Lori Hein, Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America

Meet travel expert Lori Hein at Boomerwomenspeak.com. Hein, author of “Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America”. She's discussing her book and answering questions about trip planning, cross-country journeys, great American places, international destinations, going solo, family and intergenerational travel, and women traveling. Lori brings over 25 years of travel and writing experience to the forum. After September 11, the globetrotting writer, who’s visited some 60 countries, took her two children on a 12,000-mile back road journey into the heart of America, discovering the country’s majesty, humanity and resilience. “Ribbons of Highway” is the book that grew from the trio’s odyssey. “Ribbons” may inspire you to dream of or plan a trip across this vast, marvelous land or help recapture memories of a journey already taken. Reviews, raves and excerpts at www.LoriHein.com. Travel stories and photography at Lori’s world travel blog, http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com. Join Lori in May and talk travel!

Ladies,

This post is from Lori. I had to cut and paste it. That's why my name appears as the post-er.

Good morning, all. I'm Lori Hein, author of "Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America." Dotsie has invited me to be May's Featured Author, and I thank her for her warm support and for the opportunity to chat with you over the coming month.

It's a gloomy morning here in Boston. We've been having rain, and more is promised. I'm glad this is an electronic rather than live forum, because I have laryngitis from standing outside in a cold rain for two hours at my son's track meet. Two hours to see him sprint 200 meters, an event that lasts a minute. Ah, motherhood...

I hope we'll have a lot to talk about this month. I'll tell you a bit about myself and my book to get us started. (And you'll find full bio, book excerpts and reviews, and travel stories and photography at my website, www.LoriHein.com , and my world travel blog, http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com .)

Before September 11, I'd been a globetrotter for over 25 years, and I'd seen a fair chunk of the planet. I've always loved to travel solo, but after I married and had kids, my family -- husband, Mike and kids, Adam and Dana -- became my favorite travel companions. My kids have been traveling the world since they were babies.

After the terrorist attacks, I realized I'd never really explored my own country. I'd seen large bits of it on business and pleasure trips, but I'd never considered it as a whole, as a giant quilt made of pieces sewn together into a single creation, as a nation that, taken in total, was more than the sum of its many parts. I felt a compelling need to get out into the country and make sure that it was alright, that its people were alright, that it could and would withstand such a fearsome assault and still remain strong and whole.

So, I packed up my kids, and we set out on a 12,000-mile back road journey through the heart of America. We spent the summer after 9/11 visiting every corner of the country and meeting people who welcomed us into their communities. What we discovered about America and its people amazed and heartened us. As we traveled, we also learned a lot about ourselves and the love that binds us to one another. My son, Adam, was 13 at the time and my daughter, Dana, 10.

"Ribbons of Highway" is the book that grew from our journey, and I look forward to talking with you about it over the next four weeks. I also look forward to talking about travel in general --family travel, solo travel, trip planning, great destinations both in America and abroad, women traveling -- any topic you'd like to explore.

Cheers,

Lori

--------------------
Lori Hein
author, "Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America"
www.LoriHein.com
world travel blog: http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com

[ May 01, 2005, 11:29 AM: Message edited by: Dotsie ]

Lori, I'm also a "travel spirit" in that I was an "Air Force Brat" as a child and until my Dad retired from the service. I looked forward to seeing the world and moving around every couple of years. I STILL have the travel bug and every opportunity we get, my husband and I try to see some corner of the globe we've not yet explored.

I look forward to hearing some of your stories here during the next month!

Lori,
I have traveled clear across the US in the late 60's and mother and I go as far as AZ and the bus driver offered to take us to Calif and we were meeting mothers friend in Tuson AZ and never got to Calif , but hope to sum day . I love AZ . I have been as far north to Maine and to the midwest . I have even been to Mexico . I did not take that many pictuce , but did you have a favorite place that you really loved and a person that you found most interesting.?

Traveling, especially by car, has always been my favorite adventure. I also love trains, but prefer to stop and visit along the way. Planes are great for getting there quickly, but you miss the experience of the countryside and the adventures along the way.

Can't wait to hear all about your travel adventures. Tell us about your most adventurous trip or event.

I too am an avid traveller, although I tend to enjoy discovering the amazing people and places right here, close to home (i.e., Canada and the US). I've visited most parts of Canada, and a quite a lot of the US. One of my all-time favourite trips was to Santa Fe, New Mexico...stayed for a month in a monastery in Pecos, and enjoyed many side-trips during the retreat, so much so that I went back twice more. The third time, I met up with a retreat friend in Colorado and we drove all the way through the mountains to get to Pecos. It was breath-taking and exhilarating. Such wonderful memories.

I have always wanted to do an extended cross-country-cross-border expedition, and almost talked hubby into it, but he fizzled out on me. I still intend to do it, with or without him, someday.

Good morning all,

I can tell we're going to have fun this month. Just reading your posts has fired up my inner "travel spirit." I love that term, Pam. It's the perfect way to describe someone hardwired with wanderlust.

Like you, I moved a lot as a kid, and those early experiences probably helped fuel my passion for travel. I wasn't a military "brat," but the daughter of a greeting card salesman. My dad would get transferred to a new city every few years, and off we'd go. By the time I hit junior high, I'd moved nine times. My sisters and I were all born in different states.

The need to travel and explore as much of the world as God would allow really kicked into overdrive when I was in college. I spent most of my junior year studying in Paris. Paris can be an unforgiving place if you're a young student living on a shoestring and struggling with the language. I often felt depressed and lonely, so I'd escape the city at every opportunity and travel to some other part of Europe for a weekend, or more, if my class schedule allowed. I discovered the beauty, culture and history of places like England, Holland, Germany, Austria, Italy. My eyes, mind and heart were opened to what's out there, and I was hooked.

Our US road trip, the "Ribbons" journey, was a powerful experience. Like Smilinize, I've always loved road travel. Traveling by car gives you enormous freedom to follow any tempting fork in the road and to go at the pace you choose.

When I was planning our cross-country journey, I created a route made up of 12,000 miles of back roads. We avoided interstates (except when they were, well, unavoidable). This, I think, is the key to really seeing a place. Get off the superhighways, the roads that serve only to move people and goods quickly from one point to another but show you nothing of the places you pass through. Taking the interstates is forward motion, not travel. Travel reveals something about the essence of a place and its people, and small routes are the magic keys that open places up to the traveler.

To help wean people off the interstates and onto the treasure-filled small routes, I've often told folks to "practice in your own backyard." Let's say you want to travel to a mall that's 20 miles from home, and you usually go by highway. Instead, grab a map and create a route that takes you through the center of every town between your house and the mall. You will, I guarantee, discover interesting things in those towns that you never knew existed. Historical homes and buildings, eyecatching architecture or landscaping, lovely parks and playgrounds, rivers and streams, interesting neighborhoods or business districts... Look at everything with the fresh eyes of a traveler, and you'll be amazed at what you find.

This post is getting long, so I'll sign off for now. I haven't forgotten Nancy's question about a favorite place or interesting person we encountered on our trip. That's a loaded question (and is, effectively, the reason I wrote the book -- to be able to collect the sights, sounds, feelings and memories of all the unique and fascinating people and places we were blessed to come across). Her question will provide fodder for many, many posts as we move through our chat this month!

Like Nancy, We loved Arizona. We have family there, so we've visited the Phoenix area many times. On our road trip, however, we spent most of our Arizona time in the northeast corner of the state, in the Navajo nation, where old women with tough-as-walnut faces sell kneel-down bread from tables in their front yards, and families haul hay for their sheep in the beds of their white pickups, the kids sitting atop the bales to keep them from blowing away, and the Kayenta Bible Church holds services and Sunday School in both English and Navajo. A nation within a nation, and proud of both.

Until next time,
Lori

Eagle Heart,

I chuckled at the "with or without him..." That's the attitude! Grab a friend, go solo, meet up with different folks at places along the route... But go!

Lori

Lori,
I read "Ribbons" and loved it!! Literally, couldn't put it down. So, I have to ask, looking back, would you do anything differently? Any place(s) you didn't get to but wished you had?

Glacier

...or any places you went that you wish you didn't? I'm planning a trip like that and I'd like to skip the yicky parts!

Did you come across any glass bottom boat rides out there (besides the ones in FL, that is)?

Hi ladies,

First, welcome to Glacier. Looks like you're a new member. You'll like BWS -- lots of great women.

What to keep in, what to take out... Let me get back to Nancy's earlier question about favorite people or places, then answer Glacier and unique's questions. (And unique, I'm psyched to hear you're planning a similar trip. "Ribbons" could be a wonderful blueprint for you to help in your travel planning.)

Nancy, the places that touched us most deeply were the small places. The quiet, hidden, overlooked places where Americans live and work and go to church and raise their kids and welcome you among them when you visit. Let me insert a short excerpt from the book here. (I'll probably do that from time to time during the month, as it's a good way to answer many of your questions, and it gives you a taste of the writing style you'll find between the book's covers.) It gives a quick but by no means exhaustive list of some of the places we truly loved:

As the woodsy, rural inland towns began to blend together into a straight, monotonous chain – Ewen, Bruce Crossing, Sidnaw, Champion (which distinguished itself as the “Horse-Pulling Capital of the U.P.”), Humboldt, where we passed a billboard for Da Yoopers Tourist Trap (miles and miles elapsing until I equated Yoopers with U.P.’ers), we came to Marquette, one of the most beautiful small American cities I have ever seen.

For 9,900 miles, I’d been keeping a list in my head. A list of communities I held as special. These towns had, for different reasons and in different ways, especially touched me. When I thought of them, I smiled from the inside out, and that’s what they had in common. New River Gorge, Lexington, Memphis, Natchez, New Orleans, Santa Rosa, Acoma, Santa Fe, Bluff, Lee Vining, Fort Bragg, Bend, Boise, Red Lodge, Sundance, Belvedere, Duluth, Ashland.

I added Marquette, Michigan to the list. She sat on hills above Superior, her old neighborhoods collections of trim, fresh-painted, wooden workingman houses set amongst mature trees, streets undulating up or down depending on one’s orientation to the lakeshore. Her downtown was a wonder of fire-red stone and brick.

---
Again, the small places were the most precious treasures on our discovery of America.

As for special people, there were many. Among them: Two Natchez, Mississippi fishermen who gave the kids a catfish lesson; Joey, a wizened Cajun who brought us through the Louisiana bayou and took us up close and personal with a fleet of gators (unique, there's a boat ride for you! Munson's Swamp Tours in Schriever, Louisiana. On my book website, www.LoriHein.com, you'll find an excerpt that introduces you to Joey, Munson's and life in Cajun sugarcane country); the daredevil, teenage cowboys and cowgirls of Sundance, Wyoming who galloped their hearts out at the Crook County Rodeo and displayed their ribbons and trophies on the hoods and open beds of their parents' pickup trucks (you can meet them in an excerpt at my website, too. Sundance was a place where mamas definitely let their babies grow up to be cowboys!); a twentysomething young man from Ishpeming, Michigan with yellow spiked hair and blue-tinted glasses who sat in his trunk next to three-foot-tall stereo speakers and taught me all about the decline of the Rust Belt's iron ore industry and explained the workings of the now unused but hauntingly beautiful oredock that soared over the harbor as we talked; Susan, a motel owner in Alpena, Michigan, who lived in a turquoise concrete bunker smack on Lake Huron and wore wildly colorful clothes. She loved my kids, and gave us the room closest to the beach. And tiny Trey, whom we met on the Fourth of July on Avery Island, Louisiana. Another excerpt:

On the 4th of July, we found ourselves at Avery Island, home of McIlhenny’s Tabasco Sauce factory. Being a holiday, the factory was closed, and the workers had a day off to crab.

We hung at the dock outside McIlhenny’s with 2-year old Trey, his mom Tracy, dad Doug, his grandma, and his “nanonk,” Uncle Travis. (I wondered if nanonk owned Nonk’s Car Repair back up Route 329 in Rynela, near the trailer of the lady that advertised “Professional Ironing.”)

Trey, in his little jeans and bright red rubber Wellingtons, held his hands on both sides of his head and, with eyes wide as plates, told me about what was “in there.” Turkey necks tied to strings and weighed down with washers were the bait of choice of all the crabbers on the dock, and a four-foot gator had decided to come and help himself. He’d just been shooed away and waited on the other side of the canal.

Trey had his own cooler filled with crabs. His parents had a second cooler, so full that when they opened it, crabs spilled out. Tracy and grandma sat on chairs under striped umbrellas and tried to keep Trey from climbing the dock’s fence. Nanonk said, “If’n you fall in, I ain’t goin’ in after ya. Gonna let the gator git ya.”

That night would be America’s first 4th of July night since September 11. All through Louisiana we’d seen evidence that people planned to celebrate with spirit. Fireworks stands were busy. But there’d be caution, too. I’d seen a Times-Picayune story titled “United We Plan” about security measures to protect celebrations large and small around the country. Americans would be out on Independence Day, but with their guard up.

We stood on the balcony of our Bossier City motel and watched fireworks from Shreveport, just across the Red River. Inside the room, James Taylor and Ray Charles entertained on TV from New York City, and two giant crickets tried, unsuccessfully, to elude me.

----
Oops, almost time to go pick up my son from track practice. I'll be back later with more on what, if anything, I'd do differently, and where, if anywhere, I'd avoid...

Gotta jump in the minivan (that would be New Paint, the trusty vehicle you'll meet in "Ribbons." "We were four travelers, three with legs, one with wheels...")

Lori

Lori, I would love to go traveling with you and I will when I get your book.
Until the age of 25, I had never lived farther than eight miles from the place that had been in my family since the 1830's. I had never traveled beyond the state line except for a short car trip once as a child.
At 25, I moved 700 miles away then 700 miles farther and I made my first airplane trip. I was hooked.
Since then I have traveled all over the U.S., to several foreign countries and once all the way around the world.
As a part of my job in D.C. I visited the Navajo and many other reservations. I grew up Indian, but it was interesting to learn that each tribe is so different.
I drove my kids cross country to visit my parents often and it was a wonderful experience for us.
Since then I've traveled by car, boat(ship), plane and train. I'm convinced the U.S. is the best and most diverse place to travel and live.
How did you perceive the people in different foreign countries? Isn't France a trip? The people were kind of rotten, but I loved them anyway. A lady in an exclusive store forced me to wear her shoes because I bought an outfit and she couldnt' stand to have me wear my tennis shoes with her design even across the street to the hotel.
Thanks for the memories. Gee, I want to go again.
smile

[ May 02, 2005, 07:20 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Lori, do you think the trip was as meanigful for your children as it was for you?

Have they written or spoken about their trip in school?

Wow, smilinize! It sounds like you could write your own book! I'm particularly intrigued by the fact that once you went "all the way around the world." Tell me more about that!

I had to laugh at your France-tennis shoes anecdote. I can absolutely picture that happening. Parisians do have a somewhat inflated view of their little slice of the world. I found, though, that their willingness to meet me at least halfway increased in direct proportion to the increase in my fluency in French. The better I spoke their language, the kinder they treated me. I also noticed that the mildly irritating haughty attitude ends at the Paris city limits. I've traveled to many other parts of France, including Brittany and Normandy in the north and Provence and the Cote d'Azur in the south, and the people, while quiet and reserved, were lovely, welcoming and gracious. Paris is a phenomenon unto itself. Take it with a grain of salt and a dash of humor.

Generally, I've found in my travels that there are more things that unite people than divide them. It's extraordinary to absorb and experience the rich cultural differences that exist around the world, but at bottom, people are people, and travel teaches you that we're all in this together. That lesson is the main reason why I've made vagabonding part of my kids' lives. Travel has helped them develop into curious, empathetic teenagers who have zero tolerance for racism or any other-ism. I'm proud of them.

My son just returned from a high school trip to Greece. (If you cruise the March archives in my blog, http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com , you'll find 10 fun posts about places they visited.) In a newspaper article I wrote about the trip, I used a quote from one of the kids' Greek guides. A student asked the guide how the Greeks felt about the war in Iraq. Her answer: "The more you travel, the more you realize that the things that are important to you are the things that are important to everyone. You know what we care about in Greece? We care about our families, our homes, our country, our religion. And we don't want to lose our young men."

It sounds like you've had an interesting life so far, smilinize. What is your Indian heritage? On our trip across America, I made it a point to include many Native American areas and communities in our journey. A trip that ignored the lives, traditions and heritage of the country's first people would be an incomplete picture of this nation. We spent time absorbing as much as we could of Indian cultures like the Navajo, the Jicarilla Apache, the great Acoma pueblo community at Acoma Sky City in New Mexico, the Pojoaque, Tesuque and San Ildefonso who live near Santa Fe, the Sioux in South Dakota and around Devil's Tower in Wyoming, the Crow near Little Bighorn in Montana, Wisconsin's Chippewa, who harvest wild rice that grows along the shores of the Great Lakes, the Seneca Nation in western New York.

Yes, smilinize, you got it right when you said "the U.S. is the best and most diverse place to travel and live." It is amazing.

Talk to you all later,
Lori

Yes, Dotsie, I think our journey had meaning for my kids on a number of levels beyond the most obvious -- they traveled across America and saw amazing stuff...

At the time of our journey, Adam was 13 and my daughter, Dana was 10. Those were perfect ages for a long trip like this. They were old enough to appreciate most of what they saw and did, old enough to be low maintenance for me, but young enough to still have that open, communicative, emotions-on-the-sleeve mindset that flowers just before life pushes them temporarily into the quieter, tighter, introspective, self-conscious world of full-blown teenagerhood. In short, we had a blast together, and we truly bonded. It was an experience and an opportunity we were truly blessed to have.

On another level, the timing of our trip was important and meaningful. The reason for our journey was to get out into the land after September 11 and make sure that the country was alright. That was the impetus that set our journey in motion. We had a mission: to make sure that America and its people were strong and okay. Well, they were and still are, and my kids saw that first-hand as we traveled the nation and met its people. They came home confident in the fact that despite a horrible and unfortunate change in the way the world works, their country was in the good hands of her millions of proud, positive, hard-working people. They will, I know, always have that knowledge to fall back on, and it will help them navigate the sometimes threatening waters of the world they'll inherit. I remember a day when we cruised a high-altitude ribbon of Wyoming asphalt with a brigade of free-spirited bikers headed for the monster biker rally held each summer in Sturgis, South Dakota. The sky was brilliant blue, and the sun lit up the forest, mountains and chrome rims of the hundred moving motorcycles. John Mellencamp came on the radio wailing "Pink Houses," telling us that 'America was somethin' to see, baby,' and Lynard Skynard belted out "Free Bird." I looked at the kids and said some words about liberty, about being free. They knew what I meant, and they knew it was important. In the book, that moment came out as, "Take that, Osama. You're in a cave, and we're rolling through Wyoming. Plot if you like, but we're moving and doing and smiling at the sound of good rock and roll and the sweet feel of Rocky Mountain breeze lifting our hair and moving coolly over arms. Boundless beauty, freedom, adventure, possibility. These are ours. We're free birds."

The kids' appreciation for the magnitude and wonder of our journey also increased as "Ribbons of Highway" began to take shape. It took me six months to write the book, and Adam and Dana were part of my editorial team. They watched the words unfold and become an organic thing, a flowing record of a journey that they were at the center of. It was a magical process for all of us. When the first galley was delivered to the house, we all held the finished book in wonder. They are as much a part of the book as I am, and it is a gift that we share, something that will always bind us. They are very proud of "Ribbons," and they talk about it a lot -- in school, to their friends and their friends' parents. They're minor celebrities in town because of it, and they understand why people are intrigued or inspired by what they did. They've been asked to sign copies of the book, and I can see them swell with pride whenever that happens.

Two meaningful journeys, then, that my kids and I have shared and continue to share: the physical journey and the journey to give life to "our" book. Incredibly fulfilling and wondrous.

Lori
I have written about my travels, sort of. I wrote a novel about a middle aged divorcee stranded in California who employs a young man to teach her to drive her ex-husband's classic Jaguar convertible. As they travel across the country she learns about freedom and love.

Around the world was spectacular. Left from the East Coast where one daughter was in college and came back to the West coast where the other was being a hippie. I once went on a cruise and it was okay, but the confinement was kind of nerve wracking for me.

I had never compared Paris with the rest of France, but you're right. I still liked the rotten Parisians best though. They made me laugh.

I have visited most of the tribes you mentioned, but I am Cherokee. The Cherokees have integrated with the European so much that our settlements are almost indistinguishable. We are united by our history.

I liked Japan a lot. Went to a Budhist Temple and a tea ceremony in the most beautiful garden I've ever seen. Never made it to Greece. It sounds great though.

I once drove along the U.S.-Mexico border. Boy that was exciting. Weird sceneryt and men with Uzis everywhere. Whew....

You're making me want to travel again. Gotta' get your book.
smile

Lori-- I just wanted to welcome you as this month's Featured Writer. Your book sounds wonderful, and I'm enjoying your entries.

I, too, am an avid traveler and been all over the world, both with my family and with my (former) students. In the late 90's one other teacher and I took 12 high school students on a literary/historic tour of Greece & Turkey. We sailed through the Aegean reading the Iliad! A heavenly experience to say the least. We also performed the play Trojan Women for the passengers and crew. Very cool!! I love traveling with young people and seeing their eyes light up with wonder as they learn foreign customs and discover new places.

How wonderful for the rest of us that you had the inspiration to write about your experiences!

P.S. I was in Boston along with the rain this past weekend. I almost attended a friend's daughter's track meet. Wonder if it was the same one as your son's.

Hi Lori,
I'm taking you up on your open invitation. Here I am. I'm not a big or world wide traveler, but I love going away. I've also written about my limited travels. When I started getting published in the newspaper, it was with travel stories. I wrote for the Day Tripper column. I eventually graduated to feature and travel stories. I love to go to the White Mountains of NH and the coast of Maine. I've written about them and I wrote a couple of stories about VT and one about a place called Castle in the Clouds in Moultonboro, NH.

My husband and I are Disney Vacation Club members and we travel to Disneyworld twice a year. (Going in less than two weeks ) It's our favorite place. Last year, we went to Vegas. I absolutely loved it. The only place out of the US I've been is Canada. I've been to Niagara Falls a couple of times and we went to Montreal two summers ago.

I'm looking forward to chatting with you about writing.

Louisa

OK, back to Glacier's question (what would I change or do differently or what do I wish we'd seen but didn't) and to unique's (anything "yicky" that she might want to avoid on her own upcoming road trip).

I would have loved to have spent more time in Idaho, Montana, the northern California coast near Mendocino and the Oregon coast. These were exceptionally beautiful areas. But, on any trip, you have to resign yourself to the fact that you simply cannot see or do everything. The beauty of that, of course, is there's plenty more for the next trip! I was driving about 300 miles a day on our journey on roads chosen for this trip, and I'd look down other roads, knowing there were 300 different miles to be had by taking any one of them. The vastness of this country is truly mind-blowing.

I included the kids in the trip planning, and we ended up, after numerous reworks, with an itinerary that gave us all what we most wanted to see. I wanted Appalachia, Cajun country, New Mexico's pueblos, Monument Valley (by itself worth a drive cross-country), California's Redwoods, the Grand Tetons and the Great Lakes. Dana, a passionate horse lover, had to see every inch of Kentucky horse country -- the Bluegrass region around Lexington. Adam wanted "car museums" (and junk food), so we hit places like the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky and the Route 66 Auto Museum in Santa Rosa, New Mexico. Something for everyone. It worked well.

And the parts that unique would call "yicky?" Well, the stretch around Shiprock, New Mexico near Farmington and Bloomfield was searingly hot and tedious. I'd give that a miss. And, crossing Nevada in summer was a challenge. The day we crossed southern Nevada via Rachel and the Extraterrestrial Highway was a tense day, the longest day of the trip. I breathed an audible sigh of relief when we hit the California border and started our ascent into the cool Sierras.

And, something else that dogged us during the journey -- wildfires that blazed in some seven western states. Wildfire figured prominently in our trip. Yicky? You bet. But perversely fascinating, as well. I gained new respect for the people who live with wildfire threat and especially for the wildcatters and firefighters who risk their lives and spend weeks away from home trying to protect others' lives and property.

Cheers for now,

Lori

Hello to Prill and Louisa. Thank you for the welcome. I'm enjoying this forum so much -- meeting women with interesting lives and backgrounds and great stories to share.

As I reread some of our posts last night, I found some fascinating tidbits that I'd love to hear more about. One that jumped out at me was Eagle Heart's having spent a month in a monastery in Pecos. Was this a spiritual retreat, Eagle Heart? Did you go as an individual or with a group of some kind? I'd love to hear more about your experience. I've read articles about people who've taken weeks, months or even a year to live in monasteries or other havens, and it's an intriguing notion. What prompted you to go, and what did you gain from it?

The premise of smilinize's novel sounds wonderful -- a long-distance Jaguar driving lesson as a platform for a story about freedom and love. Was the novel published? What is the title?

I, too, loved Japan and would like to return. We spent most of our time in the ancient city of Kyoto, which, nearly a thousand years ago, was the country's capital. The city is filled with Buddhist temples, and the serene, winding Pathway of Philosophy makes its way past many of them. You walk through the woods (we went in autumn, when Kyoto's trees bore leaves of crimson, gold and orange), alongside a stream, stopping at the temples and teahouses along the way. A long, peaceful meander.

Prill's been all over the world. I'd love to hear about more of your favorite places. I admire you for having taken students on trips abroad. You remind me of the teacher who led my son's recent trip to Greece. This was the 13th time she'd taken a large group of high schoolers to Europe. She does it, as I gather you did, Prill, because of how it enriches the kids. I interviewed her for a story, and like you, she talked about the metarphosis that takes place as the kids develop their "travel legs," becoming more comfortable with the foreign culture and easing into a self-confidence that lets them explore a place fully. I can imagine Homer smiling as he listened to you read the Iliad while crusing the Aegean. Heavenly, indeed. You'd probably get a kick out of the 10 Greece posts I wrote for my travel blog before the kids left for Athens. Using literature and history and lots of good links, I tried to "teach" a little something in a way they could relate to. "Of Myceane and men," "Let them eat octopus," "What's up, Acropolis?" and "Can you hear me now?" (about the theater at Epidauros.) Fun stuff like that. You'll find the posts in the March archives at http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com .

Greece was one of the most physically beautiful places I've been. (The Mediterranean -- any and all parts, nooks and crannies of it, including its arms and bays and smaller seas like the Adriatic, Ionion and Aegean -- is my favorite area on earth. Eric Newby, a British travel writer, wrote a book called "On The Shores of the Mediterranean." He circumnavigated the Med's entire coastline in one long, continuous journey. I've always dreamed of one day doing the same.)

I took Adam to Turkey with me when he was six. I bought him a "Tintin in Istanbul" t-shirt, and he wore it in the Grand Bazaar. Every shopkeeper and stall owner came out to shake his hand and pinch his cheeks and give him sweets and little gifts. Istanbul was a dazzling delight, the Turkish people gracious and welcoming. When we toured Topkapi Palace, two teenage boys invited Adam to play soccer with them. While the other tourists visited the harems, I stayed outside and watched the game, and it touched me deeply.

And hello to Louisa. Congratulations on your publishing success. It sounds like you gained some early credits and experience by writing for a local newspaper. That is a wonderful way for writers to get started. I did the same and eventually became the primary features correspondent for three papers owned by the Boston Herald. I've taken a little break from that gig to focus on the book and on travel writing for magazines, but it's a nice way to gather clips and stay in touch with your community. Do you still write the Day Tripper column? I see you're from Massachusetts. You're smart to look at destinations like Castle in the Clouds, the White Mountains and the Maine coast as subjects for travel pieces. Often, the greatest destinations are those close to home -- the ones that other writers overlook -- and the ones that folks want to read about, because they're accessible and interesting. Good luck with your writing. It will be nice to chat with you more about it.

Sun's coming out, so I'm off for a quick run.

Lori

Hi Lori,
Thank you for your interest in my stay at the Pecos Benedictine Monastery. My first visit was in 1981 for a 2-week spiritual retreat with two other women from my prayer group in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

While at the monastery, we learned about the monastery's School for Charismatic Spiritual Direction. After much prayer and discernment back home with my prayer group, I decided to go back (alone) the following June (1982) for the 4-week school. It was an amazing, profound, indescribably wonderful experience. There were about 40 of us, from all over the US, a few from Canada, and two priests from Africa. It was such an profound experience (you can go to
http://pecosabbey.org/scsd.htm for some idea of what it entailed).

The school included an additional 2-week follow-up retreat in 1983. Between the original school and the follow-up, I had a massive breakdown, which became the turning point in my life (and eventually provided the backdrop for my own book). Although I did recover and become fully active in life and community shortly after the breakdown, 20 years later I'm still processing some facets of that breakdown. One has to wonder if there was any connection to the profound nature of that 4-week week retreat. It may have been too much, or it may have been what was necessary to uncover the extensive damage that had been lying dormant since early childhood...I still don't know...but it's moot anyway, isn't it?

20 years later I still can't fully answer your question about what I gained from that time there...it's still ongoing. The one sure gain was that I met a woman there from Nevada who continues to be one of my very dearest friends in the world.

Thank you for sharing that, Eagle Heart. What a profound experience the 4-week session must have been. Perhaps it was, indeed a God-sent catharsis to help you coax out things that needed to be aired. One wonders if you hadn't had the intense Pecos experience how, when or whether those things would have been given voice.

I visited the monastery website. The focused simplicity of the program struck me, as did the stark, powerful simplicity of the desert landscape it takes place in. Seems a fitting venue.

And you were blessed with a friend for life. That's a true gift.

Hi Lori,

Heartfelt congrats on making the 'A List' of Featured Authors! I absolutely identify with your subject, having written about travel - with and without kids - in my novel, Travels With My Lovers.

Most of TWML was about Europe and the Caribbean, but I have taken my daughter to Greece and Turkey as well. That will have to wait for the sequels, however!

Have an absolute blast on the site. Your detailed replies are inspiring and wonderful to read.

All my best,
Erica

"As hot as a Florentine cobblestone in July!..." From a review of Erica's book. Check out her website! The book looks like a wonderful read.

Thanks for the welcome, Erica. It's fun to be here. And congratulations on your own writing success. I cruised your website with interest. I love checking out other writers' sites and seeing the wonderful, creative things they've accomplished. The writing life is such an interesting mix of ups and downs, highs and lows, feast and famine, flood and drought, kudos and rejection, and I think that's one of the reasons I love it so much. I'm a marathoner, and I liken being a writer to being a distance runner. Keeping focused, honing your skills, being persistent, dealing with setbacks, training yourself to go a little farther, a little longer, building up your endurance over time -- and then, every once in a while, running a glorious race that fills you with an unspeakably beautiful blend of exhaustion and euphoria. I guess vagabonding is like that, too. Tucked between the highs of travel are the challenges, the hurdles, the days that just don't go as planned.

Hmmm...the more I go on here, the more I see that all of these things -- writing, running, traveling -- are metaphors for life.

For the folks out there who've expressed interest in picking up a copy of "Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America," I've been meaning to mention that since early January I've been donating about half of my book proceeds to tsunami relief. I've decided to continue doing so through the end of May, through the end of this forum. At this point, I'm sending all donations to UNICEF, as other organizations have indicated they have sufficient funds to cover efforts for the next few years.

If you order the book from an online bookseller like BN.com or Amazon ( www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1591134536/ ), I'll donate $1 per copy. If you order from the publisher ( www.booklocker.com/books/1451.html ) or from me (signed copy info at www.LoriHein.com ), I'm donating $2 per copy, as I earn slightly more on these copies.

And now a question: What summer travel plans, if any, do you all have? (We know Louisa and her clan are heading to Disney in a few weeks. Have a great time, Louisa. Have you ever checked out the airboat rides that they offer on some of the lakes in Kissimmee? We took one and it was great, wild fun. The kids got to sit up high in the seat next to the driver and steer the thing for a little while!)

Any other trips in the planning stages?

I just discovered a post from a new member, Explorer. She posted a question about traveling safely. She posted her question as a new topic, but I think she may have meant to post it in this thread. Because it's such a good question, I'm going to try and cut and past it and then answer it here, in this thread. From Explorer:

Hi Lori,
I enjoyed reading your book and must say I felt a little envious of your ability to travel alone or just with your kids (even though they sound quite mature) -- in other words, without another adult who can help you make decisions, stay safe, whatever. Any big tips you can share to help some of the rest of us get over our apprehension and have the courage to travel alone or without another adult? Thanks!

-----
Explorer, this is a great question, which really has two levels: One -- how to start traveling without a spouse or other adult and then, two -- once you're out there, what can you do to stay safe?

On the first question, my biggest tip is to start small. Travel alone to someplace close to home. You can start with "trips" as small as dining out by yourself or going to a movie or to a museum alone. Get the hang of getting out there doing things by yourself by doing things in your own backyard. These small "trips" have a built-in psychological safety net, so you can get used to being on your own without much risk. As you get comfortable, go a little farther. Perhaps a day trip up the coast to some beaches or to an interesting town with good shopping. Then, when you discover that you handled the day trip just fine, expand to an overnight or to a weekend. Before you know it, you'll be ready to go anywhere on your own, because you've done it. Another suggestion for getting started is to go on a tour. Sign up as a single. You're traveling alone, but you have the "safety net" of having others around you during the trip. You can interact with them as much or as little as you wish. But the act of signing up and showing up at the airport by yourself is an accomplishment that proves you're able to get out there, even if there's no handy spouse or friend or significant other available or interested in traveling with you. (Or maybe there is, but you simply want to travel solo. I find solo travel extremely relaxing and fulfilling. )

And, some quick safety tips. This post is getting a bit long, so I'll throw out one or two biggies and then return to this topic in future posts. The biggest key is to do whatever you can to reduce your vulnerability.

1. Blend in. Leave the bling and the heels and the big-time decolletage at home. When you're alone, while it's always flattering to attract attention, you risk attracting it from unsavory sorts. Reduce the risk by acting and dressing low-key.

2. I'm not a party person or a nightlife-lover, so this next piece of advice fits in well with my travel style: get out and explore a place and do all the things you want to do before dark. Unless I'm with a friend, my husband, or other adults, I'm always in my hotel room or campsite or whatever when the sun goes down (unless, of course, there's some special event that's an enriching part of the trip). Two examples from our American road trip: We spent several days in New Orleans, where we fell in love with the French Quarter. We visited often, but we left the late night scene to the revelers and got our fill during morning, afternoon and early evening hours. The same in Memphis. We took in the Beale Street scene, listening to blues and eating po'boys in the cafes and cruising the avenue, but we retreated to our hotel pool at 7 pm, when the seriously armed and muscled cops started turning out in groups of three to patrol the "block party" that was sure to erupt after dark. I absorbed the Quarter, and I absorbed the essence of Beal Street, but I did it before the sun went down, in safety.

3. Biggie number three: Trust your intuition. I can't stress this enough. I've learned over 25 years of traveling, probably 75% of which has been either alone or with one or both of my kids, to listen without question to that little voice inside your head. I believe God gave us intuition as a built-in safety device. It's our gut reaction to something, and when that voice speaks, I listen. Without hesitation. I know that voice has kept me out of trouble. And I also know that there have been times when I "debated" with that voice, ignored it, justified some other course of action -- and ran into problems. So now, I simply do what it says, and I do it right away.

More later on traveling alone and staying safe (which translates into traveling more and having fun!)

(and Explore, just hit "Add Reply" if you'd like to chat in this thread. "New Topic" will send you out of this thread, and I may not be able to find you... I'm a "forum newbie" myself, and am also just learning the ropes...

Lori,
I am interested in Explorer's question, but while you're waiting for her reply, I'll ask a couple of questions.
My husband and I are planning a driving trip to D.C. with our 8 yr. old grandson, Alex, this summer. We have a self contained travel van so we will take that. It's pretty much ad lib, but we thought it would be fun to stay at a RV camp along the way then in a hotel in any large cities.
I've camped all over the country when I was younger, but I'm a little freaked about sleeping in the RV with Alex. Is it safe? Do you think those RV camping places are safe? Should we take a gun? Is that legal?
We will be traveling from Branson, MO to D.C. on the way east and some route through Memphis and onto I-40 to visit family on the way back. (And I absolutely have to go back to Graceland). I would like Alex to see the Ozarks and maybe the Appalachians.
We need any ideas you might have for off the beaten path routes and stuff to see along the way. We will need lots of time in D.C. because there is so much there for our grandson, but because he has traveled only by plane before, we want him to see some of the countryside.
If we survive we're thinking about taking all the grandkids west next summer. On the maiden voyage, we definitely don't want to be outnumbered.
smile

[ May 05, 2005, 01:11 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Hi smilinize,

I'm just back from taking my mom out to lunch for "early Mother's Day" and have to head back out in a few minutes for a round of kid pickups and dropoffs. I have quite a few suggestions for you, but I want to get all the names and routes and details right, so I need a little time to go back through my journals, etc. and do some digging. I'll be back at you shortly with some suggestions.

But, I can answer part of your question quickly: Yes, the RV campgrounds are safe. And, they can be wonderful social places, too -- communities in themselves. While on our trans-America trip, we fell in love with KOAs. Sometimes we pitched our tent and sometimes we rented these cool little "Kamping Kabins." You'll have your own "roof," so won't need to look into those, but other folks might want to consider checking them out on a future trip. Adam and Dana came to love these little cabins, where we had our own front porch and yard and water pump and electricity. They run about $50 a nite and can sleep four.

Anyway, we liked KOAs very much because they almost always had a pool, and they were very family-friendly and full of kids. Adam and Dana could always find other kids to pal around with --and that was a learning experience for them, because they met kids from all over the country. The KOAs tend to have activities. Some had sunset barbecues or singalongs or game rooms with pool tables and video machines -- sometimes they showed a movie...things like that. And they have stores that are stocked with grocieries and essentials. We never met a KOA we didn't like. Find them online and check out their locations to see if they match your route. Each KOA is independently owned, often by a family. Nice, hard-working folks. Other excellent sources for campground and RV-site info are Woodall's (woodalls.com???) and the Good Sam Club. Woodall's also has a printed campground directory. It's the grandaddy and bible of the campground set.

I don't think you'll need a gun. Maybe get some pepper spray, though, not a bad idea for anyone going on a road trip. (I wouldn't try to take it on a plane!!). I took pepper spray on our trip. I had it close at hand in the van, and I brought it into our tent or cabin or motel room at night and kept it near me, along with my cellphone. I got a non-gun firearms permit from my local police department and kept that permit with me in the van.

I'm not certain about the legality of crossing state lines with pepper spray -- even my local police couldn't tell me whether my permit would be reciprocal in other states. They kind of said, only without saying it, of course, "just do it -- better to have it and pay the piper if you run afoul of a law than not to have it if you need it." I do know that in some states, like NH, you do not need a permit to carry pepper spray. Maybe one of the forum members might know something about this... But, I figured, the worst that could happen would be a handslap or a fine if I ever had to use the spray. It's not a gun, so the repercussions would be small in comparison, and would certainly outweigh feeling somewhat protected by having it or having actually protected myself and my kids by using it. (Boy, that sentence was a bad mouthful, but never mind...)Anyway, consider the spray. I'd be very nervous about having a gun in an RV with a child aboard -- close quarters, etc.

More later with suggestions on routes/things to see. I'm excited for you! Sounds like a wonderful trip. I hope you DO survive the Alex-only trip so that we can all be treated to next year's stories about you and the entire grandchild brood!

Lori, I thoroughly enjoyed the bits and pieces you shared about your children. Have they corresponded with any of the people they met on the trip?

The internet makes it so easy for kids to stay in touch with people they meet at camps, resorts, etc.

Yes, Dotise, they have kept in touch with some of the kids they met. Dana has a pen pal in California, a fellow horse lover. Interestingly, these two girls actually write letters to one another on real paper and send them in the mail. That doesn't happen much anymore! (I think it's because they like to put horse stickers all over the envelopes.)

Both Adam and Dana have huge instant message Buddy Lists and keep in regular -- often daily -- touch with kids they've met in their travels. The Web is such a fabulous way for them to keep these relationships going. I wouldn't be surprised if, at some point in the future, they end up visiting some of these friends they made in their younger travel days.

I'm particularly delighted about one of the households they keep in regular touch with through their instant messaging. My high school pal, Rhonda, one of my dearest friends in the world, moved to Nashville about a dozen years ago. Her husband, Charlie, is an auto worker, and they moved south to follow work when GM shut its plants near Boston and opened the big Saturn plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee.

Rhonda has two beautiful kids, Erin and Paul, who are a little younger than Adam and Dana, and on our "Ribbons" journey, we stayed with them for a few days. Rhonda and I have known each other since we were 14, when I was in love with her cousin Rick. After he broke my heart, we remained friends. Rhonda was the only person I’d made plans to visit on our American journey.

She and I sat watching our four children, marveling at how blessed we were to have them and hoping they'd come to know and like each other, continuing the chain of friendship we'd begun some 30 years earlier. Well, the kids hit it off, and they "IM" each other on a regular basis. They'd been at it for months before I even realized they were keeping in touch. Rhonda and I think that is just the coolest thing in the world. Even if she and I don't connect as often as we should, we know our kids are keeping our families connected.

Let me take you to Rhonda's house in this quick excerpt from "Ribbons":

Our kids played together in the cul-de-sac, while Rhonda, Charlie and I drank beers on the front porch. Charlie’s a traveler. Real travelers know geography, even of places they haven’t been to yet. I described our route, and Charlie sat back and smiled, visualizing the Stonehenge of old Cadillacs sticking up in Amarillo, the jagged reaches of the Sawtooth, the forested shores of Lake Huron. This is a guy who, years ago, got in a car with a few buddies and drove from Boston to Yellowknife, just to see what a place called Yellowknife looked like. They spent a few hours there and drove home. I understood completely.

Rhonda’s house had been a psychological safety net. It was a familiar destination. A place where we’d been expected. Somewhere with people who cared about us. A chance to stretch out and hang around a house with a yard and lots of rooms and a washing machine and a kitchen with food. A visit with friends. A point from which I could turn around and go home if something wasn’t right about this trip and still feel the venture had been worthwhile.

We left Rhonda’s driveway and left the safety net behind. We were on our own, for the next 10,000 miles. We drove into America, and it embraced us.
----

Smilinize, I'll be back with some Missouri to D.C. suggestions for you shortly!

Here are some suggestions for smilinize's upcoming RV-with-grandson adventure. Missouri to Washington, D.C. and back.

Smilinize, I plotted this going through Memphis on the way east, so you may want to just flip it around because I think you want to go through Memphis on your way home. It was just easier for me to do it this way because it's the way I traveled these routes. I traveled the Memphis, West Virginia and Kentucky chunks of this on the "Ribbons" journey, and those are well-treated in the book. I've traveled the other pieces in various smaller journeys over the years.

I have some recommendations of things to do in D.C., but I'll put those in a separate post so this doesn't get overly long.

From Branson, MO, Route 65 to Harrison, Arkansas is a Rand McNally "Scenic Route." At Harrison, tiny Route 7 is a scenic route that takes you all the way through two large chunks of the Ozark National Forest and delivers you to Hot Springs, an Ozark resort town with springs, high mountain vistas and lots of activities to keep your grandson busy. (I remember Hot Springs as the place I was thrown from a horse. I was on a trail ride, and something bit my horse's butt. He threw me, I hit my head on a rock and had a cut so large that the rental condo complex where we were staying barred me from the pool for the rest of my vacation.)

From Hot Springs (again, you may want to put this post in a "mirror" and reverse it...), you can swing up I-30 to take in Little Rock (which I have not visited), then I-40 to Memphis. It sounds like you know Memphis, having family in the area, but for folks who don't, things to do besides making the pilgrimage to Graceland include spending time on Mud Island, smack on the Mississippi in downtown Memphis near the Pyramid. You access it via an enclosed, suspended pedestrian bridge. There are shops and cafes, and, in the middle of the main walkway, there's a long, large scale model of the entire Mississippi River system that you can "travel" along. Great fun, especially for kids. Also, there's Beale Street (see earlier post about safety), cruises on the Mississippi Queen, the Lorraine Motel (National Civil Rights Museum) where Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot, and the Peabody Hotel, where daily at 5 pm, the pampered Peabody Ducks emerge from the lobby fountain where they loll all day and travel a red carpet to the elevator that whisks them to their hotel penthouse.

From Memphis (or to Memphis...), you could take the small Route 64 toward Chattanooga. Near Waynesboro, Route 64 crosses a piece of the Natchez Trace Parkway, which runs all the way to Mississippi. This is a beautiful, old treed road with significant history. It's a Google subject all by itself. An old Indian trail, it was used by bargemen who, after having floated their goods down the Mississippi to market, walked back to their northern homes by following the ancient Trace.

Around Savannah,Tennessee, get off 64 and pick up Route 41. You're now getting into some of the loveliest parts of Tennessee, where the mountains really begin around Sewanee. Chattanooga is nearby. Great mountain vistas from the tops of Signal and Lookout Mountains (hang-glide off Lookout, if you're game).

From Chattanooga, you could head toward Gatlinburg, a winter ski resort. You're in the Great Smoky National Park at this point. Clingman's Dome, 6650 feet, is here, Tennessee's highest point. From here, Route 321 goes through Cherokee National Forest and pieces of the Great Smokies and other parts of the Appalachian range near the TN/NC border and points you, eventually, to Bristol, TN, on the Virginia border.

At this point, the Appalachians spread ahead of you, running in a tilted north-south direction, and you have a lot of options for small, scenic mountain routes. (Note that most of this driving will be at 40 mph or so, so you'll have to judge what to do and what to skip according to how much time you have.) I'd recommend maybe shooting for Front Royal, Virginia, up in the Shenandoah River Valley. You could take I-81 from Bristol to Roanoke and get on the Blue Ridge Parkway from there. The Blue Ridge parallels the Appalachian Trail. From Front Royal, you can take I-66 into Washington.

I'll give you some Washington suggestions separately, but I wanted to mention that once in Washington, you're only a few hours from Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic. From D.C., it's a short hop to Annapolis, which Alex might like to visit, and then you're a bridge away from a whole host of historic Maryland bay towns around Easton and Cambridge. Take a look at this blog story I wrote in December: http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com/2004/12/teach-your-children-what-kids-learn.html . It'll give you a flavor of the Lower Eastern Shore and has some links that might give you travel ideas. (Every one of my blog stories, by the way, is chock-full of great links for the traveler, armchair or actual. I want blog readers to be able to travel the world on their computer screens or have enough information to start dreaming about or even planning a trip of their own, so I take great care choosing the links. There are seven months' worth of almost-daily posts about places all over the world on the blog right now, and I add new content all the time: http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com )

Now, how to get back to Missouri? You could head west out of D.C. and pass through Front Royal again and then enter West Virginia (via small mountain roads through the Appalachians) to Elkins, West Virgnia. At Elkins, pick up Route 219, a scenic route that rides you down through Appalachia to Lewisburg, passing through pretty, rural mountain towns like Marlinton and Snowshoe Mountain enroute. The road is high, winding, gorgeous. (Again, you won't be moving very fast, so count on all of this taking some time!)

At Lewisburg, I-64 takes you east to Beckley, passing first near New River Gorge, a phenomenally beautiful area of rushing rivers and forests and mountains and small towns. Lots of whitewater activity here for the adventurous. Then to Beckley, a sprawling small city with a coal-mining past. The Beckley Mine gives tours. You ride in old coal cars deep into the mine, and it's quite an experience. Alex would enjoy it, I'm sure.

Then head for Charleston, West Virginia's pretty, historic captial with an old cobblestoned downtown and stately mansions sitting atop bluffs that tower over the Kanawha River. From Becley to Charleston, you can take the Midland Coal Trail that parallels the beautiful but hard-working Kanawha for the whole distance. You'll see West Virginia mining towns up close, and you'll look down at full coal barges tethered to riverbank docks.

Once in Charleston, I-64 takes you into Kentucky and to Lexington bluegrass country. Well worth a visit. The Bluegrass Driving Tour takes you past the most storied of the horse farms, places like Calumet, built on a baking powder fortune. From Lexington, take the Bluegrass Parkway to Mammoth Cave National Park. Huge, mysterious, beautiful caverns. Alex will enjoy it. And, he might like to see the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, south of Mammoth. From Bowling Green, you can pick up any number of routes back into Missouri.

I hope this gives you some ideas. I'll talk about Washington in a separate post.

Perhaps there are some forum members who can give you suggestions, too. What fun having a trip to plan!

Lori,
You are certainly intriguing me with all of that. I have been on several routes to and from D.C. years ago with my kids and can't wait to experience the things you listed.
I'm getting so excited. I'm in physical therapy like crazy trying to get back to my old self by then.
Your dscriptions take me there and make even the looking forward to traveling delightful.
smile

[ May 07, 2005, 06:49 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

I hope Alex is excited, too! As you plan the trip, including him in some of the decision-making can go a long way toward investing him in the journey and increasing his connection to and appreciation for the whole experience.

If he lives near you, you can trace your route together on maps in highlighter, and you can tell him that you'll be calling on him to help navigate while you're on the road. "Alex, we're in Little Rock right now, heading for Memphis, and we're on Route I-40. Does that look right to you?" Even at eight, he should be able to tackle some basic map reading, especially if he's looked at the maps with you before the trip. He'll feel like a real contributor to the journey.

You can also Google up some websites he can visit to read about and see pictures of places you'll be visiting. Going to the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green? Let him cruise the museum online and pick the cars he most wants to see "in person." The Air and Space Museum in Washington? What planes or spacecraft would he most like to see? Let him research and read about the people who built or flew those craft and about their missions.

Building a child's ownership in a trip increases the likelihood that he or she will enjoy it, retain it and maybe even learn a little something.

You should be collecting good state road maps at this point. If you're a AAA member, you can get them free, along with state-specific Tour Books. State tourism offices also have good free road maps. Find state tourism offices online and order free maps and brochures to be sent by mail. (Typing something like "Virginia + tourism" will get you a list of sites, and it's easy to pick out the state's official tourist office or bureau from there.)

I've started my summer trip planning. Dana and I are going to Russia for a week. We're visiting Moscow and St. Petersburg and taking an overnight train between the two. I'm reading Harrison Salisbury's 1969 non-fiction work, "The 900 Days," about the nearly three-year Nazi siege of Leningrad. I've found that reading one good non-fiction work or a well-written historical novel can lay a good foundation for understanding a place.

And, I have to learn a little Russian. I've got two and a half months...

Gee Lori,
That's a great idea. He's only in third grade, fourth after May, but he would love that. What as great idea.
I'll definitely include him.

How exciting to hear of your going to Russia. I took a Russian literature course once. Boy what a country. Rich in heritage and tradition. tolstoy. Wow!
I am envious. I hope you will tell us great stories when you return.
smile

Hi ladies,

Dana and I are getting ready to watch the Kentucky Derby. I hear George Steinbrenner's horse is the favorite.

In honor of the event, I thought I'd share this excerpt from "Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America." Kentucky horse country was the holy grail of Dana's American road trip. Enjoy:


Closer to Lexington, redemption. Hints of green and blue. Patches, then whole pastures, of rolling, perfect grass. Grass that nurtures champions. Mare and foal pairs in love and nuzzling, savoring their time together, sunlight on their withers. Horses so beautiful you wanted to cry. Elegance and long legs and strong backs and power bred for a purpose. This was Lexington.

Dana’s dream became real, mile by white rail-fenced mile. The horses were pure majesty. I watched Adam watch Dana. I could see him decide to go with the flow and let his sister enjoy. I filled up. My daughter was in her place of a young lifetime, we were surrounded by equine beauty that took your breath away, and Adam was showing himself to be a true gentleman.

Our Lexington days were all horse. We made an eight-hour, 85-in-the-shade, no-square-inch-missed visit to Kentucky Horse Park. We went three times to Thoroughbred Park to leap among and sit atop the life-size bronze Derby contenders. We stalked a pair of Lexington cops and their chestnut mounts as they walked their Main Street beat. “The police even ride horses!” marveled Dana, as she added law enforcement to her mental list of jobs for horse lovers.


I don’t think Dana slept much the night before our dawn pilgrimage to Keeneland Racecourse to watch the morning workouts. When I whispered in her ear at 5:30 that it was time to get up, her eyes shot open, and her face beamed. We dressed quietly so we wouldn’t wake Adam, slipped out, and went downstairs for a quick breakfast before heading into the already hot Lexington pre-dawn. We were the first breakfast customers of the morning. As we passed the reception desk, I whispered to the clerk, “We’re off to Keeneland.” “Ahhhh,” she whispered back, nodding at Dana with a knowing look, telepathy transmitted from one horse lover to another. “You’ll love it.” I looked at Dana, always beautiful, and, at this moment, the most excited, gorgeous little girl on the planet.

We traced a route around venerable Keeneland along parts of the Bluegrass Driving Tour, following Rice and Van Meter and Versailles (“We say ‘ver-SALES’, not fancy like the one in France,” the night desk clerk had told me when I’d come down to ask the best route from the hotel to Keeneland.). Dana could have spent hours on these roads, each a thin, gray ribbon along which lay some of Lexington’s most storied horse farms. The pastures were lush green carpet, the architecture distinctive and utterly beautiful. Crisp lines, fresh paint, rich trim. Pristine clapboards and elegant cupolas, graceful weathervanes. Dana has an encyclopedic knowledge of everything equine and, from her reading, was more familiar with these farms than I, and her excitement as we read their names – John Ward, Drumkenny, Broodmare, Manchester, Fares - traveled like an electrical current, stirring in me a deep contentment. We pulled over by a white rail fence on a slight rise in Rice Boulevard and looked out over the pastures spreading before us, hints of blue visible in the rich grass as it waited in the low, early light for the new day to burn off the night’s dew and mist.

On Van Meter, the red trim on the outbuildings of a vast farm betrayed it as Calumet, and, as we neared its fences, from a stand of tall trees that graced a velvety grass hillock, came a line of grooms, all Latino, each man leading a stunning thoroughbred on a rope. The line of small, silent men and sinewy horses flowed down the hillock toward us, then turned left and continued, parallel to the fence and the road we watched from, keeping under the shade of the trees, then turned left again, gently ambling back up the rise toward Calumet’s stables.

At Keeneland, we stood at the rail of the fabled oval, the only spectators, and watched trainers lead horses from the misty rows of silvery stables and onto the track. Light, lean, blue-jeaned trainers, one with dreadlocks flying from under his helmet, put pounding, sweating thoroughbreds through their paces. The trainers wore helmets, and most wore chest pads. They carried crops, which they weren’t shy about using. Some stood, others crouched. Some made their horses step sideways. The men and animals took the track’s bends and straightaways at breakneck speeds. Old Joe, tall and gaunt and wrinkled, in jeans and western shirt and a helmet with a pom-pom on top, sat astride his horse, Frog. They sat at the track rail, inside and on the course, ready to go after runaways. That was their job. Joe’s eyes were peeled, and he was ready to ride Frog to the rescue of any trainer whose trainee decided he’d rather be somewhere else.

A good number of the riders took note of Dana. A little girl with a beautiful brown ponytail who’d risen before the sun to stand at the rail. Like this morning’s desk clerk, they recognized her as a kindred spirit. They smiled, waved, and slowed down when they passed so she could look longer at their horses. Dana had brought her little plastic camera, and some of the trainers posed for pictures.

One trainer with a gentle face and shining eyes assembled himself and three others into a parade formation. They passed us, four abreast, at a slow, regal posting trot, like palace guard presenting the colors before the queen, each rider smiling down at Dana. I thanked them with my eyes. That they took note and took time turned this special morning into magic. These were busy men with hard work to do. Some were watched by the horse owners who paid them, and they weren’t paid to be nice to little girls. But they were, and I’ll always remember them with fondness.

Before we left Keeneland, as the first brush of hot, higher-than-horizon sun kissed the bluegrass, we ventured into the great grandstand and sat awhile in Mr. George Goodman’s personalized box, imagining what it would be like to settle in here in the cool shade on a sunny race day to watch the horses and the other racegoers.

Adam had slept until we turned the key back in the door. “Breakfast is about to close. You’d better get down there, bud.” On this trip, I left no hotel amenity unturned, amassing a sack full of little soaps, and bottles of shampoo that I used to wash our clothes in the sink or bathtub. And, I encouraged the eating of any available free food. I looked for the magic words “Free Continental Breakfast” on motel signs. Sometimes we hit pay dirt, finding a motel that also hosted a “manager’s happy hour.” This meant free dinner, because, next to the beer and wine and soda, the manager usually laid out cheese and crackers and a big tray of crudité. The kids drew the line at raw cauliflower and broccoli, but tucked into the celery, carrots and cherry tomatoes, huge dollops of dip on the side. Sometimes pay dirt turned to mother lode, with a spread that included things like tacos and little egg rolls.

Through careful husbandry of free motel fare and a manager’s cocktail hour here and there, we were occasionally able to patch together a string of five free meals in a row: free breakfast at Motel 1; free lunch of apples, bagels and peanut butter (cream cheese for Dana) spirited from Motel 1 breakfast spread; free dinner from Motel 2 happy hour; free breakfast at Motel 2; free lunch spirited from Motel 2 breakfast spread.

By meal number six, we were ready for a restaurant, and we always voted unanimously on type: Mexican. (Curiously, we’d eat our worst Mexican food in Texas and our best in North Dakota.)

Dana and I accompanied Adam down to the breakfast bar. “So, how was it?” he asked, of our visit to Keeneland. He asked Dana, directly. I wanted to hug him over his plate of biscuits and gravy. As she wove a tale of the magic kingdom of Keeneland, Adam listened and chewed. While it was clear he thought Keeneland sounded cool – he said, “Okay” a few times as Dana talked – I knew he didn’t feel he’d missed anything. Dana preferred horses, he preferred sleep. He was content they’d both gotten what they most wanted from the morning.

That night, while I worked on my first installment for the newspaper, Dana was writing her own story, “Horse Capital of the World.” It begins: “In the heart of Lexington, Kentucky, lies a beauty like no other…”

~~~~~~~~~~~
Fifty minutes to post time. May the best horse win.

www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1591134536/

You make me want to return to Europe!

We attended the Derby for many years. My favorite was the year I won $8000! What a mindblower that was!

It was my husband who got me interested in traveling. My favorite spot so far is St. Tropez and mainly because of the food we ate while there. I kind of liked the nude sunbathers too!

My sister married a man from France and they currently go between Paris and Provence. You might want to check out her website:
www.lindamathieu.com She's a wonderful photographer.

So glad you're here and sharing your exciting travels.

Yikes! $8000! That would pay for a few trips to St. Tropez! What horse did you bet on, Dianne, when you scored that payout? Longshot Giacomo won last night with 50 to 1 odds. I don't really understand the betting, and Adam wasn't around last night to explain it to me (again). The kid's a whiz when it comes to poker and anything else involving stakes and betting. We took the kids to Saratoga (Saratoga Springs, New York) for a day at the races last summer. I focused on the women all gussied up like dolls, Dana took pictures of the horses and jockeys in the paddock, and Mike placed bets for Adam, who somehow managed to win $35.

The south of France is a stunning part of the planet, and I know what you mean about the food being part of the experience. It's so fresh and sparkling, it just seems to come alive when it hits your tongue. Sipping a crisp white wine and eating dazzling seafood while gazing at the Mediterranean, sun on your shoulders ... ahhh. We explored the stretch of the Cote d'Azur from Nice to the Italian border (and then spent a week on the Italian Riviera -- equally amazing). We based ourselves in Menton, a city of ochre and olive-colored houses that march up a mountainside overlooking the sea. We took day trips up into the villages perches (sorry, I can't put the accent aigue over the "e"), the white, "perched" villages in the hills above the sea. (Go World Travel Magazine will be running a story I wrote about the hill towns. It's coming out in either the June or July issue, and I'll share the link on my travel blog, http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com when it comes out.)

I visited Linda's blog, Dianne. What an exciting life she must be leading. I plan to go back and spend more time reading her entries (and her son's -- he's got a site, too.). And she is a marvelous photographer. I often link to good travel blogs from my blog, so I may add Linda's site to a post or to my sidebar.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you who fit that description. After church, I'll share a little bit of Mother's Day humor I found in my emailbox this morning.

I bet on Charismatic. All three of my picks showed up and my husband boxed them for me so that's how I won so much. Actually, I bet on all the races that day and won all but one! I was always good at picking the horses until people started asking me how I did it and when I tried to analyze it, the magic stopped. I don't study stats but watch how the horse and rider connect during the parade. That's so important.

We toured Italy a few years ago. Went to Tuscany and ended up in Allasio (sp?). I wasn't a fan of the food in Italy. However, we left there and went to Monte Carlo and Monico and what a gas that was! Even went into the "James Bond" casino and gambled a bit but it's so stuffy. I got a kick out of their toilets. Rotating toilet seats that covered themselves in sanitizer.

We took our grown children to St. Tropez one year. Rented a villa that overlooked the bay and it was one of the most wonderful experiences of my life and the kids too. Something I'll never forget.

My sister does English speaking tours in Paris and Provence and is doing quite well. If you get a chance, look at the Provence section on her site and check out the darling house they built. A doll house. I'm sure she'd love to hear from you. Tell her that her much younger sister sent you!

So glad you are posting about your many travels. It's fascinating.

[ May 08, 2005, 11:12 AM: Message edited by: Dianne ]

Okay, that quick dose of Mother's Day humor I promised. And later, after I go for a run to help remove the mounds of Mother's Day French toast smothered in syrup and powdered sugar that I just inhaled, I'll chat more about Dianne's last post and share a link to a great villa rental company that we've used in the past. Dianne's brought up a great topic -- renting a house/apartment in a foreign country -- and it's something I'd like to chat more about. "Renting a villa" sounds like it's only for the well-to-do, but it ain't necessarily so (especially in the off season). More later.

First, the Mother's Day fun. My sister sent this to me this morning. It's been making the email rounds. I don't know who the original author is, so we'll give the byline to "Anonymous:"

"Why God made moms" - Answers given by 2nd grade school children to the following questions:

Why did God make mothers?

1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.


How did God make mothers?

1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.


What ingredients are mothers made of?

1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.

Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?

1. We're related.
2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.


What kind of little girl was your mom?

1. My mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
3. They say she used to be nice.


What did mom need to know about dad before she married him?

1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get drunk on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?


Why did your Mom marry your dad?

1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats alot.
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.


Who's the boss at your house?

1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goofball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.
3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.


What's the difference between moms and dads?

1. Moms work at work and work at home, & dads just go to work at work.
2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.
3. Dads are taller & stronger, but moms have all the real power 'cause that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend's. Moms have magic, they make you feel better without medicine.


What does your Mom do in her spare time?

1. Mothers don't do spare time.
2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.


What would it take to make your Mom perfect?

1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.
2. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd diet, maybe blue.


If you could change one thing about your Mom, what would it be?
1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get rid of that.
2. I'd make my Mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it and not me.
3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on her back of her head.

Talk later, Lori

Another quick Mother's Day-themed post before the sun sets on the holiday -- Iparenting.com published this in its Traveling Today department, and I'm sure many of you will be able to relate to this "when did my kid grow up? (because I certainly haven't gotten any older)" moment:

http://ribbonsofhighway.blogspot.com/2005/02/santa-rosa-new-mexico-eyeball-to.html

So much to talk about -- and topics I want to get back to, like safety, villa rentals, traveling with kids and grandkids, things to see in D.C.. And, I do want to answer a question that smilinize asked in an early post about my most memorable adventure. I've got a story for you, and it takes place in Tibet...

Dianne, I am very intrigued by your sister's success at running an English-language tour business in Provence and Paris. I'd say she has the dream job. I'll definitely link to her blog in a future "France post" on my blog. And, I will get in touch with her and tell her that you sent me.

I see you are a domestic violence survivor and activist. Kudos for being strong enough to get out, move on and help educate others about the issue. Have you ever heard of the White Ribbon Society, an international organization that began in Canada with the mission to stir men to action against any type of violence against women? I wrote an article about a year ago about a men's church group here in my town that hosts a White Ribbon campaign and pledge night every year. Their goal is to gather the men and boys in our town, share stories about the impact of abuse, and to have them take a pledge stating that they will not tolerate violence against women and will speak out publicly against it. I'll try to dig up a link to that story (but given its age, the link may be dead).

I hope everyone's day is going well. It's a gloomy Mother's Day here in Boston, but sun is promised for tomorrow. (Hey, there's a song in there somewhere...)

I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying this thread!

Yep, I'm a survivor/thriver and happily so. No, I haven't heard of the White Ribbon Org. but would love to know more about it. So glad men are now becoming involved.

I'd also like to discuss safety while traveling. The young foreign children in France are the ones you have to watch out for!

Dianne called Monaco and Monte Carlo "a gas." Well said. When we were in Monaco, Dianne, I remember sitting at the very best table at an outdoor cafe right next to the yacht harbor. Mike and I looked at the prices on the menu, had minor, simultaneous myocardial infarctions, recovered, then announced that everyone in the family would get one half of a "croque monsieur." The waiter was not amused when our family of four ordered two cheese sandwiches and nothing else. I even asked for "eau robinet," tap water, which came to the table in an old Cinzano bottle. We are not the chicest folk on a good day, and these dining faux pas made the waiter want to pitch us into the Med, but I called up the most perfect colloquial French I'd ever uttered, fired off some obsequious compliments about the service and surroundings and turned the waiter to putty. He left us alone.

We ate our cheese rations slowly, because the spectacle in the yacht harbor was mindblowing. Prince Rainer's royal yacht, the size of a small cruise ship, bobbed at anchor, and we watched a helicopter land on its top-deck helipad. Then, all kinds of hubbub ensued as a colossal craft made its way into the harbor's stone entrance. "Les royaux!" people whispered. This yacht was bigger than the Grimaldi family ship, and I imagined there might be some yacht-envy going on from the castle atop the hill overlooking Monte Carlo and the harbor.

An elegant man in a flowing white caftan and Arab headdress, obviously the yacht owner, came out and stood at the stern while the ship's captain turned the boat completely around and steered it into the second most prestigious berth just inside the righthand wall of the entrance. (Prince Rainer's dinghy commanded the lefthand wall.)

A beautiful dark-haired woman and several girls, all dressed in flowing robes of turquoise and cream came and stood next to the regal man. We never learned exactly which country this man was the leader of, but people in the crowd indicated he was from the Middle East. Had I been up on my flag identification skills, I would have been able to tell whether we were looking at a king, prince or sultan of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Dubai.

It was heady, one of those travel vignettes that stays with you forever. We were sharing two cheese sandwiches because we couldn't afford anything else, and we ate them while watching the magnificently ostentatious arrival of one of the world's richest families. Truly a gas!

-----
A reminder that I'll continue to donate book proceeds to UNICEF tsunami relief until the end of May, when this forum ends. My publisher, www.booklocker.com/books/1451.html , offers the book in both paperback or as an inexpensive e-book that you can download to your computer. Or, order from online booksellers like www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1591134536/ . For signed copy info, visit www.LoriHein.com .

Lori, sweet article. It brought tears to my eyes. It's happened to me too. Both boys.

I love how you are getting the word out about your book. Very creative!

Here's another contact for you:
Carol, a freelance journalist in Baltimore, is also the managing editor of the travel web publication, JustSayGo.com (www.justsaygo.com). Writers are always welcome to submit their contributions. Visit the site to get an idea of what they're all about, and then send your stories to Carol at submit@justsaygo.com. To subscribe to the JustSayGo.com newsletter too, send an email to newsletter@justsaygo.com. CArol is a friend of mine. Tell her I sent you.

Our son is heading to Italy, Switzerland, and France in a couple weeks with the business department from his school. Any hot tips?

Dianne, I think it would be fun for him and his buddies to hook up with your sister.

Hey Lori,
Over the weekend I survived a usualy very boring six hour round trip to my Mom's. We had my daughter and her three kids in the car. Whew!!

I just wondered if you had ever heard of Car-ie-Okie? It's karaokie for car trips. CD's and songbooks with funny lyrics for everyone in the car and instructions for seat dancing. I bought it for my daughter who seems to always be in the car with the kids. They use it all the time.

Yesterday Dan drove and the rest of us sang (Very badly, but LOUD). He was ready to check into the nearest assylum, but the rest of us were looking for agents. I'm pretty sure we're going to be the next Osmonds!

Just thought it might be something to recommend to your readers for those long commutes, etc. It's hilarious fun.

smile

[ May 09, 2005, 12:32 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Sure Dotsie, if they don't mind walking their legs off! You can eat all you want because you get so much exercise following Linda around. She ran me into the ground.

Lori, while in St. Tropez we found a wonderful outdoor restaurant. I think it was called The Red Sail. Even the female bartender was topless but after a while, you don't notice it anymore. The "menu" was a tour through the kitchen where you could watch the chef cooking and choose from the items and it was some of the best food I've eaten. However, they only took cash and for a lunch tab with just two of us, it was $900. We just about dropped a load!

Did you happen to go to the village of Eze? It was fascinating.

Hi everyone,

Car-ie-Okie. That's brilliant. Sounds like something that would have come in handy on our road trip. (Although I have to admit there was plenty of bad singing going on in New Paint. I'm a chronic crooner, and the kids took to singing songs from the movies they watched on the van's enterntainment system. I endured "Give Dough to the Ethyl Show" from "Dinosaurs" from one end of America to the other.) There's a website called Mom's Minivan that's full of ideas for keeping kids happy while on roadtrips. I'll shoot a message to the editor about our conversation here and make sure she knows about Car-i-Okie. Sounds like something moms in minivans everywhere should know about! I'm also sensing a new blog post topic coming on... Actually, you ladies have given me ideas for many future blog posts.

The next Osmonds, eh? How about the next Osbornes? Maybe you and your clan, smilinize, could star in a reality show in which families on long road trips have to sing their way across the country,with a Simon/Paula-like panel of judges eliminating the worst singing families as they roll through America.

Dotsie, glad you enjoyed the "Eyeball to eyeball" story. I knew some of you would be able to relate. Adam is now nearly six feet tall, but that mother-son moment in the Route 66 Auto Museum was a watershed moment in our relationship.

Thank you for the lead about Carol and JustSay Go.com. I will certainly get in touch, and I appreciate being able to use your name. Your post is timely. I've been falling behind on getting queries and submissions "out the door" lately, and I resolved to focus on that in the coming weeks. Just this morning, I sent a submission (a book excerpt, actually) to Chicken Soup for the Horse Lover's Soul, and I feel good about getting back on track. I spent 20 years in sales and marketing, and I know the importance of having lots of things "in the pipeline."

I'm truly enjoying this thread, too, Dianne. Again, so many topics to get back to. Safety, villas and D.C. coming up. But first, here's the link to the White Ribbon Campaign that I told you about. I can't find the link to my article. The paper I wrote it for archives stories online for only a few months, so it's evaporated into the ether, but here's the link to the organization: www.whiteribbon.ca . The men who join White Ribbon resolve "never to commit, condone nor remain silent about violence against women." There are White Ribbon chapters all over the world, and I know that they work in concert with other organizations fighting domestic abuse. Perhaps there's an opportunity for you to create some synergy with a chapter near Nashville.

Adam saw his first topless women on the beach in Nerja, Spain. He was about five. He stared, considered, then just turned back to digging in the sand. Since then, he's seen topless bathers in Greece, Italy, France, but thankfully we haven't yet been served by a topless waitress. It does, though, quickly become old hat, and you really don't pay much attention after your first few encounters.

And yes, We did visit Eze. Gloriously beautiful. For anyone heading to the south of France, Eze, not far from Nice, is a spectacular medieval village that sits atop a cliff that soars hundreds of feet above the Mediterranean. You wind your way up tiny, cobbled passageways to the top of the town to a botanic garden with rare and unique flowers, bushes and trees. Eze is a must-see.

Dotsie, do you know which parts of France, Italy and Switzerland your son will be visiting? If you could narrow it down a bit, I'm sure I could give your son some recommendations. I've been to many parts of all three countries.

Oooh, a treat. My husband, working from home today, just invited me out to lunch. Cool beans. Talk later.

Lori,
Thanks for your response to my question. Having lived a short while on the Washington-Idaho-Oregon border, I know its a great part of our country. Montana, though, especially Glacier National Park (hmmm...), is one of my favorite places.

Since reading your book and finding you here on "Boomer", I've followed the trail to your blog - and love it. Today's blog is great - the excerpt from the book about the Kentucky horses. Honestly, though, I especially liked your description of Adam's conscious decision to watch Dana be in her element, rather than to put down her or the things she loves. Kids are funny, and it makes me so proud when mine make a solid decision like that.

glacier

Hi, Glacier. Nice to hear from you. And I guess we know where your screen name comes from. We did not make it to Glacier on our Ribbons journey, but I've heard that it's one of the most spectacular of the national parks. I believe there's a road called Going-to-the-Sun Road (that may not be quite it, but it's close) that is a stunning mountain drive. I've also heard that Glacier is a haven for serious hikers, as much of the most dazzling alpine and glacial scenery is in the backcountry and requires some hiking to reach. You must be a hiker?? And, sadly, I've heard that the eons-old glaciers that give the park its name are disappearing, likely because of global warming. We really need to listen to the wake-up call the earth is giving us. I wrote a blog story a few days ago called "Kilimanjaro takes off his poncho" about the near disappearance of Kili's famed snowcap. Read it here: http://ribbonsofhighway.blogspot.com/2005/05/kilimanjaro-takes-off-his-poncho.html .

I'm so glad you enjoyed the book. And, I'm glad you're enjoying the blog, too. I'm having a great time with it, and I've "met" so many people from all over the world through it. The power of the Internet amazes me. People from around the planet have stumbled onto the blog and have become regular readers. It's a thrill and an honor to provide them (and you) with new stories and photos and links every few days. Thanks for your kind feedback.

Now, to the topic Dianne brought up a few posts ago -- villa rentals. (And Dianne, I just reread your St. Tropez-cum-topless-waitress post and my eyes popped out. Lunch was $900 for two?! That beats my Monaco croque monsieur story by a landslide. I think those cheese sandwiches were somewhere around twenty bucks apiece, but a $900 lunch! Wow. Hopefully you had one heck of a bottle -- or two -- of champagne with that dejenuer. Good thing you won the eight grand at the Derby. Paid for lunch in St. Tropez.)

For a wonderful travel experience, consider renting a villa. Don't let the word "villa" scare you off. What we're really talking about here is renting, by the week (some rental companies offer rental periods as short as 3 days), a house, cottage or apartment. There are high-end villas and even castles and wings of castles, but regular folks with regular budgets can afford many of the properties on offer by the "villa rental" companies.

Over the years, we've rented houses or apartments in Nerja, Spain; Menton, France; Moneglia, Italy; Perros-Guirec in Brittany in France; and Polperro, in Cornwall, England.

I can highly recommend the company that we used, Interhome. You can order Interhome's print catalogs or you can cruise the available properties online at www.interhome.com . Interhome offers rental properties in 16 countries and in Florida. In addition to top spots like France and Italy, Interhome offers properties in less expensive European countries like the Czech Republic (Prague is an exquisite city), Hungary (ditto for Budapest) and Croatia (the Balkans conflict is long over, and Dubrovnik, a medieval gem on the Adriatic, is waiting for your visit).

Dianne, I'd love to hear about the company you rented your villa from. Of course, you've got the "Linda connection," so maybe she had an inside scoop on a place?

Another company you might want to consider (or just visit online and dream) if you're going to Italy is www.cuendet.com or its American affiliate, www.countrymanors.com . I haven't booked through Cuendet, an Italian comapny, but I have been impressed by the response I've received when I've asked for information. I always test out an outfit before booking with them by asking them questions via email and rating both their response time and the quality of the response, and by asking for material to be sent via snail mail. If I'm pleased with the way they treat me in the inquiry stage, only then do I go to the next level and consider giving them my business. Cuendet has impressed me, and I've got their fat, tempting catalog of gorgeous Italian properties sitting here on my desk -- sent to me by first-class airmail from Italy.

If you cruise Interhome or Cuendet, you'll find properties that start in the $400 per week range for two people, in low season (note that in low season, you may have to pay for the heat, which will add to your total cost). Before writing this post, I visited the sites and found houses available this month, May, for two people, in the Arezzo area of Tuscany for $315 and $400 per week. Yes, high-end luxury villas with private pools and drop-dead sea views booked for high-season weeks in July and August can run $4000 per week. But, there are plenty of small gems to be had, and, if you can travel in low or shoulder season (winter can be a fascinating time to immerse yourself in a place and see how the people really live -- and airfares are cheap), you can find houses, cottages and apartments for short money.

And what an experience. Total immersion into a town or neighborhood. You become part of the fabric of a place's daily routine, and you move to the rhythm of real life, not to the often frenetic pace of the tourist who keeps moving and tries to "see everything." You buy your baguettes each morning at the village boulangerie. You go to the local church. You watch the fishermen mend their nets. You get to know the schoolkids who pass by each morning in their uniforms. It's a wonderful, slow motion immersion.

If you like the idea of your own place but need a little support, there's a company called Untours that offers apartment stays and a ground staff to guide you along. I've never used Untours, because I don't need the safety net, and the prices are higher than I can arrange on my own, but the company has a great reputation, lots of repeat business and has been around for a long time. Untours' prices include airfare. You can find them at www.untours.com .

Another long post, but renting abroad is such a marvelous alternative to hotel stays. Worth talking about and investigating.

I can't remember who we used. They offered a cleaning service and even a chef to come into the villa and cook for you, which was cheaper than going out, believe it or not. Unbelievable food. We found that having the chef come in on the first night there was the best way because we were so tired from traveling. It's amazing how cheap it was.

A lot of people buy homes there and rent them out for the better part of the year. It must make their mortgage payments for them too! You're expected to treat it like your home and they inventory to be sure you haven't made off with the family towels, etc. From the books in the villa, we figured the owners were Dutch.

The village of St. Tropez was fascinating to me. The wonderful shops and the people sitting in the restaurants with their dogs was a plus. And the huge yachts tied up along the bay and the disco parties held on the top decks. However, I think they were "trolling" for beautiful women to join their parties, which made me nervous. Not that they would want an old woman like me but because of some of the stories I've heard of women being kidnapped. It was a source of entertainment for the people out walking or having a glass of wine at the outdoor cafe's. Sitting there watching the rich pull up in their boats.

I have put in French rentals on Google and have found some interesting spots. You should note that a lot of homes in France don't have air conditioning and it can get really hot there!

I told my sister about you and she truly hopes you will contact her.

Let's talk more about safety. There are so many aspects to this issue. In my earlier response to Explorer's question about staying safe when you're traveling alone, I talked about my "big three-" three key ways to reduce your vulnerability: Blend in, do your sightseeing before dark, and do what your intuition tells you. These are "big picture" tools for cutting your risk of being caught in bad places or bad situations.

It's so easy to let your guard down when you're on vacation. You're free, away from the stresses of everyday life, you've waited long and worked hard for your trip. But the carefree feeling can translate to carelessness. I've found it helpful to verbally remind myself several times a day, "Lori, keep your guard up." I check in with myself and see if I've done or am considering doing anything that could place me in some sort of jeopardy.

Meeting and interacting with people when I travel is one of the richest aspects of the experience, but I include people in my "keep the guard up" umbrella by reminding myself that trust is earned. I don't have to give trust away or blindly trust anyone. It's so easy when you're traveling to fall into conversations and be swayed by people you meet. You want to be friendly and a good ambassador of your country and citizen of the planet. I've learned to be polite, but unless and until a person earns my trust, I don't have to take a relationship or even a conversation any farther. Sometimes travelers, wishing not to appear rude, allow themselves to be drawn in by people because they think they will appear impolite if they walk away. For women alone, this can be disastrous. Just walk away. If you hurt someone's feelings, they'll get over it.

Once you've got the "guard up, vulnerability down" shtick all set in your head, you turn to the "small picture" steps that you can take to stay safe. I'll suggest a few here, and I'll offer more and also talk about safe traveling with kids or grandkids in separate posts.

Some easy, common sense tips: Wear flat shoes that you can walk fast -- or even run -- in. When you're on the street alone, walk purposefully. Look at maps in private, so you don't stand out as a woman who has no idea where she's headed. When planning my day's sightseeing, I take out my map in my hotel room and write the route and street names to the places I want to visit on a piece of paper. I use this to guide me when I'm on the street. Through the day, I consult my map in "safe" places like ladies rooms', museums, shops, but I try to keep it tucked away when I'm out alone on the street.

Let's talk about pickpockets, the tourist's primary nemesis, beating out even gastrointestinal unpleasantness. Immodium can take care of that, but there's no quick pill for loss of money and documents. Dianne raised the point about child pickpockets in Europe. Pickpockets are everywhere. What can you do? First, remember the "big picture" mantras -- guard up, trust no one -- in other words, approach the street with an attitude that says "I could be robbed by anyone out here at any time." I know this sounds callous, but protecting yourself starts in your head, with your mental attitude. If you go soft, you're an easy target. A target who could become a victim. Be as tough in your mind as the forces out there that would do you harm. Be alert and on guard always. You are not being rude. You're being smart.

Pickpockets often work in teams. One person distracts you while the other robs you. And these teams can come wrapped in packages that might lead you to "trust" them -- teams of children, teams comprised of a woman with children. If someone stops you and asks a question, asks for directions, offers to sell you something, to show you something, to take you on a tour -- your antennae should go up. Someone else may be cutting the strap of your money belt (more on this in a moment), cutting your purse strap, reaching into your pockets. Develop eyes in the back of your head. If someone approaches you, look behind you and to the sides. If another person is near, don't stop.

Avoid crowds. If there's a mime decked out in white grease paint performing in the courtyard of the Louvre, and scores of people are bunched around watching him, don't join the crowd. Crowded spaces and gatherings are fertile ground for thieves. When my mother and I were in Quito, Ecuador, we were victimized in front of a church. There was a religious celebration going on, and we joined the crowd. I felt someone pushing us, and I looked behind me to see a young boy cutting the strap of my mother's fanny pack. I screamed at him, and he ran away without it. When we got through the crowd, shaken, I saw that my backpack had been slashed. Thankfully, all I lost was my Swiss Army knife.

About money belts, fanny packs, purses and backpacks. Wear anything you can't afford to lose under your clothing. If you carry a purse, don't have your money, credit cards or passport in it. You can afford to lose your cellphone, sunglasses, camera, even your wallet in which you've put a small amount of cash to get you through the day. But the bulk of your money and documents should be in a flat money belt worn around the waist under your clothing and tucked into your waistband (I even pin the strap to my jeans so I'll feel it if it comes loose or is cut), or in a hanging money belt that goes around your neck and hangs under your shirt. Visible carriers like fanny packs, purses and backpacks can be entered, sliced or stolen easily. Keep your critical valuables under your clothes. Magellan's ( www.magellans.com ) carries a huge array of travel gear and clothing, and you can find good money belts there.

The only pockets safe enough for valuables are the front pockets of your pants, and even this is a risky hiding place. Men should never carry their wallets in their back pockets as they're used to doing at home. Men's wallets should be up front. Wrap several rubber bands around the wallet to make it more difficult to remove and to create noticeable friction if the wallet is moved.

Before you leave home, make a photocopy of the front page of your passport and get two passport photos taken. Bring these on the trip and keep them separate from your critical documents. If you needed a visa to enter the country you're in, make a photocopy of that, as well. If your passport is stolen, having these photos and copies will expedite the issuance of a new passport. A woman without a passport is a woman without a country.

Another gargantuan post. Let me pick this up again later. Please share any tips of your own.

Yes, there are many villa rental companies out there. Some of the best are actually companies from the UK. The British are very big on "holiday homes" and "self-catering" vacations, and there are scores of good British rental agencies. Also, as you noted, Dianne, many of the owners of these homes and villas are Europeans who live elsewhere and own the property as a vacation home, renting it out when they're not there. You found Danish books in the bookcase. In our rentals, we've found clues that owners or previous guests were German, Swedish and British.

I mentioned Interhome specifically only because I have first-hand experience with the company. But a Google search on "villa rentals," "vacation rentals," "self-catering" or terms like that will yield a multitude of agencies. One way to begin to gauge whether an outfit is a good one is to ask a series of questions in a series of emails. If you receive thoughtful, patient, thorough and quick responses, that's a good sign. If you don't, look elsewhere.

We're actually thinking of a trip to the Amalfi Coast in Italy for next April school vacation, and I'm going to start searching soon for a rental in the Positano-Sorrento area. The hunt is half the fun!

Lori,

WOW! That's all I have to say! LOL!

Dotsie sent me your way to see if you have visited the "Big Island" in Hawaii.

I would love some travel tips on where to go and what to see. Also, if you have a good book to suggest - that would be great!

I'm a military brat AND a Navy Vet myself. I was blessed enough to be stationed in Hawaii and Italy. From Italy we were able to explore a great part of Europe. My husband and I have also had the opportunity to visit Budapest, Finland, Iceland, and Holland.

I looooovvvvveeee to travel! I would rather travel then do anything else. (ha, who wouldn't!)

Danita

Danita, welcome! Yes, we are having some fun on this forum. September 11, magical destinations, Car-i-Okie, topless waitresses, pepper spray -- it's all here. Glad you joined us!

I haven't been to Hawaii (yet). But, I'm one of those people with travel in my blood and a recurring dream in which I'm crowned winner of the National Geographic geography bee (Alex Trebek gives me my trophy), so I consume travel literature like I consume food. I know the street maps of cities I haven't even been to (again, "yet"). Let me dig out some of my Hawaii resources and get back to you about cool stuff on the Big Island.

I can definitely recommend a must-read book for anyone traveling to Hawaii: James Michener's "Hawaii." Reading Michener is an enjoyable, eye-opening, thought-provoking history lesson, and if you're going to a place, check to see if Michener's written a book about it. Some dismiss Michener as a literary lightweight (I disagree), but his novels are all based on years of research, so you're simultaneously entertained and enlightened. "Hawaii" takes you from the island chain's early Polynesian roots, through the reigns of her kings and queens, including Liliuokalani, the last queen, deposed by sugar planters in 1893, through the missionary years, and up to and through U.S. statehood. In one thick, fast-paced gulp (my 1959 hardcover runs 937 pages), you'll learn enough to help you better understand and appreciate the islands and their people.

You'll find cheap used copies on Amazon. Check out "Ribbons of Highway" while you're there!

I'd like to hear about Finland. What is Helsinki like? Did you get beyond the capital? Do tell.

Iceland is gorgeous, isn't it? The kids and I visited a few Februaries ago. I recently wrote a blog story, "Iceland's banana tree," that you might get a kick out of. Here's a link to that post: http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com/2005/03/icelands-banana-tree.html .

Back at you soon with Big Island info -- and D.C. doin's, too, for smilinize.

Smilinize, I just sent a quick email to Laurel Smith, founder of Mom's Minivan ( www.momsminivan.com ) and told her about our forum here at BWS and shared your ringing endorsement of Car-i-Okie. Any product that can make a carload of grandparents and grandkids survive a six-hour road trip and leave them thinking they're the next Osmonds is something her readers might want to know about. Her site is all about keeping kids and their adults happy and safe when they take to the roads.

The Big Island, Hawaii, is about being outdoors. Mother Nature rules here. On a single 50-mile drive, you can take in volcanoes, waterfalls, black-lava deserts, rainforests, alpine meadows on the sides of snowcapped peaks, and unique beaches, many of black sand. To some, The Big Island appears stark, but its volcanic nature is its allure. It's less tropical-looking than the other islands.

I don't know when you're going, Danita, but every October, the Kona-Kohala coast is the site of the Ironman Triathlon World Championship. The Hawaii Ironman is the holy grail for triathletes. Two of my friends have completed this grueling event, and when you visit the searing black lava fields of Kona, imagine the athletes who attempt the Ironman here each year. They swim 2.4 miles in open ocean, then complete a 112-mile bike ride, and then they strap on their sneakers and run a full marathon. The Kona lava fields always figure big in any Hawaii Ironman competitor's war stories.

Kona Coast State Park has bathing beaches and archaelogical and historical sites. About four miles south is the small White Sands Beach, a rarity on this volcanic island. I've read that one of the most spectacular beaches on the Big Island is Anaehoomalu Bay (the locals call it A-Bay). It has golden sand and is fringed by palms, and there's an area at the end of the bay where you can dive or snorkel down to a spot where endangered green sea turtles gather to have small fishes clean them.

There's lots of smorkeling and kayaking and diving, but some of the more unusual takes include a one-hour submarine ride 100-feet below the sea. Atlantis Submarines is located across from the Kailua Pier.

You'll want to go to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Kilauea, one of the park's monsters, is still erupting. You can drive 50 miles of roads in the park and see highlights of the eruption from your car. You get to the park either from Hilo, about 30 miles away, or from Kona, about 100 miles away. There can be about a 20-degree temperature difference between the coast and the high altitude volcanoes, so bring warm clothing. One of the best drives in the park is to the end of Chain of Craters Road, where Kilauea gushes hot lava into the sea, creating a huge steam plume. If you're in the park at night, you can watch the red-hot lava glowing in the dark. You can also hike to the Kilauea crater on the 4-mile, 2-hour Kilauea Iki Trail that begins at the visitor center.

If you're into horses, Paniolo Riding runs an 11,000-acre working cattle ranch, and you can ride across pastures and through groves of trees with the wranglers.

There are Humvee expeditions into the rainforest and the Kohala Mountains. HMV Tours is located in Kohala.

The Big Island is less about tropical beaches than it is about the power, fury and beauty of a volcanic landscape that is still very much alive. And Danita gets to see it up close and personal. Should be thrilling. Just don't touch the lava.

It is a stunning day here in Boston. A day for a good long run with my new MP3 player, all loaded up with classic rock n'roll and splashes of Lee Ann Womack, Lee Greenwood, Tennessee Williams and The Chieftains.

Before I head out, I wanted to give you a few links to websites I found especially helpful in researching and planning the "Ribbons" journey and a link to my hands-down favorite overall travel site, Tripadvisor.com.

Whether you want to get away for a weekend or a year, these sites are useful in planning a U.S. road trip, and many are rich in links that will bring you to other sites that specialize in niche subjects like camping, RVing, historical travel and the like:

www.roadtripamerica.com -- a one-stop site for tons of links and info to help you travel America

www.randmcnally.com -- maps, driving directions, trip planning tools. I used a Rand McNally road atlas, along with individual state maps, to plan our 12,000-mile odyssey. (Anyone who's read "Ribbons" knows that the resulting "Route Narrative," the most precious piece of cargo on our trip after my children, my Nikon and my wallet, a document that distilled our journey down into three exciting, organic pages of adventure and possibility, was created after months of poring over maps and devouring every print and online brochure I could find. I'm happy to send a copy of both the Route Narrative and an itinerary that shows daily mileage between every point on our trip and overnight stops to anyone who orders a copy of "Ribbons of Highway." These tools represent months of planning and might prove useful -- or just interesting -- to other travelers.)

www.nps.gov -- the National Park Service. You could spend a whole day crusing this site, which has information about every park, battlefield, forest, historic area, monument, lakeshore, seashore and property in the National Park system. In addition to info about the well-known parks that we've talked a bit about in this thread, you'll find info on small hidden gems you might not have known existed. On our journey, we experienced utter uncrowded magic at less-celebrated sites like Newberry Volcanic Monument in Oregon, Idaho's Craters of the Moon, the Civil War battlefield at Vicksburg, Mississippi with its haunting roads and woods and trenches and rows of soldiers' graves, Petroglyph National Monument outside Albuquerque. So many gems. You might want to consider a National Parks Pass, which, for $50, gives you unlimited free etnry into NPS sites for a full year. If you're over 62, you can nab a Golden Ager lifetime pass for only $10.

www.tourstates.com -- this site provides links to the official tourism offices of all 50 states. Then, from each state's individual site, you can order maps and brochures galore to be sent to you via snail mail. I had my poor mailman, Tom, bent under the weight of such deliveries for months.

www.byways.org -- describes and maps out scenic drives and routes all over the country

www.tripadvisor.com -- I love this site because it's one of the only places I've found where you can get a plethora of good, meaty, unbiased opinions about tours, hotels, resorts and restaurants all over the world from actual visitors. Tripadvisor now boasts about 1.8 million reviews, and, while it's a little unwieldy to navigate, once you get the hang of it and zero in on what you're looking for, you get a boatload of eye-opening information from regular folks who've "been there." They tell you straight whether a destination is thumbs-up or thumbs-down. I've found Tripadvisor to be a great money-saver. You can cruise through this site and uncover great reviews about small, unknown, inexpensive places that the big sites like Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity don't tell you about. I found the Sunset Beach all-inclusive resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica by crusing Tripadvisor. I wouldn't have found it anywhere else. It was nearly half the price of the other all-inclusives, and we had an absolute blast. I booked based on the hundreds of reviews I read on Tripadvisor, and those visitors/reviewers were right on. Going to Europe? Look for a secret gem of a 3-star hotel in Tripadvisor instead of booking at a chain hotel through one of the other sites. This site is a mother lode of information.

Gotta run before the temperature hits the predicted 80 degrees.

Lori,

Iceland was one of those "Oh my goodness" trips. We were actually (willingly) bumped off a flight there - and got to spend 24 hours being pampered by the airline. We went to the blue lagoon - and I did the unimaginable... I rented a swimsuit. There was NO WAY I was going to miss the experience. I would go back at the drop of a hat. The seafood was fresher then anything I have ever had!

Finnland is a blur for me - all I remember is beautiful buildings..and pastries. Ha. Perhaps we traveled from bakery to bakery around the city! lol. We were there for a church conference - so our range was limited.

I do remember an incident where my husband and I and another couple were venturing onto the underground tram. We had decided in advance that we wouldn't be our normal "loud American selves"..(at the time there was alot of thievery of tourists)..so the tram stops, all these people get off, and we quietly get on. We are standing there in the tram, and people are looking at us snikering. We were like, "huh"?! So, the underground tram starts to go, it goes 10 feet, and then it stops. We were at the end of the line. We watch the conductor walk past the car - without even a glance our way. We were dieing! Like, how long would we be trapped here. It was one of those magical moments. You know what I mean. We laughed hysterically at our situation! Needless to say, it was just a 15 minute break, and we had to keep straight faces when we got to the 1st stop (10 ft down the track) and perplexed riders got on. LOL! So much for "blending in"!

I love European countries - so full of history. So interesting. Did you ever make it to Budapest. Love that city!!! So beautiful!

I just made reservations for South Dakota for Memorial Day wk. end. I can't waittttttttttt!

Danita

Lori,

oops, thanks sooo much for all the info about the Big Island. We will be there in Sept. I can't wait!

hugs,
danita

Danita, your enthusiasm is infectious. I laughed out loud as I read your posts. I can tell you are full of life, girl. And on the move! South Dakota for Memorial Day weekend (where, what?) and Hawaii in the fall. Very cool. (Check out the National Park Service site in my last post for lots of info on Hawaii Volcanoes National Park : www.nps.gov . )

If your airline bumps you in Iceland, the best thing to do, which you did, is soak in the geothermal waters of the Blue Lagoon. Awesome, isn't it? The kids and I stopped off in Iceland on our way back from Scotland, and it was a magical experience. I, too, would return in a heartbeat. As we waited in the Glasgow, Scotland airport for our flight to Reykyavik, Iceland, Adam ripped and busted the zipper on his down jacket. It was February. I figured the travel gods were testing me: "Okay, Lori, world traveler. How will you manage a trip to Iceland, one of the planet's coldest places, in February, with two young kids, one of whom no longer has a winter coat?"

"Hah!" I said. "Easy!" I took a giant, hooded fleece sweatshirt from my suitcase and made Adam wear it over the broken-zipper-jacket. He was warm as toast and grew so attached to the hoodie that he asked to keep it when we got home.

You should write your Finland tram story down. It's a classic. Those unexpected, seemingly banal travel encounters and experiences remain so vivid in our minds and come to define how we think about a place. I can just picture the four of you standing there, staying cool, "blending in." And you'll remember that 10-foot subway ride forever. What it's all about.

Yes, I've been to Budapest, one of the great beauty cities of Europe. The Danube floats between the two halves of the city -- the hills of Buda and the flats of Pest. The architecture alone is worth the journey.

Lori,

Thanks for enjoying my journey with me! :0)

I immediately checked out all the links you posted. Awesome!

We are going to Custer state park - staying there IN the park in a "camping cabin" on the lake.

We visited the area about two years ago..did Mount Rushmore, and Crazy Horse. When we drove through Custer State Park, we were all like, "ahhhh, we should have stayed here".

So, this time we are. IN the park, WITH the buffalo (however you spell that). Have you been yet? There is a hike that we did last time (that we will do again) that was just magnificant! It's like you get to the top of the world. There was even a shaggy mountain goat up there to greet us! LOL

I can't believe how you have traveled all over the world WITH your children. What a life changing experience they have had so early in life! All Americans should travel overseas to see how good we have it in America!

Do you homeschool?

Danita

P.S

Lori, when you were talking about your son's jacket busting - DUCK TAPE came to mind. Surely, you being an experienced traveler must carry duck tape with you! (giggles)

Traveling safety:

When we have traveled in Europe or other "big cities" in the U.S.... I have never traveled with a purse OR a back pack. We were taught that it makes one a "traveling target". I put my money and my credit card in my front pocket, and I put my hand in my pocket when I am around crowds of people! (or, on other occasions, have put my purse UNDER my coat.) (bulky, but safe)

D.

My husband and I have never been ripped off (by the grace of God).

First, Danita, thank you for ordering a copy of "Ribbons." I hope it brings you a few enjoyable hours. Two dollars will go to UNICEF for tsunami relief, and I thank you for that, also.

Yes, yes, travelers! Duck tape, duct tape, DukTape ... whatever the package says, get yourself a roll of this stuff before you leave home. A roll of duck tape and a Swiss Army knife --- one with a pair of little scissors and a corkscrew -- can get you through just about any travel situation. You are so right about the duck tape, Danita!

I think I feel another blog post coming on... Or maybe a magazine article... "101 ways to use duck tape on the road:"

Hem your clothes; hang up your laundry; patch your tent; seal your luggage; bundle up your campfire wood; while picnicking in South Dakota, keep your tablecloth from blowing into Minnesota; seal drafty doors and window; remove lint... the list is endless!

Lori,

Can't wait to catch up with your adventures!

LOL! (101 ways to use duck tape)
Humbly, I would add:

quiet your travel partner(s)......
remove excess hair......
keep your hair out of your face (headband)..

keep "the girls in line" when a regular "bra" will not do (or you left it at home)!


giggles,
danita

(

I'll have to borrow your duck tape ideas for my article... Before I turned to writing full-time, I spent 20 years in the corporate world, some of that in training and organizational development. I used to run team training seminars, and I created exercises designed to help employees build teamwork skills. I'm picturing a little competition, in which a roomful of teams are given 15 minutes to "brainstorm with your team, and list as many uses as you can for duck tape. Winning team gets a roll for each member." (Use it to bind and gag team members who drive you crazy.)

No, I don't homeschool, but my two greatest friends do. One is in Nashville (that's Rhonda -- you'll meet her briefly in the book, and she's in an earlier post), and the other, Terry, lives in Oregon. I marvel at their hard work and dedication to educating their kids, and they've taught me great respect for something I never knew much about. I don't think I'd have the patience, and I'm in awe of those who do. Do you homeschool?

And Custer State Park. What a glorious destination. Yes, we did visit Custer on our Ribbons journey. For anyone looking for a scenic, serene, natural counterpoint to the hubbub and tourist kitsch around Mt. Rushmore and the Black Hills in South Dakota, head to Custer State Park, where buffalo roam free and traffic stops until the behemoths have cleared the road. Custer info here: www.custerstatepark.info .

Having already visited the area, Danita, you probably know about the majestic scenic roads that thread through the Rushmore-Black Hills-Custer area. The Custer Wildlife Loop gives you eyefuls of buffalo and other creatures, and travelers to this area shouldn't miss driving on the Needles Scenic Byway and Iron Mountain Road. (RV drivers, be aware that there are some narrow rock arches on these roads. I didn't see anyone get stuck, but it'd be wise to check your "dimensions" before heading up onto either of these heavenly, high altitude ribbons of highway.)

We didn't stay at the park (we stayed at the Mt. Rushmore KOA -- a giant resort, really, with gobs of things to do. A little busy for my taste, but the kids absolutely loved it), but I remember seeing some gorgeous cabin complexes inside Custer: Blue Bell Resort was one. And Spokane Creek Resort on 16A just outside Custer looked nice, as well.

I envy you your buffalo-filled Memorial Day weekend. When I posted the info about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, I joked, "Don't touch the lava." In Custer, don't touch the buffalo. We learned how dangerous these guys are from a wrangler at Yellowstone. I wrote about it in the book, and I'll post the "steer clear of buffalo" excerpt in another post.

I found this post from new member rockgarden in another thread and told her I'd copy it over to this forum and chat with her here. Thanks for getting in touch, rockgarden. I'll pop back and answer your questions shortly. You might want to scroll back through our discussion so far. Lots of meaty posts with good stories, tips and informtion. And thank you for the kind words, rockgarden:


posted May 11, 2005 08:29 PMMay 11, 2005 08:29 PM

Dear Lori,

I enjoyed your book so much I hated to finish it. I'll wait a few months and I'll reread it. Your book made me feel as though I know you and your family, or at least I would like to.

You mentioned KOA campsites were good, and since you were traveling with kids as I will be I was interested in them. Was there enough security? What were your children's favorite places on your trip?

I just wanted you to know that I also enjoy your blog. I would love to travel with you. You are so well informed, and you go to places that are "off the beaten track", but not without knowing them first.

Thanks for a warm and informative book.

Posts: 1 | From: New England | IP: Logged

Lori, have you ever visited Antibes? One of my favorite spots and the outdoor markets are to die for!

No, I missed Antibes when we were on the Riviera, but sounds like I'll have to make it there on the next trip. Nice was the farthest west we traveled from our base in Menton. I do plan to return to the area (I've always got a line-up of trips planned out in my head) and base myself in Marseille, and take day trips up into towns like Arles and Aix-en-Provence and the Camargue region. On that trip, I'd be sure to hit the coastal resorts like Antibes that I missed the first time around.

What kinds of things does the Antibes outdoor market sell?

I'm going to get in touch with your sister as soon as I get a spare minute. I can't wait to meet her, if only virtually for now.

Smilinize, I got an email from Laurel Smith of Mom's Minivan ( www.momsminivan.com ), and she checked out Car-i-Okie. She said it definitely looks like something she'll recommend on her site, and she thanked us for bringing it to her attention.

Moms and dads and kids in minivans everywhere may soon be crooning their way across America thanks to smilinize and her "Osmonds."

The cautionary bison tale I promised Danita as she heads for Custer State Park for Memorial Day Weekend. Excerpted from "Ribbons of Highway" --


We made our way slowly out of Yellowstone, drinking in the powerful beauty of this immense wild place, and headed for the Northeast Entrance, which would deliver us into Montana. As we drove through Lamar Valley, site of the National Park Service’s Buffalo Ranch, we saw large herds of bison, and one small herd of nine ladies from Denver who were about to embark on a five-day pack trip across the valley. The ladies, experienced riders all, had one fear: buffalo. They should have been underway already, but something literally sat in their way. I talked to the woman who’d lassoed her friends into this trip. (She’d heard about the pack tours "at the Future Farmers of America convention.") She sat on her horse, ready to ride into the wilderness, but was afraid of just one thing: "The buffalo sittin’ straight out there."

Smart to be scared. Mike and Dana had taken a trail ride from the stables near Mammoth Hot Springs and had talked a lot about the viciousness of bison and the stupidity of tourists with Justin and Erin, their wrangler and wrangler-in-training. Bison were the only animals Justin was afraid of. Every morning before starting the day’s rides, the stable sends scouts onto the trails to look for buffalo. Justin talked about the tourists who die every year from bison attacks. When we drove into Yellowstone, the ranger who checked my Golden Eagle Passport had handed us a flyer. It said to keep away from the bison, and told of the non-heeders gored and killed each year. One man tried to put his three-year-old daughter atop a buffalo for a photo. The man is dead. From Yellowstone on into Custer State Park in South Dakota, we’d see people, out of their cars, cameras poised, walking close to these wild, horned behemoths, cooing to them as if they were puppies.

As we rode through this wild country, I noticed that the middle finger of my left hand, which takes most of the steering wheel pressure, was completely callused. My trophy for nearly 8,000 miles of driving.
----

Lori,
I just love your writing. Reminds me of places I've traveled to and makes me want to go places I've not yet been.

All the gasoline companies should get together and give you a commission from every gallon of gas they sell. I'm pretty sure you're inspiring a lot of people to go traveling and we'll all be buying gasoline which will make them rich.
You could tell 'em I said so. I'm sure they will be impressed.

smile

Thank you, smilinize. I know good travel writing when I read it because it does two things: it transports me into the place the writer is describing, and it makes me want to experience it for myself. If my writing occasionally accomplishes either or both of those things, I feel fulfilled.

Now, off to the dentist, a place I wish I did not have to travel to and experience for myself.

I also love your writing. You make me feel like I'm there with your family.

The open market in Antibes has fresh vegetables, just removed from the earth. Some I've never heard of. Wonderful homemade tampenade. And the most beautiful flowers I've ever seen. Cheap too!

It is in the middle of the shops that sell wonderful olive oil and containers and french pottery and tablecloths. Fresh fish, chicken baking and smelling like a piece of heaven and sadly, horse meat!

One shop has a section of the floor that is glass so you can look downstairs, where they used to house the horses years ago. Now, it is a room with a kiln for his daughter to make her beautiful pottery and ceramics. I bought this darling, deep blue egg holder. It looks so cute in my fridge!

Lori,

Why do tourists not understand the term "WILD animal?"

We have seen some rediculous people up in Estes Park (have you been there? and on the contential divide?)...we call them Tour-ons (tourist morons). Forgive me. When you live in a resort town, and you see people doing dumb things around wild animals, you get kind of cynical.

We saw tourists chasing a brown bear up on the divide - and un-beknown (is this a real word?) to them, they were chasing it into another group of tourists over the hill. UGHHHHH!

Wild animals. Heavy on the WILD!

Danita

p.s. spelling, obviously isn't my strong point. LOL. Now saying that, yes I homeschool my two teenagers!

Tour-ons. I love it. The buffalo and bear stories underscore, in an outrageous way, some of what we said earlier about travel safety. When people are on vacation, many seem to let their common sense go on vacation, too. Carefree turns into careless. I feel sorry for the Estes Park bear (and the people on the other side of the hill!)

I haven't been to Estes Park but have been to Denver, Colorado Springs and up to Breckenridge. I remember driving through a tiny little town called Alma. It looked like a set for a western movie.

On our "Ribbons of Highway" journey, the kids and I stayed in Cortez in Colorado's southwest corner. We used it as a base from which to visit Mesa Verde. Cortez bloomed with banners that read, "Thank God for Firefighters!" The whole area was alive with wildfire and wildfire threat that summer of 2002, and this made for some unique experiences and encounters, which you'll read about in the book.

On the "Ribbons" journey, we crossed the Continental Divide about six times in different places and states. When we crossed it for the last time on the trip, I felt sad because I knew it meant we were pointing east toward home and the eventual end of our journey. I started feeling nostalgic for a beautiful journey that still had thousands of miles left in it. The trip was a gift in so many ways and on so many levels, and I just wanted to keep unwrapping and unwrapping and unwrapping it forever.

You don't have to have perfect spelling skills to homeschool your kids. You just have to always know where the dictionary is and point them to it. How old are your kids? Have you always homeschooled them?

I've been noodling an article idea around in my head and might shoot a query off to a homeschooling magazine: travel as an educational tool. Have you ever used travel as part of your homeschool curriculum? There are such rich opportunities to teach and learn about art, history, government, the environment, language, theology, cultures, geography, geology, and just about everything else. As homeschooling families are not bound by a set school calendar, I'd think you could scoot out for journeys of discovery -- big or little -- more frequently than families tied to a formal academic year. More chances to get out there and poke around.

Oh my goodness, Dianne. I will have to keep Dana, an extreme horse-lover, away from the Antibes market when we go. If I so much as tell her about this post, she'll find Antibes on a map of France and mark it in her mind as one of the most evil places on the planet. (I tried to put a row of snarly-faced Instant Graemlins here, but haven't reached that level of posting proficiency yet. Imagine them----)

Like you in Antibes, I had a wonderful time cruising the workshops and ateliers of artisans in many of the hill towns above Menton. Woodcarvers in Roquebrune, near Eze. Monsieur Mariani, a sculptor in Peillon, a cream-colored medieval city that hangs like a dream on the side of a mountain in the Alpes-Maritimes, had a collie who watched him work. But when the collie saw Dana, he glued himself to her side and became a kind of canine tour guide, leading us through the ancient cobbled streets, up, up to the top of the town, where he and Dana chased each other in a little church square.

Like your blue egg cup, a simple, special thing that helps color a journey.

Lori,

This is why I asked if you homeschool.

Traveling is such an awesome learning tool! We have studied certain subjects (like the Boston tea party, Williamsburg, etc) and then gone and visited them as an extension to the unit. "I" have learned sooo much through this type of learning - and my kids have as well. Everything I've learned on an educational level, I've learned through homeschooling. Ha. (we could write a book on that!)

Homeschooling has allowed us to "be on the road" more...and take off at the drop of a hat. With the lifestyle we live, it's been a blessing!

My daughter is 16, and my son is 14. I have homeschooled them from the begining. It wasn't something I intended to do, but something I was "led" to do (much to my surprise!).

The fires of 2002 were unbelievable! We lived in an area threatened by a wildfire. It was interesting watching people evacuate - and EVERYTHING they tried to take with them. I think through the years that I've realized that none of my "stuff" is so important...other then my family and my critters.

You HAVE to visit Estes Park. It is the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park. When you are on top of the divide, it is like being on top of the world. And the town of Estes is very quaint and "homey". We lived there for 3 yrs...it is the ultimate American town. Sniffles. (now we live outside of Denver, which has its' own unique benefits) (BUT, we have a view of the mountains!) The Elk in Estes Park are more plentiful then the winter residents! They too are wild, and known to go after tour-ons. lol.

I will have to find "Alma" on the map and go check it out!

We have to get back down to the Mesa's they are so incredible. Did you get to the great sand dunes? very cool!

Thanks for sharing all of your experience!

God Bless the U.S.A.! (and the troops who have faithfully defended it!)

Danita

I think I need to homeschool myself, I've forgotten so much.

Didn't you notice the shops in Paris that sold horse meat? They always have a horse head on the building. I believe it's called Cherval? I pet horses, I don't eat them!

Lori,
I just wondered if you had ever traveled by motorcycle.
It's a lot less comfy than traveling by car, but you see things you would never see otherwise. And you meet some really neat people.
When I was younger, I traveled two or three thousand miles each summer as a passenger on a Honda 450 motorcycle. (Yes I was NUTS) We would wind our way along a lot of out of the way roads through the Rockies. We camped and had a blast. It was crazy, but fun.

Of course I was much younger. And crazier. (Well, maybe not a lot crazier, but much younger)

Sometimes I want to do it all over again.

You could write another book about that. I kept a journal and made a million memories.
smile

So many cool things to chat about -- homeschooling, book writing, the Rockies, horses' heads and motorcycle touring (and rockgarden, I haven't forgotten your questions). Back shortly to talk more.

It's Friday night, and with 13 and 16-year-olds, that means getting them to and/or from their various social obligations, so I'm in and out, but I wanted to pop into the forum and tell you about something uncanny that happened at the dentist's office today, before I forget.

My dentist's office is in a one-story ranch house in a suburban neighborhood. I opened the door, and hanging on the brass coat rack was a filthy blue windbreaker with DUCT TAPE literally holding the sleeves on. I did a double take. A windbreaker patched to the gills by duct tape! I stood there and laughed. And here's the weird part. There was no one in the office but me and the hygienist. The dentist starts his work day late, and there were no other patients in the place. Now, I know the dirty jacket didn't belong to the hygienist because she's a cute little fresh-scrubbed wisp who's, well, hygienic.

God obviously hung the duct tape windbreaker there just to give us all a laugh. Life is cool.

Smile, you aren't crazy. I have a Harley. There is nothing more freeing than riding on a motorcycle. You get the scents, and everything else. I always start singing when I'm riding. I'm a Harley Babe! I would use the other term but Dotsie would edit it but you know what I mean.

I just Googled "horse meat + France" and was led to a chart showing annual French consumption of horse meat from 1996 through 2003. About 10 thousand tons per annum. I knew somewhere in the back of my mind, Dianne, that horse slaughter was prevalent around the world, but I truly never made the connection when I was in France. Those "Cheval" signs? Gosh, I don't know what I thought they were for! The place used to be a tack shop or a ferrier, or maybe an old stable used to be located on the spot? Maybe some old blacksmith guild sign from the middle ages? Wow, was I oblivious! Missed the boat big time on that one! I don't eat meat, but I remember all the times that either Dana, Adam or both would say, "This hamburger tastes weird." I don't believe I will ever tell my daughter that she likely ate horseburgers.

This should be a good day to chat. I'll pop back shortly. Right now, my daughter is getting ready to attend a bar mitzvah. She was invited to both a bar and a bat mitzvah this season, and I think it's marvelous that she's been asked to share in such an important cultural and religious experience. She's in her room getting ready, and she looks like a princess. I'll have to take pictures. We searched for four weeks to find just the right dress, shoes, earrings,purse, and I must say, she looks beautiful.

Back soon. Cheval! Yikes!

Dropped Dana off at the temple. I was so proud of the way she walked up the driveway and went inside by herself. I remembered to tell her to turn her cellphone off. We attended a funeral recently, and during the eulogy, someone's phone rang. It was a difficult moment.

Danita, if I do get the travel/homeschooling article out of my head and onto the keyboard, perhaps I could interview you? This article would need anecdotes of how real homeschooling families use travel as a teachng tool, and you have some marvelous examples (and that infectious enthusiasm).

For years, I brought slides and travel tales into my kids' public school classrooms. We traveled to places like China, England, Greece, Mexico, Peru and Kenya. I'd choose about 10 slides, each of which had a variety of different cultural "messages" to look for: "What do you notice about the clothing/houses/weather/food, etc... in this picture?" We had great discussions. I'd bring handouts with a map of the country, a list of "10 Things We Learned About ____ Today," and a sheet showing how to say hello, goodbye, please and thank-you in the country's language.

The kids loved these presentations, and I was invited back every year until my kids hit the grades where all the teachers' and students' time is focused on preparing for standardized tests. (In Massachusetts it's the MCAS. Next week is test week.)

I have a shoebox filled with thank-you notes from the kids. I'll treasure them always. One of my favorites is from Ryan, a second-grader, who wrote, "Dear Mrs. Hein: Thank you for teaching us about Peru. Now I really want to go see Andy's mountains."

I just posted a short story on my blog telling blog readers about BoomerWomenSpeak and our discussion here. The accompanying photo is one of the great bison of Custer State Park. You'll see he's trying, unsuccessfully, to hide behind a tree: http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com

I used to ride (on the back) of a motorcycle, smilinize. When Mike and I were in high school, he had a little Honda, and if I wanted to keep dating him, I had to get on, so I did. I spent a scare-to-death year clinging to his belt and digging my nails into his back. But I know what Dianne means about the feeling of freedom. Freedom full in your face.

Along with wildfire, bikers are a sort of subplot in "Ribbons of Highway." The reason? Sturgis Bike Week. Have you ever been?

An excerpt from "Ribbons:"


It was on the Beartooth that we really started to see the bikers. We joined a group of Harley pilots on the front porch of Top of the World Store & Motel (“Population 6” - the Milam family). Inside, the family was doing a brisk business in soda, snacks and t-shirts.

The bikers were headed for South Dakota and the mother of all motorcycle rallies, Sturgis Bike Week. The Doobie Brothers and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band would headline. From the Beartooth to the Great Lakes, we’d share highways, byways, gas stations, campgrounds, rest areas and tourist sites with bikers from all over America. Under their leather jackets they packed Nikons and Minoltas, and they stopped at the same scenic overlooks and beauty spots as the rest of us.

They provided Adam with a five-state rolling smorgasbord of chrome and parts, gadgets and detailing, spokes and sidecars. I was nervous, telling him not to get too close to the parked machines. There were so many of them lined up everywhere we stopped that if one went down, it would take at least a dozen with it. I had nightmares of having to pay for a mass of toppled, bruised Harleys because I was the mother of the kid who’d set the domino line in motion. I respected their outrageous expensiveness by parking far away and making a wide arc around them as I walked to the bathroom or coffee machine or gift shop.
~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lori,

Your blog was awesome! I loved the bison trying to "hide" behind the tree! lol.

I would be thrilled to participate in your article when it comes to pass. I even have pictures of my children dressed up as Colonial kids (costumes that WE put together) in Williamsburg.

What you did in the classroom was amazing! THAT, is true education! I bet the kids WERE thrilled with what you brought to them. A living, breathing, tour of places they've never been!

The world is such a huge place, and so many people (and children) have not been outside their neighborhood. It is so sad!

Hope you are having an awesome week end!

Danita

Danita, you'll be my muse for the homeschooling story. I'm going to devote some time next week to focusing on queries and submissions (didn't I say that last week??), and you've inspired me to get moving with the homeschooling piece. (And what editor could resist photos of homeschooled kids in hand-crafted Colonial garb?)

I've been meaning to return to rockgarden's questions. I apologize for taking so long. Let me talk about her campground safety question:

Yes, I did feel safe and secure at the campgrounds we chose. But this was not wholly by chance. As you know from earlier posts, I don't leave safety to chance when I travel, especially when I travel alone or alone with my kids. I felt safe because I picked "safe-feeling" places. On our trip, we were always on the road by 8 am, usually before. We tucked about 300 miles each day under New Paint's tires. The early departures made it possible to stop driving by early afternoon, which had numerous benefits. The kids (and I) had plenty of time to hang out, use the campground/motel pool, explore our destination, watch TV, meet other people -- whatever.

And, I was able to check into a place, whether a motel or campground, in daylight, which gave me a chance to scope things out pretty thoroughly before checking in. If something didn't feel right (remember intuition?), we had pressure-free time to look elsewhere. We passed on more than a few campgrounds (pigs snuffling around the grounds; men and boys in camouflage t-shirts riding around in pickup trucks...).

I took other measures to increase the safety factor at campgrounds:

-- We always chose a site that afforded us privacy but was close enough to others that they could hear us and reach us quickly. We never camped "far from the madding crowd." "Remote" was not something I was after when sleeping in a tent with the kids. Even in some of the more hardscrabble federal campgrounds out west (Bluff, Utah comes to mind)that had no staff, few or no facilities and check-in by the honor system (you throw your five bucks into a box nailed to a tree), I sought out people and camped near enough to them to feel that help was a shout away.

-- I always made it a point to introduce myself to campground owners and staff and to make sure they knew where our site was. They were invariably interested in our journey, and more often than not, would come around to chat or check on us. I also took care to introduce our happy trio to camping families, and they kept their eyes on us, too.

-- I kept my cellphone and pepper spray with me in the tent, and each of us had a flashlight. No one made a long, dark trip to the outhouse alone at night. We peed near the tent if the toilet was beyond viewing distance from the tent.

-- At night, I parked New Paint very close to the tent, sometimes in front of the tent door. This meant less distance to travel if we needed something from the van and created a buffer between us and a would-be intruder.

And, I'm a light sleeper, a condition that can be annoying -- or fortuitous.

Hi Lori,
Thanks for the info on safety when traveling without another adult. Good stuff. I've also enjoyed reading about the villas. We're thinking about that ourselves for a European trip next year. I found it interesting to read that the cooking and cleaning services are not necessarily cost prohibitive and may actually be cost effective. I would have thought otherwise and was not going to even consider looking into that. I thought it would be way too rich for our blood, but now I'll "explore" the options. Thanks again.

Be careful with the cleaning service. I think the girl who cleaned for us, stole a couple of t-shirts from my daughter.

Yes, be careful. I've never opted for the cleaning service because I don't want to have people in and out of "my" house all week. (Just like I keep the "Do Not Disturb" sign on my hotel room door for the duration of a short stay, so maids and others are not in my room. We were robbed in New Orleans, and it's made me wary. If I need towels or soap, I grab them from the cart when I see the maid in the hall.) I operate on the maxim, "The fewer people who come in here, the better."

And as far as villas offering chef services, I've found that one of the great pleasures of having our own house is shopping at the local markets and cooking up wonderful, fresh meals ourselves.

Would love to hear more about your villa hunt as it unfolds!

Dear Lori,

Thanks for your response to safety at campgrounds. I know they can vary greatly, and you are right to trust your instincts. Arriving early enough to get a good look around is a good tip, but hopefully not too early to get a feel for the renters. I think women are pretty good at listening to their "inner voices", and to be aware of their surroundings. It is a learned response that can save lives.

I also wanted to mention to Explorer that my family has also enjoyed renting villas in Europe. One of my favorites was in Nerja, Spain, on the Costa del Sol. I do agree with Lori that I preferred not to have cleaning people or chef services come into my house, because the fewer people who can come and go into my space away from home, the safer I feel.

Enjoy the rest of your weekends.
Rockgarden

Yes, getting a look at the "renters" in each campground -- or hotel or motel -- should definitely be part of the reconnaissance mission, especially if you're alone or alone with kids.

That "inner voice" is surely a learned response, a skill honed by time and experience, but its seeds, I believe, were planted in us at creation. We're hard-wired, I think, to be able to tell a teddy bear from a rat. Our "animal instincts." Incredible gift.

And, rockgarden, we, too have stayed in Nerja, Spain, at the El Capistrano Villages ( www.elcapistrano.com ). Spain's Costa del Sol is a great destination, and Nerja, I think, is the most beautiful of the Costa del Sol resort towns. Some of the towns on the Costa del Sol, like Torremolinos, are heavily developed and chock-a-block with high-rise apartment and hotel complexes. Nerja retains much of its old-world appeal. It's picturesque and offers quiet, languid glimpses into local history, architecture, culture and traditions that are lost in the sprawl of other coastal towns. Nerja has managed to keep its heart and soul intact.

I'm glad it's a new day. Last night was a computer meltdown marathon. The Microsoft Word on the upstairs PC must have been hungry, because it kept eating my son's history paper. He'd invest an hour or two, see the dreaded words "Normal...template...revert...recovery...do you want to, yes or no?" then poof, his work was gone. This happened three times. Six hours of work swallowed into the ether. Tough for a 16-year-old to take.

While he was tearing his hair out and IM'ing his friends in anguish, I was on my laptop at the kitchen table trying to update my website, which hadn't had a retool since January. Like most of you, I rely primarily on word-of-mouth, personal appearances and the Web to tell folks about "Ribbons of Highway," and I had some new reviews, publishing credits and, of course, my BWS Featured Author status to share.

Well, my laptop assumed multiple personalities, opened window after window in rapid-fire succession, prevented me from closing any of them, and spit porn, gambling and - no surprise - virus-killer shortcut icons all over my desktop.

Adam managed to coax his paper to completion, and I was able to freshen up www.LoriHein.com . (I'd love your feedback.) After our little journey into the cyberabyss and back, I went to bed thinking about how dependent we are on our computers. I resolved to back up my electronic book marketing activity with a bit more old-fashioned pavement-pounding. More face-to-face interaction and emphasis on visits to libraries and bookstores, speaking engagements, book club readings, church, craft and book fairs.

When the computer behaves, it can take us anywhere in the world. But there's a whole world in my own backyard, too. I just have to tear myself away from the computer screen and get out there and talk to it.

My computer crashed one day and I lost an entire chapter for my book. I started making copies on a floppy after that. How frustrating!

I've even started doing double backups -- floppies and CDs. I've had floppies that suddenly turned "corrupted" on me and were rendered useless. I, too lost a large chunk of my book one evening. About three hours' worth of writing. I took a deep breath, started over, and I think that what came out the second time was better than the first effort. The silver lining, I guess.

In writing a blog story about Morocco that I'll be posting in the near future, I included, as I have in stories to places like Srinagar, India, links to Web sites that offer travel advisory information. World travel is a rich, rewarding experience, but it carries risks, and it's wise to be informed before setting out.

I recommend reading the travel advisories posted by the governments of the U.S., the UK and Australia. Here are links to their travel warnings pages:

U.S. Department of State -
Home page: http://travel.state.gov
Warnings page: http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_1764.html

UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office -
Home page: www.fco.gov.uk
Warnings page: www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029390590

Australian government travel advice page: www.smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/View/Advice/Index

It's also useful and enlightening to read newspapers from the countries you're planning to visit. Find links to newspapers worldwide at www.World-Newspapers.com and www.OnlineNewspapers.com .

Because the links I just provided were so long, I just checked them all to make sure you'll get to the sites. The Australian government link didn't work, so just use the homepage, www.smartraveller.gov.au and find the advisories from there.

(If you go to these sites from this forum, it takes a bit of aggressive back button clicking to return to BWS, but you'll get there...)

These sites make for some fascinating "travel reading."

And, of course, it's these security issues -- the ones travelers need to be aware of before heading abroad -- that are helping fuel the heightened interest in domestic travel since September 11 (although gas prices will no doubt take a toll on the number and length of our road trips). But more of us are indeed looking for great travel experiences within the U.S. and Canada. Terrorism has increased our desire to find beauty and wonder right here at home.

Here is another excerpt from "Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America," an excerpt that I read aloud at an interfaith observance marking the third anniversary of September 11:


There are moments, so many of them as you travel America, when something about this land takes your breath away. Its diversity and beauty enrich and amaze. A gorgeous land, one tableau melting into another. You need only crest the next summit or round the next lake or cross the next valley to come to someplace breathtaking, alive, proud, or peaceful. Someplace vast, productive, interesting, or important.

Often on this journey, when we came to a place that was exquisite in its way, I thought about September 11. On many a 300-mile day, which might have seen us rise in one time zone and retire in another, I thought about terrorism, still jarringly fresh and disturbingly fearsome.

But the magnificence and seeming infiniteness of the land put terrorism into perspective, and I was quieted. I shared my thoughts with Adam and Dana. They would inherit the world we lived in and helped create, and it was important to talk about America not just as a landscape or road trip or series of historic, cultural or scenic stops, but as a living, organic nation of people trying to find its best fit in the puzzle of the world. In trying, we’ve made and will make mistakes, and, more now than in the past, the world will ask us to pay for them. Sometimes, payment exacted will be fair and just. Sometimes, as on September 11, it will be insane, brutal, and murderous.

But, being out in America, getting up every day with the sun to follow new roads, I fell in love with the country I’d lived in and taken for granted for 44 years. I saw her strength and her strengths. Terrorism would be a fact of life, perhaps for generations, but the country we were traveling through told us not to fear. On the whole, we’ll be okay, it said.

America in its soul is a good, honest place. I found myself thinking that terrorists could pick away at small bits of us, like they did in Manhattan, killing people and creating hell on earth in some targeted corner of our world. But they could never take it all down. They could obliterate small pieces and make despair and chaos rain down on some chosen area. But the whole is just too big to bring down, and the people too resolved and resilient. They can’t really get us, I’d think, as we drove through endless landscape that changed and changed and brought more wonder the longer you spent in it. They could jab, but the nation’s sheer size would keep it standing, with tough pockets and corners stepping in to help tend wounds and fill gaps.

The quiet places intrigued me most. America is not just New York or Chicago or San Francisco or Miami. It’s a powerful chain of strong, silent, little known places that relish their freedom and react when it’s challenged, whether by bureaucrats, developers, punks, or terrorists. People and places that step in and act when something they love is messed with. I thought and felt this as we moved through the land.
---


www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1591134536/

Beautiful.

Thank you, Dianne. (If I keep posting excerpts, no one will ever have to buy my book. They'll be able to come here to BWS and read it...)

I just sent an email to your sister, Linda. I asked her if she'd mind if I pointed folks to her Paris Photo Tours ( http://parisphototours.com ) in a future blog post. I add new travel stories to the blog three or four times a week, and I'm overdue on a story about France.

And ladies, Dianne's sister offers The Girl's Day Tour -- a tour of Paris just for women. Shopping, tea rooms, chic haircuts, a hammam ... Sounds awesome. Also, her site has a link to Panache Rentals, which offers short- and long-term apartment rentals in Paris. Find them at www.panacherental.com. I think we can safely assume it's a good outfit if Dianne's sister recommends it.

I told her she should have a Sex in the City tour since the last season was filmed mostly in Paris. We went to one of the restaurants that was in the show.

You're doing a great job on this thread, by the way.

Great idea. Hit the spots on the show and then shop for slinky clothes and stiletto heels.

Seriously, though, anyone who's traveling to Paris or Provence (Dianne's sister is based in the Luberon region) should consider hooking up with Linda Mathieu (website link a few posts up). I got a lovely e-mail back from her, and she said that she started the walking/photo tours business to supplement her husband's retirement income, but it's turned out to be something she really loves doing. She wrote that she loves taking visitors around Paris, and "when they tell me 'we couldn't have seen all of this without you,' it makes my day -- and makes my sore feet worth it."

Also inspiring to see how she's taken something she enjoys and has turned it into a career opportunity.

I checked out the photo of her Provence "dollhouse." What an utterly beautiful place to call home.

Message for Danita if she pops by:

I've started working on the travel/homeschooling article and would love to shoot you some interview questions by e-mail. May I?

I thought I'd try to get them to you before you take off for Custer State Park for Memorial Day. (By the way, are you using that trip as an extension of a homeschooling unit? What will you and the kids be focusing on if you are?)

I believe there are other homeschoolers here at BWS. If any happen to pop by this forum and would like to be e-interviewed for an article on using travel as a homeschooling tool, please send me an email (address on my website).

Another Sex-in-the-City-like idea for Linda's Paris tours: The DaVinci Code tour.

I heard that filming for the movie is going to start next month in Paris. Tom Hanks, Ron Howard and other Hollywood luminaries will be hanging around the courtyard in front of the Louvre. Linda could follow the cast around the city and base a tour around the sites featured in the film.

I know I'd show up to watch the filming just to get Tom Hanks' and Ron Howard's autographs.

Oh, she already does The DaVinci Code tour. It's fascinating.

They film at night when the museum is closed and on Tuesday, I believe, or one of the days it's closed. Linda was part of a group that was trying to find an apartment for Ron Howard to live in while filming but I guess he needs high security and she didn't know of any place that offered that.

I'll have to tell my sis that you're giving her all of this free publicity. She'll love it.

I had a thought on the Sex in the City Tour: she could lead women down the street and let them step in dog poop! (Carrie did this on the show). And for those of you who have been there, you know this can be a real problem but I guess the city is starting to make people clean up after their pets. We need an instant graemlin for puking or something.

Lori,

Please do email me questions: danitajones@myarbonne.com

We have been to Custer State Park and that area before - and had studdied it. Believe it or not, I was thinking about this as "just a vacation".

However, I should think about going to the library and doing a quick "unit study". LOL (I've been a LITTLE busy with my business - I'm in the "making money mode" v.s. "creative schooling mode."

Danita

I'll send off those email questions tonight or tomorrow.

I'm trying to get back into the "making money mode," too. Having a good week. I've lined up a few book signings and book readings with slide shows, sold two travel articles, and a small daily newspaper wants to talk with me about a freelance features correspondent gig. Good stuff.

Wow, Dianne! How cool is Linda, anyway? Being on the team hunting up housing for Ron Howard! I'm impressed!

Off to the orthopedist. Something's wrong with my leg, and I haven't run in a week. Nothing bums me out more than not being able to run. It's like oxygen to me. I'm starting to joke that "I run marathons between stress fractures." Here we go again... Age has its downside.

Who can tell me more about The DaVinci Code tour?
My son loved that book. He's the one heading to Europe on Monday.

He's going to Italy, France, and Switzerland. He'll be gone 3 1/2 weeks. He's going with the business department from his school. Wouldn't you know one of the businesses they're studying is a winery. Go figure!

He has a couple days where he can travel to other countries by train, but hasn't made any decisions yet. Any ideas?

I'm sure Lori can offer more ideas than me.

The tour. When Linda shows you the areas mentioned in the book, you realize what a work of fiction the book really is. Especially when the guy is killed in the museum and the gates that are supposed to come down. Also, the church where the albino kills the nun. There really isn't much room for the cat walk he describes. But what is strange, this little church is now a main tourist attraction where before, it was rarely toured. It has helped the church a lot.

She also took me to the restaurant from the closing of the movie, Something's got to give. The one where she's having dinner and Jack Nicholson comes in. I thought that was fun. the business has really increased there because of that scene.

We went to The Kong restaurant from Sex and took our picture standing by the table where Carrie had lunch with her boyfriend's ex wife. Great place with wonderful food.

I want to return!!!!!

Dotsie, do you know what general areas of Italy, France and Switzerland your son will be in? If I could zero in on his locales a bit, I'd be able to give better suggestions. Will he be based in Rome, Paris and Zurich, or other places? (Winery -- I'm thinking Bordeaux or Champagne in France, or maybe Tuscany in Italy??)

If you can narrow the target a bit, I'm sure I can suggest a lot of good stuff for your son to consider. Europe is a giant smorgasbord of awesome, intriguing sites and places. How exciting for him -- 3 1/2 weeks in Europe...

http://www.roadandtravel.com/hotelsresorts/2005/parishotels.htm

Of interest

He is going to Rome, Florence, Geneva, Nice, and Paris.

Dianne, thanks for the link to Linda's article in Road and Travel Magazine. She did a great job with the piece, and what a great list of hotels. I'm going to hang onto it. It's always a good feeling when you book a room knowing the hotel has been vetted and recommended by an insider.

Dotsie: back at you shortly with suggestions for your son.

I love Nice. Beautiful area. Too bad he can't go further south and visit St. Tropez. Are they traveling by train?

Dotise,

Here's a quick (but long) list of sites/places your son might want to check out. There's actually more than enough to keep him busy just within the cities he's visiting -- everyone should be lucky enough to spend 3 1/2 weeks in Rome, Paris, Nice, Geneva and Florence -- and just roaming the cities with a street map and a good guide will keep his eyes popping out of his head. (I highly recommend the Michelin Green Guides, especially if there will be any road trips or visits to towns outside the major cities.) But here are some ideas off the top of my head:

1. Nice - While the beach is the thing, spend a spot of time turned inland, checking out the gracious belle-epoque architecture: turrets, long-windowed facades, balconies, wrought iron. At the beach, find the Negresco Hotel, a belle-epoque landmark. The Negresco faces the beach, which is lined with oceanfront cafes. While they're expensive, it's fun to grab a table at one of these and while a few afternoon hours away eating fresh seafood, sipping wine and watching the beautiful people.

From Nice, there are so many places he could visit. Antibes is close by, which Dianne loved (see posts above). Also, to the northwest are the Provence towns of Vence and Grasse. To the east, on the coast, he could easily take in Monte Carlo. Venturing north on almost any road, he can explore some of the perched villages of the Maritime Alps. For a spectacular view of the Riviera, he should check out superbly-sited medieval Eze (see an earlier post). And, the ancient stone town of Roquebrune is near Eze, too. The Michelin Green Guide has wonderful,
detailed write-ups of all the small medieval villages in the Maritime Alpes above Nice and Menton.

2. Rome - Just the sites in the city's ancient heart (Colosseum/Forum area) could keep a person busy for a week, and this is where he should start. Near the Colosseum is the small church of San Pietro in Vincoli (St. Peter in Chains). Inside sits Michaelangelo's Moses. It's pretty heady to walk into a small neighborhood church and see a Michaelangelo colossus just sitting there. Cross the Tevere (Tiber) river to Vatican City, which should be especially interesting now. Go into the crypt below St. Peter's to view the popes' tombs. The dome of St. Peter's is mind-boggling, and you can walk up a catwalk and sprial metal steps behind an inside wall, up into the dome. (I tried it three times, got vertigo, and had to come back down. I almost passed out as I watched two young Japanese girls in spiked heels climb past me, with each step nearly catching their heels between the metal slats of the catwalk. I thought they were surely destined to die a long, plummeting death, but God was with them.) Michaelangelo's Pieta sits in St. Peter's. The Sistine Chapel with Michaelangelo's ceiling is a must. Go early before the lines form. Besides the Colosseum/Forum area, there are Roman ruins everywhere -- pieces of the old Appian Way, the Hippodrome, the Catacombs, the Baths of Caracella, the Circus Maximus. For more modern relaxing, just sit on the Spanish Steps and people-watch. Hang at the Trevi Fountain. Everyone else is there. Hang in the Trestevere neighborhood. Across the Tiber from most of the tourist areas, it's full of small restaurants and narrow streets. From Rome, it's about a 45-minute drive to the coast. This area of the coast is not too attractive, but there's Ostia Antica, yet more vestiges of the Roman Empire.

3. Florence -- Florence is nonstop eye candy. It's just wonderful. The Duomo (Cathedral) with its massive terra cotta dome lords over the city. The Duomo's massive bronze doors were carved by Ghiberti. Walk across the Ponte Vecchio, an ancient bridge and one of the only (the only?) ancient bridges over the Arno to survive Allied bombing in WWII. The bridge, a covered arcade, is an ocher masterpiece, full of shops -- many jewelry shops. Don't miss seeing Michelangelo's David. It is truly sublime. There's a copy of it and other masterpieces in the courtyard of the Palazzo Vecchio, but you must see the original in the Accademia. Again, lines are long, so go early if you can. Above the banks of the Arno, on the side opposite from Florence proper, runs a road called the Piazzale Michelangelo. From up here, you get a fabulous view of all of Florence and the Duomo below you.

Just outside of Florence, on a hillside, is a tiny town alled Fiesole, which has some old villas and gardens and ancient ruins. A quiet, pretty sidetrip out of the city.

From Florence, it's possible to make sidetrips to Pisa, on the coast, but a terrific take is to go to Siena, a totally medieval Tuscan town. The place to go in Siena is right smack into the city's heart to the ampitheatre-shaped Campo, the town's huge, cobbled main square. This is where the Palio is held each summer. The Palio is a rip-roaring horse race that's been held since the middle ages. There are restaurants and outdoor cafes lining the whole Campo.

Not far from Siena is the tiny, walled medieval town of San Gimignano. (My husband has relatives there. We've never met them, but it's fun to think that Adam and Dana have Italian third cousins who live in a medieval walled city.) You see San Gimignano long before you get there. Dozens of bell towers (I forget how many there are today) rise up into the sky. During the middle ages, rich families tried to outdo one another by building higher, more elaborate bell towers, and most of them still stand.

And, yet another possiblity if there's time for a several-day train trip is to go to Venice. Venice is, simply, one of the most gorgeous cities on the planet and is reason enough to go to Italy. No cars allowed. As you cruise down the Grand Canal for the first time, you'll wonder what you ever did to deserve a journey to such a magical place.

4. Paris -- Suggestion #1: call Dianne's sister Linda. I don't think anyone knows the secret places of the city better than she does! For the first-time visitor to Paris, I'd say time should be focused around the Latin Quarter and Left Bank of the Seine. This will give you Notre Dame, the warren of old streets and bohemian hubbub of the Boulevard St. Michel, the Boulevard St.Germain. Definitely take in the Musee D'Orsay. You won't see a finer collection of Impressionist treasures anywhere in the world. I'd even go here before the Louvre (unless you can't live without seeing the Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa, and given that your son loved the The Da Vinci Code, I'm sure he'll end up in the Louvre -- maybe on one of Linda's tours!).

Very close to Notre Dame and the Latin Quarter is a little gem in the middle of the Seine -- the Ile St. Louis. It's a tiny little island that is an idyllic neighborhood world unto itself -- and it has great ice cream shops. You get views of the city from here that most people miss.

Other things I'd recommend seeing in Paris: La Sainte Chappelle, on the Right Bank, not far from City Hall (the Hotel de Ville). This is a spectacular Gothic chapel which has non-stop, floor-to-ceiling stained glass that will absolutely blow you away. Sacre-Coeur: This is a white-domed Taj-Mahal-looking church that sits atop a hill in Montmartre. It's up in the northern part of the city, but worth it for the views and to scope out the rather touristy but interesting Place du Tertre, where artists sit and paint. Ride the Metro to get up there. The Paris Metro is a great way to get around. The Bois de Boulogne: An immense green space on the city's western flank. The Place des Vosges: an architecturally perfect urban square lined with exquisite townhouses from the 18th (?) century. Victor Hugo lived and wrote here.

Outside of Paris, there's Versailles. If you have time, don't miss it. Got more time? Take the high-speed train from the Gare du Nord to London, via the Chunnel under the English Channel. You can leave in the morning, have lunch and/or dinner in London, and return the same day. Young people now routinely hop over to London to go clubbing. (Makes me tired just thinking about it.)

5. Geneva - I have not been to Geneva, but know people who have. Take a cruise on the lake (or drive) to cities/towns like Montreux and Lausanne, which sit on the lake. It's a reasonable train or car ride to get to Lyon, a beautiful French city famed for its cuisine. Or, to see the Alps, head up to Chamonix and Mont Blanc, within reach from Geneva.

Hope that helps! Wish your son "bon voyage" for me.

You've likely all seen the May 17 issue of TIME with boomer women as the cover story. There have been some postings about it on other forums. Good article. (The only thing missing was Dotsie.)

Jennifer Wright, a BWS member, was featured in the article for having traded her position as a university professor of occupational therapy in Indiana to become a travel guide for "MidLife Heroines" in New Zealand. Kiwijenn, as she's known on the BWS boards, experienced her life turning point while on a backpakcing trip with her son.

I invited her to come over to this forum to share some insights on how travel and seizing adventure have enriched her life. Perhaps she'll be able to pop by.

But the crux of the article was that "women at middle age are twice as likely to be hopeful about their future" as men. At midlife, said TIME, women "may first turn inward, ask the cosmic questions or retrieve some passion they put aside to make room for a career and family and adult responsibilities." And what are those passions? "Take a trip. Write a novel. Go back to school. Learn to kiteboard."

In the article, Wright talked about the confidence she gained on that pivotal backpacking trip with her son that enabled her to metamorphose into an adventure coach who leads trip through rugged, beautiful New Zealand terrain. She also talked about the 'internal journey." Wright was quoted as saying, "You step out of time. You don't know what day it is, what time it is. You eat when you're hungry. And when you come back, you are changed."

I've always felt that that inner confidence is one of travel's greatest gifts. When you're out of your familiar space, beyond your routine comfort zone, you find out what you've got inside. You may use some or all of it on a given trip, depending on the challenges you face. But, like Wright said, when you come back, you are changed.

Lori
Thank you for that uplifting post. This morning I really needed that reminder of what traveling does for the spirit.
I have been so excited about our little cross country trek with Alex, but somehow yesterday I began to lose my confidence. I had a stupid home accident, missed an appointment, and almost had a car accident. Seemed like my brain disconnected and I just wanted to cry.
I became frightened of being on the road with such valuable cargo. I am also doing some other things that are out of my comfort zone and I became overcome with self doubt.
But your post reminded me this morning of how I have found joy and new confidence in venturing out of my cozy little nest to travel and how I might again find new confidence.

On another note, as the resident pseudo scientist, I think there is physiological basis for the psychological benefits of ground travel.
I worked with some psychologists from Yale who were researching the effects of the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy following the Oklahoma City bombing. I was a part of their study and I am here to tell you it works!
Later a friend went through a very serious health trauma and had to travel for further care. Because he was too ill to fly, we traveled by train. He looked out the window all the way. When we arrived at our destination, his symptoms were absolutely gone. His spirit was lifted and he was looking at the world through whole new eyes.
I kind of put the two together and came up with a theory. I think because our body's fight or flight response to adrenalin is suppressed, it turns to stress. Men and women can no longer just get into a fist fight to settle differences or run away from the psychological dangers of the work place or home. Instead we must all manipulate our way to the top and through family's problems. So the adrenalin with no physical outlet builds up in our bodies and becomes stress which makes us physically, emotionally, and spiritually sick.
I think if we can trick our brains into believing we have either fought the adversary or run away we will be healthier in every way. Air travel only seems to add more stressors and does not give the same benefit as perceiving the roadside passing by.
Ground travel gives us some of the same benefits as running away from danger and seems to be the most beneficial. Maybe it is the same benefit from running and walking.
When traveling we go back to our natural state. We run until we're tired then we rest. We move until we're hungry then we eat. We run from the dangers of every day life and return renewed and stronger.

Just another of my crazy theories.
smile

[ May 20, 2005, 01:29 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Smile, your theories never sound crazy to me. You've got it together girl. I'm praying for a safe trip for you and your family. I certainly understand your thoughts about having precious cargo aboard. Don't let that rob you of living in the moment. Turn the safety issue over to God and let Him carry it for you.

Lori, thanks so much for you thoughtful post. I cut and pasted it in an email and sent it to my son. I told him to print it and take it with him. I'm sure he will. He loves to travel. He takes after my husband. Put the two of them in an airport, on a ball field, or on the water and you lose them. They become so wrapped up in the environment. You can see the happiness flowing through their bodies.

Dianne, would you mind emailing me your sister's number? I'll give that to him too.

Thanks for all your kindness ladies. I'm most grateful.

Ah, the things you can do at BWS! I just love it.

Lori, have you been to many islands with plush beaches?

Dots, Dianne, JJ and anyone else between here and there, we're ambling our way to the East coast with no real schedule beginning next weekend. We're going to mine for diamonds in Arkansas Sautuday then take off.
If we get tired or change our minds, we're going to turn around and come home. And if we find something we really like, we're going to stay until we're tired of it. So there is no real schedule. I'm taking the laptop and plan to be in contact along the way as much as possible.
If things go as scheduled, we should be about half way around June 1 or 2 and near D.C. around June 3 or 4. I would love to meet any boomers who might be available around those times.

Hey, this could be research for the Boomer World Tour!!! (Okay, Lori inspired me. I've moved from a National tour to a WORLD tour. Hey, why not?) And if I can only get Dan into a thong we can practice up for the Chippendale dancers too. WHOOOEEE!!! I'm getting excited now!
smile

Smile, what an amazing post. I've reread it three times. You've articulated some deep, important notions about confidence, control, groundedness, pace. My brain is spinning as I link it all up in my head. I think your theory is brilliant and spot on.

First, your trip with Alex. You've already started that journey. By deciding to take it, by starting to plan it, by visualizing it, by simply getting ready to go, you're already on your way. Each new building block you put in place preparatory to actually leaving your driveway is a journey -- a successful one. You're already succeeded at this trip, already achieved small, measured, important steps.

You had a bad day yesterday. Stuff happens. Take a deep breath, slow down, deal with each hurdle as it comes, and then put it aside. If we didn't have hurdles, we wouldn't be able to feel the extreme joy and confidence that comes from clearing them. If there are no lows, there can be no highs.

And there's something else about your trip which is wonderful and inspiring, and that is the fact that you're giving your grandson an experience that will enrich him. He is, as you say, precious cargo. And the fact that that precious cargo and the precious cargo's parents love and trust you enough to say, "Yes, this trip is a great idea," should, in itself, give you confidence. They have confidence in you. They trust you. And trust is earned, not given away for free, and you did the earning. So you've got the stuff, and others see it. When you occasionally misplace pieces of your self-confidence, stop and look at yourself from their eyes, and I bet you'll get it back.

Your theory about eye movement and ground travel and stress is amazing -- that there's a physical basis for the psychological benefits of ground travel -- the ability of ground travel to bolster our confidence and, ultimately, our joy and satisfaction with life. I don't think that's a reach. I think it's real. After I read your post, I thought about the times during travel when I feel good versus the times I don't. I think you're right on, and I think the word "grounded" is a term we can load with meaning.

When I fly, I'm stressed. If I'm flying with my kids, I'm trebly stressed. And it's because I have no control. From takeoff to landing, I must sit and wait for the safe conclusion to a flight I can in no way influence. Your fight or flight analogy is apt. I can do neither. But once on the ground, all control, except divine, comes back to me, and my stress is relieved. I do not consider flight time as a "real" part of a journey. It is a conveyance method to be endured until I arrive at the place where my "ground journey" will begin.

If, on the other hand, I travel by foot, bike (12-speed, no Harleys for me ), train, car, bus or even boat (although you'll never get me on an ocean cruise -- I'd have that same sense of non-control), each moment of movement using those methods is, absolutely, a deep and satisfying part of my journey.

You equate ground travel and the connection of the eyes to one's physical space as you move through it as "a way to trick our brains into thinking we have fought the adversary or run away," making us "healthier in every way." I agree, but I'd throw another possible way of looking at it out at you. While our steady, controlled, forward movement can be an adrenaline-releasing act that relieves stress and puts us in control, helping us feel that we've fought or fled, it can also be an act that takes us not away from danger, but toward and through challenges, toward joy, satisfaction. We can get away from negative things, and we can also move toward positive things.

Each step or mile in a journey yields something. If the something is a challenge, as you're theory assumes, we're "grounded," in control enough, to consider it, weigh options, make a decision, act, and overcome the obstacle. And, once over it, we're stronger than we were when we faced it from the other side. And the next hurdle -- and there will inevitably be one -- just doesn't look that high anymore. With each forward step on the ground, we build confidence.

I could keep going. I'm fascinated by the ideas you've introduced. But I'll stop and let somebody else talk...

Lori,
In the post trauma eye movement therapy that I experienced, they had me go back in my mind to the trauma and instructed me to watch an item that moved in front of my eyes in much the same manner that scenery would move past you if you were running away from the trauma. It worked!

I have used that theory in the theater for stage fright. If you run or walk fast just before going onstage, it gives you a feeling of groundedness that nothing else quite acheives. Sometimes if I can rehearse while I'm riding to the theater or even driving it helps too. I've seen it work for others when I've been directing a production also.

I know it's weird, but like the smile thing, I have learned so much about managing my moods in the theater. In fact, I guess that's what theater is really all about.
Sometimes I wonder if these things only work because I believe they will, but I'm a scientist at heart and I saw smiles and running and eye movement therapy working before I ever believed. Then I researched the physiology and it all came together. I'm just so excited by the mind body connection.

And thank you Lori for the uplifting post. My daughter is almost more excited than I am about Alex goin on this trip. When she was small we made the same trip so often and it contains some some wonderful memories for us all.
Alex's older brother is going to California with friends for his vacation. Becky is home with her baby so she's kind of liviing vicariously for the summer.
smile
P.S. My sister just called and has a new boat on the river where we grew up so we're stopping over there too. I'm getting so excited.
P.S. again. Dotsie, your mailbox is full.

[ May 20, 2005, 02:19 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

And I'm so excited for you.

I want to come back to the post you just wrote, but I want to send you that list of things to see in D.C. that I promised so long ago. I didn't realize you were leaving so soon! (Let me know how the Arkansas diamond-mining thing goes. My son's been wanting to go there. Poker, diamond-mining -- he's always on the lookout for some quick way to make a buck, and he thinks we ought to pack up and camp out in Arkansas until we've mined enough to fill New Paint from stem to stern.)

(Question -- it sounds like you were personally affected by the Oklahoma City bombings? I'm a newbie to BWS, so don't know you as well as the other ladies do, but it sounds like you experienced the trauma of that day firsthand?)
____

Washington D.C. ideas -- No particular order, and I'm not even going to try to be neat or pay attention to grammar or punctuation. Just a brain-dump. For phone numbers, area code is 202:

1. Obviously, all the Mall must-sees -- White House, Capitol, Lincoln Memorial, Smithsonian (www.si.edu ) and all the great, free museums. National Archives with the REAL Declaration of Independence (Alex should get a kick out of that), the Air and Space Museum
( www.nasm.edu ) -- every kid's favorite (and, I've read, the most visited museum on earth). The National Museum of American History (americanhistory.si.edu) has lots of fun exhibits for kids - George Washington's tent to Oscar's Sesame Street garbage can. The Washington Monument, which is once again open. You can climb to the top. The Vietnam Memorial is incredibly moving. Just walking slowly and reading and touching the thousands of names has a powerful impact.
2. A good way to tour the city is via the Tourmobile. you can hop on and off all day long, and it's narrated, so you know what you're looking at.
3. The new National Museum of the American Indian. On the Mall. Given your Cherokee heritage and your knowledge of native cultures, you can help Alex connect with his roots.
4. The National Building Museum ( www.nbm.org )-- This is a giant indoor space with colossal columns and, if it's raining, kids can roam around free in here, like being in a cathedral without having to be quiet.
5. Union Station - 15-minute walk from the Mall. - A giant, fabulous architectural wonder. Modeled in part on the Baths of Caracalla in ancient Rome.
6. Capital Children's Museum ( www.ccm.org ) - Lots of hands-on fun for kids
7. National Zoological Park ( natzoo.si.edu ) - Stork-feeding at 10:30 am, elephant training at 11 am, pelican feeding at 1 pm, and so on.
8. National Museum of Natural History ( www.mnh.si.edu ) - dinosaur bones, geodes, IMAX theater, major jewels and gems (compare your haul from the Arkansas mine to the Hope Diamond...)
9. C&O Canal Towpath -- out of the hubbub and heat of the city, it runs from the Georgetown section of D.C. to Maryland. You can bike, walk, jog, etc.
10. Rock Creek Park - More green space. 3,000 acres of streams, meadows and woods.
11. Rent rollerblades. What a cool way to cruise the mall and take in the sites -- Go "inline!" - $15/day rentals at Ski Center, 4300 Fordham Rd., N.W. ( www.skicenter.com )966-4474.
12. Bike the Sites -- ( www.bikethesites.com ) - A three-hour, 8-mile bike tour, including bike and snack. (966-8662).
13. DC Ducks - ( www.dcducks.com ) - About $25/head. Ride in an original WWII amphibious vehicle. See sights on the Mall, then plop right into the Potomac for a cruise.
14. Rent a canoe or kayak and cruise the Potomac on your own steam - Rent at Jack's Boathouse (337-9642), below the Key Bridge in Georgetown.
15. Theodore Roosevelt Isalnd - ( www.nps.gov/this ) - A little island oasis in the city with 2.5 miles of paths, including the Swamp Trail, where you should see birds and such.
16. Flea market on Saturdays and Sundays (check first) at Eastern Market ( www.easternmarket.net ) - 7th St. & N. Carolina Ave., SE - silver, trinkets, rugs, jewelry, vintage stuff. you can eat lunch at Eastern Market, too.
17. National Geographic Society Headquarters (hey, Smile, you can get ideas for that WORLD TOUR here) --
( www.nationalgeographic.com/explorer ) - 1145 17th St., NW. - 18-foot replica of the Titanic, cool exhibits, awesome photography. Like walking through the magazine from its early days to today. (I tried to leave writing samples around the joint but left without a job offer.)
Old Town Trolley Tours - another hop-on/hop-off deal. (832-9800) - ( www.trolleytours.com ) - Two-hour tour, or get on and off as you wish all day.
18. Arlington National Cemetery
19. Alexandria, Virginia -- go to Old Town. Looks just like it did in colonial times. My friend Terry used to live in a townhouse on Duke Street, one of the oldest. She said it was amazing to live here.

I am not even going to check this for typos. Just hit send. Back later.

Dotsie: LPennin104@aol.com is her email addy. She's in Provence right now.
011-33490-774383

About six hours ahead of EST there.

Thanks Lori. I love all those ideas. I lived there for a couple of years in the late seventies and have been back several times on business so I knew some of that, but you have lots of new ideas too.

I know Alex will love the museums of natural history. I can't remember, do you know if that is the one with all the gem stones in it? I want to see that again. And he will love the big dinosaur bones. He found a huge bone in our creek and we're taking it along cause he thinks it might be from a dinosaur.

I can't remember where G. Washington threw that silver dollar over the Potomac. My kids and I went there once, but I forgot where it is and I can't seem to find it. Anyone know where it is. I think Alex would like that.

Of course he is more excited about the diamonds that he is sure to find than anything else so far. Oh well....
smile
I was a first responder at the okc bombing. It forever changed me. More than I could ever have imagined. The EMDR helped though. As it did all who took part I think.

Smile, I can't imagine having been on the scene at such a heartbreaking disaster. You must be one incredibly strong and wonderful person. I'm now even more intrigued by the eye movement therapy. When you talk about using it to combat stage fright, by walking fast or running, or even just visualizing that, I think of the importance that the physical act of running has in my life. (And I can't run right now -- Xrays this week ruled out osteoarthritis, but MRIs tomorrow will search for herniated disk or stress fracture...but I digress...).

As I start to run, I feel a bit discombobulated, out of myself. Then, as I become calm and get a rhythm, stress just floats away. I become like a unit with the space I'm running through, and I feel strong and in control. It is a truly empowering feeling. And, I find that the longer I go, the deeper the feeling becomes. A 15-mile run grounds me and settles my soul better than a four-mile run. When I'm running short, I sometimes don't get through the part where I'm totally focused on me and how I'm feeling, and there's not enough time to destress. But when I go long, I run through that "hump," and then start relating to trees, birds, what the clouds look like, every detail of the environment I'm in. It's remarkble.

I thought you probably knew about some of those D.C. sites. There's just so much to do in that city. And yes, the Natural History museum is the one with all the gems. How cool that Alex is bringing his BONES along on the trip. Even if they turn out not to be from a dinosaur -- which would be remarkable -- something for his local newspaper to write a story about -- it will be fun for him to have a scientist or curator take a look and give him a "professional opinion."

Dotsie, I'm glad you were able to send my suggestions off to your son. He'll find his own things to do, but it's nice to have a jumping-off point. What a trip he's going to have. Such beautiful places.

And islands with lush beaches? I'm not much of a sit-on-the-beach type, so I'm not the go-to-gal for recommendations on islands and resorts.

However, last February Mike and I took the kids to Jamaica to the Sunset Beach Resort in Montego Bay. It was an all-inclusive, something I vowed I'd never do, but am glad I did. We had an absolute blast there. It was a great place, we all loved it, and I highly recommend it. If you cruise my blog, you'll find a post that I wrote a few months ago called, "Ya, mon. In Jamaica, even the soup is smiling." It's about Sunset Beach. And, I found it by surfing through my favorite travel website, which I recommended some posts back, www.TripAdvisor.com. Awesome site.

I have visited some incredible non-island beaches. I will always remember the beach at Manuel Antonio National Park in Costa Rica. Pristine. Like Gilligan's Island ( or Lost). The other beauty that sticks in my mind is Stinson Beach, north of San Francisco as you head up the California coast toward Bodega Bay. And, the beaches of the far western Algarve coast in Portugal, near Cabo Sao Vicente, where Portugal juts out into the Atlantic. These beaches are backed by towering ocher- and rust-colored cliffs, and they are hidden from the world above. I remember one in particular that reminded me of the beach that Charlton Heston rides on at the end of the original "Planet of the Apes." Otherworldly.

Good morning. Smile must be doing some packing today? Exciting stuff. Don't forget the duct tape. Danita must be packing, too? Custer State Park is only a week away. Two boomer road trips about to launch. Very cool.

I had two nice things happen yesterday, one related to writing and the other to travel -- and trust -- the kind of trust I talked about in relation to Alex, Smile's precious cargo.

First, I sold two small travel stories to an online magazine. Then, I got an email from my friend, Rhonda (my Nashville friend whom I write about in "Ribbons"). I'm interviewing her (and Danita--thanks, Danita!) for the homeschooling article.

Rhonda wrote me and asked if, in a few years, when her daughter Erin is in 12th grade and my daughter Dana is in 11th, "if you haven't seen every corner of the world by then," would I consider including Erin in one of our trips. Rhonda's traveled with me twice and, she said, "you took such could care of me on our trips, that I know you would be good for Erin. You and Dana would be good for Erin."

I called Dana over to read Rhonda's email, and we both had the same reaction. We were deeply touched and honored that Rhonda would ask us to give Erin something she can't, and that she would trust us with her precious cargo.

I promptly emailed back a resounding, "Yes!"

Lori,
What a blessing and a compliment to be so respected by the mother of that girl. You must not only be a trusted friend, but a respected mother.

I'm not packing yet. I'm just home from my speaking thing and I'm chilling out til tomorrow then we start the packing. Taking Duct tape for sure. In fact, my husband wouldn't go anywhwere without it.

Your post about running is so perceptive. I had ankle surgery in December and am still recovering, but I was just talking to my husband about how I love running and how much joy it brought me. It's kind of spiritual and indescribably joyful in both body and soul, isn't it.
Your descriptions of running, just like your descriptions of traveling, made me want so much to run again, and soon.

Back to the trip, Alex is so excited and I am too. He is a pretty good artist and I bought him a book of art paper and colored pencils to keep a drawing journal of our trip. I also bought some little put together type toys, one for each day so if he gets bored, he can have something new to play with.
You've got me so excited, I can hardly wait to get on the road.
smile

[ May 21, 2005, 11:00 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Oh, the excitment of an impending trip. A road trip -- the best kind. Pulling out of your driveway and heading across pieces of America. With your grandson. Savor every moment, Smile. What a gift that you're able to do this.

On all of our journeys, especially the "Ribbons" journey, I made sure the kids were supplied with sketch pads and journals. They recorded some remarkable insights and images, as I'm sure Alex will, as well. You may end up with art suitable for framing. Hope you've got the wall space!

So, you're a runner, too. Cool beans. Was your ankle surgery to repair a running injury? Injury comes with the territory, especially as you get older, but you just heal up and get back out there. I look at every mile as a gift, and I enjoy the heck out of every outing. I look forward to finding out what's wrong with me this time, learning what I need to do to fix it, then hitting the road again.

Is your husband excited about your trip?

I've been meaning to post this:

To thank Dotsie for the honor of being a BoomerWomenSpeak Featured Author and to thank all of you for sharing your time and your thoughts with me'd, I'd like to offer signed copies of "Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America" at a special rate to anyone who reads this post now, and at any time in the future.

While you can order "Ribbons of Highway" through the usual channels like the publisher
( www.booklocker.com/books/1451.html ) or Amazon ( www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1591134536/ ), if you'd like a signed copy, I will pay the shipping and will also take a dollar off the book's price for anyone who finds me through this thread. (BWS member or not. If you're reading this, the offer applies.)

When you send your check for $13.95 per copy, simply write the word "Boomer" on it. And let me know to whom you'd like your book(s) inscribed. If the book is a gift, please let me know if you'd like a special message or sentiment expressed in the inscription. My address is:

Lori Hein, 40 Williams St., N. Easton, MA 02356

Again, I will honor this offer at any time. The word "Boomer" on your check is the secret code that will have your books on their way to you. Feel free to let your friends in on the secret, too.

"In traveling, a man must carry knowledge with him if he would bring home knowledge." -- Samuel Johnson, 1778

My grandson always suffers from car sickness. Begins to vomit. What do you do for that?

Scientists think motion sickness occurs when three parts of the body that sense motion -- the eyes, the inner ear and the joints in the leg area -- sense that motion in some unbalanced way, sending a signal to the brain that something isn't quite right, and causing symptoms like fatigue, sweating, dizziness and vomiting.

Some ways to handle motion sickness include taking Dramamine or Bonine before a trip. Both are effective, over-the-counter drugs. If using in children, be sure to check with the child's pediatrician. One caution: Dramamine comes in both tabs to be swallowed and in chewable form. Make sure you know which you've got. Chewing the swallow-tabs creates a burning in the throat that is truly mericiless -- you'll wish for motion sickness instead.

Other ways to mitigate the effects of motion sickness: ginger -- ginger snaps, ginger ale; a carbonated beverage -- Coke, ginger ale; mild crackers such as saltines or oyster crackers; fresh air -- open the window, and, as soon as it's safe to do so, stop the car and let the affected person get out, walk around and stretch; avoid reading, or other "busy" eye activities; make sure a person who suffers from car sickness sits in a seat with a good, unobstructed view of what's passing outside -- someone sunk low in a seat, or squeezed between luggage or other passengers may not be able to make his eyes connect to the motion that he knows is occuring, which can lead to the imbalance mentioned above.

And, just in case, bring along a few paper lunch bags tucked inside plastic bags and keep them handy, along with a little bottle of antibacterial hand cleaner.

In a post early in the month, someone asked about traveling alone. While most of our discussion focused on safety, I also suggested some ways to start dipping your toes into the solo waters and ease into traveling by yourself. One of my suggestions was to take a tour. You're alone, but you're not.

To expand on that a bit, I wanted to mention that there are numerous tour companies out there that specialize in women's travel. Trips near and far, familiar and exotic, by, with and for women. Such a tour could be just the ticket.

The TIME article about baby boomer women that we talked about earlier mentioned one company, Gutsy Women Travel( www.gutsywomentravel.com ). Gail Golden, the owner, says that half the women who sign up for her tours are married, but their husbands aren't interested in travel. So, she goes, he stays home, and everybody's happy.

You might also want to check out Evelyn Hannon's Journeywoman.com ( www.journeywoman.com ). You can sign up for the free Journeywoman newsletter that lists dozens of wonderful trips just for women. Hannon's site and newsletter are good places to connect with other women travelers and find information about travel possibilities you never knew existed. You'll want to update your passport by the time you log off.

Lori, what recommendations do you have for someone who has never been to California, but only has one week to visit?

I have never been. I'm dying to get there. Thank so much.

Dotsie, for a first-time visitor to California with one week to spend, I'd say San Francisco should absolutely be your target.

It's a physically gorgeous city with history, architecture, ethnic neighborhoods, views and restaurants galore. It's vibrant, colorful, brilliant. Beaches, bridges, hills, painted ladies (Victorian and otherwise), boat trips, cable cars, surfing, shopping. I could go on and on.

And, just outside the city, there's an array of day trips to choose from. Take the ferry across the bay to Sausalito. (I've walked back to San Francisco from Sausalito -- around the headlands and over the Golden Gate Bridge. A long, windy walk, but it was great fun.) You can travel south on Route 1 to Monterey, taking in incredible coastal scenery and towns enroute. Or, head north over the Golden Gate to the Marin County headlands and redwoods. Keep going north, and you come to Point Reyes and Bodega Bay, hauntingly beautiful and remote-feeling (passing glorious Stinson Beach that I mentioned in an earlier post). And, of course, there's wine country, if vineyard-visiting is something that interests you.

One week for a California first-timer? San Francisco, hands down. You could spend a month and still miss half.

She's never been to California? I think we have a communist on our hands!

Dianne,
That's exactly what I've been telling her. Dotsie has never been to the desert either and I'm not sure she's ever even been west of the Rockies. That should be illegal!

I think since she's never been to CA before, she should go to southern California where it's really "California" with a capital C.

San Fran may be far too sophisticated. I mean the scenery is fabulous, but shucks, it's almost like Baltimore or some classy place like that (Well except for a few places that is). I think Dots should tour Hollywood with all it's sleaze. She needs to go to Venice Beach and do all the really low down California stuff. She could go see Jay Leno and take the Universal Studio tour and go to the amusement park then amble down to San Diego and over into Tiajuana and Rosarita!! She could stay those beautiful hotels with rooms that open directly onto the ocean.

And she could shop all along the strips where you can buy drugs without a prescription and everyone comes out to try to entice you in and the men all flirt with you and it's kind of dirty and all the overpasses are painted in themes of fish and umbrellas and beach balls with bright Mexican colors.

WHOOEE! That would put her in culture shock for sure. Gee, I want to go too.
smile

[ May 23, 2005, 06:26 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

P.S. And she could go to the bullfight in Tiajuana! Boy what a trip that would be. We gotta' get this woman indoctrinated to the "colorful" side of life.

Haaaa! LOL. You guys know Dotsie better than I do. Maybe southern Cal is the best place for her to spend her very first California week. Baptism by sleaze, beachballs and bullfights.

Yup, on second thought, Dotsie, save San Francisco for your second trip. Head to L.A., San Diego and Tijuana. And take Smile along as your tour guide. She seems to know all the hot spots!

Oh Lori,
I'm so glad you agree. Dotsie really NEEDS to go on the sleaze tour. And Venice Beach will be a wake up call for sure. She would love the chain saw jugglers and the world's oldest wino and the nearly naked joggers.

The Tiajuana bullfight is best with a few--no a bunch -- of very cold Coronas. The music is spectacular, very operatic with dozens of horns and all the musicians dressed in bejeweled purple outfits with jeweled purple sombreros. Surrounding the arena is a carnival type thing with color everywhere.

And driving down the Baha coast to Rosarita and Mexicali is a an absolute feast for the eyes and the spirit. The ocean laps the road in places and the hotels are practically in the water.

Everything is a handmade work of art from ornate mirrors to mud dolls. There are Mexican wedding dresses, hand tooled leather purses. gun belts and saddles. Evrything is paited in the bright colors of Mexico. But if you stop to shop, hire the kids who will come up to ask to watch your car, or else the wheels may leave while you're gone. Love it.

Oh yes and don't drink the water. Tequilla is recommended for breakfast, lunch and dinner. WHOOOEE!!

Oh Dots, I should turn around and go with you. I like Mexico and So. Cal. even more than D.C.
smile

Notice how quickly we moved from San Francisco to Mexico? It's all connected. Life is one big road trip.

I've never been to a bullfight. I think I'd need a boatload of Coronas just to get through it. Do they kill the bulls in Mexico?

My brother-in-law lives in Phoenix and owns an RV, and every spring he piles his family in the camper and they head down the Mexican coast on the other side of the Gulf of California from the Baja Peninsula. They camp right on the beach in a little town whose name escapes me. It's not all that far south of Nogales, and lots of Americans head down there to camp. I'll have to send him an email and dig up the name of the town.

Have you been to Cabo, Smile? You've got me wanting to drive down the Baja coast to Rosarita. Sounds fabulous.

Why don't you see D.C. real quick, swing up to Baltimore and kidnap Dotsie, and then whisk her west to school her in the ways of chainsaw jugglers and tequila breakfasts.

I love San Fran too. Drove along highway 101? up the coast all the way to Oregon. What beautiful scenery. Have you seen the sea lion caves? I loved that. Of couse up the east coast is beautiful too.

But there's nothing quite like southern California and Mexico.

Been to canbo. Beautiful. Xtapa even more beautiful and and peurto vallarta a little touristy but luxurious and cancun, nice, Guatalahara, rich and poor, Mexico city rich and poor too.

I wonder if your friends in Phoenix go to Peruto Penasco a.k.a. Rocky Point. Oh what an adventure I had there. Beautiful too. And the food was wonderful. Huge fresh caught, fresh grilled shrimp like I've never tasted before or since.

BTW, I have written an unsubmitted, unpublished, novel about a middle aged divorcee traveling to all those places with a much younger lover. Long story... (250 pages). It was lots of fun researching and writing.

Go west young Dotsie, Go WEST!!
smile
P.S. Yes they do kill the bulls if the bulls don't kill them first. Very dangerous sport. Blood everywhere. We rode on a bus to the fight. A guhy on there was in a body cast and lucky to be alive. He couldn't wait to get the cast off so he could fight again. Of course they do butcher and eat the bulls so I guess it's not all in vain. It was an experience.

[ May 24, 2005, 01:32 AM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

The book about the divorcee stranded in California who hires the young buck to teach her to drive her ex-husband's convertible? You need to find an agent and get that story out there!

And yes -- it's Rocky Point! Thank you for saving me from a sleepless night. I would have played brain games all night trying to think of the name. I knew it was Something Point...

Yes, Route 101 north of San Francisco was part of our "Ribbons" journey, sea lion caves included. The kids had a blast sliding down the great Oregon dunes.

I didn't want to leave the raw, fogbound beauty of the coast, but then we turned inland into the great redwood forests, and life went from incredible to incredible.

Dot's I hope you read my plans for your big California tour. Good bye empty nest. Hello California!!
Girls, I apologize for hogging the F.A. topic. Can't help it. Lori just gets my travel juices flowing and I am compelled to type.
Yes Lori, that's the book. I forgot I had posted about it. I had put it away and tried to forget it, but your posts bring it back to my mind. It was my way of using some of my travel journals.
Rocky point was so beautiful and unspoiled. A tourist mecca in the making. Roadside stands with trinkets and colorful dresses hanging on lines blowing in the wind. Three brightly colored hotels on the beach still not completely constructed, but accepting guests, still surrounded with unused building material. Dinner of huge freshly caught shrimp on the roof of a ramshackle restaurant overlooking the ocean crashing on the rocks. Rental Jet skis for riding the waves. Gee, I want to go back.
I liked the redwood forest too. Isn't going from the the huge openness and hot light of the ocean into the cool green enclosure of the giant redwoods wild. Kind of like entering a new world or an air conditioned tent.
I must have missed the Oregon Dunes or else I forgot. Tell us more.
smile
P.S. How is the running injury? I hope it's getting better. Maybe walking will do for a while. You might try walking with weights on your legs (though most doctors advise against it). I think the extra exertion helps you reach the running high or something. And when you take them off to run, you can leap forever and it's like Flying. Gee, you make me long to run again. I must have been a Jaguar in a previous klife,. Maybe after I'm fully healed from the surgery.

[ May 24, 2005, 09:28 AM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Hey Smile, please, hog away! (Before turning in last night I read the posts about jawjaw's forthcoming book and July F.A. appearance. Imagining the scores of people that will jump into that forum and the thousands of posts it will generate, I went to bed and had a mini-nightmare in which Dotsie was upset with me because my forum wasn't as lively as the Queen's. Trixie was in the dream with her little crown.)

Leg's not good. Had MRIs Saturday and will know the verdict next week, but I'm thinking stress fracture in the pelvic/hip joint area. Leg just doesn't seem to want to support my weight. I'm pool-running, NordicTracking and biking. I don't get too crazed about injury layoffs anymore. It happens. Relax, heal, then get back out there. If this is the worst thing that happens to me, I'll take it. I'd like to be healed by the end of June so I can train for a September marathon in NH, but we'll see how it goes. There's always another marathon.

What kind of surgery did you have?

How's this for serendipity? I always read a magazine while I eat my breakfast. This morning, I read Conde Nast Traveler (which I hate -- way too precious and chi-chi, but I got it free using some old frequent flier miles I had kicking around). Anyway, they had an article about Baja. It didn't mention Rosarito, but mentioned towns on the Sea of Cortez/Gulf of California side of the peninsula. Talked about old Spanish missions and caves with 9,000-year-old paintings and places like San Ignacio and the Playa el Requeson, where you can park your RV for two bucks a night with hookups, and the highway between Loreto and Santa Rosalia, which skirts hidden turquoise coves the whole way. I'm going. You've inspired me!

And the Oregon Dunes. After you pass through Coos Bay on the Oregon coast, heading north, you enter Oregon Dunes National Seashore, which runs for miles. We hung out at Spinreel Campground and Umpqua Lighthouse State Park. There are ATV rentals at Spinreel, and people of all ages sail up and down the dunes on these four-wheelers. As a Harley pilot, that ought to be right up your alley, Smile.

Why, if you've hijacked Dotsie and have made it as far as California, tie her down and take her up to Oregon, and then tell her to hold on while you fly over the high, yellow sand dunes, the Pacific glistening in the distance. She may never go back to Baltimore.

Lori, One of the most insane trips I ever took, I have no idea why, was to drive along the Mexico U.S. border with a friend in the middle of summer. What an eye opener that was.
Incredibly hot, desloate and poverty stricken with many of our major industries in big buildings just feet across the line, all surrounded by huge stretches of desert and incredible poverty. Roads through mountains of barren red boulders with dangerous sharp curves where running off the mountain was a real possibility at every turn.
Almost no traffic, but lots of vacant eyed Mexican border guards standing in the blazing sun with machine guns. Scary, but interesting. I wonder if it's still the same.
I will pray for your healing. I know how depressing immobility can be, especially if you have always been active. I'm sure you will be back out there in no time.
smile
P.S. I wonder where I was when we drove past the dunes. Must have been asleep. I'm sure I would have noticed such an interesting sight. ??

[ May 24, 2005, 12:11 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

I've been to Cabo where happy hour begins at 8 AM! I am not a fan of Mexico. I don't feel safe there and never have.

There is a little town outside of San Diego called Carlsbad that I loved. Very cool. Redondo (sp?) beach is also beautiful. Carmel...ahhhh.

Dianne,
I guess I like a little danger when I travel. Kind of like riding a roller coaster I suppose. Makes me feel blessed to survive.
I respect the desperation of the poverty in Mexico and I try to use caution, but I just love the Mexican people so much that I never truly feel afraid. I am fascinated by the way they carve everything and paint it some bright color then put lace and ribbons on it. The way they always want to feed you and close everything down to take a nap mid day and everyone seems to smile a lot. I've never had anything stolen or been abused in any way there.
I was never afraid in Europe either. Even in Italy where the police raced around with sirens screaming and the police carried uzzis.
Strangely, the one place that I am frightend is D.C. It's one of the reason I left a great job there and moved to California then home to Oklahoma.
I've been to Carlsbad, both the cavern and in CA. Loved the cavern, but it was a boring drive getting there. Redondo beach and Carmel will have go in Dotsie's soon to be infamous "California Girl tour" for sure.

We gotta' get her out West where """men are men and cows are afraid!""
smile

Smile and Lori, you two have me laughing out loud here. I need to print your suggestions and show them to my husband. He and my youngest did a San Francisco trip last year about this time. Ross took our youngest and three of his friends on a skateboarding/filming adventure. The kids had the time of their lives.

I haven't been west of The Rockies. Every time we take a vacation we hit a beach. I've been to five islands in Hawaii, St. Thomas, St. John, Virgin Gorda, Jamaica, Puerta Rico, Bahamas, Bermuda, get the idea? We always stay at luxury resorts and do water sports and veg out.

Lori, please keep us posted on your injury. I love your spirit. If you can't run on land you run in the water. Nothing's going to get you down.

Smile, you should try travel writing. You've got the talent. Your word pictures are rich and evocative. In every post you've written about a place, you've taken me to that place. And, you keep journals, so you have, likely, a vast store of raw material to work with.

And you've got an edge to your style that grabs a reader. I bet that Thelma-or-Louise/Brad Pitt novel you've got squirreled away is outstanding. You should dig it out, dust it off and see where you can take it.

I, too, love the Mexican people. I've traveled only to the state of Quintana Roo. Did the Cancun thing, and then went down the coast to Tulum and Chichen-Itza, stopping in small towns along the way. We'd just find the main square and sit on the steps of the church or on the rim of the ubiqitous central fountain that never had any water in it and wait for kids to come over and talk to us. They were invariably gentle and lovely. Driving back into the tourist madness of Cancun after that was difficult.

Dotsie, I see tatoos in your future. Rendered somewhere south of the border. Smile will hold your tequila glass while the artist works.

Thanks for your good wishes regarding the leg. God's just giving me a chance to practice the art of patience. But you're right, Dotsie, I'll keep moving regardless. If I can't run, I improvise. It works.

Having a good morning. Just sent off a travel story, and the editor loves it. Doesn't pay much, but it's good for a few days of lunch money for the kids.

Lori, what do you think of all inclusives for traveling with children? We stayed at one in Punta Cana. We went with another family. We had a fantastic time, but the food wasn't nearly as fresh as other resorts we have stayed. Any thoughts?

Dotsie, I think all-inclusives when traveling with kids are a great idea. I'd resisted the all-inclusive route because I'm not a sit-on-the-beach type -- I like to be out in the country tooling around and exploring -- but we had a fabulous experience at the Sunset Beach Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I think the trick is to find an all-inclusive that welcomes children and families (some are geared pretty narrowly to couples, mainly young couples), and then to make sure that the property has activities suitable to the ages of your kids or grandkids.

Dana and Adam were 11 and 14 when we went to Sunset Beach, and they met other kids, stayed out late (the property was secure and guarded), overdosed on snacks all day and generally felt pretty free from the old parental reins. Yet, we knew where they were and what they were up to and checked in on them (between endless free cocktails).

I know a young couple who went to Sunset Beach with two toddlers, ages 2 and 5, and they had a wonderful time, as well. The property has a child-care center for young ones, which enabled the parents to have some free time.

I've recommended www.TripAdvisor.com several times during this forum, and it's a great place to get unbiased feedback from actual guests. You'll find all-inclusives here that the slick travel magazines or mainstream travel websites don't feature.

Which Punta Cana resort did you stay at? We'll definitely consider all-inclusives in the future, particularly as the next few years will mean traveling with teenagers, and I'd love to learn about good properties.

And no, you don't go for a gourmet food experience, but then, I'm not a gourmet, so I was happy as a clam with the buffets. No complaints. But if outstanding food is a focal point of your travels, it's probably best not to go the all-inclusive route.

Well, I'm gonna show some ignorance here...(nutin' new there, eh?), what is an ALL-INCLUSIVES? I'm hoping I'm not the only one who doesn't know? anybody?

I've traveled to Scotland and to England. Other than that, I've visited about 20-30 of our own states and loved every one of them. I just loved reading all of your post. I think if you put your travels along with SMILES, you two would have the globe covered. Wait a minute....What about the deep South Lori? Did I miss that?

JJ

Whoaaaa! It's the Queen. How very cool. I've been fans of you and Trixie from afar. Nice to begin to get to know you.

All-inclusive means, basically, that all the food and drink you can shove into your face during a 24-hour day is included in your price of admission (room rate). And, all the water sports and other diversions you can handle, if you're sober enough. "All-inclusives" are generally found in Caribbean resort areas that cater to Americans wishing to 'see the islands' without venturing beyond the gate of their resort compound. (Sorry, Dotsie, but you know it's true.) It works and doesn't, is good and isn't, depending on your goals, viewpoint, bank account and number of beers consumed.

We've had quite a time here on this forum over the past month. I've had a blast. We've traveled the globe. I'm proud of the thread we've left for others to read. Good people, information, conversation.

Me? About 60 countries and some 40 states. But there's still time, God willing.

I haven't been to Alabama, although my grandfather lived in Birmingham. I've recently started researching our family history, and he was an interesting cat -- before, during and after his Alabama years.

I'd traveled in the South -- Tennessee, Georgia, the Carolinas, Florida, Arkansas -- before the 12,000-mile, post-9/11 road trip that spawned my book. On our "Ribbons of Highway" journey, my kids and I got to know Mississippi and Louisiana, and some of the journey's, and the book's, most important human moments were spent with rangers in the deep, green woods of the Natchez Trace, Mississippi men out for early morning catfish, and Cajun boatmen who knew the bayou like the backs of their hands.

Does Trixie know she's a celebrity?

What -- you're taking Dotsie on the Sleazeball Tour of Southern California and not hiring me as your tour guide??

I'm hurt, peeved, and feeling just a little bit neglected. Okay, a lot.

I will not introduce you to my favorite transvestive country singer in Hollywood. I will not take you to the best place to get your tattoos, alternative piercings and thong bikinis. I won't even take you to a surfing tournament where the spectators drink beer until they fall off the bleachers.

No, no, no.

I won't even take you for a ride in the infamous green minivan in which I took a 2-week tour of non-tacky Northern California last summer. Which I wrote about here, and which you've already forgotten. *sniff*

I am feeling neglected.

Not to worry Meredith, you can take me.

Meredith? Hello?


I was thinking about get blue waves tatooed across my stomach. My stretchmarks would give it that nice rippled effect, don't you think

Does Trixie know she's a celebrity? Give me a break...I caught her twice last week wearing my tiara...outside...talking to the German Sheperd down the street. I brought her in and gave her the "Be yourself, don't pretend to be something your not" speech and when she walked off, I swear I thought I heard her muffle, "oh yeah, this is coming from a woman who wears a tiara and a MuuMuu." But...I could be mistaken. Anyhooo...you have ancestors that tie to Alabama? Holy Moly! That practically makes us kin, don't it? I love Mississippi and its beautiful homes. There are so many. The people there are warm and friendly too. I also love Tennessee and have always said I would love to live there, but honey, give me North Carolina. What a beeeuuuutiful place! Don't you think so?

If you come to Alabama, make sure you visit Tuscumiba...home of Helen Keller, Big Spring Park (laser water show) and the Music Hall of Fame. This is my hometown area. There is also the Coon Dog Grave Yard. You won't be disappointed. As a matter of fact, if you start to come this way, let me know and I'll tell you all of the "thangs" you should see. Hugs, JJ

I can take you on the White Trash Tour in Nashville.

Everyone can go together, in Smile's RV. Smile, looks like you'd better make sure there's lots of bunk room, because it's going to be one riproaring sleaze tour of Southern Cal and hot spots south of the border. They'll have to redefine "recreational" vehicle at the conclusion of this trip. A busload of tattooed, tequilaed boomer women -- and possibly a dog in a tiara -- having their bodies pierced and crooning along with Hollywood's finest transvestite country singer. Everybody will have to write a book about this journey. Dotsie's probably barred the door already so Smile can't hijack her and is thanking heaven that she's had the wisdom never to set foot west of the Rockies.

Yup, Alabama ties, JJ. By way of Brooklyn and Pittsburgh. My grandfather's family escaped Cornwall, England's tin mining life and landed at Ellis Island. His dad mined coal in Pittsburgh, then headed south. I'm not sure what my grandfather's name was when he lived in Birmingham. He was born Steele Pille. But he wanted to join the Navy before he was of legal age, so he enlisted as "Harry Doubleday." Over time, the two names spawned more combinations, and he walked around as Harry Pille et al. for a bit. Not sure what moniker he used in Birmingham.

Thanks for the travel tips on Alabama. I do want to get back down south to do some more exploring. And yes, North Carolina is heaven on earth. In an early post, I suggested some routes for Smile's upcoming trek to the east coast, and those gorgeous ribbons of highway that wind through the Smokies, the Blue Ridge and other pieces of the Appalachians set the soul to stirring.

And yes, the people are lovely. Warm, gracious, welcoming, smart, tough and honest all rolled into one package. Just hanging out with folks informed so much of our "Ribbons" journey. I'll share a book excerpt about a few of them in another post.

When is the sleazeball tour. I can hardly wait. I'm guessing husbands aren't invited!

Lori, your take on all inclusives is interesting. Having three teens, we looked at it from the perspective of being a less expensive way to feed all of us. We didn't take advantage of the booze. Fortunately, the place we stayed wasn't a haven for young drunks. There were lots of families.

jj, I'd love to get to Alabama, and I don't care about sight seeing. All I want to do is meet you!

Diane, I'll take you up on your tour. I've just got to get my kids in college, then I'll be able to hit the road.

My son made it to Rome. He's was going to Vatican Square today. He called yesterday. I could tell by how quickly he was talking that he was having a blast. This is my son that's majoring in Finance. He mentioned how expensive everything was several times. I told him to use some of his skills and be frugal!

Smile, when do you leave on your trip?

Oh Loriiii,

Before you came along and caused me to """spill the beans,""" JJ and I had been planning the First Annual Boomer Tour, Nude calendar, and Thong Escapade.

The plan is to travel around the country picking up boomers and photographing the nude calender.
Meredith can lead the California sleaze tour and jj can lead the Confederate soldier tour.
Then when all us fabulous boomers are pooped from posing for the calendar and... Well, anyway, that's when we'll circle back by the Oprah show to model our tatoos and our new thongs on national TV.

Of course we'll need a man to drive or else we'll never get past the bathroom stop so our plan was to take the Chippendale dancers along. They can drive and "inspire" us. And I'm thinking margaritas on tap.
Being the martyr type, I'm going to let the Chips sit on my lap while JJ (the intellectual type) interviews them for a book.

We were going to kidnap Dots and the sleaze tour was a secret. It was YOU, that caused me to reveal it BTW. So now YOU'LL have to come along to keep Dots under control cause if we ever get her past the Rockies, WATCH OUT WORLD!!!
smile

Hmmm. You think Trixie would do as a hood ornament?? Okay, okay, it was just a thought. If we don't keep her busy, she'll try to steal the chips for sure.

[ May 25, 2005, 01:56 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

P.S.
Oh my gosh!! I just had a thought. I say we add the noodlin' tour to Dotsie's trip. I'll be he guide and we can get a few of those grizzly noodlers to help the Chipendales drive.
Yessirreee!!
If we ever get Dots out of Baltimore, she's in trouble for sure.
smile

Oh my goodness, what have I wrought??!!

What began as a hopefully uplifting, potentially inspiring literary journey into the heart of post-9/11 America has devolved (and don't get me wrong, I use "devolved" here in a good way... )into a wild boomer ride of transcontinental proportions!

Dogs as hood ornaments, ladies sporting a full sartorial spectrum ranging from thongs to muu-muus, nude calendars, male strippers! When do we leave?

You realize, don't you, that your forum threads follow you around the Internet in perpetuity. When Oprah calls and books me, she may start by asking me "mother-child journey" questions, but before the first commercial break she'll be quizzing me about the boomer tour!

Hey everyone don't forget where I live!! I'm in the same state as Oprah!

I'm in. Book it. Stop by TN to pick up this old broad, then we'll head down to get JJ. But, I can't think of one living, breathing human being that would appreciate seeing me in a thong. Not even my mirror. Sounds like a great idea for a book to me.

We're gonna need a bigger bus.

It's Dana's birthday. I'm now the proud mother of two great teenagers. She's trying to decide what to do for her birthday dinner -- either go to a restaurant and order a big hot fudge sundae for her supper, or get Wendy's. Up to her.

Dotsie, I'm so glad to hear you're son's having a great time so far. I've been meaning to ask whether you'd heard from him. Rome is a magnificent city. But the weak dollar is surely making Europe much pricier than it's been in the past. I remember when the Euro was about 80 cents. Now it's about a buck and a quarter.

Before I run off to either Wendy's or ice cream heaven, I wanted to share this book excerpt with JJ. It's about southern hospitality and the kindness of strangers. I'll never forget these two guys. We're in Mississippi:
---


When we got to Natchez, we sized it up as a good place to fish, and we drove to Bailey Park early one morning so Adam could spend some quality river time before the day’s high heat and humidity set in. He looked under the seat for his rod and tackle box. “Where are they, mom? I gave them to you to hold.”

So he did, back in Vicksburg, where I’d laid them down to take a picture. I felt worse than bad. Adam had been looking forward to this. Up in town, there was a K-Mart next to the Natchez Market, where the day before we’d spent a few fun minutes watching red plastic shopping carts roll through the downhill-sloping parking lot and bump into shoppers’ cars. I told Adam I’d replace his equipment as soon as K-Mart opened. But that was over an hour away, and I had ruined this perfect fishing morning. Adam was decent about not rubbing it in, but did utilize his keen eye for opportunity: “Since I’m so devastated, can I have a root beer for breakfast?”

Two men in a pickup backed down the cement boat ramp pushing a Bass Tracker. “How you doin’ today?” asked the driver.

I pointed at Adam, sucking down his 7 a.m. root beer. “Well, right now we’re trying to get over the fact that mom left his fishing rod in a park back in Vicksburg.”

John and Mac immediately became everything good about Mississippi that we needed to know. Our chance meeting meant they couldn’t solve the rod problem (“If I’d a known these kids was gonna be here, we’d a brought some rods – Mac’s got about ten,” sighed John), but they found other ways to show the kids a fine Mississippi River time.

They hoisted Adam and Dana into the bass boat and opened coolers holding yesterday’s catch. Three catfish, a whiskered one and two flatheads, each about six pounds, sat on ice. They looked huge to me, but Mac dismissed them as small, unprofitable fry he hoped he’d be able to sell. “The best eatin’ catfish are about eight to nine pounds.” Size matters in catfish. “Caught a 76-pounder once. Too big. Bad eatin’. Too much fat. Nobody’d buy it.”

Mac told of the “evidence” of a 110-pounder capable of turning the who-eats-whom tables. “River’s got stories.” He pointed to a spot in the river. “Right out there. Eat a man whole.” As Adam listened to the fish tales, I imagined him wanting to get to K-Mart as soon as possible to retool so he could reel in one of these leviathans. He probably also fantasized that I’d empty the Thule and fill it with ice, so we could haul the thing around for a while.

Mac did most of the talking while John got ready to launch. He was going to cross to Vidalia on the Louisiana side to check some catfish lines he’d sunk near a spot where a new hotel was going up. He offered to take us along for the ride. It was tempting to go out on the Father of Waters and watch a Natchez fisherman at work.

But I couldn’t. While intuition sounded the all clear, I needed to err on the side of too much caution when it came to decisions about safety or vulnerability. Keeping my guard up wasn’t something I could compromise on this trip, even if it meant missing some experiences. I had a fitting, but truthful excuse.

“Thank you, but I’m afraid of the water.” Mac, either sharp, sympathetic, or both, said he understood my fear. “So’s John’s girlfriend. She won’t get in the boat.” Then he added, “This river’s taken a lot of my friends.”

But he loved it. “I been on every inch of her. I’ve camped on all these sandbars, me and my wife. We got a generator and TV.”

The signature steel bridge that connects Natchez with Vidalia began to shimmer with heat as the sun assumed its position over the Mississippi. Mac and John told us that about four years back, the water level was so low you could stand on the bridge and look down on a pile of cars and trucks, dumped into the river when a barge hit the bridge in 1945.

By now, John had an overdue date with some catfish lines, and K-Mart was open and ready to sell us new fishing gear. We shook hands. John looked at Adam. “Take care of your mama.”

We felt happy as we drove away. The whole day and the whole country were ahead, and everything we’d left behind was good. “Just think, Adam. Some kid in Vicksburg is catching catfish right now.” Adam smiled. “Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.”

-----------
(Dana just decided. It's Wendy's.)

Lori, I wanted to tell you how much I am enjoying this topic of travel experiences.I must have been bitten by the travel bug while reading on of these posts because I am ready to hit the road.

Happy Birthday to Dana.

chick

Lori,
I want to tell you how much also I have enjoyed your travel experinces . I have just been reading you comments . Did you every get to the state of West Virgina . My husband is from there and we love it . West Virgina is so beautiful and peaseful too me. Just wondering

Lori
Your posts have given us all the travel bug. You have infused me with a whole new travel spirit and now I am ready to GO again.
I stupidly kept putting off actually ordering your book, or maybe I was just waiting for your special deal. Either way, I won't have it during our trip, but I will definitely be traveling with your spirit and will enjoy reading the book even more when I get home.
You gave us the "travel bug" and I bet we gave you the "Boomer bug." Now we may never be able to get through life without traveling and you may never be able to get through a day without boomering.
I'm not leaving for a couple more days and I will be checking in during our trip, but in case I miss you, I just wanted you to know that you've been a terrific Featured Author. Your positive spirit is contagious.
And you might as well face it. You're one of US now.
smile
P.S. Don't think I am forgetting the Sleaze tour. Nosirree!! This trip east is just practice. Yep, I'm practicing up for the Big Boomer Sleaze tour! Whoooeee!!

Happy Birthday to Dana.

[ May 25, 2005, 10:48 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Hello to all -- I'm getting a late start today because I have a bit of a cold, and Mike took the kids to school so I could sleep in. I've got a book reading tomorrow night with a book club - a group of cool ladies in South Boston - and I want to be sure I'm healthy and get my voice back.

Thank you all for your kind comments about this thread. I have to say, I have truly enjoyed it, and I'm sad to see it coming to an end. We've had such fun. Why, I even "met" Dianne's sister, an expat living in Paris and Provence, through this forum. It just took us in so many different, wonderful directions. I'm deeply honored that Dotsie invited me to share "Ribbons" with you and swap travel experiences. When women travel, they learn about the world, but they also discover much about themselves. Travel empowers.

I'm glad I've infected so many people with the travel bug. If you're gonna get a disease, this is the one to get! We'll have to keep each other posted on where our future travels take us. Any plans, Chicakdee?

Nancy, yes, we spent many marvelous days in West Virginia on our "Ribbons of Highway" journey, and I write quite a bit about it in the book. The kids got their first taste of camping at New River Gorge, and we made friends with the campground owner's dog, a crazy pup named Loca who kept barreling up the trunks of trees trying to catch squirrels. She'd fall backwards off the tree, smash to the ground, then do it again, with relish. A dog I think Trixie might like.

We followed the Midland Trail along the Kanawha River and drove through coal towns like Ury, Sophia, Tams , Smither, Boomer, Alloy. We went deep into the Beckley Mine with Jim, an oldtimer who'd spent 35 years working the Sewell seam. We took in Charleston's old cobbled sections and saw the mansions high on the bluff above the Kanawaha. West Virginia was a place that was hard to leave. (But Kentucky horse country was next, so Dana was wild with anticipation.)

Smile, we'll probably talk before you leave, but I've been thinking about your departure and wish you good luck and Godspeed. The same to Danita, as she prepares to take off for South Dakota for Memorial Day weekend. May you both have journeys that fill up your hearts, your minds, your souls. Tell us everything when you get back.

Smile, if you do order "Ribbons," you can certainly order from www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1591134536/ or www.booklocker.com/books/1451.html , but if you'd like a signed copy, remember the special "Boomer" offer I hid in an earlier post. A buck off the book's price, and I pay the shipping for anyone who finds me -- now or any time in the future -- through this thread. $13.95 total gets a signed copy on its way to you. Just put "boomer" somewhere on your check. Tell your friends! (40 Williams St., N. Easton, MA 02356).

(Also, I keep forgetting about this. If you're into e-books, you can download "Ribbons" from Booklocker, the publisher, for only $8.95. You don't get the pretty cover photo of Montana that Writer's Digest book contest judges loved so much, but you get the words cheap...)

Anyway, enough self-promotion. We need to find out whether Sherri's ever seen Oprah (the real lady, not the show). Decatur isn't close to Chicago, I know, but you never know where that connection to the big time might be. I saw Oprah once. Oprah's car, actually. I was riding into downtown Chicago in morning rush-hour traffic, and just ahead of me in the slothlike crawl was a big, gleaming Mercedes with the license plate "Harpo One." I figured it was Oprah. Or at least the person who has the office next to hers. I hadn't written "Ribbons" yet, or I would have propped the book on the dashboard and flung a copy out the window onto the hood of her car.

I have sincerely loved this thread. What a world of information you are. Maybe you could be the guide for a future Boomers trip? If we planned far enough ahead and all saved our dollars, it would be a trip of a life time. Something I'd never forget.

And Lori, I hope you hang around and keep us updated on your many travels or just your life in general. I feel like I've made a very close friend.

Dianne, count on it! As Smile said, I've been "boomerized!"

And don't leave yet, gals. We've got a few more days. Where shall we go next?

Dotsie should host a BoomerWomenSpeak convention in Baltimore. Smile picks up as many boomer women as she can cram into the RV between Missouri and Baltimore. You ride in on your Harley. I captain New Paint. JJ burns rubber up the east coast with Trixie, scarf flying and leather aviator cap atop her canine head, and comes to a screeching halt in front of the Baltimore convention center. "Boomer Women Speak" in lights on the marquee. And, inside the hall, we plan our great cross-country tour. No dress code. From overcoats to thongs, anything goes.

Gotta get downstairs and turn on the TV. The Jeopardy Ultimate Tournament of Champions. I live for the Geography category.

I just had a thought for another addition to the Boomer Tour. We gotta' go on the tornado tour. They're a real thing. People from all over the world come here to chase tornados. WEIRD!! We have all kinds of storm chasers who chase tornados in pickups and they even fly into them in helicopters and film it. We love tornados. It's kind of like noodlin. Living on the edge. Yep we have to to do it. Lots of margaritas first of course.

Lori, this is a whole new book!!! I have the name. It's The spandex insanity tour."

Yessirree. It'll be great. I'm making room in the van as we speak. Anyone need a ride??
smith
smile

[ May 27, 2005, 02:29 AM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Smile, have you ever chased a tornado? (Hmmmm...Why do I think I already know the answer to that question....)

Is this around Branson? When we were on our "Ribbons" journey, we crossed north Texas on a small route that brought us through a few hundred downtowns. We traveled from Texarkana to Amarillo. I remember when we got out near Wichita Falls ("Tornado Alley!" I told the kids), I thought how incredible it would be to see a funnel cloud swirling out there on the vast horizon. We had some very interesting weather on the traverse, and some mighty gorgeous cloud formations, but no twisters. When we walked into the Dairy Queen in Saint Jon, Texas, all the talk was about whether the wind that was whipping up would turn to tornado. The collective wisdom of the locals said no -- and they were right.

When I was young, I lived in Illinois for a spell, and tornado season was always eerily fun. When a storm brewed and the warnings went up, my dad would turn the pool table in the basement onto its side and we'd all wait the storm out wedged between it and the basement wall. We'd have Cheerios and board games and radios, and we kids thought it was all great fun.

Two questions: What's "noodlin?" and do tornado-chasers wear Spandex?

Hey Lori,
We're taking off today. Van's loaded and I'm picking up Dan after work then we're on our way. Did you know Yahoo has maps that show free roadside internet hookups? Yup.
You guys thought you were rid of me for two weeks??? HA!

Like about everyone else in Oklahoma I used to chase tornados. Then I caught one and now I just watch it on TV. We had a huge one here a couple of years ago. Wiped out a path about ten miles long and two miles wide. Missed me though. Your Illinois tornado experience is a lot like mine. We had a small community cellar at the school and in the summer it was the Parteee place.
My mom always wore elegant nightgowns and dressed my sister and I in lacy cotton gowns in the summer so we would look nice for the cellar where we went almost every night. (Seems like tornados only come at night) Daddy would try to drive her crazy getting his hair just right as the wind blew and the lighting cracked. Once we lost my sister who went to sleep in the closet.
All the neighbors and their kids would come to the cellar and we would play games and sing til dawn.

Noodlin' is when men dive into the murky water of creeks and dirty rivers with no breathing equipment at all to pull 100 pound catfish out of under water caves. They do it by putting their bare hands in the catfish's mouth and the fish tries to drag them under. Look under the "enjoyable hobbies" topics for a full discussion. There's a show about it on PBS. It's a must see. Fun stuff. Scary too. Especially if you grab a snake or a catfish pulls you under. Whew!!
But my personal fishing preference is for telephoning.

I don't know if tornado chasers wear spandex or not, but Boomers do. For sure.

Did you go to Branson. Ain't that a trip?? We were going there this weekend, but decided to go home for a boat trip and fish fry instead. Maybe we'll stop there on the way home.

Good traveling to you. Keep us informed. I'm looking forward to reading everyone's travel adventures when I get back.

GO BOOMERS!!
smile

I would love to have a convention in Baltimore. It will happen. I'm thinking 2007, if we can wait that long. I'm torn between having a boomer get together for fun and adventure, or having an organized conference. Maybe a little of both.

Somewhere in here smile mentioned always being happy to get home from vacations. Almost like...phew, we made it home alive. I could totally relate to that.

Do any of you have fears when you travel. If so, what do you fear, and how do you manage them?

There was a time when before we traveled I would make sure the house was clean, all the bills were paid, and everything was in order. Just in I didn't make it back home. Plus, I didn't like coming home to a mess. Now I don't have the time for that. Plus I'm a more relaxed traveler. AM I the only weirdo?

Godspeed, Smile. I can almost hear that van idling from here. I am so excited for you I can hardly type. I'll have to tell the book club women tonight about your impending adventure -- and about BoomerWomenSpeak. This is a wonderful place to unwind, have fun, be silly, be serious, learn new things, get good advice, and get and give support.

You definitely need to write about some of your experiences. If I were a fiction writer, I'd want to hang out with you for a few weeks, because there is definitely a full-blown novel character there. Now I know about noodlin! Wonder why my Mississippi friends John and Mac (excerpt a few posts back) didn't tell us about noodlin! Such a tale would undoubtedly have made it from my journal into my book.

I cracked up picturing you getting all gussied up for the trip to the storm cellar. We just put our comfiest PJs on and focused mainly on having lots of good junk food to carry us through the night.

I did not know that Yahoo maps showed Internet hookup sites. My trip was before WiFi and all the other cool communication methods we have now. That's great to know. I'll check it out. I'll be interested to learn how you keep in touch while on your trip. What worked well, what didn't, etc. It's amazing what you can do today. My publisher, Angela Hoy, owner of Booklocker, has a website called www.WirelessTrips.com . She and her family take off all the time in their RV. (Their kids go to school via Internet -- they live in Maine, travel around in their RV, and get e-educated from a school in Vermont). On WirelessTrips.com, she gives tips on staying connected while on the road -- indeed, she runs several business from her RV when she's not home in Bangor.

Alas, no Spandex for this boomer for a while. But once this suspected stress fracture is healed, look out! My orthopedic surgeon once asked me how long I thought I'd be a runner. I answered by telling him I fully expect to be wearing Spandex to the grocery store well into my seventies. "That's my goal, doc, so how do we make that happen?" Now, each time I come in with some new issue, he just asks where it hurts, orders the right tests, and gets me back out there.

Dotsie -- GREAT question about fears when traveling. We've touched on safety issues, and we touched on stress issues when we discussed Smile's eye motion/ground travel theory, but the subject of travel fear is a big one. I'm going to grab some lunch and come back to it a bit later.

(I'm proud of this thread. I think we've left a wonderful trail here for later readers. A little bit of everything, from sublime to ridiculous, interesting to enlightening, potentially useful to immediately valuable. Nice job, ladies.)

Dotsie, sounds to me like 2007 would work.It gives everyone including you time to plan well ahead of time. An organized /fun combo sounds about right. Maybe we could invite Oprah to "come where we are" on one of the evenings as a guest speaker. Maybe she is not booked that far in advance yet. Just a thought.

chick

"Baltimore 2007" I think the boomer convention sounds wonderful. I bet there'd be a lot of interest in such a gathering, both from BWS members and from potential sponsors, media outlets and the like. Terrific idea. Maybe Dotsie'll be on the cover of the next issue that TIME does about boomer women.

Back to the fear factor. You raised a good topic, Dotsie. I began traveling internationally when I was about 20. And, I was fearless, as most twentysomethings are. I went anywhere and tried anything. I'm sure that my fearlessness stemmed in large part from the fact that I had no responsibilities to anyone but myself. Mike and I were together, but I didn't look at being part of a couple as a reason not to go for the gusto in any situation.

I found fear creep into my travels (and I define fear broadly here -- call it caution, planning, extra care, intuition -- many of the things we've discussed in this thread) when I became a mother.

And I think that's the way God planned it. Most of the time, life has a way of making perfect sense.

My non-mother traveling years gave me the confidence and experience I needed to keep traveling once I became a mom. I knew the ropes, knew what I was capable of, knew the incredible life value of venturing beyond my own backyard, knew I had to extend this gift to my children.

But I also knew where the pitfalls, problems and potential dangers might lurk, and I was able to plan, act and react accordingly.

I think this "fear" that came with motherhood is really a protective, defensive mechanism. When my kids are with me, it helps me protect them. When they're not, it helps me protect me, so that I come home safely to them.

A little fear's a good thing. I've come to welcome and respect it. If I'm traveling and I don't feel at least a bit of it, it's time to stop and take a reality check. If I'm too cocksure of everything, I need a dope slap.

Any little Memorial Day weekend road trips planned?

As soon as we roust the kids from bed, we're off to our cottage in New Hampshire. It's on a small lake, and I haven't been there since February. I hear the bass fishermen are already out in force.

We have Internet hookup up there in the woods, so I'll chat from there, but I wanted to share an excerpt from "Ribbons of Highway" that I think is appropriate for this Memorial Day as we honor and pray for those who've put themselves in harm's way on our behalf and continue to do so.

As most of you know, September 11 was the impetus for the 12,000-mile road trip I'd come to write about in "Ribbons," and terrorism, its aftermath, and the strength of our people both in and out of uniform were with us every mile:
---


We passed the cellphone around and called all the people to whom the words, “We’re in Massachusetts!” would mean something. Now they waited for us, while we rolled the final miles down the turnpike, which felt like a long, green exit ramp to home.

But we’d really been home all along. Our whole journey had been a 12,000-mile discovery of home.


Somewhere out west, Dana had asked, “Sometimes you hear people are different. Then you hear we’re all the same. Which is right?”

Both. We have different ethnicities and backgrounds, different ways of making a living, different geographies and climates, different pastimes, different religions and traditions.

But we’re also the same. We love our families and communities. We love our part of the country, but we respect the rest of it. We work hard. We’re independent. We cherish our freedom. We speak our minds. And, judging by the flags, patriotic symbols, and messages of hope and support that we saw everywhere across the land – on ranches and gas stations, logging trucks and billboards, fishing boats and bumper stickers, churches and diners – we share a love for this nation.

America exceeded my expectations. No part of it failed me or left me empty. It’s a quilt of small, fascinating pieces that give great comfort when sewn together. A kaleidoscope of beautiful shapes and colors that amaze when blended.

On any journey, whether short, long, or lasting whole relationships or lifetimes, you can usually find what you set out to discover. You choose what to look for, what to focus on, what to celebrate. I went on this trip looking for good things, and found great ones.

----
Peace.

Lori, you hit the nail on the head for me. That makes so much sense. My fears:

What if something happens-
-to the kids while we're away
-us, while we're away as a couple
-them, while we're away
-any of us when we're together (this doesn't bother me as much)

Realistically I know any of these can happen while we're home too. It's such crazy thinking.

My husband is a diabetic. While vacationing in Punta Cana he had a major low blood sugar reaction. Fortunately we were all together and each one of us played a part in bringing him out of his seizure. I was so grateful we had one another.

This whole blood sugar issue raises fears when traveling. He would like to go to a third world country to do mission work. I rarely put my foot down, but I won't let him do it.

Lori, I remember reading that part of the book. It was one of my favorites. I could picture you connecting with those at home again. It felt good. Maybe it's part of my, "we made it back alive" thinking.

Gotta turn the sprinkler off, run my daughter to work, and food shop. Yippee.

Have fun on your weekend escape.

As wonderful as travel is, sometimes turning the sprinkler off, running your daughter to work and food shopping are the best darn things in life.

I'm sitting here looking out at the lake swathed in golden light, the trees lit an emerald green. A mallard and his mate are swimming past our dock.

Life is good.

Hello Lori,
Can we come ? We have nothing to do this weekend. No cookout daugther going to two weddings back to back today. I cleaned carpets today Oh, what fun. I want to come over where you are . Complain , Complain . That is me.

[ May 28, 2005, 09:54 PM: Message edited by: Nancy50 ]

I grew up in NYC and we had hurricanes. I was never scared.

We moved to Chicago (and I later lived in Oklahoma) both of which got tornadoes, which completely freaked me out.

Now I'm in California with earthquakes, but I don't think too much about them.

-----------------------------------------
Dotsie, I always try to clean the house before I leave for vacation -- not out of fear, but because it'll be one less thing that needs to be done when I get back home. Whenever I leave for more than a day or two, there seems to be a bazillion things that mysteriously piled up in my absence. Having one less chore just makes my life a little easier.

-------------------------------------------
Baltimore 2007 ??
Can I put in my request for timing?: not during any holidays, and not May, July, Nov. or Dec.

Lori your description of the lake is downright poetic! Travel is wonderful but I know whenever I'm on the last day of a great trip, my thoughts are ALWAYS, "there's no place like home".....

Good morning, everyone. The lake is indeed idyllic, but something in this crisp mountain air is wreaking havoc with my laptop. It's going bonkers. I hope I get through this post. Little poker and "Kill Spyware" pop-ups are bursting out all over the place.

Dotsie, your husband's seizure in Punta Cana must have been a frightening experience. But the fact that you all handled the situation well, calmly and together is a testament to your love and strength. I can understand how having a family member with a medical condition that needs constant monitoring would create special worries when traveling.

And I know what you mean about the passage in the book that connects us once again with home. I remember being very emotional when I wrote those pages. I was reliving the end of an incredibly special journey, but I know I was also sad because the act of writing the book was coming to an end. Writing "Ribbons" was a wonderful journey in itself, one that Adam and Dana also shared with me -- in some ways it's "our" book. Endings, of any kind, are so often tinged with sadness.

At the book club reading the other night, one of the women asked me to describe those moments when we neared our home. She was struck by that part of the story, as well.

Sounds like everybody's cool with the idea of a convention! Look out, Baltimore!

Nancy, if my lake cottage weren't such a wreck right now, I'd invite the whole boomer world up here! But we did some remodeling over the winter, and the place is in total disarray. Furniture in the middles of rooms, carpets rolled up and stacked like logs, boxes of nails everywhere, a giant table saw in the living room. We're living on bowls of cereal, after we clean the drywall dust out of the bowls...

But it is gorgeous. I heard the call of one of our two resident loons early this morning. And a great blue heron took off from the woods and floated past me while I ate my cereal on the deck.

I think I'll try to write something today. (After I do some painting. Priorities...)

I'm with Pam...I'm right there with you as your describe the screen. Does it get any more relaxing than that? Wahhhhhh...I want a cabin. Adopt me. I don't eat much. Okay, that's a lie. But...I clean! Okay, lie number two. I, ah...ah...oh forget it.

JJ

Do you paint JJ? She needs help painting.

OK. Its' an hour later, and I haven't picked up a paintbrush yet. The rest of the family is busy, but I'm finding as many non-painting things to do as I can. Any minute now, my loved ones will tell me to get my butt in gear, I'm sure.

But actually, my butt just was in gear. I may not be able to run right now, but I can bike, so I just took my trusty $79 K-Mart steed out onto the dirt roads and got a little cardio in. A lot of cardio, actually. My K-Mart steed used to have 12 speeds, but they've collapsed themselves down into two. It's work.

I had a good ride, but I also had a rolling reminder of why May is a little tough up here in the woods. It's black fly season. (There's a black fly supper tonight at the town hall. We don't eat them, we just talk about them.) As I was riding, I became a human windshield. My legs and shorts and sweatshirt with the giant moose head on it were plastered with dead flies. I forgot my sunglasses, so two flew into my eyes, and I swallowed about a pound of them. (OK, so we do eat them.)

Still sound idyllic, guys? Still want to come up here to the New Hampshire woods? I guess if you want to enjoy the loons and herons, you gotta swallow a few flies.

The black flies can read the calendar. They appear on the first of May, and they disappear on the first of June. It's uncanny. We've been coming up here for 20 years, and it happens every season. Three days from now, there will be no black flies.

Time to paint. I'm feeling guilty watching all the sweat equity being invested around me.

Oh heck...I thought she meant like water colors, or painting on canvas...you meant paint as in manual labor, right? count me out. Let me know when the works done...what? Hey, I'm fragile...

I'm still trying to figure out how the flies know the calendar...down here the flies must be dumb as poop...they hang around all blasted summer.

JJ

No watercolor art going on up here this weekend. Manual labor and then some. I, however, do not have to paint! We discovered, to my extreme delight, that Dana loves to prime walls. She loves it so much that she asked if she could paint the walls that were assigned to me. How could I deny her this small pleasure?

So, she painted while I went outside, with my mosquito-net hat on to keep those very intelligent calendar-reading flies from flying up my nose, and I hacked down scrub growth that had grown up around the property since last year. Then, I hauled five wheelbarrow loads of the stuff up the road to a dumping area. I paid my dues today.

We're going to skip the black fly supper at the town hall and head into Keene for Mexican food. Keene's a neat little college town not far from the Vermont border in the southwestern corner of New Hampshire. When we're up here in the woods, it's our "big city." Keene is where they filmed the movie, "Jumanji," and there's a mural painted on one of the main square's old brick walls that says, "Parrish Shoes." It was in an opening scene of the movie, and they left it there.

It's going to be a good year for great blue herons. I saw four of them sailing all at once above our cove. I've never seen that many gathered at one time before. Quite beautiful.

And Lori -- I haven't said much in here, but I've really enjoyed reading your descriptions all this month.

Another peaceful morning here in the woods. We're going to try not to work too hard today. It's our 23rd anniversary.

Thank you, Meredith. I've enjoyed being here. We've had some wonderful conversation.

Tell us more about the black fly supper. I think I'd skip it too.

Lori, I've discovered something since reading your book and corresponding with you in this forum. My family travels a lot, but for the most part we don't sightsee like you do. Typically we go to a resort and plant ourselves. We'll truck around town if there's one nearby, visit the market, get a taste for the people by talking with cab drivers, waiters/ waitresses, and other resort employees, but for the most part we relax on a beach.

You have encouraged me to be more adventurous while traveling. It's funny that you should be the featured author while my son is trucking around Europe. He is doing your kind of traveling. I've spoken with him a few times after he's spent the day on buses, trains, walking, and dicovering new sites, sounds, people, etc. I can hear the excitement in his voice.

Thanks for sharing your journeys. You're an inspiration.

Do you write a travel column?

I would LOVE dearly LOVE to do the type of traveling that Lori has done. Right now I'm settling for living it thru her post.

If you don't have a travel column, you should! People would be enthralled!

JJ

Well folks, The smilinize family circus and touring roadshow has now entered Tennessee. We survived Mom's and a big family campout on the Arkansas River and a very long drive to Murfreesboro, Arkansas with a few stops for car shows and a music festival. Diamond mining is terribly hard work and we found NO diamonds, but Alex bought some fakes to take to show and tell so everyone was happy and tired.
Drove through some wonderful pine forest and ate lunch on the summit of a mountain overlooking Hot Springs, AR. Visited the old hot springs spas and a robot zoo at the science museum then back through the oak forests of the Ozarks to Little rock for my personal favorite experience so far (Ask JJ about this one) then past the rice paddies of eastern Arkansas into Memphis where Elvis awaits.
I'll give him a great big boomer kiss for all you girls.

On the road again.
smile
Great stuff Lori!

I'm gonna let SMILES tell you what DanMeister did in Arkansas, but I WILL say it involves Bill Clinton and I will also say that Dan is my hero! hahahahah..

JJ

Hello, ladies --

Great to hear from you, Smile! It sounds like the Great Eastern Road Trip is off to a fabulous start. And I just learned something. I didn't know Arkansas had rice paddies. I'll have to check those out on my next trip south. And how cool is Alex, anyway? He doesn't find any diamonds, so he buys a few fakes. This is definitely a "when life gives you lemons" kind of guy. His glass is half-full, and that kind of attitude will take him far.

We're just back from New Hampshire. Adam did a lot of the driving. We take almost all back roads to get to our cottage up north, and it's three hours of thin, narrow roads. (Rather like our "Ribbons" journey. I have an aversion to interstates if they can be avoided.) He did fine. He has his learner's permit and will be getting his license in August. He's a chip off the old maternal block, too. He's getting his license, if all goes well, on August 8. "You know what I'm doing on August ninth, mom?" he says to me. "No, what?" "ROAD TRIP!!!" (In his dreams...)

The black fly supper went off without us. We ate burritos at Margarita's in Keene. Basically, Dotise, the black fly supper is just an excuse for the folks of Stoddard, NH to get out of the house and socialize after a long, cold winter in the woods and a six-week mud season that tries everyone's patience. The metropolis of Stoddard has about 600 year-round souls. That number swells to about 2000 when you count the folks who own summer lake cottages. A black fly supper is a major social event, like the pancake breakfasts at the firehouse and the Open House that's held once a year at the historical society. People get to look inside the "Hearse House" and see where they used to park the horse wagons that rolled the dead from their living room wakes to the church on the green to the town cemetery.

Dotsie, I'm glad I've perhaps inspired you to do a bit more exploring on your next vacation. (Your son will be a pro by then. He can be your tour guide.) There's so much magic to be found everywhere. You just need to get yourself around that next bend, over that next hill, down that next street. There are wonders everywhere. With each trip, push yourself just a bit farther than last time. Before you know it, you'll be discovering and learning more than you ever dreamed.

Do I have a travel column? Well, effectively, yes. My blog, http://RibbonsofHighway.blogspot.com is a travel column. I write new stories for it two or three times a week. It's an amazing amount of work, and I don't earn any income from it, but it's a joy to write these stories and share them. I do it in the hope that blog readers will say, "Hey, I like the way this chick writes. I like the way she tells a tale. I should check out her book."

But, I do want to get serious about finding a paying venue to which I can contribute an ongoing travel column. I write lots of travel stories for magazines and online publications, but I have such a vast inventory of travel tales, tips and photos that I could easily produce a column a week or a month. (Heck, I could produce one an hour). I just need to find a publication, whether print or online, that would like a regular travel column. I'm going to get busy looking into that. Thanks for putting that bug back in my ear.

When I land one, I'll let you know. Until then, bookmark my blog.

I'm so glad your son is enjoying his vagabonding. The fact that he sounds excited when he talks to you means he's really getting into the places he's visiting. Getting down under the surface a bit and finding a place's hidden "diamonds."

Smile, we need to hear the Dan/Bill Clinton story.

My last day as Featured Author. Wow, the month went by fast. I've enjoyed meeting and talking with you all. A special thank you to Dotsie for having me.

Wherever the road of life takes you, may the journey be a good one.

Quick post for Smile when she checks in. Your book order came today, and I'd like to thank you. I'll pop your signed copy into the mail tomorrow. Folks tell me the book takes about a week to arrive, so it should be waiting for you when you get home.

After you've read it, feel free to post a review on this thread.

I'd be honored to have others consider adding "Ribbons of Highway: A Mother-Child Journey Across America" to their home libraries. "Ribbons" is a lovely summertime (or anytime) read. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Order online anytime, but also keep in mind the special Boomer-only signed copy offer I've mentioned in this thread.

My way of letting you all know how much I've enjoyed spending the past month with you.

Blessings all around,

Lori

Hi all.
Bringing Lori back cause she's my inspiration for undertaking this cross country tour and I thought someone might enjoy a litte travelogue of our trip.
We've ambled through the backroads at a snail's pace all the way from Oklahoma so we are behind our expected schedule, but we are thoroughly enjoying the trip.
Because we've had Alex along we have done things and noticed things we would otherwise not have seen or appreciated.
The Bill Clinton Library incident is available only by personal request. I have to tell you though, I personally consider it a work of art.

We have traveled the back roads through the Ozarks and are in Knoxville entering the smokies. In central Tennessee, we traveled through towns deserted for the interstate and lots of places where front yard junk seemed to be the only source of employment. There were also wonderful houses with wide front porches under tall pines and wide magnolias. Both the rundown shacks and the stately plantations were beautiful in different ways.
In Memphis, we went to Graceland which was one of my personal favorites. I've been there many times before and after his death, but for a variety of reasons, never took the tour. It was fun to do it this time with Dan and Alex, both of who went in skeptical and came out fans. Even Alex was impressed. I had a fried banana and peanut butter sandwich, not my favorite, but Elvis ate it so it's gotta' be good for soemthing. The whole experience was fun. Elvis LIVES!!!
Somewhere outside Memphis, we wound up on Loretta Lynn's Plantation site and enjoyed that a lot. All very well put together and lovely.
We again traveled the backroads through the foothills of the smokies and today arrived in Knoxville. In the smokies, the trees are tall and the streams run clear over huge boulders among the lush and colorful vegetation. We had to stop to ask directions several times and everyone was very friendly. Their directions were often confusing, but they were real nice about it.
We haven't yet spent the night in the travel van. I'm not sure why since he has a pool at his house and I have one at mine that he uses, but Alex wants to swim every day and we're just not well enough informed to find a campsite with a pool. Also we're too pooped to camp though we have picnicked a few times and enjoyed that a lot.
Tomorrow we'll tour some things that interest DAn and then be on our way toward Washington. Still on the back roads as much as possible.
Please pray for a continued safe and happy trip.
smile

Oh, Smile, this is wonderful. I feel like I'm right there with the three of you as you make your leisurely meander through the country. It is truly marvelous, isn't it -- a back road journey into America? It just fills you to the brim.

I'm putting in my special request for the Dan/Clinton library tale. Sounds like a doozy.

God bless you as you continue on your wonderful trip. Enjoy every moment.

Hi Lori and all,

We returned from South Dakota, they had to bring me back kicking and screaming. I just loooove that country!

I convinced my interstate driving husband to drive the back roads...I love going through those "typical Amercian" small towns.

Our car was packed to the gills with my hubby, 2 children, and my teenagers' boyfriend. We call him "Herbo" (her bo, get it?). He has never been out of MD or NJ, so it was so much fun taking him with us. (he's actually a very nice young man, but not good enough for our daughter. (you know) lol))

We stayed in Custer Stated park this time in a lovely camping cabin. This is really a glorified hotel room with the ability to build a campfire right outside your door, but that REALLY works for me. So, you get the luxury of your own bathroom, running water, electricity, beds, and (don't lose your mind here) cable t.v....with the charm of cooking on the campfire (the MEN do the cooking) and eating way too many smores! Loved it!

We hiked "Harney Peak"...and if you are EVER in S.Dakota -- this is a MUST DO! Now, it is definitly like planned torture, but when you get to the top - you are on the top of the world. It is amazing! The hike should have taken us about 3.5 hours - but we did the Lori "backroad" thing (lol) and it took us about 5 and 1/2. Ughhhh. We had two smokers and a 3 yr old with us...need I say more! I kept reminding everyone to ENJOY THE JOURNEY...we had a great time.

I tested "speaking faith" into the 3 yr old...I told her she was the best hiker in the group...and that she was the princess of hiking. You sould have seen that kid walk. 3 miles one way, 1 mile almost straight up at the end. I made sure she was the first to reach the summitt and applauded her! (she's a peanut also - the steps at the end came up to her waist, and she still went up them unassisted).

I've decided that "home on the range" was written about the black hills. "Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam, where the deer and the antelope play...where seldom is heard, a discouraging word...and the skys are not cloudy all day" (or something like that)

The people of s. dakota are wonderfully nice and warm.

My hubby and I are planning our summer home there when we've achieved financial freedom. Woo hooo S.Dakota, look out. The Jones' are a coming!

danita

smile and danita, I'm grinning from ear to ear.

Smile, I'm still hoping to see you in DC. Might you arrive there alter? Just let me know.

Danita, I love the boyfriend comment. Way too funny.

Lori, see what you've started?

This is just too cool. More off-the-interstate converts! Awesome, isn't it? Smile and Danita and their clans discovering back roads and small towns and secret, quiet places no one knows about but the people who live in them.

Danita, you had me huffing and puffing up Harney Peak right along with you! Herbo, the smokers and the 3-year-old princess of the peak! Harney's now on my must-see list.

Who cares what the price of gas is? Fill 'er up and get out there! I've gotta break out my American road atlas and plan a new road trip. As we've found during this thread, travel talk is contagious. And, when you put that talk into action, the wonderful wanderlust disease just gets stronger.

I've been doing a lot of reading about Russia to prepare for my and Dana's upcoming trip, and as I learn more about that country, I find myself feeling ever more thankful that, while I can visit nearly any place on earth, I live in a land where I could put the key into the ignition tomorrow if I wanted, and just take off and explore America's millions of miles.

Life is good, ladies.

Keep on rollin',

Lori

OK, Lyn369, you'll be happy to hear that I took an "unplanned" back road trip in Colorado Springs yesterday.

An hour LOST on the backroads in the middle of NOWHERE!

I tried to think "happy thoughts", but all I could think of was the coke, chocolate, and chips I was going to get when I found civilization.

1 hour, and about 60 miles later -- I found life. Uggghhhhh.

Sometimes backroads aren't so pleasant! LOL

danita

Oh Danita, you poor thing. Did you get your treats at the end of the trail?

chick

ahyup! You bet I did. It just was one of those "non magical moments". LOL

I lived to tell the story...that's all.

And with gas prices being what they are..I thought, "MY husband is going to kill me"...

So I came home and told him the response I was looking for BEFORE I told him what happened...it all was good.

Lynn had came to my neck of the woods and had gotten lost - so I knew she would appreciate it. lol!

Chick: the score: 75 listed - 7 sent out in one wk. Wooo hooo. Thanks for being my inspiration!

d.

Danita, you in turn have inspired me. What goes around, comes around.
Lori, we miss you around here.
chick

Hi ladies,

Well, the travelers we've talked with and about in this thread are all home. Danita's back from South Dakota (and back from her little jaunt into the Colorado Springs "wilderness" ), Dotsie's son has returned from Europe, and Smile's RV is parked back in Oklahoma. She sent me an email and said she took copious notes and lots of photos. Perhaps she'll write about the journey.

I'm a woman without a country right now. My passport is sitting at the Russian consulate in Washington, awaiting a visa. It's been there since April. I hate when that little document is out of my hands. But I'm not going to argue with the Russians. I'll just sit tight and hope it shows up before Dana and I have to head to the airport for our flight to Moscow...

When are you going to Moscow?

Lori,
I'm reading Ribbons now and love it. I feel like I'm there with you. It's makikng me want to take off again.
I will be anxiously awaiting information about your Russia trip. I have been wanting to visit Russia since I took a Russian history course a while back. Boy do they ever have a colorful history. If you can find it, the book about the last Czar of Russia, Czar Nicholas (not sure of the exact title) might be a good reference for the trip and it's a great read too.
I am convinced that our road trip helped heal the trauma of my surgery and I swear I'm feeling much better (now that I've just about recovered from the inertia hangover from the trip that is).

You're one of us now so you have to check in often. I can't wait to hear more.
smile

Hi all,

I'm thrilled you're enjoying Ribbons, Smile. So many readers have told me "I feel like I'm right there with you," and I take that as the highest compliment.

I survived the world's deadest booksigning today. It was so bad, it was comical. Seven local authors squirreled away in a top-floor conference room at a public library. Five of us were booksigning veterans and took it in stride, but two guys were newbies and nearly busted their veins. Fun stuff. I decided to sit back, eavesdrop and take notes, and am sitting here writing "Scenes from a booksigning." I'm giggling just reading over my notes.

Dotsie, I'm going to Moscow at the end of July. Just me and Dana. Three days in Moscow, then an overnight train to St. Petersburg, then three days in that gorgeous city on the Baltic. I promise to tell you ladies all about it. We're traveling with General Tours out of Keene, NH. I've traveled with them before, and they offer great trips at great prices.

Smile, I have been doing some research and reading about Russia. Knowing something about a place before you visit enhances a journey a hundredfold. I recorded the movie, "Nicholas and Alexandra," about the last czar, executed with his family following the 1917 Bolshevik revolution. I also read "Russia," a 1970's first-person account by the then New York Times Moscow bureau chief, and "The 900 Days" about the Nazi siege of Leningrad (think cannibalism and eating wallpaper paste). Now, I'm trying to plow my way through the 700-page "Empire of the Czar," written in 1939 by a visiting Frenchman, the Marquis de Custine. The book's a handful and a bit tedious, but it's a classic, so I keep pecking at it day after day.

Smile, I've thought often about your recent journey and am so happy it was such a positive one -- on many levels.

May your ankle heal well. I'm dealing with a minor stress fracture and am laid off from running until August or so. I'm biking and swimming instead and have crossed my planned September marathon from my calendar. But, as Dana said to me after an injury a few years back, "So, you'll just get better and get back out there, right mom? There's always another marathon, right mom?"

Right, Dana.

Hugs to all,

Lori

Lori
I am so glad to hear you are stayng in shape while recovering from your injury. I'm sure you will be back to running soon. In "Ribbons," I am recognizing a kindred spirit.

I am coming to realize that like you, I have always been a runner and had a need to travel. The need to run was born in me and it has helped me so much in life. Through 3 car accidents with 31 broken bones, 21 of which are in my left ankle, multiple orthopedic surgeries, and cancer, I instinctively ran and walked my way through the pain back to health. Recently I am coming to understand the healing benefits of seeing scenery passing by as in traveling by train or car. And in your book I can see the healing that was taking place in your spirit as you traveled cross country.

A couple of years ago I was in a big city and got away from running. I became weak, and the arthritis from the injuries became worse. When I tried to walk myself back to health as I always had, my previous injuries worsened and I wound up in surgery for a total reconstruction of my left leg and ankle.
I was hospitalized for a week and in a cast from December 9, 2004 to April 17, 2005. I couldn't seem to get better and was still in great pain when we left to drive cross country to D.C. The depression was as debilitating as the surgery. I felt that spirit was broken and I would never get back to my old self.

Your posts somehow got me going for the trip and I just watched the scenery go by as I relaxed into the drive. When we got to D.C. I had recovered enough enthusiasm to walk about two miles around the mall the first day. The pain made me sick, and I rested much of the second day, but despite the pain the walking was good for me.
I PMed you about the the trip being a sort of closure for my friend's death and I believe the scenery passing by helped me recover from the trauma of that and the surgery. The love with which my husband and grandson surrounded me on the trip was certainly an important part of the healing as well as the prayers of boomers.

I was exhausted for a few days when we got home, but each day I am finally feeling better and the enthusiasm is returning to my spirit. As I read "Ribbons," I identify so strongly with your 'need for speed' as it manifests itself in your need to travel and to run. I think I have the same need. Maybe lots of boomers do.

Thank you for being our featured author and for writing such a joyful book.
smile

[ June 19, 2005, 03:53 AM: Message edited by: smilinize ]

Smile, I feel honored by all that you've shared with me, especially in your email and in this last post. I, too, feel we're kindred spirits.

And, that you feel I've played some role in helping you recapture some of your life zest and enthusiasm is a blessing to me and alone makes writing "Ribbons" worthwhile.

You find life's riches in unexpected places.