Category: travel

Is there life out there?

October 20, 2011

I’ve always wanted to see a black bear and a bald eagle in their native settings. I guess I have this dream of going to the White River National Wildlife Refuge and just naturally seeing one of these two animals.

I’m so busy scoping the area for bears and eagles, as well as other larger creatures, that I sometimes forget that the refuge is home to some smaller residents.

This past weekend, I would frequently hear the local woodpeckers in the trees surrounding me and I finally spotted two of the birds near the end of my walk (see below). Continue reading “Is there life out there?”

Going wild

October 19, 2011
The new Bottomland Hardwood Trail.

It’s been four days since I attended the dedication of the new Bottomland Hardwood Trail at the White River National Wildlife Refuge in St. Charles, and I am still smiling each time I think of it.

The trail is pretty awesome and I enjoyed attending the first guided hike on the trail, which includes a 1,384-foot boardwalk and an interpretive walk through the woods to overlook the White River. My mom went with me and it was great getting to spend the day with her.

She tagged along as I took pictures and talked for my story on the refuge’s dedication and a second dedication of the new St. Charles Fire Station. We ended up eating at Mary J’s Country Cafe in Ethel before heading back to the refuge.

Below are some pictures of the new trail. Continue reading “Going wild”

Traveling along Arkansas Hwy. 165

October 4, 2011
A rainbow appears as an area farmer waters his fields outside of Keo.

A Saturday afternoon wedding led me just west of Stuttgart last weekend. The wedding took place at the Marlsgate Plantation in Scott, which was gorgeous, and the weather was perfect. How perfect? Here’s some pictures so you can see for yourself. 😀

Marlsgate Plantation is impressive. I could have spent hours looking around its grounds.
The house was built in 1904 and is circled by a stone path Even the simple pathway is part of the place's charm.
It reminded me of Frances Hodgson Burnett's book The Secret Garden.
The plantation was filled to the brim with benches and chairs tucked away into corners for little hideaway areas.
I especially liked this chandelier that hung just outside the back of the house.
Of course, the wedding was pretty great itself. The couple's colors were fall-themed. Above is just one of the table toppers.
The view from the wedding reception opposite of the house.
My drive home was filled with fields as far as you can see, usually filled with hay bales.
Naturally, a drive through the natural state wouldn't be the same right now without seeing at least one field of cotton and farmers harvesting rice.
OK, I'll admit I didn't take this picture this weekend but I did rediscover it this weekend. That counts, right? Anyways, this cat tail reminds me of my sister's wedding. She used cattails in her flower arrangements and, oddly enough, it looked awesome. I was impressed and will never look at cattails the same again.

A little magic

September 27, 2011

My aunt and I took my two little cousins to see Disney on Ice this weekend. We met at a family member’s house, who has gorgeous sunflowers blooming (see above) and then drove to Memphis’ FedEx Forum for the event.

It was fun watching the different classics: Peter Pan, Mickey Mouse, Lion King, the Little Mermaid and Lilo & Stitch. While I hate the Lion King as a movie, I do adore its characters, Timon and Pumba. My cousins loved it. Continue reading “A little magic”

Tuesday blues.

September 20, 2011

It’s one of those days.

I’m cranky, not feeling good and just downright lazy feeling.

The only thing that saved my morning are two small little things:

1 I stumbled across what I should have said to the nosy woman that basically asked me if I, as a single woman, was lonely and jealous of my married friends and if I even had friends. (I think she meant well—we have always gotten along well. It was just inappropriate for the nonprofit seminar setting that we were in.)

While I answered nicely enough, I should have added this phrase to the mix.

Single as a dollar and I’m not looking for change. Continue reading “Tuesday blues.”

St. Peter’s

September 19, 2011
St. Peter's Catholic Church has just received a new sign that is adorned with a 152-year-old bell. The church has had the bell since late 1970.

This weekend I was able to attend mass at my church back home, St. Peter’s Catholic Church. I enjoy attending church there and comparing how the church has changed (and not changed) since I attended regular mass there as a youth. Continue reading “St. Peter’s”

Learning history through art

September 13, 2011

Anne Frank. Gerda Weissmann Klein. Sabina Szwarc.

These names are among those recorded at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. They were among the approximately six million Jews in Europe that were subjected to persecution and murder by Nazi Germany and its collaborators. According to the museum, nearly two out of every three European Jews were killed by 1945 as Nazi Germany attempted to create a more pure race which included targeting some 200,000 gypsies and at least 200,000 mentally or physically disabled patients.

It’s easy to focus solely overseas when faced with these horrible facts surrounding World War II. It’s a shameful part of history that needs to be remembered so that it’s never repeated again. However to do this, Americans must also remember that Europe was not alone in having concentration camps on its land. Continue reading “Learning history through art”

Tomorrow’s scheduled events

August 23, 2011

Here’s my ever-growing “bucket list” of what to do next.

U.S. list:

• ALASKA: Take an Alaskan cruise;
• ALASKA/NORWAY: See the northern lights;
• ARKANSAS: Go diamond digging at Mufreesboro Diamond Mine;
• ARIZONA: Go to the Grand Canyon;
• CALIFORNIA: Visit Glass Beach in Fort Bragg;
• CALIFORNIA: Visit Terminal Island in the Port of Los Angeles;
• CALIFORNIA: Photograph the Ahwahnee Bridge at Yosemite;
• LOUISIANA: Take a haunted swamp tour through the cypress trees of Manchac Swamp near New Orleans, La. (offered by Plantation Adventure and Cajun Pride Tours);
• NEW MEXICO: Take a wild horse and photography workshop in New Mexico. See here;
• OHIO: Visit the Village of Zoar, Ohio (founded in 1817);
• TEXAS: Visit Haunted Galvston Island in Galveston, Texas, which became haunted after the deadliest storm in U.S. history — the Galveston Hurricane of 1900;
• UTAH: See Bryce Canyon in Utah at sunset;
• Go sailing;
• Skydive; and
• Visit all 50 states in the United States — just 22 left.

 

International list:

• AFRICA: View the shipwrecks and discarded, bleached whale and seal bones at Skeleton Coast within Namibia’s. See here;
• AFRICA: Go on a safari;
• AFRICA: Ride an elephant;
• ARGENTINA: See penguins at Tierra del Fuego;
• CHINA: Climb the Great Wall of China;
• ENGLAND: Visit Whitby, which is Bram Stoker’s Dracula setting;
• GEORGIA: Visit Vardzia Cave Monasteries;
• ICELAND: Hike a glacier;
• JAPAN: Take a hike through Aokigahara Suicide Forest near Mount Fuji;
• JORDAN: Tour the 13-story tomb at Petra before taking a camel ride in desert valley at Wadi Rum;
• NORWAY/ALASKA: See the northern lights;
• PERU: Visit Utcubamba Valley to see the rarest hummingbird — the Spatuletail;
• PERU: Visit Machu Picchu;
• PORTUGAL: Visit Chapel of Bones (designed of bones to show “Life is temporary”) inside the Church of Sao Francisco in Evora;
• SOUTH AMERICA: Visit the Amazon Rainforest;
• SCOTLAND: Visit Dunvegan Castle in the Isle of Skye;
• SCOTLAND: Paddle part of the 300-mile Scottish Sea Kayak Trail;
• Participate in a International missions trip;
• Ride the Orient-Express; and
• Visit all seven continents — four left.