[Magdalen] Roger 2015 (was Re: weather/temps...)

[Lynn Ronkainen]

Roger some Midwestern delights to research and consider:

St. Louis, Missouri where there is a great arch built to show that St. Louis 
was the gateway to the west, most of the land acquired in the Louisiana 
Purchase ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Purchase ) during the 
presidency of Thomas Jefferson, who commissioned Merriwether Lewis and 
William Clark to explore and chart all the way to the Pacific IIRC, which 
they did.  Under the arch there is a large and amazing museum of the history 
of the westward movement of settlers, adventurers and scoundrels, American 
native peoples and other lore.

Not too far away from that is South Dakota where you will find the 4 
significant US  presidents immortalized, having had their heads carved in 
the mountain side: Mt. Rushmore.   http://www.nps.gov/moru/index.htm
Also in the near vicinity The Badlands, a national park of stark beauty to 
drive through (a must drive near after sunrise or in the hour or so before 
sunset as the shadows are part of the beauty? 
http://www.nps.gov/badl/index.htm

Michigan boasts, besides being surrounded by 4 of the 5 Great Lakes 
beautiful and amazing in their splendor and the longest coastline of the 
'lower 48',  a 5 mile long suspension bridge - the Mackinaw Bridge, or Big 
Mack as she is called, connects the lower and upper peninsulas. And then 
there is Mackinaw island, a lovely spot just off the top of the lower 
peninsula of MI, also containing a state or national park that was once the 
Fort at that junction of the great lakes. No cars are on the island except 
for an ambulance, allowed for the first time not more than 20-30 years ago. 
One can rent bikes and ride around the perimeter of the island.  Further due 
north at the tip of the upper peninsula are the Soo Locks enabling the 
freighters that come down the St. Lawrence  Seaway into the great lakes, 
finally enter lake that will take them to their final destination of Duluth 
NM....  Also in Detroit there is a world class art museum: The Detroit 
Institute of Arts, recently in the news because it was feared that art would 
be sold to defray the city's bankruptcy debt, but that has recently been 
forever averted.  Also of note in Dearborn (very close to Detroit) is the 
The Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village - which I know you would 
enjoy... it has so many things to see and do connected with the early 20 
Century in the US and many great inventors and scions of industry (Edison, 
Ford, and the titans of industry in the US and Railroad and oil men were all 
friends who called themselves the Vagabonds 
http://www.history.com/news/ford-and-edisons-excellent-camping-adventures  ), 
in many ways is it a history museum of the US in the first 1/2 of the last 
century.  There are original famous cars (models or owners), planes, 
including the one flown by Lindbergh, across the Atlantic... a treasure 
trove, if that is of interest. Edison's Menlo Park laboratory has been moved 
there.  I'll find a hot link, I'm sure there is one... 
http://www.thehenryford.org/village/index.aspx

To the east - Niagara Falls (something tells me you were there on trip #1). 
I believe you went to Toronto already?  Montreal and Quebec are just further 
down the St. Lawrence... Wonderful places to visit and if you get to 
Montreal consider booking a room way ahead of time at the Hotel Chateau 
Frontenac which overlooks, over the edge of a cliff, the St. Lawrence.  Also 
consider touring the area in the St. Lawrence Seaway where can be found the 
1,000 islands. There are companies on both sides of the seaway that operate 
tours of the islands - a fun and interesting trip. There is a bridge to NY 
State    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thousand_Islands


As far as time of year... you might want to consider whether you want to 
mingle with tourists pre or post summer vacation for those traveling with 
kids of school age.  Many of these are are also lovely in the early fall 
with the colorful foliage.

Other thoughts as/if they come...
Lynn

website: www.ichthysdesigns.com

When I stand before God at the end of my life I would hope that I have not a 
single bit of talent left and could say, "I used everything You gave me." 
attributed to Erma Bombeck

Thomas Merton writes, “People may spend their whole lives climbing the 
ladder of success only to find, once they reach the top, that the ladder is 
leaning against the wrong wall.”

"What you seek is seeking you." - Rumi

--------------------------------------------------
From: "Roger Stokes" <roger.stokes65 at btinternet.com>
Sent: Friday, November 14, 2014 6:01 PM
To: <magdalen at herberthouse.org>
Subject: [Magdalen] Roger 2015 (was Re:  weather/temps...)

> Perhaps I need to reconsider spending November next year in the USA if 
> it's that cool in Florida.  Somebody I met in Florida urged the delights 
> of the Upper Mid-West, and Wisconsin on particular. Although I visited 
> Chicago in 2012 I haven't explored further in that bit of the USA. 
> Looking at my calendar for next year June seems possible.
>
> Any thoughts?
>
> Roger
> On 14/11/2014 23:44, Marilyn Cepeda wrote:
>> I am currently in Lake City, Florida where the low tonight is 36.
>>
>> On Thursday, November 13, 2014, Lynn Ronkainen <ichthys89 at comcast.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> headed down past 30 tonight here in Houston.... for November THAT'S 
>>> COLD!!
>>>
>>> I spend the better part of an hour covering bedding plants (because this
>>> won't last and they will, if covered) and hauling in some of my
>>> summer-grown-huge tropicals - schefflera and an 8' tall cut leaf
>>> philodendron in a pot (which I cut into pieces to root).
>>>
>>> Furnace on and it's set at 62.... yep, it is cold.
>>>
>>> Lynn
>>>
>>> website: www.ichthysdesigns.com
>>>
>>> When I stand before God at the end of my life I would hope that I have 
>>> not
>>> a single bit of talent left and could say, "I used everything You gave 
>>> me."
>>> attributed to Erma Bombeck
>>>
>>> Thomas Merton writes, "People may spend their whole lives climbing the
>>> ladder of success only to find, once they reach the top, that the ladder 
>>> is
>>> leaning against the wrong wall."
>>>
>>> "What you seek is seeking you." - Rumi
>>>
>>
>