Basque delight

Camilla and I recently visited Omei and Oscar and Mikel who probably have the best run kayak warehouse anywhere!

Mikel, Oscar and Camilla

Kayaks in perfect rows, color separated and all clean clean clean

They took us to lunch at the Patxiku Enea in San Sebastian and this was for sure one of the best meals I have ever had in Spain. Basque food is a lot like Spanish just better!

Spanish style we sat down around 3 pm and spent most of the afternoon at the table. It started of with fireworks in the form of some tapas where the Txistorra (in bask)/Chistorra (in spanish) sausages were by far the best I had ever had. And I love my sausages so this is big. Tender but still with some bite, perfectly fried. It is made of a mixture of minced pork and beef. The sausage is flavored with garlic, salt, and paprika, which gives it a bright red color. Well, you had to be there...
After some more tapas this handsome and very tasty Merluza. Mikel and Oscar asked for a part of the fish called "Cogote". Is the softer part of the fish, just close the head. Wow!


Now completely full they brought us this huge piece of meat!!! Unfortunately I could not fully appreciate this fabulous very rare beef as I was completely stuffed but I still managed to eat 3 huge slices that Mikel carved and just threw on my plate.


I forgot the name of the Spanish claret but the taste sure was memorable. As was the cider that tasted completely different from the cider I am used to from Bretagne. A lot fresher, less sweet and a much more the taste of freshly plucked apples right of the tree if you get my drift.

Our six hour drive back home was a struggle but worth every sleepy hour of it.

On the cover of the Rollings Stone (almost)

Tobbe, a Point 65 paddling instructor made the cover of the Swedish paddling magazine "Paddling" (April 09 issue).
This is the equivalent for a Swedish paddler as for a rock star making the cover of the Rolling Stone magazine. (this Dr Hook live performance is just great!!) This incredible shot was taken by Malte Danielsson of Landsort in the Stockholm Archipelago. What kayak? To be honest I'm not sure but it looks like a 2007 Point 65 X-Ray. Now here is Jimi who made the cover of the real thing.
I enclose some more pictures from the same shoot. Thats one happy paddler!!









And another RSM cover

Market day

Saturday is market day in my little French town. Shopping here is an experience. Now this is the real thing and no tourists have so far found their way to my secret corner of rural France.

Camilla at the fruit stand

This guy carries an incredible selection of cheese
Camembert alone he must have at least 10 different kinds
Not to mention the myriads of Chevres, with berries...
and on a stick.
Todays catch from the nearby beaches

These strawberries were just heavenly with some "real" crème fraiche from the cheese guy
Beret anybody?
Entertainment
Here the local farmers who rent a table and sell their produce

And eggs that taste nothing like the supermarket variety
potatoes at rock bottom prices

Travel in style

One of the very very few advantages of spending half your time on airplanes is that, after a while, the airline gives you a VIP card. I have more Air France miles under my belt than I wish to remember but it has earned me this Platinum card.The card opens all doors and slips me discreetly past all sort of check in lines, most security lines and all boarding lines. It gives you access to comfortable lounges on all airports stocked with fresh fruit, beverages, sandwiches etc comfortable seats, free internet but most importantly, quietness and stillness.But by far the best thing is that most of the time I get upgraded from the cattle department I belong to into the most comfortable dream land normally reserved for the captains of industry, Business class!
For example. On my most recent roundtrip Europe - China I payed the laughable amount of SEK 4905 (448€/605$) return for the 12 hour flight Paris - Shanghai (including the Stockholm - Paris flight) but enjoyed the trappings of a SEK 50.000 (4500€/6050$) ticket!

I can't describe the sweet feeling of getting your boarding pass at check in with your seat number upgraded from horrible 23A (or god forbid 57F or something) to heavenly 8L. The big difference is the seat that folds down to an absolute flat bed where I sleep comfortably. And the difference in comfort is incredible. However hardly worth the premium fare they charge the fortune 100 companies and governments who actually pay for this sort of thing. Whatever, your seat is in a sort of pod which gives you a feeling of privacy.The seat is wide and comfy and you get a real pillow and a blanket instead of the sand paper like sorry excuse of a blanket back in coach. Instead of arriving like a wreck after a 12 hour torture session, I wish for the pilot to take a detour so that I can finish my movie on the perfect big screen in my secluded pod and have another sip of champagne.
Instead of the stale prison food in the little containers on a tray back in cattle you get most delicious cuisine served on crisp white linen. Together with the wide selection of high end wines and champagne you happily slip into sleep and wake up only for the next meal.
A great thing is that your pod is equipped with an electrical socket so that you can plug in your computer and work. Also there is a wide selection of movies, all the latest releases that you can view any time on your private high resolution, rather big screen with high fidelity Sennheiser earphones. Speaking of phones each seat has a phone that you can use for calls anywhere (at 10$ per minute).









There is a sumptuous bar in the "lounge" up front where you can have a drink and chat with the movers and shakers. The bathrooms are roomy and cleaned by the stewardess after each use.
Once of the plane you can have a quick shower in the lounge before your bag arrives as the very first on the belt thanks to the priority tag. If you even bother to check anything in. In business they allow you to carry whatever you manage to haul onboard be yourself!

After the flight I can walk straight of the plane fresh for any meeting or session in the factory while coming of cattle I see stars, feel groggy and can not perform at all. A three day stretch of jet lag is cut short to one.

Paddling with a paddlesport dynasty

Saturday I went on a paddling excursion with Simon and Naomi Takashina plus their little son 1,5 years old. The Takashinas are a Japanese/American paddlesport -business dynasty who own a paddlesport company group with several interests in the business. Simon & son -youngest paddler of the Wangpu River

Simons grandfather, Tadayoshi Takashina, started making life jackets in Japan back in the 1930s. Now the brothers Simon and Yoshi shoulder the responsibility of the business. MTI, is the Takashina distribution business in the US, distributing paddlesport products there. Hishi Sports produce paddling apparel and pfd's under their own brand as well as for a leading international paddlesport apparel brand. Simon manages their Shanghai factory. Haishi also produces life rafts, life jackets, survival suits etc. The Takashinas also distribute paddlesport products in Japan.

Here Naoyas Hirano, Simon and Naomi Takashina with their baby and my son Axel.

Also joining us for the day was Japanese Renaissance man Naoyas Hirano. He brought this tripple magnum of Spanish Torres which was most welcome to help wash down our picnic. Perfect baguettes from "Paul", Shanghais best bakery (and yes, a franchise from the french chain) and I had brought some goodies from France.

Naoimi Takshina and her son plus my son Axel

Terrine de fois gras de canard and some paté de campagne. I also found some nice ham and salami at the western supermarket in Shanghai. And surprisingly, an excellent Gruyere Suisse, my favorite cheese!! A couple of delicious tartellets was the perfect ending. But disaster struck, I had forgotten my Handespresso at the office so NO COFFEE....

Strengthened after this sumptuous picnic we headed out on the river for my now favorite little Saturday tour.

Here Naomi Takashina in a Cappuchino.

Naoya Hirano was only the second time in a kayak and his first time was back in high school! He did very well and quickly got the hang of it. The more I see beginners in the Whisky 16 the more convinced I am that this is the perfect boat to learn skills in. Naoya was trying some careful edging after 20 minutes. And did it turn!
Naoya Hirano is a very talented artist and runs a dream production consultancy firm. He also owns Shanghais most exclusive Sushi bar Oyama as well as a very cool Spanish wine and tapas bar El Willy. All on 20 Donghu Lu in a building he manages.

Naoya Hirano, Japanese Renaissance man

The star of the day was little Takashina. I bet this is the youngest paddler to ever hit Chinese waters. The Takashina paddlesport business dynasty is safe for another generation! This guy has it in his blood. Without hesitation he joined his father Simon in the cockpit of a SeaRover. They paddled happily down the Wangpu. He was fascinated by the sand barges and their cranes. Admittedly he more or less fell a sleep in the cock pit after a while.
As no spray deck could protect them for dripping water from the paddle, littel Takashina became quit wet after a couple of hours and let us know that he was uncomfortable.

Only this lady cleaning her catch could cheer him up.

On dryland again. Naoimi, littel Takashina, me, Naoyas, Axel and local boy fascinated by the alien crafts and their captains.