Learning As We Go

Max said it best: Papa, the Grand Canyon is amazing, but our home is even better. A harrowing ending to this part of the expedition, as I will explain. The last few days (before the chaos) were spent in the verdant hills of the Tennessee Smokies and Virginia's Shenandoah National Park. We saw black bears, took a bike trip past 19th century cabins and old baptist churches, and discussed the Civil War. We listened to the cicadas, sat around the fire and film-interviewed each other about the trip. Sweet to hear the thrushes. Then we hit the road for home at last. It began with a small mishap and escalated. About two hundred miles up the road from Shenandoah, after winding up and down numerous hills, we realized we didn't have Olga's laptop computer. We called ... read more

As we turn our trailer Eastward, we must collect our thoughts about this journey, and especially what is has meant to the kids. But that will take time. When Max was hiking in Bryce Canyon he told us that his eyes had been hungry before the trip, and at Bryce they felt full. We wish that every family we know can find a way to sleep under the stars like nomads sometime. Zoya and Max are writing away. Preparing for presentations to their classes in NY will be a good gathering and processing time. Some photos here reflect recent experiences in Utah, the UK and Colorado. To catch you up: The show (Woody Sez) went beautifully in Brighton, which is a marvellous seaside English town. The kids and Olga took a day trip to London and ... read more

Hello all. Our past few weeks have included time in California, where we camped in Malibu while Andy went to rehearsals and recording sessions for "Woody Sez," a sumptuous passover seder at Paul and Jacki's in La Jolla, and magical boating and hiking in Joshua Tree (CA) the Grand Canyon, Lake Powell (AZ), Zion Canyon and Bryce Canyon(UT). Matzah never tasted so good as it does after a good long backpack into a canyon. We are now on the Navajo reservation, and will be driving into Hopi villages today. Max has just given us a presentation on the Native American Cliff-Dwellers, the Anasazi. Zoya begins her study of Native American pottery this morning, after completing a draft of her History of Mexican Leaders. Tonight we will camp in Canyon de Chelley, a National Monument Area which ... read more

We love Mexico. Arrived in Guanajuato on Monday March 24th. We were welcomed by Sigfrido and Janet, and their two sons Tzintzun and Sereno, the Aguilar-Izzo family. Sigfrido is a master of clown theater, and he and Janet are an inspiring and moving artistic force in the Guanajuato community, drawing artists, mathematicians, and established musicians into their magical circle of movement theater. We made our home base at their imaginatively constructed house on a hill in Valenciana, at an old mine, where what was once a huge water tank has been transformed into an outdoor ampitheater. Each day was filled with activities. Because Tzintzun and Sereno have been homeschooled for a number of years now, the Aguilar-Izzo family gave us a marvelous model for interactive experiential learning. In addition to the constant flow of rehearsals at ... read more

Hello Everyone, We spent some beautiful days in Big Bend National Park, in the heart of the Chihuahan desert. We learned alot from the rangers there, about the raptors, the invasive species and the Rio Grande. We had to be careful with Jenny the Dog because of the Javelinas, which came around in packs at night. We are now in Carlsbad, New Mexico, where we visited the cavern. Max says: The cavern was amazing. A couple of times some water dripped on my nose. Sadly, we couldn't touch any of the rocks, but got a couple of pebbles. There are lots and lots of Peregrine Falcons here. So now we move on toward Arizona. Tomorrow we will pass briefly back into Texas to avoid heading with the trailer through the snowy mountains around Alamagordo. ... read more