Robin Hood

Over the weekend, I had the pleasure of watching the latest Robin Hood movie, with Russell Crowe.


  So naturally, I thought I would share some of the true geography of the legend, which many believe is based on a real man.  The first on our "tour" is the Major Oak, where Robin was said to have hidden from the sherriff of nottingham countless times.  The tree is large enough inside to fit twelve adults and is located in the Sherwood Forest.  A huge musical festival is held there, "Rothbury", each year.

Robin Hood's well, located in Newstead Abbey, within the boundaries of the forest is picture below:

The church where Robin Hood and Maid Marion were said to have wed still stands today in Edwinstowe.  Below is a picture of the church from the outside and the inside as well as a link for specifics on Edwinstowe, which has plenty to offer for the true Robin Hood lover.

Edwinstowe
More information about Robin Hood, the legend as well as information about plays, books, and films based on Robin Hood follow:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Hood
http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/n-s/robin02.html
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10129/1056408-37.stm

Bonus Link to watch an all-time favorite music video of mine

The Aral Sea

After seeing the change in size of the Aral Sea and listening to how it happened, I was quite sad to see this environmental tragedy.  The plan to restore the sea has stabalized the northern part of the sea, and even expanded it, although the expansion has damaged the level of salinity and therefore the types of fish that can call it home.  Introduced carp and flounder are now being caught by fishermen who are willing to drive the 25 extra miles to reach what is now the seashore from the where the old seaport was located.  The sea is not without hope, but those hopes are for the long term development.  People have lost their livelihood and it seems to be the government who made poor, cheap choices who are to blame for this environmental disaster. 

(If this is too hard to read, try looking at this picture at the following: 

http://www.global-greenhouse-warming.com/images/AralSeaChronology.jpg )

For a more detailed explanation of how and why it happened, please read the following article.
http://euroheritage.net/sovietcollectivization.shtml

Perhaps the most interesting part to me, is what the land that was once underwater looks like.  I've always been one to be fascinated by things that used to be and how they look now that some circumstance has changed them.  Ghost towns, shipwrecks, and any abandoned place is likely to be on my list of places I'd like to see before I die. 

Here are some of the images of the former Aral Sea that I enjoyed:

These are both photographs of abandoned ships.

This was the airport terminal, now overgrown and abandoned.  Fishing merchants used to fly in and out frequently to the seaport of Muynak.  Clearly, there is no need for these visits now and the airport closed. 

Salt crystals formed here. As the sea evaporates, the salinity level increases and the saltier the Aral Sea becomes.  When it evaporated further, these crystals were left behind.

This was a dock installed by an oil company exploring for oil.  As you can see, much of the dock is now above water. 

And finally, what was once the fourth largest inland sea is now in large part a desert inhabited by fellows like in the photo above: Although quite cute in my opinion, a fish he most certainly is not. 

Panama Canal

The Panama Canal was built between the years of 1904 and 1914 to connect the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. 48 miles in length, this was the second attempt to build such a canal- costing over 5,000 deaths from disease and injury.  The first attempt, by the French, in the 1880's cost nearly 22,000 people their lives mostly due to deaths from malaria and yellow fever.  The video below is really neat, it is a time-lapse journey through the canal, and shows how the locks operate.  Pay attention to the end of the video for the amazing Bridge of the Americas that is sort of a finish line that symbolizes you have reached the Pacific Ocean. 



Some of the more interesting things I have read about the Panama Canal are the tolls. 

Length of vessel                                                                                                              Toll


Up to 15.240 meters (50 ft)                                                                                        US$1,300

More than 15.240 meters (50 ft) up to 24.384 meters (80 ft)                                      US$1,400

More than 24.384 meters (80 ft) up to 30.480 meters (100 ft)                                    US$1,500

More than 30.480 meters (100 ft)                                                                              US$2,400

Passenger vessels, like cruise ships, pay based on how many "berths" the ship has, or how many beds (and therefore people) could fit on the ship.  The highest toll recorded was paid by the Disney Magic Cruise Ship in 2008.  The cruise vessel paid $331,200!! 
 
On the opposite end of the spectrum we have Richard Haliburton, an American adventurer, who paid just 36 cents to swim the passageway in 1928. 
 
Currently with two sets of locks, the Panama Canal is expected to finish the construction of the third set of locks, costing over 5 billion dollars in 2015.  This set of locks is being added due to increased volume of ships using the canal.  It is not unusual for a ship that is not paying a priority price to have to wait in a seven day long line (or about 90 vessels) to get their turn to enter the canal. 
 
 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panama_Canal
 

A little harmless fun...

A few different facebook friends of mine have started little mini debates on the topic of halloween and whether or not true Christians should celebrate the holiday.  While everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion on any matter, I took the liberty of researching the origins of Halloween and how it is celebrated around the globe and wanted to share what I think are some pretty valid points. 

Halloween is celebrated on October 31st, with many places celebrating the entire month with related events.  It has roots in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian holiday All Saints' Day, but is today largely a secular celebration.  Basically, like most holidays, it has been so overcommericalized that many people don't even know where the holiday came from or why-just that it is a lot of fun. 

The festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the "lighter half" of the year and beginning of the "darker half", and is sometimes[2] regarded as the "Celtic New Year".[3]




The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the Otherworld became thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's ancestors were honoured and invited home while harmful spirits were warded off. It is believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks. Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm. In Scotland the spirits were impersonated by young men dressed in white with masked, veiled or blackened faces. Samhain was also a time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. Bonfires played a large part in the festivities. All other fires were doused and each home lit their hearth from the bonfire. The bones of slaughtered livestock were cast into its flames.  Sometimes two bonfires would be built side-by-side, and people and their livestock would walk between them as a cleansing ritual.

Trick or treating came later, with children dressing up in costumes and going around neighborhoods to receive gifts of candy or money, with the "threat" of mischief if a treat wasn't provided.  In some places, such as Ireland and Scotland, children still practice "guising", which is performing a little song, or skit to earn the treats.  Halloween costumes are traditionally modeled after monsters such as ghosts, skeletons, witches, and devils. Over time, the costume selection extended to include popular characters from fiction, celebrities, and generic archetypes such as ninjas and princesses. In my own experience, I rarely see ghosts, witches and other ghouls-instead, I see character after character.  My own boys are being Leonardo, the TMNT, and SpeedRacer this year.  Last year they were Shaggy and Scooby Doo, before that a boxer and a bear....you get the idea. 

Halloween is not celebrated in all countries and regions of the world, and among those that do the traditions and importance of the celebration vary significantly. Celebration in the United States and Canada has had a significant impact on how the holiday is observed in other nations. This larger North American influence, particularly in iconic and commercial elements, has extended to places such as South America, Europe, to Japan under the auspices of the Japanese Biscuit Association, and other parts of East Asia.

Christians seem split down the middle on their views of Halloween.  Roman Catholics view Halloween as having a connection to christianity and is even celebrated in many parochial schools, with parades where the kids can dress up in their costumes and have a party.  Some other groups of Christians reject the holiday since they believe it endorses paganism and therefore shouldn't be recognized. 

Kids dressing up in cute costumes, getting free candy, and having fun- purely evil, right?  I think Halloween is like any other holiday- evolved so far from the roots it came from, that people understand it is just a good time and not to be taken seriously.  After all, just because you are Christian and keep the Christ in Christmas doesn't mean you don't visit Santa at the mall and set out milk and cookies for him. It's ok to let kids use their imagination and be filled with wonder.  As they grow up and began facing the realities of life, the simple pleasures of childhood will remain with them. 



For more specifics on how other countries celebrate Halloween, check out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween_around_the_world And more info on Halloween:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween
http://www.history.com/topics/halloween
 

The Art of Arches

Our third little miracle, due in February, is another wonderful boy (which makes three boys!) and we have given him the name Archer Gregory (Gregory is for my FIL, who passed away in July of 2009.)  Naturally, this got me thinking of famous arches around the world.  What is remarkable is that no matter where you go in the world, in ancient civilizations as well as modern architectural masterpieces, the arch is a powerful symbol for truimph. 

The Arc de Triomphe, in Paris France honors those who fought for France, especially during the Napoleonic wars.  The names of generals are etched on the inside and tops of the arch and the tomb of the unknown soldier rests below the monument. 

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel, located in Paris as well, is positioned near the Louvre.  It commemorates the Restoration of the Bourbons, after the fall of Napoleon.  

Another famous European gate is the Siegestor or Victory Gate in Munich.  It is located between the

university and the Ohmstrabe. It has three arches. 

The Ottawa War Memorial, in Canada, is another example of an arch being used in a monument to express victory and truimph.  In 2000, the Canadians added a tomb of the unknown soldier below it. 

The Marble Arch, located in a corner of Hyde Park and the nearby Wellington Arch are excellent London examples of arches.  Historically, only the royal family was allowed to pass through the Marble Arch.  Both of these arches were built to honor Britain's victory over Napoleon. 

Below is the arch built for the soldiers and sailors, and marks the entrance to Prospect Park in Brooklyn. 

The National Memorial Arch is located in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.  It honors the Continental Army. 

There are so many more, and all really beautiful. Check out this link to see the rest on this amazing list: http://quazen.com/arts/architecture/famous-commemorative-and-triumphal-arches-in-the-world/#ixzz11xw8fsAR

And, what is my favorite arch currently, until February of course...

Tornado Touchdowns in Arizona

Early Wednesday morning, 4 tornadoes created a path of destruction near Flagstaff, Arizona.  This sparsely populated part of Arizona may see 4 tornadoes a year, but rarely sees clusters of tornadoes traveling together.  This storm system, moving over the west caused other problems as well, particularly in Utah.  Two teenagers were stuck by lightning outside of school Tuesday afternoon and airlifted to a hospital in Vegas.

The weather is coming from a low pressure system that had stationed itself over parts of California.  Arizona was the hardest hit though. (although don't ask the teenagers stuck by lightning who they think was the hardest hit!) .  On Tuesday, storms ripped out trees and broke windows in metropolitan Phoenix, flooded roadways, shut airports and dented cars and shattered windows with hail bigger than golf balls in some places.  On Wednesday, semitrailers were sitting along the side of Interstate 40. High winds cast dozens of cars of a freight train off the tracks in Bellemont around 6:30 a.m. No one was injured and the cars did not contain any hazardous materials.

About thirty homes had to be evacuated due to damages sustained from the tornadoes. 


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101006/ap_on_re_us/us_western_weather

Centralia

I had never been to Centralia, but my Dad had told me about it years ago but wouldn't take me there since gases seeping out of the ground would not qualify him for the Father of the Year award that he wins each year.  Since I've been an adult for ten years now, I finally decided I was going to go on Saturday.  Armed with my copy of "Fire Underground- The Ongoing Tragedy of the Centralia Mine Fire" by David DeKok ( a birthday gift from my hubby- isn't he romantic??), my hubby, my best friend and his best friend we made the trip. 

A brief background on the fire itself is necessary for someone who may not know about it.  The fire started in May of 1962 when the town officials decided to burn the trash in a dump to clean it up for the upcoming Memorial Day holiday.  Because the whole area is built over mine veins filled with anthracite, this particular dump was over a strip mine.... and the trash that burned went down an open "shaft" and into the mines below.  Many controversial topics related to the town, the people in it and the PA government factor in to why the problem wasn't stopped before it became so big that a whole town was simply written off- but the main points are the town was covering up their mistake (thinking nobody would help them when they set the fire) and nobody was notified until the fire had already been burning for two months. Over the next fifteen years, several plans were voted on and set in motion but they always ran out of money before anything was completed.  Finally, by the 1980's, people were given the choice to relocate- the United States spent $42 million dollars for the families who moved to neighboring towns to get away from the carbon monoxide seeping into their homes.  Another interesting point about these homes is that many of them were involved in bootleg mining from their basements in previous decades-making it all too easy for the carbon monoxide to enter their homes. 

After visiting Centralia for a few hours and feeling the effects of stinging eyes, headache and not being able to breathe as clearly, it's hard for me to understand why some families fought so long to stay.  7 families are still in residence...which I found so creepy to pass some of these homes because something is clearly not functioning in their brains! I could barely walk at one point from lack of air (apparently being 20 weeks pregnant makes me more susceptible to the gases...oops.)  and people live their day in and day out for over 40 years since the fire has been burning?  Amazing. 

I got really excited when I saw this tree, the same picture is in my book! This is a sign that says Fire with an arrow towards an area filled with steam that a neighbor hung because he was tired of people knocking on his door and asking him :)

Gases seeping from the ground- smelled awful!

Took our flipflops off and stood barefoot here...the ground was so hot it was like being at the beach standing in the sand!

The old highway, this was my favorite.  Loved seeing all the messages from people, some were vulgar but most were neat little quotes and pictures. 

Why the highway had to be closed down and traffic rerouted around this portion.  People like to throw sticks and trash in the crack because they smolder up nicely. 

This used to be the main street through town- everything is gone.  I would have liked to see more debris but things have been gone almost my whole life so there wasn't much evidence, besides overgrown sidewalks and an occasional stone wall here or there.

It was definitely worth seeing!

For more info on Centralia:

1) Read the book I mentioned earlier...it's fabulous!

2) Go there! (Yes, I'm encouraging people to go to an area with less than perfect oxygen parts in the air)

It's up in Columbia County, and you take the same exit (901-Minersville) that would take you to Knoebels

3) http://www.offroaders.com/album/centralia/centralia.htm