Travel Adventures

[CharleyMike]

PW,

If you have access to a scanner you can scan in the prints. I use an Epson 1250 when the only source is a hard copy print.

Otherwise, I use a Canon Powershot G2 4 megapixel camera, then transfer the files to the computer with a USB SanDisk compact flash card reader and edit with MGI PhotoSuite. Downloading to the computer by cable is inconvenient.

For quick/easy simple edit and or slide show viewing, IrfanView is a shareware product that I highly recommend.

Adobe Elements software is also very well liked by the folks on the SI Digital Photography thread. But I'm comfortable with MGI and reluctant to start over with a new interface.

Scanning in the prints only cost time, then after editing you can burn your own CD at considerably less cost than the print developers would charge.

[bbgold]

Hi PW,
Some film developers have the option to put your pictures on the internet. I know that Sam's Club/Walmart will do that. It takes an extra day to get the film back but is usually only $2 more added to the processing. They will store the pictures on a website for 30 days and you can download them from the website.
Enjoy the Day! :^)

[PMS Witch]

Travel pictures...

The Commander and I took a point-and-shoot film camera. When we returned, I thought I'd like a CD as well as prints. My plan was to become familiar with image editing software using a few of our vacation photographs. When I took the films to be processed, the CD cost more than the developing and printing. I decided to get a CD later, when I've only one roll to process.

So, if there's a cost effective way to get an image from a print or negative, please let me know. Otherwise, I'll need to buy a digital camera and take our trip over again.

Cheers, PW.

[excel]

PMS. BTW. If you have a way to put any pictures on the board and care to I'm sure many of us here would like to see them.

[Phil(Hot Rod Chevy)]

PW,

Your recollections make me think I was there.

Congrats on your travels and thanks for sharing.

Have fun,
Phil

Edit: A Picket fence grub without even trying.

[ksquared]

FABULOUS! travelogue, PW...

Told in your exquisite voice.

These stories are definitely print.and.savor.

Thank you.
ksquared

[excel]

PMS. I learned quickly that a couple of dry coughs would clear a path instantly, since the SARS scare was still on everyone’s mind.

Oh my! LOL!

Thanks for your trips memories. Enjoyed reading about them.

[PMS Witch]

This spring, The Commander and I were fortunate enough to sail on the Rhine, passing through France and Germany, on our journey from The Netherlands to Switzerland. Since we were only spending a couple of days in Switzerland, our tour focused on the spectacular scenery, especially in the Alps.

Our coaches took us from Basel, where our ship was docked, to the base of the Alps, where we boarded a narrow gauge cog railway. We could feel the vibration as the gears engaged the rack between the rails. The cars seemed so tiny: wide enough to seat three. The windows would open. As we climbed, The Commander would close the window a bit at a time, as the breezes became cooler. Our group almost filled the train. We were enthralled with the spectacular scenery visible on both sides of the track.

A couple of children, perhaps ten years old, were riding our train home from school. The scenery didn’t interest them whatsoever. They passed the time playing with a portable video game. The train stopped near a waterfall about half way up the mountain. The children left the train and walked toward an isolated house. As the train continued, the children turned and waved. Almost a hundred people waved back. The few who didn’t wave had fallen asleep. I found this amazing!

I enjoyed some hard candy during the ride. It relieved my ear popping as we reached an altitude of about 6,000 feet. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant near the base of the Eiger. We could see three mountains, the Eiger, Monk, and Jungfrau from our restaurant window. As we ate, clouds arrived and departed. Some clouds were higher than the peaks, but most were lower, with the spires protruding above them. The sun reflecting off the snow, the shadows cast by clouds, and the tiny specks of man’s endeavours established the majestic scale of this landscape. I was enthralled.

The Commander investigated the possibility of catching a train to the highest viewpoint. Time would not permit this. In hindsight, we should’ve packed our own lunch, taken the train, and skipped the restaurant meal. If we did, we would’ve enjoyed an even better view, and had another unique experience shared by nobody else on our cruise. We didn’t know any better until it was too late. The Commander had visited this higher viewpoint on a previous visit to the Alps, and he wanted me to enjoy it too.

We flew home from Zurich the next day.

On doing our own thing . . .

We deviated from the planned itinerary a few times. Each has left us with some special memories that are uniquely ours. I’m reluctant to do this. The Commander seems to enjoy straying. We tell the guides where and when we’re leaving because they count heads.

In a previous post, I mentioned crossing the Rhine in Dusseldorf. We also crossed the Rhine in Cologne. In Dusseldorf, we walked across the bridge. In Cologne, we crossed using a cable car. As we approached Cologne, we could see the cable cars passing above the river. They appeared to be about fifty stories high. We speculated about the view from such height. We soon forgot about the cable cars, as we were preoccupied with lunch and preparing our land tour. After the city tour, we again thought about the cable cars.

We left the city tour early so we could take a shortcut to the ship because I was getting tired. The brisk walk reinvigorated us, and after we arrived at the ship, we continued walking, eventually arriving very near the terminal for the cable cars. We decided to go for a ride. It was late afternoon, and if we wanted to go, we’d need to return immediately as the service would be soon closing for the day. I didn’t want to face the long walk required to use the bridge anyway, so this was a blessing. Combining The Commander’s German and my Euros, we purchased tickets.

I’ve never rode in a cable car like this before. They would only seat four. We had the car to ourselves. We tried sitting facing one another. We tried sitting side by side. We switched directions. With every movement, the car would rock. As the car climbed, we could see further and further. People on the bridge below would wave. It was magical. Then we came to the first tower. It didn’t look very sturdy. With a clank and a clunk, we were on the major span and could see for miles. I was so glad we decided to do this.

On our decent, we passed over a spa. A nudist spa! There were a number of people sunbathing. They waved at us and we waved back. We both commented simultaneously that those whom one would least want to see nude are so eager to “display.” Once we “landed” we boarded the next departing car for the reverse journey. We were amazed at how different the city looked. One thing looked the same though: the nudists.

Cheers, PW.

P.S. Euros are colourful. Each note comes in a different size and palette. Many countries produce their own designs. I saw a poster displaying all the Euro banknotes and coins from the various countries. I would’ve liked one as a souvenir, but I couldn’t find any for sale.

[PMS Witch]

This spring, The Commander and I were fortunate enough to sail on the Rhine, passing through France and Germany, on our journey from The Netherlands to Switzerland. I ended my previous post when memories of early morning baking made continuing impossible.

We spent a day in France and visited the city of Strasbourg, the capital of the Alsace province. I have two memories from Strasbourg: the city has unusual streetcars, and my “domino” experience.

Our guide claimed that when the streetcar design was commissioned, they had to be not only practical, but works of art too. By their appearance, I’d say the designers succeeded. They looked modern, comfortable, and appealing. They were also huge. I wanted a picture but our camera was empty. It was The Commander’s fault.

The next morning, while walking, I passed some construction where a hole had been dug for some pipes. Metal barricades surrounded the hole and piles of dirt, partially blocking the sidewalk. A passing bicyclist swerved to avoid me, and partially lost his balance. My attention was focused on him instead of where I was going and my foot caught the base of one of these fencing units. It tipped over. It hit the next unit and it tipped too. Then a third. And they continued falling like dominoes. Nearly all toppled. It was very early and nobody was around. I wasted no time loitering! I limped back to the ship. I received a minor cut and quite a bruise. My foot’s not yet back to its normal colour.

A nice treat after spending time Strasbourg, a large city, was visiting the Black Forest region in Germany. I thought it was one big forest, but it isn’t. It’s a mixture of forest, farms, and towns. We stopped for some Black Forest cake mid-afternoon, and had a chance to stretch our legs. While on board our ship, we’re free to stand or walk whenever we please, but on the coach, we remain seated between stops. I don’t know what I enjoyed the most: the Black Forest Cake or the Black Forest air. Both were wonderful.

For some strange reason, we left Germany to visit France, then returned to Germany for a day before re-visiting France again for another day. And people wonder why tourists seem so confused. A wine tasting helped.

We visited a restaurant in France and were treated to several varieties of Alsace wine. Everyone was given a brochure, printed in English, outlining the varieties available, including those we’d be sampling. They didn’t pour a tiny taste. They filled the goblet, and often re-filled the goblet. Whether a serious student of grapes or not, everyone was enjoying themselves. It was a fun lunch. I cannot describe the sight of a hundred tipsy tourists walking downhill on a cobblestone street. Nor can I describe the sound of their laughter. It’ll be a memory for life.

Our time in France and Germany has ended. After getting everyone on the coach, we headed for Switzerland, where we spent our last couple of days.

Cheers, PW.

[PMS Witch]

This spring, The Commander and I were fortunate enough to sail on the Rhine, passing through France and Germany, on our journey from The Netherlands to Switzerland. In previous posts, I wrote about life aboard river cruise ships, airports, and our brief time in The Netherlands. We visited Germany next.

We spent most of our time in Germany. The Rhine and Mosel flows through the south-west corner of Germany, and since our touring took place within an few hour’s drive of the ship, we only saw a sample of this fascinating country.

Our first stop in Germany was Dusseldorf, on Monday. We were given a guided tour, which consisted of a brief walk among numerous museums that close on Mondays. Wow! On our right, a closed museum of modern art. A little further ahead and to the left, a closed military museum. And don’t miss the closed museum of whatever, it’s worth coming back to see. I wondered why the guide thought we’d be interested in closed museums. I guess her tour works well six out of seven times, so why change it for Mondays. She mentioned that some business people from Japan created a community across the river, and that it was interesting.

After dinner, we crossed the river to see the German community created by the Japanese. It was worth the few miles of walking. The other side of the river was quite different. The first thing we noticed was that there were no loiterers. None. Another difference was the green space. There were plants, trees, and flowers everywhere. And the buildings were much better maintained. We wondered if we were came to the right place because there weren’t any Japanese people there. Everyone looked German. We wondered if the guide had exaggerated when she claimed this area was built by Japanese. Maybe one Japanese guy was circling the block looking for a parking space and she mistook him for a large group?

Our next stop was Cologne. After Dusseldorf, we wondered if maybe Cologne museums close on Tuesdays. Wouldn’t it be fun if every city closes their attractions a different day, and we arrive at each on that particular day. This was not the case. Things were open. We were told that the Cologne gothic cathedral is famous the world over. I, however, never heard of it. It was huge. Our guide took us inside.

I find walking tours difficult. It’s not the walking that wears me out, it’s the standing still. And it’s tough to hear the guide with traffic, shouting, and construction. Too much detail is presented. I can not remember the exact date the work was commissioned, completed, dedicated, bombed, and rebuilt, nor do I care. Just call it a year 1200 project. How about calling it software, as many software projects seem to take 800 years to complete?

I was pleased to leave Cologne. Don’t misunderstand! I enjoyed Cologne. But it’s a large city, and I don’t care for large cities. We headed to Konigswinter.

I noticed “Konig” used in quite a few places. I asked The Commander what it meant. It’s the German word for “King.” I picked up a few German words such as “Eingang” and “Ausfahrt”, from signs along the road and “Verboten” from just about everywhere imaginable. I was guessing most meanings, and coming surprisingly close many times. Another passenger once asked me what a sign said. To me, it looked like “Don’t eat the seagulls.” To my surprise, he accepted my translation without question.

At Konigswinter, we boarded a cog railway, travelled up to some ruins, and had a great view of the Rhine. Before departing, our guide explained railway crossings. Trains travel quickly. She warned us to not waste time getting off the track when a train is coming. In Canada, one can almost sit down for a picnic lunch between the time a signal indicates an approaching train and the time it arrives. Not in Germany. We were crossing the tracks when the bell rang. We ran. The gate was already closing. We ran faster. We cleared the gate by mere inches. In a second or two, the train arrived. And was it ever going fast! The wind almost blew us over. The guide wasn’t kidding.

We sailed along the Mosel to Cochem, arriving on Ascension Day, a German holiday. The town was packed solid. Sardines enjoy more personal space. I hate crowds. But I couldn’t resist venturing into town: the streets were lined with exotic wheels - - - both cars and motorcycles. These people take their toys seriously. While crossing the bridge into town, a dark green Ferrari 456 screamed toward me. The Commander spun around to get a better look, and stumbled off the sidewalk. Another Ferrari, red, a 360 he claims, coming the other direction almost ran over his foot. We wandered around town in a daze. I anticipated seeing more Ferraris, but the two on the bridge were the only ones we saw. Everywhere I turned, there was something incredible to admire. I’ve not seen as many wonderful machines in one place: ever - - - both new and vintage. Even the bicycles were technological marvels.

One fond memory I have of my time on the Mosel river was The Commander giving me a full body massage. While he worked, I could look out the cabin window at the passing vineyards. I could see people tending the vines, and near the mountain tops, they appeared as specks. I watched the boat’s bow wave hit swimmers along the riverbank, and enjoyed vicariously the excitement of the kids. Life along this river seemed peaceful, and the tranquillity was infectious. Over the few days we spent on the Mosel, we stopped at a number of delightful towns.

I enjoy walking. I need the exercise. But hate hot weather. So I awakened early, and before breakfast, I walked around the towns while the air was still cool. I was amazed at how many bakery shops I encountered. I could smell them long before I could see them. And the smells were marvellous, especially since I was hungry. I’m tempted to end this message now and get something to eat.

Sound like a good idea.

Cheers, PW.

P.S. “Eingang” and “Ausfahrt” roughly mean enter and exit. Or maybe it’s the other way around. I constantly forgot. I bumped into lots of people though. “Verboten” means forbidden. For me, the “Herren” room was “Verboten.”

P.P.S. “Herren” means men.

[PMS Witch]

This spring, The Commander and I were fortunate enough to sail on the Rhine, passing through France and Germany, on our journey from The Netherlands to Switzerland. I’ve never been to this part of Europe, so everything I saw and experienced was new and unfamiliar. There were many surprises, and nearly all were pleasant.

First, I’d like to cover some not so nice things about airports: heat and smoke. What gives? Don’t they have air conditioning? The last thing travellers need after lugging their bags through security, immigration, and customs is to sit on a plastic seat and swelter. If they’re so concerned about energy conservation, why build airports with massive windows? They becomes greenhouses in summer and lose heat in winter. But equally annoying is the smoke. Smoking and non-smoking areas seem to create a mosaic of foul air everywhere. It’s like having peeing and non-peeing areas in a swimming pool. And don’t expect relief when you get outdoors unless you enjoy diesel fumes from busses, trucks, and cars.

I cannot complain too much about other country’s airports. I flew from Toronto. It’s a zoo. A cool, smoke free zoo is still a zoo. Construction everywhere. Loudspeakers blaring unintelligibly. Massive crowds. Infinite lines at every counter. Critical shortage of baggage carts. Toronto airport baggage carts require a dollar deposit, which you get back when you return the cart. Coming home, I submitted my dollar, and upon returning the cart, received two. I was tempted to repeat the process.

Fortunately, our time in the airport was minimal. Upon arrival, we were soon on our way to the ship. It was a couple of hours away. A guide’s narration about The Netherlands helped pass the time. From the little we saw, it seemed like a pleasant country and I wished we’d seen more of it.

Cheers, PW.

[bbgold]

Sounds Nice PW!
Do you have a link for the trip? At least the boat was well enough staffed to offer you some time to relax. I was looking into these boat trips in England but for some reason being responsible for piloting the boat sounds more stressful than relaxing. Thanks for the review of your trip PW! :^)
http://www.canaltime.com/information/infoframeset.html

[PMS Witch]

The Commander and I were fortunate enough to visit Europe this spring. We’ve been looking at river cruising, and decided to give it a try. It was a new experience for us. We sailed on the Rhine from The Netherlands to Switzerland, and passed through France and Germany.

When trying something new, we attempt to do as much research as possible before leaving. I don’t like surprises. I had sailed aboard the larger cruise ships that accommodate a thousand passengers or more. My first surprise was seeing how tiny river ships are. Ours had two decks and fifty cabins.

Once aboard, I soon realised that the small ship was also a comfortable ship. Both the lounge and dining room could seat all the passengers, making multiple seating times for meals unnecessary. The smaller ship reduced walking distances. All facilities were only a few paces from our cabin. Those endless walks down narrow corridors and elevator waits would not be necessary on this ship.

Cabin sizes were a shock. When we opened the door and walked inside, I thought we were in a passageway that would eventually lead to the real cabin. No! This was it. Barely enough room to turn around. Midgets would feel confined. It was half the size of the smallest cabins I’ve ever seen before. Closet space was minimal as well. We unpacked. Our empty cases were stored elsewhere because there wasn’t room for them in the cabin. I braced myself before opening the washroom door and was pleasantly surprised. It was bright, spacious, and spotless. No tub, but an attractive glass enclosed shower.

Things happen faster on the smaller ships. A few minutes after arriving, it was announced that everyone’s cases had been delivered to the cabins. On larger ships, this can take hours. When leaving, we were asked to have our cases packed before we headed breakfast. This was a delightful departure from the usual practice of placing cases in the hall the previous night. No stuffing our morning necessities into our carry-on and lugging heavy bags through airports.

Not everything happens quickly. Staff to passenger ratio is half to quarter of a larger ship. Those people are run ragged. The low staff counts impact passengers in a number of ways. We first noticed this in the dining room. With only three people in the kitchen, menu selection was limited. Salad and soup choice was easy: only one offered. We could choose from only two entrees at the most, and many evenings, only one. One dessert choice too. Menu choices also reflected the necessity of preparing meals earlier in the day. When we entered the dining room, salads were already on the table and soup bowls filled to expedite serving so many by so few. To their credit, the food was exceptionally well prepared and very tastefully presented. (Special diets could be accommodated, but advance notice was required.)

Our ship had one dining room. It featured open seating dining. The tables sat four, six, or eight. There were no tables for two. There were no alternatives for eating anywhere else. No cabin service. Dining times were fixed. Lines formed as passengers arrived early, hoping to land a preferred seat. When the door opened, the stampede began. I learned quickly that a couple of dry coughs would clear a path instantly, since the SARS scare was still on everyone’s mind.

Open seating facilitates meeting other passengers. We enjoyed the company of people from all parts of the country, people with interesting careers, people of various ages, and people who have had many different travel experiences. We met some people from the countries we’d be visiting, as well as people who have already made trips like those we were planning. Conversation was never dull.

As much as we enjoyed the almost party atmosphere of the dining room, there were those times we wished we had the option of eating without interacting with strangers. Those days when we were saturated by the sights, sounds, and smells of crowded cities. Those days when we weren’t feeling well because of unusual weather, food, drink, or lack of sleep. Those days that are special: we had an anniversary that we wanted to celebrate privately. I missed the assigned seating on larger cruise ships where we could make our way to the dining room unhurriedly, and our table would be waiting for us, our waiter and sommelier would learn our preferences, and the other passengers would have no need to hurry either. This seems like a more civilised way to enjoy meals.

Rivers lack large waves, which translates into very little unpleasant motion and almost no seasickness. I looked forward to smooth sailing. We didn’t travel at night. This was a good thing. On smaller river ships, the engine room is not as isolated from the passenger cabins. When underway, there’s a disturbing quantity of engine noise, creaking, groaning, and water sounds. As well, the scenery was spectacular, and we wanted to see it instead of sleep through it.

On a larger cruise ship, we seldom sailed close to land or other ships. We speculated that this had something to do with marine safety, waste disposal, or casino jurisdictions. On the river, we passed within a few feet of other ships, and always within sight of shore. We’d dock near the centre of cities and towns and could find ourselves in the middle of local attractions within a few steps. Although we were doing the travelling, it seemed like the countryside was parading past our window just for us.

Overall, we enjoyed our vacation. I found river cruising pleasant and relaxing. Some compromises are necessary when aboard smaller ships, but they’re offset by other advantages.

Cheers, PW.

[excel]

Couple taking their sweet time on Argentina-to-Alaska drive

By Kim Bell
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Behind the wheel of a 1928 Graham-Paige automobile, Herman Zapp and his wife, Candelaria, left their home in Buenos Aires, Argentina, with a dream of driving to Alaska in six months.

That was three years, three months and 31,000 miles ago — and Alaska is still in their sights.

Along the way, the couple and their vintage car have crossed the Amazon River and traveled through the Andes and Colombia's rain forests. They have seen the Smoky Mountains, the Ford car museum in Detroit and countless mom-and-pop stores along America's back roads.

All this at no more than 35 mph, the car's top speed.

But the biggest adventure, it seems, is the pint-size passenger who joined them in Greensboro, N.C. — their firstborn child, Nahuel, who goes by Pampa. Candelaria Zapp conceived in Guatemala and found out she was pregnant in Belize.

Pampa, who is 10 months old, sat at his father's feet last week, happily playing with bits of sand on the cobblestone parking lot below the Gateway Arch. The Zapps' road trip was taking a break in St. Louis for a few days before picking up again and heading west.

The Zapps are zigzagging across the United States and hope to reach Alaska by late August.

The touring car has "Driving from Argentina to Alaska" painted on its side, just above the running board. Near the hood are Pampa's footprints as a newborn. The car guzzles gasoline, getting 12 to 13 miles per gallon. A specially designed tin box that sits on the car's manifold cooks their food. The travelers cook hot dogs or chicken soup there at least once a week.

"When we're driving, we smell it's ready and stop for lunch," Herman Zapp said. "It takes five miles to get a soft (boiled) egg and 10 miles to get a hard one."

On the riverfront, with tourists and ragtime music as a backdrop, gawkers drawn to the Zapps' relic of a car pointed, snapped pictures and eased closer to hear the Zapps' tales of adventure. He unfurled a large map of "the three Americas," complete with snapshots of friends they have made along the way.

The couple met in elementary school, began dating as teenagers and married nine years ago when Herman was 25 and Candelaria 23. They had grown up on farms near Buenos Aires and always yearned to travel. They picked Alaska because it was far away.

"When you live at the bottom of America, you dream of getting to the top," said Candelaria Zapp, who goes by Cande.

They planned to backpack, but Herman Zapp fell in love with the old, night-blue Graham-Paige, shown to him by a mechanic a few months before they were to leave. Zapp, an electrician, bought it for $4,000 — much of their savings — and they set out by car on Jan. 25, 2000.

By Ecuador, they were broke. Cande Zapp started selling her watercolor paintings of birds. Herman Zapp decided to turn the journals of his trip into a book, "Dream Chaser," and the couple stapled the pages together themselves to save money. That book, along with postcards and calendars documenting their trip, has helped pay the bills.

Mostly, though, they rely on the kindness of strangers. Most nights, they sleep for free in the homes of newfound friends. They have been guests at a mansion in Peru and at the one-room home of a poor family in Nicaragua.

"Some people are so poor, but they gave us their bed and slept on the floor," Cande Zapp said. "They gave us the best part of the chicken, and they ate the wing. Our biggest surprise has been the people. We never imagined they'd be so friendly."

Strangers helped out when the car's axle broke in Toronto, when a rock flew up from a passing truck in Mexico, shattering the windshield, and when Herman Zapp needed to track down various other engine parts for the car.

A mechanic in Texas gave them five new tires for their car. When a hospital in Greensboro, N.C., said it would charge $5,000 to deliver the baby, a local newspaper publicized a story about the Zapps. Vintage-car enthusiasts helped pay the hospital bill, and a local church sponsored a baby shower. An outpouring of well-wishers translated into donations of 12 strollers and seven car seats.

"They offered us so many toys, we could not put them all in our car," Herman Zapp said.

With a new baby on board, the pace slowed a bit. Driving 10 hours a day is out of the question. They now travel no more than five. Pampa naps twice daily, and they travel only while he is sleeping.

"This is home schooling at its best," said Andrea Clark of Leawood, Kan., one of the tourists who stopped to talk with the Zapps. "You're speaking different languages, seeing new places. It's wonderful."

Clark bought the Zapps' book for $10 and asked Herman Zapp to autograph it. "I have so much respect for you folks," she said.

When they arrive in Alaska, their plan is to stay for at least one winter. "Everybody said we'll fall in love with Alaska," Herman Zapp said. "One of my favorite animals is a moose. So I'm so excited."

The Zapps say they have no regrets about their three-plus years away from Buenos Aires.

"We are not homesick," Herman Zapp said, "because, every night, we are at home."

[excel]

Comfort zones: The solace of British Columbia's seaside




Despite the war in Iraq and all the uncertainty it brings, Americans still are traveling. Some are hopping on planes to far-off places, others are sticking closer to home.

If you’re a stay-close-to-home type, who’s wary of wartime travel or simply short on time and money, southwest British Columbia is an easygoing destination of staggering natural beauty and a wide choice of places to stay.

In these times, it’s a place to find solace in seaside places, particularly on Vancouver Island and the adjacent Gulf Islands. Even B.C.’s two big cities, Vancouver and Victoria, have natural escapes in their urban hearts. And on the practical side, you can drive to these destinations and the exchange rate is favorable.

Here, drawn from my visits over the years, are suggestions on areas to visit and how to find your own hideaway. For some of these destinations, a weekend works fine; for others you need three or four days to give you the time to get there and relax into a different world.

Long Beach / Pacific Rim park

This is the quintessential wild Pacific coast on the west coast of Vancouver Island. About 14 miles of wave-pounded, sandy beaches are protected — yet easily accessible on short trails or from beachside parking lots — within the Long Beach section of Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. Walk the beach, poke around the tidepools, sit and watch the sun set.

Stay in Tofino or Ucluelet, two fishing/logging towns that now thrive on small-scale tourism, or in one of the beachfront luxury lodges on the edge of the park. Or camp within the park, which lies between the two small towns, at the Green Point campground. For more information: Tofino Visitor Center Chamber of Commerce, 250-725-3414, www.tofinobc.org/ Ucluelet Chamber of Commerce, 250-726-4641, www.uclueletinfo.com Pacific Rim National Park Reserve: 250-726-7721, parkscan.harbour.com/pacrim/

If you really want to get away from it all, consider Bamfield, a fishing village of 350 people south of Tofino and Ucluelet, where a boardwalk connects some of the weathered buildings and trails lead to lonely beaches. Bamfield is remote, 50 miles down gravel logging roads or reached by supply/passenger boat from Port Alberni. 250-728-3006, http://bamfieldchamber.com

Southwest Vancouver Island

B&Bs, cabins and small inns dot the coast west from Victoria, from the suburban waterfront community of Sooke, with its luxurious B&Bs, to the bare-bones community of Port Renfrew on southwestern Vancouver Island, huddled amid a wilderness of forests and rugged coast.

Beach-walkers and campers should head to French Beach or Juan de Fuca (formerly called China Beach) provincial parks. Both parks stretch along the Strait of Juan de Fuca, with views across to Washington’s snow-capped Olympics.

Or keep going west to Botanical Beach Provincial Park near Port Renfrew. The day-use park has gentle trails through lush forest and teeming tidepools.

Serious beach-walkers can hike for days on two long-distance trails on southern Vancouver Island. The 30-mile Juan de Fuca Marine Trail runs along the coast between Juan de Fuca and Botanical Beach parks. The 46-mile-long West Coast Trail runs along the roadless, rugged Pacific Coast from Port Renfrew north to Bamfield. Or, to see some forest giants, head to the remote Carmanah Walbran Provincial Park, a wilderness sanctuary of old-growth forest reached via active logging roads. Sooke Visitor Info Centre (at Sooke Museum): 866-888-4748

Useful Web sites:
For Sooke, www.sookenet.com
For southern Vancouver Island information from Sooke west to Port Renfrew, www.sooketourism.bc.ca/;
For detailed Port Renfrew information, www.portrenfrew.com
B.C. Parks: 250-391-2300, wlapwww.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/
West Coast Trail (within Pacific Rim National Park Reserve): 250-726-7721 or parkscan.har(bour.com/pacrim/


Parksville/Qualicum


For something completely different, consider the resort towns of Parksville and Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island’s more sheltered east coast. The two communities are strung along the highway, but beyond the sprawl are miles of sandy beach — safe and warm enough for summer swimming when the tide rolls in across sun-warmed sandbars — and views across the Strait of Georgia to the snow-capped mountains of the B.C. mainland.

Choose among dozens of motels, resorts and cottages (beachfront accommodations are the best) in the two communities, which have banded together in what’s called the Oceanside Region to provide visitor information: 888-799-3222 or www.oceansidetourism.com/

For campers, the waterfront Rathtrevor Provincial Park near Parksville is one of the province’s most popular campgrounds (make a reservation for holiday weekends and summer) with almost 200 campsites tucked in an old-growth forest by a 1½-mile-long sandy beach. wlapwww.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/

Gulf Islands

For a gentle, rural retreat, go to one of B.C.’s Gulf Islands. There are more than a dozen major islands strung along the east coast of Vancouver Island where visitors can stay in cabins, country inns or B&Bs. The islands are dotted with parks, and on most there’s easy public access to beaches.

Salt Spring is the biggest and most developed of the Gulf Islands, but even it remains mostly rural apart from art galleries and trendy shops in its main town of Ganges.

Nearby Galiano Island is sparsely populated, a hideaway with seaside and forest parks. To the south, Mayne Island, just 25 square miles, is even more serene. Well to the north, Hornby Isdland has a countercultural feel and dozens of artists’ studios tucked along forested lanes, plus sandy beaches and mountain-bike trails.


Tourism Vancouver Island gives information on the Gulf Islands as well as Vancouver Island: 250-754-3500, www.islands.bc.ca Some of the bigger islands have chambers of commerce that can give information on where to stay and what to do, including: Salt Spring Island Chamber of Commerce: 866-216-2936, www.saltspringisland.bc.ca Galiano Island Info Centre: 250-539-2233 or the Galiano Island Chamber of Commerce: www.galianoisland.com/

Victoria and Vancouver

Even in the midst of B.C.’s most urban areas, nature is right there. In the provincial capital of Victoria, Beacon Hill Park is a 200-acre swath of beaches, bluffs and lovingly tended flowerbeds just a five-minute walk from the Inner Harbour, the city’s core. Seaside paths give sweeping views across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Washington’s Olympics. Vancouver, the biggest and most cosmopolitan city in B.C., has the natural mecca of Stanley Park, a thousand acres of forest and beaches at the tip of downtown, with miles of waterfront paths for walking and biking.

Or, just a 15-minute drive from downtown, near the University of British Columbia, are several miles of parkland and sandy beach at Spanish Banks and the adjoining Jericho Beach. Walk from sandbar to sandbar when the tide’s low; watch the sailboats skim across the bay; look north to the 4,000-foot mountains that edge the city. It’s a peaceful retreat.

Tourism Victoria: 250-953-2033 for visitor information; 800-663-3883 for hotel reservations; or www.tourismvictoria.com/ Tourism Vancouver: 604-683-2000, www.tourismvancouver.com

[excel]

Tulip festival: A Skagit 'Valley girl' remembers her past

Essay by Diane Mapes
Special to the Seattle Times


I grew up on a farm in the Skagit Valley, that sleepy agricultural outpost north of Seattle where the cows outnumber the people and the crops outnumber the cows. I spent my childhood in barns full of musty-smelling hay, riding to school on yellow buses full of beefy blond farm kids and — as was the way of the valley — laboring each summer in the fields.

Skagit Valley was lousy with fields — strawberry, raspberry, cucumber, spinach. Come June, I and every other kid age 7 to 16 would set aside our school books, pick up our sack lunches and climb aboard a shaky old bus — vehicles that put the rust in rustic — to trundle out to patchworked fields where we would spend the day picking blueberries, hoeing beans, digging potatoes and inevitably getting yelled at by querulous field bosses mad with power.

Manual labor was our summer fun — at least if you wanted to have new school clothes in the fall — and I spent 10 long summers picking, packing, sticking and stacking in the flat fertile fields of home. Because my father was one of the local strawberry farmers, I spent more time amid the rows than most. At 17, I moved south toward Seattle where I eventually learned to read The New York Times, wear lots of black and pretend that fresh strawberries were something that came from Larry's Market and not a muddy field with my name on it. Like Lady Macbeth, though, I continually saw red stains on my hands.

Considering the care I'd taken to disguise this earthy past, I was horrified when a visiting friend — a native of Egypt, no less — confessed last spring that she hoped we two could drive north to take in the annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. Despite Thomas Wolfe's warnings about trips home and my grim memory of five gruesome days spent digging tulip bulbs for the local Dutch gentry, I agreed to act as Mona's guide.

Playing tourist


On a bright April morning, we donned our practical shoes ("expect wet, muddy fields," the Web site had warned us), grabbed two strong lattes and pointed the car north to the land of my people.




The festival: The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, April 1-30, 2003 (www.tulipfestival.org, phone [phone]), is different from most fairs and festivals in that some of the real action takes place in your car. Farmers plant more than 1,600 acres worth of tulip, daffodil and iris bulbs, then come April, pray the little suckers will be in bloom for the 300,000 visitors who wander in from out of town in their SUVs. Understandably, traffic can get a little thick, perhaps even more so this year as there will be no free shuttle buses. Best advice: Go later in the season and go on a weekday.
Aside from communing with the flowers, there's plenty to do during the festival. Here's a brief sampling:

• Kiwanis Club Salmon Barbecue: April 5-27. Lots of food served from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily inside Mount Vernon's historic Hillcrest Lodge. Cost is $5-$10. For more information or to schedule groups, e-mail [e-mail].

• Llamas 'N Ttulips: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 5-6, 12-13 and 19-20. Call 360-428-8098 for more information.

• Woodfest: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 5-6. Chainsaw carvers, antique tools, wood turners and logging-related history, all at the Sedro-Woolley High School gym, 1235 3rd Ave. in Sedro-Woolley. Call 888-225-8365 for more information.

• Tulip Pedal 2003: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 12. This year marks the 23rd annual bike ride through the fields, sponsored by Skagit County Medic One and SAFEKIDS. Fee for adults is $23 (T-shirt included), kids 14 and under ride free (sorry, no T-shirt for kids). For more information, call 360-428-3230.

• Tour De Fleur: 9-11 a.m. April 26. This 5K walk for the American Diabetes Association takes you past tulip fields and farmlands. Fee is $25 for adults, $5 for kids 6-12, and includes breakfast, flowers and snacks. Call 800-950-8875.




Seattle's skyscrapers soon gave way to shopping centers which gave way to strip malls which eventually gave way to long stretches of rolling, bucolic scenery. After 45 minutes or so, I began to see signs — most of them of the hand-lettered, misspelled variety — that told me we were nearing Skagit Valley. There were other indications, of course: tractors off in the distance, crumpled barns by the side of the road, nurseries showing off their colorful flowerbeds like French cancan girls displaying their underwear.

Exiting in Mount Vernon, we navigated our way down narrow cobblestone streets for a quick snack at the City Bakery (home of the ham-and-cheese beetle), then trundled across the Skagit River Bridge and into the bovine embrace of the Skagit flatlands.

Within minutes, we were passing freshly plowed fields and meticulous rural estates, their grounds covered with massive barns, mysterious silos and mournful weeping willows.

Rounding a bend, our laps full of tulip propaganda, we were suddenly confronted by a jarring burst of color, like spillage in a paint store. A huge field of orange and pink stretched ahead of us, as far as we could see. Hastily parked cars lined both shoulders, and people milled among the colorful rows, feverishly snapping pictures. Grabbing our cameras, we wasted no time in joining them, and soon we were posing, hands on hips, in front of precise vertical rows or kneeling down to cap our grinning faces with a crown of vibrant petals.

Spying what appeared to be a train wreck in the distance, we walked along a hard-packed dirt lane to the end of the field where we found a hundred-year-old barn, collapsed in upon itself. Bird song twittered in the background; sunlight winked off passing cars on the highway. It was an immensely peaceful moment.

Strolling back to the car, we came upon a man zooming in on a tulip with his video camera and watched him tape the flower for a full minute. Much like the poppies in "The Wizard of Oz," these flowers seemed to possess a peculiar hypnotic power. (This power raked in approximately $12 million in gross annual revenue for the bulb growers, according to the literature we'd picked up back in Mount Vernon.)

Our next stop turned out to be the Roozengaarde farm, one of the biggest of the aforementioned bulb growers. Its fields stretched east toward the Cascades in a perfect Dutch precision. Patches of purple blended into patches of white which blended into patches of pink which eventually turned orange and then red and then yellow, on and on, the colors melding one into the other like one of those Christmas sweaters knitted by a frugal aunt.

Down memory lane


I began to wonder if this was the same farm owned by the Dutch family I had worked for, lo, those 30 years ago. It had been the summer of my 13th year, and I had signed on with a pack of my girlfriends to dig for bulbs, touted as the most lucrative of summer jobs. Although the details were fuzzy, my rancor remained intact.

Sure, the flowers looked lovely swaying gently in the breeze, but that was just a façade, mere window dressing for unsuspecting tourists. The real cash crop was under the dirt, hideous and gnarled; that's where the tiny bulbs lay hidden, and that's where I'd had to find them, hoe in one hand, gunny sack in the other. It had been backbreaking work, made worse by a field boss who gleefully produced overlooked bulbs from my wake like a crooked cop "discovering" bags of cocaine.


I lasted five days and then quit, taking my posse with me.

Back in the car, I recounted my tulip tale to Mona as we meandered along the country roads. When we came upon a fruit stand with the good sense to offer hand-dipped ice cream on a hot spring day, we stopped.

The scoops of Raspberry Cheesecake Swirl were as large as cabbages, and cones in hand, we crossed the road, plopping wearily into the weeds at the edge of an empty field. There, we lazily ate our ice cream.

"It's so lovely here," Mona said. "So peaceful. So quiet. What do you think of this place?"

I wasn't sure what to think. Staring out at the terrain, as comforting and dull as an old family joke, I realized that I had worked in this very field when roguing spinach was "the" summer job. It had been not too far from where I now sat that my best friend, Lynn Wallace, had casually flung her banana peel at a passing 18-wheeler only to watch it sail through the driver's open window and slap him full in the face. To this day, I could hear the truck's brakes squeal.

I felt the sun beat down on my back as it had beat down on all of our backs 30 years ago. Shutting my eyes, I could almost hear the sound of the kids out in the field. It was not a totally unpleasant sensation.

This was farm country, to be sure, and despite my urban trappings, I was still a farm girl at heart. Sure, I had learned to wrinkle my nose at the smell of cow manure and express disgust at the sight of a slug, but there was still something that spoke to me as I sat cross-legged, gazing at a field of clumpy, damp soil. I couldn't discern exactly what it said, but it had to do with the unmistakable beauty to be had in a bouquet of dirty daffodils, the honesty to be found in a bucket of cucumbers, the sweat that went into a punch card full of raspberry flats. It had to do with history, which was what existed between this girl and her valley.

Yes, the place was corny as all get out. What else would you call a Twilight Farm Vehicle Parade, the advertised highlight of last year's Burlington Berry Dairy Days? But it was also where I grew up.

"I think it's nice to come home," I said, returning my attention to my cone.

[excel]

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See More

[bbgold]

They are certainly good for laugh :^)

Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[bbgold]

You're Welcome NS
I just ran a Google search and a bunch of sites popped up. Some of the sayings I had not heard before and All of them are hilarious :^)

Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[trkyhntr]

Thanks for the links, bb. I bookmarked them for future ref.


trkyhntr

Hunt, fish, eat, sleep. Life is really tough, but I'm surviving.

[nightstocker]

thanks bbgold

[bbgold]

http://www.yogi-berra.com/yogiisms.html
http://www.yogiberraclassic.org/quotes.htm
http://rinkworks.com/said/yogiberra.shtml
http://www.workinghumor.com/quotes/yogi_berra.shtml
Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[nightstocker]

i'm off. I have to get to work sometime today.

[nightstocker]

those are good. I'll try to find that webstie later tonight.

[trkyhntr]

A few more for you, NS.
"It ain't over til its over."
and my favorite of all time, "90% of this game is half-mental."

trkyhntr

Hunt, fish, eat, sleep. Life is really tough, but I'm surviving.

[nightstocker]

Yogi's quotes are always the best. They make me laugh. I used to have a website marked that had a bunch of Yogi-isms.

[trkyhntr]

Reminds me of that famous Yogi Berra quote, NS.
When asked about a famous restaurant, he said, "Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

trkyhntr

Hunt, fish, eat, sleep. Life is really tough, but I'm surviving.

[nightstocker]

Having just travelled across 14 different states in the past 6 days, I would like to say that Illinois sucks by far the most of any of them, followed closely by New York.

North Dakota is really cool, unfortunately nobody is there to enjoy it, ha ha ha.

[bbgold]

http://www.wunderground.com/
This looks like a pretty good link for checking on your next travel destination :^)

Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[bbgold]

Colima, Mexico Volcanic activity Next?
Here is a link to some pictures of the volcano. I sure hope that is not the case. Interesting that there has not been much news about how the earthquake affected the coastal cities. I would definitely not want to be traveling in the area :^(
http://volcano.und.nodak.edu/vwdocs/volc_images/img_colima.html

Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[nightstocker]

I'm off on the amtrak to Boston, I'll write epic tales of my adventure when I return, ha ha ha

[nightstocker]

I'm taking the train from Montana across to Boston next week. It will be the 3rd time in the past few months. It sure is cheap.

Tickets right now $133 and they are offering a 2 for 1 deal.

[nightstocker]

Thanks excel and Phil.

[excel]

NS. So is Iown. Reach him here.
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=686183

Excel

Release the past; enjoy the present; Embarq the future!

[Phil(Hot Rod Chevy)]

ns,

Soxfan is from Boston, I think.

Have fun,
Phil

[nightstocker]

Anyone in the boston area? I have a car I have to pick up there next week and its only about 2500 miles from home, ha ha ha.

[bbgold]

Hi Excel,
I have never seen the movie about St. Helens. Yes, I remember watching the old guy on TV saying that he was not going to leave. I did watch a documentary about Pinatubo and the decision to pull out the military from Clark airbase. When the base commander took an aerial view of the mountain and previous blast radius circles left in the landscape he said "Give the order to evacuate tomorrow". Do you want to get an overhead view of your next travel destination? Here is a cool link. I am heading out for the day. Take Care Excel! :^)
http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/browse.html

Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[excel]

BBgold. Beautiful pictures of both of them. You ever seen the movie about it? They knew it was going to blow as you'll see by the movie but the govenor decided money was more important then lives at the time imo. In the movie you see the guy who decided to stay at his home on Spirit Lake. He was quite the character.

Excel

Release the past; enjoy the present; embrace the future!

[bbgold]

Mt. Pinatubo eruption
The first photo says it is of the eruption as viewed from the east side of Clark Airbase. I am not sure of the view in the second photo. Here is a link that looks to cover all of the volcanoes in the world.
http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/framework.html
http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/



Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[bbgold]

The view of Mt. Rainer from St. Helens
These photos are from the top of St. Helens looking towards Mt. Rainer before and after.
http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/mshnvm/
http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/mshnvm/photo_gallery/before_after.htm
http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/



Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[bbgold]

Here are Obscurity and Spirit lakes Before and After
Looks as though I found the pictures I was looking for. The amount of destruction is Incredible
http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/mshnvm/





Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[bbgold]

Hi Excel,
I was fishing the day the mountain erupted. It just started raining ash. Glad that I was well north of the mountain that day also. Driving down there afterwards it looked as though the trees were covered with a heavy grey snow and there were small mountains of ash from where they had cleared the roads. They would not let anyone up close to the mountain so most of what I have seen is from pictures. The day I was down there they had a low cloud cover. It would be interesting to go back some day. I am sure that it will never be back to it's original glory in my lifetime though. I would like to find a site with pictures of the mountain Before it erupted. Here is the current picture. I think those CNN pictures are before the Major eruption when the mountain was just releasing ash clouds, maybe. This is how Mt. Pinatubo in the Phillipines looks after it erupted also. BTW, there is an Excel drywall here in Phoenix. Is that one of your companies also?
Enjoy the Day Excel! :^)
http://www.fs.fed.us./gpnf/mshnvm/volcanocam/



Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[excel]

BBgold. Remember the day well. I live about 35 miles or so NE of Seattle. We were all glued to our TV and lucky for us the ash went to Eastern Washington. Heard it was like night there during the day the ash was so heavy. I hear they have a pretty neat visiting site there that gives you a good idea of what happened.



Excel

Release the past; enjoy the present; embrace the future!

[bbgold]

Hi Excel,
Are you close to St. Helens? I was near Tacoma when the mountain blew it's top and went down to see all of the ash and destruction. It was amazing what had happened. I was sorry that I had never made it up to the lake below the mountain, Spirit lake?, before it was wiped out. I had the chance to go as I was fishing at the lake below it a month before the eruption. My friends were not inclined to make the extra drive that day to see the 'crystal clear' lake. Do you know of any websites that have pictures of the area before and after the eruption? It would be interesting to see how it has started to grow back.
Have a Wonderful Weekend Excel! :^)

Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[excel]

I live in Washington State and have been up and down this states coast. Very beautiful.
Started exploring Oregons coast last summer.
Very beautiful also. And the shops along the coast there have the best prices for art work I have ever seen.
Saved over a hundred dollars on a fish statue we bought there.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/northwestweekend/134606782_nwwstorm02.html

Excel

Release the past; enjoy the present; embrace the future!

[bbgold]

Sorry about that Excel
I posted some pics on the Test board and they seemed to link Ok but I should have waited to make sure they would stay up longer than one day. I'll see if I can move them to a better shared site :^)

Good Luck to All! :^)
PLAN the TRADE and TRADE the PLAN!

[nightstocker]

Well this past year I didn't manage to leave the continent at all. I put on something like 10,000 miles though, ha ha ha.

This summer I took the train across the country and ended up in DC. I bought a car and I drove it up to NYC and then toured back across the states, stayed in Chicago, then on to Rapid City and Sturgis, then home. It was a blast.

Since then I did another trip across to Milwaukee and Green Bay driving and seen the same countryside all over again.

Plus I had to go to a wedding in Winnipeg this summer and so I got to drive to the middle of Canada and back.

Lots of miles, too bad I couldn't collect some kind of points ha ha ha.

JR

[excel]

NS. Great! Welcome to the board. Would love to hear about your travels and any advice you can give us where you have been is always greatly appreciated!

Excel

Release the past; enjoy the present; embrace the future!

[excel]

BBgold. I wasn't able to view your pictures in both posts.
Don't know if it's just my computer? I'm running xp home? IE.

Excel

Release the past; enjoy the present; embrace the future!

[nightstocker]

Hi there! I just joined up here at Ihub and I love to travel. I look forward to swapping some stories with you all. I have had some really cool adventures and look forward to some great ideas for the next one.
JR