AvatarMeet 2014 - Clan Journal

Started by Alan, June 30, 2014, 02:25:38 AM

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Alan

Quote from: `Eylan Ayfalulukanä on July 02, 2014, 03:45:12 PM
Alan, I didn't think the humidity would bother you so much, with the 'london fog' and all that...

Well..., yer know, being from 'up north' hooomidity tends to be not as bad as ' daaan saaff' (down south).  Hehehe.

[/quote]
Quote from: mikkowilson on July 02, 2014, 08:00:30 PM
Quote from: Toruk Makto on July 02, 2014, 05:55:43 PM
Alan, you better keep your wits about you. There's a hurricane heading your way.  :o
Don't get stuck. (Seriously, be prepared to move fly early if necessary - many airlines allow free re-booking around major natural events.)

- Mikko

Ahhh, well.  We've already experienced some thunder and lightning, but we ship out tomorrow morning on the train to Pittsburgh.  The last time we looked at the weather the wet stuff was due to hit in the afternoon/evening.  So hopefully we will be long gone.

We'll find out...

Alan

Alan

Well, today we had a bit of a hike in a wood.  It was early in the morning, but boy was it hooomid!  You like took one step and the sweat poured off you.  The thing was it didn't seem the hot.

Saw a fair few blue jays and chipmunks.  Even a couple of wood peckers.  But the best animal we saw was a snake!  Not only that, it was eating a frog!  I managed to get some piccies.  Here are a couple of pictures:




On, yom, yom.  I guess that put a spring in his slither!

Afterwards we had a trip to a comic book shop, a bite to eat and ten another session on the Na'vi (class 102).

Alan


`Eylan Ayfalulukanä

What a lucky catch on the snake pictures! Raiden will be impressed!

The train in the rain is certainly a lot better than a plane in the raun ;)

Yawey ngahu!
pamrel si ro [email protected]

Alan

Irayo ma 'Eylan.  Hope Raiden likes it.  I managed to capture a bit of video too as the frog went down the hatch.

Looking forward to the train ride - all 9 hours of it!  Should be good watch the scenery go by. It'll be a bit like a land cruise.

Alan

Ftiafpi

Loving hearing all the details of the start of this grand adventure you're all going have, very sad I'm missing it this year. Makto zong ma eylan!

Sìkat

Quote from: `Eylan Ayfalulukanä on July 01, 2014, 03:24:58 PM
A Norelco PC-70 studio camera (and you thought Norelco just made shavers!)

I seem to remember Gene Rayburn actually "fighting" with such a camera in a mid-70s episode of Match Game...where the lens hood was ultimately knocked off ;)  Clips of that episode are on YouTube and never fail to give me a good laugh :)  "When I say get offa [camera] one, I mean, *GET OFFA ONE!*"

Apparently Philips is still making cameras, at least as of the winter of 2007...when Clarkson's hockey team successfully defeated Quinnipiac for the ECAC season title at Albany's Times Union Center, every single TV camera there had "PHILIPS" emblazoned on the side.  I have pictures, but right now Lightroom is giving me grief ;)

Yes, I do own a Norelco/Philips shaver (a gift from my brother) ;)

Alan

Quote from: Ftiafpi on July 03, 2014, 02:47:13 PM
Loving hearing all the details of the start of this grand adventure you're all going have, very sad I'm missing it this year. Makto zong ma eylan!

Very sad only ma tsmukan :(. Any chance you could accidentally fly your Ikran to El Ey?  Hehehe

Well, today we travelled by Pa'li, in the form of Amtrak from New York to Pittsburgh.  It's was a nine hour journey, but it went really quickly.  We went pas a few railroad depots, which had me taking a shed load of photographs.  A lady on the train was able to point out a number of route aspects of interest, which was nice!

Once in Pittsburgh, and following a piccie to the train, we made the ten minute walk to the hotel.  It is all rather fancy - even comes with a microwave!  CyanRachel and I decided to try the restaurant and went straight to desert, which was Om, yom, yom!  The bar tender then gave us a free chocolate chip cookie and some chocolates!  Wow!  That was above and beyond service.

Tomorrow we meet up with Tìrol, whom we haven't seen since 2012.  Should also be able to experience some July 4th celebration too...I'm wondering if I should wear my Union Jack shorts!  Hehehe

Well, that's the story so far.  Tune in for another exciting episode sometime soon on a forum near you!  Hehehe

Alan

Sarah Noel

Please wear your union jack shorts! Hrh

`Eylan Ayfalulukanä

Quote from: Sìkat on July 03, 2014, 07:57:06 PM
Quote from: `Eylan Ayfalulukanä on July 01, 2014, 03:24:58 PM
A Norelco PC-70 studio camera (and you thought Norelco just made shavers!)

I seem to remember Gene Rayburn actually "fighting" with such a camera in a mid-70s episode of Match Game...where the lens hood was ultimately knocked off ;)  Clips of that episode are on YouTube and never fail to give me a good laugh :)  "When I say get offa [camera] one, I mean, *GET OFFA ONE!*"

Apparently Philips is still making cameras, at least as of the winter of 2007...when Clarkson's hockey team successfully defeated Quinnipiac for the ECAC season title at Albany's Times Union Center, every single TV camera there had "PHILIPS" emblazoned on the side.  I have pictures, but right now Lightroom is giving me grief ;)

Yes, I do own a Norelco/Philips shaver (a gift from my brother) ;)


Not to derail the thread (all puns intended, ma Alan), but Norelco became Philips, Philips partnered with Thomson and became BTS. Thomson boubht Grass Valley Group from Tektronix, so the cameras became Thomson Grass Valley. Eventually Grass Valley was sold off to a series of new owners, so the original Norelco line is now Grass Valley-- and still very popular, especially on trucks these days.

We will be going within a few miles of the Grass Valley plant on the way to Kings Canyon on Sunday.

Yawey ngahu!
pamrel si ro [email protected]

mikkowilson

Miranda owns GV (as they are now called); and Miranda is of course owned by Belden.

The Phillips LDK camera series (then Thompson, now GV) is VERY popular, especially in Europe. Very lightweight and reliable high quality cameras as a good price.

---

Today I printed out all the driving directions sheets for all the drivers, and picked up our wireless mic to get a good clean recording of the Na'vi lesson for the video. Packing now while waiting for 4th of July fireworks at midnight.

- Mikko
Mikko Wilson
Juneau, Alaska, USA
[email protected] - www.mikkowilson.com - +1 (907) 321-8387

`Eylan Ayfalulukanä

Mikko, do you need me to bring anything in the way of 'hardware'?

As far as Philips cameras go, the BTS LDK-9P's show their age, but still make gorgeous (SD) pictures! They also have been retrofited with 'lifetime' shutter motors. I just need to get a set of three tripods and heads that can handle their weight.

Yawey ngahu!
pamrel si ro [email protected]

Alan

Quote from: Sarah Noel on July 03, 2014, 11:00:32 PM
Please wear your union jack shorts! Hrh

Hehehe...I think I might chicken out of that one...although it might get me on the news...floating down the river. ;D

No worries ma 'Eylan.  Camera talk is always good ;)

Irayo ma Mikko for doing the maps.

Right, time to crawl out of bed and start the day :D

Alan

Alan

Another update on our adventure...

Yesterday we met up with Tìrol and spend the day exploring Downtown Pittsburgh.  It's a really pleasant city.  With it being the 4th July the place was really quiet when we first stepped out as we made our was to State Point Park.  As we entered the park we had our bags checked (we would end up having our bags check three times during the day!). We saw a shed load of furries - there's a convention in town and they were on TV!  Maybe we should have an AvatarMeet here!  Hehehe).

We met Tirol in the park and had a good bit of catch up time.  We spent a good deal of time walking....and walking...and walking. Hehehe.  We made it over one of the many bridges and went past the two sports stadiums.  The weather was great - not to hot, lightly clouded sky and a gentle breeze.  Here's a link to a piccie : http://flic.kr/p/od5gi3

There was pogo stick competition, BMX bike show, boat race, speed boat race, to name just a few of the things that were going on.  In the evening we joined what seemed the whole of Pittsburgh arrived to see.  It was quite spectacular : http://flic.kr/p/nVJPus

The walk back to the hotel was interesting - there was a bag and then everyone started running past us!  Don't know what it was, but there was nothing on the news.  So probably just some numpty with a firework!

Today, we will be doing a bit more exploring. :)

Alan

`Eylan Ayfalulukanä

#33
Ma Alan, Pittsburgh is a beautiful town. I have been there twice, as the company that built out main TV transmitter is located there. Once was to witness final testing before the transmitter was disassembled and shipped. The second time was for maintenance training on the transmitter, and there was more time for sightseeing on that trip.

Too bad you ran into so much 'police state' security. That is far less common out here in the west, and fireworks are legal in many places.

Did you get a chance to ride the cogged railway that runs up a major hill in Pittsburgh?

Back to work. Sikat is due here in a few hours and there is still much to do!

Update: Sikat is here! We have had dinner, done a little shopping, and pored over some of the 'relics' in the museum here. Now, we are preparing for bed!

Yawey ngahu!
pamrel si ro [email protected]

Alan

Ma 'Eylan,

Yeah, I'm really impressed with Pittsburgh.  There is still a lot we haven't explored, but I guess, we'll just have to come again some time.  And yes we did make it up the vernicular railway as you'll find out below.  Great to hear Sìkat and you have met up for a mini-pre-meet.  Have a great time :)

Yesterday Tìrol, CyanRachel and caught the bus to the natural history museum.  There was so muck to see covering a whole range of subject areas, but the one that got us thinking and talking the most was an exhibition about race, racism and equality.  We ended up drawing a number of similarities with what is portrayed in Avatar.  It ended up just confirming how backward, savage and primitive racism in all it's forms is.

We ended up spending the majority of the day in there as it was so interesting, but when we did surface, we headed off the a comic book store.  It was actually really good and well laid out.  Thee were some folks from the Fury Convention there.

After a bite to eat we headed back into downtown and made our way across the river to the vernicular railway.  It was quite popular and we had to queue for a short while.  It was well worth it, thought.  The view from the top, looking over Pitsburgh was...outstanding!  It was like a view only an Ikran could have provided!  So we took quite a few piccies.

Sooner or later you have to head back down and this time we were going to have to say kìyevame to Tìrol until the next time, because the following day we were going to be heading out to the airport and climb aboard our Ikran to LA...

Alan

Tirea Aean

Kaltxì ma frapo, from Baltimore-Washington International Airport Gate A5 where am currently waiting for boarding.

I should be on the ground in LAX by noon. There, I'll take my rental car on up to camp.

Seriously cannot wait for this... I still have yet another half hour or so.

Alan

Heyyy Tirea!

We're at Pittsburgh airport waiting to board our flight to El Ey at 12:30.  Race ya there on our Ikran ma tsmukan.  Makto ko!

We are due in LAX at 14:30, there abouts, but we're staying in LA to do the tourist thing for a foo days.

Alan

Alan

Time for another exciting episode!  Hehe :D

The next part of the journey for CyanRachel and I was to travel to LA from Pittsburgh.  We found out there was an X28 bus service that would take us to the Airport, which was great - it's far more environmentally friendly than a car and the 40 minute journey only cost us $3.75!

The airport was nice and quiet, with it being a Sunday.  We whizzed through check-in and security.  Although I had to be patted down after going through one of those new fancy body scanner thingies. (Nothing new there, then!) After the usual wait we boarded our Ikran and headed for El Ey.  The scenery slowly changed from hills to farm land to desert and canyon before we started our decent into LAX airport.  We could see Downtown LA and just making out the Hollywood sign - yep this was the right place!  Hehehe.

After the baggage claim it was a shuttle ride to the hotel.  We checked and then headed for our rooms.  When we made it back down we get the biggest bear hug from Ghaziya (think I spilt that right - hehe).  She had arrived about an hour earlier from Texas.

Boy did we all chin wag! We had not met for two years and so it was catch up time, which continued over dinner in the Brewsters bar of the hotel, which was really good.  We were reminiscing about the previous meet ups and everyone.   But, because of the time zone change we were flagging by 21:00.  So we called it a night.  The following day, we were going into tourist mode!

Alan

Niri Te

  I hope that you are having a great time, Alan.
Tokx alu tawtute, Tirea Le Na'vi

Ikxeru

Around 12 hrs to go until Palulukanä Tarontu and I will hop on our ikrans and fly west, west, west, as fast as the winds can carry us.
See you so soon!
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