Antarctic Tourism

We were surprised the other day to hear helicopter traffic outside
our window. It was a Sunday and there weren't supposed to be
any helo flights scheduled. It turns out that tourists had arrived
from the Kapitan Khlebnikov tourist ship and were visiting Hut
Point and the historic Hut. If it looks rather dangerous in the
photo, that's because it is! The helicopter and tourists are actually
walking on ice, over fairly deep water that is not as thick as it
should be this time of year. I'm happy to say that everyone had a
safe visit and the helo took off with no incidents.
We get visited in the Ross Sea Region by a couple of cruise ships
every year. When it's convenient, numbers of McMurdo residents
volunteer to lead tours of the town, including the station store,
science facilities, historic sites, etc. It's really the only way to see
McMurdo unless one is a member of the US or NZ Antarctic
programs. Most cruises also cost upwards of $10,000 to take.
It gives one a new appreciation of spending time here and being
able to take in the local attractions.

Look What I Won!

When you're addicted to travel, but not a wealthy person, you have
to save money anywhere you can. That's one of the reasons I read
Tim Leffel's Cheapest Destinations Blog. He provides some great
insight about where to go if you don't have a lot of money, yet still
have a great experience in that destination. As a travel writer, I'm
sure Tim acquires quite a few travel gadgets in his travels and
occasionally, he gives some of them away. A few weeks ago, Tim
was giving away some items and I saw something that had my name
on it! It was a Laptop Sleeve made by Woolrich. Woolrich is kind
of the Pendleton Woolen Mills of the east and they've been famous
for making woolen goods for many years.

According to Tim:
"A PR person from Woolrich gave it to me at a trade show and it would
really make a statement to pull this wool laptop sleeve out in a coffee
shop in Burlington, Montreal, or Seattle. But for the foreseeable future
I’m living in warm and sunny places…You can’t buy this sleeve in a store.
It’s something they made special in the factory for a giveaway. It fits
13-inch laptops and netbooks."

Several days ago, I received an email from Tim that I had won the
laptop sleeve. Woo Hoo! Today I received it in the mail. Taking it
with me to Antarctica this season will definitely be putting it to good use!

Home Again

It was a great trip, but now we're home! We saw some fantastic
sites, had a great visit with family and friends, met some fun

and interesting new people, and Lynn got to commune with
6000 other knitters!

The Great Basin

What exactly is the Great Basin? It's not a sink. But in a way, it kind of is.
Although a number of rivers flow into the Great Basin, none flow out to
the ocean. Hence, the name Basin.


It's also a very very large desert. In fact, it's the largest desert in the
United States, covering approximately 190,000 square miles. To give
you a comparison, England is only just over 50,000 square miles.
It's big.


It's also a land of wide wide wide open spaces. If you're looking to
get away from it all, this is the place. My history teacher in high school
told us that the Native Americans in the Great Basin basically ate dirt.
I scoffed at the time, but now I almost believe it. Although we drove
through the Great Basin during the day, I can imagine what it looks
like at night, with a moonless sky. Imagine the sky that your
grandparents or great-grandparents saw. No light pollution. The
clearest sky you will ever see. That's what the night sky in the Great
Basin looks like.


Finally, this pretty much sums up the Great Basin. There are no services
available for a long long distance. We are lucky that we can cover this
distance in about an hour. The early pioneers would have taken almost
a week to cover 80+ miles. There is just nothing out there.

If I had to choose one word for the Great Basin? EMPTY

Ely Nevada

Not just any town can have Wayne Newton AND Pat Nixon represented
on its Walk of Fame...

The Loneliest Road in America

Back in 1986, Life magazine deemed the section of US-50 that runs
through Nevada as the Loneliest Road in America. It wasn't necessarily
meant as a good thing, but Nevadans being good Americans took the
billing and turned it into a positive. They marketed the highway as a
scenic thoroughfare to hopefully attract more visitors to this very empty
part of the country. There are some pretty empty stretches of US-50
through this neck of the woods, but because it's summer, there are
more tourists on the road and it didn't seem to be as forlorn as it
could be. I'm guessing in the winter, this road is very lonely indeed


Much of the route parallels the historic Pony Express Trail, although
now it's just pretty standard asphalt. Because most mountain ranges
in Nevada follow a north-south line, much of US-50 is spent driving
through a long stretch of flat, open desert, followed by a climb and a
descent of mountain ranges. If this wasn't the case and the mountains
went the opposite direction, I could visualize setting the cruise control
at 100 mph and having it seem like you were doing 50 mph.


I have to say that the road is very well maintained. Not a pothole
to be found and everything is very well marked. Colorado could take
a lesson from the Nevada Highway Department.


I agree that this is a scenic highway. It's not a road I need or would
want to drive frequently. There are enough desert vistas near our house.
However, I think that everyone (especially folks from the urban east coast
should make this drive at least once in their life. They would get a true
appreciation of what it's like to live in the West. The West isn't just
the beaches of California or the ski resorts of Aspen. It's the wide open
spaces such as this that make the West such a beautiful place. Wait...
maybe they shouldn't come. We'll keep the wide-open West our own
little secret!

Lake Tahoe

Lake Tahoe is big...really big. Ok, it's not a Great Lake-sized lake,
but for the west, it's fairly huge. And blue. And pretty. Headed home
from the Bay Area, we took a different route east from Sacramento and
headed into the Sierra Nevada mountains. A really scenic drive, although
if you get car sick easily, the twists and turns could make you a bit queasy.
Once you come upon the southeast side of the lake, it's overly commercialized
though, with year-round tourism spots vying for your dollar. When you come
to the Nevada state line, it is casinos that tug at your wallet. It was nice to
get to the northeast section of the lake, where it was less commercialized and
more natural, with very tranquil and beautiful views. I'd like to go back to
this area again. The area near the state line...not so much.

Napa & Sonoma

We live in an area with twenty or so small wineries. They make some
pretty decent wine. However, the Napa and Sonoma areas are the big
guns of viticulture on this side of the country. If you were seriously
into wine, you could easily spend a week here, touring the wineries,
tasting the wine and overall soaking up the rural atmosphere. Most
of the wine was way beyond our price range, but we did enjoy driving
the area and looking at the vines, fields and really pretty scenery.

Mount Shasta

When I was young, we would load up the car and go on vacations.
Usually no place very glamorous. Michigan, Wisconsin, Kentucky,
Tennessee. Places that were all fairly nearby to our home in Northwest
Indiana. To save money, we would take snacks with us. This included
canned pop to have in the motel room at night. Rarely was it one of
the big brands, but usually one of the "store" brands such as Canfield's
or Shasta. I used to look at the Shasta can and imagine that it was in
some far-away glamorous place. It must be pretty important since
they would put it on a pop can! Well, until today, I had never seen
Mount Shasta. It existed only in my young mind. Now that I have seen
it, it didn't disappoint. It's large, snow capped, formidable and truly
worthy of my childhood imagination....

Powell's City of Books

I don't have enough superlatives to describe Powell's City of Books
in Portland. It takes up a whole city block in the Pearl District, and is
is the largest independent bookstore in the world. It covers 1.6 acres
and they have over four million new, used and rare books in their
inventory. It's also my favorite bookstore...ANYWHERE!


You can literally (ha) get lost in this place. Each section of the

store is color coded (like a subway system) and stairways go

everywhere (visualize Escher architecture)

I could spend days in the travel section alone. While most stores
have the typical titles, Powell's has some pretty obscure stuff as

well.


World Cup Roasters is their coffee supplier and their cafe is a fun
place to be amongst other readers, enjoying a good cup of caffeine.


Yes...I am a geek. I bought a Powell's T-Shirt. Who else would
wear a T-Shirt advertising their favorite bookstore besides me?

Colorful Colorado

The State of Colorado is running a very fun promotion. If you're
planning on visiting our beautiful state this summer, drop by the
Colorado Tourism website. If you register ahead of time, you can
pick up a free Welcome to Colorful Colorado cap that mimics the
signs when entering the state. The only catch is you have to actually
visit Colorado this summer to get the cap. We picked ours up today
at the Fruita Welcome Center.

On The Road Again

We like to be on the road, and today we definitely got our fill.
An 11 hour drive between my Mom's in Northwest Indiana, to
our stop for the night in North Little Rock, Arkansas. We made this
trip a few years ago, and it's a nice diversion from our usual trip
home via Nebraska or Kansas. Remember how we were freezing
at the Cubs game a few days ago? Well, today we more than made
up for it with temperatures in the 90's and the humidity about the
same. Driving along the Mississippi River in Missouri and Arkansas,
we could smell the river and the aftermath of the flooding that
happened a few weeks ago in that area. We also heard a huge
buzzing coming from the trees along the road. It turns out that
they were cicadas. They only breed every 13 years and apparently,
this is the year. Overall, it was a long, but leisurely drive. Tomorrow,
we head toward Dallas.

The Four Pillars

When our American civilization is long gone and all that is left
is dust and rumors of things that once were, I feel that there will
be four things that our culture brought to the world. No, not
technology or literature. Those are way too easy. The four real
pillars are these:


Ice Water with meals

How American is this! It's almost a right and is expected. Where
is my ice water?!? one may ask if it doesn't appear at your table
almost immediately!


Ice (in general)

Have you tried to order a beverage in another country. Where is
it? If you ask for it, funny looks will almost always follow. I believe
the practice of "No Ice" is a holdover from the days when Communism
ruled part of the world...You want Ice? I give you ice! Next stop the
Gulag in Siberia...USA...land of the Free and Home of the Ice!


Free Condiments

Asking for a packet of ketchup (I mean Tomato Sauce) in New Zealand
is a painful ordeal. I honestly believe that all restaurant employees in
the land of otherwise delightful Kiwis go through a mandatory class at
the Eva Braun School of Condiment Dispensing when it comes to handing
out anything free. America? People have been known to make it between
grocery shopping trips, living on nothing but Condiment Packet Soup!
There are blogs and websites by Americans, dedicated to the thousands
of varietal condiment packets out there. Elsewhere...not so much.


Free Bathrooms

Lynn and I have traveled to six of the seven continents and one thing
that is not always a given is the elusive free bathroom. In North America?
Sure...it's almost not even a challenge. In most places you don't even have
to buy anything and escape with a clear conscience. In Romania, for a few
coins you are given entrance to a bunker-like facility and handed some
pink cloth that looks like something you wipe your car windshield with.
All monitored by a man named Boris. In France, a beautiful, fully automated
round tomato looking structure that cleans itself after you leave. Ah...the
French... And in Peru...You've paid hundreds of dollars to make the long
excursion to Machu Picchu. Truly a wonder of the world. The Inca were
marvelous geniuses. When you're finished...1 Sole to use the toilet.
Guarded by a stern Quichua taskmistress.

So there you go. A list that will stand the test of time. What American
Culture has given the world. Will it make it better or worse? Only the
eons and our descendants will be able to decide.

In Your Pocket

A few years ago, we were traveling through Eastern
Europe when I stumbled upon a small publication called
In Your Pocket. This was the perfect little publication for
almost everything we needed for our few days in Prague,
and just by leafing through it, I immediately wanted to
find copies when we arrived in Bucharest and Krakow.
Found in bookstores, the guides mostly cover places in
Eastern and Central Europe, but they are spreading through
other parts of Europe now as well. Of course there are some
quirky adds that are easily skimmed over, but in general there
is a lot of good information (in English) for even the most
casual traveler about tourist sites, places to stay, restaurants,
transportation options, etc. You can now download .pdf
versions of their guides (updated either monthly, bi-monthly
or quarterly...unlike the typical travel book) that you should
be able to place on your Kindle, and even a iPhone downloadable
option. Is it worth getting rid of your trusted guide book? No,
probably not. However, it makes a great up-to-date companion
to it, and travel companies featuring guide books for the area
should sit up and take notice!

Back on The Ice

I only got to spend my minimum two days in Christchurch, as the
weather cooperated and we took off on time yesterday morning,
headed south. Because we were flying on the Airbus (operated by
the Australian Antarctic Programme), there are window seats and it
is actually quite comfortable. I got a window seat and was able
to get some fun photos on the way of Mount Erebus and the ice
surrounding Ross Island.


I was surprised to see how much the Ice was broken up past Cape
Royds. I might be wrong, but there usually doesn't seem to be
this much open water, this early in the season.


This is it. Home for the next five months. If you think it looks
bleak and depressing...that's because it is!


As I was walking toward the Terrabus, which would transport us into
town, I snapped this photo of the Airbus.

Hurry Up and Wait

Leaving the RPSC office today at noon, I've started my 31 hour journey to
Christchurch. Only 17 of those hours will actually be in the air, leaving
14 hours to sit and wait in airports. Fortunately, I get the longest of those
waits over with first in Denver, which has free Wi-Fi. After this, I get to
spend 3 hours in my least favorite airport in the world in Los Angeles and
after a 12+ hour flight across the Pacific, I wait for three more hours in
Auckland. All part of the process though, and I've learned to take most
of it in stride. For the most part, it's fun to people watch, seeing folks who
either travel many times more than me, or some that never travel at all.
Those are the ones that look like deer in the headlights! Thinking about
the long time and distance I have left, does not make it go by any faster,
so I wait.

Time to Fly

I started my latest flight to the far south today. Leslie and Gina were nice
enough to take me to the airport. Instead of being able to make a short
55 minute flight to Denver, I had to fly all the way to Dallas and then to
Denver. I had a rare window seat and took lots of fun photos of the leaves
turning over the San Juan Mountains and all kinds of crop circles! After a
three hour layover in Dallas, I was pleasantly upgraded to a First Class Seat
for the two hour flight. What amazed me was when we received a meal
(which in itself is amazing on a domestic flight these days), we were given
a real knife and fork...made of metal! As my friend Ben later said on
Facebook, "So I guess the way to attack
the plane would be to check your box-cutter at the gate, but get first
class seats. Because no one ever hijacks a plane from first class. Hijackers
fly coach." I thought the exact same thing. Oddly, they didn't
give us a spoon. Is the spoon the new weapon of choice for terrorists?
Anyway, the day was about three times longer than it needed to be, but
it was uneventful and I picked up about 1200 Frequent Flyer miles instead
of 250. That's a good thing!

Lynn's in New Zealand

After spending two days in Denver to go through orientation,
Lynn left last night for New Zealand. She'll be there about two
weeks, taking a U.S. Air Force Loadplanning Class with other
folks from ATO going down to the Ice this season. She's
understandably nervous because of the recent earthquake
and aftershocks that have struck Christchurch and Canterbury.
She and her group were greeted at the airport today by our
friend, Leighton, who is the head of the Travel department.
He gave them the skinny on what the status was of the city
and what they could expect. Thank you for doing that Leighton.
Lynn will learn a lot in the next few weeks and I'll be joining her
in about ten days. I'm looking forward to it!

Lynn's Getting Ready to Leave

Lynn's all packed and ready to go down to the Ice! Well, she's packed
and ready, but I'm sure these bags will be packed and re-packed many
times before she actually walks out the door on the 7th. It's just the
way she does things. Possibly an illness of a sort? LOL

Cook Islands Eclipse

Tomorrow afternoon, there will be a total Solar Eclipse that very
few people on Earth will be able to witness. One of those few places
however will be in the Cook Islands. We visited the small nation of
the Cook Islands in 2003 (particularly the islands of Rarotonga and
Aitutaki) and I can't think of too many places where a full eclipse would
be more beautiful. For those who don't know, the Cook Islands are a
small archipeligo of islands about the same distance south of the
equator as Hawaii is north of the Equator and on the same latitude.
It's a truly wonderful place and the people are very friendly toward
travelers. I'd be happy to share my thoughts or any tips to those that
are interested in visiting this paradise!