Author: reissmd

I am a husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, doctor and traveler but most of all at this stage of my life I am a follower of the mantra of Madeline Albright: "Some people pursue enlightenment by sitting quietly and probing their inner consciousness; I make plane reservations."

Spanish Road Trip Day #4 “Cultural Diversity” Originally emailed March 23, 2015

by reissmd, posted in Uncategorized

Today we set out for some real culture.  After grabbing a quick breakfast we headed north to the upper westside to “The Cloisters” a museum created in the style of a medieval monastery.  It is situated just off the Hudson River in a lovely pastoral landscape with rolling hills leading up to the museum.  Inside are scores of medieval artifacts.  Many of the columns are over seven hundred years old and are incorporated into the structure of the building.  Frescos are on the walls and have been transferred there from their places of origin in Europe.  How such works could be moved without destroying them is beyond me.

After the museum we headed south to a restaurant called The Red Rooster. It was recommended by someone at the hotel who told us it is President Obama’s favorite in New York.  When we got off the subway we found ourselves on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.  At that time all I could think of were the words of comedian Chris Rock, “If you find yourself on  Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd in ANY city GET OUT OF THERE!”   We walked east past Frederick Douglass Blvd then Adam Clayton Powell Blvd then after passing the famous Apollo Theater (see attached) we arrived at our destination located on Malcolm X Blvd.  With me being an inner city kid and graduate of Dorsey High I felt right at home but I was a little worried about my West LA, University High School bride. As we entered the restaurant I was a bit concerned about what kind of culture shock awaited my wife.
In the restaurant we were greeted by a lovely hostess who sat us quickly between two other couples and culture shock was indeed the order of the day. On my left were two women speaking French and on my right were two gents speaking Swedish.  We wound up having a very wonderful conversation with the Swedes. One of them told us that the Red Rooster is owned and operated by a man from Sweden.  After all what was I expecting in the heart of Harlem?
After lunch (which was quite tasty) we headed back to Broadway and decided to go to one last show.  After our meal at the Red Rooster what could be more appropriate than, no, not Motown, but rather Abba’s, “Mama Mia”.
Tomorrow we leave for Spain.
Hasta luego,
Roberto
 APOLLO THEATER

Spain Road Trip Day #3 emailed March 22, 2015

by reissmd, posted in Uncategorized

Today we decided to go to the 911 Memorial and museum.  We have now seen it in all 3phases.  We saw the horrible sight of the empty hole that became known as “Ground Zero”.  Last year we saw the Memorial and this year we were able to see the museum.  The museum houses some incredible artifacts of the tragedy such as large sections of support girders that were mangled as if they were just a child’s broken toy.  Fire trucks and equipment destroyed by the aftermath of the collapse of the structures (see attached).  There were numerous samples of items recovered from the wreckage serving as evidence of the many lives lost in this national catastrophe.

We also viewed videos that I thought were very poorly done (i.e. interviews with George W. Bush, Rudy Giuliani, and Condoleezza Rice) but others that were much better. There was one exhibit that brought me to tears (I know, I know, you are saying a Bugs Bunny cartoon can bring me to tears).  This short (5 or 6 minute) show described the voyage of United Airlines Flight #93.  That was the plane that took off from Newark and when the passengers learned of what happened at the World Trade Center Towers they stormed the cockpit forcing the terrorists to crash land in Pennsylvania preventing further destruction.  There were phone calls played and described from the passengers and flight crew that were heart wrenching. One in particular really got to me, it was from a flight attendant leaving a message for her husband, children and family.  Prior to viewing the presentation there was a disclaimer saying that some of the more disturbing calls were not included.  If these were the mild ones I am glad they left out the others.

After leaving the Memorial and Museum we headed back uptown and found a few things that you just don’t see in LA.  We found some road and caution signs and an incredible dessert (see attached photos).  After that dessert I need to go to the gym tomorrow or buy new pants.
I hope all is well back home.  We are dry but very cold in NYC.  We have practiced our Spanish with people from Mexico, Ecuador and Argentina the past 2 days. To each of them we said that the highlight of our trip is coming soon when we see our girls in España.
Until tomorrow.
Robert
911 photo 1911 photo 2You are not in LA photo 1You are not in LA photo 2One hour on treadmill gone in a minute

Spain Road Trip Day #2 “Boy Did I Pick a Great Travel Partner”

by reissmd, posted in Uncategorized

The Spain portion of the trip was my job to plan but I left the NYC portion of the trip to Patrice.  This morning we started off with a great late breakfast at Un Deux Trois a French restaurant (found by Patrice) where they offered us outdoor seating which we declined (see attached photo).  I decided on “Eggs Norwegian” (how could I go wrong with a Norwegian dish at a French restaurant?).  It was a fantastic variation of Eggs Benedict (smoked salmon instead of ham).

We next tried to walk off our very rich breakfasts by going downtown by foot to see if we could get tickets to a musical called “Hamilton”.  Patrice thought it sounded like something I would like, a musical about Alexander Hamilton.  Sounded pretty lame to me but I became very excited when we won a lottery and got two extremely discounted tickets to a sold out production.  The show was not only a musical about Alexander Hamilton, the music was all Rap.  If I knew that going in I would have taken a pass but the show was incredible.  The music was great, the story was informative, funny and touching.  The cast was almost all minorities (seeing slave owner Thomas Jefferson being played by a black man was very interesting).
Patrice then had us going to dinner at the Grand Central Station (really Patrice, what are you thinking?).  We ate at an incredible place called the Grand Central Station Oyster Bar.  Another big winner.
We then pushed our luck one more time and tried for cancelation tickets to Beautiful (a musical based on the life and music of Carole King).  This worked out okay if you think Orchestra level, 5th row center is okay.  The show was touching and the music was ……. Carole King (need I say more?).  At times the story was a bit sentimental.  The people behind us got a little annoyed by all the whimpering in front of them.  Finally they asked Patrice if she could do something about me.
Today was a complete winner thanks to my great travel partner.   Can’t wait for tomorrow.
Robert
"Excuse me, I think this table needs to be cleared"
“Excuse me, I think this table needs to be cleared”

Spain Road Trip Day #1 March 20, 2015

by reissmd, posted in Uncategorized

Many of you know that Patrice and I are on our way to meet our little girls in Madrid for a road trip to the north of Spain.  This will be the first time I have ever rented a car or even driven a car in Europe.

The time change is always a challenge for me so this time we thought we would stop in New York for a few days to have some fun and get slightly adjusted before reaching the Iberian peninsula.  The forecast for NYC is currently 36 degrees and light snow.  I look out the window at LAX, see a beautiful California day and wonder, what idiot thought of this?
Patrice and I are trying a bold experiment, we are only taking carry on luggage.  I am very proud of her efforts.  It was a challenge for me but even more of a challenge for her.  We will see how things work out.
I started writing this message in LAX.  Now I am writing from 33,000 feet over the state of Iowa.  I am sure lots more fun stuff will happen tonight but I can’t resist the urge to send this message from 6 miles above the Earth’s surface.  See attached photo taken minutes ago.
Patrice and me at 33,000 feet somewhere over Iowa on our way to New York. Internet 6 miles above the Earth, how cool is that?
Patrice and me at 33,000 feet somewhere over Iowa on our way to New York. Internet 6 miles above the Earth, how cool is that?