Day 24 – Totalled!

The big day – I would love to say it dawned bright and clear but alas it was cloudy – more cloud than blue sky, with what looked like two cloud systems at different heights, moving across each other.

But we kept our hopes up, with the help of Cathy’s Pancake Mega-Breakfast. Ecopellans and Solidarity Choristers know about this. Pancakes: with both sweet (mixed berries, whipped cream, mascarpone with cinnamon, bananas, maple syrup) and savoury (stewed mushrooms, bacon, ham, pepperoni) toppings. Sorry I didn’t get a photograph, I was too busy cooking and eating 😉 I did get a couple of shots of a pretty insect-pretending-to-be-a-leaf, who joined us while we breakfasted on the verandah.

We found a live telecast on one of the millions of TV channels (NB TV here is just like TV in Australia, only hundreds more crap channels to sift through to find the good stuff). The first contact in Oregon was just before 9am – they did indeed have lovely clear skies there, as they did in Wyoming, where the broadcast came from a mountain-top somewhere or other. It started to rain at Cozy Cabins.

About 10am – approx. 2 hours to first contact

We divided our time from then on between watching the TV, watching the clouds and watching Sooze drink Margaritas. 😉

The rain stopped, but the clouds kept coming.

There were tantalising breaks of bright sunshine (which allowed us to get a pinhole projector and a colander – yes, a colander) set up.

Through the looking-glass – 11am-ish

Robert, the owner and manager of Cozy Cabins, also came down and set up a mirror for photos – I wasn’t sure how this was going to work, but Dean worked on it and I believe got some good shots.

We had eclipse glasses, which I didn’t QUITE trust so only used very briefly and with my good eye closed. Dean also had some heavy-duty welder’s glass to protect his camera. Sue was trying the selfie technique they’d been showing on the TV. I was just sitting back and watching the clouds come and go, nipping back inside every now and then to catch footage of the totality everywhere else. And to refill my beer glass.

First contact for us was just before 12 noon – we were all out in the yard for this, glasses poised, with the sun just about to emerge… and then it was there, full in the sky, and the event had started. At first we couldn’t see much, but after a few minutes I risked a quick left-eyed look through the glasses and there was a clear indent in the circle of the sun. Very exciting!

It was going to take about an hour and a half to get to our approximately two minutes of totality. After about 15 minutes, the cloud came over again…grrrr… we raced inside to check satellite weather maps, which weren’t all that helpful for something so localised. It was maddening! We could see a great swathe of blue sky to one side of where we were, and patches on the other side, with banks of grey cloud making their way s-o-o-o-o-o s-l-o-o-o-o-w-l-y across the path of the sun. Gaaaaaaaaaaahhhhh!

We had another ten or fifteen minutes of sunshine before 1pm, and so saw the eclipse progress from about 40% to about 60%, when the light began to dim noticeably, then again we lost sight of the show.

Waiting, hoping, light fading…

We all kind of stopped talking about it – each of us in our own thoughts, dealing with the hope and preparing for disappointment in our own ways. Roy had said from the start that as long as we experienced the darkness, that was good enough for him. I felt that the main thing was to be with our dear friends, but was still feeling sad that I might miss out on something I’ve always wanted to see.

20 mins to totality

We counted down the minutes to totality. The sun was just near the edge of the cloud, where it was thin enough to let a lot of light through but still too thick to allow us to pick up the shape of the shadow on the sun’s face.

 

14…. minutes… to go….

It seemed to travel with the cloud, on the verge of breaking through but never quite managing to clear it. There were cars zooming up and down the road past the cabins as people tried to get clear of the cloud’s shadow at the last moment…
The crickets had started up as the light dimmed. We were never in total darkness – there was too much reflected light in the clouds – but a dove called in the forest behind us and the cicadas struck up.

And then… only two or three minutes before totality, the sun shook off the cloud and we could see it – a tiny sliver of bright orange through the glasses, almost like a new moon – we couldn’t believe it!!! We cheered and whooped and watched and held our breath – there was a patch of blue sky between the clouds and the sun was moving into it, the cloud was almost like a frame around the sun! PERFECT!

And then the sun was completely gone – and we had a minute or so to watch the ghostly corona, a pale starry glow around a black heart… just amazing. I never thought I’d see this, and at last here it was, before my very eyes. Oh. Wow.

All too soon it was time to put the glasses on again and await the return of that orange sliver, this time on the opposite side of the sun. Unfortunately I didn’t see the “diamond ring” effect – either because I just didn’t catch it or because the light was still quite diffuse because of the cloud and humidity. Roy thinks he saw it, though, just as was putting the glasses back on, so probably I just missed it.

We watched for a few more minutes, still letting off steam after the tension of will-we-won’t-we-see-it, and the thrill of being together to share the experience. I’m so glad I have had the opportunity to do this with Roy – we will always have this amazing memory to hold and look back on as we continue our journey together. ❤

The cloud came over again after another 15 or 20 minutes – HOW LUCKY WERE WE!!!! Roy and Sue decided this was a good time to have a hot tub – Sue was still whooping and saying “I can’t believe it”, and Roy had that contented look he gets when something really, really pleases him. I felt elated but also sad that Alana and Lou and Mum and the rest of my family couldn’t be here with us. I would love to have been able to share it with them, too. 😦

We had one more look as the clouds passed again, to show us the very end of the eclipse – the last few minutes as the brief meeting of these distant objects in our line of sight slipped away, and sun was whole and the moon invisible to us again. Fantastic.

We spent the rest of the afternoon just feeling happy. Hal cooked a great BBQ for dinner and Robert brought around some potato salad. We added leftover mushrooms and Sue’s chili from the night before, and a selection of condiments. Very satisfying.

As it grew dark, Dean lit the fire again and we sat around it for a while, enjoying our last evening together and letting the experience (and a good-sized glass of Jameson’s, at least for Dean and me) wash over us. A wonderful day.

When Dean sends me his pics I’ll post them.

Day 12 – A visit to Stanford

A pretty quiet day today – we had plans to meet and have lunch with an old friend of Roy’s at Stanford, so spent the morning hanging around at home, drinking tea, talking politics and writing up the blog post for the day before.

Trump’s ongoing swaggering over North Korea is making a lot of people nervous but there is still a sense of unreality about it. I’m seeing reports in the SMH that Bishop has urged everyone to calm down and stop escalating the rhetoric. In the world news section it says China is doing the same thing (did she stare them into it?) – is it just another Trump diversion that will go away in a week, or is he teetering on the brink of provoking a real exchange of fire power?

Interestingly, when I mention that we’re concerned because Australia could be a target, that is generally seen as preposterous. When I mention Pine Gap they have no idea what I’m talking about. What’s the mood at home? Updates in comments please!!

We headed into Stanford at about 11.30am – Glenn kindly drive us over and dropped us off outside the Memorial Church courtyard. We made our way to Dick’s office in the Packard building (which is just across from the Hewlett Teaching Centre). Of course the legendary H & P are also celebrated with inspirational quotes from each of them.

 

We were really looking forward to seeing him again, as we’d been to his place for dinner last time we were here and had an enjoyable evening with some really good conversation. When we arrived, we had a bit of a chat in Dick’s office and he suggested taking a bit of a stroll around the campus before lunch, and that sounded good to us!

Last time we were here, the building Roy’s office used to be in was being refurbished, and I think he was interested to see what had become of it.

So we set off at a leisurely pace, cutting through the Engineering Courtyard (which is very grand, and I have to admit that the French limestone DOES look rather good) and along the row of now-refurbished buildings.

It’s hard to see how they’ve changed, apart from a more open style of corridor with natural light. It looks as though a false ceiling has been added to the ground floor offices, which looks a little odd because it doesn’t match up with the windows.

We visited the foyer of the Mechanical Engineering building, and again found Roy’s PhD plaque on the wall. Then out and around the end of that building and towards a possible source of lunch. This turned out to be a burger/sandwich/salad bar in a kind of common room setting, with tables and chairs, booths with benches… and a pool table! I could imagine it filled with students laughing and talking – but today it was pretty quiet, as most students are on summer vacation. There were also some picnic benches outside, and it was a nice day, so we took our food out and found a nice shady one to sit around.

As on the last occasion we met, the conversation was interesting and touched on many topics, from the obvious political discussion to the state of universities, the future of work, public transport, travel and holidays, parenting and families. The time passed all too quickly – we’d told Glenn we would text when we wanted to come home, but that it wouldn’t be too late, probably mid-afternoon. We could easily have chatted until sundown, but we reluctantly rose at around 4pm to head towards the designated pick-up point. I texted Glenn and let him know we’d be there by 4.30.

Dick walked us over there, and we dawdled along, wringing those last few stories out as we walked past Memorial Church and across the courtyard. Last time we visited, it was very hot and dry – this time, it was cooler and the grass seemed greener and more well-watered. It is certainly a very grand and well-cared-for campus, from the design of the buildings to the flower beds and lawns. I can imagine it would be a very pleasant place to work, although Stanford drives its people very hard – there is constant competitive pressure to perform and produce. Dick is now semi-retired, only working a couple of days a week, so the pressure isn’t so intense for him now – and he doesn’t have to teach. That’s probably the ideal way to handle somewhere like Stanford, I would think.

We stood around talking for a few minutes before Glenn arrived. Dick and his wife may be coming to Australia later in the year – which of course we encouraged them to do! I would love to show them around Sydney – I hope we can organise time with them if and when they do come over. We spotted Glenn driving in and said our goodbyes – or, we hope, auf wiedersehens – and headed home for afternoon fruit and veg snacks and dinner.

It was good to have a less packed schedule for a day! Tomorrow we pick up the pace again with our last trip into San Francisco, for this visit at least. We will be using up our last City Pass voucher with a return to the Californian Academy of Science Museum. Hurrah!!!

Here are some more Stanford scenes for you – so you can see how much Macquarie really resembles it.*

* A lot less than its ambitions to do so.

Day 45 – Getting ready for the road

A totally lazy day today, other than doing the washing and once again repacking my suitcase and weighing it, making sure it’s not over the limit… and making sure all our food is eaten (we’re not quite there yet) and all our electronic stuff – chargers etc – is packed. Sorting out and reorganising the trinkets I’ve bought, hoping I have something for everyone!

We have a bit of food to eat on the road tomorrow and Sunday – if there’s anything left we’ll have to chuck it. We both hate wasting food, so we’re going to try to make sure there isn’t much left. I’m going to have to wear my hiking boots on the plane and hope I can fit my old joggers in somewhere as well as the new ones – there’s still some wear left in them.

Glenn had the day off today, which was great, because he and Roy had a bit more time to catch up while I did washing and stuff. Nancy went out around lunch time to catch up with an old friend and Roy and Glenn and I had lunch and listened to some music and shared some of our favourite YouTube clips, which was good fun. I got all the washing done and dried and folded up and my stuff packed, and my bag is still about 5lb under the 50lb limit but it was only half a kilo under the Australian 20kg limit – we are assuming the 50lbs applies here because that’s what’s on the Delta website, but if I can stay under 20kg I will. Now trying to work out what my heaviest clothes are to wear on the plane tomorrow!!

We had a really great dinner of chicken, mushroom, red capsicum and cherry tomato kebabs with one of the usual delicious salads that Nancy throws together – we have eaten so well here, it’s been great! I feel as if we still have lots to talk about and I am really sad about leaving, as I have  been sad leaving everyone we’ve stayed with, but now at almost 7 weeks since we left I am feeling as if it’s time to go home, to reflect on our experiences, to cement the memories together and to rejoin the “normal” familiar world of home.

I’m going to miss all the wonderful family and friends we’ve met/caught up with and/or stayed with, but over the last week or so the missing of my family and friends at home and work, and most especially Louisa, has shifted from being moments of wistfulness to a bit of a hole in my heart. It’s been a great trip, but it’s time to go home.

I’m glad the last couple of days will be just the two of us – Roy is good at supporting me through the pre-travel anxiety. And the latter, I should emphasise, is not about fear of flying – I love flying. It’s more a general anxiety and stress about just about every other aspect of taking a big trip – have I forgotten anything, what will it be like when I get there… that sort of stuff. It’s not nearly as bad coming back as it is going out, but it still gets to me. I’d rather not inflict that on anyone else (I’d rather not inflict it on Roy, either – but he’s kinda stuck with me). The last couple of days give us time to reflect together, too – to make sense of all the many feelings and experiences we’ve had on the trip so that we stay connected through it. We have made so many wonderful memories and I know they will sustain us for years to come, especially if we never do get to make a return visit.

Day 42 – Lazy day (for me) and dinner

Before we left Sydney, Roy contacted an old friend of his that he used to go hiking with when he was at Stanford. Dick still works at Stanford on research contracts, and he still likes hiking – so he and Roy arranged to catch up and go for a hike while we were here. I wanted Roy to be able to do a more challenging hike than I’d be able to take on, so I decided to have a day off and not plan anything much while they went off on their walk. Roy and I need a break from each other occasionally, anyway, so that suited us both fine. Dick asked us both over for dinner with him and his wife Anne after the walk, so Roy said they’d pick me up on their way back.

Painted wall at Stanford Shopping Centre

Nancy suggested that I might like to have a look at Stanford Shopping Centre, and that she could take me over there and maybe we could have some lunch, and that sounded good to me. We ended up having lunch at home with Roy though because it turned out that Dick was busy this morning and wasn’t free until after 1pm. So we ate some sandwiches, then Roy headed off and Nancy and I went to check out the fabled Stanford shops (another project our former Vice-Chancellor wanted to emulate – despite already having a huge shopping centre just over the road from our university). Neither Nancy nor I are great shoppers, but I had a couple of presents to buy and she likes the flowers and gardens at the shopping centre and was happy to show me around. So off we went.

Garden at Stanford SC

The Stanford Shopping Centre is indeed very pleasant – the gardens and flowers are beautiful and the mall space is, as I’ve come to expect of Stanford, well-appointed with no expense spared on the materials and finish of buildings, paving and “street” furniture. It’s well laid-out and the spaces and corridors between the shops are mostly outdoor or semi-outdoor – it’s not one of those giant covered malls like Mac Centre. It’s also much, much more up-market.

Planter boxes in the mall

Almost all the chain shop names are the big, expensive brands like Louis Vuitton, with prices to match. This ain’t aimed at stipend-dependent students – more the big-spending donors and potential donors. They are building a huge new Bloomingdales to replace the smallish one currently on the site.

More decorative plants

There were also some very nice, but mostly over-priced, specialty shops, including a very lovely little gourmet tea shop, which had a very large range of interesting teas (but I’m not into flavoured or even herbal teas, so the interest didn’t extend to any purchases). It did have some really good tea-related products and I was tempted by some of them until I thought of how on earth I would get them home safely! But it was a nice shop and they were very enthusiastic about their tea – unusual for Americans!

And a few more!

And there were clothes shops and up-market toy shops and gift shops and a fancy bread shop and a handmade chocolates shop. And there were some cafes, that looked like they were serving good food. Oh, and there was the inevitable Stanford merchandise shop – but I’d seen all that stuff yesterday.

Another raised garden bed

Wildlife!

Cute sculptures – jolly little blokes!

 

 

 

 

 

We wandered around and I took some photos of the flowers (they are about to replant because the current crop is starting to finish up) and sculptures.

 

Glass pumpkins?

In the mall there was an outdoor Halloween-themed stall, not selling cheap costumes or masks but absolutely beautiful blown-glass pumpkins. I know this sounds weird (to us), but they really were works of art – every single one a different colour and shape and size.

You betcha!!

They looked so amazing all stacked up together – the colours were just gorgeous in the afternoon sun and the hand-made stems and leaves were so delicate and finely crafted. I love glass and crystal so I found them kind of mesmerising, once I got used to the idea…

So pretty!!

One Halloween merch idea that would be rather lovely to see on the other side of the Pacific (since we seem destined to adopt the annual ritual, given the increasing numbers of witches, ghosts and monsters abroad in my neighbourhood at the end of every October).

We looked into a couple of shops for possible pressies for the people I had in mind, but everything was either not quite right OR outrageously expensive OR impossible for me to get home in one piece (fine china, crystal and glassware, mostly). We finally went into Bloomingdales and I found just what I was looking for there (I’m not going to spoil the surprise for the recipient by telling you what it was), so that was good. But it was also kinda good that neither of us felt compelled to continue window-shopping once we’d done a circuit of the place and seen most of it. There is another section that we didn’t go to, but we’d both seen enough. I wondered aloud who on earth shops there – how do they make money? There weren’t that many people there today and is there really that much money around?? Nancy said that she too was surprised when she heard that this centre is apparently highly profitable, but that, yes, in this area, there is a lot of money around, and also a lot of wealthy people come in from outside the area to shop here – she said it’s absolutely packed on weekends. So things aren’t that bad, at least at the top end of the economy! (Is it EVER?)

We went home and spent the afternoon catching up on things online and then chatting for a few hours over cups of tea (well, I had the cups of tea – they don’t drink it here), which was a nice chance to fill in some of the gaps in conversations we’ve had up until now – a bit more about the family, and about Roy and his life in Sydney and how we got together – and all too soon, Roy was at the door to pick me up to go to dinner at Dick and Anne’s.

They live not too far away from Nancy and Glenn, and it was really good to meet them and their friend Veronica, who I think also lives at their house. We had a lovely dinner of pasta with a delicious tomato and garlic sauce, accompanied by a very fresh and tasty salad, corn on the cob and yummy bread. And wine. And apple pie for dessert, with ice cream! Yum! Conversation was wide-ranging, from Anne and Veronica’s experiences in the US Peace Corps to the state of universities today to politics and foreign policy – and everything in between. And in the course of the conversation, we also found out that Anne and I have a mutual friend – one of our long-term union members at Macquarie, who has just retired but is still doing some work there. So there you go – “I have a friend who lives in Australia” turns out to give us two degrees of separation. The world is indeed a small place.

I’ve met so many interesting people on this trip, and I’ve learned so much – it will take me a while to process it all but it’s definitely challenged and changed many of the preconceptions I had about this nation and its people – as it should! I wonder how people can travel to new places and return with their prejudices and assumptions utterly unexamined – there is simply so much to learn about people and places, so much cause for reflection. It’s been a journey in more ways than one.

Day 18 – Markets, swimming, cheese and crabs

I’m actually writing this the next morning because we got home so late last night.

Going underground…

Eastern Markets

Fresh food and stuff

Amazing mushrooms!

And tomatoes…

And more tomatoes!!

We had a leisurely breakfast, since we weren’t due to meet Caitlin until 11.30-ish. Again the metro was our friend, delivering us to the Eastern Market station without a fuss – the furthest we’ve been yet on the Orange line. From there we only had to walk a block or so up to our meeting place at the Port City Java cafe – so we strolled past the many market stalls to the cafe, Roy purchased a surprisingly good cup of tea for each of us and then we settled down at an outdoor table to people-watch while we waited. Lou would love this spot – lots of stalls, people and dogs walking around checking everything out, kids, ice creams, everything!

Caitlin turned up with Asher soon after, and we talked for a while before setting off to cruise the market stalls. Roy is so very good to indulge me in this, it’s not exactly his favourite pastime, wondering around looking at stuff to buy – especially when it’s as aimless and susceptible to distractions and therefore sudden changes of direction – lots of “look, a gazelle” moments. He’s very lovely and doesn’t complain, even though he can’t help looking a BIT bored. 🙂

I bought a few presents for people at home, and some rather cool fridge magnets for Isaac and Asher (plastic dinosaurs cut in half with each end having a magnet stuck on the cut side, so you can make it look like the dinosaur is walking through the fridge hahaha). And cheese – we went to the cheese shop (which made me feel a bit Python-y) and tried a few cheeses, and I bought a chunk of delicious creamy blue – not too hard, not too soft, a herbed brie and a smoked gouda. All to be nibbled before dinner that evening.

The vege stalls were great – lots of varieties of mushrooms and tomatoes – such a pity I can’t really cook that stuff where we’re staying. Caitlin also bought fresh veges for dinner and I bought a lovely little eggplant that I’ll cook up at our hotel for dinner tonight or tomorrow night – just the right size for the two of us.

We headed back to Caitlin’s place in Cheverly, just outside DC in Maryland. It was great to see Gary again – and then a bit later Isaac and his friend Isaac (what a pair!) turned up, and Asher’s friend Rachel from down the road came over. And we met Freida the new puppy – all legs and lolloping! She’s a sweetie.

The day was still hot and humid, with no real threat of the forecast possible rain, so Caitlin, Roy, Isaacs 1 & 2 and I headed to the pool for a swim. It was beautiful to get into the cool (but not cold) water, and I actually did a few laps! AND had a dive off the springboard which I was a bit nervous about, having not done such a thing for… hmmm… maybe 25 years? Maybe 30? And I wasn’t sure how my non-bending ankle would work on a bouncing platform – but it was OK. Might do a bit more of that sometime! And I might get into doing laps before work again, too – it was very enjoyable, and I’d forgotten that!

Back at Caitlin’s, Gary’s sister Ellen had arrived with a massive delivery of fresh Maryland crabs, which Gary was preparing to cook in a giant outdoor pot on a gas burner. While we waited, we hoed into the cheeses, which were every bit as good as expected. And Gary poured me a rather generous glass of bourbon (on the rocks, not with coke) which I enjoyed immensely, as I did the even more generous one after that. Caitlin’s father Gordon arrived, and it was great to meet him after all these years. He’s an academic too, so there was lots to talk about – plus everyone around the table did their bit to educate me on America’s political system – I’m gradually getting a handle on it, but I’m keen to follow up with some reading on it when I get back.

I switched to drinking red wine. And then the crabs were served. OMG. OMG. Yummo!!!! Unfortunately I don’t have any photos, because my iPad was inside and the business of eating crabs is labour-intensive and extremely messy, but well worth it!!

The evening passed most satisfactorily, with lively conversation, some civil argument/disagreement and LOTS of laughter.  The inevitable and potentially family-rending issue of the Middle East came up but was handled quite well, I think – I hope I didn’t offend anyone because I was really not taking an ideological or political position on the issue – the humanitarian concerns are enough for me in the immediate term – but I was really, genuinely interested to hear the range of views around the table, informed by different lived experiences, expertise and study, as well as cultural values and heritage. It’s obviously an issue of great importance to me, but I can see so many strands to the arguments in this incredibly complex situation.

A few things are clear to me though – one, that the slaughter of innocents is never justified and will, quite simply, aggravate rather than diminish the conflict; two, that if major powers were not pouring armaments into each side of the conflict, the people themselves probably would have figured it out by now; three, that if their neighbours weren’t sitting on a stack of oil on which the economies of nations are so dependent, no-one OTHER than ideologues, religious zealots and humanitarians would give a damn about either side; and four, that arguments provided by all sides of the debate would hold a lot more water if the participants ensured that their contributions were free of racist, prejudicial and genocidal language. Some of the things being said in mainstream and social media are, quite simply, appalling. On both sides. No-one will win over anyone but the ignorant, violent and irrational with such language.

Anyway, we managed to keep it civil as the empties piled up, and it was a really, really fantastic night. Gary and Caitlin are wonderful, generous and entertaining hosts, and I also very much enjoyed meeting and talking with Ellen and Gordon – both very intelligent and interesting people, it was an absolute pleasure to spend an evening with them. Thanks to all of you!!

Waiting for the Red Line train home. With Gordon.

Again the trusty metro saw us home, with some of the clubs and bars we passed on the way from the station to the hotel still busy even around midnight. Although people talk about the high levels of crime in Washington DC, I’d have to say I’ve felt very safe in the area we’re staying in, and the young people riding the subway late were not at all threatening or even particularly rowdy. It’s a very liveable city, at least in the parts we’ve frequented. In many ways I’ll be sorry to leave it, although I am starting to get that “itchy feet” thing, with some feelings of homesickness intruding after being in the one place for a few days. I’m missing Lou a lot, and my friends, and my choirs, and even my work. But I’m so very happy to be having this break, too – I really needed it.

Day 16 – Museums and a catch-up

Once upon a time my grandmother was friends with Caitlin’s grandmother. They each had their first child at about the same time – my aunt and Caitlin’s uncle are the same age. Then my mother and Caitlin’s mother Glenda came along, just a couple of weeks apart. They went to school together, to Sydney Girls High, and they stayed friends, even when Caitlin’s mother moved to the USA, where she married and had Caitlin, some years after my mother had married my father and started a family.

Caitlin and Glenda visited a couple of times when we were all kids – I remember Caitlin (who is some years younger than I) on her first visit as a somewhat shy little girl – probably overwhelmed with meeting all of these new people – and we tried so hard to get her to talk, because we wanted to hear her American accent!! Some years later, when Glenda moved back to Australia, Caitlin came too, and finished her schooling there – or at least that’s my memory!! (Correct me if I’m wrong, Caitlin!) We saw them on and off, and at family gatherings, because Caitlin’s uncle was – and still is – a very close family friend, and my mother was also close to Caitlin’s grandmother – she used to visit us often,  pulling up outside in her little blue car, drinking tea with Mum. She was always so interested in what we kids were doing. From Caitlin’s  wonderful reminiscences about her mother, it sounds like Glenda was like that with her grandchildren – she was the same with Louisa, too – a strong family trait, it seems. Glenda’s death seven years ago hit all of us very hard, especially Lou, who from quite a young age wanted to be a writer, and was inspired by Glenda.

Sometime after school finished, Caitlin moved back to the US – Glenda was back and forwards a fair bit, in order to keep up her residency – but Caitlin stayed in the country she’d mostly grown up in, and still lives there today, with her husband and two sons. She’s visited Australia a couple of times, and I’ve met Gary and the boys too, when they were very little, but it’s been quite a few years now since we saw them – about six, I think. We chat every so often via Facebook – but one of the things that I really wanted to do on this trip was catch up with Caitlin and her family face-to-face, and reinforce the intergenerational connections between our families.

Music matters!

Click! Click! Click!

So it was great to have a chance to wander around the American History Museum with Caitlin today! We have so much to catch up on, all we could do today was make a start, against the backdrop of the Stars and Stripes exhibition, the story of the Emancipation Proclamation and the Civil Rights movement and an amazing collection of historical artefacts from American social and technological history.  From the early typewriters to Dorothy’s ruby shoes from Oz, from models of agricultural machinery to period clothing… each one giving rise to more reflections, discussions, questions, memories, laughs…  We could have spent all day there!! But we will get a chance to talk some more – we have arranged to meet again on Saturday, go to the markets and maybe the pool with the kids, if it’s fine, and then stay for dinner – I can’t wait to see them all again, I’m really looking forward to our day out together.

Apollo 11 Command Module

In the meantime, there is so much more of Washington DC to explore! After Caitlin left us to rescue her car from the parking restrictions and head home for the evening, Roy and I headed over to the Air and Space Museum, which he was very interested in seeing. I had – and have – mixed feelings about it -I love stuff about space, and space exploration, as well as planes and stories about flight – so I was keen on all of that.

 

Skylab replica – not in bits across WA

It’s just that it’s all so entwined with military hardware and warfare, and so I’m kind of conflicted by that. I love the science, and the boldness of flight and exploration – I just hate the side of it that empowers people to kill others, without even having to see them or even be on the same continent. And there is no way to separate them – the science simply would not have happened without the driver of military conflict, from the War of Independence through to the World Wars and the Cold War – and still it goes on. So – yep, conflicted – but still enjoyed the non-military, scientific and space expedition bits!

Ginormous sunflower

Cute!

After overdoing it a bit yesterday, I was pretty footsore by the time the museum closed at 7.30, and we headed for home to a fairly basic microwave dinner. On the way to the Metro station to catch the train (*sigh* – DC public transport is so easy to get around on) we passed some giant sunflowers and a cheeky squirrel!

Now, to tackle the DA Crossword before everyone at home gets a go at it!!

Day 13 – On the road again

Sooze and Dean – friends forever! ❤

Very sad saying goodbye to Sue and Dean this morning – they have not only been generous, kind and caring hosts, but have also shared with us some of the places most dear to them, with deep significance to their lives – it is such a privilege to have visited these places and spent time there with them.

 

Smutzy

Mama Verla

Precious

Tazzie

 

 

 

 

 

We will miss our friends so much! (including the lovely doggie ones!) It has just been fantastic to see my old SWB sista Sooze again and to get to know Dean a bit better. I’d only met him a couple of times before this, when he came out to Australia to meet us all, travel around a bit, and help Sooze with sorting out the house at St Ives – it seems such a long time ago, but as with all good and true friends, as soon as you’re together again the years apart vanish and it’s just like old times. We’ve made some more wonderful memories over the last week and even though we’re sure to get busy and not be in touch as often as we’d like, I just know that we’ll see each other again and that when we do we’ll have just as much fun as we did this time.

The thought of both Lou and me being so far away from Alana makes my heart feel as if it’s full of heavy stones that can never be shifted away, no matter how many Skype calls we make and no matter how many Facebook messages we exchange. One born of me and one born in my sight – I was the first to hold one and the second to hold the other – these are strong bonds and they will last forever, but the stretching of them brings a pain like no other.

—–

Roy takes the wheel!

Interstate 40

So – to the next stage of our Grand US Tour: driving a rental car to Washington DC. We picked up the car just outside Jackson – Sue dropped us there on her way to work. Roy drove first – I wanted to have a bit more time in the front passenger seat before swapping to the driver’s side – and all went pretty smoothly. There was not too much traffic, and we were onto Interstate 40 pretty much straight away. We took the big orbital around Nashville, though (State Route 840) and I took over the driving before we rejoined I40 on the other side of Nashville.

Despite my great apprehension about driving on the right side of the road, it wasn’t too bad – the hardest part at this stage was making sure I stayed in the middle of the lane and didn’t let the right-hand-side wheels drift onto the lane markings. After over 30 years of riding/driving on the left side of the road you develop a pretty good sense of where that side of the car is with respect to lanes, parked cars and other obstacles. Swapping that distance and depth perception takes a bit of time. At least it was on a wide divided highway with everyone going in the same direction and no turns or traffic lights, rather than on narrow city streets with two-way traffic and lots of signals!

However, as we neared downtown Knoxville, I had a bit more difficulty – the road widened to four and sometimes five lanes, there was a LOT more traffic, most of it (including very large trucks) doing well above the speed limit, and lots and lots of entrance and exit ramps coming in and out on the right – which meant that the right-hand lane kept appearing and disappearing. This stretch of the I40 doubles as a State road as well, and so the road numbers were really confusing – as were the junction exit/entry numbers (which are based on the miles from the road’s starting point – at this stage in the 300s). Very, very stressful – I was a bit shaken up by it and very relieved to get beyond it on the other side of Knoxville!

I’m afraid I took it out on Roy a bit as I took his entirely reasonable and understandable failure to read my mind (!) as him being unhelpful with interpreting unfamiliar roads and signage for me. And then he completely unintentionally made me feel even worse when he took over the driving again and commented on how much more relaxing it was for him to drive than be a passenger!

Smooch

Poor darling – at least over dinner I was able to explain how I felt and why I was in such a state – and we both apologised to each other – it’s all better now, and we’re planning tomorrow’s route from Kingsport Comfort Inn (near Johnson City, Tennessee), via Virginia to Washington DC. We’re thinking of taking a slightly less-travelled road so that we get to see a bit more of the country than the Interstate highway verges!

Day 9 – More waterfalls … and good times

I made pancakes this morning. To Dean’s horror, they were perfectly OK, despite being made from flour, butter, eggs, milk and sugar. OMG!!!

Twin Falls looking downstream

We then headed out to Twin Falls, in Rock Island State Park. Very impressive, with a lot of water coming down after the last few days of rain. There is a short walk along the river to several vantage points for viewing the falls – it was a bit slippery but the ankle held up OK and I managed to get some lovely photos as well as video of the falls. The sound of them is fantastic.

Twin Falls looking upstream

Close-up – looking upstream

These particular falls emerge from the cliff face itself – the river that produces them flows underground through limestone and pours down over rock shelves into the Caney Fork River. Collins River is damned further up (there is a hydro power station just upstream from the falls) and the Twin Falls appeared after the damn was built – the theory is that the river level behind the damn rose and water started to seep under pressure into cavities in the limestone.  It escapes by bursting through the cliffs – and it’s pretty spectacular.

Also spectacular were the many large birds soaring over the deep Caney Fork River valley – mostly hawks but some bigger ones which I think were probably Black Vultures – they are carrion feeders, which seems to upset people, but  I think they do a fantastic job as nature’s cleaning team – they polish off the road kill very effectively.

Great Falls Power Station

While we were down by the falls, the power station siren went off, indicating the release of water from the dam. The advice is to move to higher ground when the siren sounds – I’m not sure how far away the spillway is, but even after the sirens stopped there was no perceptible rise in the water level, so maybe they’re just over-cautious in this litigious nation.

Burgess Little Falls

Burgess Middle Falls

Burgess Big Falls

We moved on (rescuing Dean from an earbashing from an ex-Ranger who was regaling him with stories of his travels and treks) to Burgess Falls, in the Burgess Falls State Park. There are actually three sets of falls – the Little Falls, Middle Falls and Burgess Falls (or Big Falls) itself. Plus there are beautiful pools and rapids over sloping and stepped rock shelves between the more dramatic drops. We were never away from the sound of rushing and falling water as we trekked the 3/4 mile track between Little and Big Falls, via Middle Falls.

Many people have left their names or initials along the track, either on the trees or the railings that line the track. Some are written with markers but others are carved into the timber (alive or dead). People just want to leave their mark on the places they’ve been. Reflecting on that, I realised that I really don’t care about leaving my mark – in fact it’s the mark that such places leave on me that is so much more precious and important to me.

And this place has definitely left its mark – the depth and majesty of its canyons and the rich music of its falling waters, the moss and the lichen and the shade of its forests, and the fact that I’ve experienced all of this in the company of my lovely partner and my friends. This is a special place for Sue and Dean too – they come here regularly and were married at another waterfall park not too far away – and I’m so grateful to them for sharing it with us.

We made our way back to the cabin and Dean cooked up a fantastic BBQ dinner – steak, sausages, broccoli, baked potatoes and corn on the cob, onions and mushrooms fried up on the stove, salad… what a feast! I will need to ride my bike to work every day for a year to counter this overindulgence! After dinner we sat near the fire Dean had built in the fire pit outside the cabin (not too near – it’s still pretty warm out there!) and watched the stars – we could see the milky way quite clearly when we blocked out the garden lights! Like Billy Bragg, I saw a shooting star and wished on it, but it was only a satellite. “Is it wrong to wish on space hardware?” Maybe it’s just the G&Ts…

Back to Jackson tomorrow, possibly via the Cumberland Caverns and a cave tour. 🙂

Day 8 – Off to the waterfalls – oh deer!!

Another big(ish) travel day – a four hour drive (plus some stops for lunch and shopping – I’m gonna do pancakes tomorrow for brekky). Sooze drove all the way – I wasn’t even game to offer to relieve her because I still cringe whenever we make a left-hand turn. I’m really relying on Roy to deal with getting out of Jackson next week when we head for DC!! I might have to try it first on a very very very quiet country road or back street…

Crossing the Tennessee River

Yep, really.

We headed back towards Nashville but bypassed it to the south and headed for Franklin and Murfreesboro, through Woodbury to McMinnsville, where we stopped for a late lunch and the committing of great sins of consumerism (i.e. shopping at Walmart). Dean was shocked – shocked, I tell you – that I was intending to make pancakes from scratch – i.e. not using pancake mix!!  And Roy selected “America’s favourite tea” – and then later wondered why “it tastes different” – well, obviously, because it’s America’s favourite, not Lipton’s black tea. Ahem.

And don’t get me started on the non-availability of unsweetened thickened cream or canned raspberries or muesli or anything that doesn’t have corn syrup or palm oil in it. But there ARE strawberry Twinkies – Hostess Twinkies as made famous by Tom Robbins in Still Life with Woodpecker. Ah America!! Tennessee!!!  But people are incredibly friendly and polite and generous and cheerful – none of this makes sense in a nation so divided and unequal.

On the way up we saw heaps of high-soaring birds – hawks and buzzards – too far away to photograph or identify species. Not for the first time I cursed myself for leaving the field-glasses behind in Sydney. Dammit!

While we were having lunch, we heard sirens – Sue thought they might be tornado warnings but the people in the restaurant didn’t seem to be too perturbed. When we asked, the waitress (who has only been here for a week) said she thought they were just storm warning sirens – the other people working there said that they go off before ordinary thunderstorms – dunno what they do for tornadoes! Anyway, we made it through the rain and a bit of thunder to the cabins near Spencer by about 5 – checked in and unloaded the car – the cabin is really lovely, a three-bedroom one with a mostly well-equipped kitchen – but no kettle!! – gaaaaah – we have to heat water for our less-than-premium tea in the coffee-maker. After a quick cuppa, we headed up to see the Fall Creek Falls just a few miles up the road.

Oh deer!!

On the way to the falls we saw lots of wild turkeys (not the bourbon – actual birds) – but I wasn’t quick enough to get any photos, unfortunately. Maybe tomorrow! As dusk approached, the deer came out to graze along the side of the road – very pretty!

Fall Creek Falls

The top of the falls

 

… and the pool 256 ft below

The falls are beautiful – 256 ft high – lots of water coming over them at the moment after a few days of good rain. There wasn’t much light by this time and there was a lot of mist coming in, hanging about the tops of the cliffs and settling into the valleys, so the photos were a bit hard to get – but you can (hopefully) get a sense of their depth and grandeur. The sound of them and the sight of the water falling were mesmerising – such an amazing spectacle in a natural setting.

Since returning to the cabin all we’ve done is watch TV, drink red wine, talk and laugh our heads off as only old friends can. We’re having a ball just making fun for ourselves, telling jokes and stories and being smartarses with one-liners and little affectionate digs at each other – it’s all about making memories that will sustain us when we’re apart. I feel luckier every day.

Day 7 – Pinson Mounds and Fun Guys!

We lounged around a bit this morning and had a late brekky. Smutzy the Staffie and I became reacquainted with each other – he has a few grey hairs now (like me) but is pretty much the same ball of enthusiastic energy as he was as a puppy in Sydney. Tazzie seemed to remember us from last night. There is also a lovely gentle Mama dog whose name I remembered earlier but since Alana’s been here calling her Mama I have completely forgotten her other names… [update: I’ve been reminded now – it’s Verla May Bovina – the last because she has sad cow eyes]. And then there’s Precious – we haven’t been allowed to meet her face to face yet ‘cos she’s a bit unpredictable. Oh, and there’s a female ginger cat (!) Kika, who seems to hide under the bed most of the time, except when she comes out to bat one of the dogs about the head. And there is another dog who has been banished altogether to kennels because he is way too aggro and fights with Smutzy.

After brekky we lounged around a bit more and then (just as the day reached full heat) we set off to the Pinson Mounds State Archaeological Park, where there are ancient Native American earthen mounds and other structures. The museum was fascinating – the park is a very significant archaeological site, and lots of artefacts have been found there, although they still don’t seem to know an awful lot about the people who built them.

Sue and Dean atop Saul Mound

And Roy!

 

 

Some of them were damaged a fair bit before local people won their campaign to have the site preserved as an important historical area, but others are quite undisturbed. Most are quite small but the largest one, Saul Mound, is 72 feet high (about 22m) and there are stairs to the top of it.

 

 

 

At the top you are right up among the trees and there are beautiful (and huge) butterflies and lots of squirrels leaping about – very cute! Dean took some great photos up there – neither my camera nor the iPad had the capabilities to get up close enough, unfortunately, but I did get some good shots with the camera of skinks on the way back down. I can’t get those in here yet, until I’ve uploaded them via Roy’s computer. Bloody iPads.

walking back through the forest

Despite the heat (94 deg in the old money) and humidity (very high), we walked back to the carpark via one of the paved trails through forest and grassland. No snakes sighted, but tons of beautiful dragonflies everywhere – too quick and darty to get photos!

The lichen and fungus, however, moved much more slowly, as did the flowers, so I did manage some nice shots of them – Lou might find these interesting!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fun guy!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were very happy to return to the airconditioning for the drive home to the promised banquet of deep-fried turkey, stuffing, cranberry jelly, beans, corn on the cob, heart-attack mashed potato (made with cream) and Dean’s devilled eggs. O bliss!! Alana came over and it was so good to see my gorgeous god-daughter again! We talked about old times and the fun stuff and how much we miss each other. I hope she comes back to visit us soon – it would be great to see Alana and Lou together again. We all sat and talked and watched Dr Who while our too-full stomachs tried to settle down – an altogether satisfactory evening, with the exception of being unable to contact Lou for a Skype call.

OMG!!

Tomorrow we’re off to waterfall country for a couple of days – I probably won’t have an internet connection there so will have to catch up on Friday!