Boston, Massachusetts

Time to leave Canada.  We  crossed into the United States at the top of Maine (Jackman).  Each of the 43 people on the bus had to go into the building (after waiting for one hour) and show a passport and a completed customs form.  When we finally got inside it went very quickly.  There was a tour bus just minutes ahead of us that was loaded with vacationers from Israel.  They were told that they each had to complete paperwork, show their passport, AND PAY $6.00 EACH to compensate the security people for their time.  Have you ever heard of such a thing?  Charging people to come into this country?  I am appalled and considering writing my congress person – if I could only decide who that would be?  You know – California or Montana.

While progressing toward Boston, Massachusetts we passed through Portland, Maine.  (Maine has a population of 1.4 million people; its capital is Augusta.)  There we saw a delightful lighthouse – the most photographed I’m told. 

Massachusetts has a population of 6,548,000 people.  Boston was settled in 1630 by the Puritans and is the capital.  Boston is the home of two major institutions of learning – Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard.  MIT students are known for their pranks with this one becoming part of the history books.  Harvey Smoot was being initiated into a fraternity and was used as a measuring device for the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge.  He was told to lie down on the bridge, where his head was marked his feet were then placed when he lay down again, and this was continued across the bridge.  The bridge is now said to be 364 Smoots and an ear long.

Harvard University was established in 1636 as the University of Massachusetts Bay Colony.  Later it was named after John Harvard.  I have a great deal of confusion in my mind as I write this because the information on the Harvard website is definitely in contradiction to what we were told by our tour guide today.  I’ll work at getting that straightened out and get back to you later, or not, depending on how it turns out.  Anyway this statue is supposedly of John Harvard, but in fact Leonard Hoar who was the president of Harvard University from 1672 to 1675 was the one who posed for it.  They had no pictures of Mr. Harvard so gave President Hoar the honor rather than naming a building after him.  It might have been Hoar House?!?

And then there is the real meaning of Boston - Paul Revere and his midnight ride, which included the use of The Old North Church (an Episcopal Church which is called Christ Church).  The second verse of "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:

 He said to his friend, “If the British march

By land or sea from the town to-night,

Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch

Of the North Church tower as a signal light,–

One if by land, and two if by sea;

And I on the opposite shore will be,

Ready to ride and spread the alarm

Through every Middlesex village and farm,

For the country folk to be up and to arm.”

The first pipe organ built in the new world - 1759
It is still used regularly.

Oldest functioning clock in the United States.  (1726)

Quebec City, Quebec, Canada

Before leaving the Province of Quebec we visited its capital – Quebec City, which is the only city in North America that has the entire wall that surrounded the original city.  It has a population of 700,000 people, 98% of whom are Catholic and speak French.  This province has been trying to gather enough votes to become independent of Canada.  With each vote they get a little closer.  Their current Prime Minister is Pauline Marois.

Canons that protected the walled city.

President Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill

 met here at Le Chateau Frontenac to make plans for the invasion at Normandy.

Busts of Roosevelt and Churchill in the park.

Notre Dame des Victoires

I thought some of you Catholics might enjoy an example of the Stations of the Cross

 in this quaint old church.

Jesus the Christ lying in death beneath the alter 

 for those wishing to light candles and say prayers.

I had never seen this before so thought it might be new to you also.

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Across the Ottowa River from the city of Ottowa is the Province of Quebec (pronounced Kebec) which has a population of eight million people.  It is the only province in Canada that is predominantly French speaking and has French as it’s official language.  The largest city Is Montreal with a population of 1.65 million people. 

And guess what – yet another Notre Dame Basilica, but instead of going there, here's St. Catherine's Cathedral

The reason I go to this one is because directly BELOW it is a shopping center.

that is directly accessible by their subway system

There are 19 miles of shopping malls underneath the buildings in downtown Montreal.  People can take the subway to go shopping or to their places of employment and never go outside in the cold weather.  The portion that is below St. Catherine's church was excavated AFTER the church was built.  By placing the church itself up on pillars they dug out underneath it to connect it to the other basements that were already in place.  It was considered a major engineering fete.

Colorful building in downtown Montreal.
A convention center.

Olympic Stadium built for 1976 Olympics

Ottowa, Ontario, Canada

The bus continues to roll – on and on.  We left Duluth, Minnesota and drove through Wisconsin and Michigan arriving in Sault (pronounced Soo) Saint Marie, Ontario.  We were driving alongside Lake Superior off and on all day and saw some beautiful landscapes.  We even saw the beginnings of the fall colors that are so wonderful.  The following day was another long drive from Sault Saint Marie to Pembroke.  We saw Lake Huron occasionally, many other lakes, and the changing colors on many of the trees.   Oh, so many trees.  For most of the way we were driving down a highway that appeared to have been cut out of a forest – nothing but trees on both sides as far as you could see and often as close to the road as they could be.

On the way to Ottowa we went through the little town of Corbeil, Ontario, which is the home of the Dionne Quintuplets.  They were born in 1934 and were the headliners on many news casts.  This is the home that has been turned into a museum.

Yvonne, Annette, Cecile, Emilie, and Marie

Canada is very close to the same size as the United States but has 34+ million population compared to the 310.5 million in the US.  Canada is part of the British Empire so recognizes Queen Elizabeth II as their monarch but parliament is the ruling entity with the Prime Minister at its head, who is currently Stephen Harper.  Each province has its own capital and the capital of Canada is Ottowa, Ontario.  Ontario has a population of 13.5 million people.

Parliament Building
Clock tower is called the Peace Tower and
no building in Ottowa can be taller than the Peace Tower.

United States Embassy

Inside view of the Basilica of Notre Dame

the oldest Catholic Church in Ottowa.

Duluth, Minnesota

Today was spent in Duluth, Minnesota.  Minnesota is the 32^nd state in the United States with a population of 5+ million people.  Sixty percent of those people live in the twin cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul.  The capital is St. Paul.  The state motto is “Land of Ten Thousand Lakes.”  Minnesota is a Dakota Indian word meaning “clear water.”  One of its boundaries is Lake Superior which is the largest, deepest, and clearest of all the Great Lakes.  It is 350 miles long by 160 miles wide.  The average water temperature is 40 degrees.  Duluth, with its population of 86,000 people, sits right on the edge of Lake Superior so its economy and culture are heavily influenced by the lake.  Duluth combines with Superior, Wisconsin (which is just across the bay) to be the largest of all ports in the Great Lakes.

Duluth Skyline

Radisson Hotel
I had to show you this because of the round tower -
and that's where our room is.
(I seem to have this fascination with round buildings!)

Glensheen Mansion

Built by the Congdon Family in the early 1900s

It is currently owned by the University of Minnesota in Duluth.  Little bit, correct that a lot, of additional information regarding the family who built this mansion – the Congdons.

Chester and Clara had seven children all of whom lived in this mansion until they married and left home, with the exception of Elisabeth who never married so lived in the mansion until her death in 1977.  Although she was not married she had adopted 2 daughters:  Jennifer and Marjorie.  Jennifer went on to get married and live a relatively normal life in Racine, Wisconsin.  Marjorie, however, was anything but normal.  She married, had 7 children, got divorced and remarried and moved to Colorado.  She was constantly in debt by simply overspending.  She convinced her husband to kill her mother to hasten the inheritance, which he did and in the process killed the night nurse who was caring for the 83-year-old stroke victim.  He (Roger Caldwell) was tried and found guilty and sentenced to two consecutive life terms.  Then Marjorie was tried but found not guilty because of new evidence.   Roger then appealed and was found not guilty the second time around.  He went back to his home in Latrobe, PA, where he lived unhappily for another ten years then committed suicide by slicing his wrists with a kitchen steak knife.  Marjorie was imprisoned for several arson events from which she collected insurance money, was believed to have murdered her third husband but was already serving time so they didn’t pursue the murder.  She was released in 2004 and was back in prison in 2007 for killing yet another elderly man from whom she had acquired a power of attorney to get his money.

College of Saint Scholastica
Duluth is very proud of this institution of higher learning that is run by the Benedictine Monks and encompases their monastery.

Fall Foliage Highlights Tour

Two down one to go.  This is my third and final tour of this My Vagabond Year.  I will be traveling by coach with the Laird Leisure Travel Company out of Great Falls, Montana.

Map of Travel Route

This tour didn’t start off as smoothly as I would have liked. When I went to the bus station in Billings one hour prior to the departure time, I was told there is no longer a bus to Great Falls.  After being assured that she was not joking, she said I could get to Butte, but nothing from there to Great Falls.  I don’t know how far it is from Butte to Great Falls, but I know that it’s too far for me to walk and too expensive to hire a cab.  (I just found out it’s 350 miles.)  So now what to do?  After considering checking plane connections – which I know go through either Salt Lake City or Denver, nothing direct – or perhaps driving my own car and leaving it in Great Falls for the 3-week duration of the tour,  I was informed that the tour would pick me up in Glendive, Montana (population 5,000),  the next day if I could get there by 2:30 p.m.  So here I am waiting for two and one half hours at the “bus station.”

I connected with my newest traveling companion here in Glendive.  Meet Mary Lou Lewis who lives in Missoula, Montana.  We became acquainted when I returned to the University of Montana to get my bachelor’s degree in 1994.  She worked in one of the offices and was extremely helpful to me with all the processes as well as offering me a place to live for the final summer quarter.  We have been good friends since.

And now for the very best of this trip so far.  I have written to you about Oslo, Norway, St., Petersburg, Russia, and London, England.  Tonight I'm in Bismark, North Dakota, and their recognizable symbol is

York – Stratford Upon Avon - London

The final stop of this tour of the British Isles was at the birthplace and home of William Shakespeare in Stratford Upon  Avon.  Interesting tidbits of information to me were that John Shakespeare, William’s father, was a maker of gloves – you know the white, kid type.  He was an expert in working with the hides of animals to make them soft and appealing to the public.  He made a very good living and they lived in a home that had a bed.  Most people slept on straw pallets so having a bed was a status symbol and as such it was kept in the living room so that people could see it through the window.

William married Anne Hathaway when he was 18 years old and she was 26 and pregnant.  Because his father was notable in the community he was not charged the usual fine of about 100 pounds (which would have been a huge amount in those days) because his bride was already with child.  They had 3 children:  Suzanne who lived to adulthood and had children of her own, and twins Judy and Hamlet, who both died during a plague.  The entire Shakespeare family is buried in the Holy Trinity Church in Stratford.

Anne Hathaway's Cottage

I am now back in Billings, Montana, minus 26 hours sleep (long plane ride from London), with a head full of wonderful memories trying to work their way through the stuffed sinuses, and a suitcase filled with dirty laundry.  I have four days to get my life back on track and prepare for my final bus tour of this Vagabond Year.   I have no doubt that it will all come together and I will be back writing about the sights I’m seeing in the United States and Canada.

Edinburgh – Jedburgh – Heddon on the Wall, England - York

This tour is about to come to an end.  Tomorrow I’ll be back in London and the next day on my way back to California and Montana.  It has been great.  What a treat to get to see all these countries, even as limited as it was.

Leaving Edinburgh today our first stop was in Jedburgh (again pronounced Jedburough) which is the home of a woolen mill and the Jedburgh Abbey.

When crossing from Scotland to England (on this particular road which is on the top of a very windy hill seemingly in the middle of nowhere) there is a big rock that has Scotland etched on one side and England on the other.  AND there is a man playing the bagpipes.  Cute huh?

England and Scotland's flags side by side.

You can see how the wind was blowing.

Stop number two was in Heddon on the Wall, England, to see what is left of Hadrian’s Wall which dates back to 122 AD.  It was ordered by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a means of establishing a northern boundary for Rome.  In its day the wall was 15 feet high, 10 feet wide, and 75 miles long.  (Eat your heart out China!)

Also in Heddon on the Wall was St. Andrew’s Church that dates back to 650 AD.  So hard to believe how old these places are.

We stopped in York for the night.  (In case you didn’t remember Prince Andrew is the Duke of York because he is the second son of the Monarch.)   The Cathedral of St. Peter in York is one of the largest of its kind in northern Europe.  It is the seat of the Archbishop of York, the second highest office of the Church of England, and is the cathedral for the Diocese of York. 

 Remnants of the wall that surrounded the city of York originally.

Dublin–Belfast/Belfast Port, Northern Ireland–Cairnryan Port, Scotland –Through Glasgow–Edinburgh

Northern Ireland is the size of Maryland with a population of 1.8 million people.  Its patron saint is also Patrick.  The capital is Belfast where one quarter of the world’s ships are built.  We spent a very brief time in Belfast which was a disappointment to me as the reason I chose this particular tour was because it was going to Belfast.  Most of the tours do not go to Northern Ireland at all.

 

Belfast City Hall

Interestingly the Titanic was built in Belfast.  The people felt so bad about the disaster that they have erected a memorial to it on the property of their city hall.   (It is not easily distinguished by this picture but look closely.)

Hotel Europa was bombed 22 times by the Republic of Ireland

Scotland is also the size of Maryland with a population of 5+ million people.  It’s patron saint is Andrew.  (Did you wonder why the famous golf course was named St. Andrew’s?  Now you know.)  The highest mountain is 4,500 feet high.  The dominant language is English but there are some 200,000 people living in the highlands who still speak Gaelic and are very resentful of “that new language.”  The capital of Scotland is Edinburgh (pronounced Edinborough.)  The city is built on top of 6 extinct volcanoes.  Balmoral,  the Queen’s summer palace is located two and a half miles north of Edinburgh. 

The Edinburgh Castle, dating back to the 9^th Century is built on two volcanoes.  Just so you can see a comparison here is the picture I took of the castle…

And one from the internet.        

There are many famous “Sons of Edinburgh” including:  John Knox, Protestant Reformer; Sir Arthur Canon Doyle of Sherlock Holmes fame; Robert Louis Stevenson, writer of ”Treasure Island” and many others; and probably at the top of the list the famous poet Robert Burns.  But don’t forget Bobby, the dog that stayed by his master’s grave for 14 years, until he himself died.

Door to Robert Louis Stevenson's home.
It is still owned and inhabited by his descendents.

Statue of Bobby

Our first night in Edinburgh we were entertained by Scottish dancers and singers and by participation in the Ceremony of the Haggis, which included reading of the poem by Robert Burns, “Address to a Haggis.”  Haggis is a food dish made from the heart, liver and lungs of a sheep which is encased in the stomach of the sheep.  It is served with turnips and potatoes.  All those who tried it said it wasn’t bad.  I was not one of them however, so I can’t give an opinion.  Our second and final night in Edinburgh was spent viewing the royal yacht Britannia which included a the crown jewels.  The yacht was commissioned by Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 and was decommissioned in 1997 because the British Parliament said it was costing the taxpayers too much money.  It was obviously outdated, but lovely and particularly appealing to me as it had many family pictures on the walls and in frames around the rooms, much like anyone would have in their home.