Trip Pictures

In my haste, I think I forgot to post the address for the pictures---

picasaweb.google.com/andylombardo

In the future, more pictures from other teachers will be posted to

Smug Mug

Back to 5 Dec 2008

We left Santa Cruz in the morning and took a water taxi to Baltra, an island very close to Santa Cruz that houses the airport at the site of a WWII US airbase. We spent a large chunk of the day waiting around the small, open-air airport waiting for our flight. We were bumped from our original flight that had a layover in Guayaquil and instead had direct service to Quito.

It's definitely sad to see the islands go. They truly are las islas encantadas. I am very ready to go home, but it's really weird being in a city of 2 million people right now. Add that to a mild case of alititude sickness (we're above 10,000 feet), and you've got the makings of a dizzy, migrained, homesick guy sitting around the hotel. It was nice to have a few minutes to decompress, but as soon as we got to Quito we went straight to the hotel and had a few hours of meetings and then dinner. By the time it was over, I was out. Putzed around online a few minutes, chatted with Jodie online, and went to bed.

I'll be back in town Saturday night! (then home Sunday, bus duty/school/basketball party Monday, school Tuesday, then a Tech conference in Nashville Wed-Fri)

 

1 December 2008

Santa Cruz (1 Dec. 2008)

Today was the busiest and most stressful day of the trip so far. Over the past several days we've been collaborating in small groups by subject matter with four American teachers and one Galapaguenan teacher.

We came up with a solid unit idea to focus on what we termed "The Paradox of Paradise." Whereas most groups were focusing on environmental issues from the perspective of science or biology, we were viewing the glory of the islands through a literary interpretive lens. We saw the unabashed beauty of the islands, but we saw it directly juxtaposed against the dangerous side of nature, the parts of nature that lie in wait prepared to devour anything that isn't equipped or adapted to deal with it.

While it was exhilarating to have literary discussion time, preparing a unit plan and presentation to be delivered at the Colegio Nacional de Galapagos became taxing. After disembarking from the M/V Santa Cruz this morning, we boarded directly onto a bus for a 45 minute ride to the Hotel Red Booby, where we immediately began the last minute preparations for the presentation. Work on the presentations lasted until lunch at the Café Hernan a few blocks away from the hotel. The most unsettling aspect of the walk to lunch was the way that all of us still felt like we were on a ship. The ground seemed to rock and sway with the tide. According to those who have been on cruises before, the sensation supposedly goes away after about 24 hours.

From lunch, we basically went back to the hotel to regroup and walk over to Galapagos National High School. We arrived at the high school at 2pm, with presentations starting at 2:15. There were eight groups presenting, with ours being the last. Each presentation lasted between twenty five and thirty five minutes, so our presentation didn't begin until 5:40ish. Once on stage, everyone performed marvelously. Lena had a great hook for introducing our topic, John had a very witty way of describing a certain poets work ("The tourist with the third eye sees nothing"), Betsy was very enthusiastic, especially considering that the power went out during her portion of the presentation, and Zoila displayed mad translating skills and had a good perspective on our topic.

Finally, the most stressful part of the trip was finished.

Next, the students at the Colegio put on a cultural program of singing, dancing, and music. Once again, I successfully avoided taking part in the "Dancers pulling audience members up to dance" portion of the program. One of my favorite quotes from one of the music teachers at the school was "Most cultures around the world are trying to preserve their culture. In the Galapagos, we are trying to create our culture through music and art." It served as a poignant reminder to me that it would do some good to help reinvent our culture in the United States. The more I see, the more I am reminded of the fact that regional culture is practically dead. Except for pockets of preservation, even areas with rich cultural histories, like the Southeast, in particular, have bought into the idea of a homogenized culture of corporate conformity. As a middle school teacher, I get to see this in play by watching as my students over the past six years have been hooked on the life support of the prepackaged culture that they are downloading daily through television, internet, and video games. Adolescence is an important formative time, and they are the ones being most forcefully wooed. Our lives are basically one big advertisement, where our idea of culture is no longer "How can I express myself, my beliefs, my ideas, and my identity through the arts?" but rather "How can I express myself through the things I own, through the things I watch, through the things I buy?" As a tourist here, I constantly feel the danger of experiencing life through the viewfinder. I have to remind myself to put the camera down and have experiences, to see things in real life, not through my lens. It's helping to remind me that right here isn't the only place where I view the world through a lens. Maybe the greatest danger of our downloaded culture is that it has convinced us that it doesn't exist. We are sweetly serenaded by the sirens' song, enticing us, singing softly in our ears that our consumption is what brings meaning to our lives.

 

Bongo y Panga (1 Dec. 2008)

Short entry. After dinner tonight we saw possibly the rarest species so far. It's most commonly known by its scientific name--bailandus lombardous.  Hopefully, there won't be pictures posted later.

 

Tortuga Bay

Thanks for the pic, Perri!

Sea Kayaking (3 Dec. 2008)

After lunch Tom, Jennie, Britta, Pat, Perri, Christina and I took a taxi to the trailhead for Tortuga Bay. There was a stone path that lead from where the taxi left us to the two beaches at the bay. The path was basically a double track footpath paved with small paving stones through a fairly arid part of the island. Of course there were the requisite dozens of lava lizards scurrying underfoot. The footpath itself gave the impression of walking across a miniaturized Great Wall.

Once we walked the 2.5 kilometers to the beach, we walked through the waves following marine iguana tracks and watching Sally Lightfoot crabs. We stopped to have a short visit with a marine iguana who was hamming up all the attention. We left Pat and Christina at the first beach and rounded the point to the second beach and Tortuga Bay proper. The first beach was secluded—aside from us there was only one other person—and then the second had the person renting out kayaks and that was it. There's definitely a perk to having to walk a mile to get to the beach. After the walk, though, we were starting to run out of time until dinner, so we debated just walking down the beach and coming back. It was one of the best decisions of the trip to keep going. The kayak rentals were $5 per person per hour, so I got a kayak, Tom and Perri shared a double, and Jennie and Britta shared a double.

The water in the bay was calm and clear, which helped us to see all of the sea turtles. I lost count on sea turtles, as you could see a flipper or head pop above water and then you could paddle over and float alongside of it for a few minutes. We also saw a few rays and three sharks. We think they were white tipped sharks, but I'm not sure. For two of them we only saw fins, but the other swam right through our group so we could see the whole body. We also paddled in-and-out of the mangroves that bordered the bay, seeing herons and lots of colorful fish. Awesome experience.

Shopping

After we got back from kayaking there was time to get cleaned up to go shopping for a few minutes. Shopping was the first time on the trip when I've really really started to get homesick. We've been moving at such a frantic pace that usually we go from an activity to a meal to an activity to a meal to activity to bed. Shopping for two hours was time that was devoted solely to thinking about home and how everyone is doing at home. Compound that with the fact that there is no possible way I could ever find a gift sufficient enough to thank Jodie for everything she does both when I'm home and when I'm gone and you have the makings of a fairly miserable evening. From shopping we went straight to dinner at Angermeyer Point, where we had to take a water taxi to get to the restaurant. It was a swanky place with good food and good company, but by midmeal I was ready for bed. Our entire table was laid back and slumped over before the main course was over. Needless to say, there was no dancing tonight.

Recycling Center Santa Cruz

This morning, after a lecture on biodiversity, we toured the recycling center here on Santa Cruz. Funded by Toyota and the World Wildlife Fund, it was fun to go and see some of the processes. As a recycling junkie, it was really neat to walk through. I would love to find a way to take a group of students through a recycling center or waste management center back home (umm… Laura?) When you see where your trash goes it really personalizes the process and makes you think twice not just before throwing something away, but before buying it and consuming it in the first place. One of the ways I think this trip will change me the most is by getting me back on track with my personal improvement plan. Last January, I made the commitment to get in shape, eat better, recycle, etc. I did great until August. I ran and worked out five times a week, cut out all meat, recycled everything, and I felt great. Once school started this year I got so busy and out of the habit of everything that I gained back all the weight I lost and have just felt tired, stressed, and lazy. My mission now is to translate some of those healthy practices into the classroom and into my family to try to make a positive impact on others and to have a little bit of accountability. I'm totally reinvigorated to that end.

Una Noche de Bailando

As you could probably guess, I dug my own grave. Since on our schedule we had dancing listed as one of the activities during the trip, I've been sure to point out that I am NOT a dancer—that I unequivocally do not dance—not at my proms, not at my wedding, nada. So of course, the group pressure last night was to get me to dance. With that threshold crossed and all the prevailing rumors that I had been dancing, of course everyone (yes EVERYone) came out tonight with the goal of getting me to dance with me and watch me make a fool of myself. Mission accomplished! The perk for Jodie is that I may go dancing with her sometime, if of course there is the caveat that we do it on a tropical island where I don't know anyone.

Fundar

This afternoon we went up to the highlands to visit the Parajo Brujo reserve (www.fundargalapagos.org). The goal of the organization Fundar there is to have an organic farm to show locals how to adopt organic sustainable farming practices to help reduce dependence on food importation. They also aim to eradicate invasive species (the farming is one of the ways of doing that since there is a great risk of importing invasive species with food). After one of the best meals of the entire trip, we walked out to tour the farm. On the way, we saw several giant tortoises in the wild—an irreplaceable experience. We then went to pick out scalesia tree saplings to plant near the restaurant area. Scalesia is a native plant that is planted for shade and to provide animal habitat. The need to repopulate native plants comes partly from the total decimation and destruction left in the wake of the feral goats on the islands. When we planted our trees, we logged our names and the number of the tree in a logbook, and they are planning to email us with photo updates of our tree's progress.

Pictures from the Darwin Station and Fundar

Darwin Station

This morning we toured the Darwin research station. My best comparison is Tremont:Galapagos edition. The station's main purposes are research and community outreach and awareness. They also do the tortoise breeding programs (Lonesome George lives here). It was a neat tour. We got to see lots of tortoises and a few land iguanas up close. This was also the main stop for t-shirt shopping because all of the proceeds from the Darwin shop goes to fund research and conservation.

Ecuador Volcano

How much better than this does it get?

Saturday and Sunday

Fernandina Island (30 Nov. 2008)

We're at a point now where it's really difficult to write about what happened today because so many things have happed. I'm writing this at 6:30 pm, and we've already enough activities to fill half a week.

We started out this morning on Fernandina Island, where marine iguanas, sea lions, Sally Lightfoot crabs, flightless cormorants, and Galapagos hawks were to be found in abundance.

One of the most awe-inspiring aspects of this trip is the way that the animals are largely indifferent to human presence. Some of the other high points were getting to watch marine iguanas eat algae, seeing a whale skeleton, and watching a Galapagos hawk eating an iguana. Geologically speaking, this was also an interesting outing. Lava flows and lava tubes and crevices were everywhere. The ground was buckled as if shattered by a wave.

 

Snorkeling at Ecuador Volcano (30 Nov. 2008)

Okay, so I was totally freaked out by the phrase "Deep Water Snorkeling." However, it was one of the best experiences of the trip.

We rode a panga along the coast to a cove out of the sight of the Santa Cruz. Turning and jumping out of the boat for my second snorkeling experience was great. I had the breathing down, the mask was good, excellent start. From there, we swam along the cliff face looking down at schools of fish and flowing locks of algae. Cutting across the channel, we rounded a corner and came face to face with a sea turtle that swam directly to us. It was less than a meter from our faces when a sea lion swam by and diverted its attention. Swimming on, we saw several more sea turtles and at least 17 Golden Rays. I saw a school of five swimming and then with the rest of the group there was a group of eleven.

Back in the panga, we boated along the coastline looking for Galapagos penguins. We saw many Galapagos penguins, flightless cormorants, sea lions, marine iguanas, blue footed boobies, and fur sea lions.

Back on the ship by 5pm , I'm not sure what else we could possibly pack into today.

 

Random Observations (30 Nov. 2008)

Stendahl, in his descriptions of travelling in Venice, described a situation where a person could be so totally enticed, surrounded, and taken in to a piece of art that they could lose track of everything outside of the art. The enormity and scope and fullness of the beauty sublimely and serenely terrorizes us.

 

 Espanola Island (29 Nov. 2008)

This morning we disembarked from the boat for Espanola Island, also known as Hood Island. This was the first place we went to that was literally crawling with marine iguanas. Walking around the island, we saw nazca boobies, blue footed boobies, waved albatross, lava lizards, marine iguanas, Galapagos hawks, lava flows, sea lions, and Sally Lightfoot crabs. Tons of stuff.

One of the high points was getting to see the waved albatross. It gave us English nerds a great Rime of the Ancient Mariner moment, which led to a pre-dinner recitation of the poem.

We also got to see the albatross courtship dance. Very cool.

Scenery was fantastic. Pictures can say so much more than I ever can (so they'll be posted soon).

 

Floreana Island (29 Nov. 2008)

On Floreana Island we had a wet landing and then hiked around to see pink flamingos, some sea turtles swimming in the ocean, and a baby ray.

In this case, there are no pictures because I thought I was going to be snorkeling instead of hiking, but ended up not snorkeling.

 

The M/V Santa Cruz Day 1

Disembarkation (11-28-08)

We started the day today with a few spare minutes to run errands (mailing postcards for me), and then we had a lecture from Arturo regarding water sustainability in the Galapagos. Afterwards, we loaded up and boarded ship on the M/V Santa Cruz (M/V = motorized vessel). Needless to say, I didn't start out with sea legs. Until after lunch and a Dramamine, I was pretty queasy.

After lunch, however, was a different story. We cruised to Cerro Brujo (witch hill) and walked out on to the beach to go snorkeling. As soon as we hopped out of the raft into the water, you could immediately tell that there was no human presence on that side of the island. A few feet away were scattered the sun-bleached bones of a dead sea-lion. A few feet away an other sea lion was rotting in the sand while a finch flitted from its head to its fins. Completing the scene was a nearly decomposed blue-footed booby. This scene, maybe as much as any other, sums up the Galapagos for me. There are constant reminders that this beautiful area always has a contrary side, whether it is pollution, habitat destruction, over colonization, unsustainable tourism, etc.

On the other side of the beach I went snorkeling for the first time. When I'd thought about the trip, I'd planned on hiking at every opportunity. Now, I think I'm going to shift gears and go snorkeling at every opportunity. The water was nearly transparent with occasional clouds of sand disturbed by flippers and stingrays.

While I was still drifting and trying to get my mask adjusted I looked down and two sea lions swam directly below me. A few minutes later I swam through a school of fish. Later, I got to see a puffer fish from a few meters away. Just a few minutes later I got to watch a stingray settle into the sand. Never mind the countless colorful fish I couldn't begin to name. Needless to say, I'm now hooked on snorkeling. I'd planned on hiking every time there was an option of things to do, now it's going to be all about snorkeling!

 

Time to work (11-28-08)

After snorkeling, we came back to the ship and broke up into groups based on subject areas. Our goal as a group over the next few days is to design a unit that integrates environmental education into our curriculums.

In individual conversations over the past few days, several of us have talked about the tension between the simultaneous beauty and harshness of nature. We decided to call our unit the Paradox of Paradise, and it will focus on the progression of images of nature in literature through idealism with the romantics to nature's role as an impassive obstacle in modernism.

It was fun to get to collaborate with other teachers who get as excited about literature and poetry as I do. This was definitely another high point of the trip.

 

 

Awesome day.

 

Last Day in San Cristobal

School Visits (11-27-08)

Today I went to Liceo Naval in the morning to teach a short lesson. All I knew in advance was that the lesson was supposed to be on how to paint for high schoolers. After mentally preparing for the task, I took a taxi to the school ($1 to anywhere in the town I'm in… Puerto Baqerizo) with Arturo Keller, a professor from the University of California Santa Barbara who is travelling with us. Arturo worked his Spanish magic and found my class. My class of 6 and 7 year olds. Who couldn't use paint for fear of dirtying their uniforms. It was all for the best, though. We did a lesson where I had them draw a picture using colored pencils, and then I had to try to try what was in their picture in Spanish, and they had to try to say what was in the picture in English.

Overall, the lesson went well and was a huge adrenaline rush. Back home, I will DEFINITELY feel like I have something in common with students who don't speak English.

The biggest culture shock of the lesson wasn't so much that we spoke different languages, but more so it was the fact that they were 6 and 7 year olds. I have a 7 year old at home, but 1 Bailey is VERY different from a room full of 7 year olds. Even with the language barrier I could see familiar types of students… the rowdy boys, obviously, but also the kids who were keenly and intently focused on paying attention and doing a good job; the kids who needed extra attention and constant affirmation; the sweet kids who try primarily to please; the clingy kids who just want to be close to the adult.

It was a great eye-opening experience.

 

Cerro Terijetas (11-27-08)

After the school visit, I had a quick lunch (hamburguesa completa… a hamburger with a fried egg on top) and headed back to the general hotel area. We had a big chunk of free time, so I was painfully indecisive about what to do. I settled on just going for a short walk. I ended up at the beach where several other teachers were snorkeling. I didn't have snorkeling stuff, plus I had my camera and laptop in my bag, so I bummed around the beach taking pictures of sea lions until I found a trail. It was an unmarked trail, so I figured I would just follow it for a little while and then turn  back.

Once I started, though, the sights were too good to pass back. It turns out the trail was to the top of Cerro Terijetas (Frigatebird hill). On the way to the top, there was an old military cannon and several observation decks. From the observation decks, you could see out into the ocean and watch frigatebirds coasting in the air currents.

After the cannon was a statue of Charles Darwin overlooking the site where Darwin first set foot in the Galapagos. The statue overlooked a small cove that had crystal clear and blue water. From the top of the hill I could see to the bottom of the ocean. There were also several rock outcroppings/cave looking crevices as well as sea lions resting on the rocks. Simply amazing.

Another striking thing about the trail was how it was all over volcanic rock, and how on almost every step lava lizards would run away.

After an hours walk, I was back to the start of the trail. From there, it was back to Puerto Baquerizo.

 

The Town (11-27-08)

Coming back from Frigatebird hill, I met up with Sherri (a librarian from Utah) and Lena (a literature teacher from Balitmore) souvenir shopping. Sherri ducked into a shop, but we continued on past the end of the main strip (Avenida Darwin). This was the kind of view I've been looking for of San Cristobal. We walked down maybe 10 blocks or so through rows of small stores, markets, restaurants, and houses. We continued walking about five blocks away from the ocean and into the true residential areas of town. This is where the tension between people and the land is most evident. Garbage littered the ground by the bagful. Some houses were falling in, while others were in a serious state of disrepair with miscellaneous construction materials lying around. In this setting, you could also see luxury homes built up a hill and overlooking the surrounding areas. There were even some cases where the shaky single level homes that looked like they were ready for demolition shared a wall with multistory houses with ornate wrought iron gates and fences. There were lots of chickens, stray dogs, and a soccer game or two going on in a large compound labeled Association de Futbal.

Heading back towards the sea, there was a recycling center (possibly), a carpenter, and several other small stores.

Back by the sea on Charles Darwin Avenue some local fishermen were gutting fish and throwing out the guts, which caused quite a ruckus with the frigatebirds. We met Eduardo, John, and Renee on the peer and were almost knocked into the water by frisky frigatebirds.

 

Thanksgiving Dinner (11-27-08)

I made it back in to the hotel around 6:15, leaving me enough time to get ready for our dinner with the Galapaguenan school teachers. Our Thanksgiving meal was at 7, and we had turkey, gravy, pasta salad, and arroz con aceites. Muy sabroso. We were entertained by local dancers, and, thankfully, I wasn't pulled onto the dance floor like so many of my peers. While people were being pulled from the audience, Britta (science and art, Seattle), Michelle (science, Louisiana), and I were busy shrinking behind people and support columns, anything that would make us invisible. I was lucky to sit next to two people who claimed to be as rhythm-less as me.

After the meal, I came back downstairs to repack before we depart for the M/V Santa Cruz tomorrow morning.

Hasta manana!

 

Busy Day (26 Nov. 2008)

Galapagos Board of Education (11-26-08)
Howdy, all.
Today was the first day of the program where we’ve gone 24 hours without a flight or an upcoming flight the next morning. To make the most of it, the day was cram-packed.
After a great breakfast of eggs, ham, tofu, and toast, we walked to GAIAS again to meet with the Board of Education of the Galapagos.
In the meeting, we talked a lot about the pressures facing the Galapagos and the things they are trying to do to fix those problems. The key idea in Galapagos is tension: tension between conservation and tourism, tension between the inhabitants of the island and immigrants from mainland Ecuador, and tension between the tourists and the residents.
Galapagos, like any ecosystem, needs balance, and due to laws, policies, etc., it is harder and harder for balance to be found. The most promising news on this front is that there is beginning to be increased cooperation between the government of Ecuador, the school system, and the Charles Darwin Research Station, and UNESCO.
I am continually amazed by the things I see here. Stepping off the plane, yes, it was awesome, but it wasn’t the biological wonderland I’d been picturing in my mind. Sure, the wonders are here, but they are against a backdrop of construction, paving, poverty, and degeneration. One of my very first glimpses of the islands from the airplane was of a bulldozer razing half of a small mountain. This scares me the most because I see so many similarities between the Galapagos and the Smokies—similar tensions, similar biological diversity, similar problems. Seeing unrestricted growth, here or back home, scares me senseless. Fortunately, a lot of work is being done now in schools on the islands to create awareness of the issues and to foster ownership of the islands and stewardship for the islands. It’s my hope that when I get back, we’ll be able to do more at school to help foster those attitudes.

The Farm (11-26-08)
Stinkin’ awesome. That’s all I’ve got to say.
After leaving GAIAS this morning, we took the bus into the highlands, crossing the island. Our destination was an organic farm in the mountains. The road was muddy and steep, so, after the bus got stuck, we had to get out and walk up to the farm. It was great to get out of the bus and into the green. Whereas most of the island we’ve seen so far has been brown and dry, the farm was in the higher, wetter regions, so it was lush and inviting.
Along the side of the dirt road were planted corn, bananas, coffee, and bamboo.
Once up to the farmer’s house, we got to see and sample many different locally grown fruits---tree tomatoes, oranges, and bananas. Never has a banana tasted as good as the one I picked from the bunch today. It’s no comparison to the “reduced for quick sale” bananas back home. So far, I’ve succeeded in having locally grown bananas at every meal for the past two days! It is definitely my new favorite fruit. I also learned that the little black seeds in bananas are almost always sterile, and that the plants multiply by sending out shoots from the main plant. So, the banana orchard (?) we saw was composed of plants that all shot off of a couple of plants.
At the farm, we also got to milk a cow and taste some coffee beans fresh off the tree. Coffee is part of the same family of plants as cherries, so the fruit doesn’t taste at all like coffee.
They also roast their own coffee at the farm, and today I drank coffee that was grown, collected, sorted, dried, roasted, ground, and brewed all on the same property (a feat worthy of Sam… who’s already done it J ). We also drank water from a stalk of bamboo that is reported to be good for the health of your kidneys. Bamboo is not native to the Galapagos, but it is good on the farms because it grows quickly and can be used as building material, fencing, etc., and it can also serve as shade for the coffee trees.
The best part of the farm was the family. The husband, wife, uncle, and kids were all very gracious and exuberant and happy. They bent over backwards to make us feel comfortable and to show us the things they do.

El Junco (11-26-08)
After leaving the farm, we hiked up to El Junco, a freshwater lake in the crate of a volcano. Being on islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the Galapagos don’t get much rain. That makes it doubly impressive to find such a massive lake in the mountains that is filled entirely by rain and mist (called garua… it’s like a wet fog).
The pictures say more about El Junco than I ever could, so I will post them soon.

Restaurant Voluntidad de Dios (11-26-08)
I have no idea if I’ve remembered the name of the restaurant correctly, but I will keep in my tradition of describing meals. There’s just something cool about walking in to see chickens running free range all over the property, knowing, “hey, I’m going to eat some of your kinfolk in a minute.” It sounds kind of gruesome, but it sure beats the American meat system where the birds are cram packed into small spaces with their beaks cut off so they can’t peck each other. We had fried chicken, baked potato of some sort (very small, very fluffy, very sweet), and rice. The restaurant was in a beautiful setting. Probably one thing I will miss the most about the Galapagos is how all of the buildings let the outside in. Very few have completely sealed walls/ceilings. Even the school buildings don’t have gyms; they just have basketball courts with a large tin roof over them. I’ll also miss the fact that a 12 oz Pepsi in Quito is twenty cents.

Cerro Colorado Giant Tortoise Breeding Center (11-26-08)
Before leaving the highlands, we went to the Cerro Colorado breeding center for the giant tortoises. Walking around the trails we were able to see three tortoises roaming free, in addition to some baby tortoises in protected areas. There was also an abundance of tortoise scat.

AL Phone Home (11-26-08)
After trying desperately for an internet connection at the hotel since arriving, I finally bit the bullet and went to the internet café to find out how much access is. 45 cents for 10 minutes. THEN I found out how much international calls are: 30 cents per minute. Needless to say, I was on the phone before you could say “roasted guinea pig.” It was nice to get in touch and just hear everyone’s voice after so long.
After the internet café, I went to eat at La Playa. Once again in range of the sea lions, this time I opted for arroz con pollo with grilled plantains. I frequently order arroz con pollo at home, but this was a different creature altogether—and sooo good. Chicken, onions, peppers, rice, plantains, and a great sauce. Add that to a few of the papas fritas I grabbed from the appetizer plate and you’ve got a pretty solid meal.

Goodnight (11-26-08)
Even though I got a little bummed out and homesick after we got back from the tours today, things are definitely looking up. Getting to talk to Jodie and Bailey and Myers really helped boost the old morale. Gotta love international calls for only 30 centavos un minuto.

Happy Thanksgiving from Galapagos

I´m not sure when I´ll be able to post again, so here is a whole heap of uploads from the past few days...

Everglades (11-23-08)
The Everglades, simply put, was awesome. Over a million acres of wetland. Technically, the Everglades is the largest river in the world. In the wet season, Lake Okechobe overflows and sends its extra water out as a slow flow south. This slow flow creates the swamps we think of when we think of the Everglades. We break the day up into four parts—classroom time, walking the Anhinga Trail, more classroom time, and finally the slough sloggin’ wet walk.

The Anhinga trail is named after the Anhinga bird, who occupies the area quite nicely. Unfortunately, it also serves as an example of how very specialized animals can’t keep up the rapid changes caused by people and the introduction of exotic and invasive species. The anhinga, for example, is built to spear fish, throw them into the air, and then swallow them. With native fish, this works fine. With invasive fish that have come in and crowd out the natives, this doesn’t really work so well, because they are bigger than the native fish and won’t fit down the anhingha’s throat. Anyway, a nice walk and we saw several alligators and birds.

Out of Miami (11-24-08)
Leaving Miami, we spent about an hour on the ground (thanks to a loose screw on our airplane… literally) and 4 hours in the air on the way to Quito. During the flight, of course, all I can think about are the reports of how Quito is known for its short runway in the mountains, and I believe I heard an article on NPR over the summer over how it had actually been closed due to the danger of the short runway. Add to this the comments of an Ecuadorean passenger on the plan who said that only the most experienced pilots are given the job of landing in Quito, as well as the fact that it was dark and raining, and you’ll understand why everyone broke out into applause upon our touchdown in Quito.

Bienvenidos a Quito (11-24-08)
Landing in Quito was muy exciting because it’s the first time I’ve left the country, much less the continent. Getting off the plane I expected to be suddenly inundated with and immersed in South American culture. It caught me off guard, then, when the first thing I saw when I came out of the gate was a huge poster for TGI Fridays… in English. It wasn’t even TGI Viernes. Continuing into the airport, there was a pretty sizable line for immigration (my first passport stamp) and then for the luggage. When we met our Ecuadorean tour guides, we were quickly handed bottles of water and told to drink to fend off altitude sickness. At (10,000 ish) feet, Quito is the second highest capital city in the world. After boarding a bus to the hotel, we took the short trip to the Sheraton in Quito. Once again, a very nice hotel. We had a late meal of chicken, seasonal veggies, blueberry mousse, and bread and butter. But wait, it wasn’t just any bread and butter, it was butter worthy of Sam… coffee flavored mantequilla. We then promptly went to bed.

Bleck (11-25-08)
The next morning I woke up hit by the altitude—slight nausea, headache, headache, and headache. I spent a few minutes to take care of email since it would be my last reliable email for a few days, and then we had a stunning breakfast. Any country that breads and fries bananas for breakfast is top notch in my book. Additionally, we had fresh squeezed fruit juices—sundia (watermelon), papaya, guava, naranja (orange). The thought of watermelon juice totally grossed me out, but it was actually really good.

Are we there yet? (11-25-08)
As soon as breakfast was over we headed for the airport, where we would sit for a longgg time after checking in. The check in process was fairly painless, especially since all of our bags had to be inspected for agricultural products, animals, etc. as part of the quarantine of the Galapagos. We flew on Aerogal (Air Galapagos) to Guayaquil, a port town that looked like a tangled knot of water from the sky—all kinds of water flowed through the area—streams, rivers, canals?, irrigation, etc. After refueling in Guayaquil, we were bound for San Cristobal.

Touching down on San Cristobal, it was a totally different airport from any I’ve experienced—it was an open-air airport. We passed through customes, got another passport stamp, and loaded up for the hotel. One of the most striking things is that the tension between conservation and use is immediately apparent. Many buildings are standing dormant, halted in various stages of construction. Garbage lies in nearly every ditch. Schools, houses, businesses look battered. At the same time, none of the areas look like the stereotypical high crime slum areas you would expect from the surroundings. This is one of the themes we’ll come back to again and again. This is also where we met our National Park tour leaders, Harry and __________. My half of the group was staying in the Miconia hotel. It is everything I would expect a hotel in the Galapagos to be. We can look out on the bay and see sea lions, crabs, frigate birds, blue footed boobies, and even a glimpse at a sea turtle.

GAIAS and the San Cristobal Tour Interpretation Center (11-25-08)
After settling in for just a few minutes, we departed for GAIAS, the Galapagos Institute of the Arts and Sciences. The goal of GAIAS is twofold—to educate outsiders and to educate islanders. The center runs exchange programs and offers a bachelors program and helps students get scholarships to mainland universities. There we listened to a presentation by Judith Denkinger, a marine biologist with the University of San Francisco, Quito. The focus of the presentation was on the unsustainability of overfishing and the interconnectedness of species in the ocean.

Leaving GAIAS, we walked up the hill to the San Cristobal Tour Interpretation Center. This is basically a visitor’s center that was built in 1998 with the help of the Spanish government. Inside is a great visual overview of the islands’ natural, social, cultural, and political history. The goal of the center is to give local students a way to connect with the national park. Since so much of the park is focused on the enjoyment of tourists, there are many children on the islands who have never experienced the park—have never seen a dolphin, have never seen a tortoise, iguana, etc. The center, therefore, coordinates opportunities for every school kid to tour the islands every year on one of the tourists boats. They basically coordinate for the large ships to take on students whenever they have extra room on board. The idea behind this is to give the kids a greater sense of connectedness to the islands and ownership of the islands. This is something that would be great for our area. I’m always talking about how shocked I am that so many students in Sevier County have never been in the National Park.

Behind the interpretation center is a marked trail that takes about 15 minutes to walk that I’m going to have to go back to.

A few interesting notes from inside the center… in discussion with our guide, someone asked about evolution and the response of the Catholic Church to evolution being taught in the schools it in the Galapagos. The response was “the father teaches about evolution in the church.” We were kind of surprised by the response, but the attitude was fairly summed up in a later exchange, when he pointed out a picture of Darwin and said “This is Darwin, some people think he is god, but he is not,” and one of the science teachers in the group said “Darwin isn’t a god, but he helped explain how God works.” It’s this kind of world view that I think is important to bridging the gap between science and religion. It doesn’t help students to not be exposed to evolution, and I think a carte blanche rejection of natural selection is an irresponsible position to take as an educator.

On the way back from the center, we stopped at a beach where some sea lions were playing an took pictures. I’d heard about the lack of fear animals have for man here, but it was amazing to see. If you sit down on the beach, they’ll eventually walk up right next to you, lay down, roll over, etc.

From the beach, Pren and I took an (inadvertent) detour through some of the non-waterfront house and businesses. I felt like I was in a photo editorial from National Geographic. Simply beautiful.

Dinner (11-25-08)
For dinner, we went to a place called (I think) Miramar. It was a good 20 minutes before they came to take our order, another 20 before drinks came, and another 30 before the food, but it was worth the wait. We sat at a table on the balcony overlooking the bay and the sea lions on the beach. Logistically, it is worthwhile to note that a 12 ounce Coke costs about $2-3, while a liter of beer was $2. I ordered encocantado de camaron (coconut shrimp) with rice and fried plantains (something I will order at every possible meal). My whole check including drink, tip, food, etc. was $12, and this was a more upscale restaurant.


An idea for a future project…
At the InterContinental in Miami, they were working aggressively on several water management programs. To reduce the amount of water used, they only washed sheets every three days. There was a note on the pillow explaining the program, and it said that if you wanted to clean you sheets everyday anyway, you could just put the note on your bed and they’d change your sheets (they also changed every time someone checked out). This was a very low impact way they could save lots of water (and money) without interfering with the conveniences of the guests. This appeals to me because we could so easily adapt this to Sevier County. There was also a request in the bathroom to reuse towels. Again, if you wanted to opt out, all you had to do was use a towel and put it in the floor and they’d replace it.

Hola from Quito!

Hola-- I'm writing from the second highest capital city in the world. We made it in last night, and as I was getting off the plane I was expecting a moment of complete immersion in South American culture. Instead, the first thing off the plane was a huge add for TGI Fridays in English. And What restaurant is across the road from our hotel? KFC!
Anyway, things are still going great. We're getting ready to leave for the Galapagos in a few minutes. The GPS tracking is working kind of spottily, so I'm not sure how consistently it will be up, but it should give you a rough idea of where I am whenever I'm outside.
Well, I hope things are going well at school! Adios--
Andy

South Beach

Irony of ironies... Tonight I ate pasta in South Beach. Carbs galore... it's got to fit into the diet.
Additionally, there were several other 1sts...
My first ride in a taxi
My first shady taxi transaction with the meter off
My first time trying calamari
The first time I've spent $40 on a single meal (and it was so totally not a $40 meal...)

Things are going well so far--I'm anxiously looking forward to leaving the country tomorrow! By tomorrow night, the smell of deep fried guinea pig should be wafting my way :)

Treehugger.com Article

Check out this article by Bloggin' Brian, our embedded journalist for the trip.
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/11/teaching-example-road-galapagos-toyota.php

Pictures from the 'Glades

Unfortunately, there are no pictures from walking through the swamp. I was afraid of getting the camera wet/getting eaten by an alligator. We walked about a half mile out into the water to a Cypress Dome. Amazing. I'll try to get pics from the people with waterproof cameras to post soon. Here are the pictures of the kind of area we walked into before we went in.
http://picasaweb.google.com/andylombardo/Everglades#

--
_______________________________
Wesley A. Lombardo
www.andylombardo.com
www.independentmaryville.com
www.misterlombardo.com

Help support Save Our Hemlocks... go to southlandbooks.org and click on September Artist of the Month to find out how!
Please consider the environment before printing this email
Please consider the environment before using disposable diapers... www.lullabydiapers.com--made in Maryville!
Support locally-owned businesses. www.independentmaryville.com
Interested in marrying a Canadian citizen to receive free health care? www.hook-a-canuck.com
The things you own end up owning you. See why... storyofstuff.com
My, but what big feet you have! Reduce your carbon footprint. Find out how... http://www.terrapass.com/

Tree hugger--

Here's a neat factoid--especially for Mrs. Leonard--
We have a journalist traveling with us for the trip... a blogger for treehugger.com. As of right now I haven't found anything about the trip on their site, but it should be forthcoming. Kind of cool for a tree huggin' dirt worshiper like me :)

Also, one unexpected idea I may be able to bring back to school comes from the hotel here. This hotel does a lot of easy, low impact water conservation that I could easily see Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg hotels adopting, and it would cost them NO money.

InterContinental

Here are the swank digs I was talkin' about... http://www.icmiamihotel.com/

Day 1: Knoxville to Charlotte to Miami

Finally en route, double prop airplane—a Dash 8-300 (that's for Jeff, since he's the only one who would know what that means, me included) heading east over the Smokies towards Charlotte. Take off was at 10am sharp, after sitting on the runway for about 5 minutes of resonant vibrations from the plane's propellers. Take off was a perfect example of what Burroughs described as "naked lunch"—that moment when all artifice is stripped away, when appearance and decorum vanish and all that is left is the proverbial moment of truth. As the frequency of the propellers increases, as the tarmac races past the window, every muscle tenses and doesn't release until the frequency and vibration even out a few thousand feet later. I don't know how anyone--pilot, traveler, businessman—could ever be lulled into routine on ascent.  The flight is sparsely occupied, so I have a row to myself. My seat is directly next to the propellers, so as I type there's a barely discernable strobe effect on my hands, and the blades slice the light coming through my window.

 

In the air, this is the first time I've ever seen the Smokies from above. There's been a dusting of snow that outlines and accentuates the ridges. You can see the powder contrasting the narrow backbone of the mountains against the brown of earth and trees and leaves below.  It's exciting from the air being able to recognize landforms and water bodies I've only seen from a base layer perspective. For me, this trip is going to be a lot about perspective. I tried to sneak a picture through the window, but it just doesn't do any justice.

 

 

The flight to Charlotte is only 45 minutes. We've only been in the air 29 minutes and they're already giving us information on what to do when we disembark.

 

From Charlotte to Miami, I met up with two other people from the program, Jim and John. We packed onto the plane like the proverbial can of sardines. Thankfully, the flight was only and hour and a half, otherwise I still wouldn't be able to bend my elbows.

 

From the airport, the chauffeur picked us up and drove us through downtown Miami to our hotel, the Miami InterContinental, probably the swankest place I've ever stayed in.

 

After a few orientation-type activities, we settled into our rooms and then went to eat at the in-house restaurant, Indigo, where I ate fish for the first time in 25 years. Supper was an awesome rice blend (arroz moros con… it escapes me), Mahi (awesome), salsa chicken, carmelized plantains (no, it is EVEN BETTER than it sounds), bread, salad, etc.

 

Following the meal, a group of us went out to walk down the Bayside, a touristy Boardwalk at the Beach kind of development that was maybe two blocks from the hotel. I need to go back tomorrow to take pictures of Lombardi's Conga Bar, Lombardi's Ristorante, and Lombardi's Oyster Bar. We bypassed the mini-Lombardi village and opted instead for the first place we came to with half price drinks, wicker furniture, and a view of the water.  All in all, a great start to the trip.

Where in the World is Mr. Lombardo?

Track me via gps starting November 22--
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0JXynarAdhs9Whlr5C9eE6NaBqJWzRzSJ

The M/V Santa Cruz--

This will be our floating home away form home for 3 days during the trip--
http://www.galapagos-inc.com/shipdetails/santacruz/index.html

Toyota Teacher Program Wiki

Check out the wiki for the Toyota International Teacher's Program-
http://toyota4education.com/pmwiki.php?n=Main.HomePage

Impact Plan (How I plan to use the trip for the forces of good....)

IMPACT PLAN:

      In this section please describe your plans for sharing the Toyota International Teacher Program with your students, school, and community. Excellent plans will be feasible, innovative, and linked to Toyota objectives. Plans should also address why travel to the program country is necessary.
     I feel that the most important way I can make an impact on my school and on my community is by creating a greater awareness of the impact of an unsustainable materials economy, the true price of the things we own, and the fact that saving money doesn't always mean living better. After creating awareness, the next progression of my impact will be to help students make plans for how to be more responsible stewards to the earth.
     For the first phase of this impact, it will be necessary to show students their role in the global environmental community. Most often, when talking about conservation, my students are exasperated and feel helpless, asking "What can I do that will really make a difference?" The first step in making a difference is education, showing that everyone plays a role in the materials economy of extraction, production, distribution, consumption, and disposal. As a highly sought-after demographic, my students primarily fill the roles of consumers and disposers. They grasp that money is one of the most important things in our culture, and they need an illustration that their money and their buying power has an influence on all of the other parts of the economy, that their money and their voice and their choices shape the system we are all embedded in.
     To implement this plan to educate, I plan to introduce students to the idea of a materials economy by coordinating a cross-curricular program that will begin with students watching the Annie Leonard video "The Story of Stuff," a video that gives a brief overview of the materials economy as an unsustainable paradigm upon which western culture is based. To synthesize the information in the video, the curriculum would involve Language Arts classes and computer/technology classes working together to sponsor a "YouTube"-style film-festival with prizes awarded to videos that meet certain criteria, including but not limited to: a focus on extraction, production, distribution, consumption, or disposal; tracing the life cycle of a specific product through the stages of the materials economy; exploring the impacts of this system on our own community; or proposing ideas for how to shift from a linear economy to a closed-loop economy.
     If possible and feasible, I would like to coordinate with science teachers to arrange a field trip to our local waste management service to learn about how our community deals with disposal. Currently, all of the waste in Sevier county is composted or placed in the landfill, but incineration is being considered for the future.
    It is my hope that through these education efforts the students will begin to take ownership of their role in the system. As it stands now, "saving the earth" is an abstract concept with no concrete connection to their lives. Once informed, I would like
to guide students into taking ownership in a way that they see fit, whether by starting a recycling program, reducing our school's carbon footprint, leading community outreach, orchestrating community recycling or clean-up events, or anything else they
may conceive that I can help with.
     To fulfill these plans, I believe that travel to the Galapagos is a necessary component for me to be able to implement the education plan. Our community has many similarities to the Galapagos. We are both small communities in ecologically
diverse areas that draw many tourists. To that end, visiting and speaking with naturalists, advocates, farmers, local citizens, and educators would help to give me ideas for ways I can connect our rural East Tennessee experiences to the experiences
of the Galapagos. It would also serve as a standard to use as an example of how programs can be successful at increasing sustainability. Additionally, it creates a global connection, emphasizing how the actions of 800 students in Sevierville,
Tennessee, can have either an adverse or positive effect on people, animals, ecosystems, and communities thousands of miles away. Additionally, it would also be beneficial because the Galapagos are experiencing some of the same difficulties we
experience in our community. Once a rural area, tourism has caused the population of Sevier County to increase drastically over the past several decades, similar to the Galapagos, which has seen a 2000% increase in population in the past 50 years. Like
the Galapagos, we also experience environmental problems due to habitat encroachment and destruction, as ecosystems are disturbed, disrupted, and displaced. Like the Galapagos, there are also threats to native species from exotic
species of plants, animals, and insects. In short, both areas have to contend with the difficulties of maintaining diversity in the face of external factors, and I believe this experience in common would be a beneficial part of the program for myself, my
school, and other program participants.

Countdown Galapagos (9-25-08)

Strange how the smallest things can make a difference. I've already been packing, reading, researching, et cetera, but nothing has made the trip seem as real yet as receiving my official Toyota International Teachers' Program Luggage Tag in the mail today. Of course, it helps that I also received my flight information... I'll be leaving McGhee Tyson at 9:41 AM on Saturday, November 22 bound for Miami by way of Charlotte. Orientation will be in Miami the evening of the 22nd, with a day in the Everglades on the 23rd. We'll leave the US for Quito, Ecuador on the 24th (ETA: 7:40pm) and will leave Quito for San Cristobal Island the next morning to tour the Charles Darwin Interpretation Center.

EMBC Fall Festival

Batty @ the Townsend Wye || 10-15-08

We planned tonight to go to the Royal Blue Wildlife Management Area to see the elk. That didn't work out, so we planned to go salamander searching on the Finley Cane Trail near Cades Cove. My brother had to be dropped off at work at 5 and picked up at 8, so that was out. Hmmm... What to do?
For plan C, we made our way to Townsend without a clear goal. We stopped at the Subway (the same one that once told my mother-in-law that the toasted sandwiches had fewer calories than the untoasted sandwiches) and then bebopped on down to the National Park and set out to picnic at the Townsend Wye. Aside from ending a hike there once, I've never just hung out at the Wye. Whenever it's warm outside at all, the Wye is packed. Tonight, it was the four of us and another family of four. After dining on the riverside, we went down to the water to throw rocks in the water (it will keep us occupied for hours). Two cool science moments we played with. If you bang two pieces of quartz together it makes a spark. It's not a "start a fire" spark, but a "mobile electron" spark. Pretty cool. BTW--it needs to be dark to see it. Second moment--while crawling around on the ground looking for good picture angles, what did I see? One bat? Two bats? Oh, about a dozen bats flying around. The nice thing about where we were is that the Y, where the prongs of Little River meet, affords a large open space surrounded by trees. The open space made it possible for us to the see the bats with pretty good detail--especially the low-flying stunt bats that flew between us to show off their mad ecolocation skills. To teach the young uns about ecolocation, we were probably environmentally negligent and threw pebbles up in the air to show how the bats would swoop at them thinking they were mosquitoes. We only did this a couple of times, though, because we didn't want to be responsible for a bat eating rocks.

Maple Lane Farms Pumpkin Patch || 10-12-08

What's Halloween without picking out your own pumpkin? Maple Lane Farms in Greenback is great. For $2 a person over 6, you get a hayride where you can pick your own pumpkins (priced between .50 and $10 ea).
The Pumpkin Patch is always a great trip, if for no other reason than to watch Myers pick out a pumpkin with the shrewd discernment of a used car dealer inspecting a trade in. He goes to extremes, first looking at the pumpkins, first feeling them, then knocking on them, then hugging them. If the pumpkin passes all of those tests, he gives the all-important taste test (yes, we have pictures). We're always worrying that Baiely is getting too old for stuff like this, but thankfully we had another year of childhood magic. If nothing else, having Myers around prolongs and enlivens that magic. Just as Jodie and I like to live vicariously through the kids, so does Bailey live vicariously through Myers. He's been a blessing for us in so many ways, if for no other reason than how he has influenced the development of Bailey's personality and growth of her confidence.

Cherohala Greatest Hits || 10-7-08

Ever have one of those weeks? Staggering workload, crazy students, paperwork galore? Couple one of those weeks with an extra personal day and a daughter's fall break, and voila--you have October 7 for me.
We got up and hit the road a little after 9 on Tuesday--Jodie, Bailey, Myers, Jodie's dad (Dexter), and myself.
We took 411 South until we hit Tellico Plains and then the Cherohala Skyway. For the first stop, we went to the Hooper's Bald Trailhead and walked the quarter of a mile up to the bald. The trail is a nice, wide, graveled walkway. Considering the bald is over 5000 feet in elevation, the trail wasn't very steeo due to the fact that the parking lot was also over 5000 feet.
More later... have some pics for now...

Chilhowee Lake Low Water Paddle || 10-4-08

Saturday Sam and I made the trek up to Chilhowee lake to check out the low water. The water level has been brought down 29 feet to facilitate work on the dam this fall/winter. This is the first time water has been this low in 51 years. Woo doggie!
We put in at the ramp with the nasty bathrooms (yes, this is a recognized landmark). Ramp is kind of a misnomer in this case, as the water is down so low that from the end of the ramp it's still about100 yards to the water's edge. Once on the lake, it's kind of eerie because for the first 100 feet or so, you're only in about 6 inches of water and you can see the cracked lakebed just barely below the surface. Coupled with the mottled reflection of the sun on the water, this made for quite a surreal sight.
In the open water, we putzed around an old stone wall and slalomed through an old fence row whose base was only about 6 inches below the surface. We found many old steel cans embedded in the floor of the lake. Whether from the lack of sunshine or some other variable, the cans were in stellar shape with little rust or fading. Very neat. We're not sure of the exact critter, but the cans were covered in very small leech looking organisms that were about a third of an inch long.
From there, we cut over to where Abrams Creek empties into the lake. This is one of the highlights, as the old highway bridge is completely uncovered now, as are the trestles to the old railroad. After passing under the bridge, we paddled up Abrams Creek as far as we could go. With the water down, it looked how I would imagine run off from a strip mine would look. The water was way down, yes, but there was also a huge swath cut down through the silt and sediment layers. On Abrams Creek we stalked a beaver who would stay kind of close to us, follow us around, then smack it's tail at us to show us who's boss, then dive out of sight for a few minutes. He repeated this routine about 3 times. We also saw a recently hatched fence lizard. Very small, very young. To give an idea of scale, adults are much much bigger than blue tail skinks and a little bigger than green anoles, and the one we saw was MAYBE two, two and a half inches long, including the tail.
After coming back out onto the main channel, we paddled over to the old road bed, hopped out of the kayaks, and went to explore the bridge. It was a very apocalyptic scene, with car parts and beer bottles littering the area. Before the bridge was the back half of an old jeep, complete with roll bar. On the bridge was the bed of an old pickup and the dash and front floorboard of another vehicle (possibly the same truck). The most striking part was the freshwater mussel graveyard. With the recession of the water, the mussels had nowhere to go. The smell on the lake was horrid once the heat of the day hit--the rancid smell of rotting oyster. Hundreds of thousands of these littered the shore, the rocks, the bridge. Walking across the bridge all you could hear was a chorus of broken shells, bearing witness to the freshwater holocaust. Shells ranged in size from a quarter of an inch wide to three inces wide. It kind of brought to mind Star Wars, when the Death Star blows up Alderan and Obi Won Kenobe says there's been a great disturbance in the force, millions of voices crying out in pain and then being instantly silenced.... Man... I must be a dork if I'm making this a Star Wars reference...
Anyway, back in the boats and back to shore. Well, if not shore, mud field. I had to traipse through about a hundred feet of mid-calf depth mud to drag the kayak back to terra firma. Water was maybe 4 inches deep for the last hundred feet, so there was no way to float myself back in any closer.
All in all, very nice use of a Saturday morning.
P.S.--if you're one of my students, ignore the pictures with the beer cans. To prove how little of a life I have, I think it's funny to pretend I'm drinking out of 30+ year old beer cans in the middle of a lake :)

Spruce Flats Falls || 10-1-08

Time table for today: Leave school at 3:45. Get home at 4:30. To Tremont by 5:30, to Spruce Flats Falls by 6:30, car by 7, Mr. Gatti's by 7:45, home by 8:30. Less than 5 hours, and a regular ol' Wednesday night was transformed into family memories.
The evening started well enough; everything was packed and ready by the time I got home, so we pretty much laced up our boots and headed out. The trail is an "unmaintained trail" as far as the park service is concerned, so it's not in the Little Brown Hiking Bible or anything, but it does run right behind the dormitories at Tremont, so it gets high traffic as part of the Tremont programs. [to get there, park at the Tremont visitor's center, walk up the gravel path to the right hand side of the parking lot (facing away from the visitor's center), walk up the path to the dorms, and take the trail to the left of the dorms (Lumber Ridge Trail). On Lumber Ridge, go up about 100 feet and turn right on to the Buckeye Trail It will take you to the falls.]
The trail is a lot of little, steep ups and downs over rocks and roots, but we all made it without anyone falling (a feat, considering Bailey's gracelessness). Along the trail there are several landmarks to watch for... in order of appearance... a series of Buckeye trees, a larrrrrge water tank, the Idiot Tree (the tree where idiots all carve their names), Butt Scoot Rock, and finally the falls. At the falls, we had just enough time to sit around and snack at the falls for a minute, test out the Gore-texness of my new boots, and make a little river rock face paint. On the way back , shortly after the Idiot Tree, Jodie heard and then spied a bear, a juvenile, about 100 feet off the trail sitting stone still. We were a big enough group and making enough noise that neither us nor the bear were really startled. No one freaked out, either, until about 10 yards down the trail when Myers realized that, on my back, there was nothing between him and the bear, so Jodie and I had to swap places on the trail.
After getting back, in honor of no one complaining and everyone having fun, we decided to negate all of the calories we burned by going to Mr. Gattis. :)

Twentymile Cascades || 9-28-08

Bailey stayed the night with her g-ma last night, so we took the opportunity to go on a short jaunt across the Dragon to the Twentymile section of the park. If you've ever talked to me about hiking, you'll probably know that the Twentymile area, although fairly small, is one of my favorite sections of the park. Though there are thousands of motorcycles zooming by within a half mile at any given time on the Dragon, the trails back here get next to no use. There are places during the summer, with the grass overgrown, where the actual footpath is about half a foot wide and shrouded by chest high grasses. It's very easy to convince yourself that you're really off exploring the wilderness. This wasn't exactly our destination on this particular day, however. This time we were going to Twentymile Cascades, a neat little cascade that is a mere 20 minute walk from the ranger station. Myers even walked the first hundred yards or so. Overall, nice, quick hike. It took an hour to drive there, an hour to hike there and back, and an hour to get back home. What better way to spend three hours of a Sunday afternoon. I mean, what else would I be doing? Lesson plans???

Countdown Galapagos (9-25-08)

Strange how the smallest things can make a difference. I've already been packing, reading, researching, et cetera, but nothing has made the trip seem as real yet as receiving my official Toyota International Teachers' Program Luggage Tag in the mail today. Of course, it helps that I also received my flight information... I'll be leaving McGhee Tyson at 9:41 AM on Saturday, November 22 bound for Miami by way of Charlotte. Orientation will be in Miami the evening of the 22nd, with a day in the Everglades on the 23rd. We'll leave the US for Quito, Ecuador on the 24th (ETA: 7:40pm) and will leave Quito for San Cristobal Island the next morning to tour the Charles Darwin Interpretation Center.

Last Friday Art Walk 8-29-08

Tonight was Bailey's Art Show to benefit Save Our Hemlocks. In all, she raked in a little over $300 for the eradication of the Hemlock Woolly Adelgids. Photos will be on sale until the end of October at Southland Books. For more info and press info, check out SouthlandBooks.org and click on September Artist of the Month.

Little River || 8/3/2008

Calderwood || 7/25/2008

We took a trip with YSOA (www.ysoa.org) this weekend to camp for 2 nights at a primitive campsite (primitive = not maintained, no bear bag cables, etc.). We left the Sycamore Tree Friday around 4:30, got to Calderwood a little after 6, and then hit the water around 6:30. Sam was running on a slightly different time schedule, so he left Knoxville around 4:30 with the plan to catch up to us on the water or at the campsite (more on this later).
One of the coolest things about the start of the trip was the fog on the water. When water is released from Cheoah Dam into the Calderwood impoundment, it's basically really really really cold water. When they release the really cold water in the really hot day, it makes a very thick fog. Within a half mile of the boat dock we couldn't see more than 10 yards ahead. The group broke up into two groups in the fog, with the first group going ahead to start setting up camp before dark. It took our group about 1:10 to get to the site (4 miles), which was located where Parson's Branch empties into the lake. The campsite, while beautifully located practically on top of Parson's Branch, was a bit cramped. There were 14 people in all, and if 6 of us hadn't had hammocks, there wouldn't have been enough room. We even had to move the fire pit to make room for one of the two tents. The second group got to the campsite about an hour after the first group, and we barely had time for everyone to get unloaded and camp set up before dark. In fact, bear bags and everything came well after dark. Also well after dark, around, say, 10 oclock, we start wondering... where's Sam?
So, Aaron and I paddled out into the main channel with out headlamps for the Sam Search Party. While kind of creepy, paddling on Calderwood after dark is definitely and experience I'm glad I've had. The water was still, the sky was dark... all you could see was glossy black water and the charcoal silhouette of the mountains against the grey sky. It was so dark that it was impossible to see the entrance to the cove leading to our campsite from the main channel. Even with 3 lanterns burning, we could neither see nor hear our site. Fortuitously, we'd only been on the water about 10 minutes when we see Sam's headlamp a few hundred yards away. In what we'll call the spirit of adventure, Sam parked two miles upriver from where we started and began paddling from there. The only snag in this plan was the aforementioned Cheoah Dam. The damn Dam where he had to portage the kayak up a shear shale wall and then a half mile below the dam, THEN the half mile back to his stuff, and THEN the half mile with his stuff back to the kayak. Then, once in the water, he was smack in the middle of the Calderwood fog, and then the dark. That being said, I'm pretty glad we were in the channel when we were, otherwise he might have seen the hydroelectic turbines at Calderwood Dam up close and personal. Anyway, he has some wickedly cool pics of Cheoah if you want to check out his blog whenever he posts.
The rest of the night was pretty uneventful, except for the massive rainstorm at 3am. My trusty hammock kept me dry, though, so I have no complaints.
The next day went well, mainly starting with a few hours on the lake to putz around, explore, and play kayak frisbee. During the 3 hours on the lake, I stayed bone dry. Back in the cove, though, at the point where I was getting out of the boat, I tried to take a risky route out of the boat so as to stay completely dry instead of getting the bottom of my shorts wet. The move didn't pay off, as it proved to be the first time I ever flipped my kayak. In 18 inches of water. As I was climbing up the back, I pulled my boat up to empty the water out, and I threw my paddle down on a yellow jackets' nest. Long story short, 7 stings, some benadryl, and a four hour nap later, we cooked out a nice hot dog super where I discovered, for the first time, the joy of sweet relish. I usually try to avoid meat, but when camping deep in the woods and sleeping suspended from a tree, what other way is there to eat besides roasting meat impaled on a stick over an open fire? After hot dogs and smores, it was bedtime. (brief aside... it was also during this time period that Sam had to leave early, so he paddled back to the boat ramp the rest of us started at and hitch hiked back halfway to his car, then ran and walked the other half. Yes, I checked, he's still alive.)
This morning, we got up, broke camp, and hit the water. We had a short church service on the water in the cove before making a break for the main channel. We took a few breaks to explore the Calderwood Cascades and the Tunnel. Unfortunately, water at the tunnel was too high to see the train inside (or, for that matter, to go in), so we just had to look knowing something cool was under the water. This time around the whole group made it back in about 2 hours, we loaded up, and hit the road back to Maryville.

Book Quotes || Summer 2008

One of the luxuries of working in a used book store is the ability to browse a variety of books at my leisure. Here are a few quotes from this summer's readings:

For a real-time book quote update, go here

In preparation for Independence Day, I'm brushing up on some colonial American philosophy...
John Stuart Mill -- On Liberty
The aim, therefore, of patriots, was to set limits to the power which the ruler should be suffered to exercise over the community.

The will of the people, moreover, practically means, the will of th emost numerous or the most active part of the people; the majority, or those who succeed in making themselves accepted as the majority: the people, consequently, may desire to oppress a part of their number; and precautions are as much needed against this, as against any other abuse of power.

Society can and does execute its own mandates: and if it issues wrong mandates instead of right, or any mandates at all in things with which it ought not to meddle, it practises a social tyranny more formidable than many kinds of political oppression, since, though not usually upheld by such extreme penalties, it leaves fewer means of escape, penetrating much more deeply into the details of life, and enslaving the soul itself. Protection, therefore, against the tyranny of the magistrate is not enough; there needs protection also against the tyranny of the prevailing opinion and feeling...


Biophilia Hypothesis -- E.O. Wilson
The brain evolved in a biocentric world, not a machine-regulated world. 32

The Ultimate Get Out More News || July 4, 2008

I found out yesterday that I was selected as one of 30 teachers nationally to take part in the Toyota International Teachers Program in the Galapagos Islands. I applied in April via a series of essays, finding out at the beginning of June that I was a finalist, and then yesterday that I made the cut!
Toyota will be footing the bill to send me to the Galapagos to work on developing cross-curricular lesson plans focusing on environmental sustainability, stewardship, and biodiversity. The trip will take place from November 22-December 6. Toyota will even be reimbursing the school for the substitute I will need to have while I'm gone. Talk about service!

Gregory's Bald || Monday, June 16, 2008

Backstory--mid to late June is prime time for Flame Azaleas to bloom. A more apt description can be given by the 18th century botanist William Bartram...

"The epithet fiery I annex to this most celebrated species of azalea, as being expressive of the appearance of its flowers; which are in general of the color of the finest red-lead, orange, and bright gold, as well as yellow and cream-color This is certainly the most gay and brilliant flowering shrub yet known."

Backstory part II: Jodie has an aunt who has always wanted to go to Gregory's Bald, home to one of the most brilliant displays of flame azaleas, well, anywhere, to see them bloom. It was also one of the things on my life list, and although I made it up there last year in July, they had all already bloomed and wilted.

SO, we got back from Disney around 12:30am Sunday morning, and at Jodie's grandparents house the next day around noon, we set up a trip to the bald for today. Already car-lagged and operating on way too little sleep, we got up this morning at 6 to start making our way up there. Total participants: 7. Total of participants over the age of 12: 3. Myers, 2 years old, Bailey, 7 years old, cousin 1: 7 years old, cousin 2: 11-12ish, me, Jodie, Jodie's Aunt.

The hike to Gregory's Bald starts on the Parson's Branch road, one of the exit routes from Cades Cove. The trip to the bald is essentially 4.5 miles, all of which were uphill. The trip back is the same 4.5 miles except downhill. Do the math: 9 mile trip. Bailey's previous longest hike was a little over 5 miles. We had a pretty bad start, as all the kids were whining within a half mile. We did stop frequently at the beginning, as Jodie's aunt used to be one of the people in charge of the education dept. at Tremont, so it was a lot of fun having a plant identification person on hand. I can now ID pipsisewa, galax, blood root, and that's about it. I am horrible with plants. Scat is way more my thing. One of the early highlights of the trip was finding a real live brood 17 cicada who was docile enough to be put on all the kids heads for picture ops. Bailey is 7 now, and the next time an offspring of this cicada will be seen she will be 24. Scary stuff. Anyway, around mile 2 Jodie's aunt started a game of Disney Trivia, with the rule that she would only ask questions if we were walking down the trail. The kids went from how long to break how long to break to getting up and urging us on when we were taking a break. Brilliant.

On up the trail, miles 3-4.5 were particularly taxing, but we made it to the bald just in time. While pretty beat, the kids still found it in them to explore some, spying azaleas, climbing a weird, short, bonsai-looking oak tree, etc.

The walk with kids in tow basically took from 930am to 2--4.5 miles in 4.5 hours. The way back, being downhill, went more smoothly in terms of time. However, going downhill, especially with Bailey's joint issues, posed a problem, as Bailey fell and twisted her ankle big time with about 3 miles left. On already wobbly footing, she fell hard two more times, but she got up and did an awesome job. We also saw a once in a lifetime event on the way back--a millipede molting. Like snakes shedding skin, invertibrates have to grow new exoskeletons as the grow. "Eagle Eye" Bailey spotted the really bizarre happening and got our attention. It was basically like it had just crawled out of it's skin, but instead of being dark brown it was now bright white. Very cool. It also spelling like cherries. I will give kudos to anyone who can comment and tell me why it smelled like cherries. It's a neat factoid.

Anyway, we make it back to the car and COLLAPSE. Nine miles is usually a warm up when Sam and I go backpacking, but nine mile with Myers on my back and three other kids running around was INSANE. Once in the car, we took Parson's Branch out to The Dragon and went to the Tail of the Dragon Motorcycle resort for bathrooms and food (very good hotdogs... hotdog + drink + really good fries or onion rings for $4.19). On the way home, Jodie and I stayed awake while Myers and Bailey slept. Once home, it was showers, tick checks, and bed. Bailey was dead tired. Her eyes are swollen and blacked, myers is asleep where he passed out while playing in my bed, and Jodie is zonked. I'm very proud of all of them. Jodie in particular was a trooper. She loves outdoorsy stuff, but as she puts it she likes "controlled" amounts of nature. Long haul hikes are not really her thing. Especially after her stint in the hospital a year and a half ago with her lung condition, stuff like this is a big deal. While it kicked her (and everyone else's) butt, she did great. Bailey also rocked, hiking through tears after a particularly hard wipeout in the mud (damn horses). Myers, well, he didn't hit me in the head with his sippy cup too hard. His general temperament was excellent as well. We started hiking from the bald at 3, and were at the cars at 530, so we were on the trail a total of 8 hours. He was in the backpack carrier for 7 of them and he didn't go insane, so props to him. The rest of our crew did an excellent job as well--good trip.

The best part is that although it whipped all our heineys, I already brought up the next trip and they didn't stone me. For those of you wishing to make future plans, the next trip will be a family oriented trip to Abrams Falls... 2.5 miles to the falls, swimming and lunch below the falls, and 2.5 miles back to the car. This is tentatively being planned for between July 3-6, but I'll keep everyone posted on a final time table. This trip will be MUCH easier,and well suited for beginners or those who haven't been out in a while or who haven't taken kids out before. It's a classic trip.

On a personal reflection level, this was my third trip to Gregory's Bald (the first using this route), and while I don't think I'll make it back the 100+ times Bert Garner did in his lifetime, I don't think it'll be my last time there. The view of the mountains and the cove are phenomenal. As this is the first time I've been there in clear weather, I had never really appreciated the view. If you live in the Knox/Blount/Sevier area, this is a place you need to make it to at least once in your life.

Pictures will be posted as they are uploaded. Basically, I'm way too tired to walk to the kitchen where the camera is to get it to upload photos.

Team Rodent || Sunday, June 15, 2008

We are freshly back from a week spent with Team Rodent in very sunny and toasty Florida. I'll repost this blog in earnest after I've had time to decompress and filter through pictures, which will be posted in due time. I'm mainly posting this now because I'm getting ready to post something that happened today, and I still want Disney to be in chronological order.

I Little River || Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Regrettfully, I have no pictures. Bailey and I put in kayaks at Coulter's Bridge on Little River today. This was her first time in the kayak on the river, and it went swimmingly. Again, a little nervous about separation, so we tied together again, but we floated down about a half mile just kind of putzing around and practicing paddling, and then paddling back up, floating down, paddling up, etc. We stopped at one of the little reed patches to get out and explore, find shells, throw rocks, and splash around. All in all, she did great and was asking for rapids by the time we were done. As there weren't really any rapids here, we paddled upriver of the bridge where there are some MAYBE class .5 rapids for us to come down. My favorite part: this is in Maryville, 10 minutes from my house, it took 1.5 hours on the river, its FREE, and we were making memories. I mean--HOW DOES THIS COMPARE TO WATCHING TV? Going to wal-mart? Mowing the lawn? Please--I beg you--get out this summer. If not on the water, find a trail, explore some woods, go fishing, walk the greenway. Let me know if you need help with ideas. After I get back from Disney World, Jodie and I will be posting some family-friendly outdoor activities in the next few months. (Stepping down from my soap box)

Anyway, have a good night :)