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 |   A Journal to impart knowledge and facts |
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July 22, 2015 I'm going to start today to record on a daily basis whatever happens to strike my fancy. So, it is a very cool breezy day. I just posted 5 short book reviews to The Monthly Reading Challenge. I'm suppose to put away some winter wood today from the woodpile outside but I'm playing hookey from work to write so starting this blog will get done. I'm having a daily fight with a flock of English Sparrows that are trying to take over my barn. They are making a terrible mess so they have to go. I have destroyed several nests so far they don't leave but they get out of the barn when I am around. I'm just starting the fight so I guess I don't know how far I have to go to discourage them. I'm trying not to spread myself to thin on WDC because I find so many things that are interesting here and I am trying to work on a new story. I really enjoy sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and reading blogs on WDC. |
BCoF:So this is your opportunity to really make 30 day bloggers envious. Talk about the experiences by reading the reviews and then make it personal.  Montreal Barbie: Barbie isn't my favorite toy, person, or entity. This was very much like I expected. Walking into the Barbie expo was a sparkling experience. Something Barbie would expect on a regular basis. Chandlers, floors polished to a sheen. I was wearing tennis shoes in a no slip effort. The outfits were complete with purses, and jewelry. Any model would be excited to wear these outfits, only they were the garments of dolls. The runway display complete with Barbie and Ken type dolls as an audience is  . Many of the outfits were fit for a fairy princess. All the different styles were there. Shopping dress, sportswear, evening attire, elegant gowns for elegant parties, masquerade balls, and costumes from other countries. The designer had fun with this gig. Even the photographer was a mover with 1,621 photographs. I have to say as a parent I made some different dresses for Barbie type dolls, but mostly, Barbie lost arms or legs at times or her head. One barbie downfall is she didn't fit in the doll house. Never mind there were small figures of raccoons, bears, and other mammals selling at that time that did fit. One time the dog chewed her up. Her life on the farm was rather harrowing. She is definitely better off in Montreal. I bet the expo was a success and the store sold a lot of Barbies as well as ken and other members of the doll family. THE END |
| Well, we're ending our month long adventure in Montreal. Another early morning just over 2 hour flight to Montreal. I got everyone a room at the Four Seasons. Today is our last day of continent hopping. So let's go out in style. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g155032-d16722291-Reviews-Four_Seasons_... I've offered 3 museum choices, feel free to pick whatever interests you. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g155032-d155193-Reviews-Insectariu... https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g155032-d6784342-Reviews-Museum_of... https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g155032-d11716180-Reviews-Barbie_E... We're meeting up after lunch at 2:00 pm to do a private walking tour. https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g155032-d12561325-Old_Montre... Dinner is at the Famous Tandem. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g155032-d2709343-Reviews-Restauran... The BCoF bloggers went on a different adventure so over dinner you need to tell them what they've missed and go back to one of their blog entries and tell them what you liked.  Montreal The two hour flight to Canada was not to bad. A restful flight looking down at clouds. The Four Seasons Hotel is grand. It has all the luxury a tourist could want. I think I would like to stick close to Sandra Lyn during our walking tour. She may know lots of things a native would be able to tell us. I viewed the Insectitorium Museum. It was a special place. I liked the exhibits and viewing the many different displays of insects was enlightening. I also checked in on the Olympic Park Scavenger Hunt. I always did like scavenger hunts. This one uses the hunt as a way to show tourists some of Montreal. Some of the places on the hunt include Botanical Gardens, a monument to the 375th anniversary on Montreal, Chateau Dufresne, and the planetarium. After lunch we took that tour of old Montreal. Like many large cities Montreal has its' old and new parts. I guess the Olympic Park is one of the new parts. The Tandem was a surprise. I ordered the salmon. There serving many smaller portions is fun because you get to sample different flavors. I wondered if being able to bring your own wine is unique or I'm just ignorant about fine dining? Our tour is over. Time to go back home. Once again I come away with more knowledge about other countries than I had before. ![Merit Badge in Travel
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Prompt: Which one of these 15 Things to do in Charlotta https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g49022-Activities-Charlotte_North_Caroli... is the most fun? Fun for me denotes different types of experience. The Segway tour had its own appeal because it did a quick review of important parts of Charlotte. I enjoyed the museums because I like stuffing my brain with lots of different types of knowledge about past and present. Art is one of the ways people express life experiences. Art and literature and the people who create it are some of the first people who get eliminated when evil starts taking charge. A good example is the recent attacks in the USA on historical statues around the country and particularly in the South. There is a section in one of the museums about ancient Indian art from before Charlotte became the city it is today. If you view the architectural wonders in stadiums and buildings you might forget that this was a place that was once inhabited by Indians, before the white people came and the slave trade invaded. There is a rich history in this city that is interesting to view and hear about. It includes the ghost stories, the architecture, and social climate. Graveyards are a great place to learn about the people who used to inhabit an area. So, I guess the extensive museums were the most fun for me in this particular city. ![Merit Badge in Point of View
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| 30 Day I hope you grabbed a nap because our feet hit the ground we're off and running. We're doing a segway tour with Charlotte NC Tours. This Charlotte Segway excursion lets you see more in less time than if you were to take a walking tour. Zoom through the area to see Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, the Mint Museum, and Gantt Center. Plus, we extended our tour to see even more sights for just a few extra bucks we're also seeing the stadium home of the Carolina Panthers and two cemeteries.. https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g49022-d11453425-Historic_Up... Don't forget to talk about your day, the things you saw and who surprised you. Charlotte The Segway tour was a quick way to view the city. I learned that the city has well educated residents. There is a university in the city. The museums are extensive. They contain any kind of art you can think of including historical pieces, famous artists works, and crafts from early history to today's art. The museum system is housed in different parts of the city. The buildings used are classic designs like the mint museum to more modern designed buildings like Bechtel Museum of modern art. Funny bus was about touring the city with a guide that was quick witted and had sarcastically funny comments to keep you entertained while pouring the history of the city into your brain. Humor is always a good way to remember facts later. Beer and wine are allowed on the bus but not hard liquor. The ghost walk was very educational. It was an evening walk with a guide who carried a lantern. Charlotte has a colorful history that was entertaining to hear about. There is a lot of older homes that are very beautiful. Different types of architecture some from civil war to modern are on view in the city. Lots of beautiful stained glass and church de co in this city. The NASCAR Hall of Fame is located here. Charlotte is the most populous city in N. Carolina. I visited the 7th street market where you can stock up on all kinds of fresh fruits and vegetables. In the interest of tourism Charlotte offers convenience of parking in the down town area. Not as spectacular as Belize but a lot of local history to contemplate and discuss over good food. |
| BCoF:There are many other things that Belize is noted for, talk about those by pretending to be real estate agent trying to convince us this is a great place to relocate. Sell us! https://chabilmarvillas.com/27-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-belize.html https://www.travelbelize.org/facts-about-belize  Moving to Belize Hi. So you're looking for a new place to live? Belize is a small country. Because the English language is the official language it means you will be able to integrate into the social aspects of the country easily, Other languages are spoken here as well Do you like solitude? You may find it in this country because with a population of about 350,000 the population is presently low. It is a very rural country. It is also expensive to live here because it is a small country with few people. This ,if you can afford the expense of living in Belize is in your favor because not many people visit or live here. There are lots of things to do if you retire here. the country has beautiful reefs for diving enthusiast, with 600 species of birds, bird watching is a quiet pass time. Swimming, snorkeling, hiking, small beaches for sunning, and punta rock music are just a few of the amenities. Buying property here may be a high cost in US dollars. A nice home can cost 75,000 to 200.000 US Dollars. Property taxes are very low and still almost nonexistent. Homes for sale are likely to be very nice for those prices. You can live very nicely on about 12,000 a month. People in Belize are welcoming. They like the small influx of people who move to the country and are willing to help the newcomer become oriented. Plus, people from other countries have equal rights with Belize citizens. There is state run health care keeping health care low or free depending on the type of need. Some concerns have been raised in recent years about the safety of living in Belize. Like any place in the world there is some crime and violence. However, it evens out to be safe, since crime is usually a localized situation dealt with by proper authorities in proper ways. Belize has strict gun laws. Owning guns is a permit based situation. There is a national income tax rate. which provides for a minimum amount of money before the income tax rate kicks in.You will find the same 110 v electricity as in any other country. The government owns the telecommunications. This makes cell phones and WiFi possible. Some parts of country may have better service than other parts. Moving to Belize may be the best idea you have had. |
| 30 day We're going to end our trip with some interesting experiences, hope you're ready. We've combined some of Belize's most adventurous activities in one tour. See the rain forest from several different perspectives Go underground during cave tubing and above the trees during ziplining Stress-free hotel pickup and drop-off and a Belizean BBQ lunch included https://www.tripadvisor.com/AttractionProductReview-g291968-d14121238-Cave_Tubin... in the afternoon, we're going to the most famous dive sight in Belize, it was discovered by Jacques Cousteau. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g14035153-d296241-Reviews-Great_Bl... Don't think about napping yet. Cos we're doing a beach crawl. Ahoy! Me hearties, we be the #SanPedroBelize drinking session that moves from one licensed grog slinging premises to the next & so on. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g291962-d19932877-Reviews-BlackSai... Talk up the things that you enjoyed on today's excursions.  Belize Zip-lining from Mayflower Bocavina National Park is so amazing. I definitely want to go to Belize in real life. There are 14 different platforms. You can see the mountainous jungles once traveled by Mayans. There are 500 species of birds in the Jungle canopy, plus butterflies, monkeys, jaguar, mammals, ancient plant life, waterfalls; absolutely takes your breath away. I think we landed back in Narnia. Surely, we will spot Aslan before we leave. The beginning of this video is a short part about the cruise ship and of course advertisement. Then comes some really good footage of the cave tubing. Nohoch Chen Archaeologist Park is called the cave branch of the National Parks. Half of Belize is covered by dense jungle. Eighty percent of the rain forest in protected by the national government. They take conservation of jungles and wildlife seriously, with educational programs in place for the public. All animals in the Belize zoo are native to the country. Everyone gathered around while they handed out equipment. Blue Moon did you remember your water shoes. We get a headlight to wear and an innnertube. WakeUpAndLive jumped in the river with some of the others. The water was really cold. We are walking along Jaguar Paw Trail down to the river. It's a bit of a walk to get to the river. The guide is telling us lots of tidbits about the health benefits of the jungle plants that are on both sides of the trail. I really liked his story about "Do You Love Your Guide?" The guide has lot of other stories about the Mayan use of the cave. The rafts are fastened together before we leave. It is such an awesome journey down the river. There really are bats in crevasse in the ceiling. At one point the guide points out a natural formation in the cave that local people believe looks like Mary and the child Jesus. As for the blue hole--it scares me just to fly over it in a helicopter. My natural curiosity wants to know more about it. I think I've read to many armmagedon type fiction books. This is definitely one of those unusual places on our blue planet. So pub hopping can only be a good way to experience lots of types of Belize food. I'm not sure how welcome a person will be if they don't drink alcoholic beverages, but I always think pub food is the best in any town. Someone said 5 beers is only twenty dollars. We are experiencing social knowledge from the home town people. Try the tacos. They are full of different types of veggies. Different and very good. |
| BCoF I've made arrangements for you to take all those Brazillian food choices to the next level. You're putting a menu together to help this restaurant get better ratings. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g303322-d4102590-Reviews-Primeiro-... https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/top-10-foods-try-brazil https://www.oliviascuisine.com/authentic-brazilian-recipes/ Our group is going to enjoy your recommendations this evening. Don't be out to late we're off to Belize next. Perfect timing Hurricane Laura has already gone past our location  A Brazilian chicken dish: Lets try this Because it is quick to make and a recipe that can be changed to exclude some of the peppers or include the spices at variable degrees for a restaurant making quick dishes served hot. Using deboned skinless chicken breast place in a bowl with ground cumin, ground cayenne pepper. turmeric and coriander; 1 teaspoon each. stir the spices then rub chicken well with the spice mixture. Salt and pepper can be added to this. Cook in frying pan using olive oil until well cooked. {well cooked tender pieces of chicken are good in a restaurant setting.} Place crushed onion 1 tbls. ginger, 2 peppers, 2 garlic gloves, in another pan with 1 can coconut milk begin to cook slowly. After a few minutes add slices of whole tomatoes with seeds removed. pour over chicken heat well and serve. This would go well with a side dish of fried rice cakes. 2 cups cooked white rice, mixed with 2 eggs, one quarter cup flour, a half cup Parmesan cheese and freshly crushed parsley. Roll into small balls and cook in olive oil. I think serving with a Brazilian bread would also be good on the side. Recipes found in Brazilian section of https://www.allrecipes.com/recipes |
| 30 day Today's adventure is all about unusual architecture https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g303322-d318131-Reviews-Catedral_M... https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g303322-d2349423-Reviews-Itamaraty... https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g303322-d2349446-Reviews-Templo_da... Amazing designs, don't you agree? Which one appealed to you most, why? What's your favorite architecture near where you live? Our BCoF people are planning our dinner this evening.   The city of Brasilia was inaugurated as the capital of Brazil in 1960. There are a great many architectural wonders built in the city. On a tour of the city we saw modern buildings and sculptures. The JK presidential memorial is a tall tower, with a sculpture on the top, representing the twenty first president of Brazil and the founder of Brazilia. The capital was moved to Brasilia in 1960 because it is more central to the entire country of Brazil. The seat of the government, called the three powers is modern contemporary architecture. It was designed by Oscar Niemyer. Niemyer was 104 years old when he died in 2012. His designs depict certain types of essential ideology. Within the acreage of the three powers are three buildings for Legislature, Executive, and Presidential parts of government. A sphere cut in half has one half with the dome up and one half with the dome down. The dome round part up is where bills are formed. The dome down is where bills are approved and move out to the public. The entire square is paved in white marble cobble stones. A sculpture design like a clothespin and one designed like two black homo sapien figures stand in the square. Oscar Neimyer designed the clothes pin type figure. The two black figures were designed by Bruno Giorgi. Other Buildings: The first church built in the city was Igrejino NS. De Fatima a small chapel designed like a nuns hat. There is also a dove meant as a sign of peace building. The building houses a map of the city which is laid out in the form of an airplane and an eternal flame representing liberty. Apartments built on columns like stilts. A beautiful stadium has been constructed. A high wide sea shell entry to a building used as the Brazilian Military and security site. (similar use of the building is like the pentagon in the USA} The Dom Boxial Chapel is shaped like a crown with the seating area underground. It has Blue stained glass windows to depict the sky and White panes of glass to depict the stars. There are angel hanging from the ceiling along with large chandeliers. One museum is designed to depict a space ship in a futuristic mode. Many of the buildings were designed by Oscar Niemyer. He is known for integrating into his designs large flowing ramps and walkways. Because of its recent building spree to bring it into line, with the needs of a capital city Brasilia is a haven of beautiful architecture. I don't really have a favorite architecture near where I live. Most buildings are square or rectangle in shape. Many are older with bricked sidings. I like living in an a-frame especially when some devastating storm goes whipping through because it feels solid in wind or winter blizzards. |
BCoF Discuss some famous people from Brazil.  There are so many important people from Brazil. Brazil gives us actors and actresses, statesman, musicians, film directors and athletes. One I particularly admired was Princess Isabel who served as a regent while her father was traveling and signed a law abolishing slavery. She lived from 1846 to 1921. Next I found Paulo Reglus Neves Freire, Who was born in 1941 and lived for 75 years. He had a theory of education and philosophy. He had a special urge to help the poor. He believed teachers should further a students education in a way that would give the ability of freedom of thought and the ability to act independently to achieve educational growth and constructive actions. He developed educational theories and was able to teach illiterate poor workers to read in 45 days. his experiences during the depression of the 30's motivated him to help other poor people after he had gained his own release from poverty. Quotes by Freire: Washing one's hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless means to side with the powerful, not to be neutral. Leaders who do not act dialogically, but insist on imposing their decisions, do not organize the people--they manipulate them. They do not liberate, nor are they liberated: they oppress. If the structure does not permit dialogue the structure must be changed Looking at the past must only be a means of understanding more clearly what and who they are so that they can more wisely build the future. Without a sense of identity, there can be no real struggle… The oppressors do not favor promoting the community as a whole, but rather selected leaders. More history of his life story and more of his quotes can be found on the link: https://quotes.thefamouspeople.com/paulo-freire-4055.php Tim Maia-Brazilian musician: Introduced soul to Brazil. Caetano Belosa: introduced Tropicalia movement a mixture of Brazilian and African harmonies. Rall Seixas: He is called The Father of Brazilian Rock Jorge Ben: Sang and wrote Samba, Basso Nova, and funk Brazilian Musicians often combine different types of sound to make special blends that reach the melting pot populations of Brazil. I found many different types of famous Brazilians in many types of social movements. It follows the unique type of social environment found in Brazil. |
| phew, that flight was long. 20 hours on a plane. What a way to celebrate my 64th birthday. We're going directly to our hotel and catching some much needed rest before we go out for dinner. This is a great time to recap your experiences thus far or do BCoF's prompts which I'm also sharing. ://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g303322-d1507171-Reviews-Hotel_Royal_Tu... https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g303322-d2348030-Reviews-Taypa_Sab... BCoF Discuss some famous people from Brazil https://www.gapyear.com/brazil/famous-people-from-brazil or discuss favorite Brazilian food https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/top-10-foods-try-brazil write a recap of our trip thus far.  One of the interesting things about the trip is the world wide fight against covid 19. Everywhere we go people have put in place the known safety measures against the virus. Even out two ventures into Balloon flight were invaded by the 6 foot between people and mask rules. We visited so many port cities. I was enjoying the ocean views, sea birds, and walks on sandy beaches. Museums are another of the places I enjoy. This trip there were so many I could not visit each one. Of course the shopping was sublime. There were bolts and bolts of colorful fabrics especially the silks from Viet Nam. And I can't forget the teas or special tea pots I saw. I came away with some websites where such buys can be found on line. So many colorful gardens, it was easy to see many people from the countries we visited are trying to save plant species and animal species during this time, when the earth is experiencing major animal extinctions. Today's News: According to a recent associated Press article the USA ambassador to Brazil Tod Chapman is pushing a lift of tariffs on ethanol in order to influence voters in Iowa to favor President Trump in the upcoming election. He has become close to the Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro who seems to be a fan of President Trump. Bolsonaro has been fighting a case of covid 19. Link to full article: https://apnews.com/9c7264968d377f263ba4e7664f56611b The Hotel Royal Tulip Avorado has all the luxury anyone could want. After viewing the setting and the Building I was interested in the Architect. He must be famous for his work on this particular project. The architect for the design of the Royal Tulip is a German man named Joao Frederica Ludovice. Another famous building he designed is the Palace-of Mafra in Portugal. Ludovice has his own Wikipedia page. As we were trying foods I gained a new recipe for Aji Green Sauce. However, I thought some Avocado added to a smaller amount of jalapeno chili would tone down the flavor to within an eatable spice range so I might try it my way. |
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