Mary Clark, Traveler

Jimmy Dean Museum – Remembering a Local Star

Jimmy Dean and the Texas Wildcats

Small towns are rightfully proud of their people who make it big in the world at large.  Paris’ Coach Stallings’ name is recognized across the country for his Alabama championship teams.  Buddy Holly put Lubbock on the map.  In my hometown of Plainview, Texas it was Jimmy Dean, country music performer, actor, tv host, and sausage entrepreneur. Today a lovely Jimmy Dean Museum on the campus of Wayland Baptist University honors this icon and draws visitors from across the country.

Jimmy Dean came from modest means, growing up in the tiny suburb of Seth Ward, adjacent to Plainview. His mother worked hard after his father left, launching a lifetime desire for Jimmy to take care of her.  He came by his musical talents naturally as both parents were musicians.  His mother taught him piano, his father was a singer/songwriter, and Jimmy taught himself to play the accordion and harmonica.

After serving in the military, he began the band The Texas Wildcats in 1948 who were well known from appearances on the radio in Washington. Because of the success of his most famous song Big Bad John in 1961, he would go on to perform in Carnegie Hall, Hollywood Bowl, the Ed Sullivan Show and become the first country music star to perform in Las Vegas.

Jimmy Dean with Muppet Rowlf

Dean with a young Elvis Pressley

After Jimmy became the first guest host on the Tonight Show, he was given his own morning show on ABC.  It was a surprise hit, thanks to Dean’s easy going country boy approach to interviews. A favorite feature of the show was the interaction between Dean and the early appearance of the Muppet Rowlf, along with Jim Henson.  Through his career, Dean appeared with an array of famous people – from Elvis Pressley to Kate Smith, Pearl Bailey, Bing Crosby, Whitey Ford, three U.S. Presidents and even Woody Allen. The museum provides wonderful photos of these encounters as well as information on Dean’s later acting career.

Younger Americans may only recognize the name of Jimmy Dean because of his sausage company.  The decision to sell a quality sausage launched the construction of a large processing plant in Plainview and supported many local pig farmers.  The history of this popular product that was began in 1969 is in the museum and covers the parting of the ways when the company was sold to Sara Lee Corporation in 1984.

One of my favorite parts to the museum was Jimmy’s folksy quotes for which he was known.  Many were casually filled with mild expletives, but some were gentler. “Will Rogers was once quoted as saying he had never met a man he didn’t like and I can truthfully say I never met an audience I didn’t like.” “It’s nice to be important but more important to be nice.”  “Grin once in a while. It’s good for you.” And my favorite, “There’s hardly anything that cannot be accomplished if it doesn’t matter who gets the credit.”

Dean’s greatest hit

A side benefit to having the museum in Plainview is the large number of residents who still have Jimmy Dean stories to share.  I heard from those who had their hair cut by Jimmy’s mother or who played the same piano at the Seth Ward Baptist church where Jimmy attended.  Many tell of his brother, Don Dean, who delivered milk in homes.  On occasion, Jimmy joined him on the milk rounds even after he became famous.  Former workers at the Jimmy Dean Plant called him polite and encouraging.  Jimmy once agreed to greet a soldier fighting in Vietnam when his brother asked him to say a few words into a cassette recorder. And some remember when Jimmy built a new house for his mother even though she just wanted a new linoleum floor.

The final decision to locate the Jimmy Dean Museum in Plainview came after his death when his widow, Donna Dean, recognized his hometown was more appropriate than in Virginia where they lived.  Jimmy had always kept in touch with Plainview residents with frequent visits and had been honored on several occasions. Reflecting his heart for kids, Jimmy gave $1 million to Wayland for scholarships.

Outside sign of museum

The Museum is well displayed, filled with memorabilia from his career, and is adjacent to the Llano Estacado Museum that tells the history of the area, including the other famous Plainview product – the Plainview Paleoindian projectile points dating from 10,000 BCE.  If you like West Texas music, the museum is sponsoring the first annual Jimmy Dean Music Festival on September 4th. Jimmy Dean Music Festival

After visiting the museum, you can check out the Jimmy Dean Dorm on the Wayland Campus or the granite plaque on the Walk of Fame downtown.  And don’t forget to talk to some folks.  You just might get more stories.

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Visiting Mosques – A New World of Faith

Eyup Mosque in Istanbul

Inside Eyup Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey

Ahmet, our Turkish friend, insisted we were welcome in the Eyup Mosque of Istanbul, Turkey, even though we were not Muslims.  He wanted us to experience one of the many local spiritual centers of Islam and only required that my friend, Mary Grace, and I cover our heads.  We entered through the women’s section in the balcony and could observe supplicants below.  It was between the five required calls to prayer and yet there were men praying on their knees, occasionally bowing to the floor, coming and going as they chose, an experience similar to the activity in a European cathedral.

Inside a mosque, a feeling of spaciousness prevails as there are no pews or chairs but most often a thick layer of beautifully woven rugs, gifts of generous benefactors. Missing are statues, ritual objects, musical instruments, and stained-glass windows of the Christian story.  However, carved domes, arched windows, flowered tiles, wooden carvings of inscriptions from the Qur’an (Koran) or names of Muhammad and his companions are allowed and can be quite stunning.  Large crystal chandeliers often shed subdued light on the sacred space.

The semicircular niche or mihrab points in the direction of Mecca to assist in knowing in which direction to pray while the minbar serves the familiar purpose of a pulpit for the Imam to speak at the Friday noon weekly service.  Passing by a mosque on a Friday in Alexandria, Egypt, my group listened to a broadcast by the Imam talking a large group of Muslims seated outside.  Our guide translated it as advice about the required once in a lifetime pilgrimage to Mecca.  The Imam advised one should only go after he has provided for his family and should not go into debt to make that journey.

Inside the Great Mosque in Kairouan, Tunisia

Courtyard of Great Mosque in Kairouan, Tunisia

The oldest mosque I have visited is also the oldest place of worship in North Africa dating from 670 AD – the Great Mosque in Kairouan, Tunisia, relatively unknown in the West but well respected in the Mahgreb. If you cannot afford to travel to Mecca for the required haj, a visit to this mosque seven times can meet the requirement.  Even though we were well covered, all of us, including the men,  had to wrap ourselves in a cotton robe handed out at the entrance to the courtyard. Shoes must be removed to enter a mosque, and many were scattered at the entrance to the prayer hall.  At this one, we weren’t allowed inside but could view the open prayer hall with its 500 columns and imagine thousands of the faithful standing shoulder to shoulder.

Mosque inside the Fes Medina, Tunisia

From my various trips to Muslim countries, I have become used to the calls to prayer sung out through loudspeakers from the beautiful minarets attached to mosques.  I admit to finding the monotone grating at first but have come to simply associate it with my many positive experiences in Islamic countries.  Only the 5 a.m. rendition can be jarring, especially if the broadcast system is near my hotel window.

Recordings are now often used rather than a chanter’s voice.  The call is a reminder that God is the greatest, Muhammad is his prophet, and to come to prayer and salvation. Truthfully, I have not seen a large response to the call in the Muslim countries I have visited such as Tunisia, Morocco, Egypt, Turkey or Jordan although more than one driver has pulled to the side of the road for a moment of prayer.  But it serves the purpose of church bells only more widely spread and even for non-Muslims, it is a reminder of God’s omnipresence.

Most mosques are government owned.  In Turkey in 2012, we saw many newly constructed mosques.  They were small but numerous.  Turkey’s government wanted to move the country’s traditional secular approach toward a more Islamic way of life.  To that end, they constructed hundreds of new mosques so that the call to prayer was readily heard by all Turks.

The Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey

Since that time, Turkey has become a leader in providing funds to construct mosques internationally, both for those in the Turkish Diaspora in Germany but also for the Muslim community in Ghana, Kyrgyzstan, Bucharest, and even Maryland, all in the traditional Ottoman building style.  They’ve also opened a Grand Mosque in Istanbul, large enough to compete with the iconic Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosques.  President Erdogan attends many of the openings of these new structures, claiming they present a more moderate way of Islam in comparison with the Wahhabi ideology of their mosque building competitor, Saudi Arabia.  The architecture of a mosque often can predict the form of Islam being taught.

I had heard only Muslims can enter a mosque but have learned that not to be universally true. The leaders of the mosques do ask for modest dress, shoes removed and for those in prayer to be respected – all simple requirements to experience a new world of faith.

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Dr. Pepper Museum – A Fan’s Pilgrimage

Did you know that Dr. Pepper is a year older than Coca Cola – 1885 vs 1886?  Did you know there a career as a “flavorist” who is trained in chemistry to construct flavors?  Were you aware that “drink a bite to eat” was the slogan in the 1920s to promote Dr. Pepper as an energizing snack to be “eaten” at 10, 2 and 4 to avoid fatigue?  There’s much more to learn at the Dr. Pepper Museum and Free Enterprise Institute.

I had long wanted to stop in Waco for a visit to the Dr. Pepper Museum.  You would think after hundreds of trips to Austin, that would have happened before now – especially since Dr. Pepper was my favorite drink growing up.  I preferred it to Coca-Cola and liked to brag that it was a Texas drink.  I drank it in earnest in high school when my friends and I would “circle” the Arrowhead Drive-In in Plainview and order a vanilla Dr. Pepper.  Some preferred cherry Cokes but not me.

When my family traveled around the United States, I would order a Dr. Pepper and received many puzzled looks from waiters.  Most had never heard of it. Although it is now a national drink, I still get irritated when it’s not available on airlines or at ball games.  I don’t drink it often but want it available when I do.

Early bottling machine to place tops on bottles

Thanks to Joanna and Chip Gaines of HBO’s “Fixer Upper” fame, downtown Waco is a flourishing destination, and the Dr. Pepper Museum located in its 1906 bottling plant is part of the draw.   In comparison to the Disneyesque “ World of Coca-Cola” museum in Atlanta, Dr.Pepper’s tribute is informative but staid.

I read most of the facts provided like bubbly water has been with us for centuries.  In 216 BCE, Hannibal took a break with his troops at the bubbling waters of Les Bouillens, France, which spring supplies the world with Perrier water today. In the past, these effervescent waters were thought to have healing powers.  It wasn’t until the 1700s that an artificial process was devised to infuse carbon dioxide into water to produce artificial carbonated water.

I loved learning that the first soft drinks were developed in pharmacies where individual pharmacists concocted their own special drinks that produced followers who would come to the pharmacist just for that drink – much like the specially created cocktails offered in many bars today.  Both Dr. Pepper and Coca Cola’s recipes came from pharmacist’s experimentation.  The museum credits Charles Alderton with creating the formula for Dr. pepper in 1885.  However, according to Paris historian, Skipper Steely, the formula was brought to Waco by Robert Lazenby and two other men who served a similar drink at the Tennessee Drug Store on the west side of the square in Paris, Texas.

Ad from Mexico

The history of the Dr. Pepper company follows its move out of Texas into the world at large, and includes cans from Mexico, England, Belgium, and Russia.

Some of the products owned by Dr Pepper Snapple Group

The main company is still in Dallas but is owned by the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group.   As with Coca-Cola, the company owns more carbonated beverages such as Canada Dry, 7-Up and A&W Root Beer.

 

Advertising has changed over the years with the first decades emphasizing the energy Dr. Pepper provided and even promotion of it being a “healthy” drink with its “myriad fruit juices.”  The latter was forced to change under truth in advertising rules and the company agreed to stop targeting children under 12.  I’m wondering if the Dr. Pepper poker game will fade out as fewer players understand why 10s, 2s, and 4s are wild.

The unique section of this museum is the Free Enterprise Institute, created “for the purpose of educating Texas School Children and Adults about the economic system that underlies American life.” The emphasis was how failure leads to success, citing Coca Cola’s attempt at a “new Coke” as a classic failure.  Another corporate misstep of a different flavoring was the Celery Champagne drink that was apparently popular for a time but fell out of fashion. I can’t imagine it ever being in fashion with a name like that.  In this Institute, school kids are encouraged to experiment and to be ready to learn from failure – an important lesson in our free enterprise system.

The absolute best part of the museum was the free Dr. Pepper drink made from the original syrup and carbonated water given at the end with paid admission.  it was my first soda fountain Dr. Pepper in years, and I could not say enough good things about the sweet flavoring. My Coca Cola loving husband was not as impressed.

In my adulthood, I’ve had more than my fair share of end-of-tour beer, wine, and champagne samples but none released the nostalgia that this one did. For all Dr. Pepper lovers, Waco needs to be a pilgrimage destination where a museum and fountain drink awaits you.

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Uluru Rock – One for the Ages

The approach to Uluru rock in the outback of Australia is long, anticipation building as the view of the massive structure grows over the desert horizon. From a distance, it appears as an ordinary isolated plateau but up close, visitors are dwarfed against its looming fortress walls.  Millions of years ago the formation was pushed up by geological forces and laid on its side, causing the unique display of layers from below. It would take some time to explore this natural wonder.

Many of us grew up identifying the large rock structure as Ayers Rock – named for Chief Secretary of South Australia, Sir Henry Ayers.    As with most sites in Australia, it was given an English name without any deference to the long-held Aborigine term. For the aborigines, though, this holy space belonged to them and ownership was returned to the Anangu people in 1985 and the name reversed in 2002.

We first arrived at Uluru in the late afternoon as the sun spread its muted orange and yellow rays over the desert landscape. On a small rise to the west of Uluru, our guide brought out a table to fill with nibbles and wine.  After fighting the very persistent flies, I quit trying to eat and concentrated on the scene in front of me.  From our distance, Uluru appeared like a moonscape – worn smooth outer layer of rock with crater like carvings.  It beckoned to come closer.

Early the next morning the sacred rock revealed its personality and history as we walked part of its six-mile circumference. By rising before dawn, we experienced what centuries of natives have enjoyed – a sunrise bathing the tinted cliffs in reds and gold.  Our guide encouraged us to mind the signs noting which parts of the rock could be photographed and which were to be treated reverently. The Mala Cave is used by initiation for ceremonies and is fenced off.  Other Caves are considered resting places for ancient spirits.  An obvious erosion appears as a vulva, used by aboriginal women to instruct girls on childbirth. A cool breeze and bird  songs accompanied us on our walk along the sandy trail of discovery.

Inside one of the many canyons, we met Mini, an aboriginal guide – barefoot, disheveled white and gray hair, dressed in a worn black shirt and blouse.  She first pointed out berries and leaves that could be eaten at a location used to teach young girls what was safe to cook.  She then sat on the dirt and drew the basic aboriginal symbols, including circles for places, digging sticks for women gathering, and boomerangs for men hunting. We moved inside a cave where she pointed out drawings with ages as recent as 100 years ago, but some could have been 5,000 years old. It was strange having a translator for Mini’s talk as she did not communicate in English.  These symbols were repeated in the paintings offered by indigenous artists at the visitor center.

We walked past the starting point to climb Uluru with only a chain to grip marking   the path upwards.  In the past, hiking to the 2,831 foot summit was expected of visitors and many took rocks home as souvenirs.   It was considered a seeker’s accomplishment.  But that changed when the Anangu people regained power over the rock.  When I was there in March, 2019, a climb was allowed but discouraged.  The sign said simply , “Please don’t climb.  This is our home.”   Since October, 2019, even the option to ascend was stopped and today, visitors can only admire from below.

As further evidence of growing sensitivity to native beliefs, a phenomenon known as “sorry rocks” has gripped guilty tourists who took home rocks they gathered during their visit to Uluru.  Some felt it brought them bad luck and others just wanted to return them where they belonged as a sign of respect.  Rangers at the National Park must now decide whether the returned rocks are authentic Uluru rocks and then where to place them.

Recent DNA results have confirmed that the Aborigine people of Australia are the world’s oldest civilization, having been separated by rising water from the rest of the world over 10,000 years ago.  Their distinctive broad faces and dark sundrenched skin tell a long history of living off nature in a desert world that appears to give little.  But they knew hidden in the small canyons of Uluru rock were water, food and shelter, a discovery that today’s visitors can also observe and admire. It was a connection to the past, made present by Mini and other Anangu artists who continue to pass down the stories and secrets of Uluru rock.

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Ancient Kunming – Now the Garden City of China

I knew nothing of Kunming, China until discovering it was the terminus for most of the WWII flights over the Himalayas from India bringing supplies to the Allied and Chinese armies.  My father flew this dangerous route over the “Hump” 150 times.  When I journeyed to follow his WWII footsteps in 2014, a stop in Kunming was required.  Expecting a 2000-year-old ancient trade city visited by Marco Polo, I found instead a modern metroplex with temperate weather and a reputation as the Garden City of China.

The striking Kunming Airport, designed by the American architectural company, SOM, and completed in 2012, was China’s first green airport and an early indication of an updated urban environment, especially after flying from Kolkata, India. It is China’s fourth largest airport and has a surprising number of international flights including a direct to Paris, France. Customs was efficient with stern officers barely glancing at my newly purchased ten-year visa.

Flags along the sparsely populated new highway into town promoted Kunming’s beauty.  According to our guide, freeways and airports are built more rapidly in China compared to the long process required in the United States.  Land is leased in China, not individually owned, and they have efficient ways to clear the path for new developments.

Located in southwestern China, Kunming was a late bloomer.  The early explosion of industry and population movement on the Eastern side of the country caused nauseating air quality problems and crowded conditions.   By the time Beijing approved its “Go West” development program, an enormous domestic economic policy to boost development in western China, they had learned more about clean air.  Kunming’s existing industry was moved out of the inner city and solar energy emphasized.  All motorcycles are battery run, meaning motorcycles approach without warning. We had several close calls with passing cyclists.

Silver Chest Hotel Library

Sadly, since 1952 most of the original walled historical area has been torn down to make room for high rise apartments.  We struggled to find any charming lodging other than international hotel chains, including the Holiday Inn. We discovered the Silver Chest Boutique Hotel created from the home of a wealthy entrepreneur who had built it over a century ago near the Bird and Flower Market.  Owner Tang Lei had to meet strict requirements of the Kunming Bureau of Cultural Relics to create an authentic ambiance of a past era.   From the original wooden front doors to 1930’s tiled floors in the rooms to a cozy library with rare books loaned by the Yunnan Province Library, we could imagine a wealthy family’s living arrangements. Our continuous complaint centered around the lack of heating in all the buildings in Kunming, including the hotel, with only our small room excepted.

In addition to being a large agricultural area that includes thousands of fruit trees, Kunming is the largest flower exporter in Asia.  The City began hosting the Kunming International Flower Expo in 1995 which launched its reputation for natural beauty.  Last year’s expo featured 10,000 new, high-quality flower species and products.

Green Lake in Kunming

 

Cave Temple in Western Hills of Kunming

Two large lakes anchor the center of town while the Western Hills lie to the west. We explored the park around Green Lake.  Young environmentalists were protesting water quality (we think) but put down their signs for a photo with us.  A visit to the Western Hills required a bus ride, a ski lift part way up the mountain and a climb to ancient temples carved into the mountain side.  Students pray at the temples for good grades, wives for success in a pregnancy and all touch the elaborate Dragon Gate for luck, us included.

Yauntong Buddhist Temple in KunmingOn a tour of the city, we visited The Yunnan University founded in 1922 and highly regarded in China.  Just down the street was Yuantong, a major Buddhist Temple, where we joined supplicants buying candles and offerings to burn.  Two of the original gates to the city have been beautifully restored for viewing, the Horse and the Rooster.

Kunming has many more Chinese visitors than international ones.  We met no other Americans and only one Dutch woman waiting at McDonald’s for a taxi.  English was almost non-existent.  Our hotel receptionist had to show her phone’s translation of what she wanted to say.  Elena, our guide, ordered the most wonderful dishes at lunch time but in the evenings, we were without her help to decipher restaurant offerings. By pointing at pictures of dishes on the menu or even ordering food being served to the next table, we managed but were never quite sure what we were getting.  My brother tried pizza and was served plastic gloves to eat with.

Kunming offers a picture of present-day Chinese development in a pleasant setting with a small overlay of the past. It is also the gateway into the tribal areas of China that hosts 24 tribes, a location I want to visit before the Chinese Modernization Machine catches up with it.  I should go soon.

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The Thrill of the Sudden View

With photos available on the internet and travel sites galore, it is difficult to be surprised in traveling today.  Professional photos online with their perfect lighting beautifully reflect a location at its best. An in-person visit can sometimes be disappointing.

I do believe in being prepared for a voyage.  If I know the history of a city or country, I’ll “see” political posters and understand the importance of a candidate.  I’ll note the ethnic variety of a community or the foreign crowds at our national parks. Local guides add even more depth to a visit.  But it is the view that I often feel overprepared for.  That is why I can distinctly remember some recent experiences where the first view took my breath away.  They all have one feature in common – I could not see them coming.

Crater Lake in Oregon had been on my bucket list for years.  It is just enough off the main interstate and urban areas for the numbers of visitors to be moderated, even in the summer. As with all volcanic lakes, it was formed by the collapse of a volcano, the 12,000-foot Mount Malzana 7700 years ago.  Snow is the water source for the 2,000-foot-deep lake, the deepest in the United States and its 43 feet annual snow fall one of the highest in the country.

The drive circles up to the crater’s rim, masking the lake below.  We chose one of many turn outs and pulled into a parking place, grabbing a jacket to walk to the precipice.  And, suddenly, the lake was below us, stunningly beautiful with the dark blue clear waters, green pine trees clinging to the steep sides, and the quiet undisturbed by boats or visitors on the shores below.  We couldn’t get enough of the view, pulled towards it at every turn-out opportunity as we continued to drive around the lake.  We climbed to the Watchman Overlook for an even more spectacular vista, taking in the surrounding snow-covered volcanoes in the distance.  It is a view that cannot be over-hyped.

On a trip through Utah to see their national parks, we checked off three parks, all of which were impressive in their own way, but we could see them for miles as we approached. Bryce Canyon was different.  To get there required driving on a flat plateau, passing through a recently developed business intersection and entering the national park with nary a canyon in sight.  For several miles, woods obstructed our sight, but we finally pulled into a parking space with an arrow pointing to the canyon edge.  A quick walk brought us to the brink with rows and rows of the famous hoodoo columns below, carved by wind and erosion and standing at attention for miles, it seemed.  The canyon spread out until touching distant mountains.  We starred without talking, soaking up the geological wonder.

      You would think it hard to “lose” a view in the Himalayan Mountains.  Waves of mountain tops are easy to admire from the airplane circling the Thimpu, Bhutan airport.  But once on the ground, the road follows the river valley and forest obscures the view.  My husband, brother and his wife and I were observing and commenting on the many roadside temples and prayer wheels.  The van began to climb and weave up a mountain as we chatted.  On a final curve, directly in front of us was a panorama of snow-covered peaks against a deep blue sky. A collective “ohhhhhh” spontaneously erupted from the four of us, the view sudden and majestic. The van pulled into a parking area and we scrambled out to try to photograph the circular scene around us.  On our return drive to the capital, we came upon this same beautiful vista, but it wasn’t the same.  The unexpectedness from our first encounter gave it the excitement of a discovery, a treasure found.

There have been many other spectacular views in my travels – first sight of the Grand Canyon, walking through fog to encounter a mountainside Buddha in Hong Kong, waking up to a snow-covered mountain in Morocco, or finishing a trek in Turkey at the edge of a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. No camera can capture the unanticipated, the abruptness of a discovery.  It is a reason to “go there” despite thinking you’ve seen pictures of it.  The real view is so much more.

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Traveling against State Department Advisories

Travel Advisory Levels

When I first began traveling internationally to Europe in 1969, no warning system by the United State Department of State was readily available for citizens abroad.  I have visited countries where travel advisories should have been in place.  When I first landed in Santiago, Chile, in the spring of 1974, a year after a military takeover and murder of elected President Salvador Allende, I could still feel the tenseness.  Soldiers patrolled the streets and even guarded entrances of movie theaters. Bullet holes punctured government buildings.  In neighboring Argentina, businessmen were being kidnapped for ransom.  Under the current system of warnings, I suspect I would have been warned to reconsider travel.  But I didn’t know and as my grandmother used to say, “ignorance is bliss.”

Beginning in 1978, bulletins became available for those in the know which included government employees, travel agencies, tour groups and educational institutions with study abroad programs.  Not until 1990 was the State Department ordered by law to develop a more comprehensive advisory system to be accessible by all.

The first system only offered two possibilities, an advisory and a warning.  The advisory would be akin to watch your purse, don’t be out alone at night, or even be aware of an election.  The warning indicated more serious concerns – terrorism, civil unrest, serious health concerns, and even kidnapping.  I once taught a friend a Spanish phrase to memorize in case she got in trouble.  “Ayudame.  Soy rehen.”  “Help me.  I’m a hostage.”  She didn’t laugh when I translated.

Simply having a travel advisory or even warning doesn’t mean a country is off the itinerary.  Some warnings only apply to sections of a country. Before our son was to be married in Guatemala in 2013, a concerned brother called. He had read the warnings from the State Department about travel there.  I looked at them more carefully and noted we would not be in any of the areas of violence and that the country had their own tourist police to keep travelers safe.  We were rewarded with the beauty of a wedding on the shores of Lake Atitlan that enchanted us all.

Whether to travel with an advisory in place depends for me on several factors – how much risk is it really, what does the local news report, and most importantly, what do our local guides say.

When I wrote our guide in the Assam Valley of India in 2016 that the area was under a U.S. Advisory against travel because of possible terrorist activity, he was stunned.  He replied eloquently, describing the tranquility of the area and noting the lack of any disturbance for his clients.  He even offered to have recent travelers write me of their experience.  We were glad we decided to continue with the trip as it proceeded without incident, at least until the last day when there was a police shootout with terrorists just down the road.  Again, we were blissfully unaware until the next day’s paper.

Prior to our visit to Morocco, two young Swedish women were brutally attacked by extremists at a campground near a mountain town we wanted to visit.  It seemed an isolated incident and we proceeded with our plan.  It wasn’t until our arrival that we learned the town’s residents themselves had tracked down the murderers. They knew their town’s reputation as a tranquil and temperate retreat from the desert below was at stake.  It was a favorite spot in Morocco.

There are some countries with continuous warnings such as Israel.  The failure to resolve territorial issues with the Palestinians causes an undercurrent of resentment that can erupt at any time. In 2011, we arrived just as Big Bertha, their then new anti-missile system, was shooting down rockets from the Gaza Strip.  I’ve talked with so many who want to visit Israel but have concerns about their safety.  I tell them there is never going to be a perfect time to visit that amazing country and they should just go.

In 2018, the State Department revamped the program, eliminating the difference between advisory and warning.  Today, four advisory levels are defined from “exercise normal precaution” to “do not travel” and include specific reasons for the caution, including my favorite – possible kidnapping.  I’ve also used a new program called STEP or Smart Traveler Enrollment Program to stay abreast of current conditions for any country I’m approaching.  I still get warnings about Hong Kong.

Because of Covid 19 today, the entire world is under a “reconsider travel” or “do not travel” warning on the State Department’s online map. I’ve never seen that before, certainly not in peaceful times.  My hope is that in a year, the map will be more inviting, and I can dust off my passport.

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Oh, Those Romans Could Build

Amphitheater in Aspendos, Turkey

Most visitors to Italy believe they are viewing the best Roman ruins and certainly the Coliseum, Circus Maximus and the array of partial structures in the Roman Forum are a few examples that display the construction abilities of the Roman engineers over several centuries. I first saw them in 1969 after studying Roman architecture in a high school humanities course and experienced the thrill of imagining the swirl of activity around the market 2000 years ago.  I even made my family go to the Appian Way, possibly the world’s oldest intact highway that connected Rome to some of its important ports and cities.  The “Pines of Rome” by the Italian composer, Ottorino Respighi was played by my high school band and as we walked the old stones, I could feel the drums pounding like Roman armies returning from war. My family was unimpressed with my humming the theme.

Today, Italy must impose limitations on exploring their valuable collection of ruins because of the wear and tear of millions of visitors each year.  For this reason, one should consider visiting ruins in the countries circling the Mediterranean Sea that give a vivid picture of the power and reach of the Roman empire, most available with minimal costs and no crowds.

Amphitheaters were popular with both the Greeks and Romans.  Everyone loved a good play. Romans constructed theirs from the ground up and enclosed the circle.  The Greeks kept open the view behind the stage.  We visited Aspendos, just outside Antalya, Turkey.  With nary a visitor in sight, we paid to enter a completely restored Roman amphitheater. No security guards prevented our exploration of the stage and wings nor our climbing to the top row for the best view.  Down the road was the Roman town of Perge, whose streets were open for viewing.  We shared the experience with a family of four and few others.

On stage at one of the best-preserved Roman theaters of ancient Samaria, several archeological layers down in Bet She’an, Israel, I practiced the steps to my “Dancing With The Stars” routine I would soon perform back in Paris but my audience was only my two traveling companions. A surprising find at Petra, Jordan was the Roman excavations that lay past the well-known narrow paths through wavy carved sandstone walls.  Our walk into the ruins was over a two-thousand-year cobblestone road built by the Romans, one of over 50,000 miles of highways they constructed in their empire.  This one was easy to maneuver in the day but challenging on a moonlit night as we left an evening light show.

El Jem Coliseum, Tunisia

Dougga, Tunisia

Dougga, Tunisia

 

For such a small country, Tunisia was filled with well-preserved ruins.  Rome loved breadbasket Tunisia, as much of the wheat grown for the Empire’s use came from this area.  Grain was used to keep the masses fed and happy.  My cousin drove us to Dougga, considered the best preserved small Roman town in North Africa and only an hour’s drive from the capital, Tunis.

Rome had its own requirements for construction of towns – just as we do today.  Before bringing their franchise to an area they had conquered, they preferred a hill to keep watch for approaching enemies, a water source to fill their jugs and public baths even if it required an aqueduct, stones for roads and construction to be used with their volcanic ash concrete, and surrounding fields for food production.  Dougga met all these requirements. The 360 degree view from the Temple of Juno Caelestis captured the Valley of Oued Khallad with open fields below.   This ruins even had a brothel near the public baths that offered hot, cold or warm settings.

My favorite out-of-Rome ruin was the rare Coliseum found in El Jem, Tunisia.  It is smaller than Rome’s but built in a similar way out of free-standing blocks without a foundation and is well-restored and almost empty.  To visit different areas of Rome’s coliseum requires increasingly costly tickets.  Tunisia’s is open for viewing for a modest entry price and you are free to explore on your own, including the underground rooms and pathways that led prisoners, gladiators, and wild animals into the arena.

Basilica in Volubilis, Morocco

Mosaics in home in Volubilis, Morocco

Mosaics in homes in Volubilis, Morocco

In Morocco, Volubilis was well worth the visit as it was the most western North African Roman city. A surprisingly complete Basilica and Triumphant Arch highlighted the ruins.  Beautiful mosaics filled the floors of homes while storks perched atop some of the many columns.  Our guide lived nearby, and three generations of his family had been involved in the excavation and restoration of the town and now provided guide services. Volubilis was so well built that it continued to be inhabited until the 11th century.

Rome fell eventually due in part to overextension of resources, corruption in the government, and invasion of Huns and other Barbarians.  The government collapsed but the contribution of Roman building ingenuity lives on and continues to be a source of wonder and imagination far outside Italy.

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Thanksgiving in New York City – Then and Now

Power Ranger in Thanksgiving Parade

End of Thanksgiving Parade in NYC

Beginning of Thanksgiving Parade in NYC

Watching the Thanksgiving Parade in NYC

It’s hard to believe that just a year ago, my daughter, her family, my husband and I were in New York City for the Thanksgiving holiday, worrying only about catching a cab or where to have breakfast before our visit to the Metropolitan Museum. Crowds were expected and we learned how to weave through them even after the Rockettes Christmas show let out.  I didn’t love the closeness of so many people but checked it off as an authentic NYC experience.  Today, I would give anything to feel safe in such a street scene.

In front of the Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC

I do love NYC, having visited many times, primarily because of a sister-in-law who lived on East 52nd and freely offered her pull-out couch to us. Our children had taken turns staying with their aunt when they were 10 and had the same great memories of Central Park, Broadway plays, climbing the Statue of Liberty, and eating in the Deli around the corner.  Our daughter wanted her children to have those same experiences and so the Thanksgiving trip was placed on the calendar.

First up was the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade, more exciting in person. Our view was from a side window in our hotel room ten stories up.  That morning we had exchanged pleasantries with other guests in the coffee room downstairs who were from all over the country, brought together by a singular 96-year-old event.  From on high we could see what was not shown on TV as a line of policemen walked the route ahead of the parade to clear the path.  Clowns did donuts in the streets in their tiny cars.  Jugglers on stilts entertained.  We heard the beginning of the parade before we could see it – a roar from the crowd as it approached.  By keeping the TV on, we knew which stars and performers were passing by.  Occasionally a float or band would pause and perform.  And the big balloons floating just below us thrilled all.  Our only worry was the strong wind.

The scene after the parade reflected the true size of the crowd.  We walked to the nearby Empire State Building and held hands to stay together.  At my eye level, only backs could be seen.  I trusted my tall husband to navigate forward.  The river of people quickly passed by as we exited at the building’s entrance and were swooped into the lobby, relieved to have some space.

View from Empire State Building

Lobby of Empire State Building

 

r that afternoon, I felt compelled to go to Macy’s because, well, because it was Thanksgiving and I wanted to have that experience.  Again, the numbers of patrons in the aisles was staggering – young women 4 or 5 deep trying to buy purses that were on sale.  At the top of the escalators Macy employees pulled patrons forward so they would not get run over by the persons behind them.  I didn’t even think about buying something, not even the Macy’s Christmas ornament.

To Kill A Mockingbird

Excepting the parade crowd and Black Friday’s shopping hordes, NYC was surprisingly explorable.  Ice skating at Bryant Parks introduced our grandsons to the iced rink with only the help of their parents who were uneven themselves.  We each had one Broadway play experience – ours being “To Kill a Mockingbird” with Ed Harris.  Thanksgiving dinner was at a small French restaurant.  On one of our days, my husband and I rode the subways with grandkids, explored the Natural History Museum, ate pizza at a traditional Italian restaurant, and caught one of the five Christmas Rockette performances that day.  The grands learned to hail cabs and how to start conversations with the drivers.  By evening, all were tired and content to play cards in the hotel room.

Today, the scene in NYC is dramatically different.  Restaurants are closed or are limited to 25% capacity, Broadway shows are postponed for at least another year and riding subways is riskier because of the possible virus exposure.  Tickets for the Rockette show that I enjoyed more than I expected, are for the year 2021. The Macy parade will be virtual for most people. Parade participants have been reduced by 75%, the bands’ invitations extended for a year, parade route shortened and all performances only in front of Macy’s flagship store. Tickets are still available at the Empire State Building and Metropolitan Museum of Art, but visitors are warned they have to quarantine for 14 days if they arrived from a restricted state such as Texas.  Hopefully, the stunning Christmas store windows will still be available for viewing.

It is strange to be nostalgic for crowds, or at least to not worry about catching a fatal virus from the surrounding humanity.  But NYC without the lively throngs is not the NYC we all love.  I know they will be back.  A vaccine will become available. Events will open up. Sidewalks will fill.  And I will never complain about crowds again.

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November 15th is 75th anniversary of the ending of the WWII “ Hump” transport operation over the Himalaya Mountains and it is still remembered in Kunming, China

My father at the Kunming Control Tower, destination of most Hump flights

Thanks to its temperate climate and mile high altitude, Kunming is known to Chinese citizens as the city of eternal spring. Now numbering 7 million residents, it is a governmental and manufacturing center for the region. But in WWII, it was bustling with American and Allied pilots, the destination of most flights flying “The Hump”, the moniker given to the treacherous  transport operation over the Himalayas from India to western China bringing fuel for the American and Chinese armies fighting the Japanese.  On November 15, 1945, the WWII Hump operation closed, three months after the official ending of the war.  Additional time was required to move troops and equipment back from China and India and planes continued to fly that treacherous route.

More Americans are familiar with the Flying Tigers led by Texas born General Chennault who commanded an early small group of fighter pilots to attack Japanese Zero fighters harassing Kunming, China.  The Hump operation is not as widely known but is respected by WWII buffs.  In contrast, Chinese citizens and their government remember our help well and have found ways to commemorate it, especially in Kunming.

The Hump was considered one of the most dangerous flying routes in the world and American pilots flew in what would be considered primitive planes today, C46s, C47s and C54s.  They wore uncomfortable oxygen masks, guided by basic instruments with little knowledge of the weather’s forecast.  Cold Siberian winds collided with warm, wet fronts from the Bay of Bengal, causing dangerous wind currents and icing.  Overloaded planes crashed.  Fuel barrels exploded in midair.  Inexperienced pilots lost their way. Over 600 planes and 1300 crew members were lost. My farmer father flew that route 150 times in 1945.

On a visit to Kunming to follow my father’s WWII footsteps as a Hump pilot, I was touched by the ways the citizens honor this operation, beginning with a driver named Happy Jack who couldn’t get over having a Hump Pilot’s child in his van.  “Your country helped us,” he repeated often.  He took us to a restaurant called The Hump.  Attached to the outside wall was an airplane propeller with globe lights above outlining the Hump flight pattern over silhouetted mountains and a sign that read, “The Hump since 2000.”  Inside, manager Mr. Wong welcomed us and gave a history of the restaurant and the pilot veterans he had welcomed since 2000.  His father remembered running from the Japanese when their airplanes approached and was one of many who were saved by the appearance of the Flying Tigers and who remained hopeful because of The Hump operation.  War memorabilia and photos decorated the interior as the young clientele drank coffee and visited.  Mr. Wong paid tribute to my visit, saying, “Your father helped our country.”

At the Kunming City Museum, the American Volunteer Group Memorial Hall is next to the Dinosaur Fossil Exhibition.  Expecting a display or two, I was stunned by the rooms filled with war memorabilia, photos and details of the Allied presence in China during the war.  Kunming is especially respectful towards General Chennault and his Flying Tigers but towards the end of this section were displays honoring those who flew The Hump.  A parachute survival kit included a watch, knife, needle pliers, an AAF stereoscope used for map reading, an AAF Hump Pilot map, a survival book for the jungle and first aid packet, equipment that would help a downed pilot walk the thin line between life and death.

Hump Monument Dedicated to WWII pilots

The largest acknowledgment of the importance of The Hump operation is still the Hump Monument opened in 1993 and built to “commemorate this daring feat in the history of aviation and friendship between Sino-American soldiers and civilians fighting shoulder to shoulder in the anti-fascist battle.”  Made of white marble the thoughtful design has three layers of meaning – an outline of a plane merged with two mountain tops with a large H blended in – H for the Hump,  mountains reflecting the Himalayas and the plane for the transport.  A history of the Hump and the part that the Chinese people played in its operation were recorded in a nearby display.  Photos of the rock of the airfields being crushed under large concrete rollers pulled and pushed by individual Chinese was a reminder of the combined efforts in the air and on the ground to make the Hump operation successful.  Happy Jack read every word of the display and continuously thanked me for my father’s service.

Prior to arriving in Kunming, I had visited my father’s base in the Assam valley of India where little note is made of its wartime importance.  The reception in Kunming countered that indifference with much appreciation for his work, a recognition of a time when Americans and Chinese worked together, an appreciation that has survived for 75 years.

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