Istanbul Was Constantinople…
Ron and I will be traveling from 5/28/2013 through 6/13/2013 from Istanbul to Vienna (note: the route on the map shows the opposite direction), soaking up “best” practices in HRM, the HRM delivery system and HR technology every step of the way. I’ll be doing some tweeting from “the road,” @InFullBloomUS, but I may not have time to blog very much. And for all the 2nd story men reading this blog, our life sitter will be in residence while we’re on the road, as always. You don’t want to mess with her FELLA.
To get into the right mood for this trip, I’ve been singing my favorite Istanbul song, a great rendition of which is here. The lyrics are below in case you’d like to sing along. With so many new (at least for us) countries on our itinerary (although we’ve been to Istanbul, Budapest and Vienna once before), I tried to learn to say hello, please and thank you in every language we’ll encounter — but that effort’s been a flop so far. None of these languages appear to have Latin roots, nor Hebrew ones for that matter, so I’m flat out of luck. Not a big problem since my sister, with whom we’ll be traveling along with her husband, does not find a lack of local language any barrier to complete bonding with total strangers.
Did you ever wonder how bath attendants in Turkey are licensed? What TOTAL COMPENSATION PLANs are used, not to mention what KSAOC profiles, EMPLOYEE engagement techniques and workforce development programs, to achieve shipboard perfection in service levels on Danube river boats? Are you concerned about how Bulgarian employers view Romanian employees? Or how Serbians view Croatians? What about the distinct or not HRM approaches/issues in all the countries along the Danube that we’ll be visiting? I can’t promise that I’ll return with the definitive answers to these or any other questions, but I certainly hope to be carrying a lifetime’s worth of travel memories. And the best part of this trip will be some quality time with The Wallace. Can you even imagine what he has to put up with on a day-to-day basis? “Talk” to you from the road.
[Postscript: If you would like to review our first trip to Istanbul in 2010, and our travels from there to Venice, these three posts are for you. Lots of great HRM observations along that route reported for your pleasure.]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G779UlpGQ3U
Istanbul was Constantinople
Now it’s Istanbul, not Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Now it’s Turkish delight on a moonlit night
Every gal in Constantinople
Lives in Istanbul, not Constantinople
So if you’ve a date in Constantinople
She’ll be waiting in Istanbul
Even old New York was once New Amsterdam
Why they changed it I can’t say
People just liked it better that way
So take me back to Constantinople
No, you can’t go back to Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Why did Constantinople get the works?
That’s nobody’s business but the Turks
Istanbul (Istanbul)
Istanbul (Istanbul)
Even old New York was once New Amsterdam
Why they changed it I can’t say
People just liked it better that way
Istanbul was Constantinople
Now it’s Istanbul, not Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Why did Constantinople get the works?
That’s nobody’s business but the Turks
So take me back to Constantinople
No, you can’t go back to Constantinople
Been a long time gone, Constantinople
Why did Constantinople get the works?
That’s nobody’s business but the Turks