Sometimes you just have to go to a destination wedding. Especially after two years of Covid cancelling weddings. Knowing that this wedding of a good friend’s son would be mainly held outside, gave us the impetus to throw caution a bit aside to go and celebrate a happy occasion.
What a great spot to get married!
I will not write about the wedding and festivities, except to say It was wonderful and we were so happy to be there to celebrate!
But we also enjoyed the wonderful weather and beauty of Sanibel and Captiva Islands and the South Seas Resort. We had a wonderful room with a view of both the entrance to the marina and to the ocean. Every morning I woke up happy to look out my window. We loved walking the grounds and relaxing.
For me the best part was going to visit the manatees that took over a slip in the marina. I visited the marina twice a day to just watch them float. I was not the only one who found it relaxing and peaceful and magical.
The View from my room.I loved seeing the manatees at the marina and the view from my room.
Standing outside on my balcony, I often saw a dolphin swimming by. I tried to get photos, but never actually got him jumping out of the water. My mind still sees it. The glorious sunrise outside our room was enchanting. This is a vacation spot that I would love to revisit. And to have the same room!
Pictures from the museum and the shells I found on the beach, as well as the beach at South Seas Resort.
We did not spend all of our time at the resort. I love exploring and museums! There was one museum I just had to see, The Bailey-Mathews National Shell Museum on Sanibel Island, which opened in 1995. The Great Hall of Shells is really a great hall filled with shells of all types. The artwork made from shells surprised me. Seeing live mollusks walk in their shells was also exciting for me. I have seen shells, but I have never seen one moving in real life!
I learned why Sanibel and Captiva Islands are known for the shells that come ashore. The islands are in an arc shape that catches the waves and so the shells bringing them on to the shore. I finally woke up early enough to go shell hunting one morning before the crowds. Most of the shells were quite small, but then, just as we were ready to go, the waves brought me a lovely treasure. And yes, just as I learned at the museum, I made sure it was a dead shell with nothing inside.
My husband and I enjoyed our time there, learning about shells; talking to the volunteers; and even touching a live mollusk.
My favorite sign.
My other excitement going to the Museum is that I finally got a photograph of my all time favorite road sign. We had noticed it when we first drove to the resort. But I did not have my phone ready to take a photo. We passed a similar sign heading out to the museum as well. On the way back from the museum I was ready! I had my phone out and started taking pictures before I actually saw the sign. It worked. I captured the sign that warned us about “Low flying Owls.” To be honest, we never saw any low flying owls, but the sign was worth it. It gave me a Harry Potter magical feeling and added to the enchantment of the islands. Just whose owls are flying so low and what messages are they bringing.
Inside the Bubble Room and the Menu!
Although we did eat several meals at the resort, which were delicious, we also ventured off site to try some local restaurants. The Bubble Room, with its bakery/ice cream parlor and its gift shop, was a wonderful venue with both good food and fun places to explore. I felt like I was inside a kaleidoscope. The gift shop was great fun as well with its vintage antiques and gifts. I had to buy a t-shirt! If you go, save room for desserts. The cakes are delicious.
Other favorite restaurants, included the Mucky Duck where we ate outside by the beach and the Cantina Captiva with its dollar bills adorning the walls and ceiling (yes we added one!). The food at both of these was good, not special, but the atmosphere made them enjoyable.
I would not mind spending a week or more on Captiva Island. The four nights there just gave us a taste of the island life. I have a good feeling that we will be back on these captivating islands.
I was not going to write about our trip to New Orleans because I have been there several times. But then I realized I had never written about the city, and it is one of my favorites!
I will touch only on the places I saw this time, with a little of the history of why I love it.
Jazz on the street.
New Orleans is like no other city in the USA, with its Creole and French roots, its diverse populations and its jazz. I love walking down the streets in the French Quarter and hearing the music and watching the bands play on street corners.
We cannot go to New Orleans and not have beignets. Each time we go to our favorite shop and get an order of three to share. I eat one, my husband has two. Personally, we like Café Beignet. I know that many enjoy a different spot. But this one right off the square and next to the police station is the best for me!
Our favorite beignet shop.
I also go to the same restaurant on the corner of the plaza by St. Louis Cathedral. The windows all open and you feel like you are sitting outside while inside. And yes we went there this trip as well. I was especially happy that in New Orleans you had to show your Covid vaccine record to enter a restaurant. It made me feel a bit safer.
I did visit the Audubon Aquarium of The Americas. The last time I went there was 20 years ago, before Hurricane Katrina destroyed the aquarium and released many of the sea life. It is definitely different then what I remember, plus there is construction nearby, and renovation inside, but I enjoyed my hour or so walking around by myself. My favorite spots were the Amazon Rain Forest set up in a giant greenhouse structure, and the sea horses. But the Great Maya Reef area was also fun. For me aquariums are great activities for both the young and young at heart.
My second stop was more educational than fun. I went to the Museum of Southern Jewish Experience, where I learned much about southern Jewish population and Civil Rights activism. The museum did a good job in showing how Jewish men moved into the south as peddlers and then as store owners. Their activities against racism were important to the Civil Rights movement. Although I knew that they had played a part in changing how people were treated, I was not aware of the extensive work of the Jewish population of the south to help. Another good spot to go!
During past trips to New Orleans, I visited the National World War II Museum/National D-Day Museum. It is a wonderful spot that really takes hours to visit completely. Wear good walking shoes and schedule yourself properly. Learning about D-Day and the boats that helped in the Invasion of Normandy was the information that still sticks in my mind. The Higgins Boats, which were used in the invasion, were designed by a New Orleans manufacturer Andrew Jackson Higgins. The Higgins boats played an important role in the invasion, a fact that has stayed in my mind for years.
I love New Orleans because there are so many museums and historical sites to explore and so many wonderful restaurants to experience the tastes of the city. The history of Mardi Gras and the diverse communities of New Orleans makes is interesting and delightful!
After the hurricane and Covid issues, it is a city that needs support and love. At one event I attended, the waitress told me how happy they all were that our convention was held, because it gave them hope and an income which helps keeps their spirits up. With the rise in the new Covid variant, I know that people are nervous about traveling. I understand. I will say that New Orleans is doing its best to keep people safe. I wish all cities were doing the same. In the meantime, I salute the New Orleans Spirit.
What is a trip to Latin America without going to churches? You just cannot do it.
In Mexico City there were two church sites we had to visit. The first was Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary Into Heaven. They just call it the Metropolitan Cathedral. I understand why.
Cristo Negro/The Black Jesus
There were several facts about this Cathedral that make it special. The first deals with the tradition of Black Jesus/Cristos Negros of the area. There are several countries that have wooden Jesus sculptures on a cross that have darkened and turned black over the ages. The one in Mexico City has a story. Supposedly the bishop always prayed at the crucifix as he entered the cathedral. There were those who wished him to die. So they put poison on the feet of the wooden Jesus, knowing that the bishop would kiss the feet when he was done praying.
The bishop did as he always does, and kissed the feet, but he did not die. Instead, the Jesus sculpture turned black.
To be honest this is not my first Cristo Negro, or Black Christ/Jesus. I have been to Portobelo, Panama, and saw the one in the Inglesia de San Felipe. It is special because it was found in the town’s harbor and it wears a robe! I have also seen the black Madonna in Montserrat, also known as Our Lady of Montserrat. Many go on pilgrimages to see these statues. For me they have been a happy surprise. (See blogs below.)
This is not the only special site within the cathedral. There is also magnificent altar and intricately carved wooden sculpture behind it. Outside, in front of the cathedral, there is a statue of Pope John Paul with an image of the Lady of Guadalupe carved into his robes. This foreshadows the second religious site we visited.
Statute of the Pope.The carved altarThe pendulumThe stairs resting on cement
But the most obvious and unusual aspect of the building is that it is sinking. Completed in the mid 1600s, the cathedral was built on land that was once the bottom of a giant lake. It was also built in the area where the Aztec’s had their temples. In fact, the stones used in the construction of the church were parts of the dismantled Aztec temple. The cathedral was built upon the ruins. One way of saying to the Aztec, we beat you. But not so great centuries later.
Around the cathedral you can see the excavations of the Aztec sites. A model of what the plaza area looked like when the Spanish first came is near the excavations.
Part of the excavation of the Aztec ruins.
Within the church, you can see how they have worked to stabilize it. Marble stone stairs, now sit on a bed of concrete stairs. A pendulum hangs from the high ceiling and shows if the building is still standing straight or sinking again. By the lines on the floor, one can see how tilted it once was, and how close to straight it stands now.
Our second religious site was the Basilica of the Lady of Guadalupe. This site is also sinking, and many of the buildings, the older basilica, the first church and the convent, were also tilting. They have been stabilized. But you can see that much work still needs to be done. The newer, larger, round Basilica built in the 1970s seems fine for now.
The Basilica and all the other buildings on the site, including the original basilica from the early 1700s were constructed to honor Saint Juan Diego and his visions and miracles of the Lady of Guadalupe. Sometime around 1530 a picture of the Lady of Guadalupe/Mary appeared on his cloak, which he said was a signal that the indigenous people should convert to Catholicism. There have been visitors/pilgrims to this site ever since. And many buildings have been constructed to provide a place for them to pray.
The new Basilica and the original image of the Lady of Guadalupe.
Today the new Basilica houses the image. Encased in two frames, one silver and one gold, it is mounted on the wall near one entrance of the Basilica. You must get on a short moving walkway to see it, which keeps everyone moving forward and no one can stay in front of it for too long. The Basilica is constantly being used by the people for Mass. Each hour a new Mass begins.
Statue of the Pope along side the old basilica.
There is a large open plaza on one side of the Basilica. It is here that Pope John Paul came to dedicate the site. A statue to him stands between the old and new basilicas. He also came here a second time to canonize Juan Diego.
The temple of the well.
We could not enter all the buildings. But I will admit my favorite was the one that covers the well. It was a lovely little building. And each of the windows was in the shape of a six-pointed star. For my Jewish mind it was perfect. Miriam, the sister of Moses, was known for her affinity for water. When they were in the desert, water followed Miriam. So to know that here at the site of the visions of the Lady of Guadalupe/Mary/Miriam, there is a well with a temple with six-pointed stars, gave me a little joy.
This little church shows the work being done to save it.
My second favorite building was a small church that is still standing, but only with the help of metal beams. In front of it was a small water way, with no water right now, except for a bowl of water that a mama cat was enjoying while her kitten struggled to reach it.
It is quite a site, much larger than I anticipated. To be honest, I did not want to go. We had spent the morning visiting the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon, and I was both exhausted and not feeling well. But our guide insisted that we had to see it. As it was on our way back to the hotel, I figured I would say yes, but could always back out.
That did not happen. I was hot, tired and feeling ill. But I got out of the van and walked the many steps to the entrance of the site. And then for over an hour walked the grounds and through the buildings to see all that I could. I was amazed that I started to feel better as we walked. It was so interesting that I forgot to think about not feeling well. So I have to commend our guide who insisted we visit.
While we were in Mexico City, we stayed at a hotel that was located on Reforma, just a short half mile walk from the wonderous Bosque de Chapultepec. We visited three important sites within the park, besides passing by many others and seeing all the activities enjoyed by park visitors.
rOur three main stops were: National Museum of Anthropology/Museo Nacional de Antropologia; The Chapultepec Castle: and Jardin Botanico del Bosque de Chapultepec/the botanical gardens. We passed by the Ghandi Garden, the entrances to other sites like the Zoo and the History Museum; and walked through an open air market, where I purchased a straw hat. We also ate in one of the restaurants within the park, El Lago Restaurante.
Honestly, we did not do these activities in one day. The park is enormous with so much to see. But I thought it is best to put it all together in one blog.
The first place anyone who goes to Mexico City must visit is the National Museum of Anthropology. Besides its wonderful architecture, the museum galleries are filled with pre-Columbian masterpieces. We had a tour guide who explained what we were seeing in English, which was extraordinarily helpful as almost all the signage is only in Spanish.
The Center of the Umbrella in the Courtward.Snake and other decorations from a templeOlmec Giant HeadThe Sun StoneOur guide explaining the parts of the Sun stone.
The building itself is built around a central courtyard with a large umbrella like structure providing shade. As you walk through the different galleries, you return to the center courtyard between areas. I found that refreshing. A way of clearing my mind before entering another new world.
We learned about the Inca, Mayan, Aztec, Olmec and other peoples who once lived in the various areas of Mexico. I knew that human sacrifice was a large part of the religions. Owever, I was shocked at the brutal and almost daily sacrifices. The artwork of these groups, especially the Aztec, focused on skulls, dismemberment and death. We learned about the Goddess of Rain and the God of the Sun and the feathered snakes that adorned many of the buildings. The immense stone carvings were beautiful and many were so intricate, you wonder how they were made centuries ago without modern tools.
The original Aztec Sunstone is on display, as well as many other majestic and large works of art. The Statute of Chaichiuhiticue, and the Olmec stone heads were immense. Each were carved from one block of stone. I don’t know how they moved them!
I honestly cannot tell you what was the most interesting thing to see because there were so many! I did like learning about the game they played with balls that had to go through a stone hoop. However, I was sad to learn that after each game, someone was sacrificed.
We spent three hours visiting all the rooms of this museum. I took many photos. But in the last room, I was exhausted. I knew I had had enough because I did not take one photo. I was mentally done. There is just so much to see. It is a museum you could visit again and again and still see and learn about things you missed on an earlier visit.
Needless to say, we left the museum exhausted and ready to eat lunch. We knew we would be back to the park!
We returned the following evening for a dinner at El Lago Restaurant. It is situated by one of the lakes in the park and is just lovely. The food is delicious as well. But the main reason I am mentioning it, is that while we ate, a young man asked his girlfriend to marry him! It was quite exciting and everyone cheered when she said yes! It added an extra bit of charm to an already charming trip.
With the park so close to our hotel, we knew that we would be walking back another day. We chose the morning after we took our Covid tests to make sure we could return to the USA. Even though we knew we did not feel sick in any way, having to wait several hours for the results would have made me anxious if I just sat around. We started walking to the park. Our first planned stop was the botanical gardens. This one was filled mainly with succulents and orchids, two of my favorite plantsWe walked around the gardens enjoying the quiet. We ended with walk through the orchid house and enjoying the many succulents planted in cement cinder blocks! I want to do that in my garden.
Lovely LavendarSucculents in the cinder blocks!In the Orchid House.
Chapultepec Park is considered the lungs of Mexico City. The acres upon acres of trees supplies the valley with clean air, which is important, because there is pollution in the valley that encompasses Mexico City.
After we left the gardens we continued walking through the park towwards the hill where the Capultepec Castle sits. The first building of the castle began in 1795 as a summer home for the viceroy. Eventually it was enlarged and became the home of Emperor Maximillian and his family. Maximilian did not survive for long in Mexico. He became Emperor in 1864 and was executed in 1867. The unfortunate thing is that Maximillian seemed to care about the people of Mexico. But it did not save him from execution.
The Castle then became the home of the President of Mexico and continued as the Presidential residence until 1939. Now it is a museum. It does cost 85 pesos to enter. I did not have that much cash, and they do not take credit cards. However, if you are over 60, which my husband and I definitely are, you can enter for free! The cashier said, “Are you over 60?” I said yes. She said go in for you it is free. Thank you Mexico!! It would have been so sad not to have seen this building and its gardens!
You do have to walk up the hill. But the slope is easy to climb. However, I will say with the altitude of 7500 feet in Mexico City, I am glad I waited for the third day to make that climb! We walked slowly. You can take a bottle of water to go up the hill. But once you get to the entrance of the Castle grounds, you cannot bring it in with you.
To describe the building, all you need to do is think about Vienna and St. Petersburg. Maximillian was a member of the Habsburg family. So, of course, his home reflected the elegance and grandeur that a member of that family needed/demanded. It was a bit offsetting to see the grand carved furniture of Europe throughout the areas of the home. But it was beautiful. A major difference from a European home, is that each of the rooms could be entered from the interior of the house, but they also had large doors that opened to the outside. To see the mansion, we walked along the perimeter of the home and looked into the rooms through opened doors.
The outside of the Castle.Malachite objects were given to Maximillian by Tzar Nicholas IA bedroomA lovely hallway, so like St. Petersburg.The roof gardens.
The view of the park and the city from the top of the mountain is wonderful. Even better was going all the way to the top and visiting the gardens on the roof and seeing the view from there.
Another added bonus to our visit to the park was finding a parade was in progress on Reforma! It was Revolution Day in Mexico. We spent almost an hour watching the music, the floats, the marchers in colorful outfits denoting their province of Mexico, before we discovered the underground walkway that enabled us to return to our hotel.
They were yelling Viva Mexico!There were many riders on horseback.
Visiting Chapultepec Park is a must. We only saw a few of the many interesting museums and sites to see there. Honestly, you could spend a week just visiting Chapultepec Park!
The Pyramid of the Sun. In the background the pyramid of the Moon in front of the mountain. I. The foreground: on the right fresh water drainage on the left indentation for under get dirty water.
Wow. My husband and I spent over three hours exploring the Teotihuacan site of the Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon and many, many other buildings, temples, and vast plazas.
It was incredible that such an intricate community was built in the early third century, around 200 AD.
Nearly 2000 years later, the site is still spectacular. I can only imagine what it looked like to the eyes of people so many years ago. The wonder and disbelief to what was built had to be awe inspiring and truly a monument to the gods.
For me it was the completion of another item on my list of places that I needed to see in my life time. And it was well worth the journey from Mexico City to Teotihuacan. My husband and his family went to Mexico City in December 1978. He climbed the Pyramid of the Sun. It was on that trip that he realized he missed me. When we saw each other back at Missou, he proposed. I rally needed to see this site!!
When at first you see the Temple rising from the fields as you drive along the highway, I really could not image the massive height of these temples. Even up close I was stunned. And it is not just the temples. It is the entire complex of buildings, homes, and plazas. Each plaza has its own temples and homes.
Fresh water drainage Dirty water underground drainage.
The drainage system to keep the clean water from flooding and the waste water from combining with the fresh water was great. We could see where the rainwater would travel continually downhill till eventually it reached the river. Keeping the two waters separated made using the fresh water easy. However, when they reached the river, they combined. (The river, unfortunately, is quite polluted and smelly!!)
The welcoming plaza with its temples to other religions was grand. I could imagine myself walking there and being mesmerized by the central temple to the gods surrounded by the many temples of the visiting travelers. Each plaza is so large. Closing my eyes, I tried to imagine each one filled with worshippers on holy days. We learned that they believe the priests would meet together before each mass gathering so that they would preach the same information to all the worshippers. Good planning.
A pyramid’s original decoration rediscovered.
But really nothing can prepare you for the size of the Pyramid of the Sun reaching up to the sky. And also the Pyramid of the Moon strategically placed in front of a mountain that makes its size seem even more gigantic. Someone had a great eye for drama. The Pyramid of the Moon demonstrates that drama.
Originally these brick and stone monuments were covered with stucco and painted. There are a few areas where the art and color still remain. It was interesting to have a local man show us how the colors came from the plants to paint the stucco. That truly surprised me. But the mural of the puma lets you envision how the entire plateau once looked.
The mural of a puma that survived. Using plants to draw a colorful picture.
We did not just stay in the large plaza dedicated to the Sun and the Moon. We walked the entire two kilometer site. Climbing up and down the steep stairs to get to yet another plaza. To be honest it made me think of the song that goes, “the bear went over the mountain to see what he could see. HE saw another mountain.” For us we climbed over another stairway to see another plaza to see another stairway to walk through to another plaza. I kept saying to my husband, I think this is the last one. And it was not. Till it was. But honestly, this seemingly endless trek through plazas and up and down steep stair cases was amazing, and worth the trip!
I recently wrote a blog about my Grandfather’s sister Celia. In it I call her my grandfather’s younger sister. That might or might not be true. Her date of birth ranges from 1890 to 1895. She could be a year older or perhaps four years younger. But then my Grandfather’s birth dates range as well from 1890 to 1892. Who knows? What I do know is that keeping records was not that easy in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
That blog brought a response from Amy, one of my friends, who I met through Tracing the Tribe. She recommended that I go to Family Search, part of the Mormon genealogy sites to try to find my great aunt Celia’s death certificate.
Although I have used JewishGen and Ancestory, I never used Family Search on my own before. It was wonderful. Although I already had my Great Aunt’s, death certificate, someone had found it for me, I did not have a photo of her head stone. Family Search had it! Celia’s Hebrew name is Tzipa Gittal. (Thank you to Robin of Tracing the Tribe for figuring out the first name for me.) Like those of many who die young, the stone is in the shape of a tree cut down. There are palm leaves engrave on it along with the words, Beloved Daughter and in big letters SISTER. (I plan to put this photo on the other post as well!)
I found my grandfather’s family on the 1910, 1915, 1920 and 1925 Census. In the 1915 Census, the last name was misspelt as Rosenbery. In the 1920 Census, I found out that my great grandparents had divorce before then. I knew that they were divorced, but somehow knowing they divorced before Celia died made me a little sad. In the 1925 Census only five of her children were still living with Sarah. Samuel disappeared after the 1915 Census, Celia died before the 1920 one, and my Grandfather married before the 1925 Census. All four daughters: Bertha, Edith, Hattie and Minnie, who in this Census was renamed Muriel, were stenographers. Jacob was already a lawyer. (See blog below.)
Finding success with Celia, I decided to look for more information on my grandfather’s other missing sister, Minnie/Muriel. I found her as well. She also has a number of birth years ranging from 1904 to 1910. On the census from 1910, 1915, 1920 and 1925, it was either 1904 or 1906. But then I found her marriage license, there she is listed as being born in 1910. It makes sense, even with using 1910 as her birth year, she was still two years older than her husband. In reality, she was about 5 or 6 years older.
Muriel got married May 26, 1934, to a man named Harry Moskowitz in Kings, New York. She and her husband had four children, three boys and one girl. Since some of them are still alive, I will not name them. Muriel died in the New York City area in January 1991. That actually made me sad. It means that my Grandfather did not live far from his sister, but he had no contact with her. Why? I honestly wish I know the answer!
He did have one sister who he did stay in contact with and whom I knew, Aunt Hattie and Uncle Lenny. I wrote about them in the blog below. I also found their marriage license. Besides seeing several birth years for her, 1901 to 1903, I found out that her legal name was not Hattie, even though that is what everyone called her. On. December 16, 1934, Ethel H. Rosenberg marred Levert Greenberg, the son of Joseph and Rebecca (Schneider). Uncle Lenny served in WW 2. They never had any children. But I remember them fondly. Although over the years, Aunt Hattie made my Dad crazy at times.
Using Family Search was easy and helpful. I am glad Amy suggested that I use it. I do not know why I have never used it before now. However, I know that I will continue to use it as I double my efforts to find Samuel, as he is the only sibling I have been unable to find.
With the Covid pandemic in its second year, I decided to write about my Grandfather’s younger sister who died over 101 years ago.
As I have written in other blogs, much about my paternal grandfather’s family was a mystery. My Grandmother told me that my Grandfather was the oldest of 6 children, I now know that his mother actually gave birth to 11 children. I now also know that eight siblings that survived to adulthood and that my Grandfather was the second oldest of these eight.
I know a bit about his one brother (See blog below) and I actually knew one of his five sisters. (see blog below.) Three sisters and brother I know their names and perhaps some information, but it nothing definite. I know Muriel married and had two children. And I know there were two ‘maiden’ aunts. I know Samuel supposedly went west in the early 1900’s. But there was one sister that I had absolutely no information about his younger sister Celia. I did not even have her name, as Celia died before my grandparents became engaged and married.
But now I know Celia. Born on the Fourth of July in 1895, Celia was five years younger than my grandfather. But whereas my grandfather lived until he was 95, Celia died when she was just 24 years old on February 6, 1920, from pulmonary edema and pneumonia, which was a major cause of death from the Spanish Flu.
According to Wikipedia, the Spanish Flu continued from February 1918 to April of 1920. And the CDC website that discusses the Spanish flu has this information:
“The 1918 influenza pandemic was the most severe pandemic in recent history. It was caused by an H1N1 virus with genes of avian origin. Although there is not universal consensus regarding where the virus originated, it spread worldwide during 1918-1919. In the United States, it was first identified in military personnel in spring 1918.
It is estimated that about 500 million people or one-third of the world’s population became infected with this virus. The number of deaths was estimated to be at least 50 million worldwide with about 675,000 occurring in the United States. Mortality was high in people younger than 5 years old, 20-40 years old, and 65 years and older. The high mortality in healthy people, including those in the 20-40 year age group, was a unique feature of this pandemic.” (The bold high lights are mine.)
By the winter of 1920, the Spanish flu had begun to ebb. But people were still dying. One of the symptoms was lungs filling with fluid, pulmonary edema, which killed them. Was Celia one of the victims of this pandemic? I might never know, but with the Covid pandemic on my mind, I cannot help but think it was the Spanish Flu that killed my great aunt Celia. Sadly, a few months after she died the pandemic was officially over.
Celia is buried in the old Montefiore Cemetery in New York. She is in the Adath Israel of B’ville section. I do not think any other members of our family are buried there, or at least any that I have found so far. Most are buried in Washington Cemetery. The fact that she is there alone saddens me.
I have not been able to find a picture of her grave online. But I do have the information needed to find it. I hope one day that I will. In the meantime, I wonder if my Great Aunt Celia was one of the millions of people who died during the Spanish Flu. In my heart the answer is yes.
Update: I now have Celia’s Headstone. See the additional Blog for more information.
In May friends of ours drove from Wisconsin to Kansas for a long weekend visit. While they were here, we promised to return the favor and spend a weekend with them in October. We try to keep our promises, so we got into our car and drove the 8 hours to see them. A wonderful weekend in Wisconsin ensued.
We packed a lot into our short time there. First stop was the International Crane Foundation and its Cranes of the World exhibit in Baraboo, Wisconsin. I had no idea that most types of cranes are found in Asia. But now I know. We saw 15 varieties of cranes in areas designed to match their natural habitat. Each setting had a small pond and marsh area.
International Crane Exhibits. The Senbazuru crane sculpture.
The cranes range in size from majestic to small. A pair of cranes were housed in each site that were accessible on a lovely pathway. Besides the area devoted to the cranes, there were also walking nature paths through a meadow planted with native plants and grasses that attracts butterflies and birds.
We spent two hours enjoying the nice weather, the lovely cranes and the other sites like the Zen Garden and the Prayer Wheels. My favorite was the Senbazuru sculpture of 1000 colorful cranes made to look like origami cranes. I am glad we went when we did, as the Center is open only from May 1 through October 31. I encourage anyone who can to visit it next year!
After a stop for lunch, we continued our journey of discovery by visiting artists who were part of the Fall Art Tour. We visited four artists who were located in either Baraboo or Spring Green, Wisconsin. I wish we could have visited every one of the two dozen artists, but that was impossible. However, I will say that my friend and I did as much as we could to support the artists we did visit.
We love botanical gardens and try to visit one wherever we go. Thus, next on our list of places to go was the Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, Wisconsin. LOVELY. I was impressed by the Thai Pavilion and garden. As we walked throughout the gardens, there was beautiful greenery and flowers everywhere and having a river run through it added to the serene scenery and wonderful atmosphere.
A walk through the giant green house, known as the Bolz Conservatiory, provided us with a view of wonderful tropical plants including a large variety of orchids, and an not-yet blooming corpse plant, was exciting. When we entered the greenhouse, there were volunteers offering us a free plant, that we could put into a pot to take away. Of course my friend and I each needed a plant.
When I say large, I mean large. The Bolz Conservatory is 100 feet by 100 feet by 50 feet high. Photos do not do it justice. It holds almost 500 plants!
Another favorite for us when we join our friends is to taste wine. In fact, when they visited us in May we took them to a wine tasting at our arboretum, combining two enjoyable events in one. They took us to a winery on the same day as the botanical gardens, so that counts!
We went to Drumlin Ridge Winery in Waunakee, Wisconsin. There each of us could order a flight of 3 or 6 wines to taste along with a small plate of food. We each chose three wines. I like whites and rose, so I tasted the Edelweiss 2019, Drumlin Sunset and Marechal Foch Rose. The Edelwiess was my favorite and second was the Marechal Foch Rose. We ordered mixed nuts and pizza and a cheese board for them, while I had a soft Bavarian Pretzel. Yes, I know pretzels really go with beer, but for me a soft pretzel goes with everything. And I did snack on some nuts….especially the cashews.
Our final stop was the University of Wisconsin Campus for a snack while we sat along the lake front. It was a quick and exciting three-night visit. But I think we saw some of the wonderful highlights to be seen in the Madison/Middleton area of Wisconsin during our wonderful Wisconsin weekend.
A teacher at my school sent me an email today using the word tsundoku to describe his reading habits. It was a Japanese word I did not know nor heard before. Which for me is unusual as I have had an affinity for Japanese words since my days in graduate school as the roommate to a Japanese exchange student. (See blogs below.)
Of course, I had to look it up. According to the Cambridge Dictionary tsundoku is “the practice of buying alot of books and keeping them in a pile because you intend to read them but have not done so yet; also used to refer to the pile itself.”
WOW. How did the dictionary editors know about my secret? Wait how do the Japanese know what I am doing? I thought it was well hidden. However, although I have those piles, I do eventually get around to reading all of the books piled on shelves and in a queue in my I Pad library. I promise!!!
I will also admit that after getting onto BookBub, my online Tsundoku has increased. Many days I just delete the email from BookBub to avoid adding more books to my online tsundoku collection. I will also admit that sometimes I forget which books I have purchased, till I try to buy them again. Luckily Amazon sends me a note saying, you already own this book. Thankfully they keep track. When I cleaned out my house, I found several books I owned in duplicate and triplicate!
I have a book issue. I thought I had released this when we moved 18 months ago. I gave away thousands of books. Not an exaggeration. I really did. (See blogs below.) I only moved about 1500 books to the new house. I ended up purchasing four new bookcases, because the new house does not have built in bookcases. So I took a deep breathe and told myself that my book buying days needed to end. I made a promise to myself to go more frequently to the library and to stop buying as many books. I could do this!!
But you all know, the libraries were closed for a long time. And my so-called friend told me about BookBub. She actually sent me an email telling me about it. Putting in my face. That sometimes you could even get books for FREE! Yes, you can! And books for $1.99, $2.99, $4.99, and so on. And if you like one of the free books, you can be drawn into a series and then need to pay to find out what happened. Thanks friend!!! You know who you are.
I do need to go to the library and not to Costco, where, when I am grocery shopping, I need to go past the tables filled with books. I inch around snooping at what is there. Sometimes, I take a picture of the book. I don’t buy it then. I think if I come back next week and it is still there, I will get it. But sometimes that does not work, I slowly walk around the store and return to the book table. The book jumps into my cart by itself. I don’t notice till I go to checkout. And there it is still calling my name to join my tsundoku pile.
I have to be honest, now knowing the name of my syndrome, I feel much better. But most of all, I can relate to the many others who share this same compulsion. I always knew I was a bibliophile. My love of books is well known. For goodness sake, I was an English literature major in college. How much more booky can you be, unless of course a librarian. I know them as well. Some of my good friends and even relatives are librarians. I just realized that they live a life surrounded by tsundoku piles. All those books to read piled up around them, calling them. How do they get anything done? I guess I need to ponder that as well.
Growing up in the New York City metro area, one thing I will say, we had connections. The majority of my extended family lived in New York and New Jersey. Family get togethers were important. Besides that, our summers in the Catskills with my cousins made us extremely close.
So of course engagements, weddings, bar and bat mitzvahs and the arrival of babies were always celebrated. This continues today as well into the next generations. But when I was a teen and young adult growing up, everyone lived within a short distance of each other.
When we needed new shoes, we did not go to just any shoe store. No, we drove from North Bergen or West New York, New Jersey, to Yonkers, New York, to get our shoes. Why? There were lots of shoe stores near by. But my Uncle Jack was the manager of a shoe store in Yonkers. So, of course, that is where we went for our new school shoes each year. If ever we had a shoe problem, or issue, we knew to stand up and see where our toes ended in relationship to the edge of the shoe. I have written about my Dad’s fixation on healthy feet. And wearing good shoes was part of this. (See blog below.)
My Uncle Jack had other connections. One of his best friends, also named Jack, was a jeweler. I asked my cousin if he was related to them. But No, Uncle Jack and Jack A. met at the Sephardic synagogue they went to in NYC. Uncle Jack lived in Israel as a child and teen. ( I wrote about his mother, my grandma Rose, and her experiences during the siege of Jerusalem in 1948, see the blog below.)
So why a shoe store and a jeweler and family gatherings all in one story? Because in 1979 I got engaged to a nice Midwest boy who wanted to buy me a diamond engagement ring. I was shocked. He wanted to go to a store and buy it retail? Who heard of such a thing? Not when my family was involved.
To be honest, I do not remember exactly what happened. All I know is that we were in town for my brother’s wedding. It was nine months after we got engaged, but I still did not have my engagement ring. We were waiting until we went to see my family. Finally, a meeting was set up. My husband, then fiancé, thought we were going to go to a wholesale jewelry store in Manhattan. But that is not what happened. He was a bit shocked.
My parents drove my husband and I to the shoe store in Yonkers. My then 24-year-old fiancé asked, “We are getting your ring in a shoe store?” I just nodded my head yes. My father said something like, “Don’t worry, it’s fine.”
When we got to the store, my Uncle was waiting for us, and led us to the back of the store. Mom stayed in front to shop! Next thing I know is that Dad, my fiancé and I are in the shoe storage racks in the back of the store. Jay was a bit shy about entering the back stacks, but as we were all going, he went along. It was here that we met with Jack, the jeweler!
When we were situated where no one was coming, way in the back, Jack, the jeweler, opens the shoe box he was carrying. Inside were five or six diamond rings, all about one karat, all different shape diamonds. I tried several on and finally decided on the ring I wanted. A check was written. We were given an appraisal, but Jack was firm about us getting an appraisal from another jeweler as well. If there was any problem, we were to let him know.
We left the stacks. I was now wearing my engagement ring. Jack the jeweler stayed behind. My Uncle went in to say goodbye to his friend, who left through the back entrance. Quite the covert mission. You did not want anyone to know you were carrying a shoe box filled with diamonds!
I wore my engagement ring for years. But about five years ago, I had a ring I inherited from my grandmother that I used to make a new ring. I put my engagement ring away with the idea that one day my son would use it. That time is now. He and his girlfriend got engaged.
zicharonot 