by Lufthansa Flyer | Feb 11, 2012 | Uncategorized |
Thanks to my friends at Lufthansa, I have been able to put together a chronicle of the history of this great airline. As a result, I will post a piece of Lufthansa history any time that it celebrates an anniversary.
On February 11th in Lufthansa History:
1955 – Lufthansa signs a preliminary contract with Boeing for the purchase of 4 Boeing 707-400s. The price per aircraft was DM 22 million. This equated to 5.23 million US dollars at the time. In today’s dollars it would be the equivalent of approximately $42.3 million per aircraft. Today, a new Boeing 737-600 lists for $59.4 million dollars. These would become Lufthansa’s first jet aircraft to join her fleet. The first Lufthansa 707 rolled out of ‘final assembly’ in November of 1959.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Feb 10, 2012 | Uncategorized |
Thanks to my friends at Lufthansa, I have been able to put together a chronicle of the history of this great airline. As a result, I will post a piece of Lufthansa history any time that it celebrates an anniversary….
Today’s anniversary goes WAY WAY WAY back to 1919.
On February 10, 1919 Deutsche Luft-Reederei carried it’s first passenger from Johanistal Airfield in Berlin to Weimar marking the beginning of civilian airline operations in Germany. Soon afterwards in March of 1919, service from Berlin would expand to Leipzig, Hamburg, Warnemünde and in April, Gelsenkirchen.
Up until this point, Zeppelins were the primary source of air transport in Germany. Deutsche Luft-Reederei would be the first company in Germany that would operate commercial flights with “Heavier Than Air” aircraft.
The initial fleet:
A.E.G. J II Biplane
The L.V.G. C V Biplane
A brief background on Deutsche Luft-Reederei(DLR):
DLR was founded on December 13, 1917 and was authorized by the German Air Ministry to begin civilian airline operations in January 1919. DLR’s first flights began on January 8, 1919 but only for newspaper and mail delivery flights between Berlin and Weimar, Germany.
Deutsche Luft-Reederei was also a founding member of the International Air Traffic Association (IATA) which is the predecessor to today’s International Air Transport Association(IATA) which was inaugurated in Havana, Cuba in April of 1945.
In essence, we can look at DLR as being the grandparent of today’s Lufthansa.
What may be the most important aspect of DLR as it relates to the Lufthansa that we know and love today, is the fact that the famous crane logo was born with DLR. Created by Otto Firle, this symbol would persevere through trial and tribulation in the coming years and decades, and has changed little in nearly 100 years.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Feb 8, 2012 | Uncategorized |
As part of my trip in January to Hong Kong, I took time to visit Temple Street and the market that takes place there each evening. I was getting a bit tired from walking around all day so I went early, around 6pm, just as the vendors were setting up their stands. Going a bit before sun down will also give you a better chance at the inventory as the market tends to get very crowded at night.
Temple Street is a mainstay in the Hong Kong experience. Every travel guide you see or visit on the internet suggests a stop to Temple Street and to take in the experience. Vendors selling everything from textiles to electronics to typical “I LOVE HONG KONG” type souvenirs. The one thing I appreciated above all else is that you were not being harassed into visiting any vendor’s booth. Vendors readily let you browse and were quick to offer deals. The one word of advice that I would offer is that it is expected that you negotiate. I think the vendors actually enjoy the back and forth with a perspective patron. They also use it as an opportunity to increase the quantity of items you purchase so it helps them sell more and pack less to take home after the market ends.
For example, one vendor had a great selection of silk Table Runners and I was looking for some to bring back for my wife. She has decorated a couple of rooms in our home in an Asian theme and I thought the runners would be a nice and useful addition. The only problem was that there were dozens of patterns and colors to chose from. I figured when in doubt, buy several different ones in the hopes that a few would be acceptable. As I was sorting through literally dozens of different ones, I asked the price and was told they were $75 (Hong Kong Dollars, about $10 US Dollars). As I started pulling out the ones that I wanted, the price started coming down. I countered with my offer and we agreed finally on $50 ($7 USD) a piece. I was happy at the great deal, and the vendor was genuinely happy that she sent me packing with several of them. A win-win for both of us.
Temple Street however is more than just a collection boths with items for sales. There are also great food stands and restaurants in the immediate area. Everything from the typical noodle shops to seafood stands to traditional sit down restaurants. I was there at the exact time that they were bringing in that days seafood catch and were beginning to prep it for their menus. The variety of fish and other seafood was impressive. Tons of variety!
Images from the market:
Some of the food options at Temple Street:
To read my review of the Hyatt Regency as part of this trip, please click HERE. Other parts of the trip will be posted soon (Nathan Road, Mong Kok, etc).
