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Published: October 7th 2004
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Chicago Downtown View
Overlooking the city from the 96th floor on the John Handcock building. Living in Florida has prepared me for the hurricane traveling routine: watch the wheather channel, board up the windows, change my flight and hurricane hits. I associate my recent travels with each hurricane that has hit Florida. I promised myself upon returning from my South Pacific travels that I would continue traveling within my country. Little did I know that Hurricane Season was going to effect my traveling?!
So to combine my past 4 trips into 1 blog, I will use the “2004 Hurricane Timeline.” While the storms were stirring in the Atlantic, I had the chance to safely travel to Colorado Springs. Now, this was a nice family reunion trip and despite the occasional family nagging and crazy family traditions, I was able to do a bit of site seeing. Colorado has breathtaking scenery and a bit of the “outback look” with its massive red rocks, mountainous region and clear night sky. The air felt so clean, which makes since being as it is over 6,000 feet above sea level (snakes don’t even exist at this altitude).
To mention a few of the sites I visited: The Garden of the Gods’ red sandstone formations developed from an eroding
activity involving rain, snow and windblown sand; Manitou Cliff Dwellings built into the mountains and inhabited by the Anasazi Indians around 1100 AD; an old small gold-mining town, Cripple Creek, with over 20 casinos and the Royal Gorge Bridge in Canon City being the world’s largest suspension bridge at 1,053 feet high over the Arkansas River. The reunion ended with a BBQ, fiddling music and many family stories.
Now “A” and “B” from the alphabet trickled off and next is “C”. “C” for Chicago and Hurricane Charley. Due to Charley I had to reschedule to an earlier flight into Chicago. Chicago is everything you expect with its magnificent sky scrappers, extravagant shopping, congested traffic and lively nightlife. I experienced Downtown Chicago a couple of different ways; riding on a motorcycle between the high rises, standing out of a limo window oohing and awing, shopping on the Magnificent Mile and enjoying a few cocktails and breathtaking view of the city on the 96th floor of the John Handcock building. Busy, vast and segregated are few words to describe this city. Segregated because of the sections of ethnic groups with large populations of Irish, Hispanic and Polish. I experienced the Irish
section with good pubs, good beer, Irish hospitality …Chicago was a “good laugh!”
The hurricanes allowed me to travel to New Orleans without any problems. My New Orleans trip was circled around a convention for my work, but this was not going to stop me from a night out on Bourbon Street. I fell in love with the city and not for its crazy night life but for its jazz music; quaint colorful houses with intricate iron balconies; Cajun food; Magazine Street lined with cafes, vintage boutiques and art galleries; voodoo/cemetery mystique and the Mississippi River flowing along the city. Now, the people are crazy talking just like Emril. Our cab driver was your typical local having a strong accent, grunting and ending every sentence with “ya kno.” The best part of New Orleans is Bourbon Street, which I managed to parade in out and out of the strip of bars and through the crowded streets with a bright green boa and beads (I swear I didn’t earn them). Needless to say, I was not too productive the next day at the convention.
Hurricane Francis hit affecting my visitor’s travel and managed to be stuck inside the entire
weekend. Ivan came creating minimal damage. Then, Hurricane Jeanne was making its way to Florida thinking it was going up the east coast. Wrong, it came straight for the Tampa Bay area while I was in Boston and I could not fly back into Tampa. Oh well, 2 more days in Boston and 2 days off work!
Boston is a city of U.S. history with preserved brick buildings, monuments and every part of the city with historical significance. The first day I headed to Newbury Street for the shopping, then walked through the peaceful Public Garden as 6 weddings were taking place, through Boston Common (America’s oldest public park) and ending in Beacon Hill. To see the best of Boston, I ventured on the Duck Tour. The Duck Tour vehicles were originally used in WWII for transportation on land and in water. The Duck tour plunged into the Charles River for a waterside view of Boston and throughout the streets of Boston. Some of the historical landmarks I visited included the golden-domed State House, Bunker Hill memorial, the first public school site accompanied with a Benjamin Franklin statue, the oldest commissioned warship, Old Ironsides and the Victorian Gothic Trinity
Church.
I think that I will temporarily end my traveling until Hurricane Season is over, so until then I will have enough time to plan a few more trips.
(more boston pictures to come...I have to find my camera)
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wow!! i think it is very spectacular view.. i like it very much.. - priscilla