After the museum, the four of us headed around the old market area and went for a little walk.  We grabbed a “dog” at the “world famous” Roanoke Weiner Stand, which has been in business in the same building since 1910.  My dad actually worked across the street at the florist shop as a kid.  I enjoyed the hot dog… I’m not sure Lauren shared my enthusiasm.  We walked through the Roanoke Market building (pictured above right) before heading back to the house for dinner.

It’s nice to be home.

- Michael Dogan

Friday, our last full day in Italy, and of course, I have to work.  Lauren spent several hours wandering through the

old city and happened across this hidden treat.  As you can see, she’s getting to be quite the photographer too!

Mountains, sailing, Italy…. what could be better?

Cheers,

- Michael Dogan

Like a lion singling a sole target from the herd, he skated after the screaming kid, the others scattering out of his way. As he caught each of the kids, he’d pick them up, and skate them back over to their parents. One kid, after witnessing his brother capture and upside-down skate back to his parents gave up and ran back to the safety of his family. The others didn’t give up so easily and put up quite the fight. One kid, perhaps trained by the Iraqi media, took off his shoe and threw it at the clown as he approached.

Looking at photos of this guy, my Mom commented that he looked like a former high powered business executive who finally had enough of the rat race, and now spends his days skating around with his red nose entertaining children.  I like to believe her little theory.  Maybe there’s a carefree future out there for all of us.  In the meantime… it’s back to work tomorrow, but it’s good to have Lauren here, and I’m sure she will enjoy exploring Milan until I’m finished working.

- Michael Dogan

I found myself in Naples on the day of the Scottish League Cup Final, and not a proper Irish or Scottish pub to be found. After scouring the internet, and interrogating a few locals, I determined that all neighborhood televisions would be tuned to the Napoli Reggina game and I’d be more likely to find a proper American cheeseburger than a pub tuned to Scottish football. I didn’t like the odds.

A quick visit to The North American Federation of Celtic Supporters Clubs website, which also has links to other supporters clubs worldwide, led me to Finnegan Irish Pub in Rome, home of the Celtic Supporters Club (CSC) known as “The Italian Bhoys”. Determined to watch the game, and even more determined to watch it surrounded by over zealous Scots dawning the infamous green hoops, I found my way to the train station in Naples, and headed off to Rome. Once there my trusty Blackberry Storm with built in maps guided me through the streets of Rome to the unassuming little Irish pub, tucked away in the center of the city.

Inside, I was pleased to find Michael Burns, president of “The Italian Bhoys”, pub proprietor, and accomplished Irish songster. A few patrons wearing the Hoops were already having a pint and talking about the upcoming match. There were a mix of Scots, Irish, Welsh, and Brits in the pub (and one “yank” if you count yours truly). A good number were there to watch some supposedly interesting Rugby match, but the Scots and Irish were there to support the “Bhoys”. By game time, a good 30 or so Celtic supporters had filled the back room, all eyes affixed to the two televisions covering the match up against arch rivals, the Rangers.

Much of the first half was rather uneventful as both teams settled into their game. About 2 minutes before the break, Rangers’ forward Kyle Lafferty’s powerful attempt on goal was pushed over the crossbar by leaping Celtic keeper Artur Boruc who found himself in full stretch. Instantly, the Italian Bhoys let out a gasp and quickly broke into “The Holy Goalie” song. As a long time goalkeeper, I had a special appreciation for the song. Forgive the poor video, but I was laughing way too heartily to record a proper video. **VIDEO COMING SOON**

Regular play ended with neither team finding the back of the net. I headed out front to the bar to grab another pint. Before I had returned, cheers erupted from the back room. Early in extra time, Irishman Darren O’Dea headed in a free kick from Celtic’s set play specialist Nakamura (affectionately called “Naka” by the Celtic fans). Fellow Irishman Aiden McGeady solidified the victory with a late penalty kick after being taken down by Ranger Kirk Broadfoot.

In the end, “The Hoops” lifted the league cup with their 2 – 0 victory over the Rangers, and the pub broke out in song once again:

Celtic, Celtic that’s the team for me,

Celtic, Celtic on to victory,

They’re the finest team in Scotland, I’m sure you will agree,

We’ll never give up till we’ve won the cup and the Scottish football league.

Perhaps the best part of watching the game with true Celtic fans, was the constant singing, chants, and cheers, that I could almost comprehend through the thick Scottish accents. They also seemed quite impressed that a “yank” came all the way from Naples to watch the game with them. All in all, it was a fantastic evening, and I met some extraordinary folks. They were die-hard Celtic fans, what else would one expect?

After leaving Finnegan’s and heading back to the station, in the hopes of finding a train home to Naples, I realized that I had skipped dinner. I happened upon another so called Irish pub along my route, and stopped in for a bite. The pub, which shall remain nameless, was rather large, and full of patrons. I was quickly seated and given an assortment of menus that I never even bothered to open, after all I was in an Irish pub… who needs a menu? The waiter finally appeared and I salivated as I requested my pub staple “fish ‘n’ chips”. “Sorry, no have”, the waiter replied in his broken English, and then pointed me to the pizza menu. Needless to say, I didn’t stay for dinner. Pizza in a supposedly “Irish” pub? Why on Earth would I go to an Irsih pub for Pizza in Italy???? For the record, and as far as I can tell, Finnegan Irish Pub is the ONLY true Irish pub in Roma. Look them up when you’re in town, even if you just stop in for a pint, a pack of crisps, and a bit of craic.

I made it back “home” to the Hotel Mediterraneo in Naples shortly after 10:30pm. A successful trip and a great outcome for the Bhoys. I hope to run into my new friends again the next time I find myself in Rome.

Hail Hail!

- Michael Dogan

Well I spoke too soon.  So much for yesterday’s “beautiful day in the burgh”, as you can see from the photo, it’s raining like crazy here today.  We hopped in the car and just started driving. We ended up in Beaver County and enjoyed checking out the small towns along the way. We happened upon a park, and decided to take a gander. Less than a mile into the park, we found the bridge in the picture. I’ve seen too many videos of people trying to cross water like this, only to find themselves swept away by the current to try to cross it. We did get out of the car to take a look, snapped a few quick photos, and then got back to the car, and headed back to civilization. Not the most exciting of adventures, or road trips, but quite relaxing and enjoyable none the less. A day well spent.

Cheers,

- Michael Dogan

With the same blissful disorientation that David St. Hubbins, Derek Smalls and Nigel Tufnel suffered while searching for the stage and enthusiastically proclaiming “Hello Cleveland!”, Lauren and I explored the streets of Cleveland to determine if in fact, as Drew Carey insists, “Cleveland Rocks”.  What better place to make this determination than the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.  While the crew from Spinal Tap was nowhere to be found, we did find seven floors of exhibits (although the top was closed off in preparation for a temporary exhibit to be opening soon) which included a history of audio technology, a section of mannequins donning outfits of famous performers past and present, and an area which looks at music scenes in various cities throughout different eras, including Memphis in the 50s, Detroit, Liverpool and San Francisco in the 60s, Los Angeles in the 70s, New York City and London in the 70s and 80s and Seattle in the 90s.

There sure was plenty to see, and read and listen to. Unfortunately, photography isn’t allowed inside the museum (except for in the lobby, no photographing any of the exhibits). So, Lauren and I opted for our super cheesy “Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum Official Photo”. Lauren gets extra bonus cheesy points for wearing her “Bring the Beat Back” t-shirt in the photo.  I get fewer points for my Virginia Tech t-shirt, North Face Jacket, and NOLS Wilderness Medicine School ball cap.  She always wins.

At any rate, we’re starting to grow quite the collection of these types of silly photos. One from here, one from a Hard Rock somewhere, a similar shot in front of the Helicopter we flew in over New York… and of course, Lauren has them all on display in her living room.

Cheers,

- Michael Dogan

Continuing our tradition of finding romantic getaways, sans our wonderful and understanding ladies, Ron and I stumbled across the lovely Gaeta Italy, on our scenic drive from Rome to Naples. Gaeta is located about 80 km from Naples and similar to other Italian towns along the coast that we’ve visited, affords views of the sea and the mountains. Interestingly, we saw an American naval ship in the harbor, and it turns out, that there is a NATO base located in Gaeta.

Despite the typical troubles we have had finding an open restaurant open during odd hours in smaller seaside towns, we found a wonderful restaurant that was all a flurry with hungry patrons. We settled in, and had a fantastic meal before heading on our way, and continuing our tour of the city.

Ron is quite patient with my little photography hobby. I’m sure he rolls his eyes and longs for his hotel room every time I have him stop the car just “one more time” for “just one more shot”. For the shot included here in the blog, Ron and I found our way to the top of one of the more prominent hills in the town, just beside a castle that appeared to still serve some sort of military purpose. I couldn’t quite make out the Italian on the signs… but the picture made it pretty clear that trespassing wasn’t a good idea… something about machine guns…. At any rate, not too far from the castle, and overlooking some beautiful homes, there was a sliver of mountains and sea visible. Unfortunately, I didn’t do a great job of capturing the site, but it will have to do.

Ciao,

- Michael Dogan

What could be more romantic than strolling the streets of Rome heading to a quaint dinner on Valentines Day? We’ll, doing so with a DATE would be a great start. Unfortunately, and no offense to my friend and colleague Ron, however, we once again found ourselves working far from home on yet another day where we may have preferred to be home with our loved ones.

But, always looking to make the best of it, Ron and I found our way to a nice Scottish pub, and a wonderful Argentinean restaurant. The food was great, and the pints were better. Despite being condemned to being each others Valentines day dates, we had an enjoyable evening, and took in the sites, including catching the Colosseum just as the sun slipped past the horizon. This made for an incredibly deep blue sky, as in the photo above.

Cheers,

- Michael Dogan

I love my job. Sometimes, I love it even more. Today, I spent a good part of my day , as the title suggests, under Rome. As the Project Manager for Ansaldo STS USA on the Roma Line C project, I got the opportunity to do a site inspection today, which included a visit to the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM). Without getting into too many technical details, the TBM is a huge machine that, as the name suggests, digs through the planned metro tunnel, removing the debris and placing the concrete reinforcements into the tunnel as it goes. It’s quite a feat of engineering, and was truly an interesting experience. Like I said, I love my job, sometimes, I love it even more.

I took the picture above after we exited the service vehicle, and walked along the catwalk towards the TBM.

Cheers,

- Michael Dogan