tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-68684927782727020902024-02-07T00:45:33.029-08:00180 days-Al and Sally's Adventures in New Yorkal zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.comBlogger125125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-86248711730445511172013-10-26T08:08:00.003-07:002013-10-26T08:08:54.246-07:00October 21By Al<br />
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Today we started by going to an early service at Christ Church. This is a United Methodist Church in mid-town. It is a beautiful church. Sally had visited here once before and enjoyed the early service. However, this time the homily was given by the senior pastor who had just been honored for his years of service at the church. He talked about the honor and his history at the church, but it was more a personal story than a homily. I am sure for people who knew him, it was interesting. However, it was not so much for us. But, it is a beautiful church to see, as a most mid-town churches. With the cost of land, I am sure that churches in this area are either rich or sold.<br />
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The sanctuary.<br />
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After church we went to see the Intrepid Air and Space Museum. The main part of this museum is the World War II aircraft carrier. It is at a pier on the Hudson River. It has several different planes on its flight deck and on the inside. It also has several exhibits about life on an aircraft carrier and navel warfare. It also has a submarine docked next to it, the USS Growler. This was a sub that had missiles, but which had to be on the surface to launch the missiles. It has a Concorde Supersonic Transport that you can go on. It also has the Space Shuttle Enterprise in a special structure on the flight deck. It is more than a half day trip, but we thought we would give as much of it a try as we could. It was very interesting. We went on the submarine but did not go on the Concorde or go to see the Enterprise. We will do that another day.<br />
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The Intrepid. The pier is on the other side.<br />
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This is the pier. The Intrepid is to the left. The bump at the end of the Intrepid is the housing for the Enterprise Space Shuttle. You can see the Concorde at the end of the pier.<br />
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A closer look at the Concorde. <br />
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Planes on the flight deck. Manhattan in the background.<br />
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More flight deck.<br />
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A MiG-17 as flown by the North Vietnamese Air Force during the Vietnam war.<br />
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The Growler submarine alongside the pier.<br />
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One of the missiles on deck in the launch position. <br />
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Looking south from the flight deck. The buildings in the far distance are New Jersey. <br />
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That evening we ventured to the Bronx to the Lehman Center at Lehman College to see the Royal Drummers and Dancers of Burundi. This was a new part of the Bronx for us. It was an easy train ride and about a half mile walk to the college. The campus is kid of set aside from the neighborhood and is quite nice. The performance was very interesting, although it got a bit repetitive after a while. But, the drummers danced and drummed. Sometimes, they danced with drums on their heads. It is an art form that has been passed down from father to son for centuries. It is also considered a sacred art form. It was impressive and fun.<br />
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The drummers enter drumming.<br />
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And they dance and drum. At a point they put the drums in a semi-circle and then take turns dancing while the rest of the drummer drum.<br />
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<br />al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-76360255091365773032013-10-26T08:08:00.002-07:002013-10-26T08:08:42.100-07:00Day 138- September 28By Al <br />
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We met a good friend, Keiko Doi, who lives in Minneapolis but who happened to be in Kyoto visiting a friend. She went to Kinkakuji with us, also known as the Golden Temple. The temple itself is more spectacular than Ginkakuji. It was also extremely crowded with school children. They just kept arriving in bus loads. We were again asked by school children if they could ask us questions. They had the same questions and it was obviously an exercise to practice their English. It was fun. <br />
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Kinkaku-ji<br />
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Closer<br />
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School children with yellow hats. Each class was wearing the same color hat. It made it easy to keep the class together.</div>
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A red hat class.<br />
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We next went to Iwatayama Monkey Park. This is a large hill, almost a mountain, just west of Kyoto which has wild monkeys on it. You pay to go in and then walk up a long path to the top. I was reminded that Japan, like most of the world, doesn't have a lot of personal injury lawyers. There were no guard rails on the path and it wasn't paved. There were not warning signs all over. Except, you had frequent warnings about not starting the monkeys in the eye, not feeding them, and not approaching them. That might have been more for the monkeys than the people.<br />
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It was really interesting. The monkeys seemed not afraid of the people and if you stood still they would walk right by you. But, if you approached to close, they would move away or let their hair bristle as a warning.<br />
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Monkey on a slide.</div>
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Amy on a slide.<br />
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Kyoyo from Iwatayama Monkey Park.</div>
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Monkey<br />
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At the base of Iwatayama Monkey Park.<br />
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River at the base of Iwatayama Monkey Park.</div>
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There is a nice little town at the base of the park by this river. While we were waiting for a friend to pick us up(see later) we listened to three young sisters perform music. They were very good.</div>
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The younger of the three sisters.</div>
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The three sisters.</div>
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Statue near a Bamboo Forest West of Kyoto.<br />
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We also met Jay Klaphake and his wife, Miyuki. We first met Jay over 20 years ago when we were both working on a campaign for Bob Long. Since then we have run into them a few times and knew they were in Japan. However, I didn't know where for sure. A couple of weeks before we left for Japan, I got an email from Jay announcing that he was a sponsor of a Ted event at Kyoto University. The event was a few days before we got to Kyoto, so we wouldn't be able to attend. But, since he was in Kyoto, I emailed him that we would be there. <br />
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Our families got together for dinner. It was a lot of fun to see them again and learn more about Kyoto. They have a daughter and son, and it was fun to meet them also.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-1999948656804103932013-10-26T08:07:00.001-07:002013-10-26T08:07:51.985-07:00October 4By Al<br />
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Today was our last full day in Osaka. We decided that since the typhoon had robbed us of our chance to experience wild Japan, we at least wanted to get away from the city to the countryside. We weren't sure where to go. We thought of going to Koyosan, but when we got to the station we found that it would cost about $100 per person to go there. That seemed a little steep for a day trip. We had unlimited JR passes, so we asked the people at the station if they had a suggestion. They were extremely helpful. They consulted with each other, looked at map and schedules and came to the recommendation that we should take the JR train up the west coast of Lake Biwa, the largest lake in Japan. It is north east of Osaka.<br />
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We decided to take the train to the end of the line, since this would be less populated than some of the towns on the south end of the lake. That was a correct assumption. The train ended at Adogawa, a small town. We were the only gaijin around. We had a very nice dinner and walked about three blocks to the lake. It was very pleasant. <br />
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Lunch.<br />
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Drew looking at Lake Biwa.<br />
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Houses along Lake Biwa.<br />
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On the way up to Adogawa, we noticed a town with a very picturesque temple near the tracks. The town was Kitakamatsu. We decided to stop there on the way back. We say that when we travel the best things that happen are serendipity. This is one of those times. We walked about a block from the train station to the temple. There was an older man and woman working in a garden near the temple. We said hello to them as we walked by. It was our intention only look at the temple from the road and the go further up the hill to where there were supposed to be some waterfalls. <br />
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However, as we were looking at the temple, the older man approached us and invited us into the temple. He was the former priest. His son was the current priest. But, the old priest and his wife still lived at the temple and take care of it. He invited us into the temple, gave us a brochure about it, gave us something to drink, gave us prayer bracelets and then showed us around the temple grounds. As we were preparing to leave, he went into the house, and got a bag of sweets to give us. His wife came and joined us and also showed us some things. The two of them exchanged some conversation. (Sally's comment- I think that she was telling him that he should have given us more things- whereupon she went back into the house.) She returned with a bag full of many crackers and snacks. It made us realize that we really need to carry gifts with us wherever we go so that if something like this happens, we can reciprocate.<br />
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The temple from the train track.<br />
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The main temple building is with the grass roof to the right.<br />
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Lake Biwa from the temple. The train track is in the middle of the picture.<br />
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Amy and the former priest. Statue of Hotei in the background. We all rubbed his tummy for good luck.<br />
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Jizo, a Bodhisattva, is the protector of children, expectant mothers, firemen, and travelers. He is reported to have refused to become a Buddha until everybody is saved and hell is emptied.<br />
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A bicycle junkyard near the station. It is nothing but bicycles and bicycle parts.<br />
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The waiting area on the train platform. These are knit pads supplied by the local people. (Sally's comment- the waiting area is a non-smoking area- the opposite of what we find in the U.S.)<br />
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It was night when we got back to Osaka, so we rested and packed for the next day and our trip to Nagasaki.<br />
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<u></u><br />al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-54664513691510835782013-10-26T08:07:00.000-07:002013-10-26T08:07:29.826-07:00June 2, 2012 <br />
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Yesterday I attended the New York Modern Quilt Guild. It met at a loft in the fashion district where the president lives. About 45 women and 3 men. An intimindating experience for me- to walk into a room of strangers and need to mingle. I met lots of lovely people- including several women from Minnesota (the president grew up in Melrose). Plus there was a table of free fabric (having left 95% of my fabric in MN, it was a treat to get scraps to play with). We also received 6 fat quarters of a new fabric line to make a baby quilt.<br />
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Lots of wonderful show and tell- pictures below.<br />
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Unfortunately, the quilt groups here don't meet in the summer, so I will get to attend one more meeting in October before we leave.<br />
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As to living here- my comments today are on the trash. With 27,000 people per square mile (I also read a figure of 8 people per 5,000 sq feet of living space- which means that someone else has about 400 square feet of our space), there are huge amounts of trash. We have a trash chute right outside our door, and recycling bins at the bottom of our stairs in the basement- so trash disposal is very easy (it will seem a burden to have to walk to the alley with trash, and collect our recycling for the week, and put it on the curb on Friday). <br />
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Everyday, I see trash bags piled on the sidewalk. It appears that trash is collected from each building about three times a week. If the trash collectors ever go on strike, I think it will immobilize the city. It appears that those living on 5th Avenue may actually ship their trash to Florida (see picture below).<br />
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The other thing about the trash is all the stuff that people that people throw out is amazing. I am confident I would furnish an apartment by simply picking up stuff on the street. I have retrieved a plastic basket to store things under the sink and a bread basket. We also got a chair for the living room (thoroughly checked for critters and bugs before bringing it in). I have left behind three book cases, a headboard, three more chairs, and lots of other stuff. <br />
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Al has obtained tickets for us to see the Daily Show on the 28th- I am very excited!! We are on the ticket pool for Late Show tickets. They collect names at certain times, and then call you if/when you get tickets.<br />
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Sallyal zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-59273973752522608872013-09-07T14:38:00.000-07:002013-09-07T14:38:54.939-07:00October 30By Sally<br />
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Sandy has come and gone, leaving the Upper East Side largely unaffected. Unfortunately, that is not the case elsewhere. The devastation in New Jersey and Staten Island is extensive. We have only minor inconveniences- no subways and buses, many of the businesses are closed.</div>
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Water we did not need.</div>
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It was strange walking around the city today. There was no public transit and much of the city was without electricity, so many people did not have to go to work. Without public transit, many people could not get to work. So, even in parts of the city with electricity, like our area, most businesses were closed. The restaurants that were open, were pretty crowded. Roosevelt Drive was closed to traffic, so people were walking on it. It was like walking on a freeway. Kind of spooky, like do I have to watch for cars or not.</div>
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There were some trees down in our area and a lot of branches. City crews were already out trying to clear them away. However, we were very lucky. The news reports of massive flooding on Staten Island and the Rockaways. Also, there was a major fire on the Rockaways. Over 40 homes were burnt as the high wind spread the fire. The fire department could not put the fires out because of the high winds. Contrary to what people might think, there was not a lot of rain associated with this hurricane. There were terrible winds and a major storm surge that caused most of the damage. Areas near the ocean were the most affected. Electricity south of 39th street is out and the tunnels for subway and cars are flooded. The city is at a standstill, yet the streets are full of people walking around and taking it in.</div>
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The East River is still riled up.<br />
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This is a crane that was not properly prepared for the storm. Normally, they are allowed to swing with the wind, so that they point with the least resistance to the wind. However, this one was locked in place which caused the arm of the crane to fold back over the top of the crane and hang by only cables from the opposite side. It cause several blocks of the city to be closed until it could be removed because of the danger of it falling.</div>
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This was one way that they tried to remove the trees. Two guys with a chain saw and a pickup could have done this in 5 minutes. I watched them get this far on one tree in about 10 minutes. It just goes to show the importance of having the correct tool. </div>
al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-73594234678651482302013-09-07T14:36:00.000-07:002013-09-07T14:36:57.504-07:00October 29, 2012<u>Sally's Day </u><br />
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A walk over to Central Park- which is closed. A few people out walking dogs, and a few joggers. </div>
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Jennifer and I dressed up for the rain which continues.</div>
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A day to read and find one of the few open restaurants. The Duane Reed Drug Stores continue to be open throughout. </div>
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By Al</div>
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This was our first hurricane. It was interesting that to see the preparations. It was predicted to be bad. We hoped that we would be far enough inland and high enough to escape the worst of it. But, we still filled everything we had with water and had them standing in our living room. All of the stores were sold out of candles, but we had a lot of batteries and flashlights.</div>
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It is raining and the hurricane is coming, but not here yet. So, we decide to walk over to Central Park. The entrances to the park are closed. I guess they didn't want to worry about people in there either getting hit by flying trees or breaking into any of the park buildings and businesses. This picture is taken along 5th Avenue next to the park.</div>
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We got home about 5 PM and went down to the East River to see what was happening. Roosevelt East River Drive, really a freeway, was closed. You can see water covering the road ahead of the car. The water is up over the sidewalk, but people are still walking. The wind is about 20 miles per hour. Kind of like a mild blizzard in Minnesota, just a lot warmer.</div>
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We go back about 7 PM. The wind is now about 50 miles per hours. Water is up over Roosevelt. It is like a real blizzard in Minnesota, except warmer.</div>
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This is our pedestrian overpass to the East River. The corner of our building is in the dark to the left, this side of the do not enter sign. During the night, the water came up to where you see the parked cars. This is about 50 feet from our apartment building, but it is also 10 feet below it because of the hill. So, the surge would have had to be 10 feet higher to get to our building. Our apartment is on the second floor, so we were in no danger. The first floor apartments in this picture closer to the river were flooded.</div>
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The water is up over Roosevelt.</div>
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At about 11 PM the storm was at its height. I was going to go outside, but the news said the wind was about 90 to 100 miles per hour. Okay, this is worse than a blizzard in Minnesota. Anyway, you cannot stand in that wind. Also, the mayor warned that they were so many things flying around that it was extra dangerous to be outside. I decided that I didn't need a picture that much.</div>
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al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-22634380663148615712013-09-07T14:34:00.001-07:002013-09-07T14:34:50.525-07:00October 28, 2012<strong><u>Waiting for the hurricane </u></strong><br />
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Water rising on the East River.</div>
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The greengrocer on the corner sells out of produce, and starts breaking down boxes. He says he will be closed for 3 days.<br />
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The restaurant on the corner put tape on its windows. The little water trough on the corner is for dogs.</div>
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We had word that the hurricane is coming. Time to buy some supplies (cans of tuna, trail mix, etc.) and fill pots with water. Businesses also prepared. <br />
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<br />al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-5421988402713844492013-09-07T14:34:00.000-07:002013-09-07T14:34:10.359-07:00October 27, 2012<u>By Sally</u><br />
The highlight of Jennifer's visit today was going to see <u>The Heiress</u>. The play is based on a Henry James novel, <u>Washington Square, </u>set at that location in about 1850. A wealthy, widowed doctor (David Straihthorn) lives in a mansion on Washington Square with his daughter (Jessica Chastain). His sister, a widowed minister's wife (Judith Ivey) also lives with him. The doctor loathes his daughter. Her mother died at her birth. The doctor wants the daughter to be just like her beautiful, talented mother. The daughter is good-hearted, plain, and shy. <br />
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A suitor (Dan Stevens) arrives. He is poor, but charms the daughter. He asks her to marry him The dad believes that he is after her money (she has an income equal to $275,000/year in 2012 dollars from her mother, and will receive another $550,000/year when her father dies). The dad and daughter go to Europe for 6 months. Upon their return, the daughter still loves the suitor. He wants her to elope. She says they will be fine, but also reveals that her dad is likely to disinherit her. <br />
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He leaves, but does not return to elope. She is heartbroken. Dad dies. Two years passes. Suitor returns, and daughter asks him to come back in 2 hours to go away with her to marry. When he returns, she does not answer the door. End of play.<br />
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I was excited to see all 4 actors in a live performance. I have seen them all in movies or on TV, and been impressed with their skills. Unfortunately, with the exception of Judith Ivey, they all seemed "flat." Perhaps they were trying to be very Victorian in not showing their emotions in the play. <br />
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I'm glad we saw the play, but it was a bit of a disappointment.<br />
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By Al<br />
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That evening we went to see DUMBO and the Brooklyn Bridge. DUMBO stands for Down Under Manhattan Bridge. It is the area on the east side of the East River under the Manhattan Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge. It has become the new hot area to live. It is especially favored by artists who have been priced out of the rents in Manhattan. This was our first time there and it was a bit disappointing. We were there at night and much of what might have been interesting is only open during the day. However, it is always interesting to look at Manhattan at night from Brooklyn. I didn't take many pictures because I have so many already.<br />
<br />al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-52222055871708103552013-09-07T14:32:00.000-07:002013-09-07T14:32:23.694-07:00October 26<u>Sally's Day</u><br />
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Our friend, Jennifer, arrived for a visit today. Our highlight of the day was a book reading with Alexander McCall Smith- best known for his Number 1 Detective Agency series. He also write 4 other series. His new book is about a woman philosopher in Edinburgh. <br />
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He was quite entertaining, and gracious in signing books. He writes one series for a newspaper in Edinborough where he produces a chapter each day. <br />
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By Al<br />
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After retrieving Jennifer from the airport, we went on a bit of a walk around town. We showed her the Mayor's mansion, Gracie Mansion. Mayor Blumberg doesn't live there. He has several houses already in New York. But, it is still used for ceremonial purposes. We also checked out our local Goodwill store. As we have said before, they have some pretty nice things since they get a lot of their stuff from the local area. We live in the tenth riches zip code in the nation, and we are next to the richest zip code in the nation; so much of the cast off clothes are still pretty good. Needless to say, we substantially bring down the average income.<br />
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Jennifer and Sally walking up the driveway to Gracie Mansion.<br />
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Another view of Gracie Mansion.<br />
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Sally talking with Alexander McCall Smith.<br />
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A posed photo. The book reading was at the Barnes and Noble by Union Square. This is a four story building and it quite large. However, two blocks away is the original Barnes and Noble. So we walked over to see it.<br />
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We walked back to Union Square to get the subway. In the corner of Union Square they have a statue of Gandhi. <br />
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<br />al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-55628345315828904472013-09-07T14:30:00.000-07:002013-09-07T14:30:55.253-07:00October 25<u>Sally's Day </u><br />
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Most of my day was devoted to the Metropolitan Opera. The Opera offers $20 rush seats which are sold 2 hours before the performance. However, it is necessary to get in line by 2:30 because there are only 150 tickets sold. So it is day of getting a good sandwich at the deli, knitting and reading. <br />
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Tonight's opera was Carmen. I have, rather cynically, come to believe that most operas have a plot of love, jealously, death. Carmen was no exception. A nobleman loves Carmen. She loves a gypsy. Neither she nor the nobleman know that the gypsy is actually the nobleman's brother. Carmen agrees to marry the nobleman if he will spare the life of the gypsy. She then takes a poison which results in a slow death (comment- deaths in operas always seem to be slow to allow time for an aria and/or duet before the actual death). The nobleman has also captured the woman who has raised the gypsy. Just before killing her, she reveals that the nobleman and he are brothers. In the end, everyone is either dead or miserable.<br />
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A friend went with me. A violinist in the orchestra is a friend of his. She took us to the bowels of Opera Hall. There is a cafeteria right next to the orchestra pit. During the intermission, we sat amongst soldiers and gypsies having a snack between acts. Fun. <br />
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I love the Metropolitan Opera House. It is a magical place to come upon the lights, chandeliers, and happy people.<br />
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Met staff cafeteria,</div>
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I have seen these dog buggies on the street. Here is one in a store window. I don't know why people take their dog out in a buggy, rather than letting the dog walk.</div>
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By Al </div>
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While Sally was at the Opera, I went for a walk around the Upper East Side looking at Halloween decorations. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays and Amy and I always enjoyed decorating our house. I, obviously, could not do that this year, so it was fun to see what New Yorkers had done. Most houses didn't have much room, so the displays tended to be a bit crowded. Also, keep in mind that the houses that show these displays are multi-million dollar houses.</div>
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al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-82184515691337009582013-09-07T14:29:00.000-07:002013-09-07T14:29:06.911-07:00October 24, 2012<strong><u>Sally's Day </u></strong><br />
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Two outings today. The first to see "War Horse" at Lincoln Center, and then a book reading with Louise Erdrich.<br />
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I found the story in War Horse rather boring, and the music uninspired. The story centers around an Irish boy and his horse at the time of World War I. The horse is drafted into the service. The boy enlists. The horse and boy are separated during the war. They are eventually re-united.<br />
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I enjoyed the staging, and the horse puppet. It was, of course, impossible to have a live horse in the play since the horse appears in many of the scenes. The makers developed an amazing wooden full-size wooden puppet, which was operated by 2 people underneath the puppet. The movements were so realistic that it seemed to be alive. The staging included scenes in Ireland and Europe during World War I. The settings were conveyed with projections above the action on stage, and very few props- yet there was no confusion about where the action was occurring. Well done so that your mind filled in the things that were not on stage.<br />
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My second outing was a reading by Minnesota's own Louise Erdrich. Her new book <u>The Round House,</u> has been nominated for the National Book Award. I bought the book- and read it in about 1 1/2 days. The plot involves a 13 year old Ojibwa boy living on a reservation in ND. His mother is raped. Although the perpetrator is found, it is impossible to prosecute him because the mother was blindfolded- and the location of the crime is on land where federal, state, and tribal jurisdictions meet. The issue then becomes doing justice and values. She interweaves a crime story, Ojibwa legends, and relationships between generations. <br />
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I highly recommend this book. Ms. Erdrich was a wonderful speaker. It was apparent that New Yorkers were not familiar with the Native American land issues which we know well in Minnesota.<br />
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Ms. Erdrich was wearing an Obama button on her lapel. She owns in independent bookstore- Birchbark Books- in Mpls, which I look forward to visiting.</div>
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By Al</div>
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I also found War Horse to be quite boring. I agree that the horse puppet was amazingly lifelike. That might be a reason to see the play, but you could also just go watch a horse.</div>
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I went to a taiko class in the evening. It was at the place that I regularly go to class, but there was a special instructor tonight. His name is Ryo Shimamoto. He is a taiko player from Japan who specializes in playing the Odaiko. This is the largest drum and is usually played with great flair. He has won several major competitions in Japan. He was doing a tour of the United States teaching and performing. He was a very good teacher and I enjoyed the class. He was being accompanied around the United States by Mark Rooney. Mark is a friend of mine who has a taiko studio in Washington, D.C. I did not expect to see him there. It was good to see him.</div>
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This is Ryo giving a demonstration. At the end of the class he performed for us. It was amazing.</div>
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Here is a video of him playing.</div>
al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-14526983869047159652013-09-07T14:26:00.000-07:002013-09-07T14:26:14.482-07:00October 22By Al<br />
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Today, we went back to the Intrepid. We had tickets to go on the Concorde. You need special tickets to do this because only so many people can go on at a time. We also were going to go to see the Enterprise Space Shuttle. <br />
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As most of you probable know, the Concorde Aircraft was a cooperative venture between the French and British government. Thus, the name. It flew from Britain and France to the United States, as well as other countries. However, the first passenger flight was in 1976. The last flight was in 2003. There were 20 Concorde airplanes produced. They made the flight from Britain or France to the United States in about half the time of other commercial flights. However, they never made a profit and had to be subsidised by the British and French government. Still, it was fun to go on board and pretend for just a few minutes that you were flying across the Atlantic and faster than the speed of sound. <br />
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We were surprised at how small the interior space was. But, the luxury was there. Nice, but small, seats. We saw a menu and it would have been first class in any restaurant. The service was supposed to be exceptional, even for those days when airlines had some service.<br />
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A pretty tree changing color along the Hudson River. Back home in Minnesota most of the leaves would be gone by now.<br />
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The Concorde. Notice the people under it.<br />
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Here we are on our way to France.<br />
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This is half the passenger compartment. The back half is closed off and only the front half is used for tourists. <br />
When in service, the seats would not be covered with plastic. This is just for the tourists also.<br />
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Looking toward the cockpit.</div>
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Sally in the cockpit. It was pre-computer, so there are switches everywhere.<br />
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The back end of the space shuttle.<br />
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The front end. They have a platform at the front end that you can go up and see more of the shuttle. You cannot go inside or look inside. This building is an air tent, that is a tent held up by air pressure, much like the Metrodome. In Hurricane Sandy it collapsed and some of the electronics was damaged.<br />
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Sally and I and our friend the big space shuttle.<br />
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Another view of the flight deck of the Intrepid.<br />
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Another view. The water is the Hudson River, which really isn't a river at this point, but that is another story.<br />
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That evening I went to the Russian and Turkish bath. I had bought a Groupon for this establishment. I like to take sauna's so I thought it would be fund to try out a bath house in New York. It is coed, so everybody wears swimsuits. They have several steam room and sauna options. It was a slice of New York life.<br />
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<br />al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-49033856173259604372013-09-07T09:48:00.001-07:002013-09-07T09:48:29.334-07:00October 18By Al<br />
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Today, I went to the Museum of Chinese in American. They were having a special exhibit of the portrayal of Chinese in comic book art. One display showed the depiction of Asians in comics from 1942 to 1986. In much of it, Asians were the bad guys. When not the bad guys, they were martial art type guys. Most of it was racist. They had another display of new alternative comics done by Asian artists. It was very interesting. I bought some books. The permanent exhibit is also very interesting. It looks as some of the ways in which Chinese immigrants adapted to life in American and some of the ways they kept parts of Chinese culture and how they adapted it to America. Very interesting.<br />
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This is the outside of the museum. It is right on the boundary between Chinatown and Little Italy. al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-43896542043837720912013-09-07T09:47:00.002-07:002013-09-07T09:47:48.049-07:00October 19 and 20I have nothing.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-28105078628498229322013-09-07T09:47:00.001-07:002013-09-07T09:47:36.568-07:00October 17By Al<br />
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I've got nothing.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-65546042908930104212013-09-07T09:47:00.000-07:002013-09-07T09:47:27.968-07:00October 16By Al<br />
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Today, I went to the Chinatown Rotary Club. It was, as usual, friendly people and good food. I decided to walk home. I had not walked much east of Chinatown, so I walked over to the river under the Manhattan Bridge. I then tried to stay as much along the East River as I could. This brought be through several housing projects. Some of them were for lower income people, but they were all well kept and very safe. Not what we see in the popular media. Nothing significant happened, but I do recommend just walking around New York. You will never be disappointed.<br />
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A playground and mural in one of the housing projects.<br />
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A close up of the mural.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-61354920076375463042013-09-07T09:46:00.001-07:002013-09-07T09:46:52.050-07:00October 15By Al<br />
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Today, I went to a film showing at the New York Society for Ethical Culture. The film being shown was "The People's History of the United States". This film was based on the book by the same name that was written by Howard Zinn in 1980. The New York Society for Ethical Culture is a humanist organization founded in 1876. It has a very large building on Central Park West. I conducts non-theistic services in a congregational setting. It also has many events and educational opportunities.<br />
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The film was actually a showing of the video tape of a documentary about the book. I don't know when it was done, but it was pretty dated. The book when first published was a new approach to history. It sought to present American history through the eyes of the common people. What it seemed to mainly do was present all of the stories of oppression of native peoples and the under classes that most American histories neglected. To that extant, it was probably an important work at the time. However, I did not find that I was learning anything new. These stories had already been told. So, I left after about an hour. <br />
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I did wander around the building a bit. I thought it might be fun to attend a service and see what it was like. However, as I encountered people in the building I found them uniformly unfriendly. So, I decided I would settle for my lookaround. Perhaps that was unfair, but there is enough to do in New York without seeking out unfriendly people. New Yorkers are, contrary to common belief, quite friendly. They like to get to the point and not waste time on pleasantries. But, once you get past that, they are friendly. <br />
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This is the sanctuary viewed from the back of the balcony.<br />
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One of the statutes in the corner of the balcony.<br />
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After leaving the building, I walked across Central Park to go home. It was overcast. This is view looking southwest across the Sheep Meadow.<br />
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This fellow was training his dog in Central Park. I know he is a famous person. Does anybody recognize him. This is the best picture I could get without directly confronting him. I only took the picture to see if anybody could tell me who he is. <br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><br /></span></span>al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-42040967476793013462013-09-07T09:46:00.000-07:002013-09-07T09:46:32.001-07:00October 14By Al <br />
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Today, we went on a walking tour of the Lower East Side organized by the Museum at the Eldridge Street Synagogue. The Synagogue was built in 1887 and is one of the oldest Synagogues in New York. It was recently renovated and serves both as a active synagogue and museum of the early years of the Lower East Side. This area was heavily settled by Jewish immigrants but has transitioned through several other groups since the 1800's. It is right at the Manhattan end of the Manhattan Bridge, just north of Chinatown and east of Little Italy. The tour was very interesting. It is always amazing how much history New York packs into a little over a century. <br />
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The front of the Eldridge Street Synagogue<br />
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Inside<br />
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The window at the front.<br />
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Another window.<br />
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The street outside the Synagogue<br />
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Another old synagogue that is now a Buddhist temple with a Buddhist book store on the first floor.<br />
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This used to be a movie theater. You can still see the old water air conditioning system on the top of the building. This was one of the first theaters in New York to have air conditioning.<br />
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A pickle store that we stopped at.<br />
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This is the store.<br />
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We also stopped at a very good candy store. After the tour, we stopped at a small Chinese restaurant and had a very good inexpensive dinner. From there, we decided to walk home. It was about 5 miles, but we took a couple of hours and enjoyed seeing more of New York City.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-53413087228511464152013-09-07T09:45:00.001-07:002013-09-07T09:45:15.668-07:00October 13By Al <br />
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I've got nothingal zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-76749486729624852552013-09-07T09:45:00.000-07:002013-09-07T09:45:02.528-07:00October 12By Al<br />
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Today, I had tickets to the New York ComicCon. This is a major convention and gathering of comic book and science fiction publishers. It was huge and quite overwhelming. It was in several parts of the Jacob Javitz Convention Center. I could not find and map of where things were and it was so crowded that it was difficult to get around. I was able to buy several comics. My biggest find was that some people were bringing back the Valient line. This was my favorite publisher in the 90's. They went out of business, but some new people were reviving the titles. I bought all that they had and look forward to more coming out. I also bought some books from some new publishers that looked interesting and that I wanted to encourage.<br />
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The most interesting thing was looking at the people in their costumes and at some of the celebrities that were there.<br />
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Costumed characters<br />
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More costumed characters<br />
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Brutis "The Barber" Beefcake, wrestling star<br />
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Tito Santana and Greg "The Hammer" Valentine, wrestling stars<br />
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The television Batmobile.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGhx8fgz3J1EZ7DbR_Hv12y4tJClISwobV25UamTfXd_De-nKVhRIkt1qwKWorDEYx2nfC2WWGNs-fRB_UhWiwaf3-zy0MQuvg7Og1TvDaczTaRAgyHSLcgsptrrStvB3Met2u4vgKyvQ/s1600/DSC01673.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGhx8fgz3J1EZ7DbR_Hv12y4tJClISwobV25UamTfXd_De-nKVhRIkt1qwKWorDEYx2nfC2WWGNs-fRB_UhWiwaf3-zy0MQuvg7Og1TvDaczTaRAgyHSLcgsptrrStvB3Met2u4vgKyvQ/s320/DSC01673.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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The Bella Twins and Kelly Kelly, wrestling stars<br />
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Kelly Kelly<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbTqwDZJPBkAkfuuShTrqlpJtDWj6xbizXNmC7ywQdFO-s09FEjlwVhqNl-CwIbI54Eauhk3VIWNX3seeGShEO6Q0jte9zBwDkW7AQhDt9F-28yRyu635c9uYW6phudWL4vHfP6dCEdQ/s1600/DSC01680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbTqwDZJPBkAkfuuShTrqlpJtDWj6xbizXNmC7ywQdFO-s09FEjlwVhqNl-CwIbI54Eauhk3VIWNX3seeGShEO6Q0jte9zBwDkW7AQhDt9F-28yRyu635c9uYW6phudWL4vHfP6dCEdQ/s320/DSC01680.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Costumed characters<br />
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Costumed characters mock fighting.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-24259214235866900812013-09-07T09:42:00.002-07:002013-09-07T09:42:55.844-07:00October 11By Al<br />
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Today we rested. Nothing to report.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-67853601099564451372013-09-07T09:42:00.001-07:002013-09-07T09:42:39.400-07:00October 10By Al<br />
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We had to catch a train from Nagasaki at 6 AM, so we didn't get much sleep. Fortunately, the train station was only a 10 minute walk from our hotel. But, trains in Japan are very punctual, so we had to make sure we were there on time. The train pulled in and left 5 minutes later, so we didn't have much time to board. When the train gets there, you have to be ready. At some stops along the way, I am sure the train did not stop for more than one munute. People are ready to get off, they get off and out of the way and people get on, luggage and all.<br />
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We got to the airport about 2 PM. Our flight didn't leave until about 7 PM, so we had a wait. The flight left on time. Japanese emmigrations was very easy. So we settled down for a long flight.<br />
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Eleven hours later we were in Seattle. We had a two hour layover. Four hours after that we were in the Twin Cities with a one hour layover. Three hours after that, we arrived in New York City. <br />
Thirty hours after leaving Nagasaki we arrived in New York. Needless to say, we were tired. <br />
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We got to our apartment. Two friends from St. Paul had arrived in New York and were staying at our apartment. They were expecting us back, but thought it was to be the next day. So, when we arrived at midnight, they were a little surprised. However, because they weren't exepting us, we knew they hadn't made any special effort to clean it up; so it was good to know that they were responsible guests. The apartment was in good shape.<br />
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It was good to be home and we were tired, so we didn't do much the next day.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-15010229767342990102013-09-07T09:41:00.000-07:002013-09-07T09:41:18.709-07:00October 9By Al<br />
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Today Amy and Drew started their journey back to the US. We missed them immediately. The rest of the Rotarians also left for the US. We missed them too. Sally and I were scheduled to spend one more day in Nagasaki, which was good. In 1998-99 we had an exchange student stay with us from Nagasaki. Her name was Naoko Sato. She was one of our favorite students. We had not seen her since 1999. We have had occasional email contact with her. Before we went to Japan, we asked Shige Nakamura if he could find out where she was living. It turned out that she had been living in Tokyo, which we knew, but had had some health issues and was back in Nagasaki. We had hoped to see her yesterday, but she was not feeling well, so she had to cancel. Well, she was better today and we met with her and her mother. We had met her mother in 1999 when we visited Nagasaki, but Naoko was not there then. <br />
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It was wonderful to see her again. One of the high points of our trip. When people talk about hosting exchange students, they always talk about emotional attachment you develop for them. That is very true. It was great.<br />
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Shige had told her mother that Sally wanted to look for quilt fabric while in Nagasaki. She and her mother had visited most of the fabric shops in Nagasaki to find out which ones had quilt fabric. So, that was too be our day. First, they took us to lunch and a very nice traditional restaurant. Naoko's mother owns a traditional restaurant, but they were not open for lunch so we went to one owned by one of her friends. Of course, we had great food and great service.<br />
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Sally, Naoko, and her mother at the restaurant.<br />
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This was our food. Good quality and great presentation. In Japan, presentation is have the job.<br />
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We pause for a photo opportunity.<br />
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Interestingly, the fabric stores they took us to were back at the same mall. The second and third day of the Kunchi festival, the different groups go around the city asking business and citizens for donations. This is a major fundraising event for many of the temples. Anyway, here is a group going through the mall. You run into them all over town.<br />
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Another group in the mall.<br />
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And another.<br />
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And another.<br />
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Some ladies quilting in one of the fabric stores.<br />
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Sally looking around in a fabric store. She got quite a bit of fabric.<br />
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Lion dancers canvassing for money on a typical Nagasaki street.<br />
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We were scheduled to leave Nagasaki early the next morning, so we spent the evening packing for our trip home.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-48738840619979578212013-09-07T09:40:00.000-07:002013-09-07T09:40:17.446-07:00October 8By Al<br />
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We started the day by going as a group to the Glover Gardens. This is a garden surrounding a house built for Thomas Glover, a Scottish merchant who contributed to the modernization of Japan in shipbuilding, coal mining, and other fields. In it stands the Glover Residence, the oldest Western style house surviving in Japan and Nagasaki's foremost tourist attraction. The house and buildings are kind of like going to a museum in the United States of a wealthy persons house for the 1800's. The gardens are very nice. The whole arrangement is high on the hill overlooking Nagasaki Harbor. It is a very pleasant place to visit and is part of the European heritage of Nagasaki.<br />
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We then went to a Chinese restaurant for lunch. Chinese restaurants are considered fine dining. Unlike the US, in Japan going to a Chinese restaurant is a special event. The food was very good, and the restaurant building was very striking.<br />
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This is the Chinese restaurant.<br />
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After lunch, we went to a shopping mall. This one is fairly typical. They have taken some intersecting streets, put a roof over them and limited vehicles. The shopping mall is open at the ends, so the roof just protects you from the rain and sun. There are large stores and small stores. They are fund to browse.<br />
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This is view of the mall. Notices the green sign. This is the sign indicating a police office. Not mall security, the city police office in the mall.<br />
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A close up of the sign. Koban is the Japanese word for police. The image says it all.<br />
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This is a good feature of most Japanese cash registers. It is a little holder along side the register where the clerk puts the money that you give them while they make change. There is no confusion as to what amount of money you gave them. When they are done making change, they put the money in the register.</div>
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That evening we attended a special meeting of the Rotary Club of Nagasaki. They normally meet at noon on Thursday, but we were all leaving before that, so they had a special meeting just for us. There were speeches of thanks and good will. It was a pretty good meeting considering that most of the Nagasaki Rotarians did not speak English and with the exception of Amy, we did not speak Japanese. But, you could feel the goodwill and the speeches were translated.</div>
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Nagasaki Rotary President speaking<br />
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District Governor, and Past President of the Rotary Club of St. Paul, Joe Kovarik speaking.<br />
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Me.<br />
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The artist Bill Hueg and St. Paul Rotarian Sue Cammick talking about the statue.<br />
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Me, Megumi, a former exchange student from Nagasaki to St. Paul, Amy and Sally.</div>
al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6868492778272702090.post-5395284479760351602013-09-07T09:37:00.000-07:002013-09-07T09:37:43.984-07:00August 24By Al<br />
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Today was a day to shop and walk. J & R had a sale on 16 gig SD cards. I think it would be a good idea to have lots of memory for our trip to Japan, so I wanted to get a couple. I took the train to City Hall park and got the cards. I also have been thinking about getting a carry-on backpack. I have a very good wheeled carrry on bag, but in Japan we will have checked luggage and I don't like wheeling multiple bags. So, there was a place called The Bag House at Broadway and 11th. I decided to walk up so that I could see some of the city. It was a long walk. I did not see anything I liked. I had read on line that the Sports Authority at 6th Ave. and 19th St. might have something that would work, so I walked up there. Nothing sutible. By now, I had walked 7 miles, so I decided to take public transportation home. It was a long day, but at least I got some memory and some exercise.al zdrazilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039814478441163294noreply@blogger.com0