Christmas 2008

Our gratitud to everybody including family and friends, who sent us nice messages with joyful Christmas cards, to whom called us from their houses or jobs... to whom wrote us e-mails, left us recorded messages to the cellphone, or invited us a lunch, a dinner. to my boss who gave the most interesting gift -the gratitud- and other nice surprises!, those persons who we never met before and were able to share their holidays feelings with us, those persons who reminded us through the distance... to Michael for the dinner that we gathered together at home... and how we are having lot of fun playing >> Scrubble!

Thank you!
Winter- December 2008, Lebanon, NH

Salt and Sand in the Snowstorm

The winter time has started yesterday, Sunday December 21 with a snowstorm since Friday 19 until Sunday in the midnight. You can imagine how big is the snow around here!. In Maine state the snow altitude is 41 inches meanwhile New Hampshire 18 right now.It is a problem in the streets. There are many trucks plowing the snow. Several bussines and schools have closed their activities due to the weather.

In theory, using salt in the roads tends to dicrease the peak frost of the water where it is disolved until -16ºC depending of the salt concentration dissolved in water. In the real life, the normal salt can decrease the frost temperature until -9 ºC -10 ºC. That is why many roads are spreaded with salt before and in the time of the snowfall to avoid layer of ice and snow. The sand is good to avoid slides, it works to reinforce the roads.

Under many snow and ice conditions, the use of deicing chemicals has became necessary to maintain clear pavements. In the United States, the use of road salt has paralelled in the size and importance of the nation’s highway system. Before the 1940s, highway departments relied mostly on plowing and abrasives like sand and cinders to keep roadways open after winter storms. Salt was used primarily as an additive to prevent freezing of sandpiles. During the winter of 1941–1942, New Hampshire became the first state to adopt a general policy of using salt.

Sunday, Dec 21, 2008-Some cars were buried by the snow.

One of the problems is during snow melt, peak chloride concentrations in some urban streams can approach half that of ocean water, far higher than many freshwater organisms can tolerate even for a short period. Chloride levels high enough to impair aquatic plants and animals may persist through the summer. This happens because some dissolved road salt infiltrates into groundwater, which then seeps slowly into streams, contaminating them long after the snow has melted. Also the soil absorbs this solution causing damage to the trees along the roads.

Another issue is the frame corrosion of the vehicles. It is highly recommended to clean the car after winter.

Monday, December 22, 2008. Parking lot (our car is in the middle)

Monday, Dec 22, 2008- front Lebanon United Methodist Church

The Beauty of the Ice Storm

Even though there are places without power, without a place to be, the hospitals were in a real emergency here in New England (USA) in places like New Hampshire an ice storm has caused several damages on the roads, some trees felt down, power lines felled leaving about a million of people in the dark, without electricity.

This storm stared last Thursday December 11. That day, I was attending a lunch at the end I drove the car in the middle of the storm... the whiteness of the road the snow plus the cold (-15ºC)... made impossible to drive, and suddenly I felt something strange when the car slid over the icy road I was loosing control. the car was going to crash against a fence along the road, I pulled out the emergency break and I don't remember exactly what else I did... I got stuck in the middle of the road and somebody who saw me came to me and told me to take the route with salt... I didn't know that.. and it worked.

Lebanon city, NH, morning Saturday December 13, 2008

Well, you know when the storms come, they carry lot of concerns, fear, uncertainty, pain specially is somebody dies. There is nothing to do, there are no controls to avoid these events. What is real is that we can see the other side of the mess, that inexplicable beauty. Now, with a simple camera I have tried to capture some pretty views of this cold place of the country.

Pines and birches covered with ice. Saturday December 13,2008

This past weekend was sunny and cold, but I could enjoy the brightness of the ice on the trees.

On Monday December 8, in Burlington Vermont, an hour and half where we live, we welcomed Ignacio Valdivia and Ana Lucia and others who came from my city home, Arequipa - Peru. They will stay in the New England area for 3 months, welcome aboard Nacho and friends!

Ignacio, Ana Lucia and me!

Thanksgiving Day

This is a traditional celebration. It is primarily a North American holiday, except Mexico. In the USA it is celebrated the fourth day of November as last Thursday 27th. This celebration is related with the English settlers, in their intent they settled a new style of life in the North part of USA known as "New England". These English people called "pilgrims" were a Christian group ready to conquer the New World. Unfortunately, many of them died at the beginning because they were shocked with the wild cold, that was around 1620. Many Native Americans helped them when they didn't have enough resources to live. When the pilgrimgs had their first harvest, usually in October, they shared their goodies with the helpers. In this matter, the governor of the English settlers declared that date as: The Day of Thanksgiving for harvesting the fruits that the Lord gave through the men's labor. In 1789 the first American president George Washington recognized that day as The National of Thankgiving, then Abraham Lincoln and in recently time, 1941, the Federal Congress declared as a national holiday in all the country.

The final harvesting in my garden - October 2008

A Farmer's Market in Norwich, VT - October 2008

In that way, the Thanksgiving Day is for us, being immigrants, a special time to share a dinner with family and friends. Last year we met Giovanna from Lima, Peru and for the second time was Takashi Kobayashi from Japan and the other guests were friends from China: Yan Song, husband Jingang Gui and their child Suhan Gui. It was a wonderful dinner! Michael cooked chicken with basil sauce and some more condiments, for appetizer we had spaghetti with red sauce and for dessert vanilla ice cream with raspberries and brandy. Takashi cooked sushi and some Japanese sweet tofu also he shared with us plum wine - Umeshu, and the Gui family some delicious chocolates. I was in charge of the cleaning and arrangements. We played Chinese checker, we talked about garden, science and some of our funny live experiences...

Our first Thanksgiving dinner - November 2006

in a house of a good friend.

Thanksgiving dinner - November 2007

Video: Saying 'Thank you' in our own languages

Thanksgiving at home - November 2008

Family Gang-Song

Germany, the North

Rügen

After some days ago that Barak Obama was elected as a president of the United States, that made us so happy and it seems the general population are so far. Well, I said to myself, it is time to update the blog and write the exciting trip to the North of Germany made in October. Michael drove from Burgdorf, the place where my mother in law lives. She was our principal reason of this journey. We stopped by nice places along the trip to the German north. It was almost 4 hours driving.

mmm.. yummy German sausages!

This is the north, the German largest island Rügen, located in the Baltic sea, around it are Poland, Denmark, Phinland

Chalk Cliff of Rügen with colorful beech wood on top

The island of Rügen on the Baltic coast of Germany has some impressive Chalk Cliffs (up to 161m high) in the Jasmund national park. They are kind of white rock from the last period of the Mesozoic era (1-Triassic, 2-Jurassic and 3-Cretaseous). Beside the coast there are some paths to walk along the chalk cliffs or the seaside. It has a lovely white sand beaches and blue sea.

In 1936 a bridge was built for the nazi regim to connect the island with Europe. Also, the nazis added a resort of outstanding ugliness: Prora (massive building complex for vacation), planned by the Kraft durch Freude ("Strength through joy") organisation, which aimed to occupy people's free time. However, Prora was never completed.

On the Baltic sea recording the moment

Baltic sea. A submarin boat floating

Here one of the hightlights there: Several of the beautiful seasides were marked with signs... I couldn't understand the meaning of "Textil Strand", Michael helped me with the German translation to English in other words means "use bathingsuit" :) It is well known that some Germans use to be undressed on the beach. Read the sign:

Michael walking along the Binz pier to go aboard.

Another of its atractions is the Jagdschloss Granitz sits atop a hilltop and offers panoramic views of the entire island from the central tower.

The long, steep spiral climb up the central tower of Jagdschloss Granitz is rewarded with panoramic views. Large antlers adorn the walls throughout the castle. Inside there is a replica of German romantic painter Caspar David Friedrich, one of the greatest exponent in European art of the symbolic landscapes "Chalk Cliffs on Rügen" (Kreidefelsen auf Rügen).

This Friedrich's oil painting with calm, pacific, romantic landscape and tree persons behind back, each one develops the interpretation of life, spirit, religion. The original masterpiece is located in Switzerland.

Anna's Birthday in Rügen

We spent a nice time there on her birthday of October 17. We gathered a delicious fish dinner with exquisite wine. Then we went for a walk along the Baltic seaside under the moonlight! It was divine!!

Binz

Binz is a city located in the Rügen island, there is a rail way built in 1899, where nowadays a steam train is still working. Its name is "Rasende Roland". We took it for 15 minutes, it was facsinating!

Rusende Roland a steam train

What impressed me a lot of our visit to Germany is the care of the environment. There are several groups of four trash labeled for garbage recycling, they are placed in parks, gas stations, malls, public transportation. Also, in many of the supermarkets there, the shoppers are encouraged to bring their own shopping bags, it is not allowed plastic bags in many places, if they do not have any bag, they will be charged. This kind of behavior is being well developed because I could feel how the people are involved and conscious of the bad effect to the environment that is causing the plastic bags. Don't you think it is time to take care of our space here? Regarding the speed of the vehicles, many of the drivers go to 240 km/h without cellphone, cup of coffee in the hands or any other 'distraction'... I was in the highway looking carefully to each one of the drivers... they were fast with the hands on the steering wheel. There are hidden video recorders along the highway (autoband in German) for violators. If you break the law, you can get a mailed fine with a close up picture of yours and your car as an evidence of your fault in the highway. You don't wanna get one, do you?

The German number plate

All the vehicles have an ID with the initial letter of the city, let's say "H" for Hannover, "B" for Berlin (see above pic), blue color with the 12 golden stars of the European Union, which have nothing to do with the number of Member States (27), that number twelve is traditionally the symbol of perfection, unity. Also the letter "D" por Deutchland (Germany). It is interesting to see the signs inside the first levels of the parking garages: "Nur Fur Frauen"(only for ladies). It is because ladies can reach easily their cars in the darkness, for example.

Lübeck

Burgdorf

We continued the trip until we got my mother in law's home in Burgdorf, a pleasant place! Then we went to Hannover to visit the wonderful zoo that I have never seen.

Walking under a sunny day! Burgorf awsome houses

Shinny and happy!Under a maple tree

Other interesting place to recycle is the cemetery in Burgdorf... there are a couple of bins, one for plastic pots and other for dead flowers. Enjoying a nice time with coffee and 'kuchen', delicious! In Tante Mita's house.

Hannover The Zoo


In the zoo, me! the farmer :)

We came back from Frankfurt to USA where almost half an hour before we aboard the plane, the flight was cancelled because the pilot got sick. It was really a big issue to find out the next available flight. Finally, we arrived to Philadelphia without our luggage because they were lost. It was a shame! Inside I got tons of marzipan, Asbach chocolate bars with brandy. After two days we received the lost luggage at home without problems.