text:
The laboratory programs at Hennepin Healthcare are conducted under the guidelines of the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences (NAACLS, 5600 N. River Road, Rosemont, IL 60018; phone 773-714-8880). NAACLS is an international agency for accreditation and approval of educational programs in the medical laboratory sciences and related health professions.
Download the Medical Laboratory Scientist Application Form.
The Medical Laboratory Science Program is a nine-month clinical internship, from September through May, with intensive study in the areas of chemistry (including toxicology and instrumentation), coagulation, hematology, immunohematology (blood bank), immunology, microbiology (including parasitology, mycology, mycobacteriology, and virology), urinalysis, management, and education. Each area of study includes practical laboratory experiences, lectures and/or workshops, self-instruction learning modules, patient case studies, and exams. Students receive individualized instruction as they learn and work with teaching technologists in the laboratory. Students perform tests on patient blood and body fluid specimens and, under supervision, report results. General hours for the internship are 7 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. One to two weeks of evening-shift experience, from 3 p.m. -11 p.m., is included. Clinical enrollment is limited to a maximum of 8 students per year. An academic calendar is available upon request.
Upon completion of the program, graduates receive a certificate that is not contingent on passing a certification examination. Graduates are then eligible to take the national certification examination of the American Society of Clinical Pathology Board of Certification. The pass rate for this exam over the last three years has been 100%.
Download the Phlebotomy Application Form (PDF).
The Hennepin County Medical Center Phlebotomy Technician Program is a twelve-week clinical experience with coursework in medical terminology, quality assurance and legal concerns, safety and infection control, specimen processing, point-of-care testing, anatomy and physiology of the circulatory system, and venipuncture, arterial puncture, and skin puncture techniques. Students are also introduced to the healthcare environment, other healthcare professionals, and use of the electronic medical record. Lectures, laboratory demonstrations, and experiences, and technical evaluation are utilized for the learning process. The academic portion of the program exceeds the required 40 clock hours.
After initial experience with artificial phlebotomy practice blocks, students receive individualized instruction as they learn and work with clinical instructors. The first few weeks are concentrated in the outpatient setting. During weeks five through twelve, they spend at least four hours per day drawing in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. The inpatient experience includes intensive care units, burn unit, pediatrics and newborn units in a very busy Level I Trauma Center. The clinical experience is documented to exceed the required 100 clock hours and the required 100 successful unaided collections. There is also a focus on patient interactions and providing an excellent outcome and experience for our patients and their families.
This course is currently offered twice each year, once beginning in January and once beginning in September. The hours for the internship are 7 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday for the first four weeks. Earlier shifts, starting between 4:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. for weeks five through twelve will be required to ensure appropriate experience. These shifts will be scheduled with each student. This course is not offered for either evening or part-time hours. There will not be a class on the following major holidays if they occur during a course: New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, the Friday after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve Day, and Christmas Day.
Upon completion of the program, graduates receive a certificate that is not contingent on passing a certification examination.
Students are then eligible to take the national certification examination of the American Society for Clinical Pathology Board of Certification. The pass rate for this exam for Hennepin Healthcare graduates in the last three years is 100%. Although job placement is not provided, in the last three years 100% of HCMC graduates have been employed following graduation.
The Hennepin Healthcare Phlebotomy Technician Program is licensed as a private career school with the Minnesota Office of Higher Education pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, sections 136A.821 to 136A.832. Licensure is not an endorsement of the institution. Credits earned at the institution may not transfer to all other institutions.
Biological Sciences: A minimum of 16-semester credits is required. The required courses are general biology, hematology, immunology, microbiology, anatomy/ physiology, genetics/molecular biology. Recommended courses include an introduction to medical laboratory science, medical or pathogenic microbiology, parasitology, and virology.
Chemistry: A minimum of 16-semester credits is required. The required courses are general chemistry and organic or biochemistry. Recommended courses include analytical chemistry and instrumentation.
Application forms are available from affiliated universities (in the MLS/CLS/MT Program), the HCMC program director, or you may download an application.
A complete application form, including signature form and biographical sketch.
The application fee is $50.00. Make checks payable to "HCMC MLS Program"
Official transcripts from all universities and/or colleges attended. Students must have a cumulative and science GPA of 2.6 or higher to be eligible for the program.
Two recommendation forms, to be completed by a science professor and the affiliated university’s MLS/CLS/MT program director.
HCMC tour: Tours are required as part of the application process. All tours must be completed by Oct 1. No tours will be scheduled after that date. Students may tour the fall, spring, or summer prior to applying. Please contact the Program Director for scheduling.
The ability to follow detailed directions correctly and completely is an essential characteristic when determining suitability for the laboratory science profession. A complete application is a requirement for admission and students with incomplete applications will not be considered for an interview.
A student must complete the pre-clinical curriculum or equivalent at an affiliated university with letter grades of C or better in each course. The pre-clinical curriculum consists of the biological science, chemistry, mathematics, and pre-clinical courses listed under Admission Requirements.
A student must complete a Minnesota Department of Human Services background study (as required by Minnesota state law) and receive clearance for direct patient contact.
A student must be able to satisfy the Technical Standards for the Medical Laboratory Science program at Hennepin County Medical Center based on existing skills and abilities, or through the use of corrective devices. A copy of the Technical Standards is included with the application form.
A student must complete the HCMC pre-clinical competency objectives for each major laboratory area. Students demonstrate their readiness for the program through responses to each of the stated objectives. The responses will be evaluated for completeness by the HCMC education technologists. Feedback will be provided to both students and their affiliated university in order to plan for improvements in the university curriculum.
Updated Pre-Clinical competency objectives, along with instructions on their completion, will be provided to accepted students in late spring for each upcoming fall program start. Further instructions on their completion will be provided at that time.
High school graduation or equivalent; college courses and related healthcare experience are not required but preferred (official transcripts required).
No transfer credits are accepted. No credit will be granted for any previous training in phlebotomy or related instruction. The entire course must be completed with passing scores to receive a certificate of completion.
Students with a cumulative grade point average of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale (on their most recent transcript) will be considered first.
Download the application form. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open this document. The deadline for submitting applications for the course that starts in January is November 15th. The deadline for submitting applications for the course that starts in September is July 15th.
At least two letters of recommendation from an academic instructor or employer sent directly to the Program Director, or in a sealed envelope.
A brief biographical sketch including a statement of interest in the program.
Documentation of a negative Tuberculosis screening within six months before the start of the program, if accepted into the program. It does not need to be provided with the application form.
A student must be able to satisfy the Technical Standards based on existing skills and abilities, or through use of corrective devices. A copy of the Technical Standards is included with the application form.
All application materials must be complete and received by the specified deadline.
The HCMC Laboratories provide comprehensive laboratory services in Clinical and Anatomic Pathology. The state-of-the-art laboratories are staffed by more than 180 FTEs, plus 10 medical staff members (pathologists/PhDs), who perform and analyze more than 3 million lab tests per year. The central lab supports several ancillary labs (off-site and on-site clinics and point-of-care settings), offering students outstanding educational environments in both large and small laboratory settings.

lowercased:
the laboratory programs at hennepin healthcare are conducted under the guidelines of the national accrediting agency for clinical laboratory sciences (naacls, 5600 n. river road, rosemont, il 60018; phone 773-714-8880). naacls is an international agency for accreditation and approval of educational programs in the medical laboratory sciences and related health professions.
download the medical laboratory scientist application form.
the medical laboratory science program is a nine-month clinical internship, from september through may, with intensive study in the areas of chemistry (including toxicology and instrumentation), coagulation, hematology, immunohematology (blood bank), immunology, microbiology (including parasitology, mycology, mycobacteriology, and virology), urinalysis, management, and education. each area of study includes practical laboratory experiences, lectures and/or workshops, self-instruction learning modules, patient case studies, and exams. students receive individualized instruction as they learn and work with teaching technologists in the laboratory. students perform tests on patient blood and body fluid specimens and, under supervision, report results. general hours for the internship are 7 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., monday through friday. one to two weeks of evening-shift experience, from 3 p.m. -11 p.m., is included. clinical enrollment is limited to a maximum of 8 students per year. an academic calendar is available upon request.
upon completion of the program, graduates receive a certificate that is not contingent on passing a certification examination. graduates are then eligible to take the national certification examination of the american society of clinical pathology board of certification. the pass rate for this exam over the last three years has been 100%.
download the phlebotomy application form (pdf).
the hennepin county medical center phlebotomy technician program is a twelve-week clinical experience with coursework in medical terminology, quality assurance and legal concerns, safety and infection control, specimen processing, point-of-care testing, anatomy and physiology of the circulatory system, and venipuncture, arterial puncture, and skin puncture techniques. students are also introduced to the healthcare environment, other healthcare professionals, and use of the electronic medical record. lectures, laboratory demonstrations, and experiences, and technical evaluation are utilized for the learning process. the academic portion of the program exceeds the required 40 clock hours.
after initial experience with artificial phlebotomy practice blocks, students receive individualized instruction as they learn and work with clinical instructors. the first few weeks are concentrated in the outpatient setting. during weeks five through twelve, they spend at least four hours per day drawing in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. the inpatient experience includes intensive care units, burn unit, pediatrics and newborn units in a very busy level i trauma center. the clinical experience is documented to exceed the required 100 clock hours and the required 100 successful unaided collections. there is also a focus on patient interactions and providing an excellent outcome and experience for our patients and their families.
this course is currently offered twice each year, once beginning in january and once beginning in september. the hours for the internship are 7 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. monday through friday for the first four weeks. earlier shifts, starting between 4:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. for weeks five through twelve will be required to ensure appropriate experience. these shifts will be scheduled with each student. this course is not offered for either evening or part-time hours. there will not be a class on the following major holidays if they occur during a course: new year’s day, memorial day, independence day, labor day, thanksgiving day, the friday after thanksgiving, christmas eve day, and christmas day.
upon completion of the program, graduates receive a certificate that is not contingent on passing a certification examination.
students are then eligible to take the national certification examination of the american society for clinical pathology board of certification. the pass rate for this exam for hennepin healthcare graduates in the last three years is 100%. although job placement is not provided, in the last three years 100% of hcmc graduates have been employed following graduation.
the hennepin healthcare phlebotomy technician program is licensed as a private career school with the minnesota office of higher education pursuant to minnesota statutes, sections 136a.821 to 136a.832. licensure is not an endorsement of the institution. credits earned at the institution may not transfer to all other institutions.
biological sciences: a minimum of 16-semester credits is required. the required courses are general biology, hematology, immunology, microbiology, anatomy/ physiology, genetics/molecular biology. recommended courses include an introduction to medical laboratory science, medical or pathogenic microbiology, parasitology, and virology.
chemistry: a minimum of 16-semester credits is required. the required courses are general chemistry and organic or biochemistry. recommended courses include analytical chemistry and instrumentation.
application forms are available from affiliated universities (in the mls/cls/mt program), the hcmc program director, or you may download an application.
a complete application form, including signature form and biographical sketch.
the application fee is $50.00. make checks payable to "hcmc mls program"
official transcripts from all universities and/or colleges attended. students must have a cumulative and science gpa of 2.6 or higher to be eligible for the program.
two recommendation forms, to be completed by a science professor and the affiliated university’s mls/cls/mt program director.
hcmc tour: tours are required as part of the application process. all tours must be completed by oct 1. no tours will be scheduled after that date. students may tour the fall, spring, or summer prior to applying. please contact the program director for scheduling.
the ability to follow detailed directions correctly and completely is an essential characteristic when determining suitability for the laboratory science profession. a complete application is a requirement for admission and students with incomplete applications will not be considered for an interview.
a student must complete the pre-clinical curriculum or equivalent at an affiliated university with letter grades of c or better in each course. the pre-clinical curriculum consists of the biological science, chemistry, mathematics, and pre-clinical courses listed under admission requirements.
a student must complete a minnesota department of human services background study (as required by minnesota state law) and receive clearance for direct patient contact.
a student must be able to satisfy the technical standards for the medical laboratory science program at hennepin county medical center based on existing skills and abilities, or through the use of corrective devices. a copy of the technical standards is included with the application form.
a student must complete the hcmc pre-clinical competency objectives for each major laboratory area. students demonstrate their readiness for the program through responses to each of the stated objectives. the responses will be evaluated for completeness by the hcmc education technologists. feedback will be provided to both students and their affiliated university in order to plan for improvements in the university curriculum.
updated pre-clinical competency objectives, along with instructions on their completion, will be provided to accepted students in late spring for each upcoming fall program start. further instructions on their completion will be provided at that time.
high school graduation or equivalent; college courses and related healthcare experience are not required but preferred (official transcripts required).
no transfer credits are accepted. no credit will be granted for any previous training in phlebotomy or related instruction. the entire course must be completed with passing scores to receive a certificate of completion.
students with a cumulative grade point average of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale (on their most recent transcript) will be considered first.
download the application form. you will need adobe acrobat reader to open this document. the deadline for submitting applications for the course that starts in january is november 15th. the deadline for submitting applications for the course that starts in september is july 15th.
at least two letters of recommendation from an academic instructor or employer sent directly to the program director, or in a sealed envelope.
a brief biographical sketch including a statement of interest in the program.
documentation of a negative tuberculosis screening within six months before the start of the program, if accepted into the program. it does not need to be provided with the application form.
a student must be able to satisfy the technical standards based on existing skills and abilities, or through use of corrective devices. a copy of the technical standards is included with the application form.
all application materials must be complete and received by the specified deadline.
the hcmc laboratories provide comprehensive laboratory services in clinical and anatomic pathology. the state-of-the-art laboratories are staffed by more than 180 ftes, plus 10 medical staff members (pathologists/phds), who perform and analyze more than 3 million lab tests per year. the central lab supports several ancillary labs (off-site and on-site clinics and point-of-care settings), offering students outstanding educational environments in both large and small laboratory settings.


text: Laila Ali brought The BIPR squad along to produce an event to promote her new cookbook, Food for Life. We worked with a top-tier vendor team to recreate her recipes, create interactive photo stations, and decorate with food-themed details. Her lovely guests included celebrities and influencers in the food & wellness industry! Laila Ali’s cookbook launch event was definitely one for the books and everyone left full and content with all of the delicious food that was served! Click here to see what Laila Ali had to say about us and her event, and to see more of this show-stopping cookbook launch, check out the exclusive feature on People!

lowercased: laila ali brought the bipr squad along to produce an event to promote her new cookbook, food for life. we worked with a top-tier vendor team to recreate her recipes, create interactive photo stations, and decorate with food-themed details. her lovely guests included celebrities and influencers in the food & wellness industry! laila ali’s cookbook launch event was definitely one for the books and everyone left full and content with all of the delicious food that was served! click here to see what laila ali had to say about us and her event, and to see more of this show-stopping cookbook launch, check out the exclusive feature on people!


text:
Services East West Enterprises, Inc.
To transition from present day to future state, we have chosen to build our organization on a foundation of integrity and honesty; form a strategic alliance with a reputable, large business entity; implement proven management tools; provide the highest quality work possible; and ensure customer satisfaction.
Installation and Support of Accounting Systems.
Senior Level Logistics Management of commercial industry contracts that included procurement, shipping, warehouse operations, packaging, and quality control operations.

lowercased:
services east west enterprises, inc.
to transition from present day to future state, we have chosen to build our organization on a foundation of integrity and honesty; form a strategic alliance with a reputable, large business entity; implement proven management tools; provide the highest quality work possible; and ensure customer satisfaction.
installation and support of accounting systems.
senior level logistics management of commercial industry contracts that included procurement, shipping, warehouse operations, packaging, and quality control operations.


text:
Place and identity are bound to one another. The places we grow up in and the places we inhabit in the city shape us and construct our identities. When humans are displaced from original habitat and into another, a change in mental construct occurs. This dissertation explores notions of power and identity expressed in the Union Buildings, as well as change in political regimes and the representation of buildings under such regimes over the span of the Union Buildings from their time of conception to current day. This will be investigated in terms of the initiation school ritual using the backdrop of the Union Buildings as a study into the possibility of a new programme allowing for a new image within changing cultural beliefs. Whereas the current Union Buildings is representative of the two cultural/political groups as means of reconciliation preceding the Anglo Boer Wars, the proposed programme opens a new collective memory; one which represents unity amongst all people in South Africa. The architectural intent seeks to explore the relationship of Self and Other, conceptually and physically, by confrontation or contestation of the existing boundaries and controls that occur in and around the Union Buildings. Furthermore, the architecture seeks to disrupt traditional notions of the plinth and the boundary and introduces a third space in which the users of the space can inhabit. The project moves beyond representation of conflicted pasts in current museum typologies, and enables the platform for a new identity to be formed, both architecturally and in the selection of the programme. The proposed programme of the political school facilitates the interception of the structure into the Union Buildings by a forced interaction between the politicians and the public.
Mini Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2016.

lowercased:
place and identity are bound to one another. the places we grow up in and the places we inhabit in the city shape us and construct our identities. when humans are displaced from original habitat and into another, a change in mental construct occurs. this dissertation explores notions of power and identity expressed in the union buildings, as well as change in political regimes and the representation of buildings under such regimes over the span of the union buildings from their time of conception to current day. this will be investigated in terms of the initiation school ritual using the backdrop of the union buildings as a study into the possibility of a new programme allowing for a new image within changing cultural beliefs. whereas the current union buildings is representative of the two cultural/political groups as means of reconciliation preceding the anglo boer wars, the proposed programme opens a new collective memory; one which represents unity amongst all people in south africa. the architectural intent seeks to explore the relationship of self and other, conceptually and physically, by confrontation or contestation of the existing boundaries and controls that occur in and around the union buildings. furthermore, the architecture seeks to disrupt traditional notions of the plinth and the boundary and introduces a third space in which the users of the space can inhabit. the project moves beyond representation of conflicted pasts in current museum typologies, and enables the platform for a new identity to be formed, both architecturally and in the selection of the programme. the proposed programme of the political school facilitates the interception of the structure into the union buildings by a forced interaction between the politicians and the public.
mini dissertation (march(prof))--university of pretoria, 2016.


text:
One of my daughters is an esthetician, and as she studied for her state certification so she could be sanctioned by Sacramento as worthy to give facials and wax eyebrows, she had to learn two completely separate and conflicting approaches to her chosen work. First, she learned how to give facials and wax eyebrows. Then she learned how to pass the California’s esthetician certification exam, which is based on practices no one uses anymore and maybe never did.
I thought of her experience on Friday afternoon as I found myself in a conference room with several other business people, trying as hard as we could to share our point of view about how to fix what ails California with two representatives of California Forward, the outfit that brought us open primaries and new state budgets on a simple majority vote. They’re cooking up some new reforms that made me so frustrated I could have ripped out my eyebrows – if I didn’t have a daughter who knew how to wax them. At the same time in Sacramento, a group of state employees was in another conference room with another group of California Forward representatives, sharing their perspective of the same topic. I have a feeling they had a much easier time of it.
The two meetings were part of California Forward’s current effort to gather input from all over the state so it can by synthesized into a new model for governing California, one that would fix things for good, with consensus support. Or, as the group puts it on its Web site, “We want a government that is small enough to listen, big enough to tackle real problems, smart enough to spend our money wisely, and honest enough to be held accountable for results.” Good luck with that – especially that last bit about honesty and accountability. After all, we live in the state that designed the California esthetician certificate examination.
I am no fan of California Forward’s work thus far. Their successful effort to allow the Democrats to pass a state budget without blinking an eye put Sacramento even more firmly into the hands of public employee unions – if such a thing can be imagined – which explains the devious union-funded ads that carried the measure to victory. And the switch to open primaries? California Forward thinks it will bring more moderate politics to Sacramento, but it is the sort of progressive reform that spins out unintended consequences like a galaxy spins out stars.
Still, doesn’t it all sound great? Let’s improve government performance, shift power from Sacramento to local governments that are closer to the people, invest in the future and promote an inclusive democracy. Only their plan for investing in the future makes much sense. They would like to see reserves from bountiful tax years committed to paying down debt, with a slice going into an infrastructure fund, so new stuff can be built without taking on more bonded indebtedness. Although I’m no fan of propositions, I’d vote for that one because the idea is far superior to the state’s current method of using extra money in surplus years to commit the state to more long-term obligations it can’t meet in more meager years, and paying for infrastructure by taking on even more debt.
Everything else the group proposes, unfortunately, is steeped in government-think that actually assumes there is a way to make the heads of government agencies put the public good ahead of their desire to say what’s good for the public, all the while increasing their budgets, staff and power. California Forward thinks government can be effectively reined in by basing budgets on performance, so good practices get bonuses and bad practices get cuts. That’s the basis of most government reform efforts, and California Forward is taking the approach because it is, at its core, immersed in government-think.
Take the group’s executive director, Jim Mayer, a man with one of the best resumes you’ll find in the California reform business. He started as a journalist, so he has that high sensibility about government doing things right, and the nose to sniff out wrongdoing. Then, after picking up a dreaded public policy degree from Cal State Sacramento – the spawning ground of well-pensioned bureaucrats by the thousands – he went on to the reform-bent Little Hoover Committee in 1994, and then to the reform-bent New California Network, and finally to the reform-bent California Forward. In other words, for 17 years, Mayer has been trying to make California better, and it’s only gotten worse. Our facilitator, Senior Policy Advisor Fred Silva – who offered to buy lunch for whoever asked a question that allowed him to promote the California Forward program – is cut from the same cloth, except that he’s been at it for 36 years.
I can’t speak for everyone in our room of business people, but we sure seemed to agree that this “best practices” government-think approach would lead to nothing more than another series of failed reform efforts. Most of us are in business and in our world the measurements are pretty straightforward: If you make money, you advance. If you don’t, you don’t. But government doesn’t think that way because it’s in the business of spending money, not making money, so government reformers steeped in government-think come up with reforms based on defining, then incentivizing best practices. The best recent example is the Bush/Kennedy “No Child Left Behind” federal legislation that tied school funding to best practices. All it got us was more government spending and a generation of students well-schooled in exactly what was needed to ratchet up a school district’s No Child Left Behind best practices measures, as opposed to learning real-world skills. It’s like the esthetician exam on PCP.
Despite all the best efforts of the truly bright people at California Forward and dozens of similar think tanks, I don’t think you can write a proposition or piece of legislation tight enough to stand up to the empire-building trickery of those who have clawed their way to the top of the government biz. In 30 years of public affairs work, I have seen too many analyses by California state agencies lauding the benefits of programs that in truth accomplished little. Ah, but the wrap-up studies themselves accomplished a lot. They justified the money wasted on the last program and glorified the efforts of the staffers, so more money could be taken from the taxpayers, and more staffers could be hired. These new graduates of Cal State Sacramento’s public policy administration program would then join their local public employee unions, contribute a slice of their paychecks to fund a continuing stream of easily manipulated reform propositions, all the while resting assured of comfy CalPERS-funded retirements.
Writing more best practices won’t stop this, because the best practices government is best at are those that justify their spending. Still, there’s hope for California Forward. One point of its mission statement is to bring government closer to the people, so I told Fred Silva that no measurements should be established at all. Just send the money to the most local level of government that can implement what’s to be implemented, and tell them what it can be spent on, without mandates or red tape. Then, let local government rise to the occasion or fail. If they do well, the people will re-elect them and allow them to do it again. If they don’t, we’ll toss them out and vote in someone who will try harder.
He didn’t offer to buy me lunch.
The resolution to the gridlock in Sacramento is simple. The State of California needs to be split into North & South as what is important to the South is not important to the North & vice versa. Then each state can deal with the ever greedy/bloated public unions that screw taxpayers.
Any time a California politician or reform lobbyist uses the term “BEST PRACTICES” run for the hills. They have no idea what it means, have yet to practice it themselves, and use it as a way to prove to idiots they can talk business talk.
I don’t think the devolution of government to the lowest possible level will change anything unless the lowest possible level is subject to the voters. However, increasingly, government functions are given over to special districts and “non-profit” organizations whose agendas, policies, finances, and personnel practices are well hidden. From the outside looking in, it sometimes seems that government hates you or fears you, or both…mostly because voters have the abilty to upset their carefully tended apple carts. So, they try to remove as much as possible from voter choice.
A guy makes the absurd claim that everything wrong with America comes from California. And not only do you not laugh him out of town, you give him a place of “honor” on your blog. That says a lot about CalWatchdog’s legitimacy.
Read this on dec. 18 after reading bee opinion piece from CF today. Tx for explaining what I suspected….these people have never met a sacramento pol or their lobbyist handlers or they’d have an appreciation of the silliness if the best practices model.
Your piece touches on the heart of the matter which is the self interest of all involved – is there any good government model to aspire to?

lowercased:
one of my daughters is an esthetician, and as she studied for her state certification so she could be sanctioned by sacramento as worthy to give facials and wax eyebrows, she had to learn two completely separate and conflicting approaches to her chosen work. first, she learned how to give facials and wax eyebrows. then she learned how to pass the california’s esthetician certification exam, which is based on practices no one uses anymore and maybe never did.
i thought of her experience on friday afternoon as i found myself in a conference room with several other business people, trying as hard as we could to share our point of view about how to fix what ails california with two representatives of california forward, the outfit that brought us open primaries and new state budgets on a simple majority vote. they’re cooking up some new reforms that made me so frustrated i could have ripped out my eyebrows – if i didn’t have a daughter who knew how to wax them. at the same time in sacramento, a group of state employees was in another conference room with another group of california forward representatives, sharing their perspective of the same topic. i have a feeling they had a much easier time of it.
the two meetings were part of california forward’s current effort to gather input from all over the state so it can by synthesized into a new model for governing california, one that would fix things for good, with consensus support. or, as the group puts it on its web site, “we want a government that is small enough to listen, big enough to tackle real problems, smart enough to spend our money wisely, and honest enough to be held accountable for results.” good luck with that – especially that last bit about honesty and accountability. after all, we live in the state that designed the california esthetician certificate examination.
i am no fan of california forward’s work thus far. their successful effort to allow the democrats to pass a state budget without blinking an eye put sacramento even more firmly into the hands of public employee unions – if such a thing can be imagined – which explains the devious union-funded ads that carried the measure to victory. and the switch to open primaries? california forward thinks it will bring more moderate politics to sacramento, but it is the sort of progressive reform that spins out unintended consequences like a galaxy spins out stars.
still, doesn’t it all sound great? let’s improve government performance, shift power from sacramento to local governments that are closer to the people, invest in the future and promote an inclusive democracy. only their plan for investing in the future makes much sense. they would like to see reserves from bountiful tax years committed to paying down debt, with a slice going into an infrastructure fund, so new stuff can be built without taking on more bonded indebtedness. although i’m no fan of propositions, i’d vote for that one because the idea is far superior to the state’s current method of using extra money in surplus years to commit the state to more long-term obligations it can’t meet in more meager years, and paying for infrastructure by taking on even more debt.
everything else the group proposes, unfortunately, is steeped in government-think that actually assumes there is a way to make the heads of government agencies put the public good ahead of their desire to say what’s good for the public, all the while increasing their budgets, staff and power. california forward thinks government can be effectively reined in by basing budgets on performance, so good practices get bonuses and bad practices get cuts. that’s the basis of most government reform efforts, and california forward is taking the approach because it is, at its core, immersed in government-think.
take the group’s executive director, jim mayer, a man with one of the best resumes you’ll find in the california reform business. he started as a journalist, so he has that high sensibility about government doing things right, and the nose to sniff out wrongdoing. then, after picking up a dreaded public policy degree from cal state sacramento – the spawning ground of well-pensioned bureaucrats by the thousands – he went on to the reform-bent little hoover committee in 1994, and then to the reform-bent new california network, and finally to the reform-bent california forward. in other words, for 17 years, mayer has been trying to make california better, and it’s only gotten worse. our facilitator, senior policy advisor fred silva – who offered to buy lunch for whoever asked a question that allowed him to promote the california forward program – is cut from the same cloth, except that he’s been at it for 36 years.
i can’t speak for everyone in our room of business people, but we sure seemed to agree that this “best practices” government-think approach would lead to nothing more than another series of failed reform efforts. most of us are in business and in our world the measurements are pretty straightforward: if you make money, you advance. if you don’t, you don’t. but government doesn’t think that way because it’s in the business of spending money, not making money, so government reformers steeped in government-think come up with reforms based on defining, then incentivizing best practices. the best recent example is the bush/kennedy “no child left behind” federal legislation that tied school funding to best practices. all it got us was more government spending and a generation of students well-schooled in exactly what was needed to ratchet up a school district’s no child left behind best practices measures, as opposed to learning real-world skills. it’s like the esthetician exam on pcp.
despite all the best efforts of the truly bright people at california forward and dozens of similar think tanks, i don’t think you can write a proposition or piece of legislation tight enough to stand up to the empire-building trickery of those who have clawed their way to the top of the government biz. in 30 years of public affairs work, i have seen too many analyses by california state agencies lauding the benefits of programs that in truth accomplished little. ah, but the wrap-up studies themselves accomplished a lot. they justified the money wasted on the last program and glorified the efforts of the staffers, so more money could be taken from the taxpayers, and more staffers could be hired. these new graduates of cal state sacramento’s public policy administration program would then join their local public employee unions, contribute a slice of their paychecks to fund a continuing stream of easily manipulated reform propositions, all the while resting assured of comfy calpers-funded retirements.
writing more best practices won’t stop this, because the best practices government is best at are those that justify their spending. still, there’s hope for california forward. one point of its mission statement is to bring government closer to the people, so i told fred silva that no measurements should be established at all. just send the money to the most local level of government that can implement what’s to be implemented, and tell them what it can be spent on, without mandates or red tape. then, let local government rise to the occasion or fail. if they do well, the people will re-elect them and allow them to do it again. if they don’t, we’ll toss them out and vote in someone who will try harder.
he didn’t offer to buy me lunch.
the resolution to the gridlock in sacramento is simple. the state of california needs to be split into north & south as what is important to the south is not important to the north & vice versa. then each state can deal with the ever greedy/bloated public unions that screw taxpayers.
any time a california politician or reform lobbyist uses the term “best practices” run for the hills. they have no idea what it means, have yet to practice it themselves, and use it as a way to prove to idiots they can talk business talk.
i don’t think the devolution of government to the lowest possible level will change anything unless the lowest possible level is subject to the voters. however, increasingly, government functions are given over to special districts and “non-profit” organizations whose agendas, policies, finances, and personnel practices are well hidden. from the outside looking in, it sometimes seems that government hates you or fears you, or both…mostly because voters have the abilty to upset their carefully tended apple carts. so, they try to remove as much as possible from voter choice.
a guy makes the absurd claim that everything wrong with america comes from california. and not only do you not laugh him out of town, you give him a place of “honor” on your blog. that says a lot about calwatchdog’s legitimacy.
read this on dec. 18 after reading bee opinion piece from cf today. tx for explaining what i suspected….these people have never met a sacramento pol or their lobbyist handlers or they’d have an appreciation of the silliness if the best practices model.
your piece touches on the heart of the matter which is the self interest of all involved – is there any good government model to aspire to?


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Click the button below to add the Rare Mineralogy Book: Brard, Cyprien Prosper; Minéralogie appliquée aux arts ou histoire des minéraux..1821 to your wish list.
Brard, Cyprien Prosper; Minéralogie appliquée aux arts ou histoire des minéraux qui sont employés dans l'agriculture, l'économie domestique, la médicine; la fabrication des sels, des combustibles et des métaux; l'architecture et la décoration; la peinture et le dessin; les arts mécaniques; la bijouterie et la joaillerie. 3 volumes, F.G. Levrault, Paris, 1821. Octavo, volume 1, pp. 5, viii, 696, 4 engraved folded plates. Volume 2, pp. 3, 491, 3 engraved plates. Volume 3, pp. 3, 524, 8 engraved plates (1 colored).
In modern cloth, x-lib. with smudge mark on lower edge of spines, light to moderate foxing to first four pages of each volume, small discard stamp on end sheets. In very good condition.
Brard; ( 1788-1838 ) was a French mineralogist, and economic geologist. ?He studied mineralogy under Bronignart, and while still a student published his Manuel du Minéralogiste et du Géologue Voyageur (Paris, 1805). He made an extensive tour by foot of the Alpes in Switzerland and Central Europe studying the geology and mineralogy, and in 1808 he became an aide to Faujas. Brard was appointed director of the copper mines of Servoz in 1813 where he was the first to use anthracite coal as a fuel. In 1816, he entered into a franchise that created a glassware factory in Lardin.?He is noted for his contributions to mineralogy and also to the understanding of the stratigraphy of the Paris Basin. ?Brard’s Minéralogie appliquée is his major treatise on economic mineralogy. Within it he provides descriptions of the various mineral substances, the deposits, and their uses. The uses range from agricultural to gems for jewelry to ornamental architectural. The first part of the work covers the agricultural uses of minerals. The second covers minerals used as fuels. The third covers those minerals with applications to the medicines which includes "remedies of imagination". The fourth part covers edible minerals. In the fifth part Brard treats the architectural stones, i.e. the marbles, granites, paving stones, alabasters, serpentines and also their quarrying and shaping. The sixth part covers those minerals used in pigmentation and drawing. In the seventh part, Brard describes those minerals used in ceramics, glazing, refactories, and as abrasives or polishing agents, i.e. the diamond. The eighth and final part is devoted to the gemstones. It contains descriptions of their properties, and classes them according to value. Identification tables are provided as well as plates showing faceted stones, carved works and lapidary equipment.

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click the button below to add the rare mineralogy book: brard, cyprien prosper; minéralogie appliquée aux arts ou histoire des minéraux..1821 to your wish list.
brard, cyprien prosper; minéralogie appliquée aux arts ou histoire des minéraux qui sont employés dans l'agriculture, l'économie domestique, la médicine; la fabrication des sels, des combustibles et des métaux; l'architecture et la décoration; la peinture et le dessin; les arts mécaniques; la bijouterie et la joaillerie. 3 volumes, f.g. levrault, paris, 1821. octavo, volume 1, pp. 5, viii, 696, 4 engraved folded plates. volume 2, pp. 3, 491, 3 engraved plates. volume 3, pp. 3, 524, 8 engraved plates (1 colored).
in modern cloth, x-lib. with smudge mark on lower edge of spines, light to moderate foxing to first four pages of each volume, small discard stamp on end sheets. in very good condition.
brard; ( 1788-1838 ) was a french mineralogist, and economic geologist. ?he studied mineralogy under bronignart, and while still a student published his manuel du minéralogiste et du géologue voyageur (paris, 1805). he made an extensive tour by foot of the alpes in switzerland and central europe studying the geology and mineralogy, and in 1808 he became an aide to faujas. brard was appointed director of the copper mines of servoz in 1813 where he was the first to use anthracite coal as a fuel. in 1816, he entered into a franchise that created a glassware factory in lardin.?he is noted for his contributions to mineralogy and also to the understanding of the stratigraphy of the paris basin. ?brard’s minéralogie appliquée is his major treatise on economic mineralogy. within it he provides descriptions of the various mineral substances, the deposits, and their uses. the uses range from agricultural to gems for jewelry to ornamental architectural. the first part of the work covers the agricultural uses of minerals. the second covers minerals used as fuels. the third covers those minerals with applications to the medicines which includes "remedies of imagination". the fourth part covers edible minerals. in the fifth part brard treats the architectural stones, i.e. the marbles, granites, paving stones, alabasters, serpentines and also their quarrying and shaping. the sixth part covers those minerals used in pigmentation and drawing. in the seventh part, brard describes those minerals used in ceramics, glazing, refactories, and as abrasives or polishing agents, i.e. the diamond. the eighth and final part is devoted to the gemstones. it contains descriptions of their properties, and classes them according to value. identification tables are provided as well as plates showing faceted stones, carved works and lapidary equipment.


text:
Modifying plans: My original plan was to cross from Bulgaria to Turkey, then go down to Syria and Jordan and through Iraq to Iran. However, because of a disease outbreak in Syria, the Turks had closed the border. This is why I decided to go down through Greece, then Cyprus and take a boat from there to Lebanon. In Vienna, I had met a young American named Bob. He was intrigued about my plans to go to the Middle East and we decided to travel together for awhile. While we had originally planned to meet up again in Athens, we bumped into each other in Sofia, and traveled together for the next six weeks, as far as Teheran.
Beirut descended into civil war in 1975, but there was not active fighting at the time we arrived.
That said, Bob and I traveled out of the boat accompanied by two other backpackers as we tried to get our orientation and to figure out what to do next. Any hotels around the port area were semi-destroyed or pock marked and we definitely did not like the “vibe” of the place. After a couple of abortive attempts to find a reasonably secure place to stay, I suggested taking a cab to the Canadian Embassy on Rue Hamra. After a couple of kilometres of driving through a devastated urban wasteland we crossed what was the “green line”, then manned by Syrian troops, and headed to a different part of the city. By the time we got to Rue Hamra, it was like we were in a completely different country. There was virtually no evidence of the war, there were lots of shops and cafes, and it looked like any other normal busy urban centre.
A couple of days later, we headed back into the “war zone” for an hour or two, only because that was the departure point for taking a collective taxi to Damascus. Driving out of Beirut, and almost all of the way to the Syrian border, scenes of structural damage and devastation were everywhere. And once across the border in Syria, all evidence of war and damage totally disappeared.
For whatever reason, in my experience in visiting “pariah states” in the Middle East, such as Syria or Libya, the level of inquisitive interest and hospitality was among the warmest I have found anywhere in the world. While I only visited Damascus, my memories of interpersonal interaction with the Syrians was universally polite and positive. At the youth hostel in Damascus, I met two blonde Austrian women who were hitch-hiking through Syria. I asked if they considered it dangerous. They said they were “street savvy”, were aware of the cultural context, knew how to avoid trouble, and did not believe themselves to be at seriously greater risk than a male, if they took appropriate cautions.
From Damascus, we took a bus down to Amman, Jordan. Two of the great highlights are Petra and the Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is so saline that one floats above the water more dramatically than in any other body of water. Petra is one of the greatest archaeological sites in the world. Jordanian truck drivers were great at giving lifts to hitch-hikers, even two males traveling together, though we did have a three hour wait in the midday heat at the turnoff for Petra. We stopped for a bite of dinner at a hotel at the entrance to the Siq, then proceeded at sunset to walk through the Siq, a narrow canyonlike defile that is the entrance to Petra to arrive at the first and most impressive temple of all, the Treasury. We decided to sleep in our sleeping bags inside the Treasury overnight. At about 0300 in the morning, I could see a shaft of blue light entering the Treasury from outside. I woke up Bob and we both walked outside. What we saw was not the moon, but the most intense display of stars and the Milky Way that I have ever seen in my life.
Getting a visa to go east out of Jordan proved to be a rather vexing problem that took some time to resolve. Saudi Arabia did not give tourist visas, and was only prepared to give a 3-day transit visa if you already had a visa for the next country. Kuwait and Iraq, the two countries en route east towards Iran were petroleum wealthy. Their Embassies were overwhelmed by Jordanians and other Arabs from less prosperous states trying to get visas to work there. But the biggest problem was that the Gulf countries were very conservative in orientation, and had enough petroleum reserves that tourism, especially from backpackers, was irrelevant and usually unwanted. We had to give up on Iraq, then give up on Kuwait. Then we checked with the Embassy of Bahrain. The officials said that if we flew into the country, we could get a three day transit visa on arrival. So a few days later we boarded a Lufthansa flight from Amman to Bahrain, en route to Bangkok.
Our “free form” travel came to an abrupt halt on arrival in Bahrain at 0130. Without an onward ticket, immigration would not let us leave the airport. We waited a few hours for everything to open and about six hours later bought a ticket to Shiraz in Iran. The cheapest hotel rooms in Bahrain were running around $25 per night. So we asked around at a couple of churches and a missionary kindly offered us a place to stay. Two days later, one of the missionaries arranged for us to participate in a meeting with Bahrain’s then head of state, Sheikh Isa Bin Sulman Al Khalifa.
Later our benefactor mentioned that he had a friend named Bert, who was living in Ajman in the United Arab Emirates. To close the story, Bert met us at the airport, we spent a few days in Dubai, Ajman and Sharjah, then changed our flights to Bandar Abbas in Iran. In the late 1970s, the Emirates were one vast construction zone. I estimated that in many parts of the country there were at least as many modern buildings under construction as completed buildings. Compared to the comparative austerity of Eastern Europe, Syria and Jordan ( indeed almost anywhere else I was to visit over the following year in Asia), the material wealth and excess was remarkable. We flew from Dubai to Bandar Abbas across the Gulf into Iran. Shortly more than a decade later, the shooting down of that aircraft brought the long war between Iraq and Iran in the 1980s to a close.
The cultural shift from Arabia to Iran was dramatic. In my experience, the hospitality to strangers in the Arab Middle East was replaced by hustle, and even a certain amount of aggression. There were also many beggars. Demonstrations against the Shah had already begun, which may have accounted for the palpable tension in the air. Once into Iran, and throughout the rest of my time in Asia, I no longer hitch-hiked, but traveled by local transportation. Iranian busses between the major cities invariably traveled overnight, usually arriving inconveniently at around 0400 in the morning.
Overland travel through Asia in the late 1970s was popular and well established. Global political and security developments wax and wane over time. However, the major events in the 1960s to the mid-1970s which rendered parts of Asia inaccessible all occurred in Southeast Asia. The expanding war in Indochina first put Vietnam, then Cambodia, then finally Laos off limits. The convulsions from Portuguese Timor and the Indonesian occupation broke the cheapest “overlanding” route – island hopping through Indonesia to Dili, then capital of Portuguese Timor, then catching a cheap flight to Darwin, also off limits. Yet the huge convulsions which were to envelop West Asia and continues to this day, were only just beginning. Within a year of my trip, these well established and widely used backpacker routes were no longer accessible.
And the cheapest trade routes were the most traveled. Once we had left Athens for the Middle East, for the most part, there were very few backpackers. In the few weeks we traveled in the Arab Middle East, I could have counted the travellers I met on the fingers of both hands. Starting in Shiraz, more notably in Isfahan, and overwhelmingly once I arrived in Teheran at the famous Amir-Kabir Hotel, this was a well trodden route and on almost all local transport, Western backpackers were a significant contingent of those traveling.
Travelling on the cheap in West Asia in those days was different than in Europe. With the “Eurail/Interailpass” mentality in Europe, you constantly met other travelers. Yet for the most part, save for remote parts of Scandinavia, there was such an array of choice for your next destination, that while you might bump into the same people from time to time, it was not a constant feature. From Iran to Kathmandu, however, I was constantly meeting the same travelers over and over again. While the comfort of other travelers provides an always stimulating way to experience travel, it differs in solo travel in that your encounters, save for the transactional, tended to be with other travelers..
To Afghanistan: I followed the “thick red line” that went across to Mashad in eastern Iran, then across to the border town of Islam Qala. We arrived in Afghanistan just after the border had officially closed for the day, though the customs official also ran an inexpensive hotel next door. We were processed the following day. About a dozen of us eventually took a bus to Herat. The amazing thing about entering Afghanistan was the sense of almost literally going back to the 13th century. Herat had a wonderful reputation in the 1970s. To me, it was a relief of getting out of Iran, combined with the quiet Wild East, where you saw more people on horseback than in vehicles. Afghanistan was a very popular adventure destination in those days. In a typical bus ride in Afghanistan in those days, between 20 and 40 percent of the passengers would be Western backpackers.
Local buses were good. Afghanistan had used its neutrality during the Cold War to have a series of paved roads built by the Soviets and the Americans during the 1960s and 1970s. As late as the 1950s, places like Bamian were only accessible after horse or foot journeys lasting weeks. By the time I went through, the main trunk roads from the Iran Border – Herat – Kandahar – Kabul – up to Mazar-i-Sharif, and from Kabul, down through Jalalabad to the Khyber Pass and on to Peshawar were all along good paved roads.
Using Kabul as a base, I went up north for a few days to Mazar-i-Sharif and Balkh, then back, then into central Afghanistan to Bamian and the lakes of Band-i-Amir and back, then down through the Kabul Gorge to Jalalabad, across the border at Torkham, and into the tribal regions of Pakistan to Landi Kotal, through the Khyber to the Indo-Gangetic plain and on to Peshawar.
“Afghanistan is already on my list of “must return” countries”.
“Yet another fine day in Afghanistan”.
“Such an magnificent mountain topography en route to Band-i-Amir which looked like a one sided Grand Canyon – with a series of crystal blue lakes at the bottom”.
Many travelers at the time lingered for weeks in Afghanistan, then usually scooted quickly through Pakistan to India. Once in India, there was an enormous amount to explore, but the overland route generally headed across the north to Varanasi and then on to Kathmandu. I too, did not linger long in Pakistan. However, I did take a flight from Rawalpindi up to Skardu in Baltistan for a few days. For me, Baltistan was even more austere toward women than Afghanistan. On the streets in Afghanistan, you would at least see the burqas wandering along the street (I am excluding my experiences in what was then the comparatively cosmopolitan city of Kabul). In the bazaars and along the street in Skardu, there were only men.
The cultural change crossing from Pakistan to India was also dramatic. Suddenly, not only were there women on the street, they were also police officers, directing traffic and running commercial shops. India always invokes strong reactions in travelers and will not leave you indifferent. For all its contradictions, I am a great fan of India. I coined a phrase that for me sums up the reality of first coming to India. “The rest of the world is in black and white, India is in technicolour”.
My route to Nepal followed a fairly typical route at the time, from Amritsar up to Srinagar and the fabled houseboats of Dal and Nagin lakes. Then along the well traveled route to New Delhi, Agra, Varanasi, and then by a combination of trains and buses across the border to Raxaul and Kathmandu.
For me, and for a great many other travelers in the 1960s and 1970s, Nepal was the ultimate Holy Grail. The Kathmandu Valley, Pokhara and the lake of Phewa Tal, and going trekking in the Himalaya – the Annapurna Circuit, Annapurna Sanctuary, the Everest Trek, Langtang and Helambu were the most popular choices at that time. Because of the great restaurants and cheap prices, and people coming back from and heading out on treks, Kathmandu was the place where I bumped into many people I had seen along the way. When I first got there, I met those who had been going at a faster pace than me, and after coming back from my trek I once again saw those arriving who had been going at a slower pace. I spent the better part of a month in Nepal, some of it exploring the Kathmandu Valley, some of it chilling with other travelers, as well as a sixteen day trek in the Annapurna Region to Mutkinath and the Thorong La. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life. Trekking in the Nepal Himalayas had been, for me, the most anticipated part of my entire trip. It did not disappoint.

lowercased:
modifying plans: my original plan was to cross from bulgaria to turkey, then go down to syria and jordan and through iraq to iran. however, because of a disease outbreak in syria, the turks had closed the border. this is why i decided to go down through greece, then cyprus and take a boat from there to lebanon. in vienna, i had met a young american named bob. he was intrigued about my plans to go to the middle east and we decided to travel together for awhile. while we had originally planned to meet up again in athens, we bumped into each other in sofia, and traveled together for the next six weeks, as far as teheran.
beirut descended into civil war in 1975, but there was not active fighting at the time we arrived.
that said, bob and i traveled out of the boat accompanied by two other backpackers as we tried to get our orientation and to figure out what to do next. any hotels around the port area were semi-destroyed or pock marked and we definitely did not like the “vibe” of the place. after a couple of abortive attempts to find a reasonably secure place to stay, i suggested taking a cab to the canadian embassy on rue hamra. after a couple of kilometres of driving through a devastated urban wasteland we crossed what was the “green line”, then manned by syrian troops, and headed to a different part of the city. by the time we got to rue hamra, it was like we were in a completely different country. there was virtually no evidence of the war, there were lots of shops and cafes, and it looked like any other normal busy urban centre.
a couple of days later, we headed back into the “war zone” for an hour or two, only because that was the departure point for taking a collective taxi to damascus. driving out of beirut, and almost all of the way to the syrian border, scenes of structural damage and devastation were everywhere. and once across the border in syria, all evidence of war and damage totally disappeared.
for whatever reason, in my experience in visiting “pariah states” in the middle east, such as syria or libya, the level of inquisitive interest and hospitality was among the warmest i have found anywhere in the world. while i only visited damascus, my memories of interpersonal interaction with the syrians was universally polite and positive. at the youth hostel in damascus, i met two blonde austrian women who were hitch-hiking through syria. i asked if they considered it dangerous. they said they were “street savvy”, were aware of the cultural context, knew how to avoid trouble, and did not believe themselves to be at seriously greater risk than a male, if they took appropriate cautions.
from damascus, we took a bus down to amman, jordan. two of the great highlights are petra and the dead sea. the dead sea is so saline that one floats above the water more dramatically than in any other body of water. petra is one of the greatest archaeological sites in the world. jordanian truck drivers were great at giving lifts to hitch-hikers, even two males traveling together, though we did have a three hour wait in the midday heat at the turnoff for petra. we stopped for a bite of dinner at a hotel at the entrance to the siq, then proceeded at sunset to walk through the siq, a narrow canyonlike defile that is the entrance to petra to arrive at the first and most impressive temple of all, the treasury. we decided to sleep in our sleeping bags inside the treasury overnight. at about 0300 in the morning, i could see a shaft of blue light entering the treasury from outside. i woke up bob and we both walked outside. what we saw was not the moon, but the most intense display of stars and the milky way that i have ever seen in my life.
getting a visa to go east out of jordan proved to be a rather vexing problem that took some time to resolve. saudi arabia did not give tourist visas, and was only prepared to give a 3-day transit visa if you already had a visa for the next country. kuwait and iraq, the two countries en route east towards iran were petroleum wealthy. their embassies were overwhelmed by jordanians and other arabs from less prosperous states trying to get visas to work there. but the biggest problem was that the gulf countries were very conservative in orientation, and had enough petroleum reserves that tourism, especially from backpackers, was irrelevant and usually unwanted. we had to give up on iraq, then give up on kuwait. then we checked with the embassy of bahrain. the officials said that if we flew into the country, we could get a three day transit visa on arrival. so a few days later we boarded a lufthansa flight from amman to bahrain, en route to bangkok.
our “free form” travel came to an abrupt halt on arrival in bahrain at 0130. without an onward ticket, immigration would not let us leave the airport. we waited a few hours for everything to open and about six hours later bought a ticket to shiraz in iran. the cheapest hotel rooms in bahrain were running around $25 per night. so we asked around at a couple of churches and a missionary kindly offered us a place to stay. two days later, one of the missionaries arranged for us to participate in a meeting with bahrain’s then head of state, sheikh isa bin sulman al khalifa.
later our benefactor mentioned that he had a friend named bert, who was living in ajman in the united arab emirates. to close the story, bert met us at the airport, we spent a few days in dubai, ajman and sharjah, then changed our flights to bandar abbas in iran. in the late 1970s, the emirates were one vast construction zone. i estimated that in many parts of the country there were at least as many modern buildings under construction as completed buildings. compared to the comparative austerity of eastern europe, syria and jordan ( indeed almost anywhere else i was to visit over the following year in asia), the material wealth and excess was remarkable. we flew from dubai to bandar abbas across the gulf into iran. shortly more than a decade later, the shooting down of that aircraft brought the long war between iraq and iran in the 1980s to a close.
the cultural shift from arabia to iran was dramatic. in my experience, the hospitality to strangers in the arab middle east was replaced by hustle, and even a certain amount of aggression. there were also many beggars. demonstrations against the shah had already begun, which may have accounted for the palpable tension in the air. once into iran, and throughout the rest of my time in asia, i no longer hitch-hiked, but traveled by local transportation. iranian busses between the major cities invariably traveled overnight, usually arriving inconveniently at around 0400 in the morning.
overland travel through asia in the late 1970s was popular and well established. global political and security developments wax and wane over time. however, the major events in the 1960s to the mid-1970s which rendered parts of asia inaccessible all occurred in southeast asia. the expanding war in indochina first put vietnam, then cambodia, then finally laos off limits. the convulsions from portuguese timor and the indonesian occupation broke the cheapest “overlanding” route – island hopping through indonesia to dili, then capital of portuguese timor, then catching a cheap flight to darwin, also off limits. yet the huge convulsions which were to envelop west asia and continues to this day, were only just beginning. within a year of my trip, these well established and widely used backpacker routes were no longer accessible.
and the cheapest trade routes were the most traveled. once we had left athens for the middle east, for the most part, there were very few backpackers. in the few weeks we traveled in the arab middle east, i could have counted the travellers i met on the fingers of both hands. starting in shiraz, more notably in isfahan, and overwhelmingly once i arrived in teheran at the famous amir-kabir hotel, this was a well trodden route and on almost all local transport, western backpackers were a significant contingent of those traveling.
travelling on the cheap in west asia in those days was different than in europe. with the “eurail/interailpass” mentality in europe, you constantly met other travelers. yet for the most part, save for remote parts of scandinavia, there was such an array of choice for your next destination, that while you might bump into the same people from time to time, it was not a constant feature. from iran to kathmandu, however, i was constantly meeting the same travelers over and over again. while the comfort of other travelers provides an always stimulating way to experience travel, it differs in solo travel in that your encounters, save for the transactional, tended to be with other travelers..
to afghanistan: i followed the “thick red line” that went across to mashad in eastern iran, then across to the border town of islam qala. we arrived in afghanistan just after the border had officially closed for the day, though the customs official also ran an inexpensive hotel next door. we were processed the following day. about a dozen of us eventually took a bus to herat. the amazing thing about entering afghanistan was the sense of almost literally going back to the 13th century. herat had a wonderful reputation in the 1970s. to me, it was a relief of getting out of iran, combined with the quiet wild east, where you saw more people on horseback than in vehicles. afghanistan was a very popular adventure destination in those days. in a typical bus ride in afghanistan in those days, between 20 and 40 percent of the passengers would be western backpackers.
local buses were good. afghanistan had used its neutrality during the cold war to have a series of paved roads built by the soviets and the americans during the 1960s and 1970s. as late as the 1950s, places like bamian were only accessible after horse or foot journeys lasting weeks. by the time i went through, the main trunk roads from the iran border – herat – kandahar – kabul – up to mazar-i-sharif, and from kabul, down through jalalabad to the khyber pass and on to peshawar were all along good paved roads.
using kabul as a base, i went up north for a few days to mazar-i-sharif and balkh, then back, then into central afghanistan to bamian and the lakes of band-i-amir and back, then down through the kabul gorge to jalalabad, across the border at torkham, and into the tribal regions of pakistan to landi kotal, through the khyber to the indo-gangetic plain and on to peshawar.
“afghanistan is already on my list of “must return” countries”.
“yet another fine day in afghanistan”.
“such an magnificent mountain topography en route to band-i-amir which looked like a one sided grand canyon – with a series of crystal blue lakes at the bottom”.
many travelers at the time lingered for weeks in afghanistan, then usually scooted quickly through pakistan to india. once in india, there was an enormous amount to explore, but the overland route generally headed across the north to varanasi and then on to kathmandu. i too, did not linger long in pakistan. however, i did take a flight from rawalpindi up to skardu in baltistan for a few days. for me, baltistan was even more austere toward women than afghanistan. on the streets in afghanistan, you would at least see the burqas wandering along the street (i am excluding my experiences in what was then the comparatively cosmopolitan city of kabul). in the bazaars and along the street in skardu, there were only men.
the cultural change crossing from pakistan to india was also dramatic. suddenly, not only were there women on the street, they were also police officers, directing traffic and running commercial shops. india always invokes strong reactions in travelers and will not leave you indifferent. for all its contradictions, i am a great fan of india. i coined a phrase that for me sums up the reality of first coming to india. “the rest of the world is in black and white, india is in technicolour”.
my route to nepal followed a fairly typical route at the time, from amritsar up to srinagar and the fabled houseboats of dal and nagin lakes. then along the well traveled route to new delhi, agra, varanasi, and then by a combination of trains and buses across the border to raxaul and kathmandu.
for me, and for a great many other travelers in the 1960s and 1970s, nepal was the ultimate holy grail. the kathmandu valley, pokhara and the lake of phewa tal, and going trekking in the himalaya – the annapurna circuit, annapurna sanctuary, the everest trek, langtang and helambu were the most popular choices at that time. because of the great restaurants and cheap prices, and people coming back from and heading out on treks, kathmandu was the place where i bumped into many people i had seen along the way. when i first got there, i met those who had been going at a faster pace than me, and after coming back from my trek i once again saw those arriving who had been going at a slower pace. i spent the better part of a month in nepal, some of it exploring the kathmandu valley, some of it chilling with other travelers, as well as a sixteen day trek in the annapurna region to mutkinath and the thorong la. it was one of the greatest experiences of my life. trekking in the nepal himalayas had been, for me, the most anticipated part of my entire trip. it did not disappoint.


text:
It’s the time where I hear my teacher friends talk about “testing” and the students complain about the “testing”. We homeschool and we don’t “test”, at least not like the public school system does anyway. But what if this year was different for my teacher friends? What if their classrooms were calm and peaceful with learners? Wouldn’t that be a great classroom to be in? Well The Young Living Essential Oils Premium Starter Kit could be the answer!
We use these everyday oils… everyday! I’m diffusing something in the diffuser all of the time and change it up to what we are in need of at the moment. It could be a wake-me-up in the morning, or I could be trying to keep the sickies away. It might be that the kids are running around crazy and I need them to calm down so we can get our school work done. Either way I’m not sure I want to go a day without my everyday oils kit and diffuser. I’m hooked on them and all the ways I can improve our homeschool classroom i.e. my living room and kitchen!
There are so many ways that this kit could improve your classroom experience too, so why not give it a try today!
If you’re ready to start your oily journey, you can grab a kit here or find out a little more info on Membership.

lowercased:
it’s the time where i hear my teacher friends talk about “testing” and the students complain about the “testing”. we homeschool and we don’t “test”, at least not like the public school system does anyway. but what if this year was different for my teacher friends? what if their classrooms were calm and peaceful with learners? wouldn’t that be a great classroom to be in? well the young living essential oils premium starter kit could be the answer!
we use these everyday oils… everyday! i’m diffusing something in the diffuser all of the time and change it up to what we are in need of at the moment. it could be a wake-me-up in the morning, or i could be trying to keep the sickies away. it might be that the kids are running around crazy and i need them to calm down so we can get our school work done. either way i’m not sure i want to go a day without my everyday oils kit and diffuser. i’m hooked on them and all the ways i can improve our homeschool classroom i.e. my living room and kitchen!
there are so many ways that this kit could improve your classroom experience too, so why not give it a try today!
if you’re ready to start your oily journey, you can grab a kit here or find out a little more info on membership.


text:
Walking down the main street of Reims, the compact city in France’s historic Champagne region, you could be forgiven for not realising its tramway even exists.
Opened in 2011, Tramway de Reims moves passengers from place to place while barely interrupting the signature French lifestyle going on around it.
Quiet, aesthetic trams roll gently down the Cours Jean-Baptiste Langlet, past the railway station and towards the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims, where generations of French Kings were crowned. They round the bend to Rue de Vesle, which hosts the Seventeenth Century town centre, fine art galleries, boutique retail outlets, and bars where tourists sip the sparkling white wine bottled just minutes down the road.
Of course, the tram line is not just there for tourists. At one end is the northern neighbourhood of Orgeval. At the other, the neighbourhood of Croix-Rouge and a general hospital. Between the two termini is the city centre.
Given a city footprint of just 47 square kilometres, Reims’ population comes in at a relatively dense 221,000. The opening of a TGV high speed line between Paris and Reims in 2007 – connecting the two cities in 45 minutes – drove a transformation of Reims’ economy from champagne and textiles to manufacturing, services and retail. In the five years up to 2011, 4000 new jobs were created.
Launching its first studies into a potential light rail line in 2003, public transport authority Reims Métropole had several problems to solve. An extensive bus network already served more than 100,000 trips a day, and clogged the main streets, severely detracting from the historic facades lining them. A light rail network would need to be able to handle the passenger base, while providing a cleaner, better-looking alternative to buses. Most important, it needed to be financially viable.
The solution was to form what is commonly referred to as a public-private partnership, something rather unique to France at that time. Through a contract signed in 2006, the authority delegated the entire management, and a substantial portion of financing, for the construction and operation of a light rail line, to a private concessionary consortium.
Known as MARS, the private consortium consisted of Alstom Transport, to provide rollingstock, systems, infrastructure works and maintenance; Bouygues, to provide civil works, buildings, roads and pavements; engineering firm SNC-Lavalin; operator Transdev; financial advisors and lenders Natixis and Caisse d’Epargne Lorraine Champagne-Ardenne; and long term investor CdC Infrastructure.
Reims Métropole provided €174 million (A$287 million in 2006 dollars) to the MARS consortium, made up of €75 million in a grant from the city, €45 million in a grant from the state, and €54 million in a 1.8% transport tax billed to companies in the region with more than eight employees.
The consortium’s financial partners, meanwhile, forked out €239 million (A$394 million) for the project, bringing the total value to €413 million (A$681 million).
Transdev took over as bus network operator at the start of 2008, as part of a plan to create an integrated transport network in the city. Construction on the light rail line began in May that year. The first tram arrived in March 2010, making way for testing and commissioning of the line in September 2010.
The network opened commercially in April 2011, with an opening ceremony which drew thousands of spectators; locals who had come to experience their town’s new asset. In 2014, the new line was put on the international stage, when the Tour de France cycle race went through Reims.
Two of the key consortium members in the Sydney CBD and South East Light Rail project are shared with the Reims project. Rollingstock, rail infrastructure and maintenance provider Alstom Transport is once again joined by operations specialist Transdev on the Sydney project, as part of the ALTRAC consortium.
It’s clear that in planning its pitch as part of the consortium in Sydney, Alstom and Transdev looked to leverage their experience in Reims. An Alstom representative confirmed to Rail Express that the French manufacturer learned a lot from, and drew comparisons to its work in Reims during the bidding process for Sydney.
Like in Reims, Alstom will install its catenary-free technology, which it calls Aesthetic Power Supply (APS), on certain sections of the Sydney network. APS features a ‘third rail’, which runs down the middle of the tramway, parallel to the main rails, providing power to the rollingstock through the ground, thus eliminating the need for overhead power.
More expensive to install than a traditional catenary system, APS is designed for instances like those down George Street in Sydney, and the Cours Jean-Baptiste Langlet and Rue de Vesle in Reims, where the goal is to provide a solution which complements the surrounding aesthetic, often historic architecture, the catenary-free solution is preferred.
Alstom says its APS is currently installed on 42km of track around the globe. As a tram passes over the ‘third rail’, power is supplied to its conductive segments via coded radio dialogue between the tram and the ground. This is designed to ensure power is not supplied to uncovered sections of track.
APS is therefore designed to be safe in all weather situations, including rain, snow, and heat. In Reims, grass surfaces 60% of the line, and this grass is watered from ground-based sprinklers – which spray directly onto the APS power line. It is thought natural grass won’t be practical in the Australian climate, so the same grass covering probably won’t be seen in Sydney, but it’s certainly an indication of Alstom’s confidence in the safety of the APS technology.
“The safety of the APS system has been proven through dedicated studies and confirmed by five certifying authorities,” Alstom reiterates on its website.
Aside from the need for catenary-free infrastructure, the Sydney project also shares a number of logistical similarities with Reims: A main road, clogged with buses, will be closed to traffic and passenger flows will be taken up by light rail. The project will be financed through a PPP. It will link tourist sites, utilities, and living areas, with the greater transport network.
Sydney’s new line will feature Alstom’s Citadis X05 trams, the latest evolution of the Citadis trams which already feature in Reims. Like in Reims – where Alstom’s designers created a suitable ‘champagne flute’ shaped front for the rollingstock – Sydney will receive its own unique outer design, as specified by Transport for NSW.
The use of a global network of projects and experience, combined with a localised approach, is key to Alstom’s business strategy, according to the company’s new chief executive officer, Henri Poupart-Lafarge.
Poupart-Lafarge joined Alstom as in 1998. In 2004, when he was 35, he became chief financial officer. He moved to the role of president of Alstom Transport in 2011. With the ‘other half’ of Alstom, its Power Generation and Grid business, now sold to General Electric, Poupart-Lafarge will has taken up the role of chief executive of Alstom Group.
Rail Express spoke with Poupart-Lafarge, then in charge of Alstom Transport, in June at the UITP World Congress and Exhibition in Milan, Italy.
As is demonstrated through the Sydney light rail project, he said Alstom was focused on providing localised solutions to transport projects, based on the company’s globally-successful, tried and tested range of products.
“The winning formula – if you can manage it – in transport, is to try to combine localisation … with engineering products and solutions,” he told Rail Express. “We need solutions which are tailor-made for the customer.
Proximity, he pointed out, is also important at times for political reasons: “A number of countries are asking for some kind of localisation,” he asserted.
“But at the same time, for example, our product for a metro, is a metro. So our product in Sydney [Metro] will be similar to our metros elsewhere in the world. You want to pursue a common technological platform, and common processes, so the way to manufacture is similar in one place to another.
“So that’s the formula: to be close to the customer, to answer to their needs, but at the same time, to benefit from the global coverage, through a common technological platform, common processes, and a common supply chain. That’s what we try to pursue.
The 46-year-old, who studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), replaced former Alstom CEO Patrick Kron when the sale of Alstom’s energy business to GE was finalised at the end of 2015.
Poupart-Lafarge said the new Alstom will be able to provide a more focused solution for the transport sector. He said the sale of the non-transport business units would benefit Alstom “in two ways”.
He said: “The first way is, I strongly believe by being re-focused on transport, by having all Alstom around the same type of activity, same markets, same world, same jargon, it will create much more cohesion, dynamism and momentum in the company, and people are waiting for that. It will simplify our processes, and make us much more agile.
Poupart-Lafarge is interested in the urban sector in Australia.
“[South East Asia and Australasia] is a booming region,” he said. “Australia, as you know, has a number of projects going on, particularly in the urban area.
Oliver Probert visited the Reims tramway courtesy of Alstom Group.
This article originally appeared in the AusRAIL 2015 print edition of Rail Express. To read the full magazine, click here.

lowercased:
walking down the main street of reims, the compact city in france’s historic champagne region, you could be forgiven for not realising its tramway even exists.
opened in 2011, tramway de reims moves passengers from place to place while barely interrupting the signature french lifestyle going on around it.
quiet, aesthetic trams roll gently down the cours jean-baptiste langlet, past the railway station and towards the cathédrale notre-dame de reims, where generations of french kings were crowned. they round the bend to rue de vesle, which hosts the seventeenth century town centre, fine art galleries, boutique retail outlets, and bars where tourists sip the sparkling white wine bottled just minutes down the road.
of course, the tram line is not just there for tourists. at one end is the northern neighbourhood of orgeval. at the other, the neighbourhood of croix-rouge and a general hospital. between the two termini is the city centre.
given a city footprint of just 47 square kilometres, reims’ population comes in at a relatively dense 221,000. the opening of a tgv high speed line between paris and reims in 2007 – connecting the two cities in 45 minutes – drove a transformation of reims’ economy from champagne and textiles to manufacturing, services and retail. in the five years up to 2011, 4000 new jobs were created.
launching its first studies into a potential light rail line in 2003, public transport authority reims métropole had several problems to solve. an extensive bus network already served more than 100,000 trips a day, and clogged the main streets, severely detracting from the historic facades lining them. a light rail network would need to be able to handle the passenger base, while providing a cleaner, better-looking alternative to buses. most important, it needed to be financially viable.
the solution was to form what is commonly referred to as a public-private partnership, something rather unique to france at that time. through a contract signed in 2006, the authority delegated the entire management, and a substantial portion of financing, for the construction and operation of a light rail line, to a private concessionary consortium.
known as mars, the private consortium consisted of alstom transport, to provide rollingstock, systems, infrastructure works and maintenance; bouygues, to provide civil works, buildings, roads and pavements; engineering firm snc-lavalin; operator transdev; financial advisors and lenders natixis and caisse d’epargne lorraine champagne-ardenne; and long term investor cdc infrastructure.
reims métropole provided €174 million (a$287 million in 2006 dollars) to the mars consortium, made up of €75 million in a grant from the city, €45 million in a grant from the state, and €54 million in a 1.8% transport tax billed to companies in the region with more than eight employees.
the consortium’s financial partners, meanwhile, forked out €239 million (a$394 million) for the project, bringing the total value to €413 million (a$681 million).
transdev took over as bus network operator at the start of 2008, as part of a plan to create an integrated transport network in the city. construction on the light rail line began in may that year. the first tram arrived in march 2010, making way for testing and commissioning of the line in september 2010.
the network opened commercially in april 2011, with an opening ceremony which drew thousands of spectators; locals who had come to experience their town’s new asset. in 2014, the new line was put on the international stage, when the tour de france cycle race went through reims.
two of the key consortium members in the sydney cbd and south east light rail project are shared with the reims project. rollingstock, rail infrastructure and maintenance provider alstom transport is once again joined by operations specialist transdev on the sydney project, as part of the altrac consortium.
it’s clear that in planning its pitch as part of the consortium in sydney, alstom and transdev looked to leverage their experience in reims. an alstom representative confirmed to rail express that the french manufacturer learned a lot from, and drew comparisons to its work in reims during the bidding process for sydney.
like in reims, alstom will install its catenary-free technology, which it calls aesthetic power supply (aps), on certain sections of the sydney network. aps features a ‘third rail’, which runs down the middle of the tramway, parallel to the main rails, providing power to the rollingstock through the ground, thus eliminating the need for overhead power.
more expensive to install than a traditional catenary system, aps is designed for instances like those down george street in sydney, and the cours jean-baptiste langlet and rue de vesle in reims, where the goal is to provide a solution which complements the surrounding aesthetic, often historic architecture, the catenary-free solution is preferred.
alstom says its aps is currently installed on 42km of track around the globe. as a tram passes over the ‘third rail’, power is supplied to its conductive segments via coded radio dialogue between the tram and the ground. this is designed to ensure power is not supplied to uncovered sections of track.
aps is therefore designed to be safe in all weather situations, including rain, snow, and heat. in reims, grass surfaces 60% of the line, and this grass is watered from ground-based sprinklers – which spray directly onto the aps power line. it is thought natural grass won’t be practical in the australian climate, so the same grass covering probably won’t be seen in sydney, but it’s certainly an indication of alstom’s confidence in the safety of the aps technology.
“the safety of the aps system has been proven through dedicated studies and confirmed by five certifying authorities,” alstom reiterates on its website.
aside from the need for catenary-free infrastructure, the sydney project also shares a number of logistical similarities with reims: a main road, clogged with buses, will be closed to traffic and passenger flows will be taken up by light rail. the project will be financed through a ppp. it will link tourist sites, utilities, and living areas, with the greater transport network.
sydney’s new line will feature alstom’s citadis x05 trams, the latest evolution of the citadis trams which already feature in reims. like in reims – where alstom’s designers created a suitable ‘champagne flute’ shaped front for the rollingstock – sydney will receive its own unique outer design, as specified by transport for nsw.
the use of a global network of projects and experience, combined with a localised approach, is key to alstom’s business strategy, according to the company’s new chief executive officer, henri poupart-lafarge.
poupart-lafarge joined alstom as in 1998. in 2004, when he was 35, he became chief financial officer. he moved to the role of president of alstom transport in 2011. with the ‘other half’ of alstom, its power generation and grid business, now sold to general electric, poupart-lafarge will has taken up the role of chief executive of alstom group.
rail express spoke with poupart-lafarge, then in charge of alstom transport, in june at the uitp world congress and exhibition in milan, italy.
as is demonstrated through the sydney light rail project, he said alstom was focused on providing localised solutions to transport projects, based on the company’s globally-successful, tried and tested range of products.
“the winning formula – if you can manage it – in transport, is to try to combine localisation … with engineering products and solutions,” he told rail express. “we need solutions which are tailor-made for the customer.
proximity, he pointed out, is also important at times for political reasons: “a number of countries are asking for some kind of localisation,” he asserted.
“but at the same time, for example, our product for a metro, is a metro. so our product in sydney [metro] will be similar to our metros elsewhere in the world. you want to pursue a common technological platform, and common processes, so the way to manufacture is similar in one place to another.
“so that’s the formula: to be close to the customer, to answer to their needs, but at the same time, to benefit from the global coverage, through a common technological platform, common processes, and a common supply chain. that’s what we try to pursue.
the 46-year-old, who studied at the massachusetts institute of technology (mit), replaced former alstom ceo patrick kron when the sale of alstom’s energy business to ge was finalised at the end of 2015.
poupart-lafarge said the new alstom will be able to provide a more focused solution for the transport sector. he said the sale of the non-transport business units would benefit alstom “in two ways”.
he said: “the first way is, i strongly believe by being re-focused on transport, by having all alstom around the same type of activity, same markets, same world, same jargon, it will create much more cohesion, dynamism and momentum in the company, and people are waiting for that. it will simplify our processes, and make us much more agile.
poupart-lafarge is interested in the urban sector in australia.
“[south east asia and australasia] is a booming region,” he said. “australia, as you know, has a number of projects going on, particularly in the urban area.
oliver probert visited the reims tramway courtesy of alstom group.
this article originally appeared in the ausrail 2015 print edition of rail express. to read the full magazine, click here.