ROAD TRIP CANADA 2014 PART I

In truth it is, as I write, the 7^th of July and we are nowhere near either Miami Florida or the UK.   But what I find as I open this document is the remnants of something I began several months ago and never finished.  Being incapable (apparently) of deleting partially completed work I shall share what is currently here, before  beginning our current road trip.  

Saturday Morning, Miami Florida

I thought I had seen a lightning storm, but I was wrong.  We are on the fourth floor of midrise downtown hotel, looking out over the Miami River and outside our window is a sound and light show like nothing I have ever seen.  The sky is alight as if someone were incessantly flicking a light switch on and off as fast as they possible.  While the intensity of the light is as though hundreds of flash bulbs were going off simultaneously. It is hard to look out the window, the glare is so intense.  A blue white haze envelopes the sky, playing off the water droplets like so many prisms.  The air is full of the sound of a hundred Indy car drivers revving their motors simultaneously, a deep angry growl.  The occasional streak of fork lightening silhouettes a metro rail train car suspended over the inky blackness of the Miami River running across an insubstantial track glowing silver in the reflected light.  The sound of the thunder, so nearby changes, it is no longer a growl but the sound of trash can lids clashing together.  The rain, which is torrenting down, is so intense our view of the skyline seems wrapped in fog, occluded by a gauzy shroud of water.  After more than an hour it seems to be moving on, I wonder what the rest of the day will bring.  And so concludes our creative writing assignment for today!!

In order to dispel severe confusion, it is no longer July 7, but in fact July 28.  This is the first internet access we have had in two weeks.  And so the saga begins. 

ROAD TRIP – CANADA

We’re on the road again.  This trip will not be one of our months’ long marathons across the US but, a five week trip up into Canada.  The plan is to travel up to Edmonton and then down through Jasper, Lake Louise, Banff, Glacier and the east side of Hells Canyon, ultimately back into Oregon and home.  We took the opportunity to check out the tent trailer with a two night trip to a camp ground on the Rogue River just a little over an hour away from home.  Everything seemed to be in order.  Although after so many trips, (I reckon we have spent in excess of a year sleeping on the original foam mattress) we did invest in a memory foam topper which has made a vast improvement in comfort.

Over the years we have spent enough time in our home, away from home, that we have it paired down to bare necessities.  With the addition of perishable food and clothes we can hitch ‘er up and be on the road in under an hour.  It remains stocked with sheets and towels, warm slippers, sweats and wooly hats at all times.  Basic canned goods, plastic containers of sugar, flour and rice, hot cereal and soup are always in the pantry.  An electric heater, a radio/i-pod player and a 6”, flat screen TV round out our modern conveniences.  It has a two burner stove, so there is no need for more than three pans (small, medium and large), and since we don’t often “entertain” four plates, four knives, four cups . . . you get the idea, seems more than adequate.  We traded in our old style, percolator coffee pot, for a kettle (works for tea, coffee and the production of hot water for washing us and the dishes) and a drip cone for brewing coffee.  Toast can be made by sticking bread on a fork and holding it over an open flame.  A couple of years ago we invested in a camp oven, with two extra burners and a “camp kitchen” which is really just a stand for the oven and a flat surface for food prep and dishwashing.  On long trips you sometimes want something cooked in an oven, like meatloaf or corn bread.  Extends your repertoire immensely and better still, if the weather is fine we can cook out of doors.  The “wash kit” remains behind as well, shampoo, conditioner, toothbrushes and toothpaste, hair brushes, nail clippers and a mirror, all the necessities as it were. Naturally, there is a first aid kit, sunscreen, bug spray and “After-Bite”, for when the bug spray doesn’t work.   At first we were concerned about the weather (what happens to toothpaste if it freezes . . . nothing) or critters, but so far no issues.  Our latest extravagance, an outdoor carpet from Walmart.  Looks classy, keeps the dirt out and provides a surface for yoga mats. Which, yes we do occasionally do, much to the amusement of neighboring campers.  It is all just there and ready to roll.  

Getting anywhere by vehicle, from Ashland, is not a simple proposition.  First off, you need to understand that it is a minimum of a three hour drive to get to anywhere with a population in excess of 50,000 souls and all of Oregon has less population than the San Francisco Bay Area.  However, our objective was not large population centers but rural Canada.  Our normal pace of a maximum of four hours drive time when pulling the tent trailer was not going to be workable.  So instead we went for the gusto, drive ‘til you can’t drive no more.  We had a pretty good rhythm going, up over the Cascades past Crater Lake and down to Bend, changing drivers every hour and a half or so.   A quick stop for lunch out of the cooler and another to purchase cherries from a vendor on the side of the road.  It looked like Biggs Junction and the Columbia River were a distinct possibility.  We were on roads we had not previously traveled and the population is pretty sparse in Eastern Oregon.  Range land and wheat or other grass crops and carrot seeds was about all there was.  A no gas for 94 miles sign engendered a quick U-turn and a re-fueling stop.  We flew past the wide spot in the road labeled that looked like something from a grade B western and made Hermiston for our first night.

Moving north toward Spokane is an ever changing landscape.  You would expect there to be green along the river, but much of the Columbia shore is dry and barren or steep cliffs.  Into Washington you get some agriculture and rolling hills, not as verdant as the Palouse but not dry and brown.  Slowly fields and meadows were replaced by stands of conifers and the two lane road became four the closer we got to Spokane.  Spokane sits in a river valley and probably deserves to be explored, but not this trip.  We press north, crossing in to Idaho and skirting Coeur D’Alene we make for Eastport . . . and the Canadian border.  Quickly, it is back to two lane roads, rolling hills, almost mountains and trees.     

We stop for the night in Cranbrook, British Columbia.  Nice little RV/camping site right in town makes it convenient to go in to town for dinner rather than cooking. 

SPRING 2014 CUBA VOL 4

TRINIDAD ARCHITECTURE

Trying to download all my Cuba data to the blog before I totally loose focus on the who, what, where and why.  As an American, to whom Cuba is virtually inaccessible, it is a little difficult to get your head around the fact, when speaking with  an Englishman about Cuba, it all about the sunshine, beaches and tropical drinks.  It is not like we didn’t experience any sunshine, or beaches or chances to swim.  We did a little people to fishes time (as opposed to people to people) in the Bay of Pigs (in Cuban Playa Giron.)  And I am here to tell you there is absolutely nothing wrong with Cuban rum except that it isn’t available in in the US.   I did however find it here in the UK.  One wonders would it be legal to import it that way, along with a Cuban cigar or two  which are readily available in London.  Probably not worth the hassle, wouldn’t want to be accused of “trading with the enemy.” I’m already subject to extra scrutiny when entering the UK, and no they did not forget what happened in 2012 when I came over . . . computers have long memories.  Big brother is definitely watching, particularly when it comes to international air travel.  My passport has been scanned, my picture taken, loads of forms submitted, I have no doubt our government and many others as well, could find me no matter where I went.  And then there is a trail of credit card charges.  Ah well, guess that is the world we live in nowadays. 
 

Yes, Cuban rum, is quite delightful.  We spent a lovely evening on the roof of a club in Cienfuegos drinking straight rum and smoking cigars with a couple from Texas.  It made me think of a light brandy or cognac.  Late evenings were one of the few times we had the opportunity to relax and/or explore.  We had mini concerts by a childrens’ choir and an adult choir.  We visited the Benny More School of

SINGING WITH A HAVANA CHILDREN'S CHOIR

the Arts and saw a wonderful modern dance number choreographed by a boy and girl aged 13 and 14 respectively.  It was incredibly sophisticated and technically demanding for such young people.  Guess this might be a time to discuss educational system.  In the area of Arts in particular, gifted students are identified early and are groomed to that vocation.  It makes me think of what we understand of the Russian or Chinese system of preparing young people for competition in athletics, only being applied to the Arts and other skilled professions.  Until very recently, remuneration was not as issue when choosing a career.  There may have been some minor differentiation

BENNY MORE SCHOOL

in salary between professionals, manual labourers or artisans but it was not a significant difference.  This gave those in the population who expressed a specific interest or skill  the opportunity to pursue the vocation that most appealed or fitted them with no particular concern about pay.  As a result of this historical perspective toward education and the arts people are encouraged to study and perform and the population is encouraged to attend what we would term cultural events.  Everyone can afford a ticket to a concert or performance.  Local residents, will pay ticket prices in Pesos while tourists will pay in CUCs.  The pricing will be the same, say 20 . . . CUCs or Pesos but it takes about 20 Pesos to make one CUC.  So us foreigners, who are only allowed to have CUCs, pay 10 times as much, which is still a pittance, never mind a great bargain.  

Other visits included an English Language bookstore where we had the opportunity to speak with local professionals with an excellent command of the English language.  Conversations ranged across many topics from philosophy to technology with education and entrepreneurship thrown in for good measure.  A solidly middle class family spoke with us about their life/lifestyle in Cuba 2014.  The wife reminisced  about how her sister had fled Cuba in

ADULT CHOIR IN CIENFUEGOS

the Mariel Boatlift of 1980.  They have not seen each other since, although she is hoping to obtain a visa from the US Interests Section (aka embassy or consulate).  A visit to a group of nuns who care for people with skin diseases and a look at the shop where you exchange your ration book for goods.  The local farmers market (indoors) and a CUC shop where “luxury” goods like shampoo, coke and rice cookers are available.  We met with a group of young adults, and their teacher who work with underprivileged children in a small village.  They provide tutoring to the children and help others with their English language skills in the hope that this will provide more job opportunities. 

FARMERS MARKET CIENFUEGOS

LADY AND SCALE CIENFUEGOS

FARMERS MARKET MEAT COUNTER

CHE, CIENFUEGOS FARMER'S MARKET

FRESH BREAD

Most of our people to people visits have been informative and heart wrenching but our visit in Trinidad with a couple who operate a Casa Particular was quite delightful.   A Casa Particular is a government sanctioned Bed and Breakfast.  The couple we met had effectively traded their home for an 18th century "row house" with two bedrooms and internal courtyard and delightful spacious, communal area, located in the tourist city of Trinidad.  It was once a large sugar growing region.  The Central Plaza is essentially a museum of Spanish colonial architecture. Only a few square blocks in size, the historic plaza area has cobblestone streets, pastel coloured houses with wrought iron grill work and two colonial era churches.
 

OWNERS OF THE B&B

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STREET SWEEPER

Things I have learned:

1. The island is totally surrounded by an American highspeed cable network but Internet access is limited, is accomplished via satellite via Venezuela and is extremely expensive
2. Operation Peter Pan  is the codename for a 1960 era CIA project meant to destabilise the Castro regime that resulted 14,000 Cuban Children being airlifted out of Cuba and placed with Cuban/American families in the US
3. The US obtained it's lease of Guantanamo Bay as the result of the Spanish American War and the Platt Amendment at which time it was a Naval Base . . . long and short of it, it's all about Manifest Destiny which I vaguely remember from High School Civics
4. Cuba is not a particularly religious nation and 55% of their clerics, including the nuns at the skin hospital, are foreign nationals.  
5. There are enormous oil reserves off the coast of Cuba.  Because of the embargo the US has no leases, they belong to the likes of China, Brazil, India, Norway, Spain and Venezuela
 

BENNY MORE SCHOOL

CHE GUEVARA MEMORIAL

 

 

RICE IN THE RATION STORE

    

DANCING WITH THE ABUELAS AT THE SENIOR CENTER

THIS WAS A SEARS STORE IN CIENFUEGOS

I quit, if you all haven't had enough of Cuba you will have to ask me when we get home.  For now I will share a few more pictures and begin thinking about what I want to share of our sojourn in England