I DON'T LOVE NEW YORK!

I had this writer's conference to attend in New York in mid -August but went early as I  have always wanted to visit Philly and had convinced my daughter in law to let us use her car to go there and tour.

So off we headed but stopped first just over the George Washington bridge to visit my new born grand niece in New Jersey. Their home has the most fabulous view of the Hudson river and bridge so the trip was off to a good start.

Whenever I am doing road trips in the USA I have always stayed with the Comfort Inn group and made a reservation with them to stay at their Rodeway Inn in Gloucester City, new Jersey, (just outside of Camden,) the plan being to commute to Philly daily for sightseeing.

But that place was a mess as they were doing major construction there and instead of closing it to the public, they put visitors in rooms which were musty and had dangerous walkways as building material was scattered everywhere  and cement dust was literally covering everything.

We stayed there less than an hour then moved to the home of a friend a couple miles out of Philly.  Naturally I subsequently complained to the head office but only got a partial refund. 

Will never deal with the Comfort Inn group again.

A scene in Betsy Ross' home

Our friend's house was fabulous as are the gardens and they made us feel most welcome. Besides we walked into a party as our friend was having  birthday and her husband had planned a surprise for her.

Despite them having  young children, everyone kept it  secret and she was really surprised. We had to hurry back from Philly to be there when she returned but we didn’t mind at all.

During the day, we visited the Constitution hall, Betsy Ross' home and the liberty bell. The Constitution hall tour is a must for anyone visiting Philly as it is most educational.

T
he next day we finished up our touring by going to the art museum which has 72 steps. It was on those steps that  Silvester Stallone stood triumphantly in one of his Rocky movies.
We learnt that all 6 of those movies were made in 

Philly. Naturally, as it is so high there, you get a great view of certain sections of the city.

We then visited the African American museum and that was really an eye opener. Glad we returned for we certainly learnt a lot about the prominent role African Americans played in the civil war as well as standing up for their rights in every possible forum. As you know, in the history books in America, they tend to exclude the role of the African Americans, so if you do not go to that museum you can come away with  distorted view of American history.

This museum is therefore a most important institution and no visit to Philly should exclude a trip there.

Out of curiosity, we visited the nearby Dutch market where some Amish sell their products and I was shocked to see how they are now embracing modern technology like credit cards and air condition.

A traditional Amish transport outside the market

A few decades ago I visited one of their settlements in Belize and if anyone had told me they would reject their lifestyle and embrace these modern things I would have laughed.

I really don't like new York, never did.....could never figure out why so many people buy souvenirs saying "I love New York." Of course, most being tourists, they probably never venture further than Times Square! That would account for it.

Many years ago I had gone there to settle and stayed only six months as I could not stand the drab appearance of the place especially those monstrous red brick apartment buildings, the huge buildings blocking out the sun downtown, the lack of trees and greenery in general plus the terrible rusting subways.

Of course Times Square is a different scene and I always enjoy going there to see what weird happenings are taking place and to take in a Broadway show. This time it was  the Book of Mormon and it was really hilarious.

As I had a few days to spare before the conference, I took a quick trip over to the statue of Liberty from Battery park and really enjoyed the vista. I had not been there since I was 14 years old and that was a long long time!

I got another pleasant surprise too as less than half hour out of the miserable city is Bear mountain. It has the most beautiful hiking trails, both difficult and moderate.

My hosts went off on the difficult section but I stayed with the moderate trails and it was really charming and peaceful, with Hessian lake right in the at the center.

There is also a quaint looking hotel there and I hear it is a popular spot in winter. When  we were there, dozens of families were all around , barbecuing or exercising.

It is a beautiful place with the most trees you will probably ever see in new York state I guess.

When the time came for work, I had to head downtown from Mt. Vernon early each day to catch the subway to the Hilton in Manhattan where the Writer's Digest annual conference was being held. The trip was as tedious and unpleasant as I remembered it to be when I spent my 6 months there many years ago.

However the conference was excellent with great, knowledgeable presenters and participants from just about every continent. I made a number of contacts and learnt a whole heap about the writing industry in the USA.

Great value for money.

I will be back next year even if it is held in miserable New York!

Caladiums galore

Wow, I had no idea what these flowers were called for we have them growing almost wild in Jamaica and place little value on them.

Section of a caladium farm outside Lake Placid.

However, with my Meet Up group led by Jennifer Weis, we had a wonderful day in Lake Placid, dubbed the caladium capital of the world, where they take this plant seriously as it provides quite and income for them.

Lake Placid is a pleasant little town with a population of just over 2000, situated in Highland County (I learnt yesterday that Florida has 67 counties. I had no idea it had so many). It is quite some distance away (over 130 miles)  from Broward County in which I live but was worth the trip which took us through scenic farm country and charming little towns.

To get there, we traveled through Palm Beach, Martin and sections of Okeechobee counties.

We didn't just go "flowers looking" though as we stopped on the way at the Hickory Hammock park area to make sure we got our usual Saturday morning exercise, a trek of almost 3 miles.

Hickory Hammock is I understand, sometimes a hunting area for those who want to shoot deer and wild boar and we saw lots of evidence of the presence of wild boar, although none in the flesh. But they clearly were around as our fearless leader pointed to the huge holes in the ground where they furrow to get their protein, worms and bugs. 

Hickory Hammock is a pleasant place to walk during the hot summer days in Florida, because of the shade provided by the huge oak trees of various ages and sizes. It is also very rustic and scenic in its own right with lots of palm, blueberries and other flora. (We were able to find a few ripe blueberries to nibble on).

Nine of us started on the hike but when we returned to our vehicles, we found a late comer waiting to accompany us to the caladium fair.

It was about a half an hour drive from Hickory Hammock to Lake Placid.

Lake Placid as I said earlier, is a pleasant little town but it is made even more attractive by the proliferation of beautifully painted murals on almost every street in the section where the festival was held.

A lovely mural on one of the buildings

This was the 24th annual Caladium festival and I was really overawed by the variety and sizes of the flowers, both those laid out for sale and those used for attractive decoration all around where the festival was held.

At the fair, you could buy both plants and bulbs and as festivals are, there were booths offering all sorts of craft, foods and other items for sale. There was even a booth giving out water which had a sign saying "Free water for the body. Jesus provides water for the soul".

I guess this might mean Lake Placid is a fairly religious area, I don't know. Just assuming. (But what does assuming mean?

Making an ass of you and me lol.) 

It was a nice day but being Florida, it was interrupted by a downpour of rain, but it did not last long.

We took refuge at a craft store which appeared to be run by the community and we actually saw some students working on their craft skills in a classroom there.

After a tasty and pleasant lunch during which it rained again, it was time for the long, tiring drive home.

But it was surely a day well spent.

Alligator mating call

I heard an alligator mating call and believe me it was the most bone chilling sound I ever heard.

Storks all over the trees

 It was almost, I imagine, how it sometimes sounded when disnosaurs were roaming!

We were walking in Wakodahatchee Wetlands. This is a park in  Palm  Beach County on Jog Road close to Delray Beach and it is managed by the water resources people. I had gone there with our fearless Meet Up leader, Jennifer Weise in late May or early June.

At this reserve you find a wide variety of Florida's flora and fauna. However, it is best known for the proliferation of birds and you see bird watchers with their cameras prowling as they wait patiently for the shot of a lifetime.

We went there a bit late that day so the only birds that were still around in their numbers were storks, mostly white and of every size.

They literally took over every tree from top to middle and really made a literal mess for the other birds or anything that must survive on the bottom branches and under those trees!

The only animals we saw that day were a few rabbits, a couple of iguanas and as we approached the boardwalk, we saw a lone alligator lurking among some trees.

We did not pay him much attention but after we had passed the area and gone about 100 feet, we heard a loud blood-curdling sound and lots of action in the water. I had no idea what was happening but although Jennifer said she had never heard the mating call in real life, she recognized it from what others had told her.

We went back to watch him for a while and like this photo I found on the wetland's fb page, it was as if he half rose out of the water and was just shouting or shrilly growling and splashing in the water with his huge tail, for quite some time.

Even after we walked away, he could still hear the eerie noise, though fading, thank heavens, as we got further away.

It was not the type of sound I liked hearing and for his sake, I hope he found a wife, for if he didn't, maybe he is still there creating a racket. 

Worse yet, he could have died from a heart attack for the way he was exciting up himself, he must have been putting quite a strain on his heart!

ANIMAL KINGDOM FOR ME

I just spent the most wonderful four days at Disneyworld, my first visit in over 30 years. And what a time we had.

The last time I went there it ended in tragedy as my daughter who was then probably ten years old, was running away because she said we wanted to visit the haunted house.

Unfortunately she fell, had to get two stitches and we had to leave. I hardly remember anything else from that trip except that there were lots of long lines and Epcot center was great. (We had gone there first.)

Because of the memory of that accident, my daughter built up a bias against the theme park and thirty years later when  I suggested we take her daughter there this summer, she balked. However not only did she and everyone else end up having a wonderful time, but also when she told an attendant at one of the souvenir stores about her last visit, she sent some beautiful souvenirs to her hotel (Art of Animation) as a surprise. A wonderful gesture.

My granddaughter of course was in her element meeting her cartoon characters and even dining with the princesses.

We also visited Universal studios and all the parks, and while we all had a ball everywhere, my big favorite was Animal Kingdom.

When my grandson was around five, we visited Disneyland and I really don't remember their animal kingdom being as amazing as this one in Florida. As to the safari, (probably the only one I will ever be able to afford)  it was so exciting with huge African elephants, white rhinos a lion and lioness....all roaming in an environment similar to their own natural one.

Then we went to the lion King musical and all I an say is it was equal to the one I saw on Broadway.

This really was a fabulous vacation and I hope to repeat Disneyworld again soon and certainly Animal kingdom if nothing more.

The thing I need to remember for the next visit is to make sure to register for the meal plan as the food selection at all the attractions is really great and you can save a lot by pre-registering.

Incidentally an amusing sign we saw at a covered area with a few tables for eating on the run was this one below. It couldn't have come out of the blue so they must have run into some youngsters trying to overnight there or using it as a love nest!;

.

Fruit and Spice Park, Homestead, Florida

I used to find it somewhat  amusing  but very puzzling, how  Jamaican city slickers who often accompanied us on our country hikes or rides, could never recognize the everyday fruit trees that proliferate in the island and which we country people are so accustomed to seeing.                                                

These city slickers (adults and children) can tell you

Fearless leader Jennifer 2nd left front row.

everything about the fruits, what they taste like, what they are good for etc but seem to think that they really come from a supermarket shelf, as they could not recognize the tree if it fell on them!  
                                                                      
I was looking back with amusement today as I visited
Redlands Fruit Festival, which was being held at the Spice and Fruit Park in Homestead, Miami.

This was part of one of our regular "Meet Up" treks, organized by the energetic and knowledgeable Floridian Jennifer Weise. (I mention that she is a Floridian, as I thought no modern residents were actually born in that state and  we were all in fact migrants! lol)

Anyway it was at that festival that I fell in love with the concept and usefulness of a fruit park, for at this park they have acres of fruit trees so visitors can learn what the trees of the fruits, nuts etc that they love to eat, look like.

I certainly learnt a lot. For example, I had no idea that there were 70 kinds of bananas or so many varieties of mangoes.  
                                                                        
I was especially impressed by the Jackfruits for I have never seen jackfruit trees so laden before, anywhere. Unfortunately, the policy of the park is that you can take anything on the ground but are not allowed to pick. And you know Jackfruits rarely fall off trees!

Naturally I was familiar with most of the trees although we have different names for them.

Do you recognize this tree?

There is one tree which I just could not figure out. Have never seen it before. Did not recognize the name on the plaque. Never saw any green leaves or fruits.

But it was quite majestic in its own right.

Would you believe though that the only fruit tree I saw with a warning label that said it was poisonous was our own national dish Ackee!

The Fruit and Spice Park sits on 35 acres of farm land in real Florida farm country.

It has 500 varieties of fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs nuts and other plants. It was the brainchild of a Mary Calkins who started it  in 1944. She was apparently a "snowbird"  with a green thumb who migrated to Florida where she fell in love with tropical plants. It is reported that

Mary's childhood home

many of the plants you now see in the park     came from her nursery.

Since it was a festival when we visited, naturally there were lots of stalls with fruits, and byproducts for sale and I found a typical straw booth quite beautiful.

Beautiful straw proucts

After a leisurely walk through the park, our fearless leader figured we did not yet work up a sweat, so off we went to the nearby Hummingbird and Butterfly Garden  for a mile  and half hike through their nature trail.

Unfortunately we never saw any hummingbirds as the helpful park Interpreter Laura informed us that while they have 4  speciess of hummingbirds, they do not visit until between November and December when they build their homes in the nearby small rain forest .

We saw no shortage of mosquitoes though for the days before there were heavy rains and they seemed to have gone on a breeding spree.
And they were most disrespectful of the natural repellent which I first used, only keeping their distance when a friend gave me some chemical repellent to up the ante.

Today was really a new and interesting experience for me. Actually, most of the "Meet Up" treks that have been organized by the native,  Jennifer, tend to be interesting and well planned.

Flagler Mansion-Lifestyle of the rich and famous

It's always good to see how the really rich and famous live (d) and a good place to get a taste is at the Flagler Museum, Palm Beach in Florida.

All sorts of interesting furnishing

Flagler, who was one of the founders of Standard Oil, built and elaborately furnished this 75 room mansion in 1902, as a winter retreat.

It was later donated by his granddaughter to the historical society as a museum.

A section of the 5000 sq ft reception area

I really love the structure, view, furnishings and the fact that he even had his own rail car with sleeping area, dining room bathroom and kitchen.

The reception hall too

Beautiful private rail car

 is out of this world, all 5000 square feet of it.

Yup, I love to look at these luxurious mansions but to tell the truth I wouldn't want to live in one. (with or without ghosts!)

Today, it serves the most appropriate function, that is as a museum.

Worth a visit in my view though.

Dining car

Bullhead Mountain, dead center of the island

This marker was installed to signify the peak as being dead  centre of the island 

Isn't it fascinating that dead centre of the beautiful island of Jamaica, stands a mountain range from which you can get a fantastic view of sections of the parishes of Clarendon, St. Ann, St. Mary and St. Catherine? Well right in the centre of that peak, you will find the marker confirming this fact.

That is the Bullhead Mountain which is situated in the parish of  Clarendon, the third largest parish in Jamaica.

The fabulous view of the scenic plains and surrounding hills

This important landmark is also the source of\Jamaica's longest river, the Rio Minho which runs from the range and empties out at Portland Point, after running a distance of  92 km ( 57.7 miles) providing life sustaining water to irrigate the Clarendon plains for thousands of farmers.

Magnificent pine trees abound

The range which consists of 220.6 hectares (545 acres) is controlled by the Jamaican Forrest Department and peaks at 547 metres (3600 feet) above sea level. As it is the forestry department that controls it, most of the area is covered in pine and bamboo trees which provides excellent shade but several species of ferns grow wild and provide a soft cushion all along the hiking trails.

While this area is unknown to most Jamaicans, the people of Clarendon have for years been using it as a major outdoor centre especially during the Easter holidays when, they trek there in droves to enjoy the wonderful scenery or simply hang out.

Fun and Thrills hikers

The first time I head about Bullhead Mountain, I thought I heard it had a beautiful waterfall and being very addicted to water, quickly  encouraged friends to accompany me on a hike there. We got ourselves a guide from nearby Thompson Town and asked him up front if he knew where the waterfall was and although he replied in the negative, he assured us that he could find it. Well we spent an entire day from about 10 am to around 4 pm hiking and dying to cool off but alas, there was no waterfall  to be found. I subsequently heard about the local folk lore that indicated that there is a mysterious waterball hidden somewhere in the range which will one day burst and wipe the entire parish of Clarendon from the face of the earth! That I heard many decades ago but have not fear, its just a duppy story!

The entrance to the park

More recently though, I went on another trek to that mountain with my regular group Fun and Thrills.

This was a properly organised outing overseen by environmentalist Nicole Brown who arranged with members of Northern Rio Minho Forrestry Management group, an environmentally active community group, to give us a proper tour.

Young Norris

Naturally, as Bullhead is dead centre of the island, there are several ways to get there. This time we opted to drive from May Pen to Red Hills via Pumpkin to Orange River road. It was near the park that we met there that we met a most pleasant young man, Norris Newman on his way to the river to get water.

When the guides joined us, my first question to the guides was "Are there any waterfalls here?" They assured me there was but after many hours of walking, when we got there, because we were in the midst of a severe drought, what we saw was a mere trickle.

This was however the occasion on which really got comprehensive information about this mid-island wonderful park. For example, we learnt that the original name was name of the mountain was Santa Marian, named after an indigenous plant found there. The name was however changed by the British to Bullhead, as it is said that the peak looks like a bull's head
when seen from out at sea and it provided an excellent navigation tool for sailors in the olden days.

Scenic views from every angle

We also learnt that the famous Maroon warrior Cudjoe, hid out there for a while after killing his first British aggressor in nearby Colonel's ridge which lies to the south of the range. As a result of the greart warrior and members of his troops hiding out there for a while, there are many descendants of the Maroons in the area, although we were told that they do not keep up the traditions as do their relatives in places like Scotts Hall and Accompong.

Nope, we still haven't seen a good waterfall at bullhead mountain but it is still a fabulous place to visit and lyme.

https://youtu.be/h2eZbrXgTNQ