europe 2000

	Berlin in April
	I stayed with Stewart and his friend Christina, wonderful hosts and fun people.
	We went out and bought lots of cheap fruity liqueur. Yum! Germany is definitely an alcohol-oriented culture.
	Shopping at the KDW - "ka dei vei", an enormous shopping center in West Berlin. I think the North Atlantic is running out of normal fish, because there were very scary things for sale, like this one.
	The food all across Europe was attractive and incredibly delicious... here was lox hash, poached quail egg on mini-pancake and fresh greens... and cheap by bay area standards.
	Cute futuristic little cars were everywhere - why are there none in the USA?
	The German government building with the legislature in it had an observation deck where the public can go in and look down on the politicians! Great idea.
	Amsterdam in May
	We stayed a few days with artist friend Wende White (my wonderful deadhead ex-mother-in-law..)
	The occasion was a holiday known as "Queen's Day." The streets were packed with people, and fun vehicles cruised the canals.
	Fun shopping with Stewart, Shane and Twingo (aka. Nicole)
	Spontaneous rave-like parties erupted in the streets.
	This DJ / soundsystem was actually floating by on a boat.
	Completely legal, in front of a coffee shop.
	A exhilarating city view, from the top of a very tall Ferris wheel.
	Back at the ZKM (Zentrum fur Kunst und Medientechnologie) in Karlruhe, May
	Check out the cool isolation tanks. Some people were doing an interactive art installation in which you climb in the tank for an hour, your bioemmisions (heart/breath) are recorded, turned in ambient music, and handed to you on a CD. I had to try it.
	They strapped a waterproof recording/transmitter device on me...
	And into the tank! Unfortunately it was a really unpleasant experience - the water was incredible salty and the vapors were hard for me to breathe, had to keep opening the lid occasionally.
	Another view of the pods.