Some Czech souvenirs

Just a few suggestions to consider.. Especially the selection of Skoda miniature cars looked really nice, as their real-life versions probably would come in the same forms and flavours.

Connectivity concerns

When one is about to embark on a longer business trip, he (or she) may start to think about today's possibilities to keep connected with the family (without paying a huge buck for international phone calls). Sure, there are social services like Facebook and IM services like Google Talk, but one excellent thing that comes to mind are Skype video calls.

I can't install Skype on my corporate laptop, but luckily I have two wonderful Linux machines that come with Skype pre-installed. Although neither one are brand new they are still fully working. My Asus eeePC 900 netbook has currently Crunchbang Linux, and my trusted Nokia N810 is running Maemo OS2008. Both machines have got WLAN connectivity. One major disadvantage in the N810 is that in can only do Skype voice calls for some reason.

A few more differences that matter for me: compared to the N810 the eee pc is still "quite big" to drag along, and the N810 gives way more operating time since its' battery can last up to seven hours (against two hours for the eeePC 900). Also, the N810 has got built-in GPS and a way better keyboard. If only it would do Skype video calls too!

But, to sum it up, I think I'm pretty well set for my business trip with either one of these machines. :)

Einige Bierdeckel

Oh it's been too long since I've been to Germany..

Round the Baltic coast(ers)

Here's a few beer coasters to show from the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania).

In more detail, one from the "Beer House" in Tallinn, and Pärnu ölu.. hmm.. now what makes this one interesting is that I've never been to Pärnu.. and I'm not even sure if I've ever tasted that beer. ;)

The third one is from "Avilys" brewery in Kaunas.. It was a really nice place, and that coaster is a post card on the other side (the brewery paid for the postage)!

Czech out some beer coasters

This is a brief excursion to some of the Czech beer coasters I've managed to collect on my past trips. The most interesting ones are from smaller breweries.

A site finding

So far I've used http://www.hostelworld.com for most of my ho(s)tel bookings abroad, but tonight I found out about http://www.yeego.com. Looks quite good at first sight.. interesting.

Two new books

I can't wait to have a good chance to give these babies a test run in the streets of Tallinn! Free translation: "The hero traveller in soviet Tallinn" and "The hero traveller in Tallinn's trams and trolleybuses".. :)

A fresh look

For my travelling partner. :)

New wheels

A new (used) car was what I was really looking for from Hyrylä. It will be easier to survive winter time in Mäntsälä with this baby.

Collectibles

Or "souvenirs", if you like..

I have thosands and thousands of travel photos on my hard drive. I'm currently assembling an album to the web of the most essential ones.

Why I have so many pictures, and what they are mostly about, that's another story. Also explaining why I prefer to visit cities that have Hard Rock Cafe's for a t-shirt and a shot glass will make a nice story - but sometimes later.

Tonight, while I looked at the photos, I came to wonder what kind of stuff I have collected from the places I have visited?

I like maps of places very much. If you've never been to a city, the map looks strange. Then when you've just arrived to a new place, the map looks even more confusing. But after a few hours, it starts to make sense. During a few days, paper maps tend to get a bit rugged. And right after the trip you may feel they are useless. But years after, looking at that rugged map brings up memories. Some maps may become priceless, even though they were eventually free. Maps are excellent memorabilia.

As well as maps, I like to collect beer coasters. They are free. And you can use them as postcards too. I doubt if my collection will ever have any financial value, though. :)

I also keep good travel guidebooks I can find, thinking they might come useful if I visit the place again. Well, as the phrase goes, maybe a few more words about that too.. but later..