Great circle routes have been understood since the time of Columbus. The belief that fifteenth century navigators thought the world was flat is simply baloney. A great circle route is the shortest distance between two points on a sphere. The easiest way to conceptualize this is to imagine a two dimensional plane defined by your origin point, your destination point and the center of the Earth. Where that plane intersects with the surface of the Earth is the great circle route. Early sailors with square sails had to follow the trades and tides and were unable to fully utilize these routes. With the advent of more efficient sail designs and steam power that all changed...it also changes when you have to follow the roads because you don't have a boat yet.
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| Ben and a very proud Mom |
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| Maite, Ben, Ed and Grandma Sue Market Square Knoxville |
Maite and I just returned from our own great circle route visiting family and friends. Our route included ten states and over 5,000 miles. I apologize for the length of this post, but we have much to report! Starting in St. Augustine on September 26 we drove to Knoxville for University of Tennessee family weekend to see our son Ben and my mom Sue. We also got to see a Volunteer football game against the University of Southern Alabama, a nail biter that we almost lost save for a last minute interception in the end zone. We were fortunate to meet Ben's friend Preston and his family. Fierce UT fans they were warm and very gracious to our family.
We then drove to Memphis to see our oldest son Greg and his girl friend Heather. We also saw old friends and had our final medical checkups. We then drove to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to see our daughter Meredith and take in the Crimson Tide vs. Georgia State football game (this one was over after 5 minutes...doze, doze).
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| Maite, Greg and Ed at Hi Tone during a "Gig" |
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| Greg and Heather "Hey!" |
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| Bryant-Denny Stadium October 12, 2013 |
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| Meredith and Maite - Roll Tide! |
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| Jerry Lee Lewis' first performance - "Under the Hill" |
I have always been a history buff so we then drove to Vicksburg and Natchez to learn about Mississippi river history. We visited the area of the siege, the plant that first bottled Coca-Cola, and the area "Under the Hill" where Jerry Lee Lewis first performed in Natchez.
In the Vicksburg Museum we read about the great Mississippi Riverboat race between the Natchez and the Robert E. Lee in 1870 from Natchez to St. Louis. The winner could proudly display a pair of antlers in their wheel house until the next race. The Robert E. Lee won by refueling en route rather than docking, and charging ahead through fog, a practice that was very illegal at the time. Teddy Roosevelt visited Vicksburg in 1905 for a bear hunt. Having found no bears they tied one up in a clearing for him to shoot. The President refused but was tagged in the Washington papers with this bear. By 1907 over a million little stuffed bears had been sold. This "Teddy Bear" was the start of the Ideal Toy Company. We also read about the wreck of the Sultana which still holds the record as the worst U.S. maritime disaster in history. Here a four boiler river steamer was overloaded with Union prisoners of war in Natchez returning north at the end of the War. Officers were bribed and authorized loading of over 3,000 union soldiers on a boat designed to carry 384. The Sultana's boilers exploded just north of Memphis killing over 1,500 soldiers. The whole business was overshadowed by the assassination of President Lincoln several days earlier. We took tours provided by the Daughters of the American Revolution within several of the Natchez Antebellum homes, as well as a walking tour through downtown. What an amazing history!
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| Rosalie Mansion - Natchez, MS |
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Maite in front of the world's first Coca-Cola
bottling machine in Vicksburg |
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| Maite going for a run along Lake Ponchartrain, LA |
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| Ed, Tyler and Nala on the bluff in Natchez, MS |
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| Goty, Max, Pam, Maite and Ed at "Root" New Orleans, LA |
We then traveled to see family in New Orleans and attend a medical conference. We had the pleasure of dining at "Root" managed and owned in part by our cousin Maximilian Ortiz. Just a block from the Convention Center we recommend it.
Three days later we were off to Annapolis, Maryland to the boat show. What a great time to catch up with friends and meet Martin Tate our captain who will see us from Rio to the Caribbean next winter. Thank you Laurie, Craig, Jeff, Rob, Salwa, Beth, Gord, Debbie and Eric, for a great show. We then drove to Dover, Delaware and then to Washington DC to get our boat paperwork completed. We strolled the monuments but most were closed due to the government shut down until the morning we left. Despite the closure, the skeleton crew of police were polite and very knowledgable. A final trip to Mt. Vernon on October 17 and we headed home to Florida for a well deserved rest.
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Annapolis Boat Show
Back row - Naval Cadets X4, Beth
Front Row - Bella Luna, Gord Laurie, Craig, Debbie, Maite & Ed, Rob, Jeff |
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| Annapolis to Eric's place. Jeff Woodman, Eric Maynard, Gord Moon, Ed Pratt aboard Bella Luna |
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Members Get Together Annapolis Boat Show October 2013
Debbie Moon, Laurie Bowers, Cindy and Jay Dittmer |
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Members of Antares Tribe Annapolis 2013 - (Trapped on the porch - in the rain - eating Pizza)
Rob, Salwa, Beth, Jeff (and his amazing technicolor and neon dream coat), Maite
(missing are Gord and Debbie, due to a flat tire, in the rain, in a rental without a spare,
from a company without a replacement, in a town without a taxi...ouch)! |
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| Nala, Maite and Tyler in Dover, DE waiting to be Appostilled by the Department of Corporations |
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Maite and Ed biding time waiting for the Brazilian Consulate to legalize our boat papers and provide our Visas.
In front of the "White" House |
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| Our last stop. Maite in front of Mt. Vernon, overlooking the Potomac. What a view! |
