Over the last week I have been exploring Zurich Switzerland. With the encouragement of my colleagues, we took trains and buses to all of our meetings. But the high point in this famous Swiss city was renting a bicycle for the weekend.

We got a head start on the weekend with a short workday on Friday. Four of us went out to explore the city and found the Kunsthaus Museum. As we approached the museum, we were inspired by a magnificent sculpture by Rodin called the “Gates of Hell” which features a figure reminiscent of Rodin’s “The Thinker”. Once inside we soon found the impressionists wing that is full of Picasso’s and Monet’s. We finished the evening stroll with a wonderful Fondue dinner and wine.

As I mentioned the highlight was the weekend of cycling. As it turns out a local Swiss colleague, Guenter is an avid cyclist and was kind enough to arrange to rent a couple of very nice road bikes from a local shop called The Bike Store. We went out for a Saturday ride down along Lake Zurich and up into the hills surrounding the lake. Although Guenter is a much better climber than I, he was patient with me as I spun up each hill until we made it the quaint village of Wald about half way out the mountain for lunch. We then took an alternative route back and were rewarded by some exhilarating decents and magnificent vistas.

On Sunday I went out by myself and decided to ride down the other side of Lake Zurich. The roads have excellent bike lanes and are full of cyclists. I stopped at the Zurich Horn to eat lunch and snap a couple of pictures. All toll it was one of the best weekends of cycling that I’ve ever experienced. I also rode my longest one day ride of around 120k (70 miles) and my longest 2 day ride of over 180K (110 miles). Thanks to Guenter for a terrific end to a terrific week in Zurich.

Zurich + Terrific = ZURIFICH!

Click here to see the rest of my Zurich pictures on Flickr.

Bon Voyage, Jay

Over the last few weeks I have crossed the US multiple times. First to Connecticut, then 5 days in Denver and last week was a 2 day trip to Detroit. Each weekend I’ve returned home to refresh and find time to cycle. Pam and I even spent a night on Calypso in Santa Cruz.

Here’s a little photo montage of my recent travels.

Today I am preparing for a 20 day visit to Europe. My itinerary includes Zurich, Berlin, London and Edinburgh. I’ve decided to fly to London and then take the train around Europe. I’m sure I will encounter many challenges but am eager to embark on the adventure. I’m bringing my cycling shoes and pedals in hopes of renting a bike over the weekends. I hope to have lots of stories and pictures over the next few weeks.

Bon Voyage, Jay

I’ve just returned from a trip to Hartford Connecticut, the insurance capital of the world. The weather during my stay was rainy and cloudy but cleared up the morning I left. We got a chance to walk around a bit each evening after work to a few restaurants in the area. The highlight was a small place on Trumbull St. called The Russell which featured a Cajun Tilapia that I enjoyed with a Coppola Merlot.

I had an early morning flight and was up before dawn to allow for the rental car return and typical Friday morning airport rush. On the drive to the airport I was rewarded by a beautiful sunrise with mist rising up from the fields and settling into the valleys. I found myself singing Sunrise, Sunset from Fiddler on the Roof as a drove in to return my car.

The flight home had a two hour layover in Dallas with a transfer from one terminal to another. After studying the map, I decided to walk rather than take the skytrain and was struck by the futuristic airport design as I wandered around. After a mile or two walk with my bags in tow and a couple of mis-turns, I navigated to my gate in plenty of time to grab a bite to eat and reply to some email. I felt refreshed by the exercise and was ready for a long nap on the second leg of the trip.

Next week I’m off to Denver for the International DB2 User Group (IDUG) where I am presenting. I hope the weather will cooperate and I’ll get a chance to see the town and take some pictures.

Bon Voyage, Jay

After 15 years on the waiting list for a slip in the Santa Cruz Harbor, I bought a 1979 Cal 27′ sailboat a few years ago. Although very seaworthy, she suffered from disuse. I had worked in a sailboat shop in 1979 and always admired this model. With 6’3″ of headroom and ideal handling characteristics for the Monterey Bay, she also fit into a 24′ slip. All in all, a great boat to hone my sailing skills while providing a romantic weekend get away.

I decided to recommission her as Calypso, named after the Greek sea nymph that lured Odysseus after the battle of Troy. As you may know Calypso was also the name of Jacque Cousteau‘s ship featured in the sixties TV show that fed my boyhood dreams of life at sea. I feel like Calypso has been in my mind’s eye for decades. The purchase of Calypso was the first step in my journey that has become GreenWanderer.

Before I recommissioned Calypso, I took her out for a short sail and was rewarded by a beautiful sunset. Someday I hope to sail into that sunset, to exotic destinations like Hawaii, Tahiti, New Guinea and beyond.

Bon Voyage, Jay

I’m currently five to six miles up in the air, returning home from Chicago. Flying into O’Hare is always a challenge. This time my shuttle flight was canceled and I ended up renting a car to make the two hour drive after all.

In the spirit of GreenWanderer, I tried to make the best of it. The drive to central Illinois and back was uneventful, but the business activities were very successful. It’s always rewarding to train over a hundred people in technology that I had a hand in developing. Although I don’t write code any more, I still feel that I contribute in the design, packaging and roll out of new products.

The best part of trips like this one is meeting new people and connecting with old friends. I always enjoy talking to people from around the world on how they use technology to solve business problems. In today’s world of economic upheavals, it’s nice to see big companies doing business as usual.

Although I don’t have any pictures or interesting stories to tell, I do have some nice memories. I’m looking forward to returning to central Illinois in the next few months to get to know the people and area better. My travels around the world provides me with insights into many different cultures. But there is something about good ol’ Midwestern Americana that fills me with hope and sense of well being.

Bon Voyage, Jay

After six weeks of staying at home, I’m on the verge of an extensive travel schedule. Next week I’m off to Illinois. I come home for two weeks and then it’s back on the road to New England. Next is Denver for the International DB2 User Group (IDUG) where I am presenting. The last week of May, I’m off to Zurich, Berlin and London for three weeks.

I often struggle with the carbon footprint of traveling and try to minimize where ever practical. On this trip I had the option to take a shuttle to a regional airport or drive. I typically err on the side of minimizing driving so I can use the time otherwise.

After a bit of googling, I found GreenProgress.com that had a easy to use Carbon footprint calculator that reinforced my decision to fly versus driving which is about 50% more carbon emissions. Of course the train or bus will be even less, so something to add to the next adventure.

While contemplating my next trip to Europe I was reflecting on my favorite trips to Europe. I have to say that the trip with Pam to southern France stands out. The pictures are on Flickr and I thought I would highlight a few here.

Pam accompanied me on a business trip to Montpelier in southern France. Since this was my first trip to France, I didn’t know about the advantages of taking the train and there was a 6 hour layover in Paris. Pam and I took the train into Paris and spent the afternoon on a mini tour. We got off the train at the Eiffel Tower stop and found a charming little restaurant floating on the Seine River in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower for a romantic lunch.

After lunch we wandered over to the Arch de Triumph and took the train back to the airport. All in all it was the most amazing 6 hours of my life and the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

Bon Voyage, Jay

I completed the migration from jaybruce.com to greenwanderer.com. I had lots of challenges but was able to get everything working.

The main challenge were permalinks, which provides meaningful links for search engines like Google. I did quite a bit of research on the web on how to copy a WordPress blog from one Yahoo domain to another. It turned out that the problem was unique to Yahoo and wasn’t documented clearly. Since I posted a question on the WordPress forum, I wrote up the process and thought I would publish it here too.

1. Install WordPress and MySQL from Yahoo on target domain and upgrade to current levels
2. Install Customizable Permalinks plugin by Yahoo Web Hosting and any other desired plugins and themes
3. Export WordPress database from source MySQL and import in target MySQL
4. Make sure Blog URL and WordPress URL are the same
5. Optionally copy index.php to home directory and modify: require(‘./blog/wp-blog-header.php’);
6. Update Permalinks to desired option

I hope eveyone found their way to the new and improved GreenWanderer.com.
Thanks for your support!

Bon Voyage, Jay

GreenWanderer.com is a continuously evolving entity and is on the verge of another leap forward. I am converting the hosting service from jaybruce.com to greenwanderer.com.

I’m not sure how this will work, so there is sure to be some disruption when accessing this blog from either link. Please be patient while GreenWanderer goes through this transition. Some links may not work and there may be some problems with RSS feeds. You may need to reestablish any RSS feeds from jaybruce.com/blog to greenwanderer.com.

I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you, but this change was inevitable. As GreenWanderer grows in popularity, I thought it was important to make this change before too many links are propagated.

Bon Voyage, Jay