Travel Archives - Reflections of Place

5 Reasons to Travel More

“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.”-Henry Miller

On the road to Giverny. — On the Road to Giverny

Open your mind and your heart to the wonders of the world.

Broaden your horizons, increase your knowledge of the people in the world.

Experience other cultures for a deeper understanding of their culture and your own.

Feed your soul with experiences of the new.

And the best, savor the local breads and the local brews all in a place where the locals meet!

Italy in My Mother’s Pen- Middle March 1972

Forty-Seven Years ago, in the middle of March, my Mother began her Italian adventure. I have her travel journal. This, my treasure among her things. I love to travel, I love my Mother, I loved traveling with her. On this trip, she was traveling with a friend and with her twenty-seven year old niece, Linda.

Recently I read the journal, and found seeing my Mother’s pen comforting, the familiar cursive writing. Momma, it is so good to see you there on these pages.

ROME: Friday March 17, 1972: “6:00 AM Up and at’ Em” – Jammed pack day the first full day in Italy, after a good night’s rest….”.breakfast at 7:00” … “bus tour 8:45”…a full itinerary. Tours of the sites of Rome; Vatican City … “Morning at St Peter’s Basilica…the pictures don’t prepare you for the size of it.” ….“the Swiss Guards were something to see.”… “Saw everything on the itinerary!”, “Florence tomorrow”.

Mother didn’t list the full itinerary. What she did write touches to the heart of her. She expresses the things she wanted to remember, the daily happenings in Rome, about the people, about what she found so interesting. The monuments of Rome will always be in the travel guides. These. The moments she wanted to remember.

“Strolling through the buildings seeing the patios and the beautiful flower gardens.” She savors the smell of the blossoms as they open and show their shiny faces to the sun, capturing the image of their colors as they glow. “People hanging out the windows to get some fresh air.”….

“ Laundry hanging out the windows to dry. The sheets drying in the sun are so white” … she wants to remember this and she hears – the flick of the laundry on the clothes line as the wind helps them to dry…”wonder what detergent they use?”.

Later that afternoon, another site seeing tour ends, the bus leaves them just below the Spanish Steps at the Plaza di Spagna. They roam the area admiring the sites, the Plaza and its fountain Fontana della Barcaccia. The Spanish steps and the rise to the Plaza Trinità dei Monti, with its church at the top.

“Linda had her portrait painted by an artist at the Spanish Steps.”. “Might get mine done, if we can find our way back”… “The streets are crammed with cars and they drive like maniacs.”…

“ Funny- I haven’t seen a dent fender.”… “All the cars are small-mostly Fiats. I saw one large car and it had a California license plate.”

They wind their way through the streets, immersed in the city, feeling the breath of the people, the breath of the city, to relish the place. People watching at sidewalk cafes, cappuccinos, “bought charms for my bracelet and a flower for Kaycee”; the flower for her youngest daughter, Kaycee…a glass rose.

A taxi ride back to the hotel. “The taxi driver wants to take Linda out on a date ..says he’ll call her after we get back from Naples”… “Florence tomorrow, at 7 AM”… then Naples, Pompeii, Sorento before we return to Rome.

Momma, Becky and Linda. Buckled Up on the Plane to Rome.

Vietnam-Sunrise Over Saigon

Monday, Dec. 9: Ho Chi Minh City– Sunrise Over Saigon

5:00 AM, The condensation on the window in the room, a testament to the contrast of the coolness in the room to the warmth outside, is still low on the glass and does not block the view of the river below. The Saigon River flowing south is a ribbon in a rich deep brown.

The streets begin to stir after the nights lull. It is quiet, but the city begins to wake and stretch its weariness away. The traffic on the river begins to move again. This traffic will soon return to its week day pace, but for this moment the city still belongs to the night.

Across the river a cross shines brightly on the church roof. The brightest star remains in the sky, a shining beacon above the cross, high in the black sky.

5:05 The ferries cross the river west to east, east to west and begin to load. People arrive by foot and motorbike to board.

5:10 The first ferry arrives and another departs. Vendors from the east arrive and push their carts off the ferry and into the streets. With each passing minute, the frequency of the horns from the motorbikes and automobiles increase, time passes and the pace continues to swell until it reaches its full momentum.

5:40 The sun has begun to brighten and paints the sky in shades of blues and pinks. The ferries continue their crisscross over the water. The tug boats with their barges move up and down the river. Some push, some pull. The streets will soon be thick with the traffic of motorbikes and other vehicles as they weave an unbelievable tapestry that is complicated and yet the movement remains fluid. Taxis, cars, trucks, motorbikes all vie for their places with their horns honking as each vehicle passes the next. Soon crossing the street on foot will become an adventure and a challenge.

The sun climbs and so does the moisture that creeps up the window. They continue their climb until the sun has filled the river and the streets with its heat. The moisture has risen to the level that blocks the view of the scene below. Though the view is blocked, the sounds announce the vibrant city below. The city shines as bright as the sun that has risen over Saigon.

Copyright © 2017- Molly Cox
Member International Travel Writers & Photographers Alliance

‘At Home Around The World’ with Delia Goetz

Delia Goetz wrote ‘At Home Around the World’- a 4th Grade Level textbook published by Ginn & Company. This book was one in a series of books published by Ginn & Company -‘Lands and Peoples of the World’, which included multiple volumes for grades 4-7. This series was originally printed in 1958 with reprints in 1961. Ginn & Company at that time was in Boston, MA and is no longer in business. The publishing imprint for Ginn & Company belongs to Pearson Education a publisher based in the UK.

Delia Goetz 1896-1996 is known for her work as an author of children’s books. She taught school both domestically and internationally. Later in her career she worked for the US government as an educational specialist.

Copyright © 2017- Molly Cox
Member International Travel Writers & Photographers Alliance

Vietnam-Saigon Blue Sky

It had been only forty-eight hours since we left Saigon and we were only a few hours from home when a stranger, looking at both of us still wide-eyed at the wonders we had seen and our eyes reflecting the identical blue color, asked us if we were sisters. If only he had looked closer he could have seen that our eyes were only reflecting the brilliant blue color of the Saigon sky.

Sunday, Dec. 8^th Ho Chi Minh City-(Saigon): Brilliant blue sky. Riding into the city, both foreign and familiar are the first two words that come to mind. Was it the news media that brought the Vietnam war into our homes or was it Hollywood that made us feel immediately connected to a place and to people who speak a language that we can not understand? I am not sure, yet I know I feel comfortable in it’s familiarity. Warm, tropical and Christmas trees with their festive lights fill the city.

It seems that everyone here has a motorbike. Women on their motorbikes keep covered with arm length gloves to block the intensity of the sun. Men and women alike adorn their faces with masks to filter out the pollution from the traffic ahead of them. Families of three and four riding on one bike–baby on board! Women in their silk dresses and sandals ride with the same ease as their counterparts in pants. The traffic weaves an unbelievable street dance to the tune of horns beep- beep- beeping to signal their passing.

Sunday afternoon, sitting in the lobby of our hotel- twenty-five children, boys and girls dressed in their choir robes descend the staircase, lining up on the stair steps they sing Christmas Carols. They sing with their sweet voices, familiar carols, with verses in both English and Vietnamese. Many of them only mimic the sounds in English-the uncertainty of their meaning shows. Yet they continue to sway in unison to the music and the happiness in their faces shines at the response from the audience. Some have made themselves in charge of keeping the lines straight. Some are holding hands to double their confidence, some wiggle away to vie for a position, independent. Many have broad smiles when they realize they have made eye contact with a stranger, others show a more solemn expression of shyness when they realize the attention they are receiving. These children form the Sunshine Choir from the local children’s center founded by Christina Noble. Through all the attention their tiny voices sing, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, Oh Christmas Tree- Oh Christmas Tree, Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer, and the sweetest of all Silent Night.

Later in the afternoon, we watch from the window of our room as other children jump from the pier into the muddy Saigon river. The Sông Sai-Gon. They are happy for the wetness offered by the river water, a welcome contrast from the heat of the sunny day. The river current is swift but the children are skilled in their interaction with this flowing narrow river and climb up on the pier to jump again and again. If you close your eyes you can hear them count before they jump “môt, hai, ba…a..aa..!”

We have been here only a few hours and yet we know the day we must leave Vietnam will be a day that will bring tears of sadness. Tears that will absorb color and allow us to project in our own eyes, for the world to see, the brilliant blue of the Saigon sky.

New Boston, TX- Parks & Walking Trails

Lace up your sneakers and enjoy the City of New Boston Parks, these parks a gift from the City of New Boston offer many opportunities to be outdoors. Tapp Park’s walking trails wind around the park through shaded paths of oak and pine trees and the asphalt trails of Trail Head Park take you from downtown New Boston to Hwy 98 through more than three miles of walkway surrounded by nature. This newest trail runs along the old Texas & Pacific Railway rails and the paved asphalt way ends at HWY 98.

One of my favorite things to do is walking and my favorite walking companion is my husband. We keep about the same pace so walking together is easy. Any season, our favorite place to walk is New Boston’s Trail Head Park. This past weekend in mid-April was no exception. The spring time weather made it the perfect morning walk. The City of New Boston completed this asphalt trail in 2016. The trail to HWY 98 from downtown New Boston- passing Scout Lake and return to town is about six miles, the walk is just over three miles to Scout Lake and back to town.
No matter your route, this is a beautiful nature walk. Lacey blooms of white, yellow and purple line the walk along Front Street from Trail Head Park to near Frost Street. On the trail, you’ll meet families riding their bicycles, parents pushing their children in strollers and dog walkers out to give their dogs some exercise.

Near Frost Street the trail changes, frilly blooms in shades of yellow line the walk as the trail is enveloped in a canopy of green and the heady sweet scents of privet hedge and honeysuckle fill the air.

The trail is lined with many pines and hardwood trees on each side and west of Robertson there is a lush thicket of bamboo.

Along the way are wildflowers scattered about, royal thistles with blooms faded and exhausted but still standing proud. Purple Spiderworts with their showy blossoms. Depleted cattails awaiting their renewal for a fall performance. Shoots of yellow petals reaching up. Then, arriving at the creek, a short walk over the bridge is Scout Lake. You will likely see ducks or fishermen enjoying the lake.

When you return checkout the dandelions with their bright yellow blossoms and some with their seed head blooms, pick one – make a wish. This all-purpose trail is great for walking, jogging, bike riding or just to be out for a leisurely stroll and as you return to downtown New Boston notice the walkway lined with crepe myrtles with their promise of a spectacular display of summer blooms.

Previously Published: “When You Know You’d Rather Be Outdoors.” Bowie County Citizens Tribune & DeKalb News 3 May 2017, F5

Reflections Of Place

This blog has sprouted from the seeds of travel planted in my heart and soul by my natural wanderlust. Seeds that were later cultivated in stories by author Delia Goetz. The first word I ever spoke, outside of mama or dada, was ‘gone’. As a child of four and five years old I would wander off in the neighborhood. My parents called it “running off” and it was something I wasn’t supposed to do. I did it anyway, it was adventurous and fun. I remember sitting on the curb several blocks from home, five years old with such a feeling of achievement. I had run off and I was sure no one knew I was missing – and best of all…I had gone to the neighborhood store and charged a pack of gum. I had charged this to my parents’ account. I could sit on that curb unsupervised and chew every piece. Oh, how I loved the freedom of the journey even then. Sadly, that same year we moved out from town. Bragging on myself for not running off anymore I would quickly lament “because there’s no place to go.”
In 1964, Delia Goetz introduced the nine-year-old me to the world. Her 4th Grade textbook, ‘At Home Around the World’ opened a world of foreign countries, foreign children, foreign languages, and foreign cultures. With her ‘At Home in the- Mountains of Ecuador, A River in India, A Ranch in Argentina …’ through nine geographically diverse places she helped me to discover our differences and our likenesses. She introduced me to the challenges of land reclamation in The Netherlands and to the challenges of reforestation in Norway. I fell in love with the people and places of our world and ever since I have been discovering places near and far as part of this beautiful journey she unfolded for me. While I must declare a physical address for the privilege to vote and to drive and I must declare a physical address for my passport, I do consider this planet my home. So, you may find me packing to go home, or you may find me gone but you will never find me homesick. In this space, I hope to share my own stories of travel and journeys, my own Reflections of Place.

Delia Goetz wrote ‘At Home Around the World’- 4th Grade Level textbook published by Ginn & Company. This book was one in a series of books published by Ginn & Company -‘Lands and Peoples of the World’, which included multiple volumes for grades 4-7. This series was originally printed in 1958 with reprints in 1961. Ginn & Company at that time was in Boston, MA and is no longer in business. The publishing imprint for Ginn & Company belongs to Pearson Education a publisher based in the UK. Delia Goetz 1896-1996 is known for her work as an author of children’s books. She taught school both domestically and internationally. Later in her career she worked for the US government as an educational specialist.