HB COLD

Part 2 of the trip goes like this - part 1 is on the previous post.

We left Rome early Tuesday morning and made our way to the airport. Funny thing about that trip was the realization of how much I had walked around the city in such a short time. As the cab winded through the streets I was able to follow along pretty easily. One last thing about Rome, if Amsterdam is the city of bicycles, then Rome is the city of the scooter. It was an army of mopeds ready to attack at every stoplight and cross-walk. Speaking of cross-walks, if you want to cross the street, no matter how busy the
traffic, you just cross and you do so anywhere you want. I was walking near the Wedding Cake at 5:30pm or so and couldn't navigate the heavy traffic well enough to cross. It was so absurd that after a few minutes an old lady was asking me if I needed help crossing the street.

OK, for real, that about sums up Rome. Now at the airport waiting for Nice I realized something. I realized that this trip was just beginning and I still had many, many more days of travel. Now, let's say for example I was with Karoliina and we were on our vacation and had just spent 3 glorious days in Rome and were off to the beach for another 5 days; well, that would be about the best possible thing I could think of. Except, Karoliina was in Estonia and I wasn't with her.

Well we arrive in Nice and took the cab to Antibes, the city where we were staying, unloaded our stuff and went to the festival site in Cannes, about a 20 minute cab ride, or a 5 minute subway ride with a 10 minute walk in Antibes. We went to the registration booth and got our badges and then went back to Antibes. We had another guy join us on the trip, Jukka, and I was very happy that he was there because he is a nice guy, likes to have fun and has some local friends living in Nice. Quick geography: Nice, Antibes and Cannes are all very close to one another.

So that night, Tuesday, Jukka's friend Satu picked us up and took us to the old town in Nice, where we went to an Irish pub. I hadn't realized it until we arrived, but this was the first time in a very long time that I was in a pub where most of the people were speaking English. Plenty of Americans, Brits, you name it. It was a real fun time, but I did get my first dish of anti-Americanism and guess who it came from, other Americans. I suppose if you want to be well received in France as an American you must spend significant amounts of time bashing America - specifically Bush. So when I was introduced as being an American living in Finland, the latter part was completely ignored as soon as the first part was mentioned. It took a long time to get these people to warm up to me and by that time, I no longer cared about them at all. The person who also observed this behavior was a Brit named Tony who was in Nice to become a hypno-therapist and he and I had a few good laughs and maybe one too many beers (this will become a trend throughout the trip).

So the next morning back in Antibes we wake up early to get to the festival in order to take care of some things. Today is Wednesday and tonight are the opening ceremonies so the place is getting rather busy. As we sit down for breakfast and I try to wake up I realize that the person I am sitting with is talking way too loud and this will also become a trend during the trip. We spend the day walking around Cannes and it is lovely and the weather has cleared up and the sun is out and we are on the look out for some celeb's. Quick note: I saw two celebs the whole time, Dennis Quaid and Dan "The Dragon" Wilson - a karate B movie star and I saw "the Dragon" everywhere.

The next morning I went to go see a film or two and was thoroughly unimpressed with my selections. I just wonder how these films were chosen for this festival. I decided to go and see some of the more off-beat films rather than the mainstream ones because I will be able to see those films sometime in the future. Well, I guess I got my just desserts for this decision.

The routine for the rest of the days went like this: Drinks and lunch at the American pavilion which was on the beach. Drinks and snack somewhere on the Blvd. de Croisette, trying to see celebs other than "the Dragon" and then drinks and something to eat somewhere else. The Japanese tent had a sake tasting everyday from 4-6 and guess where I magically showed up everyday at 4? Domo Origato Tomihari. I would stroll through the market place and strike up a conversation or two, but since I was neither buying nor selling a film, I was pretty much ignored. If you have nothing to offer people realize it quickly and then leave you.

The routine for the nights followed suit as well. Satu would pick us up and take us to an old town somewhere (2nd night was Biot) where we would meet a very diverse and international crowd and have a lot of laughs and a lot of drinks. In Biot I had a great conversation with David - a Scotsman and Fred - a Frenchie. Where we discussed cooking, cleaning, hobbies, Iraq, France, America and Britain. It was nice to speak with open-minded people who were slow to stereotype and quick to listen. This conversation lasted well past my bedtime, but it was well worth it.

The next night (Friday) we met Satu and some of her friends for dinner in Cannes. Dinner took 3 hours and was awful, but because it took so long we met a friend of Satu's, Mahmad who knew all the "in" places and took us there. Now I had been out in the sun all day, I was wearing something very plain and I knew that I smelled. So where do we go? The hottest place in Cannes, where one beer is 16euros and everyone is dressed to impress, except me. But Mahmad, who Jukka will later refer to as Romano and I think it is appropriate, tells us that for a few dollars each we can reserve a bottle of vodka and a table in the VIP section and so we go for it.

There's a strange transformation that takes place when crossing the rope into the VIP section. All of a sudden my ho-hum beach wear becomes hip, something I meant to do. I change from completely unfashionable to very laid back and fashionable with one step. I realized something else, all these fabulous people were having an awfully boring time. No one was really doing anything except for sitting down and looking around. Well our little group was so excited to be there that we were going crazy and before you know it we have a large crowd of people around us. I think Romano was liking the attention so he goes out a splurges on a 350 euro bottle of Don Peringnon and we drank it so fast that I'm not sure he even got a glass. We stayed at Papagayo until very late and finally made our way back to Antibes.

The next, and last day I could hardly believe that I felt as well as I did, but I didn't want to push it and so I took it easy. We had the Scandinavian party to attend that night and a very early flight back to Finland so I wanted to pack and get everything ready for the morning. That party was a blast and I finally met the people that I was hoping to meet, the Finnish Film Foundation International people and we struck a quick friendship. When we return from our trip to the States we will get to see them all again at the Midnight Sun Film Festival. Once again we will have enough time to unpack, do laundry and then pack again, all within 4 days before we leave for Lapland.

OH, one more thing that happened at the Scandinavian party. I met some New York art-film makers and had an impromptu screening of one of their films, no sound because it was too loud, but this piece made me miss New York and all its craziness. I can't explain it, but when I told the people that I am putting together a Visual Culture festival they wanted to show me what they had, so they call the filmmaker and 20 minutes later I am in the lobby of the hotel sitting on the floor watching a laptop presentation.

Opens: woman painting her face yellow - cut to: 9/11 footage - cut to: woman yelling on the phone (I hear nothing) - cut to: escalator - cut to: woman painting face - cut to: cab ride in New York - cut to: old man talking to woman in yellow face. I think you can fill in the rest. I was thinking to myself something out of one Cindy Adams' gossip columns in the New York Post...Only in New York, kids, only in New York.

Well back in Finland now with just enough time to unpack, do laundry and then pack again. Today's Monday and we are leaving Joensuu for Helsinki on Thursday evening and then we are off to Dallas on Friday morning. And the big question is not whether or not we will be able to pack all of our stuff, nor is it if we will be able to clean our house well enough before we leave, no, the real question is will I lose my tan before we get to Texas? After spending the past 4 days sitting on the beach and soaking up the sun, I return to a Finland springtime that is currently looking at highs in the low 50's and at night the temp comes close to freezing. They predict some sleet this weekend. And here I was worried that I would miss the blooming of flowers and the blossoming of Spring while I was away on this trip, only to find out that I will miss the blooming and the blossoming anyway, just on the next trip.

Regardless, I am beginning not to care too much about this as I have other things on my mind. Namely, how the hell should I recap this extraordinary - on both sides of the line of good and bad - in such a way as to do it justice - and not have to put a security on my blog. Well here goes...So we got there.

We arrived in Rome on Saturday morning and hit the town running. My first impression of Rome, at least when we arrived in the center was, "How the hell am I going to remember where I am?" The roads we tiny and the structure of the city was plain awful. The history of Roman city planning is that there never was a plan, they just built. Our hotel was in the same Piazza as the parliament building, which I thought was a little weird, but as it turns out it was just enough out of the way and still very central to all the sites that it was a great location. Just don't go there for the pool that they advertise - it's a kiddie pool at best and a bird bath the rest of the time.

I didn't want to waste any time so as soon as we were at the hotel we unloaded and then began our tour. I forgot the map, so I will try to remember the names of the places off the top of my head. We first went to Piazza Novana and had some lunch, that consisted of beer and frozen pizza. I explained it to myself like this: After traveling and being a little out of sorts, we get one free pass on food and this was it. The Piazza was nice, if not a little windy and had a gathering of artists and fountains and tourists.

After lunch we walked towards the Wedding Cake - a monstrosity of a building that houses the museum. At first I thought it was amazing, but on closer inspection it was simply an amazing eye sore. The locals call it Wedding Cake, because it really does give off that impression. But walking up the steps on the Cake we were shown the Roman Forum, the ruins of Rome. And that was simply awesome. It was wild to think about the history here. I've been to places that have building from the 15th century and other older places, but this was like nothing I've ever seen before. Such detail in the buildings, such majesty. It was obvious that at one point in time, and for a long time, Rome was the capital of the world. ´

Then it was time for the Collesium and the first of many long, long lines. But our timing was perfect as there was a guided tour that was just beginning and we were able to jump in front of the 1 hour line for an extra 8 euros - well worth it. Our tour guide was a character and had a book that he would always refer to, "Youa see ma boook? Loooka ma book." He was able to tell of the construction of the Collesium and some colorful stories that added to the scene. I will admit, for however much I expected this to be the end all be all of the trip, it was rather anti-climatic and nowhere near my favorite part of Rome.

After the Collesium we walked back to the hotel and met up for dinner. I had an artichoke, avocado, walnut and cheese salad as an antipasto. Spaghetti with cherry tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella as my pasta dish and a grilled beef fillet as the main course. Wash it down with a red wine from Sicily, an espresso machiato and a sambuca and I easily made up for the mistake at lunch. A few scotches later and I was fast asleep. Side note - the salad and beef fillet were great, whereas I make a better pasta than the one I had.

Next day we were off to the Vatican, but the real long way and I was thankful for that. We went through a neighborhood called Trastevere where I took two of my favorite pictures in Rome. The people I was with went to an enormous open market while I walked around Trastevere and soaked up the atmosphere. Lots of musicians, lots of locals just going about the daily Sunday routine.

A few hours later we were at the Vatican. Timo, Karoliina's father has an idea for a story that we have discussed numerous times and that is where is all the gold that the church confiscated during the Inquisition and throughout the years? Well, I think I know where it is, it's in the wall at this place. I still don't know what to make of the Vatican. Sure it's the center of Catholicism and therefore should be a little bit more than other places, but this was so much more. I think it bordered on tacky, but in a very impressive way. We weren't able to do the museum and therefore not able to do the Sistine Chapel, as it was closed on Sundays and so we decided to go back and rest. But I thought that I would rather explore more and walked around the town and went to the Spanish Steps and to the Piazza Popano (I know I got that wrong). These places mark the beginning and middle of Rome's premiere shopping district and the places was packed. I can imagine, in times gone bye that this was a thieves paradise, but it seemed perfectly tame to me.

Now I had made reservations for a seafood place that night and was very excited about eating seafood. Well, too many cooks in the kitchen send plans out the window and we had to scramble and pick a restaurant from scratch. Wine and Grill bar. Mistake. And the biggest mistake was that after the seafood restaurant fell through I told myself not to order seafood wherever we went. So what did I order? Seafood. Was it good? What do you think?.

Next day, Monday. We had our visit to Cinecitta Studios planned for 11am. We were going to take the subway which meant we needed to leave by 10:15 at the latest. It was the same distance from where we were in Rome to Cinecitta as it is from Park Slope to the Upper West Side, without the transfers. Well, the Sistine Chapel opens at 8:30 and we could try to squeeze it in. We get there at 8:30 and the line turns corners like a snake. We think about giving up, but we have nowhere else to be for another 90 minutes and so we ride along. Well it moves pretty quickly and we were in the museum by 9:15 which gives us enough time to get in, get out and get on with it. Well no one told me that the museum is like 5 miles long - filled with breathtaking artwork - but 5 miles long and we only have 45 minutes to do it in. So I am running down the hallway snapping pictures and following signs to the chapel. Sign after bloody sign. 30 minutes later I am standing in a room with hundreds of other people staring at the ceiling while the guards yell at everyone to be quiet. "Silencio! No Foto!" Well I took a couple before I was caught, but by that time we had to leave and so we left.

We are walking to the subway when I get a call from the Studio telling us that they need to push our meeting an hour or so. All that rushing and the meeting gets pushed. Go figure. Cinecitta was cool. We got to check out the sets from Gangs of New York and the working set for Rome, The Empire and there was some really cool things there, but it was pretty much a regular, ho-hum time. There was one thing, but I'll tell you later.

After the studio I wanted to go and check out the Jewish ghetto from WWII. After all that Jesus, I felt a little Jewish would be in order and I wasn't disappointed. The ghetto, which fortunately looked nothing like a ghetto, was filled with color and kosher. Butcher shops and other groceries, restaurants and other shops filled this very small place. No real history of the ghetto was obvious except for some signage, but I may have missed it, to tell the truth.

Finally we are having dinner and this time the pasta was the best dish. 4 cheese Ravioli with a simple oil and pepper sauce. If I could have combined this pasta with the salad and fillet from the first night, I would have had the perfect Roman meal.

That's all I got for Rome. I'll do Cannes later, but I need to rest a little.

hb back in Joensuu, for now.

It's 4 in the morning. I'm up, eating breakfast and waiting for the cab to come. So let's check out what the weather will be like in Rome and in Cannes. Rain, all week long. I suppose that is justified. I mean, who gets a business trip to Rome and Cannes without a catch or two? I can take it. Besides, hopefully it'll be a warmer rain - which is sometimes quite ok, you know? - and not too heavy. I guess one way to look at it is that it may take some of the traffic off of the streets and make sightseeing a little easier? I hope to get to a computer sometime this week, but you never know. By the way, at 3:45 this morning, day has already broke. Talk soon. hb going to Rome.

So this time tomorrow I will be in Rome and that is a little hard for me to believe. So far I have only been able to think of one negative about leaving tomorrow and that is the fact that this town, Joensuu, is just now (May 7, mind you) starting to show real signs of Spring. The grass is turning green, there are actually a few leaves on the trees, the bushes have sprouted little buds that will blossom very quickly into flowers and it will all come into bloom next week. Sure I'll be living it up in Rome and in Cannes, but I've been waiting for this moment here in Joensuu for like, I don't know, ever. And now I'm going to miss it.

I do have one hope, the weather here is supposed to get wet and cold over the next few days and hopefully this will last a little longer, leading to a later bloom. I am hoping that when I get back from Cannes on the 16th that this town will be in the final stages of transformation. I will then spend the whole week taking pictures so that I can show off some beauty here.

Speaking of beauty, I was riding my bike home from basketball the other day and that smoke I mentioned earlier was everywhere, hanging just high enough above my head for me to realize that everything was ok and there was no raging forest fire nearby.

Something else I realized while riding through the forest, my strategy for riding my bike quickly in order to outrun the bugs has at least two flaws. One, bugs are fast, especially the big ones. Two, when riding fast I am also doing an impression of a windshield, in that bugs are continually flying smack into me. Also, I like to sing a little while riding and listening to music - Coldplay, A Rush of Blood to the Head is highly recommended - and have already swallowed more bugs than I care to admit.

That's about all I've got right now. I want to send out a couple of Happy's while I'm at it, since I won't be readily available next week. Happy Mother's Day to Mom and Trish and Phyllis and Tracey and Roz and Shea and a Happy Birthday to the pop.

A few words about Vappu. I am glad it is over. For the past few weeks Karoliina and I have been about as healthy as I can remember being in quite a while. No alcohol for more than 3 weeks, regular exercise - be it basketball, weight lifting, or classes - a healthy diet and getting enough rest. Then, in the course of 2 1/2 days, all that went down the toilet.

We began our celebration on Thursday night. Anneli was in town and we went out to dinner and had some drinks later on. I didn't think that I had too many beers, but Friday morning I realized that, obviously, I did. The good thing for me on Friday was the fact that at 1:30 worked stopped and we all went to the river bar and sat in the sun and drank.

I want to mention sitting in the sun because of two reasons: 1. It was wonderful to sit outside and be warm and 2. I sat with the sun on one side of my face and now that side of my face is red and the other side of my face is not.

I was supposed to do a great many things on Friday, but I only got around to doing 2. 1 I drank and 2 I fell asleep as soon as I got home. I was planning on going back out to town after I had something to eat, but I never got off the couch.

Other interesting facts about Vappu. And for this I take you back to the Bruce Springstein concert Karoliina and I went to last July in Giants Stadium. With an announced crowd of over 50,000 I told Karoliina that this was as many people as in the entire city of Joensuu. Well, this weekend all those people were out and about and drinking. The weather was perfect and the town was quite lively. We spent the rest of Saturday drinking and eating and then we hit the sauna.

Sunday morning rolls around and I realized something else. I will not be drinking much this summer. Our bedroom gets too much sun way too early in the morning and this makes our bedroom very hot. I don't think there is a worse way to spend a morning hangover than in a hot bed, with no hopes of cooling off.

The sun has started to shine in our room at around 4:45 every morning. I wake up at 5:30 and I think it is 7:30 and then have a very difficult time getting back to sleep. I can only sleep in one direction and even then the room is still very bright. Think Al Pacino in "Insomnia". I think we will be buying some darker curtains very soon. Or at least those sleep masks.