Claire

Week 151 February 18, 2017

Published on February 18, 2017August 13, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

Another week has flown by, spent mainly in Castro Valley. Between storms we had a lovely, few sunny days, even more appreciated for the rain. As I drove around parts of the San Francisco bay area, I was awed again by luscious green hills all around, and golden sunsets reflected in the waters. But as I was driving I could not snap any photos.

We enjoyed a memorable afternoon and evening with dear, sweet friends and three of their delightful eight granddaughters, in San Jose. The sisters, ranging in age from 8 to 13 were curious about our travels, and it was fun to reminisce with them with the aid of our friends’ globe. Where was my camera after I snapped a photo of their gaily decorated mailbox? Non so – I do not know, in Italian. We stayed overnight in their guest room and had one more treasured opportunity to catch up with our friends over breakfast before we headed off to Sunday worship service.

Loren and I so enjoyed seeing many of our friends from our Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Sunnyvale. Throughout the service to fellowship afterwards, we learned about some of what we have missed over nearly three years of being away from our home spiritual community. Afterwards we enjoyed a leisurely lunch with our close friend and choir director, then we visited with a longtime friend whose 87 year old husband had died while we were away. But again, my camera?!

Loren and I also enjoyed taking his Mom for coffee at Cafe Rumi one day. She appreciates every opportunity to be out of the house, where she is also quite comfortable but spends most of her time. The cafe screen periodically scrolled photos with quotes of the ancient Persian poet and Sufi mystic, Rumi. This one is my favorite: “Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love, it will not lead you astray.” We subsequently took Loren’s Mom to the library, another place she enjoys, to check out a couple of books.

I hope you too had a lovely Valentine’s Day this week. Loren treated me out for sushi the night before to beat the crowds, then surprised me with a bottle of champagne the next morning. I enjoyed it with him by skipping on taking a Bikram yoga class – my usual time to practice, and went later in the day.

Three more memorable evenings were had this week. The first was with Loren’s Mom, sister, cousins and their friends, we had a fun celebration of Valentine’s Day at the Italian Colombo Club in Oakland, California.

The dining hall was gaily decorated for the event. Loren’s Mom remembers various special times here with family during her childhood.

She handed us money beforehand to purchase raffle tickets at the door, and, true to her prediction, our purchased tickets afforded us to be big drawing winners that evening!

Another memorable evening was spent in good conversation with special neighbors at one of their homes for dinner in San Jose. Fortunately one of them thought of using his camera to record the evening, then I was able to ensure that he too was in a photo. Thank you dear friends!

Beforehand, Loren and I had looked over our yard from the sidewalk, and I was tickled to notice how the small maple sapling which his sister had given us before we left home is thriving at about two to three times its former size.

I have to comment too this week on how wonderful it has been to be back in the hot yoga room on a nearly daily basis for a little over a month now. My practice continues to improve given all that I learned in Teacher Training in 2014, and from a variety of senior teachers as we have traveled. It feels so good to stretch and rebuild my muscles, move and soothe my joints, notice healing sweat on my clearer and smoother skin, apply light tourniquet pressure and release to various areas of my body through the postures, and, build focus and concentration with the teacher’s meditative dialog. At the end of class many teachers say, “Namaste,” leaving us in Savasana with lights turned low. Translated it means, “The Spirit within me honors the Spirit within you.” I wish everyone could have similar regular reparative routines for body and mind. I end this with that wish.

Week 150 February 11, 2017

Published on February 11, 2017August 13, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

Dear Family and Friends, it is always so wonderful to hear from you – by email, on this blog, however it is that you reach out to us, it is always meaningful and most welcome. Thank you for thinking of us! And, woohoo, this week is another round number for us with living away from our home for 150 Weeks.

Still in Castro Valley at an AirBnB this week, and Loren and I are checking off more to do’s on our lists of routine appointments, important business and errands that are hard to accomplish further away from home. For example, we now have our POLSTs – Physician Orders For Life Sustaining Treatment, done… do you have yours done?

Our primary goal of spending time with Loren’s Mom included watching the incredible Super Bowl game with her and his one sister, and, finishing a couple of house projects for her. We have watched Warriors games together as well. I enjoy seeing her calm, “Miss it, miss it, miss it,” mantra that she often says to opposing basketball team members when they are attempting a free throw, while wiggling her fingers in front of her face as if casting a spell. It frequently works! I have to say that I tried it out during the Super Bowl on a conversion, and it worked for me too. We also enjoy seeing their lush backyard while we are here!

Loren and I had a date to see Hidden Figures. Despite strong recommendations of people whose opinions we value, I have to say that the online description did not grab me. So while it was on my list, it was often pushed down – until, we heard an announcer of the Super Bowl rave about it too. That was the turning point that made it a priority. And, lucky us, it was the only movie playing in the local downtown theater. Hidden Figures now ranks among our top 5 best of all time. For me that means I laughed and cried, then came away feeling uplifted and hopeful about life. Many images and the story of this movie have stayed with me in the several days since. A snippet of Grand Old Flag playing during the film reminded me how long it has been since I have heard that song. It ear whirred in me all week, taking me to many places of childhood nostalgia.

Not only was Hidden Figures inspiring, it also awoke memories of my 23 year career in the computer industry. I had not heard of the 7090 mainframe portrayed in the film, but I reminisced about my work on the IBM 3033, 3081, 3084 and 3090 machines at what was then General Foods, a customer of IBM. Those gigantic mainframes ran VTAM (Virtual Telecommunications Access Method) software under the control of MVS (Multiple Virtual Storage) and VM (Virtual Machine) operating systems. Using SNA (Systems Network Architecture) communications protocol, VTAM, in tandem with NCP (Network Control Program) software in the separate 3705 and 3725 Front End Processor machines, allowed for RJE (Remote Job Entry) work to reach the mainframe’s JES (Job Entry Subsystem) program for processing.

Customizing NCP and sometimes VTAM software properly to the company’s needs was my realm – my main responsibility. Subsequently at Amdahl I taught VTAM and NCP customization concepts to customers across the US, Europe, and Japan. Later, at Hewlett Packard, I provided Customer Support by telephone. Teaching and traveling provided the most fun and reward during my 23 year computer career.

Loren and I were also able to travel to the south bay for Loren to attend a UUFS Men’s group meeting while I attended a Bikram yoga class nearby. Our AirBnB hosts are away for a long weekend, just after celebrating the son’s 22nd birthday one evening.

While they are gone, it is my job to gather the fresh eggs from the hen house, and, to try to be a replacement for their cat and dogs’ real owners. They are missed!

After much rain this week, we are enjoying seeing the sun again. Harbinger of spring, a flock of Cedar Waxwings with their unique call, visited Loren’s Mom’s backyard earlier this week, and, I noticed how fresh the air smells today after the rain.

And, this week I was delighted to find the copy of my great-great grandmother’s book of memoirs that I had left with Loren’s Mom for safekeeping. Inside I found handwritten notes and a newspaper article that I had forgotten were there. An extra special find!

Week 149 February 4, 2017

Published on February 4, 2017August 13, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

It has been another good week in Castro Valley. From having a delightful time visiting with good friends who are neighbors and friends of Loren’s since they were in Kindergarten and First Grade respectively, to having a walk and lunch with my dear friend and colleague who drove to Castro Valley for our visit. But, where was my camera to capture these moments? I remember my mother’s disappointment with herself for forgetting to have a camera at special events, and now I so understand how she felt.

I did have my camera when Loren and I drove his Mom for coffee at the cafe/bait shop on Lake Chabot.

And, I had it when former long time neighbors stopped by for a short visit the day when Loren’s sister took his Mom to have their nails done. Would you ever know that her favorite basketball team is the Warriors from her polish colors? We can also say she is set to cheer her Patriots team in the SuperBowl…

We have watched news programs and Warriors games with Loren’s Mom and sister, at the end of days that begin with a Bikram yoga class for me – and if it is not good weather for a bike ride for Loren then he joins me, then, running errands and/or doing house or yard maintenance projects. It was a delight for me to teach two more Bikram classes in nearby San Ramon this week too.

We had more laughs with “senior moments this week too.” I do not mean just for Loren’s Mom, though I have to mention one conversation that she and I had.

She asked: “When you leave for Spain will you still update your, your –

what do you call it – a glob? No, blob? No, what is it called?”

Me: “The blog.”

She: “Ha ha, that’s right!¨

Me: “Ha ha! And, yes, I will still update it every week, in fact, I am still

updating it every week, even now.”

Lil: “Oh, good.”

Fragrant trees and colorful stems are now flowering in northern California – yellow Acacia trees, daffodils, mustard, and, orange Nasturtium and the California state flower – poppies, for example…

We are also especially enjoying our AirBnB home nearby to Loren’s Mom’s house. When we stay at an AirBnb, we always have a private bedroom, and a bathroom that is sometimes private and sometimes shared. At this home in Castro Valley, we enjoy a lot of bantering and camaraderie with our host, her daughter, son, daughter’s boyfriend, friends of her son who stop by, and another single guest. We appreciate their two large friendly dogs and one tabby cat with white paws, watching cooking competitions on the food channel together, and, eating fresh laid eggs daily from the dozen or so hens who live in a hen pen out back. We feel very fortunate to have our home away from home with this delightful family for this special period of time.

Week 148 January 28, 2017

Published on January 28, 2017August 13, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

We have had a wonderful week in Castro Valley, with a little bit of time in the South Bay and also as far south as Santa Cruz. We visited with some of the special people in our lives who are close to home. Starting with more time with Loren’s Mom and sister, including a brunch and a lunch out with his Mom for pizza.

We caught up with our dear neighbor and met with our insurance agent, both of whom I neglected to capture by camera. I had the pleasure of enjoying dinner with a very dear friend, and Loren and I had a fun stay over at friends of his.

Again, I captured no photos of a meeting with our property manager, spontaneously running into a colleague who is also a neighbor and friend, and, a good visit with other neighbors. Loren also met with long time friends who gifted him with the postcards he had sent.

And, I walked and visited with dear college and friend, while Loren visited with another long time friend and his parents. I was sorry to not have my camera for so many of those meaningful times. I did remember to take photos of cousins who we visited at their home, and on a hike,

and of inspiring yard art, window art and back yard vistas, as part of a memorable lunch, dinner and overnight with them!

We also checked another routine doctor’s appointment off our list, sorted through hardcopies of mail, and took several Bikram yoga classes. I am excited to have taught two classes myself this week, and have two more to teach this upcoming week. I look forward to seeing more dear friends along with spending more time with Loren’s Mom and sisters…

Week 147 January 21, 2017

Published on January 21, 2017August 13, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

This week felt very full! We drove west across New Mexico through Arizona – surprising us in that it included driving through recent heavy fallen snow, as well as other beautiful vistas.

Then we were into Nevada at sunset and for the moonrise, to reach Tecopa Hot Springs in southern California, which is next to Death Valley National Park.

We were fortunate in that the forecast was clear for our stay, because this area had been deluged with a week of rain – which is very unusual for the desert. Other than the nuisance of mud-caked shoes, some wind, and winter cold, the major concern was for potential flooding… We enjoyed so much – the view from our “bedroom” (in our van!) on awakening,

a morning soak in the mineral baths, a hike, and, as our visit to Tecopa included staying Saturday night – when the new owner, who is a drummer, and several other musicians -performed their songs outdoors during the evening hours. Many of the visitors and the locals turned out for it at his family’s Bistro, a nice addition from our previous visits here. Fortunately we did not experience any flooding!

We then had a full day of driving north to arrive in Castro Valley. We stayed first with Loren’s Mom and sister, who still live in the house where Loren and his sisters grew up. Loren’s sister owns an inflatable double size bed, which fills up to the height of a mattress and box spring. It felt similar to sleeping on a water bed. We have very much enjoyed catching up with them. So far here, we have celebrated Mom’s 91st birthday,

enjoyed a hike with Loren’s sister, and I have taken daily Bikram Yoga classes while Loren has gone on daily bicycle rides unless it is raining, then he joins me for yoga.

We had a delightful dinner with some of our friends in this area, many of whom Loren has known since his primary school days.

We also attended the San Francisco Movement Arts Festival, an endeavor and lovechild of Loren’s friend, who has put on such annual events for some years now. This time it was held in Grace Cathedral, where it was awesome to see dance and movement artists at the “Stations of the Dance.”

During the week we moved in to our AirBnB with a lovely family, where we will stay for the remainder of our time here. Outside our bedroom window we see a festive sight, both day and night! On the personal side we have attended to some errands and so far visited the first of the several routine doctor’s appointments that we have lined up.

We look forward to seeing more family and friends while we are near home, and, mainly, spending much time with Loren’s Mom, starting with brunch later today.

Week 146 January 14, 2017

Published on January 14, 2017August 14, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

We were in Austin at the beginning of this week. As it is the Capitol city of Texas, and as we were in the downtown area, we paid a visit to the Capitol building. Here we learned a little more about the history of Texas. After it was part of Spain, it was part of France, then part of Mexico, then – yes there’s more – it was an independent colony of Mexico, before it became the 28th state to join the Union. Being an independent colony explains further what an AirBnB host had told us: since Texas was once its own country – a Republic – Texans are allowed to fly the state flag at the same height as the US flag. Texas was also part of the Confederate states after joining the union, but we learned that Governor Sam Houston was resistant to both sides of the Civil War, which then cost him his job. With all that history, the Capital proudly displays all 6 state seals.

We again enjoyed eating – here we had various tacos, a BBQ dinner, sushi… It was still quite unusually cold for in Texas winter – that is frost on our windshield one morning. We stayed one night at a hostel that was opened by a travel blogger who Loren follows. Unfortunately he was not in town. We attended a UU Sunday service, and, we had a little more exercise this week with daily Bikram yoga classes. I had the delight to catch up with a Bikram Yoga Teacher Training Littermate, here! And, we enjoyed an evening walk at Zilker park where we captured the skyline in the nearing of twilight.

It is true, Texans do things BIG… aside from the state itself being second only to Alaska in size, our first AirBnB in Fort Worth was in a big HOUSE, our AirBnB in Austin had big bed PILLOWS and big fluffy TOWELS, and, we saw big trailer loads of COTTON being harvested west of Austin, – in my photo, that is one “bale” with a huge tarp over it; and *at least* tens of square miles of WINDMILL farms, for example. I just had to stop by the side of the road to touch a puff of escaped cotton, many of which could be seen all over – there is a little seed inside, surrounded by soft cotton. On further thought, Loren and I might be more Texan than we thought – after all, we are on on a big 146 WEEKS of journeying, so far!

Along our 12 hour drive to Santa Fe, New Mexico from Texas, we saw a few more than the usual number of hawks. Their flying closer to our car allowed us to see them better. Then there was the beautiful male pheasant right beside the road. And, we can attest that Canadian geese end up in the south, as we saw so many here, with one pond absolutely teeming with them as we drove by. Unfortunately we were unable to capture snapshots of any of these. Please take my word, the images are indelibly anchored in my memory.

[Update from a week later: I was able to make a couple of photos of hawks in the desert near Tecopa Hot Springs.}

To sum up Santa Fe for us in a word? It would have to be smitten! For example, we were thoroughly inspired at the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. Her life story is impressive – she too was smitten with New Mexico. We learned that her style of art is known as “imaginative… grounded in personal expression and harmonious design” leading “to an interpretation of the natural world, not a representation of it,” as she learned from studying art at the University of Virginia.

Santa Fe happens to be the Capitol of New Mexico. Similar to how we visited the Capitol building in Austin, we stopped in at the one in Santa Fe too. Inside the building, most of its hallway walls are covered with impressive and inspiring galleries of art. Additionally most of the homes and buildings around Santa Fe are of the one story adobe style architecture, and some of them are gaily painted or decorated as well. Fun!

We enjoyed taking more daily Bikram Yoga classes here, and, we found a couple of meaningful weekday activities in which to participate at the local Unitarian Universalist Congregation too. It is wonderful when we find a place that is home to a Bikram Yoga studio and a UU congregation. But we only had time to just whet our appetites for the locale – wide open spaces with fringe mountains nearby… Ahh!

We also hiked at Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument. Kasha-Katuwe, translated from the Native American name, means White Cliffs. The only other place in the world where you can find such similar geological formations is in Cappadocia, Turkey. In a word, they are gorgeous!

[Another update from a week later: I think these unique formations highly influenced the Sufi meditative dance practice of Whirling Dervishes, especially based on this image I found at the small public Library in Tecopa Hot Springs. What do you think?]

Today we will be driving 10 hours to stay a couple of nights in southern California… When we had first arrived at our AirBnB in Santa Fe, we found a pair of fun eyewear. I believe it is still a fine time to wish you a Happy, Healthy, and Most Meaningful 2017!

Week 145 January 7, 2017

Published on January 7, 2017August 16, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

Happy New Year! We rang in 2017 with cousins on their farm in Nebraska. We aimed for playing cards all night! Well, we nearly did. Loren and I went to bed after 2:30 am, the latest we have stayed up on a New Year’s Eve for several years now. It was a very fun evening!

It was so good to be with these precious people again. Our weekend visit included going along to do a few farm chores…

to Loren playing basketball and throwing the baseball with one cousin and his teens. It also included time to play with the dogs, attend church, visit other family farmhouses, and, play more cards.

We were lucky in that the Nebraska winter was mild, until after we left! So driving to and from the farm was easy. Our next drive day took us from Nebraska, through Kansas and Oklahoma, to Texas, and we were again lucky with the winter weather for driving.

Starting in Fort Worth, we had a lovely dinner visit with more cousins. It was too short a time, yet most memorable, and for that I am thankful. That is my Mom, second from the left as an attendant in the wedding photo, and, the photo of four generations including my great-grandmother looks so very similar to another one that was taken of her, my grandmother, my Mom, and me. These are only some of the four generation relationships that my great-grandmother was a part of during her 100 years of life.

The Arctic cold snap that was predicted in Nebraska arrived in Texas too. Karen told us that they had been wearing shorts the day before, but for now it has turned bone chilling cold. In Dallas, Loren and I went to see the George W. Bush Presidential Center located at Southern Methodist University. It was very cold here too, nothing like Loren had envisioned of Texas.

The next day, in the city called College Station we toured the George H.W. Bush Presidential Museum at Texas A&M University. It was still very cold.

Now we are in Austin and have seen the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library at the University of Texas. As LBJ was in office when we were both quite young, Loren and I learned a lot about what life in the world was like during his Presidency.

Still in Austin we have taken a Bikram Yoga class, and plan to do so on each of the next few days. It is also cold here, but, the yoga studio staff assured us, even if the weather is predicted to be bad, it is always good weather on Sundays in Austin. We will see…

In the meantime, Loren and I wish you a wonderful, happy, healthy, healing year, 2017!

Week 144 December 31, 2017

Published on December 31, 2016August 16, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

It does not seem like a whole week could possibly have passed by, but it was a full week! We left New York after a special brunch with cherished family there, and drove to Pennsylvania to stay with a dear friend. She and I have known each other since Junior High translates to: Middle School, days.

It was fun to reminisce over several other visits we have had over the years, thanks to some of her precious photos displayed in frames.

When Loren and I left, we had a twelve hour drive to our AirBnB just outside of St. Louis. After our host learned of our intention to visit the Harry Truman Library in Independence, Missouri, he made sure that we were also aware of the National Winston Churchill Museum in nearby Fulton. Seeing this was also of interest to us, so we changed our plans for the opportunity to spend time learning more about Churchill’s life and work. We later arrived in Independence in time to see a little of the Truman Presidential Library before it closed for the day.

Our AirBnB in Independence was in an historic neighborhood, in walking distance to what was Truman’s home. We began early the next day with a visit there, which is part of the National Park system, and, extremely affordable courtesy of Loren’s Senior Pass! We then spent what was left of the day seeing the rest of the extensive Truman Library.

Speaking of historic, that is what we are experiencing this week – from seeing images and reading so much about WWII at Churchill’s memorial and at Truman’s Library, the AirBnB common area also had a sobering poster of the south New York City skyline from sometime between late 1970 but before September 11, 2001.

As with our visit to President Carter’s Library in Atlanta in 2015, we learned so much more about Truman’s presidency than we were aware of, giving us much more of an appreciation of the challenges and important decisions he faced. Both Truman and Churchill faced struggles early in their personal life until they discovered that their talents allowed them to excel through service in their military.

Loren and I have now left Missouri behind, arriving in time to ring in 2017 tonight with dear cousins in Nebraska. Somehow, for the first time, I hear them pronounce their state name as ‘nBraska’! Maybe I always heard them say it that way, and I am just clearer in that I want to convey it here. But also for the first time I understand what their 4H club name means and that is definitely worthy of conveying here too.

We have already had a few laughs together and look forward to many more before we drive south to Texas from here. Until then, it is delightful to spend time with these precious family members and see their appealing and festive holiday decorations.

In conveying the message of the season in the words of Truman, May there be Peace for All Time,

and, wishing you a Happy 2017, with an idea from another wall hanging from our Independence AirBnB showing street signs proclaiming, “Your Life” vs. the one not taken, which is “No Longer An Option.”

Week 143 December 24, 2016

Published on December 24, 2016August 16, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

Hello, we hope that you too had a great Christmas!

This post is a little late as this week Loren and I visited for four nights in the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. We stayed first at an AirBnB for two nights in La Plata. Our host had two adorable sibling kittens named Cobre, which means Copper, and Felicidad for Happiness, who were entertaining. Loren was able to practice speaking Spanish, however, in Argentina there is a dialect spoken that is different from what we learned in school. For example, “You” familiar, is said, Bos here, not Tu.

Two more nights were spent at an AirBnB with a family and their dog, Athena, in Lujan, said Loo-han. The father is quite an artist as a hobby. The elder son is talented in playing the guitar, while his girlfriend likes to sing. The younger son is playful and fun.

We were all anticipating Navidad – Christmas, but, for us from the Northern Hemisphere, it felt unusual as it is summer and calor – hot, during the day in Buenos Aires. We had several laughs trying to translate certain ideas. We learned more of the dialect, for example, Sho, rather than Yo for I, and, Cashe, instead of Calle for street. As the mother spoke no English I was inspired to try a bit with my limited Spanish too. When Loren asked their word for Nun, they taught us it is Monka. When queried if the masculine would be Monko? The father quickly said, “No, no monkey!”

We were privileged to celebrate the older son’s 16th birthday, with this family hosting a traditional BBQ. At the start of the evening his parents, his aunt, uncle, Loren and I shared a traditional communal drink. It is called Mate, which Loren wondered if it was marijuana? No! It is a little like coffee or tea, served in one metallic cup with a special – usually silver, straw. This is one aspect of our travels that Loren and I most appreciate – to be able to spend time with the local people to learn more about their culture. And this family appreciates opening their home to travelers, for their sons to learn more about the larger world in their own home environment.

When the evening turned to well after midnight, Google Translate described what they were then saying as, “The night is in diapers.” We finally understood this to mean, “The night is young!” And, they meant it! The boy and his friends who had already arrived before we went to bed, went out to town to celebrate, at about 3am…

On our last day in Argentina, we went with the family to visit at the home of the aunt and uncle who we met the previous evening. They have two rescued owls which are among my favorite birds,

and a rescued pigeon! We had a lovely visit with an additional friend there and the sons of the aunt and uncle. The older one’s girlfriend gifted us with a lovely Christmas ornament that she had made by hand.

Then we bid a fond farewell to this lovely family after we returned to their home.

Loren and I then had a nearly a two hour drive to the airport, for a 5 hour overnight flight.

This was followed by a change of planes in Miami on our way to New York for Christmas afternoon and dinner with my brother and his family. My older niece’s beau was able to share this special time with us too. Santa brought my younger niece her first car, and she is beside herself with delight in it. We so enjoyed watching the movie, Elf together, which is competing with Polar Express for Loren’s and my second choice, after It’s a Wonderful Life of all time favorite holiday movies. After dinner we watched a recording of Loren’s favorite Golden State Warriors competing with the Cleveland Cavaliers in basketball, which had a disappointing outcome for us Californians. Despite that, it was another wonderful, memorable family gathering for us to cherish!

Now Loren and I wish you a very Happy 2017!

Week 142 December 17, 2016

Published on December 17, 2016August 19, 2018 by ClaireLeave a comment

This posting is late, due to a lack of internet in Antarctica… In Ushuaia, Argentina at the start of this week we learned that there is less oxygen at the southern end of the world than we are used to, which causes drowsiness. I had thought my exhaustion was from limited sleep on the plane – surely that contributed as well. We took a day tour of Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego where we found tundra-like terrain for Upland Geese and Black Neck Swans to thrive. Sadly, we also saw damage done over time from the original 25 pairs of beavers who were imported with the intent for the pelting industry in 1946. However since the weather conditions here preclude viable enough coats and with the lack of predators, there are now over 100,000 beavers, and their dams prevent water from reaching the roots of indigenous trees… a problem still needing to be resolved.

Late in the afternoon we boarded our ship, Ocean Diamond. With 179 passengers and 22 expedition staff, all served by 122 dedicated ship’s crew, dining, and housekeeping, we sailed away through Beagle Channel, having our safety preparedness drills while at sea.

Later, we were fortunate to have an easy time of two days and nights through Drake’s Passage, normally known for its rough waters. The doctor onboard was helpful in our decision to still take dramamine – see my new nickname for this medicine below, another factor in feeling tired. However, I will take tired over seasick any day, as the dining room was noticeably less full the second night at sea.

I was inspired to write this four verse Haiku:

Cruising to Antarctica

by Claire Adalyn Wright

Through the Drake, no way

could I take showers… as our

ship rocks, lifts and dips.

Drunken sailors walk

the halls, sans any liquor

passing through our lips.

Drowsamine pills cause

unavoidable dozing

during helpful talks,

Where expert staff teach

how to stay safe and have fun

in the Antarctics.

The expedition staff included a variety of people knowledgeable in, for example, geology, marine biology, ornithology, photography, and, who entertained us with lectures, activities and photos. Did you know that the continent of Antarctica doubles in size in winter? Not only is it known as the 7th continent, it is also called the White Continent, and, claimed to be the coldest, driest, highest, and windiest. Nearly summer right now, calving glaciers create floating masses of icebergs and ice floes. Here is my best of first photos of an albatross, and my first sighting of an iceberg bigger than a bus…

We stopped in calmer seas among the South Shetland Islands. This is where we first disembarked on heavy-duty rafts called Zodiacs. If you look at Antarctica’s geography, there is a finger shaped peninsula aimed at Ushuaia toward which we then sailed. It contains the continuation of the Andes mountains of South America. Sailing around parts of the western side of this peninsula, the waters remained calmer. Sometimes the Zodiac drivers piloted us to an island shore or to the continent to hike, and sometimes they cruised us around the waters. Oftentimes we had both a hike and a cruise per day, and that was usually once in the morning and once in the afternoon.

In all we saw:

Cetacean, or Whale

Fin (just their blows)

Humpback (blows, dorsal fins, and tail flukes)

Minke (blows, dorsal fins, and, one who swam under our Zodiac!)

Pinnipedia, or Seal

Crabeating (misnamed as they eat krill!)

Leopard

Southern Elephant

Weddell

Seabird

Albatross*

Antarctic Terns and their nests

Cormorant and their colonies

Kelp Gull (among many varieties)

Skua

Snowy Sheathbill

Southern Giant Petrels

including Penguin: Chinstrap and their colonies, and many Gentoo and their colonies

*In the lecture, we heard how this particular Albatross for example has white on its head, that particular Albatross has gray on its head, this one has dots on its wings, that one has stripes on its wings – all very hard to identify from a distance!

As if that were not enough, other events that stand out include snowshoeing; finding new born penguin chicks keeping warm beneath a parent’s body; seeing iridescent rainbow clouds above dense bright white clouds below beautiful blue skies;

the full moon following us; our ship plow through sea ice; remains of yesteryears – like skeleton boats of the whaling industry;

and, the myriad forms of glacial ice.

These among other photos that I did not capture include a glacier calving down a partially exposed rocky mountainside as if sand in an hourglass; that Minke whale that swam about a meter – 3 feet, below our Zodiac; an evening BBQ on an outer deck where we bundled up underneath our handmade hats to compete in a contest.

An additional noteworthy experience is the night when sixty of us – plus four staff – camped on the snow. We spread out over a wide berth on Ronge Island to sleep amid the Antarctic sounds: like calving of ice and snow sounding like rifle fire, thunder, or a slushing noise; terns chirping in flight; noisy skua seeming to be jockeying for a partner to sleep beside; then, snow crystals bouncing on our outer layers of protective ground bedding, first gently, then heavily, as the hours of the all-night-light sky ticked by. While two centimeters – more than half an inch, of accumulating snow fell, the vistas morphed from distinctive mountains, glaciers, clouds and dark southern ocean, to simply blended grays and whites.

The overnight inspired my most recent Haiku:

Antarctic Outdoor Overnight

by Claire Adalyn Wright

Eternally light

during the night – barely I

slept, for sound and sight.

All along the past two and a half years of our journey, different people have asked if we would visit Antarctica. My answer was always no, little dreaming how much of interest this part of the world was to Loren, and that it would become part of our experience.

Since booking our voyage, some people have asked if we would take Bikram Yoga classes while there, or, wondered if we would spend each night on the ship. There are no settlements on Antarctica, just the very few research stations. Most of those are abandoned and yet to be cleared off per recent inter-country agreements. The one exception we came across was Port Lockroy, an historic British outpost that receives thousands of applications for the meager few staff positions briefly available each summer. Here we were able to mail a few postcards. So, no there are no opportunities to take yoga classes on the 7th continent, and, other than our one night of snow camping, we spent all of our nights onboard the Ocean Diamond.

Returning from the Southern Ocean to the rough to us swells of Drake’s Passage, our walk was step-step-shuffle-shuffle-shuffle. Our sleep was lulled by rocking – except for occasional big thumps, sudden drops, or unexpected rolls, as if airline turbulence. Once again we were fortunate in that most of the time the ship kept up a nice rhythmic pace through the Drake, alternatively feeling like a waterbed, cradle, hammock, or rocking horse, not unlike a breathing-in and breathing-out of the open ocean, reminding me how waves on a beach often feel like the heartbeat of the Earth. We made our return voyage with more informative lectures and fun gatherings, one of which was a photo contest where two of Loren’s photos and one of mine were given Honourable Mention. Loren’s are included his most recent “On the Road…Just Didn’t Know” Photos with Poetry e-blast.

We sailed on, first seeing Cape Horn which straddles the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. We had such an easy time through the Drake that we idled around Cape Horn for hours before sailing overnight through Beagle Channel to Ushuaia. I am so very appreciative for the opportunity to have traveled on this exceptional, otherworldly excursion. Now in the Buenos Aires area since late last evening, I am still feeling as if my body is being gently lulled and rocked as I stand, walk, or sit.

We wish you Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah!

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