Brandenburg Ink

Monday, March 15, 2010

Hawaii Surprise

Surprised? So was Toni’s mom Collen after Mike—the Admiral--Mclaren organized a Top Secret campaign to jet all the kids to Waikiki Beach in Oahu for their 30th anniversary dinner. And so, we found ourselves in one of the world’s most famed beaches reveling in the delight of a surprise. In the next 7 days there was plenty of sea, sky, and solitude as Colleen and Mike, Kata and Judson, and your very own Toni and Ben avoided Tsunami warnings, Humpback Whales, and sunburn.

The Surprise Dinner

Ladies and Gentlemen we present to you Mr. and Mrs. Mclaren at the courtyard of the Westin Moana Surfrider Hotel, the famed “First Lady of Hawaii”. Notice that giant tree in the background? Planted in 1904, the Banyan Tree now stands 150 feet wide.

Remembering the fallen at Pearl Harbor

The USS Arizona Memorial, located underwater, at Pearl Harbor marks the resting place of 1,177 sailors killed during the Attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 by Japanese imperial forces. We were surprised to see oil (notice the shimmer on the waves) as we looked down to the Arizona a few feet below—a result from recent saltwater erosion to the oil tanks.

Ka'annapali Beach, Maui

After two days in Oahu we crossed the pond to the exotic Maui island where we made camp at the Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas. The resort was magnificent, but it was quite difficult to accomplish any relaxing as we witnessed over a hundred Humpback Whale sightings and more than a few breeches (pic from the web) during the week. The Humpbacks give birth in the warm and safe waters of Maui before migrating to Alaska to refill their blubber supply on over 2000 pounds of krill in a single day. Amazingly, we could hear the whales singing as we snorkeled in the ocean.

A Day of Adventure: Volcanos & Rainforests & Deserts Oh My!

Haleakalā National Park, Elevation 10,023

The Road to Hana

Wai’anapanapa State Park

South of the Volcano sits a barren church and desert-like topography

After swimming with sea turtles and attempting to make headway with our novels we were ready for an adventure, little did we know we would see the moon, the rainforest, and the desert in the same day. Our alarm woke us up at 3:00am for the race to see the sunrise on top of the king of Maui, the Haleakala Volcano. When we arrived the weather reports betrayed us as we could only see a hundred feet, but the barren moon-like rocks and 10,000 foot elevation kept us on our edge (for pic-perfect view see National Geographic photo). By 8am we arrived down mountain in the upcountry, filling our tummies and hearing fantastic stories from our waitress Cathy, who moonlights as a cattle and goat farmer. Next up was the legendary and treacherous road to Hana, where the Spielberg’s Jurassic Park was filmed. We lost count of the waterfalls just as we wondered whether there were more fruit stands than falls. We had a picnic lunch at the black sand beach of Wai’anapanapa State Park where Judson and Ben explored an ancient trail which snakes along the ocean past blowholes and sea arches. After passing through the end-of-the-world town of Hana we decided to brave the dirt road around the back side of the Island only to discover a desert like world where among other things Charles Lindbergh was buried, Cattle ranchers worked tirelessly and Goats roamed freely, GIs trained for D-Day back in 1944, and mysterious old churches sat dormant under the majestic slopes of Haleakala. As we drove back to the warm beaches of Ka’anapali we wondered if we had ever seen such cumulative beauty in one day.

Once Again, A Big Thanks to the anniversary couple for making this trip happen. –Ben and Toni

Monday, February 15, 2010

Our Cat Grayson, 2001-2010

Grayson, the proud white and tan cat from the banks of Grace Lake,MN passed away early on February 15. His extensive femur bone injury due to a tragic ceiling beam fall—the last of his many legendary household explorations—proved too much for the medical specialists. Grayson is remembered by his saviors Kata and Judson who rescued him as a kitten from the cold Minnesota wilderness; his human parents Ben and Toni, two traditionally non-cat people who eventually embraced the feline species; Macy his Minnesota Maltese sister; and his Weimaraner half-brother Berlin, who is still searching under the bed for his arch rival. Grayson would represent the best and worst of the Aughts. He was partisan and selfish at times, but surprisingly loving and unpredictable in the best of ways. He will be missed.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Visiting the Spanish Empire in America

Mark Twain liked San Antonio. The author famously rated it as one of only four unique cities in the United States -- the others being Boston, New Orleans and San Francisco. He touched on a complaint about many American cities that apparently was valid even a century ago: one place was not much different from another.

San Antonio's rare unique factor lies in its historical roots. As a place where Spanish and English are heard on the street, it is a true cross cultural center. Often forgotten is the fact that the city belonged to the vast Spanish Empire in the American southwest, one that most American's seem to forget, especially since Boston and Philadelphia gobble up most of the attention we give to our country’s origins.

But if you look past the Alamo and the famous Riverwalk, there are still remnants of that old world. In the city limits rest a series of rarely visited ruins that look remarkably similar to those of ancient Rome or perhaps a rundown Tuscan village. There you’ll find the remains of old Spanish missions. These brilliantly flawed but also idealistic Spanish conceptions of "community”, are worth a visit and remembering.