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The Cruise--Details

I didn't include more details in the prior "The Cruise" post for two reasons. 1)  I didn't think anyone would be interested; and 2)  This trip didn't include much of the normal topics:  good beer, good coffee or John-style travel. But there are details, which may be useful to some people contemplating how such a trip is put together. On the first day of the trip, we drove three hours to pick up my mother in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  At 85, she isn't comfortable driving for long distances and hadn't flown for many years. We then drove 3 1/2 more hours to Chicago, where we checked into the Wyndham, where you can get a room that includes the cost of parking for up to 12 days.   We were up early on the hotel shuttle to O'Hare, where we then boarded the a non-stop American Airlines flight to New Orleans. Here, we checked into a Hampton Inn near the port.  My mother was pretty tired, so Julia and I went out for a Cajun dinner and live music.   Rememberi...
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Wright Brothers National Memorial


I have a couple of weeks left on my National Parks annual pass.  My frugal nature and Julia’s thirst for knowledge led us to visit the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina.


I have to admit that the visit was more interesting than I anticipated.  The Wright Brothers were bicycle shop guys from Ohio who just wouldn’t give up on their dream to fly.  They repeatedly experienced failure but refused to give up. 

Successes were incremental.  In this photo, you can see where each of their four flights ended up. The fourth flight covered 852 feet and nearly a minute of flight time.


The plane was attached to the rail during its lead-up to take-off.  The memorial itself is on top of a hill overlooking the runway.


I’ll always remember two things about what I learned that day.  The first is that difficult dreams usually come true as a result of adversity, repeated failures and hard work.  The second is that Wilbur Wright didn’t die in a plane crash; rather, he died at the age of 45 from eating bad oysters.  You just never know…

Living under a rainbow and enjoying our last days in the Outer Banks…



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