Dave Rat Blog - Believing Illusions

So coming up on the last show of this leg of tour I start this post 45 minutes before lobby call in Istambul. Beirut show was three days ago and we're heading to Tel Aviv this afternoon. It is truly amazing and intriguing to visit these ancient and historical cities and yet find the common ground of happy and enthusiastic humans gathering to enjoy music. More so than any other travel trip I have done, this tour has highlighted the vast discrepancy between the impression that corporate news media presents and the reality of what to see and expect. So naturally the unfamiliar is blown out of proportion illogical fear levels. Just as Nebraskans can watch aghast with fear over the how unbearable it must be for Californians to live in constant fear of earthquakes, while yet another swirl of tornadoes roll past ripping through local houses and corn fields.

People die of gangland shootings in Los Angeles so common that the news stories rate lower than a traffic jam on the freeway while just a mere mention of visiting Beirut, Tel Aviv or Istambul  is met with wide eyes aghast,"is it safe, those places are all over the news." There was a guy, killed and kidnapped there just yesterday!" I hear someone say. "Really? someone died in a city that is not the city I am going but it is in the same country?, wow!" And what comes to mind is the simple minded logic in reverse. that I occasionally hear "Wow, you are from Los Angeles? Hey, my sister's husband's brother is from Los Angeles, do you know a guy named Joe Smith?" And with the same odds and probability that I know Joe Smith, I will embrace those irrational fear levels as I travel the earth.

Now that is not to say that having an alertness to one's environment whether in the forest, the desert, south central Los Angeles or any other place on the planet earth is not a wise.mindset. And just like going on a camping trip where I neither got lost, died or ran out of water but saw some amazing and interesting things, I get to share a few pictures and memories.

So Lets start with Beirut, oooh look!

And as far away as places seem to be, the simple familiarity of being able to live off of plastic cards holds strong

Loading up the crew bus at the airport to head to the hotel

Our bags are very safe right now

Yay Tour bus!

Ooooh, cool UN vehicles!

Our bags are even safer when we unload at the hotel

Hey look a special conveyer belt to help move the bags a 5 feet closer and save us hauling them a bit plus a walk through metal detector too.

Yummy amazing meals

This was the view out our hotel room window.  Did a bit of asking around and it is the Holiday Inn from the "Battle of the Hotels http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Hotels

Plus I did a mini Seminar there as well

The Gig

And some wandering

And back to the airport

Next stop Istambul.

and thought of the day:

So wandering around the local Best Buy and Fry's looking at electronics and such as I occasionally like to to do.  I notice the growing popularity of "sound bars"

 https://www.google.com/search?q=sound+bar&sugexp=chrome,mod=17&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

And with these horizontal steerable sound systems each seems to be all about simulating surround sound. I guess not so much surround actually but rather trying to create an enhanced stereo image. In essence inferring that the stereo image is inadequate in the recordings or that there are improvements to be made?  Could they be trying to make the instruments sound like they are coming from different places? Meanwhile, the bulk of live engineers, we have total control and yet most engineers mix on huge complex sound systems what is almost always very close to mono.  Hmmmm

In real life, next stop San Francisco.  In Blog life, next stop Istambul. Meanwhile, 6 days home and 5 days of surfing, huge piles of pretending I am a business man and no where near enough time with my daughters. But hey, it can always be worse and upload it goes without a proof read or edit.

Good night