Brother Bob, Sister-in-Law Alice, and their Great Northern Adventure

My oldest brother (Bob) and his wife Alice bought an 18 ft. Toy Hauler ~ loaded up the Harley, and headed north to the great plains. attached is an recent account of their trip.....

journal entry...... 6/23/2006

We are having a great time. We were surrounded by Bison in Custer State Park. It was a little intimidating sitting on the motorcycle. There were cars and trucks in the way and the Bison were on the road. Alice considered asking the guy in the pickup in front of us if she could climb up in the bed of his truck. But then the Bison got closer and she was afraid to get off the bike.

We went to the Badlands on Wednesday. It was hot at 80 degrees. A lady in a store close to there said it was 105 degrees last week. Glad we went this week. There is one constant out here. The wind. It blows all of the time. Mount Rushmore and Crazy Horse are inspiring. They are big too. We move to Grand Teton and Yellowstone on Saturday morning.

Sedona (Brins) Fire Update

Most anyone who visits Arizona eventually finds their way to the beautiful red rock country of Sedona. At 4,500 ft. elevation, Sedona is a welcome respite from the intense heat of Phoenix. Until recently, visitors and residence could always count on clear blue skies, beautiful scenery, and fresh air........... then came the Brins Fire.

Started by an improperly abandoned campfire, the Brins Fire was human caused. For a while, the city of Sedona, and later ~ Oak Creek Canyon was threatened by the massive blaze. At one point the US Forest Service had 8 air tankers spreading red slurry along the defense perimeters and 6 helicopters dropping water buckets on the flames. Ground support totaled 700 firefighters at that point.

The fire is roughly 25% contained now ~ 1 week later. Due to the extraordinary efforts of the firefighters, no structures have been destroyed ~ although at one point over 400 resdients were evacuated. It will take the lanscape at least 10+ years to recover from the scorching heat and devastation. For the most part, the average visitor will not notice the scars unless they venture Northwest of the city. Most visitors seek out the uptown tourist area then return to Phoenix.

Here are a couple of pictures that Kaneke and I took last week. The orange looking clouds are actually a reflection of the Arizona sunset on the smoke. In one picture you can see a famous rock formation called "Coffee Pot Rock" which resembles that of an old fashioned coffee percolator......

Airport Security ~ LAX Style

So ~ after a brief stopover in Tokyo at Narita, it is off once again to the good ole' United States. I am seated in the penthouse of a Boeing 747, and having introduced myself to my new seatmate, I settle in to enjoy the remaining luxury that I am growing accustomed to in "Raffles Class". Eleven more hours and it is time for wheels down in Las Angeles.

We are first informed that our luggage will not be transferred to the domestic airline that we will take from LAX to our final destination..... For me, that is Phoenix AZ. We disembark from the airplane and wound our way around the various hallways and passages until we arrived at customs where we are officially greeted back into the USA, our Passports are stamped, and we are directed to the International baggage claim where I waited 45 minutes for my luggage to come sliding down the chute and onto the carrousel.

I picked up my suitcase and exit baggage claim with a final check from customs ~ then told to go stand in line and re-check my luggage for my domestic flight. This stage of the arrival is total chaos as there are no signs present to indicate where you should go and what you need to do. I find an airport security lady who tells me to go to a doorway and drop my bags then go to the gate for my next flight. I ask her how I get there and am informed that I will have to take the inter-terminal bus...... which translates to, (You have to go outside of the security area, stand on a curb, wait for the bus, take the bus to the terminal for your airline, exit, go stand in line at security, etc.) Now, normally this is easily taken in stride, but after being awake and in a travel mode for the last 24 hours.....this seems like more than just a minor annoyance.

The security line had no less than 200 people in it and the line handlers (what a great job huh?) were directing everyone to split off, walk to another terminal, and go through the security gate there.... as the line was shorter. I elected to stay where I was and soon after they discovered that there was another scanner line that they had forgotten about in which the 6 or 7 airport TSA employees were all standing around because they had no customers. The line tended to speed up a bit once they started doing their jobs.

Once through security I walk about another half mile to the United "TED" terminal and sit for another 2 hours until my connecting flight leaves. The waiting area is filthy, the chairs are ripped, torn, dirty, and half broken. This is quite a contrast to what I had just experienced for the prior 11 days in Asia.

All's well that ends well though ~ I made it home safe and believe it or not....... so did my luggage. The only thing I will do different on my next trip to Asia is I will by-pass LAX and fly through San Francisco.

Been there - Done that ~ and San Francisco is a much nicer experience than Las Angeles.......

Airport Security ~ Sing Style

OK ~ from the time I left my hotel in Singapore till I arrived home ......... 28 hours. The flight was long but not uncomfortable. Flying Singapore Airlines "Raffles" Class isn't all that bad. Singapore's Changi Airport is the most modern and clean airport you will ever encounter. I would consider this airport to be the ideal model of efficiency. Checking in is quick and effortless. The terminals are very open and well lighted. Each gate area is surrounded by glass walls and has its own scanners and security system. Guests can accompany the passengers to the gate and wait outside until the gate is opened. 1 hour prior to departure the scanners are manned by security personnel and passengers are screened ~ not only by an electronic scanner, but each passenger is then hand wanned prior to gathering their belongings. They manage to completely board a Boeing 747 in less than 30 minutes and push away from the gate.

Next ~ Stay tuned for the rude awakening I experienced upon arrival in LAX

Singapore Hotel Window ~ Harbour View...

After a 17 hour flight from Los Angeles to Singapore I am now officially 1 day ahead of the rest of you, so if you want a glimpse into the future ~ then just ask me.....

I am staying at "The Oriental Singapore" and have a fabulous view of the Harbour from my room window.

Allentown, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Myrtle Beach ~ and now Singapore

A lot has gone on since my last post. As you can see by the title of this post ~ I have traveled many miles in the last 3 weeks. Kaneke and I topped off the domestic travel with a vacation in Myrtle Beach SC with our friends Tom and Linda. We had a great time, enjoyed the beautiful beach, ate some great seafood, and got to see Tom and Linda's future home.

I head for Singapore later today. Kaneke and Molly will maintain residence in Cornville while I am in Asia. I will tip a few "Original" Singapore Slings for all my friends and family!