ContextPerception

Alaska, British Columbia 2008

 ALASKA, YUKON TERRITORY, VANCOUVER AND VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA
 June 8 - 23, 2008

 

     We can now say that we have visited all fifty states and nine of the thirteen Canadian Provinces.  Appropriately referred to as America’s “last frontier”, Alaska (population 600,000), with 570,374 square miles and 33,904 miles of shoreline, is twice the size of Texas and has one-third of America’s total shoreline and the only state capital not accessible by road – Juneau.  We were made very aware of the vastness of Alaska as we traveled this state from Anchorage to Ketchikan via train, bus and ship on a Holland America Land Tour and Cruise; yet felt that we had only seen a glimpse of all there is to see and experience.

 

 Highlights of our trip included:

 –An eight-hour Tundra Wilderness Tour going 65 miles into Denali National Park where we saw bear, moose, caribou, Dall sheep, wolves, fox, porcupine, lots of snow shoe rabbits, eagles, willow ptarmigan (Alaska state bird), Great Horned Owls in nests, and numerous other birds and smaller animals.  Most memorable were looking down the mountainside on a beautiful golden eagle, and seeing hundreds of bald eagles perched in trees along the water near Vancouver.  (Our guide told us to look for the golf balls in the trees.)

 –The breathtaking scenery on the Historic White Pass-Yukon Route narrow gauge rail ride from Fraser, British Columbia to Skagway, Alaska.  Built during the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898 and designated an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, this railroad rises from sea level at Skagway to almost 3,000 feet at the Summit in just twenty miles, features steep grades of almost 3.9% and tight curves. 

 –Cruising up close to the glaciers in Glacier Bay National Park where we were able to get a close-up view of glaciers and experience the sounds of the glaciers calving (breaking off into the water).

 –The land tour via bus on the Alaska Highway from Fairbanks, Alaska to Fraser, British Columbia via Delta Junction and Tok, Alaska;  Beaver Creek, Whitehorse and Carcross in the Yukon Territory introduced us to very sparsely populated areas and the legendary dusty and rough Alaska highway that was the engineering marvel of World War II.   We met numerous dust covered RV’s and campers headed north on this highway.

 –Visiting Victoria and the beautiful 55-acre Butchart Gardens - “Over 100 Years in Bloom” - an idea that began with an idea to beautify a worked-out limestone quarry and is now designated a National Historic Site of Canada.

 –Reconnecting with my favorite Volcanologist at the U. S. Geological Services Center in Anchorage, who worked with me for several years.

 –The opportunity to learn more about the history, geography and culture of the places visited attracted us to this particular tour.  We were not disappointed as we were exposed to gold mining, sled dogs and racing, First Nations, railroads and highways, the Alaska Pipeline, Totem Poles at historical Totem Bight Park in Ketchikan, glaciers and other beautiful natural vistas, wildlife, and nature. Because of distances and the many experiences included in the land tour, the days were much longer than other tours we had taken. We were glad that we did the land tour prior to the cruise.

     Since we had never taken a cruise and weren’t sure that we were cruise people, we selected a tour with only three days of cruising.  This proved to be a good choice.  We are glad that we had the opportunity to cruise up close to the glaciers, but enjoyed the land travel more than the water travel. 

 

     Although we enjoyed all the food, especially the seafood, several meals were memorable: The grilled Copper River Salmon and fresh berry crisp prepared by friends in their home; the grilled trout dinner served on the McKinley Explorer Train from Denali National Park to Fairbanks; and the Halibut Filets in Vancouver and Victoria.

 

     We didn’t see as much snow as we had expected, or the swarms of mosquitos that we had been warned about; and weren’t kept from sleeping by the twenty-one hours of daylight in Fairbanks.  Early June is a good time to visit Alaska.  We enjoyed the beautiful weather in the 60's and were fortunate to visit Ketchikan on a rare day when it didn’t rain.  Unfortunately, we did not have a clear enough day to view Mt. McKinley (or Mt. Denali as it was named by the First Nation.)

 

     It was another good trip.  Where to next?  We are glad to be home and to relax and enjoy our back yard.  Then, perhaps to Southeast Asia.  My spouse/partner has never been there.

Trip West 2008

DRIVING TRIP WEST  – CONNECTING WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS
 March 23 - April 23, 2008

 

 Visiting our family members on the west coast was our first priority for travel in 2008.  Driving instead of flying provided us with the opportunity to connect with friends and other family members, in addition to visiting areas of the United States that we had never seen, or hadn’t seen for over thirty years.  We took a far southern route going west and returned through the middle of the country.

 

 The highlight of the trip was spending some time with son and relatives in California, sister and extended family in Oregon, along with brother in Oklahoma City, and brother and extended family in Kansas.  Maintaining contact with family is important to us and we value our connections with nieces and nephews and their families. 

 

 Along the road, many days included a lunch or dinner with friends who have crossed our paths over the years and we continue to treasure: In Houston, TX,  Lockhart, TX, Wimberly, TX, Sun City West, AZ, Redlands, CA and cousin in Providence, UT.
  
 We found it very interesting to travel the route of the 1965 Civil Rights March from Selma to Montgomery as we were living in Mississippi during the time.  The Civil Rights Memorial, designed by Maya Linn, in front of the Civil Rights Museum in Montgomery, Alabama is impressive.  The museum and the Civil Rights Interpretive Center along the march route are very informative of the struggle for justice.

 

 We always enjoy seeing and driving through the wide open spaces of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Texas, and Eastern Oregon (which we had never seen before.)  Along the southern route, the cactus and desert wild flowers were in bloom.  Redbud and Dogwood were in bloom across the South at the beginning of the trip and through the Midwest at the end of the trip.

 

 It was beautiful to see so much snow on the mountains in Colorado, Utah, California and Oregon, and on the trees at Ashland Pass.  I felt that driving north of Durango, CO on the sharp curves and steep grades of the Million Dollar Highway was similar to some roads I had driven in Peru, except that it was paved.  We were disappointed that the 8-mile rim drive of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison was closed because of snow.

 

 We traveled 8900 miles through 22 states in 32 days.  We were blessed with beautiful weather all they way and never had to drive in rain, snow or wind.  I was pleased that our 8-year-old Chevrolet Impala had no problems and averaged 28.5 mpg.  Although I had some dizzy spells associated with Menieres during the month prior to departure, I had no problems on the trip and did all of the driving with my most trusted spouse/partner as the navigator. 

Canada - 0709

Reflections:

THE CANADIAN GASPE PENINSULA AND MARITIME PROVINCES
August 30 - September 17, 2007

     Our nineteen-day (5,000 mile) driving tour to the far northeastern shores of the Canadian Gaspe Peninsula on the St. Lawrence River, south and still further east through the Canadian Maritime Provinces of Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and returning home with a stop on Cape Cod, MA provided us with the opportunity to see more beautiful and interesting country. We've always liked Canada.

Highlights:
     – We were glad that we included the north shore of the Gaspe Peninsula.  This is a beautiful drive through small fishing villages with interesting architecture, lighthouses, and church spires dominating the villages perched along the shores of the St. Lawrence River where the mountains in places come right down to the water.  Roads with curves and steep grades of 8 - 15% were part of this drive which reminded me of driving in Peru - going up and down to small coastal villages in coves.

     – Seeing the Tides of the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick.  At Hopewell Rocks (Flower Pot Rocks) where the tides fluctuate forty feet; St. John (Reversing Falls), where the St. John River stands still at Slack Tide and the Falls change direction; and at Moncton (Tidal Bore) where the tide comes marching like a mighty army in a wave eighteen inches high as the Petticodiac River is fed by the awesome power of the Bay of Fundy more than eighteen miles away.  Staying in the centrally located small town of Sussex allowed us to visit each of these places at both high and low tide and to better appreciate the magnitude of these famous tides.

     – The undeveloped and rural nature of both Prince Edward Island and Cape Cod.  Driving through PEI was a lot like driving through parts of the U.S. Midwest except more diverse - not just corn and soybeans, but also wheat, oats, barley, potatoes, forage.  We wish we could have spent more time exploring Provincetown and walking along the beautiful beaches on Cape Cod.
 
     – Indulging in fresh seafood for fourteen straight days. Lobster–boiled, with Bearnaise sauce, lobster cakes, bisque, rolls, salad; fish–Atlantic salmon, haddock, cod, scrod, seafood chowder, clam chowder, grilled platters, scallops in a variety of ways—all wonderful.

Observations:
     – There is a tremendous amount of fresh water and trees in the areas visited.  Canada is truly blessed, I hope they don't let market fundamentalists talk them into treating it as a commodity to sell.

     – The Appalachian Mountains and Trail end at the tip of the Gaspe Peninsula.   

     – Maine extends really far north.  All of the Canadian Maritime Provinces are east of Maine, except the very northern part of New Brunswick.

     – Health & Environment in Canadian motels. Signs stating that smoking in rooms results in $150 additional room charges.  Regular bowls, silverware, cloth napkins were offered as a choice at some breakfast bars.  Sugar coated doughnuts and sweet rolls were not offered at the complimentary motel breakfast bars in Canada.  They were in the U. S.

     – The small villages along the coast southwest of Halifax.  Peggy’s Cove, Mahone Bay and Lunenburg (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) were more interesting and charming than Halifax for us.

     – The 186 mile Cabot Trail on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia is promoted as one of the great drives in the world.  Although we were impressed with the large number of bicyclists on the steep hills, we didn’t find the trail as spectacular as the California Coastal Highway or some other roads we have driven.

     – Even though road and street signs seemed smaller, less frequent, and not as well located, we only made a wrong turn twice for a couple blocks before correcting our error.

     – $4.00/gallon for gas is expensive, but a greater portion of the cost is a tax that hopefully benefits everyone, rather than the oil companies and their upper echelons.  There were fewer gas guzzlers in the areas we traveled.  Canadian motels were more expensive and less available in some places than in the U. S.

    -- It is disappointing that so much diversity has been lost.  It is difficult anymore to even find eating places that are somewhat unique to a locality or region.  The ubiquitous nature of the same fast food chains and frequently up-scale chains seems to be a curse of globalization.  The same big box stores are everywhere and the same tourist traps with the same stuff made in China.

     – Using Internet sites and AAA maps, guide books, and TripTiks to plan the trip and make advance room reservations resulted in a smooth and relaxing trip.  We enjoyed having our laptop with us to keep in touch with family and avoid hundreds of e-mails waiting for us at home.

     -- Once again, we are thankful for another great road trip.  The similarity and differences of geographic and people considerations were again the most interesting and provided the best learning experiences.  Nothing seems new, and yet everything is new as variations of similar conditions/aspects elsewhere.  It again showed that it is necessary to actually see a place in order to correct or adjust previous perceptions.  So much to learn - so little time.

    Driving up and down along the beautiful and striking Gaspe northern coast in my 8 year old Chevy with my partner/spouse of 48 years at my side while listening to Pachelbel and some Maurice Andre or over the rolling landscape of Cape Breton listening to The Ventures playing Bach's Joy and some Telemann made me realize the validity of the question  -- Why could/should one need/want/wish for anything more? -- life is good!!

Ray Fltr - 070530 -Perspectives - reality - roots

My reflections/perspectives on a trip to Germany.

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So much to learn - so little time!

We had a really great trip - much more than we had any reason to expect.  Once again it has been a tremendous learning experience but with some different issues.  It really hit me about the importance of context to perspectives and how any trip only gives you a very limited slice of what is there.  More than ever I realize that you can't get away from personal biases in the inferences drawn from observations.  Not being able to read the newspapers made it more difficult.  I don't think I'm as good as I used to be in seeing through the complexity of a society.  It certainly convinced me more than ever that what is important is the people/society aspect - we have to get away from the we/us v-a-v they/them - and how, in so many cases, society/community/government have been hijacked by individuals playing the us vs them card using fear as the driver.  Some of what registered pertained to walls, migration/emigration, beer. history, stability, family roots/traditions, wealth/power, castles, values, beer (thinking of you G--), and 'collateral damage'.  I was continually wishing that some of you were there to help me understand e.g. K-- in sociology, P--/M-- in anthropology, A-- in history/theology etc. etc..  The importance of pluralism in providing input to the different facets of an issue certainly is essential to understanding the whole.  We certainly see this in today's world - I'm discouraged that we will ever learn from history in order not to repeat our errors.  Standing next to remnants of the former Berlin Wall certainly makes one realize that there is no way someone several countries and an ocean away can even begin to understand the perspective of someone directly affected by the wall - separation of family - community - life.  And still we continue to build walls whether in Palestine, Iraq, or US borders - to what end?  I also wondered whether 'gated communities' are the new iteration of the old 'walled city'?

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What you see depends on where you stand!

Old Europe:

We like Old Europe - they seem to have more sense of history - more concern for people/society.  Trucks and buses are equipped with devices that limit their speed to 60mph.  Trucks can not be on the road from Saturday 2pm to Sunday evening at 9pm or on all national holidays which includes religious holidays.  To see the whole country shut down on Christian Ascension day was remarkable.  How many people in Germany or the US really 'know' about Ascension Day?  Bicycles seemed ubiquitous.  Even the large cities had dedicated bicycle lanes sometimes almost half of the sidewalk - you certainly didn't want to be standing in the lane gawking.  We saw lots of groups of elderly - our age? - people in the villages in groups taking rides stopping for lunch or beer.  Wish that was more possible/prevalent here - maybe we'll have to spend summers in Germany.  However, during the latter part of our stay when looking for our 'heritage' in the North it was ??? to see our guide driving down the road at 100mph while reading a map - just kidding - he always slowed down to 60 when map reading.  A great Ford diesel - too bad they aren't available here.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

We haven't had foreign troops on our soil the past 200 years or lost a significant proportion of population in wars or had cities bombed/burned to the ground since our civil war - this context would seem to certainly give a different perspective for foreign policy.  They have, however, modified their previous complete and unequivocal acceptance of anyone who asks for asylum or refugee status.

We first did an overview tour of Germany going from Frankfort to Bonn to Cologne to Hanover to Hamburg to  Berlin to Dresden to Nuremberg to Rothenburg to Munich to Dachau  to the Black Forest/Heidelberg and back to Frankfort.  We then took a train North to Bremen to visit villages from where our Great-grandparents emigrated. The cruise on a small portion on the Rhine river was really beautiful.  The Black Forest and the many small rural villages interesting and reflected calm and a different pace of life.  Their rural villages seemed more viable than US rural small towns.

The large cathedrals - some from the 12th/14th century - were impressive but also illustrative of the wealth/power that the church had - even though it sometimes took hundreds of years to finish the building.  To see buildings hundreds of years old still being used as homes, offices, or for commercial use was nice - tearing down a 50 year old building for something 'new' didn't seem as prevalent.  The effort and success that they have in rebuilding since the war is incredible - some only completed in the last few years.  To see a completely destroyed cathedral rebuilt exactly as it was before is expensive and difficult but also illustrates the dedication to history and tradition - even though religion seems less important in Germany today than in the past or currently in the US.  It was nice to see that many of them had become major sites for musical concerts.  One wonders whether people in the US would be willing to tax themselves heavily to rebuild and bring the entire united country up to the same level economically - seems doubtful given the current anti-tax credo.  But it is to their credit that they think of 'them' as being part of 'us'.  The line between East and West has been almost completely obliterated.  Unemployment is, however, still  2-3 times higher in the East.

The St. Nikolai memorial in Hamburg - a destroyed cathedral not rebuilt but the tower still accessible and with various sculptures on the grounds - for victims of war and persecution was very moving and powerful.  The Brandenberg Gate and Checkpoint Charlie are still very striking.  Rebuilt Dresden is remarkable with the question still out there of whether the fire bombing was necessary or more of a revenge for the earlier bombing of Coventry in England.  Talk about collateral damage - as always it's the innocent and particularly women and children who are the victims.  Dachau was a necessary visit for many reasons.  More of us need to see the evidence of the obscene inhumanity of which we are capable and that continues whether in Bosnia, Rwanda, former Zaire, Argentina, Chile, Chechnya, Iraq, Sudan ---.  The key requisite why this occurs is the secrecy involved and the complete lack of transparency.  The residents of Dachau said they didn't know what was going on until the US soldiers made them look after they entered.  This is what always takes place with collateral damage - invisibility.  Noone sees the target of Predator missiles,  noone sees the target of 500 lb bombs, noone sees the rendition prisons around the world.  For me the most egregious example lately was of the Intelligence people in Iraq that were high-fiveing each other regarding their success when Zarqawi and his associate were laid out on the floor for them.  One wonders if they would have been so exuberant if the bodies of the 2 women and 2 children that were also killed by the 500 lb bombs had also been there - one hopes not.

It was revealing to see the tremendous good will and remembrance that the people still have for John Kennedy - really very, very striking.  Very similar to what we experienced in Peru when we lived there.  Where are the visionary leaders of good will that are needed so much today?  The person that we had for the last part of our journey said that his parents awakened him in the middle of the night to tell him that Kennedy hadn't survived - he was only 8 at the time.  There seemed to be almost universal gratitude for the Marshall Plan - even today - and acknowledgement of the importance of its impact to Germany's rebirth.  The good will for the people in the US is very evident although there is very little respect for the US government at this time.  How we could squander the tremendous good will so evident after 9/11 is a travesty.

It was a good tour group with no ego problems, everyone friendly, helpful, punctual which made it a great journey.  I think it's the first tour we've taken where noone was ever late for the bus.  The cuckoo clocks were beautiful but expensive.  The world's largest wine vat - 55,000 gallons - in Heidelberg would be a challenge for some of you.  It was great to drink beer in a 600 year old Rathskeller.  Liter beer mugs are biggg!

Family Heritage

As I mentioned, we went back to the North around Bremen to visit some of the villages from where our Greatgrandparents came.  We had contracted with a person who works in migration/emigration aspects for travel etc. his web site and business is -- Routes to your Roots.  W-- does tours in Germany and in the US visiting German communities here.  He was very good and made the trip so much more worthwhile.  We had hoped to simply visit some of the villages but he had made some contacts and we were able to talk to people, visit churches, and homes directly related to our Greatgrandparents.  I was able to visit the home where my paternal/paternal Greatgrandfather lived with his in-laws when first married and worked as a shoemaker.  I was also able to visit the home related to my paternal/maternal Greatgrandfather - the family name has been in that house since the 1700s.  The homes were still the traditional barn in front of the living quarters.  P-- was also able to visit homes related to her Greatgrandparents.  We visited churches from the 12/1400s in which they were baptized - certainly not cathedral-like but very beautiful.  We were welcomed with open-arms - they seemed delighted to visit with us - greeted us with rich desserts and beer - Wolfgang was a great interpreter.  There seemed to be less English in Germany than in most countries - they haven't adjusted to global tourism quite as much - many of the churches etc. didn't have English explanations available.

It seems evident that they emigrated for the same reasons that people emigrate today - better opportunities - economic depression, militarism.  Also, the US was wanting immigrants after the Civil War and anyone could enter if they had something like $20.  Tenant farmers, at that time, had to give 50% of their harvest to the Landlord and State - so had a miserable existence.  We took a boat trip from Bremen to Bremerhaven which is very likely the same trip that our Greatgrandparents took.  Seven million emigrated through the Bremerhaven port and 5 million through Hamburg.  Germany had about 30 million people during that time.  There was a lot of illegality also involved with the emigration - not so different in many ways than today.

A great trip - a great learning experience - good to be home - where do we go next!

Makes me realize again how much we all owe to others.  I appreciate all of you more than ever - you are all part of me - thanks --- r--

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It's all US - no us v-a-v them ---

"Ich bin ein Berliner"  --- June 26, 1963, U.S. President John F. Kennedy in West Berlin

What is truth?

No man in the whole world can change the truth.

One can only look for the truth, find it and serve it.

The truth is in all places.

--- Dietrich Bonhoeffer