Fall in the Finger Lakes

 

Finger Lakes Redux

October 2024

 

            Another Fall outing to the Fingers Lakes wine country, retracing some of our travels in 2013. [An article in the Sunday Times-Union says travel is “anti-aging therapy.”] Joined this time by 2 favorite travel companions from our Wisconsin days, Kay & Diane, the latter now coming out from Santa Fe. They arrive just a day after I return from a golf outing in southern Utah. I’m loaded up with Wine Trail maps. We thought of getting an arrangement to be driven around, but those are quite expensive. So I will be the “designated driver.”

            We have a couple of days before the Finger Lakes excursion. I catch up with lawn mowing and work on the journal & photos from Utah. Marjorie & I enjoy what seems an especially comforting 8am Mass Sunday with Fr. Daniel & Deacon Marty. Later I take photos of a well-attended Blessing of Animals outside the Church. Marjorie takes Diane & Kay to the lovely Sand Lake Merchant shop where some of her creations are sold. Then to the Hagaman art show, where she sold 3 pieces and received a 3^rd-place ribbon. On Monday Diane & Kay get tours of Pruyn House, a historical/cultural site for which Marjorie is on the Board of Trustees, and Beverwyck, where we are on the waiting list to move to “senior housing.”

Golfing in Southern Utah

 

Still Crazy II

September-October 2024

 

In 2021 Jeff, apartment-mate & friend at UWisconsin grad school who married Marjorie’s sister (and led to my meeting Marjorie, but that’s a longer story), invited me to join a golfing group of alumni from his Racine WI high school. The group, which dubbed themselves “Still Crazy,” gathers periodically to play in various sites around the country. Pinehurst NC, something of a golfing mecca, was the choice for 2021. I had a wonderful time, sharing golf on special courses designed by the likes of Jack Nicklaus & Pete Dye with a very congenial group of guys. By way of thanks, I made a photo calendar from our Pinehurst adventures for organizer Bob; he tells me he still uses it with adjustments for the current year. I was set to join them again at some fabulous courses in southern Utah in 2022 but had to cancel when I contracted COVID. I planned to try again in 2023 when the group was scheduled in Georgia, but backed out from worries about how spinal stenosis issues in my back would handle concentrated golf over 3-4 days. Still Crazy e-mails rolled around again in Spring 2024, this time touting accommodations & golf in Southern California. After dithering for a while about my back, I decided to give it a shot, so to speak. Another fabulous job arranging the details: Bob Schroeder handles lodging and courses, Tim Paulson the money. As usual, Bob says, ”your Trip Charge covers everything once you land: car rental, everyone-under-one-roof accommodations, meals, munchies, medicinal liquids, green fees, event entry fees, a dozen golf balls, team hats, a variety of sure-to-be-treasured swag items... and four STILL CRAZY days of smiles, stories and sport.” I use my United Airline credit card miles for flights to & from LAX.

Everything looked great: beautiful lodging, interesting courses. Then . . . an email from Bob: “Shocking Developments” aka “Shit Happens.” About 3 weeks before the scheduled trip our lodgings are cancelled as part of a Chapter 11 Reorganization Bankruptcy! Does Bob give up? No, indeed! In only a few days he somehow manages to arrange another fabulous itinerary on the same dates for our consideration near St. George in southern Utah. This will make up for my missing Utah 2 years ago. Enough others in the group are “in” for the new arrangements. I cancel my original flights with a refund of the United miles to use for new flights to Utah. A choice of flying into St. George UT (30 minutes from lodging but 2 layovers on the way) or Las Vegas (2 hours away, but only 1 layover). I opt for fewer layovers. Coincidentally, a new COVID variant is spiking. I get a shot of an updated vaccine. Here’s hoping all’s well that ends well!

St. George was founded part of a “cotton mission” in 1861 under direction of a Latter Day Saint apostle, named after another LDS apostle. In the early 1950s, St. George was hit by fallout from above-ground nuclear testing NW of Las Vegas, with marked increases in cancer. Population 95,000, elevation about 3000’. It’s in part of the Mojave Desert; we can expect temps of 90-100. But hey, it’s dry heat, right? I remember the beauty of St. George and its surroundings from our trip thru Utah & Nevada in 1997. Bob sent a link to videos of the courses in this area. Fabulous scenery, courses winding thru red-rock canyons ready to capture wayward shots (I’ll pack lots of balls!). Golf Week Magazine has called the Red Rock Golf Trail here "The most exciting collection of spectacular golf courses anywhere on earth." Will my game be worthy?

Michigan 2024

 

Michigan

August 2024

 

Grandson Miles is doing a repeat 6-week camp at Interlochen Center for the Arts, but with a twist: he will return to Interlochen for his senior year of high school, as Anthea had done. We’ll repeat our trip out to see him and also visit with Russ’ brother Doug and sister-in-law Ann in Midland. Daughter-in-law Anthea will drive from Queens to join us; son Matt is otherwise occupied performing at the Tahoe Classical Festival. We’re sorry that Anthea’s parents, Pamela & Brian, also can’t join us this year.

 Thursday-Friday, 8/1-2: “Frogs and Balloons”

An uber reserved at 4am for our 6:15 flight to Chicago, but silly Marjorie made it for the wrong date! Change of plans, we drive and park at the airport. Airport’s all discombobulated by construction, both parking & terminal. Interesting art along a corridor. 

DC Open Embassies and More

 

DC Embassy Open Houses, Flowers, and Museums

May 2024

 

A year ago friend Diane, Executive Director of Colonie Senior Service Centers, where I’m on the Board of Directors and Marjorie has given & taken art classes and other activities, told us about spring open houses in embassies in Washington. It sounded lovely, so I started looking into options for this year, then learned Diane is organizing a group tour (initially for 10, grew to 23). She’s arranging flights & hotel. We signed right up. Diane has a planning meeting 3 weeks beforehand with various tips and a list of 51 embassies then set to be open.

These open houses are part of Passport DC, a month-long “journey around the world.”  Celebrated annually in May, International Cultural Awareness Month in Washington, Passport DC is 31 days of programming by embassies and other cultural institutions. DC is home to more than 175 embassies, the 2^nd-highest in one city in the world. [No, we won’t try to see them all!] During Around the World Embassy Tour, embassies from multiple non-European Union countries will host open houses on May 4 for visitors to learn about cultures & and traditions thru food, fashion, arts & music, etc. Passport DC also features a Flower Mart & International Floral Exhibit at the National Cathedral. On following weekends EU & then Asian embassies will host visitors. These are all free events open to the public.

Spring is pretty much in full swing around Albany, tulips up in Washington Park, trees & azaleas blooming on the UAlbany campus. It’ll be interesting to see what Washington looks like. The National Cherry Blossom Festival in DC ended April 14^th, but maybe some will still be blooming. Temps in DC have been 80s, even 90s, so we’ll pack light. We neaten up the house some for son Matt’s visit over the weekend, here to pack up grandson William at the end of his sophomore semester at Siena. Marjorie leaves Matt a “to-do list,” mostly in the garden; Matt’s become quite the gardener around their building in Queens.

Costa Rica

 

Costa Rica

March 2024

 

           Our travels have not included Central America. Well, a brief dip into Nogales, Mexico, during a trip to Arizona in 1987, but not enough to check off the region. Costa Rica has much to recommend it. One of the most “biodiverse” countries in the world, with some 5% of the world’s species. Been called the birthplace of ecotourism; 12 different life zones, 20 national parks, 26 protected areas, 9 forest reserves, 8 biological reserves, & 7 wildlife sanctuaries. All this packed into an area about the size of West Virginia. Climate seems quite agreeable: average highs about 80 don’t vary much by month and March looks the best for rainfall. Costa Rica is also described as a “safe paradise” with a very stable political climate. Last but not least: rave reviews from a surprising number of friends who’ve been there; we seem to be latecomers, guess we didn’t get the memo.

Costa Rica was inhabited by indigenous peoples before coming under Spanish rule in the 16^th C following Columbus’ arrival on his final New World voyage in 1502. In 1821 Costa Rica joined other Central American provinces in a joint declaration of independence from Spain. Following a brief  Civil War in 1948 its army was abolished, becoming one of only a few countries without a standing army, and there has been uninterrupted democratic rule since then. According to stats in Wikipedia, Costa Rica ranks well on various world indicators: higher “human development” than countries at the same income levels, 98% literacy, the 8^th freest press, 35^th most democratic, and 23^rd happiest country. We’ve done a number of trips with Gate1, which has several options for Costa Rica. The “10 Day Classic Costa Rica with Manuel Antonio” offers a quite comprehensive itinerary from mountains & volcanos to rain forests to coastal beaches.

Boston 2024

 

Boston

January 2024

 

We start our travels in the new year with several days in Boston, courtesy of the generosity of Marjorie’s sister Mary and hubbie Jeff. They treat us to a Marriott stay on their Vacation Club points. We’ve enjoyed similar outings with them here & Branson MO. A nice break. Been a pretty easy winter so far, not much snow. But Old Man Winter has been sending some reminders. Mary & Jeff are flying from KC where the NFL playoff game the previous night started at -4° with -27° windchill, the 3^rd coldest NFL game ever! [What's the coldest?: The "Ice Bowl" in Green Bay (vs. Dallas) 1967, -13 with -48 windchill!] Plus the game in Buffalo is postponed a day due to Winter Storm Heather bringing 2+ feet of snow. [And a shout-out to my brother Doug, whose Lions win their 1st playoff game in 32 years!] We have a brief but ferocious “squall” & whiteout conditions at home.

 

Monday, 1/15: “From Blood to Boston”

           A few things to take care of before driving to Boston. I'm off on what turns out to be an unusually long Red Cross delivery route, 7 hours, 270 miles: 4 hospitals from Kingston to Poughkeepsie to Putnam County, and then the small airfield at Walkill for "Air Methods" helicopter service. Some difficulty – the code I have doesn't open the door, no answers on phone #s I have -- but then a copter lands to "rescue" me. A pretty drive, sunny & brisk (teens to start), criss-crossing the Hudson, Catskill views, past imposing Fishkill prison and a favorite storefront outside Poughkeepsie that reads "ubreakifix." Marjorie finishes up some other things, we hit the road at 5pm. An easy drive until a GPS kerfuffle sends us headed back west! We correct things, get to the hotel about 9pm. 

On the Orient Express

 

On the Orient Express: A Belated Anniversary

Fall 2023

 

            Train-lover Marjorie has long expressed her desire for a trip on the Orient Express (there’s also Buddy Bombard’s Balloon Adventures, but that’s another story). She’s nonetheless surprised when I give her a “voucher” on her BD in 2021, aiming to celebrate our 50^th Anniversary (11/20/21) in Fall 2022 when (hopefully) COVID would be under control. The pandemic eases by March. On-line searching leads to multiple sources & routes, London, Paris, Venice, Vienna, Budapest, Istanbul, etc. I

decide to look into London to Verona (a city we’ve not visited) with Railbookers, which is cited very positively. A very pleasant discussion with Eileen to look for a Fall trip. After some searching, she indicates almost everything booked but found one: “Grand Suite” for $19,000 per person! Woof! I do love dear Marjorie, but that seems way over the top (it’s only one night on the train, after all!). So Eileen searches for Fall 2023 and finds a much more sensible booking. We just have to be patient, lots of anticipation time.

The Orient-Express was created in 1883, 1^st trip left Paris for Constantinople with 40 passengers for 13 days roundtrip, unveiling midnight blue metallic cars with golden trim that led to its “Train Bleu” nickname. Trains became known for luxurious decorations & services: wood marquetry, glass panels, fabrics, refined leather, plus an “incredible gastronomic experience.” 

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie was published in 1934; various movie & TV adaptations followed. The original route ran from Paris across Europe thru Strasbourg, Munich, Vienna, Budapest, & Bucharest before arriving in Istanbul. Other routes headed south thru Lausanne, Simplon, Milan, Venice, Belgrade, & Sofia before Istanbul, or as far as Athens. The last direct trip between Paris & Istanbul was 1977.

            A mission to bring the train back began with 2 original carriages bought at auction, others tracked down for skilled craftsmen to restore; all classified as Historical Monuments. Relaunched 1982, increasing destinations & routes since then. The current Venice Simplon-Orient-Express (VSOE) is part of Belmond, which operates other “luxury trains,” including British Pullman, Royal Scotsman, & Andean Explorer. One account says: “Of all the luxury journeys in all the world, none evokes a picture of pure elegance, timeless sophistication and unparalleled romance quite like the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express. Truly harking back to the 'Golden Age of Rail Travel', everything from the vintage cabins, exquisite gastronomy and convivial entertainment to the deluxe sleeping cars and inimitable service ensure that you are in for the journey of a lifetime. This is one train ride that is truly unforgettable.” But will there be a murder on board?