Victor's Meanderings

I am visiting my Son, Evan and his wife, Kristin, here in Philadelphia. It is my first trip back to Philadelphia since they got married and purchased their townhouse. (Pictured above is your author with City Hall in the background.) The World Series games being played have been challenged by a Nor' easter . It delayed game three until 1:05 AM and game four indefinitely, as of this writing. The weather before this rain was beautiful and I took advantage of it by visiting many of the traditional tourist sites. I toured City Hall, the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Christ Church & Cementary , Elfreth's Alley, Henry F. Dupont's country estate Winterthur , Eastern State Penitentiary and Old Philadelphia. In Fodor's guide book it says that "long before the King of England bequeathed Pennsylvania to the good-hearted English aristocrat William Penn, its land had been home to tribal nations that reaped the bounty of its forested mountains, rushing rivers and f

On July 12, 2008 , I visited the Three Island Crossing State Park is located on the Snake River at Glenns Ferry. It is home to The Oregon Trail History and Education Center where visitors can learn about pioneer emigrants and Native American history. Oregon Trail pioneers knew this spot well. It was one of the most famous river crossings on the historic trail. Pioneer travelers used the three-island crossing until 1869, when Gus Glenn constructed a ferry about two miles upstream. The Glenns Ferry community sponsors a crossing commemoration the second Saturday of each August. Events often include living history presentations and historic skills fair. The Oregon Trail was the scene of one of the greatest migrations of people in this country’s history. Nearly 53,000 men, women and children traveled over the 3000 mile trail in search of a better life in Oregon History tells us that traveling the Oregon Trail was difficult. At what is now the Three Island State

When I was just 20 years of age, I took a semester off from college to visit Europe . One late Sunday night, north of Paris , I found myself nearing the Normandy Coast . I spotted a small cement building. I did not comprehend initially what the building was but later it occurred to me it was a “pill box”, a building built by German soldiers to protect them from the Allied Invasion. I had an eerie feeling about the place. That was 64 years ago. Today, on this anniversary, there is nothing in the press about D-Day, one of the most important events in this country in over 100 years. It is shameful. The invasion of Normandy was the invasion and establishment of Allied forces in Normandy , France during Operation Overload in World War II. It covers the initial landings on June 6, 1944 until the Allied breakout in mid-July. It was the largest seaborne invasion at the time, involving over 850,000 troops crossing the English Channel from the United Kingdom to Normandy by

My son, Evan, and his wife Kristin finished their clinical rotations at the Hospital in Browning Montana the first part of May. Browning is on the Blackfoot Indian Reservation. They found the staff to be very warm and helpful. Browning is near the east entrance to Glacier National Park and although the town itself has little to offer, it was a good jumping off place to many cross country skiing trails. After work, Evan, Kristin and some of their colleagues would go out for a late evening ski often returning the dark. Kristin had to return to Philadelphia and work. Evan on the other hand, had six weeks before he needed to be in Philadelphia to start his new position at the University of Pennsylvania . He was accepted for their residence program in internal medicine. So to celebrate Evan’s completion of medical school, we decided a road trip to the Northeast would be lots of fun. First leg of the trip was from Three Forks to Seven Bays , Washington . Seven Bays

The Annual Three Forks horse drive has become a popular community event. Thousands come to watch over a hundred horses driven down Main Street. The horses are being move from their winter pastures, south of Willow Creek to summer pastures north of Three Forks. Ultimately some of the horse are taken to dude ranches and horseback concessionaires for the summer. About a dozen would be cowboy & cowgirls pay a heafty fee to ride along as wranglers. Some don't look very comfortable on a horse. The drive takes three days. Other events included the high school rodeo, a dance to the music of Montana Rose, a pig roast at the Sacajawea, horse sale and wagon rides. People lined the streets starting 5 hours before the horses arrived. It was like a big open air spring party. Quite cool in the early morning, things warmed up by early afternoon. The kids had a good time of it, climbing up and down Sacajawea's statue and rock walls.

Last week, I went shopping in Bozeman. When I woke the next morning, I was greeted with several inches of wet spring snow. This is Bozeman's Lindley Park, a favorite spot for lunch and a nap.

Whitefish Montana is a charming with it's logging, rail and national park aspects. Now a ski area north of town provides a winter alternative for tourists. Daily Amtrak rail service from Everett or Chicago provides a great method for tourists to visit the community. The Depot is an example of fine Tudor architecture and is on the National Historic Register. (Double click on the placque to enlarge, should you care to read the fine print.)

Saturday, April 5, Evan and Kristin arrived in Montana. After spending a night in the Sacajawea Hotel in Three Forks, they headed for Browning Montana. It is on the Blackfoot Reservation. They will be spending a month there working in the clinic. They don't receive any pay, but they are provided with travel allowances and a nice apartment. I supplied an old pickup for their travels. A week later we rendezvoused in Whitefish, cross country skied at Big Mountain Ski Area and hiked in Glacier National Park. It was quite warm for this time of year, in the sixties. The locals like the warm weather for a change but were concerned about flooding if is persists. In the Park, bike riding and walking on the plowed dry roads was especially nice as they were not yet open to vehicle traffic.

In March I drove over to Butte to watch the St. Patrick's Day festivities. Things start with a parade. A number of bag pipe bands, old cars, coconut girls?, Governor Schwietzer, fire trucks, a tank, politicians and crazies all marched in the parade.

Last month, March 2008, I sold my house in Three Forks and put my things in storage. As soon as I get some things taken care of, I plan to travel. The first road trip will be to Mt. Vernon, Washington to visit my brother Tom. My son, Evan, will be traveling with me. He has finished Medical School at the University of Pennsylvania.