable). The salesman demonstrated it to me briefly, and flew and controlled it effortlessly - I dare say he had practiced quite a bit. I've crashed it several times already, but so far it survives (I've fractured a few blades, but it does come with spares). Great fun.

In case you're interested: It has two rotors rotating in opposite directions (hence rendering unnecessary the tail rotor, which has to counteract the torque generated in a conventional helicopter with one main rotor (the Sikorsky Layout)). The remote control has 4 channels: You control altitude (up/down) and yaw (turn left/right) with the left stick, and pitch (forward/back) and roll (move left/right) with the right stick. So, the left stick combines collective and anti-torque control, while the right stick corresponds to the cyclic control. It's harder than it sounds...

Oh, and merry Christmas!
Or, as quiche eaters say (no offence, Achim):
Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday(tm), practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

Furthermore, I wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2007, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures and without regard to the race, creed, colour, age, physical ability, religious faith, choice of computer platform, or sexual orientation of the wishes.

By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms:
This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.

HK Visum arrived

2006-12-20T20:47:00.000+01:00

Got my visum for HK. Also checked tickets, move, etc. All set to go, modulo packing and actually buying tickets.

Sightseeing flight in HKML

2006-12-14T22:13:00.000+01:00

Called Reshma, chief flying instructor from the Kenya School of Flying. They have their main offices in Nairobi, but train a lot in HKML (Malindi) on the coast - less traffic, and better aircraft performance (because it is sea level, while Nairobi airports are at 5500 feet elevation). She had a Cessna 152 available, so off we went. Unfortunately, general aviation is quite expensive in Kenya, so I flew only one hour.

Portuguese explorer Vasco Da Gama arrived in Malindi on his first voyage 1499, and set off from here to India with the help of Arab navigators. He erected the pillar below. Chinese explorer 郑和 (Zhèng Hé) (the one with this insane armada of ships) arrived here some 80 years earlier, around 1418.

North of Malindi:

Watamu, south of Malindi. Truly great diving!

Approach to HKML RW 35 (here's a movie of the landing).

Back.

End of Trip: FAKD - FAGC

2006-12-09T23:55:00.000+01:00

Flew with Cliff from Klerksdorp to Grand Central, Johannesburg.

Off we go.

Last Leg.

Cleaning up...

Bye, ZS-NXW! Thanks to everyone that helped - Stefan, Lee, Cliff, Ashok, Martin, Meka, Willie, Felix, Andy, Klara, Heinz, Dmitry, Almu, Margret, Tobi!

Back to South Africa: FYKT-FAUP-FAKD

2006-12-08T00:19:00.000+01:00

Clearing customs and immigrations in FYKT (Keetmanshoop, Namibia) and FAUP (Upington, South Africa) was no problem (in Keetmanshoop, the lady at customs and immigrations still remembered me - there is not so much traffic, really).

I had a very nice tailwind (here's a video, 11MB) on the flight to the South-East, so instead of going direct to FAUP, I diverted to the Augrabies waterfalls (just a few miles west).

Augrabies Falls, Orange River. The Khoi (Hottentots) called it "Aukoerebis", place of great noise.

Intersection take off from Upington - it is a very long runway...

Waypoint FASS: Sishen. "Jo'burg West Info, Zulu-Sierra-November-Xray-Whiskey over Sishen 1412, expect next Schweizer Reneke 1510."

Rainbow - the picture does not do justice to what I saw.

I arrived well in Klerksdorp after 5.3h flight that day (FYKT-FAUP 2.3, FAUP-FAKD 3.0), and Cliff picked me up at the airport. He invited me to his company's christmas party at a beautiful lake - a great sunset, BBQ (steak!), cold beer, and fantastic company - what more can you ask for?

Tequila.

FYWE-Olifantwater-FYKT

2006-12-07T21:53:00.000+01:00

So, the aircraft was repaired this morning, so I set off to Olifantwater (finally met Ralph, Christian, Ecki), and further on to FYKT (Keetmanshoop, Namibia) - time was getting tight.

Climbing out of FYWE (Windhoek Eros, Namibia) and circling SE of the field to gain altitude - there's a ridge around the southern half of Windhoek.

Flying over the ridge south of Windhoek.

Arrived in Olifantwater! ZS-NXW, Ralph, Fab, Ecki.

A quick break in the swimmingpool/water reservoir before lunch:

Ecki, Ralph, Christian, and Springbockbraten - the gazelle was shot on the farm, and prepared by Ecki and Christian.

Farm life...

And back to the plane and off.

On left downwind leg to FYKT (Keetmanshoop).

Back to Windhoek for repairs: FYOA-FYWE

2006-12-06T23:14:00.000+01:00

The glas fibre cable between Ondangwa and Windhoek was cut. There was no phone, no mobile phone, no internet, and my satellite phone was out of batteries. Anyway, there was no aircraft mechanic in Namibia except in Windhoek (the friendly guy I had been recommended at Ondangwa airport itself as an expert turned out to be air traffic control, manning the tower on occasion.) Hence, I stayed another day, and after (finally) coordinating (somewhat) with Willie from the flight school and the repair facilities in Windhoek, flew back there - this time not direct (that would have led me directly over the Etosha pan), but nice and cozy along the roads. 3.8 hours later I arrived in Windhoek Eros, and had the aircraft repaired.

Lamentably, this thwarted my original plan to fly east, along the Caprivi Strip and the Okavango delta, via Botswana back to Johannesburg. Hence, I shall have to return at some point - not a big sacrifice, really.

Fröhlicher Nikolaus.

To Epupa Falls:That's the plan. Engine problems:Stuck in Ondangwa

2006-12-04T23:11:00.000+01:00

In Namutoni, Klaus and Gerhard suggested I visit Epupa falls next. It is at the northern end of Namibia on the Kunene river between Namibia and Angola. Klaus and Gerhard were departing to FYTM (Tsumeb) to the east, I decided to fly to Epupa Falls via a fuel stop in FYOA (Ondangwa) to the west. That was the plan.

Some wild animal, eating. Beautiful creature.

On the road between Tsumeb and Ondangwa.

So, now I had arrived in FYOA Ondangwa, and had ZS-NXW filled up.

During the pre-departure run-up check, I noticed a unusually large drop in engine RPM on the left magneto, and a rough, unround engine - probably a spark plug problem. Even letting the engine run a few minutes at full RPM and very lean mixture did not fix the problem (if the spark plugs are just fouled up with carbon deposits, this procedure burns them away), in other words, I had an engine problem. I decided that it would be unwise to fly to a very remote airstrip over mountains and waterfalls with only 7 out of 8 spark plugs working: Stuck in Ondangwa (about 30 000 inhabitants, mostly in huts along the highway). Well, I spent two pleasant days here in a nice hotel, at the pool, in the bars, and nearly finished reading James Clavell's "Noble House" (1370 pages).

This sticker in the airport's bathroom cheered me up a bit: Other pilots on interesting flights must have come through.

To the Etosha Pan, Namutoni: FYWE-FYMO

2006-12-03T23:11:00.000+01:00

The Etosha ("Great White Place") Pan is a large salt pan and nature reserve in the Kalahari in Namibia's north. There are three large lodges on its southern edge, each with a water hole (to observe wild life) and, incidentally, a runway. However, since it is a nature reserve, I did not receive landing permission, so I chose to fly to FYMO (Mokuti Lodge) at its eastern edge.

Here's a train hangar in Windhoek, taken when I departed FYWE (Eros).

En route. Alles, was ich sehe, erinnert mich an sie.

Etosha Pan.

Just landed at FYMO (Mokuti Lodge, Etosha Pan, Namibia). While approaching, I self-announced on the radio, and asked the people from the lodge to come pick me up. Another aircraft appeared on the frequency, also on the way in, and we chatted a bit - I asked them to close my flight plan, and told them that the wind was now favoring the other runway (that is, the same runway from the other end).

The crew were Germans: Gerhard working as a Captain for Lufthansa with some 18000 hours - about 100 times as many as I had. Klaus, also with Lufthansa, flew just for fun.

Klaus and Gerhard also wanted to land in Etosha National Park itself, at Namutoni Lodge, but didn't receive permission either. However, after we had already checked in with the Mokuti lodge, it occurred to us that we could get there by car (they are not allowed in the park after sunset, due to the animals, but it was still early enough), and after a few phone calls Philip from Namutoni had come to pick us up, and soon we drove through Etosha park.

Some wild animal, eating.

Some wild animal, eating.

Some wild animal, eating.

It was a good choice. In Namutoni, there is this old white fort, built by Germans in 1904. We convened on the top of its tower, and enjoyed a beautiful sunset. ("Beautiful sunset" here is British English; an approximate American translation would be "STUNNING, WORLD FAMOUS, UTTERLY MESMERIZING SUNSET WITH OVERWHELMING, COMMANDING, STAGGERING PANORAMIC VIEWS." (or, in college English, "like, you know, oh my god [seconds of silence, rolling eyes] totally awesome, you know, just _so_ tight."))

Some wild animal, eating.

Dinner was excellent. The beverage and food manager, Philip, joined us after dinner and told us many interesting stories from his travels around the world (how he came to prepare Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte in a Café in Heidelberg, for example). It was a great day and fun evening.

Swakopmund

2006-12-02T20:17:00.000+01:00

Today Ashok took me on a tour to Swakopmund on Namibia's coast with its famous dunes, some 4 hours drive west of Windhoek (we didn't fly for fear of deteriorating weather conditions on the coast. In fact, the dunes are not dead, but teeming with life that extracts water from the fog that comes up to 50km inland, and prevails on the coast some 180 days of the year.)

Below, the Martin Luther locomotive. It is a bad picture, but the story is nice: This steam tractor (it is often called locomotive, but does not run on tracks) was imported from Germany in 1896 by a German lieutenant, Edmund Troost. Transport between Swakopmund and Windhoek through the Namibian desert was by arduous oxen trek previously. Having overcome many initial difficulties, Troost made a few successful trips, but after a flood of the Swakopriver, the machine got stuck where it is now (apparently the cattle blew up for lack of water, maybe it was drunk driving). So, why "Martin Luther locomotive"? Well, at Martin Luther's trial for heresy at the Diet of Worms in 1521, he is said to have concluded his defence with the words: "Hier stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders. Gott helfe mir. Amen." (Here I stand; I can do no other. God help me. Amen).

In Swakopmund, we went to see the old trainstation, now a hotel, and Ashok showed me the Desert Express - a wonderful train designed in Namibia with an African feel to it, lots of wood. It runs as a scheduled passenger train, but can also be hired for corporate functions.

Das alte Amtsgericht (old magistrates's court) in Swakopmund.

Note something unusual about the tall palm in the middle? It is actually a concealed radio mast.

Next: Dunes.

Fab preaching the virtues of free trade, good food, advanced banking systems and ethical, wholesome secular humanism to the dunes. They were moved.

Palm drive, Swakopmund. Just like Stanford.

With Ashok in Windhoek: Trains

2006-12-01T23:45:00.000+01:00

On Couchsurfing I had meet Ashok, and he picked me up at Windhoek Eros now. He's Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Namibian Railway, Transnamib. He had worked before in Germany, Belgium, the Middle East, and Zambia, but is now based in and citizen of Namibia. He had many interesting stories to tell.

In the afternoon, we stopped by Ashok's office and workshop. Here he shows me a locomotive axis and tyre, and explains how in a diesel-electric locomotive the diesel engine and generator run at a constant optimal speed (around 3900 RPM) and feed the electrical traction engines (one on each axis).

Here the locomotives are run up and tested every day before they're sent out for their daily run.

The driver's cabin of an old General Electric locomotive.

An old GE locomotive and a Chinese locomotive from 中国南车集团资阳机车有限公司 (CSR (China South Locomotive and Rolling Stock) Ziyang Locomotive Limited Company). Ziyang can deliver a locomotive in a tenth of the time for a quarter of the price compared to General Electric or Siemens, so Namibia recently ordered a large contingent of locomotives and wagons there.

An old German narrow-gauge locomotive (the Illing) in front of Windhoek railway station, built in Germany in 1903 and assembled in Swakopmund. It ran between Swakopmund and Otavi from 1904 to 1939.
Locomotive driver in the passenger train from Windhoek to Ondangwa. Note the fully digital display.

Kaiserliches Landesvermessungsamt (Imperial office of Land Surveying) in Windhoek.

Further North to Windhoek: FYKT-Olifantwater-FYWE

2006-12-01T23:17:00.000+01:00

When I searched online for information on obtaining a landing permit and clearance for Namibia, I found this report about a few people flying through Namibia, Botswana and Zambia a year ago. So, I emailed them with questions. Turns out that most of them were German, one of them (Ecki) is living on a farm in Olifantwater, Namibia, some 100 nautical miles south-east of Windhoek, and another one, Ralph, was there on holiday just now with his rented plane (a Cessna 182). Ecki had only recently built a runway on this farm, and he invited me to come over.

Just landed in Olifantwater - the third airplane ever to land on this strip.

Unfortunately, since I was held up by a day due to the thunderstorms in FYKT (Keetmanshoop) a day before, nobody was here... So, I took a picture and departed to Windhoek.

Red dunes surrounding the farm.

The panel of ZS-NXW. The most modern part definitely the iPod on the left for the pilot's entertainment on long legs.

A localized thunderstorm on the way from Olifantwater to Windhoek:

The ridge south of Windhoek, very close to the airport FYWE (Windhoek Eros). Eros serves mostly general aviation (that is, smaller planes); the international airport is some 45km east of town (and not surrounded by mountains).

Final approach to FYWE (Windhoek Eros, Namibia) runway 01.

Fish River Canyon: FYKT-FYKC-FYKT

2006-11-30T00:20:00.000+01:00

Decided to fly over Fish River Canyon, about one hour south west, towards Lüderitz. I planned to stop at the Canyon lodge (FYKC) first, to have lunch, and ask the local pilot about flying over the canyon. Upon arrival (thanks, GPS), I flew over the airfield from the north, checked the wind, and turned left to enter a left pattern for runway 18. It is common practice to overfly the lodge to alert them that one will land, so they can send someone for pickup (walking is not recommended - it is hot, and at some places there are all sorts of hungry animals between the field and the lodge). According to my approach diagram, my route was supposed to bring my over the lodge, but I didn't see it. As it turned out, the approach diagram was wrong, and the lodge actually on the other side of the field.

So, while I fly downwind looking in vain for the lodge, another aircraft announces its intention to land here. I inform it of my position and chosen runway, and soon land. The other plane is so close that I don't backtrack on the runway all the way to the parking area, but wait in the middle at the wind sock, and soon enough the other pilot lands (here approaching above a parked aircraft):

Fortunately the other plane has arranged for a pickup and overflown the lodge on the other side, so we are soon picked up. The other pilot, Rachel, is a commercial pilot for Desert Air, and has 5 passengers, French tourists. We have lunch together.

Note the beautiful sunglasses that I have bought in Keetmanshoop for about 2 EUR.

And we drive back to the airfield.

Preflight.

Takeoff from FYKC (Canyon Lodge at Fish River Canyon, Namibia).

Fish River Canyon from about 3500ft MSL or 1000ft AGL.

In case of engine failure, land here:

Back in FYKT (Keetmanshoop), I have the fuel tanks filled up, and quickly go inside the airport building for a weather update for my next flight to Olifantwater. Within minutes, a thunderstorm builds up, heavy rain starts, and I run to secure the plane (control locks, chocks). Totally soaked I wait, and wait. At 17h, the airport closes, and the very friendly lady from the fuel station (she's been running this business for 44 years) offers me a ride to town - I am not leaving today. A beautiful evening compensates. And, here in Keetmanshoop I eat the best steak I have ever eaten. Fantastic food, both at the Schützenhaus and the Central Lodge.

Entering Namibia: FAKD-FAUP-FYKT

2006-11-29T22:32:00.000+01:00

After a hearty breakfast, Cliff took me to the airport, and off I went to FAUP (Upington - note: one "p").

Here I cleared customs and immigration, fueled up, and went up to the tower for a weather briefing and to file my flight plan across the border into Namibia.

Here's my little plane, nose in the wind.

My clearance/landing permit was ready, but I called the Namibian Civial Aviation Directorate to confirm that my change of aircraft is on file. The helpful guys in the tower tell me that if I arrive in FYKT (Keetmanshoop) after 1500Z (that's 17:00h local time, 5pm for our American friends. I note in passing that this primitive "am/pm" method of denoting time necessitates deadlines of, for example, 11:59pm, since nobody knows whether 12:00pm is noon or midnight. Far from the elegance of the 24 hour clock. End of digression.), they will charge me a $500 call out fee for international arrivals (apparently they bring out the fire equipment), so I hop back down and expedite departure.

Upington has one of the longest runways in the world at 4900m (the longest runway in Africa, longer than any in the US). The story behind it is quite interesting. Took me a long time to identify the airport, because I could not believe that this was a runway... Here's a picture taken when departing Upington. There's a shorter runway visible in the middle, and the long one extends behind it, beyond the boundaries of the picture.

Soon I approached FYKT (Keetmanshoop, Namibia), diverting a bit to avoid a local thunderstorm. The tower asked me to expedite, as customs and immigrations were ready and waiting and wanted to go home. Upon arrival, they were very friendly and quick. Alcock from the Namibian Airport Company gave me a ride into town and dropped me at a guesthouse, the Schützenhaus, with "Knobelclub 1907" and "Mitgliederkneipe" (member's bar). It's also the base of Turnverein "Gut Heil" (I hasten to add that this is a common, traditional name for sports clubs in Germany, and nothing to do with Nazism as far as I know - certainly predating it).

More vestiges of the time when Namibia was a German colony: Das Kaiserliche Postamt (The imperial post office). Quick history: Inhabited by Khoisan people (Khoi aka Hottentots, San aka Bushmen), later Bantu. 1884 Bismarck claimed it as Deutsch Süd-West Afrika. During WW I, oocupied and later administered (under a mandate by the League of Nations) by South Africa. Full independence in 1990 (before the downfall of the South African apartheid regime 1994).

Finally on the road! FAGC-FAKD

2006-11-28T21:07:00.000+01:00

After a quick one hour checkout I got ZS-NXW, a fine 1979 Cessna 172N with 180 hp (good to have with the density altitudes prevailing in Namibia at this time of the year.) With 16l of water and 1kg of muesli bars and peanuts (enough to survive a week in the Namibian desert) in the back of the plane, I finally took off in the early afternoon.

After my first solo flight in South Africa, and the first leg of my cross-country-trip. With ZS-NXW in FAKD (Klerksdorp).

Freedom! Sun!

To FAUP (Upington, South Africa, the last stop before crossing into Namibia) it's about 450NM from FAGC. I decided to have a fuel stop en-route, and decided on FAKD (Klerksdorp). When I had arrived and fueled up, it was nearly 16h, and the 3 hours remaining to Upington would have put me quite close to sun set. I didn't know the airport, and the next alternate was nearly 100 NM (one hour) away - so, I decided to stay overnight. As it happens, another pilot (Lee) landed just after me, and we briefly deliberated the situation. When I decided to stay, Lee whipped out his phone, called his friend Cliff, and stated that I'd stay with Cliff.

Soon Cliff was at the airport, working on his RV-7. Here he is with some family:

Kids are playing hide-and-seek with my camera.

One of Cliff's hobbies, the RV-7 kit plane. He built it himself over the course of several years (and several years longer than he had anticipated...).

Another of Cliff's hobbies.

Getting a Cessna in Grand Central

2006-11-27T20:52:00.000+01:00

After some phone calls, I got a Cessna 172N with 180 hp for a good rate from Babcock Central Flying Academy (CFA).. Willie Marais and Meka (right) did a great job getting me the plane on short notice, and sort out all the formalities.

So, in the afternoon we left Bloemfontein to get to Grand Central (in Midrand, between Johannesburg and Pretoria). Weather in Bloemfontein was pretty bad for once, so we were glad to leave it behind.

Johannesburg.

This weird asymmetric water tower really helps finding the runway when approaching Grand Central.

And smack on the glide slope for FAGC (Grand Central).

Thunder and lightning in FAGY

2006-11-24T20:38:00.000+01:00

Today we wanted to fly to Pietermaritzburg close to Durban on the Eastern coast and then up the coast to Moçambique, but encountered cumulonimbus and thunderstorms. Had to divert to FAGY (Greytown), a nice little private field. Fortunately, Stefan had family nearby, and they came to pick us up by car.

A nice lake on the way from Bloemfontein to Pietermaritzburg:

Stuck in FAGY (Greytown).

Stefan organizing rescue...

Flying the Jabiru J400 (FATP)

2006-11-22T19:45:00.000+01:00

Today Stefan checked me out in the Jabiru 400 that I was planning to take on my long cross country trip (can't take the Mooney for insurance reasons, you need 50h in a complex plane). I didn't quite like the Jabiru - it is wide and comfortable, but the controls are located differently than in a Cessna. There is a central stick that you control with your right hand as PIC, the throttle is below the seat between your legs, the brake is a lever on the center console (no differential braking). It feels weird, and it is not trivial to both steer and brake simultaneously.
The controls are very direct, but do not give pressure feedback as in the Cessna or Diamond, so you don't notice easily that you reach the margin of the flight envelope. Lastly, the approach is flown very fast, and if you cut back the engine, this thing sinks like a brick (nearly 1000 fpm). Not quite my cup of tea!

I was prepared to go with it after some more training, but then it turned out that it didn't have enough hours left before the next MPI (mandatory periodical inspection, 50hr inspection). Then there were some problems with the magneto. Then I wanted to start the engine, and the key broke off. Then I did a run-up, and the fuel was spilling from the wing. I checked, it was normal (overfull). Then I did another run-up, and the engine quit on the left magneto. So, I called it a day, and decided to go with a Cessna rather than this Jabiru...

This is the Jabiru. It has serial number 5.

A Robinson R44 helicopter. Lots of helicopter flying and training in South Africa, a lot of it for gaming and hunting.

Panel of the R44.

The DC-3 still dropping parachutists.

License in Jo'burg, sightseeing with Caroline and Stefan: FATP-FAGC

2006-11-17T19:22:00.000+01:00

Stefan and I flew to FAGC (Grand Central Airport, Johannesburg) to submit my application for the private pilot license to the CAA (the South African Civial Aviation Authority). Half an hour later I had it.

In the afternoon we met Caroline and Stefan, old friends of my family (they used to live in Ethiopia, but are now based in Pretoria). We went for a short sightseeing flight north of Grand Central.

My first flight as PIC (pilot in command) in South Africa.

Roodeplaat Dam (note that in South Africa a lake is called a "dam", while a dam is a "wall". I don't know what they call a wall.)

Back! Fab, Caroline, Stefan.

Then Stefan and I were stuck here for 3 days due to bad weather...

Practical test FATP-FAJK-FAKM-FATP

2006-11-16T19:03:00.000+01:00

Cross country flight and practical test. From FATP Tempe (Bloemfontein) to FAJK (Jan Kempdorp - a fairly obscure field, not listed in many places, apparently used to be a military field). I flew right past it without seeing it initially - pilotage is not trivial. At least I did not fly over the ammunition depot there, a prohibited zone. Then off to FAKM (Kimberley) to refuel, and back to Tempe.

My instructor Stefan Veldman and I in Kimberley after refueling.

Back to FATP Tempe, left downwind for runway 01 (you can see the other end, runway 19, in the lower right corner).

I passed!

Flight training in FATP

2006-11-15T19:39:00.000+01:00

Flew around in the Mooney. Radio work, stalls, emergency landings, precautionary landings, incipient spin.

There are many parachuters on the field, both recreational and military. Here are some parachuters entering a DC-3 at FATP:

Arrived in FATP (Bloemfontein, South Africa)

2006-11-11T22:45:00.000+01:00

Flew from FAGM (Rand Airport, Johannesburg) to FATP (New Tempe Airport, Bloemfontein) with my instructor, Stefan Veldman from EagleWhizz in a Mooney M20 with manual gear retraction, constant speed unit, and hydraulic flaps. Interesting machine, flies nicely.

Another Baytour

2006-05-07T20:37:00.000+01:00

In a Cessna 172, you can fly from Palo Alto (KPAO) over San Francisco International, downtown, Golden Gate bridge, and back over Stanford in about one hour. Nice.

Stanford and "the dish", from about 1500 ft AGL.

The oval and Hoover tower.

KPAO-(KSBA)/L52: My first emergency landing

2006-04-08T22:54:00.000+01:00

So, on 8 April 2006 I flew with a friend (pilot, too) in a brand new (2005) Cessna 172 SP (180 hp) with Garmin G1000 glass cockpit from Palo Alto, California (KPAO) to Santa Barbara (KSBA), about 210 NM south. At that time I had some 110 hours. Weather in Palo Alto was, as usual, wonderful; Santa Barbara had - as often - some clouds, but they're usually just along the hills, not over the sea. The forecast was "sky clear", compare these METARs:

KPAO 082347Z 32007KT 30SM SCT055 BKN180 18/05 A3010
KPRB 082353Z AUTO 21007KT 10SM CLR 18/06 A3006
KSBA 082353Z 26010KT 10SM OVC034 17/09 A3008 RMK AO2 SLP185 T01670089 10167 20139 56016
KSBA 090053Z 28008KT 10SM CLR 16/08 A3007 RMK AO2 SLP181 T01610078

(That is: Palo Alto at 23:47 Zulu (UTC) on 8 April: Wind 7 Knots from 320 degrees, Visibility 30 statute miles, scattered clouds at 5500 feet, broken clouds at 18000, temperature 18 degrees Celsius, dew point 5 degrees Celsius, altimeter (QNH) 30.10 inch mercury.)

Here's a map. Oceano (L52) in the centre (untowered, purple, close to the sea), San Luis Obispo (KSBP) a bit north, Paso Robles (KPRB) the class D airport on the northern edge. Santa Barbara (with its class C airspace SFC-40 hundred feet) ist just visible on the southern edge.

So, there we were, having flown south for some 2 hours at 9500 feet. We had passed Paso Robles (KPRB), and were approaching San Luis Obispo. My copilot suggested to do a few touch-and-goes there, but I was somewhat concerned as it was about to get dark, and we had another 60 NM (half an hour) to go - and I am not particularly fond of night landings in Santa Barbara: One one side you have the mountains (well, hills - a chain along the coast up to about 3500 feet - definitely higher than traffic pattern altitude...), on the other side you have the dark sea. Tower will normally give 15R to single engine planes, which doesn't have any visual approach aid (VASI or PAPI) and is pointing south towards the sea - so, first you fly downwind towards the hills (feels good), then on the baseleg parallel to them, then turn right towards the sea for your final - and if you go around (because you're too high, say), you fly over the dark sea without any visual reference for your turn to crosswind...

We did agree then to have a few touch-and-go landings in Oceano (L52), an uncontrolled field close to the beach that I had always wanted to go to. We were, by now, only a few miles away, and I initiated a somewhat steep descent - foolishly with nearly completely retracted throttle (danger of shock cooling). We were under VFR flight following/radar service, and told ATC about our intentions to land at Oceano. Radar service was terminated, and we were advised to check in again when we were ready to continue to Santa Barbara. I switched over to the Oceano CTAF (Common Traffic Advisory Frequency). The field has nearly zero elevation, TPA (traffic pattern altitude) about 1000 feet, no traffic, and no UNICOM either with field advisories on the frequency. To get a picture about wind, active runway etc., I planned to overfly the field at about 2000 feet, so I slowed down the descent at 2200 feet. As the speed decreases, I slowly open throttle - alas, to no effect whatsoever, except some rough engine noises at constantly low RPM.

This was a rather memorable feeling, I must say (as so many firsts). I gave full throttle and announce "engine failure!". My copilot thinks I'm suggesting an exercise, and (somewhat bored) starts giving the engine failure checklist. I initiate the ABC (air speed, best field, cockpit checks), bring the machine to 68 knots, and manage (being more emphatic) to convince my copilot that I am serious. He starts looking for the field, and fortunately soon has Oceano in sight. In the mean time, I have completed the cockpit checks: fuel selector - both, fuel shutoff valve - full in, throttle - full in, mixture - full rich (it was still fairly lean from the high altitude flying - good to keep the engine hot, and at first I am relieved and push it in, full rich - but the engine doesn't rev up), fuel pump - on, magnetos - check left/right.

The engine's still gargling at under 1000 RPM, and I concentrate on the approach. Field is in sight, and by now we're (fortunately) a bit high on a straight-in approach. Full Flaps. Wind seems quiet. I ask my copilot to make radio calls - he transmits our intentions and mayday call on the CTAF. We hadn't heard any other traffic on the frequency, and didn't know the wind direction (only the one in nearby San Luis Obispo, whose ATIS (Automatic Terminal Information Service) we had listened to). We're quite fast and high by now, with full flaps, and I put the nose down to get the speed just at the top of the white bar and fly some coordinated S-curves to bleed off speed (slipping isn't recommended with the Cessna 172 with full flaps, as it can lead to elevator oscillations). I consider shutting down the engine (not that it contributed much anyway), fuel flow and electrical systems, as suggested for forced landings, to mitigate the dangers of a crash landing. However, we're on a fairly good and controlled approach now, and I don't really know the characteristics of a windmilling or standing propeller, and I would rather keep the control of flaps, so I let the systems run.

Soon we fly over the numbers, just a tad fast, spot on center, and thanks to full flaps bleed off speed quickly and touch down in a nice and controlled manner in the first third of the runway (which has some 2500 feet), and exit it (without being too hard on the brakes) even before the last taxiway.

Having arrived on the apron we experimented a bit with throttle, magnetos, and other controls, but never got RPM above 1000. We shut everything down, and called ATC to report our safe landing and cancel the emergency call. Then we called our flight school to arrange repair of the aircraft. As it turned out later, the fuel transducer was transmitting wrong measurements, and the fuel mixture was far too rich. In fact, just possibly having reduced the mixture might have fixed the problem - but it wasn't part of the checklist, and in the situation didn't occur to us.

The very friendly guy living next to the airport got us some pizza, and called us a cab to the next hotel. Was a good night's sleep.

MNMG-MNLL-MNMG: General aviation flying (or drug trafficking?) in Managua, Nicaragua

2006-03-03T16:08:00.000+01:00

So, there I was, on holiday in Nicaragua, held by two police men interrogating me about the contents of my pockets.

I was on holiday in Nicaragua, and actually found a pilot on the web: NicaNix, aka Steve. Steve's working here, and one of three guys that got their private pilot's license in Nicaragua in 2002 - the first PPLs issued in Nicaragua since the Sandinistas. His instructor was a Cap. José Antonio Bonilla, who is running the Falcon Escuela de Aviación. So, I mailed Steve and asked whether he'd like to go for a ride and show me the local flying, and lo and behold, a few days later we do indeed meet at the airport of Managua.

The machine was a Cessna 150. It has 400 lb useful load with full fuel, and Steve's, well, just over half that, and me too (at that time, I had been living in the US with all the concomitants), even without back pack. So, to save weight, I left the back pack in the "Oficina de Notificaciónes Aeronauticas" where we had previously submitted the flight plan. Then, because I hadn't got the pilot's license card yet (just passed my check ride a month ago), and left the temporary paper one at home, I had to go through the passenger terminal, not through the hangar - this is the international airport of the capital of the largest country in Central America, and security is strict.

Steve went over to the hangar - he had to walk a mile, because his motorbike had just broken down - and preflighted, and drained some 5 gallons fuel (to compensate for our combined weight), and taxied the machine back to the passenger terminal, where I had gone through security and waited for him. The Cessna 150 has 100hp, one com radio, one nav radio, VOR, ADF, the usual six pack (turn co-ordinator was broken, though), carburator - though carb heat was rarely necessary: it was really hot.

Steve communicated with ground ("Managua superficie, Yankee November - Charlie Golf Echo"), and we were good to taxi. Had to hold short ("Mantenga corto"), as there was traffic on approach. We squawked 1477.

And then, off we went - short field take off. The runway is really long, but it was hot, and we were at max weight. So, 10 degrees flaps, rotation at 50, and airborne! We climbed at 70 knots, with some 200 ft/min.

We flew south-east, to Grenada - beautiful. Mountains, volcanos, lakes (with fresh water sharks, apparently), islands, dense forest. Beautiful, but not so many options ("best field"?) for emergencies, so we turned back to Grenada, and then Steve let me fly: we did some maneuvering in the vicinity of the airport - steep turns, dutch rolls, etc. - I wanted to get a feeling for turn co-ordination on the 150. Rudders are sensitive on that machine.

Then, we flew to one of his practice areas - Steve did some pattern work at Managua International in the course of his training, but obviously ATC doesn't like it very much, so most of it was done in a few airports in the vicinity. We headed to one of them, Las Lajenas. An asphalted strip, lots of gravel on the side of the runway and on one end. Flew over the numbers at 2000 ft, descended to pattern altitude while turning, flew over the departure end and joined right downwind for the active. A guy was walking on the runway. Pre-landing checklist, turn to base, turn to final, runway clear (finally), and I landed.

Steve taxied back and did the take-off - it's tricky, can be very gusty. We first tried a no-flap takeoff, because of the cross wind, but the machine didn't climb at 60+ knots, with the nose fairly high, so Steve aborted the take-off. Taxied back, and took advantage of a lull in the wind to do a fully fledged short-field take off again: 10 degrees flaps, on the brakes, full throttle, roll. This time it worked beautifully.

Back to Managua. Joined left downwind, and saw a jet and a regional carrier taxiing for take off. So, we talked to ATC and volunteered to extend downwind to let these guys go first - doesn't hurt to keep good will with ATC. So, we flew on and on downwind westward - along the shore of the lake, from the airport towards the city center. Finally clear to turn base - exactly over the old cathedral (one of Managua's major sights) and the presidential office! Great views, all along, but that was spectacular. Just a few days before, I was a sightseeing pedestrian down there.

My landing on the big runway (about 8000 x 150 ft) was not quite as smooth as on the small strip (whose size was closer to Palo Alto KPAO that I am used to), we bounced a bit, but came to a smooth halt eventually.

Anyway, so now we taxi back, and Steve drops me at the passenger terminal again and taxis to the hangar, and I just walk up to the terminal and wonder how to get through to the exit - we're supposed to meet on the road halfway between terminal and hangar. Well, turns out that the security guy there is not quite used to general aviation flights, and single passengers just dropping in coming from the runway. He asks my name, identification, what I am doing there, where I've been, and so forth.

So, I tell him the truth: I am German, born in Argentina, doing my PhD in applied math in California, and have just been flying around with Steve, an American missionary friend in Nicaragua (who I have met three days ago on the internet) since I'm pilot too (but have forgotten my license at home, because I just got it in January, and haven't received the card yet), just for fun, and that I have no luggage since it is in the hotel, except for my backpack, which I am carrying because I've just returned from Little Corn Island this morning where I have taken diving classes, but the backpack is in the flight planning office, since we are too heavy for the plane, and my passport is there, too, and I only have my credit card and my German driver's license on me, and we have flown to Grenada, but not landed, but then landed somewhere else nearby with a guy on the runway, but I don't remember the name of that airport.

All the while I am sitting there, big sunburn, bad haircut, unkempt (see the picture), T-shirt. PhD student and hobby pilot. At this point it occurs to me that I have read in the travel guide that Little Corn Island is well known for cocaine trafficking - sometimes when the police chases boats, the gangs would just dump the cocaine, and occasionally it just shows up on the beach there. Anyway.

Meanwhile, for some reason, I am talking to two police men. They are very interested in my travels, whereabouts, drug habits, the contents of my pockets, enquired what the "Abundant Air Frequent Flyer card" is about (buy 10 chicken sandwiches, get one free at the airport cafe in Palo Alto) and why I have rolled up the 100 Cordoba note I am carrying. It rolled up itself, because it was in my jeans pocket all day on a humid island and several hours of boat and plane rides, I say, truthfully. And what have I been doing then with the rolled up bank note, they ask.

At that point, I was getting a tad concerned here.

Fortunately, I decided to call Steve on his mobile - I figure he must be done with taxiing, parking, shutdown, etc. He talks to the police man for a while, and after some back and forth their attitude changes, they give me back my wallet, cell phone, 100 cordoba note, 10-sandwiches-and-one-for-free-card, take me outside, pat me on the back, and say, "ah, si, bueno, Cap. José Antonio Bonilla, el es muy buen amigo mío". I offer to bring over my passport from the other office for them to check, but they say, no, no, all ok, Cap. José Antonio Bonilla, no problem.

So there. 1.5 hours total flight duration, and landings in MNLL and MNMG! Thanks Steve, that was an awesome flight!

And, well, I had my hair cut that very same day....

Land of Big Sheep

2004-10-19T21:30:00.000+01:00

In Mandarin Chinese, America is called "美国", land of beauty, while Germany is "德国", land of virtue. Now, these names are flattering at first; but then, "美“, beauty, is pronounced měi as in America, and "德" is dé as in Deutschland. The suspicion that these names are phonetic rather than meaningful is driven home by the fact that the translation of "France" is "法国", land of law/order (Fǎguó), and of "England" "英国", land of heros (Yīngguó).

Other nice phonetic names are "意大利" (Yīdàlì) for Italy and "加拿大" (Jiānádà) for Canada.

Intriguingly, the character for beauty, "美", is composed of "羊", meaning sheep, and "大", big, so (at least at some point in Chinese History), big + sheep = beautiful.

Hence one could argue that in Chinese, America is the land of big sheep.

First Solo

2004-09-23T23:01:00.000+01:00

Today I flew solo for the first time. Fun fun! It was in N595SP (a Cessna 172 SP with 180hp) around the pattern at KPAO (Palo Alto, CA). Here my first ever solo landing:

Tobias is here

2002-11-21T00:19:00.000+01:00

Tobias is visiting.

SGSA Oktoberfest 2002

2002-10-13T20:33:00.000+01:00

Gary from the Stanford German Student Association board.

Arrived in Stanford, Land of the Free

2002-09-19T23:48:00.000+01:00

Ok, finally starting my PhD in Scientific Computing and Computational Mathematics. Below Constantin and me at some random event with free food and some soft drink (alcohol being very problematic, you see.)

Beachcomber Island, Fiji

2002-07-02T21:07:00.000+01:00

Very relaxing. Can walk around it in a few minutes. Low crime rate! A bit like a gated community. Paradise! Native entertainment in the evening.

On the way back, I met the bus driver that had taken me from the airport to the ferry. He invited me home, introduced me to his family, and cooked a nice dinner (chicken rice). Many peoples are wonderfully hospitable.

Quitting Goldman

2002-04-26T23:40:00.000+01:00

Today I handed in my resignation from Goldman, Sachs in London. Time to do some other fun stuff. I'll miss my great colleagues (though not necessarily GOB_MUSH_INSTREAM_IGNORE_COMPLETELY).