Arkansas signs you won't see in Chicago

Arkansas State Parks part 2

Our third stop on our tour of Arkansas State Parks was the resort park at Lake DeGray where we again camped though it was a steamy 90+ degrees and quite humid, even late into the evening, making bedtime a sweaty affair though the tent was open. With no breeze, it was uncomfortable. Regardless, we biked 10+ miles on the roller coaster hills and horseback rode for an hour.









DeGray is yet another magnificent park and offers golf, swimming, tennis, and boating with rentals of every type of craft you can imagine if you don't bring your own. Before arriving here, we made a detour to Mt. Magazine State Park and toured the lovely new lodge perched atop the high mountain where hang gliding is a popular adventure.

Stuff you see in Arkansas but not in Chicago

Arkansas State Parks

Our tour of Arkansas State Parks began with Lake Dardanelle SP campground. Ellen loved her first night of camping, wondering why she slept better on the ground than in her own bed at home.


We also biked the area and kayaked about 5 miles of the lakefront of this immense 28,000 square acre reservoir built to tame the flood-prone Arkansas River.



A highlight of our night here was this magnificent sunset.



A lengthy drive on backroads, mostly paved but not all, brought us to Lake Ouachita (pronounced WASH-it-aw) SP, our second stop. The tent camping area was on a peninsula jutting out into the lake -- a beautiful location but with sites abutting one another and no foliage separating each site or deadening the voices of neighboring campers, it was a noisy evening. Even the din of the crickets and tree frogs couldn't mask the human vocal output. Ellen also loved her second night of roughing it.

U Ark

Ellen took me on a tour of the lovely University of Arkansas campus adjacent to the downtown area. From a small beginning in 1871 of eight students and three faculty members, the campus now covers 345 acres on a stately landscaped hilltop overlooking the Ozark Mountains and showcasing 130 historic and modern buildings. Begun as a land grant college, they started an interesting tradition still continued today. Every graduate's name is etched into a concrete sidewalk by graduation class. This was pretty simple in 1876 with only 9 grads, but with recent large classes, it must be quite an involved process. Imagine correcting misspellings or adding overlooked names!



Since the University's founding, the names of all 120,000 plus graduates have been etched into more than five miles of campus sidewalks (called "Senior Walk.")



One of the many stautes was "Courage to Lead" depicting 3 Indians, 2 of whom are shooting arrows straight up. The object, apparently, was to remain stationary and hope the arrows don't kill you as they return to earth.

Pea Ridge National Military Park

Forty minutes northeast of Fayetteville is Pea Ridge where the National Park Service commemorates the 1862 battle which assured Missouri would remain in the union. Over 26,000 soldiers fought here and over 2000 perished as the North vanquished the Confederates after a disastrous first day of battle.



A paved 7.5 mile one-way road tours the battlegrounds and is open to bikes, so we biked the extremely hilly route, stopping at the various interpretive signs. A very informative movie is also available at the Visitor Center. Then the 88 degree weather impelled us to stop for shakes at Sonic.

Fayetteville Farmer's Market

Fayetteville's Farmer's Market offers a lot more than the Wauconda market I attended Thursday, but of course the growing season starts quite a bit earlier down here and more is ready for harvest at this juncture. Anyway, the market was bustling with people and dogs (why so many bring their critters, I can't answer, but they were all well behaved.) Lots of little kids were also present, especially around the water feature. Vegetables and flowers of every type were for sale at reasonable prices, and street musicians entertained in several places.





The nearby Town Center had this sculpture, the World Peace Prayer Fountain, an 8000 pound globe with "May Peace Prevail on Earth" inscribed in over 100 languages. This work of art involved 8000 hours of labor and the entire globe can be spun on its axis with minimal hand pressure.



Below is Ellen in her new Toyota Prius hybrid.

KC Birdie

This is KC (Kisses and Cuddles), Ellen's cockatiel. At first KC is a bit shy...



...but eventually warms up to you.

In Fayetteville, Arkansas

I made the long drive to Fayetteville without difficulty and was rewarded upon arrival with a sumptuous dinner of barbequed rotisserie leg of lamb, Greek potatoes, and carrots. Ellen is certainly a master chef and enjoys the preparation and cooking as much as I enjoy the consumption.



She also enjoys raising many of her own vegetables and spices. The photo below shows some of her crop of tomatoes, and she also has green peppers, basil, rosemary, sage, and oregano.

Shootout on Main Street

Wauconda is unique in that it hosts an annual rodeo on a dedicated rodeo grounds. Not unusual out West, but this is the suburbs of Chicago! Today was the kickoff of the weekend's festivities, and in conjunction with the weekly Farmer's Market, the Bristol Plains Pistoleros staged a gunfight reenactment on Main Street.

Black Bart and his gang arrive and immediately rob the Widow Jenkins as she travels Main Street with her five children. Bad, bad Black Bart! You should be ashamed of yourself. But wait -- here comes the marshal to the rescue.


Oh, oh! Black Bart shot the marshal!



But don't fret for the stalwart local citizens strike back and...


...the deadly shootout commences. With the forces of good overcome the black forces of evil?



Yes!!! Black Bart is hit and falls...



...and dies, making the town safe once again!

More Germany photos

Here are a few more sights you probably won't see in the USA.



These are Cadillacs set in concrete in this Berlin sculpture (perhaps a suggestion of what we should do with our American gas-guzzlers?)



The Berlin photo above claims to be the narrowest office building in the world. I believe it is a mere 9 feet wide. (Well, cars are smaller and homes are smaller in Germany, so why not office buildings?)



Johann Sebastian Bach's first job as choir director/organist was in Leipzig's Thomas Kirche, so a statue of him outside the church is expected, but inside they had a small museum including some of his handwritted musical manuscripts. It really gives one a sense of history!

The next 2 photos are from Munich's Hofbrauhaus' show.

Three of the band members harmonized on several songs using these long Alpenhorns. Wonderful sound, but not something you'd hear over here.


The dancers are using full axes to chop wood as part of their dance. A few minutes of cleanup were required to sweep up the shavings after the act.

The following sign doesn't really say what you might think. Rather, it bids people "good travel" as you depart the hotel in Gengenbach in the Schwartz Wald (Black Forest).

Palatine Concert Band Performance

Another beautiful evening and another outstanding performance by the band. Last week they played their two "hired" gigs at the Evanston and Wilmette Third of July and Fourth of July celebrations, but tonight they were back in their home venue at the community park amphitheatre.



They played all upbeat numbers, show tunes, marches, and some of the patriotic fare from last night, including a standing ovation. Great job!

Germany photos 2: Sights you won't see in the USA

Castle and cathedral viewed from the Rhine River:



Several of the 509 steps taking you to the top of the second highest church tower in the world, the Cologne Cathedral. Its twin 515 foot towers are only 2 feet shorter than another German town's towers. How many footfalls did it take to wear down these granite stairs?



In the town of Hamelin, renowned for being the setting of the Grimm Brothers fairy tale, "The Pied Piper of Hamelin," this young flautist was entertaining crowds outside the visitor center.



A sight I hope we never see: This was a fortified entry to the former East Germany from West Germany, a place with walls and guard towers and these vehicle inspection lanes.



At the Sloss Sanssouci in Potsdam, this fellow was selling hot dogs from his inventive and practical, self-contained, one-man hot dog vending apparatus, complete with umbrella since it was raining.



We complain about gas prices here. In Germany, the price was 1.36 Euros per liter which calculates out to about $6.50 a gallon. Swatch and Mercedes Benz have combined talents to develop and market the Smart car which is a big seller there. About the only place in our country where you can see it is in NYC's Museum of modern Art. Here are two examples of this vehicle.






BTW: If you want more info on why Smart cars are not in our country, but how you could get one, check asmartcar.com