Tag: TRAVEL

HISTORICAL MEMORY

Like being a New Zealander, Americans are made of many cultures. That is an underlying theme of Hampton Sides interesting biography of Captain Cook.

Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

The Wide Wide Sea (Imperial Ambition, First Contact and the Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook)

Author: Hampton Sides

Narration by: Peter Noble

Hampton Sides (Author, American historian Yale graduate with a BA in history. As an editor, Sides has written many articles for national publications. He is awarded an honorary doctorate from Colorado College.)

Hampton Sides has written an interesting history of James Cook’s voyages with a focus on his final expedition to find a Northwest Passage. This is a slightly misleading statement because in the 18th century, a ship sailing from the Atlantic to the Pacific typically had to navigate around Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America. Explorers seeking a northern connection between the oceans attempted to reach a Northwest Passage, but the Arctic route was blocked by ice. Why would one think there was a northwest access from the Pacific if there was no passage from the Atlantic? Apparently, people believed the Atlantic side had been thoroughly searched without finding a passage, but the Pacific had been less explored and might have an unknown channel that would allow passage.

a simple world map highlighting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans with clear labels and contrasting colors

Sides writes the story of an 18th century navigator who had sailed the globe twice and was contracted to find a Northwest route that would shorten the distance between Europe and the North American continent. Called out of retirement by the British Admiralty, James Cook set sail on his third and final voyage in 1776, a propitious year for the American colonies. Cook took command of the HMS Resolution, accompanied by one other vessel eventually commanded by Captain Charles Clerke on the HMS Discovery. (Both Clerke and Cook died on this voyage, i.e., Clerke from tuberculosis and Cook from a melee in the Pacific.) It is interesting to find that the vessels are loaded with animals as well as food provision for long voyages. Sides notes Cook dislikes the requirement of livestock because of the stink from their offal. Cook is a stickler for the cleanliness of his vessels and crew members. However, Cook recognizes livestock’s importance on long voyages for adequate food provision.

Before science showed lack of vitamin C caused scurvy, Cook required provisioning of fruit on his long voyages.

It is Cook’s observation of other mariners’ health experience that made Cook decide on food provisioning for his voyages. Sides writes Captain Cook only had a village-school education, but he had a practical maritime apprenticeship based on learning by doing as well as by observation of past sailings of other mariners.

The character of Cook is somewhat revealed in the history of an earlier voyage to New Zealand in 1773.

Sadly, Sides notes Cook’s personally written logs and correspondence are stoic with little insight to his emotions. He notes Cook’s stoicism is even more difficult to pierce because his younger wife destroyed Cook’s personal letters. Nevertheless, Cook’s stern character is illustrated by Sides’ details during his voyages. There is no doubt in a listener’s mind that Cook is a highly competent leader who brooked no opposition from his crew while exhibiting a nascent understanding of the importance of native cultures. Sides shows Cook to be a keen observer of different cultures and, for the most part, avoided criticism of other societies as long as they did not interfere with the Admiralty’s commissioned objectives.

A New Zealand Māori politician, Nanaia Mahuta, serving New Zealand in 2021.

The indigenous Māori live in New Zealand today. Cook’s two ships that visited New Zealand were the Resolution and Adventure. They became separated because of bad weather. The captain of the Adventure, Tobias Furneaux arrives in New Zealand after Cook had already departed. Furneaux dispatched 10 armed men to collect fruited plants for scurvy prevention. The 10 men did not return. In searching for the men, the search party found severed body parts being eaten by dogs. A tattooed hand revealed the remains as one of the 10 men. The 10 mariners had been killed in what is called a whāngai hau ritual which is an act of consuming an enemy’s spirit by eating their flesh. Because Cook had already left, the search party interrupted the ritual and recovered some of the remains. The cause of the 10 men’s killing is unknown but the incident shaped Māori–European relations. When Cook returned, he chose not to retaliate because he did not know what caused the killings and understood the acts of the Māori were a culturally influenced event, presumably caused by something the 10 men did that threatened the indigenous New Zealand tribe. Cook chose to respect the cultural beliefs of the tribe rather than seek a revenge urged by some of his crew.

New Zealand farmland.

Having personally visited New Zealand, one appreciates one of the most beautiful places in the world, but the story of the Māori Grass Cove incident is a shocking reminder of how much civilization has changed over the centuries. One of our guides belonged to the Māori tribe.

Sides explains Cook is commissioned by the Admiralty to settle a question of the existence of a presumed unknown southern continent in the Pacific that was tentatively identified as Terra Australis. Cook’s expedition found there was no great habitable continent to the south, but he crossed the Antarctic Circle many times. Massive ice fields kept Cook from the Antarctic mainland. Anyone who has visited Antarctica knows of the Drake passage and how rough the sea can be. Having visited Antarctica clearly shows year-round habitation would be like living on the moon, i.e. possible but highly inhospitable. Cook found no habitable continents in the south seas because there are none.

Kealakekua Bay in Hawaii.

Cook’s third expedition is the first European contact with Hawaii after passing through the Bering Strait on his way through the north Pacific. Ironically, in his last voyage, he is killed in Hawaii in 1779, one year after he returned to Hawaii. He had spent a year more searching for the passage when he returned to Hawaii on his way back to England. When Cook first landed on Hawaii, he and his crew were welcomed with open arms. Cook appears like a God to many Hawaiians. Cook’s steely personality is two edged in that it made him a great leader of men on long exploratory voyages, but he brooked no insubordinate behavior. When returning to Hawaii after a year of looking for the Northwest Passage, reception by the Hawaiians was less respectful. A boat is stolen by some Hawaiians when they were anchored at Kealakekua Bay. The stolen boat is a major diplomatic and military issue because it was an important piece of the ship’s survival. Sides notes theft is not uncommon in native Hawaiian culture. Cook’s response is to attempt capture of the chief of Hawaii and hold him hostage until the boat is returned. The Hawaiians resist. A fight breaks out and Cook is struck; he falls to the ground and is stabbed and beaten to death by the Hawaiians. Four marines were killed with 17 Hawaiians that died in the confrontation. Cook’s body is ritually dismembered as is the custom of the Hawaiian culture in respecting a high-ranking enemy.

a historical portrait-style image of Omai, the 18th-century Ra‘iātean man who traveled to England with Captain Cook, depicted in traditional Polynesian attire with dignified expression
A.I. Generated picture of what Omai may have looked like.

Sides’ story is more than a recounting of historical facts. He writes several chapters about a native of the Society Islands name Omai who became a celebrity in London. Cook had brought Omai to England after his second world voyage. Omai boards the ship on Cook’s third voyage to be returned to his homeland after having lived in London for two years. The Society Islands are an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean made up of Tahiti and four other islands.

At first, one wonders why the story of Omai is included in Side’s book. One realizes the story of Captain Cook, in broad strokes, is well known but Omai reflects on how history is shaped by those who tell a story that often obscures the complexity of past events.

The story of Omai is obscured by the big picture of Captain Cook’s momentous voyages but Omai’s story shows how cultures are widely misunderstood because of those who tell the story. Omai’s cultural influences are lost because they are interpreted through the lens of a society that sees people of other cultures as noble savages or exotics, i. e., not based on their unique experience and culture. After Omai’s experience in London, he is no longer just a Tahitian. In returning to Omai’s culture, he is a different human being. He becomes an exotic in both societies. He dies only a few years after his return to his native country.

Many cultures have influenced what Americans have become.

One comes away from “The Wide Wide Sea” thinking of today’s immigration policy and the many who have come here to only be rejected for not being born in America. America has lost its historical memory. Many people who immigrated have added their cultures to society in many positive ways that have made America great. Our ignorance and actions that contradict that truth are appalling to many. Captain Cook recognized the murder and dismemberment of ten Englishmen by the Māori was terrible, but his response respected their culture. The Māori remain an important part of New Zealand culture just as American Indians are an important part of American culture. To arbitrarily reject immigrants without due process is unjustifiable in a country made great by many different cultures.

Like being a New Zealander, Americans are made of many cultures. That is an underlying theme of Hampton Sides interesting biography of Captain Cook.

LIFE’S MEANING

The story of McCandless’s life is that meaning in life comes from people and nature, not one or the other but both.


Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Into the Wild

Author: Jon Krakauer

Narration by: Philip Franklin

John Krakauer (Author, mountaineer, raised in Corvallis, Oregon.)

The main character in “Into the Wild”, tuned in and dropped out. His “tune in” is not to drugs but a wish to understand the meaning of life. Christopher Johnson McCandless chose, after graduating from Atlanta, Georgia’s Emory University, to live off the grid of society, i.e. particularly capitalist society. His degree is a BA in history and anthropology. McCandless chooses to drive around the country, working at dead-end jobs to sustain himself until he finds a place to live in a natural habitat, without the aid of society which he believes keeps him from understanding the meaning of life. He began a “walk about” from Georgia with a plan to explore survival in the frigid wilds of Alaska. McCandless kept a journal of his search for life’s meaning. His journal became the guiding source for Jon Krakauer’s book about McCandless’s brief life.

Christopher Johnson McCandless (1967-1992, died at the age of 24.)

The McCandless family picture with Christopher either before or after enrollment at Emory University.

McCandless came from a solidly middleclass family but rejected capitalism defined by the desire for money, power, and/or prestige. He obviously loved the outdoors and wished to explore the possibility of living off the land with whatever nature had to offer. McCandless rebels against capitalist beliefs when graduating from college. He begins a search for the meaning of life beyond the principles of a capitalist society. He sought understanding by experiencing the attractions and dangers of the American wilderness. McCandless wishes to be free of materialism, his familial relationships, and the conventions of a middleclass capitalist life.

(One wonders if McCandless’s story is part of today’s rising homelessness with people living in tents, sleeping in business doorways and on sidewalks of American cities? Are Americans becoming disillusioned with capitalism because the gap between rich and poor is rising and pushing the middleclass into poverty? Some argue the cost of living is climbing faster than the wages of employment.)

McCandless graduation form Emory University in Atlanta Georgia.

With a BA in history and anthropology, McCandless graduates from Emory in 1990 and leaves Atlanta, heading west. Rather than look for a job or extending his education, he donates his savings to charity, cuts off communication with his family, and journeys to the west in a 1982, B210, Datsun. He heads southwest, traveling to Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, and New Mexico. He spends some time in Arizona with odd jobs and becomes stranded when his Datsun is disabled by a flood. He hitchhikes to California via Las Vegas, goes through South Dakota with his determined destination being Alaska in 1992. Nearly two years have passed since graduating from Emory.

Map showing McCandless’s two years of travel from the East to the West, mid-West, and on to Alaska.

McCandless kept a journal of his travels. The author, John Krakauer, interviews some of the people McCandless meets and/or works for that are noted in his journey. All say he was a nice person and hard worker who dependably showed up for work. However, one employer noted he had to be told to take a shower and wear socks when he came to work at their fast-food restaurant. McCandless was obviously homeless and had no shower facilities in which to bathe. He reluctantly complied as best he could but soon left to find his way to Alaska.

Sample of McCandless’s journal when he called himself Alex Supertramp.

McCandless arrives in southern California. He meets an older (80 something) American named Ronald Franz, a leatherworker, who tries to convince McCandless to give up his wandering life. They become friends but McCandless leaves Franz without saying goodbye as he heads north. The importance of their relationship is shown in a letter sent to Franz by McCandless that explains his inner conflicts. McCandless explains his need for independence and the freedom it gives him to personally connect with himself. By abandoning materialism, wealth, and social expectations, McCandless believes it makes him free. The tension created by McCandless’s belief in social isolation versus human relationship is expressed in his letter to Franz. Being alone is no answer to the conflict one feels toward their family or those who are part of society. Part of one’s identity, belief in who they are, and belief in oneself is reinforced by other people, not in wilderness isolation. This is a lesson of life that McCandless refuses to see or understand. The well-known poet, John Donne, recognizes “No man is an island”. All humans are interconnected which is a truth McCandless refuses to see.

McCandless dies in a Fairbanks city Transit bus he used as a shelter in Alaska. John Krakauer speculates on the cause of death being inadvertent poisoning from eating potato seeds because of McCandless’s hunger, emaciation, and lack of nourishment. If there is meaning in life, McCandless search and isolation is in vain. The story of McCandless’s life is that meaning in life comes from people and nature, not one or the other but both.

MATRIMONY

In the book “A Marriage at Sea”, one wonders how a husband or wife would respond in a crisis. Who would take command and who would follow? Is it a matter of nature or nurture?

Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

A Marriage at Sea (A True Story of Love, Obsession, and Shipwreck)

Author: Sophie Elmhirst

Narration by: Marisa Calin

Sophie Elmhirst (Author, British journalist who wrote the story of Maurice and Maralyn Bailey who survived 118 days on a life raft in 1973.)

Surprisingly, Elmhirst writes about marriage in telling the story of a shipwreck that left Maurice and Maralyn Bailey on a life raft in the Pacific Ocean for 118 days. The Baileys had been married for 9 and a half years when their yacht was struck by what is presumed to be a dying whale.

The Baileys.

The Baileys were a middle-class British couple who fell in love with an idea to buy a small yacht and sale the sea to visit the Galapagos islands and beyond, a fantasy both adopt. Maurice’s strict childhood had prepared him to master the technical skills of a seafarer, but Maralyn seems to have the determination to make their dream real. They sold all their possessions, including their home, and contracted with a boatbuilder in Southampton who began the long process of building a yacht for their voyage at sea.

Maralyn Bailey using a sextant on their sailboat.

They set sale in June 1972 in a 31-foot yacht named Auralyn. They crossed the Atlantic and reached Panama in February 1973 and headed for the Galapagos islands in the Pacific, expecting it to take ten days. At dawn on March 4, 1973, their vessel was struck by a whale in the Pacific Ocean. They were 300 miles from the Galapagos islands when their vessel sank. Water filled the hold, and they abandoned ship on a raft with a small dinghy they used to store supplies they gathered from their sinking boat.

Maralyn and Maurice on a rubber raft before their sea adventure.

On the one hand, the knowledge of Maurice’s navigation skill aided their eventual rescue, but it seems Maralyn’s will and determination saves their lives. Their slim provisions would only last for a few days before dehydration and starvation. To last for their 118 days adrift, they improvised. They caught and ate raw turtles, fish, and seabirds while collecting rainwater for their sustenance. They had no fishing hooks and had to bend safety pins. They had to make fishing line for the hooks from thread, cord, twine, or maybe the yacht’s emergency kit. Whatever they caught had to be killed, cleaned, and eaten raw.

Seven ships passed the Baileys who were lost at sea.

Seven ships passed the Baileys but did not see their raft and dinghy. Even though they were in the “Sea Lane”, it is easy to understand why they were missed. They had flares that did not ignite which made their being seen unlikely, particularly with the immense size of sea transport vessels. Their hope for rescue rose and fell with each vessel sighting. Their boat, the size of the ships, and the distance from sea-going vessels must have been too far for anyone on board to see them.

Vessel that found the Baileys.

It is a South Korean fishing boat that spots them. They had drifted over 1800 miles from the Galapagos Islands when they were rescued. Fortunately, the Bailey’s voyage is within the fishing routes of the Pacific. South Korean fishing boats would travel hundreds of miles from shore to catch tuna, billfish, mahi-mahi and other marketable fish. The South Korean boat was a deep-sea commercial fishing vessel. Its smaller size undoubtedly helped them see the Baileys.

The Bailey’s after their recovery from 117 days on the sea.

The Baileys were severely emaciated. Both had lost over 40 pounds. They could barely walk because of malnutrition and saltwater sores from skin irritation. It is hard to conceive of how exhausted they must have been. The Baileys were taken to Honolulu, Hawaii for medical care and recovery. Without doubt, the South Koreans saved the Baileys lives but it was a 1500-mile trip to Honolulu for the fishing vessel which would take 5 to 8 more days.

Sexual equality.

Elmhirst’s story suggests survival is largely because of Maralyn’s tough-mindedness and attention to her husband’s strengths and weaknesses.

In a marriage, one wonders how any husband and wife might respond in a crisis. Who would take command and who would follow in a crisis? Is it a matter of nature or nurture? In the case of the Bailey’s crisis, it appears Maralyn took command. The cost of that command is unknown, but parenthetically one notes Maralyn died at 61 while Maurice lived into his 80s.

PARENTS

William Wilde, Jane Wilde, and John Stanislaus Joyce fit the description of “Mad, Bad, Dangerous to Know”. However, John Butler Yeats seems somewhat less dangerous while contributing to the life and intellectual development of W.B. Yeats.

Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Mad, Bad, Dangerous to Know

Author: Colm Tóibín’s

Narrated By: Colm Tóibín

Colm Tóibín (Author, Booker Prize winner in 2006, journalist, essayist and short story writer.)

“Mad, Bad, Dangerous to Know” as an audiobook is a bit difficult to understand because of Colm Tóibín’s Irish accent but as one adjusts to its cadence and inflexion, it offers interesting information about the families of Oscar Wilde, W.B. Yeats, and James Joyce.

William and Jane Wilde (Parents of Oscar Wilde.)

William Wilde, the father of Oscar, is an important figure in Victorian Ireland. He was a renowned eye-and-ear surgeon who aided the medical profession by compiling statistical information about diseases and mortality of medical treatments as a gauge for human health. His wife, Jane Wilde (pen name-Speranza) was a nationalist poet and political writer. Some characterized her as a radical in comparison to her establishment husband.

Jane Wilde’s husband is accused of sexual misconduct in the treatment of a young female patient in his practice. Mary Travers had accused Dr. Wilde of drugging and seducing her when seeking help for a medical problem. Dr. Wilde is indirectly drawn into court to settle a lawsuit filed by the female patient’s father because of a publicly exposed letter by Jane Wilde about Ms. Travers. The court finds that Dr. Wilde’s wife libeled Ms. Travers in a publicly exposed letter that criticizes her sexual assault claim. The court found Jane Wilde guilty of libel and awarded Travers a symbolic sum of 2 pounds for public humiliation.

In the 19th century, Eibhear Walshe writes a book about the trial brought against Jane Wilde for libelous comments about the sexual abuse of Ms. Travers.

Though Oscar’s father never faced criminal prosecution, his reputation and standing in the community declined. Despite the blow to Dr. Wilde’s reputation, Tóibín argues Ireland’s medical profession benefited from William Wilde’s statistical analysis of medical practice in 19th century Ireland. Nevertheless, the Travers’ trial infers gender discrimination was then and remains a serious problem in modern times.

The Travers’ trial reminds one of gender discrimination in modern times.

Oscar Wilde (1854-190o, the son of Dr. Wilde and Jane Wilde died at the age of 46, Oscar Wilde was an Irish author, poet, playwright who wrote “The Picture of Dorian Gray”. He became famous in London and around the world, convicted in 1895 for gross indecency for homosexual acts.)

John Butler Yeats (1839-1922, W.B. Yeat’s father.)

The next family examined by the author is John Butler Yeats. Little is said about J.B.’s mother but his father was an aspiring portrait artist. This is an equally interesting story. J.B. is characterized as an artist but with a gift of gab and an interesting philosophy of life. John Butler Yeats is identified as a procrastinator that often started painting a portrait but as often failed to finish it. He and his wife had four children, i.e. two girls and two boys. Each contributed to Irish cultural life. Jack, their first son, became one of Ireland’s most celebrated painters. He also illustrated books and wrote plays and novels. He painted in the expressionist style. Susan Mary Yeats was a leader in the Arts & Crafts movement in Ireland. She co-founded the Cuala Press that published works by W.B. and other writers. She helped revive Irish decorative arts but was overshadowed by the brothers. Elizabeth Yeats was a co-founder of the Cuala Press. A little research shows the children had some formal education but as Tóibín suggests, with the exception of W.B.’s formal training at the Metropolitan School of Art in Dublin, the other 3 children were largely self-trained in art, writing, and Irish crafts.

Tóibín shows W.B. had a somewhat rocky relationship with his father when he was younger, but it evolved into a respect for his father’s philosophical view of the world.

When his father lost his wife, he chose to move to New York. Tóibín explains John Butler Yeats was more than a portrait artist. Though he was undisciplined in completing his artistic works, he scraped by with the help of his children’s support. John Yeats had attended Trinty College in Dublin studying the Classics and Law. He used that education to write letters to his children and friends after he moved to New York. The author infers some of W.B.’s poetry is based on ideas gleaned from his father’s philosophical musings. Tóibín notes several books have been published that compiled many of W.B.’s letters.

Rosa Butt portrait painted by J. B. Yeats.

Tóibín characterizes John Butler Yeats as emotionally and financially unreliable but a deeply influential father in W.B.’s life. J.B. exposes W.B. Yeats to the aesthetic and intellectual currents of the time. Tóibín infers J.B. had an extramarital affair with Rosa Butt. Ms. Butt was an acquaintance J.B. made when he painted a portrait of her in his studio. J.B. wrote many letters to Ms. Butt that reflect on his emotional attachment. However, he never returns to Ireland despite many intimations that he would. John Butler Yeats dies on February 34, 1922, in New York City. He was 82 years old, living in a boarding house at 317 West 29th Street. As true to his habits in life, he is said to have died with an unfinished self-portrait beside his bed. He is buried in Chestertown Rural Cemetery in Chestertown, New York.

James Joyce, leaning on his mother, with his father at the right (John Stanislaus Joyce).

John Stanislaus Joyce (1849-1931, died at the age of 82

The final chapters of Tóibín’s book are about James Joyce’s family. His father is John Stanislaus Joyce. Tóibín suggests James had an ambivalent opinion of fathers and particularly his own father. John Joyce is characterized as an abusive, alcoholic husband, and incompetent manager of his inheritance. With ten children and a wife, John Joyce loses his inheritance and effectively drives his son away from Ireland. James is the oldest, born in 1882. Tóibín explains that his voice and personality are ever present in James Joyce’s famous characters in both “Ulysses” and “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man“. Both books take a dim view of fatherhood while exemplifying an erudite father who projects a “man about town” image. However, Tóibín shows John Joyce to be an incompetent money manager and abusive family man.

James Joyce (1882-1941)

In “A Portrait…” Stephen’s biological father is depicted as charming but irresponsible. Like James Joyce’s father, his main character’s father is financially unstable and an emotionally distant, abusive parent. In “A Portrait…” Stephen Daedalus is alienated and chooses a life independent of the Catholic Church because he views it like a surrogate father that imposes moral and spiritual authority without justification.

In “Ulysses”, James Joyces’s main character argues paternity is a fiction while maternity is merely a biological function. At best, one sees James Joyce is ambivalent about his dad. James experiences episodes of camaraderie when socializing with his father as a drinker and as a tenor singing partner. Both are supporters of Parnell, the Irish nationalist leader who supported Home Rule and independence from England.

Tóibín suggests James Joyce’s feelings about his mother are marked by guilt, presumably for not protecting her from her abusive husband but also because of her belief in God and patriarchal authority. In reading Joyce’s works, particularly “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” and “Ulysses”, one can see James Joyce’s as a son of a loving, religious mother and abusive father who drank too much. James knew his mother loved him, but his father could not manage his or his family’s welfare.

May Murray Joyce (James Joyce’s mother, 1859-1903, died at the age of 44.)

William Wilde, Jane Wilde, and John Stanislaus Joyce fit the description of “Mad, Bad, Dangerous to Know”. However, John Butler Yeats seems somewhat less dangerous while contributing to the life and intellectual development of W.B. Yeats.

THE WIZARD

Good luck and safe travels, if you have the time and inclination to visit, go see Dorothy and her companions in Dolan’s immersive theatre.

Travel

Written by Chet Yarbrough

The Sphere in Las Vegas is a must see when visiting Las Vegas.

James Dolan, the executive chairman of Madison Square Garden Company, is credited with the idea of the Las Vegas Sphere.

James Lawrence Dolan (American businessman, supervisor of the New York Knicks, and New York Rangers, former CEO of cable vision, owns 70% of the voting power of the Sphere Entertainment Co., a publicly traded company.)

At the time of the Sphere’s construction in Las Vegas, there was concern about it ever being profitable. The cost of the Sphere exceeded expectations but Dolan’s vision and anyone who has visited the Sphere will be overwhelmed by its sensory impact and entertainment potential. In its first quarter of operation, a 98.4 million operating loss was reported. However, the reported revenue of the Sphere was $314.2 million in 2024 and its showed net inc9ome of $151.8 million in Q2 of 2025 after a previous year’s loss of an estimated $46.6 million.

The Wizard of Oz at the Sphere had mixed reviews when it first came out. We had visited the Sphere when it first opened with a World of life’ presentation. The Wizard was equally astonishing and entertaining.

As the Sphere production introduces unforgettable characters like The Scarecrow, The Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion, some fans will tear up with the joy of seeing them in the immersive qualities of the Sphere. Viewers will feel the wind of the storm as it sweeps across the Sphere’s dome.

The special effects are amazing. You feel the wind of the hurricane, catch a fake apple from a forest of talking trees that complain about travelers picking their apples, and feel the heat from a fire in the witch’s castle. This is a tour de force of the Sphere’s potential.

Good luck and safe travels, if you have the time and inclination to visit, go see Dorothy and her companions in Dolan’s immersive theatre.

JAPAN TODAY

Travelling to Japan is an enlightening trip. It may change your life. On the other hand, it may not. It has taken many generations for Japan to become what it is today. By age, America is a baby just learning to walk.

Travel

Written by Chet Yarbrough

Mt. Fuji–on our way to Tokyo from Hiroshima, Japan.

Our brief 3-week visit to Japan this year was a pleasant escape from the hostility of a changing immigration policy in America. Our 15-member group of travelers is guided through Japanese culture by three interesting Japanese citizens, i.e. one–a young Japanese student of the piano; two, an American who has lived in Japan for many years, and three, a Japanese’ Hiroshima guide who is an experienced world traveler and guide to her country. All three showed different aspects of a truly fascinating and beautiful country.

A modern bullet train in Japan transported us at 300 miles per hour from our arrival point to Tokyo.

Two of the most striking experiences for me are 1. seeing the incredibly modern infrastructure of Japan and 2. the intelligent use of a densely populated environment. Both of these experiences offer examples to the world of what can be done to accommodate continued population growth. New York City has a population of 8.48 million people while Tokyo’s metropolitan area accommodates 37 million. As an observer of society, my perception is that Tokyo is friendlier, cleaner, and safer than New York City. This is not to disparage New York. New York is one of the greatest entertainment capitols of the world, along with London, but Japan demonstrates how culture makes a difference in how people live.

Tokyo is amazingly clean with shopping for every person’s interest. Shopping centers and markets are busy throughout the metropolitan area. Crowds of buyers are entertained by the appearance of comic figures and pleased to find everything one wishes to buy with a bow of a business employee’s head and a smile of welcome.

Japan’s public transportation system far exceeds the ease of travel and reliability of New York and other major metropolitan cities in the United States. The highway system and high-speed rail systems of Japan put California’s and America’s fumbling public transportation infrastructure projects to shame.

As an early riser, one can see young women walking by themselves to work in the early morning. They walk down narrow side streets, without concern in Tokyo. In contrast, a woman (let alone a man) is unlikely to feel safe and secure in any of America’s big cities when alone on a street in an early morning or late night.

A professional demonstration of Samurai sword tradition is offered our group. After the professional demonstration, my wife demonstrates her skill but has trouble drawing a sword from her belted scabbard, a very funny demonstration for we who were too reserved to participate but entirely willing to laugh.

A home hosted cultural demonstration is given to four of us. Our hosts are a retired Japanese professor and his wife, who is a professional musician. They entertained us for an hour with music and a demonstration of Kabuki theater.

Undoubtedly, there are many Japanese citizens who do not choose to entertain foreign guests but the respect and deference to strangers provided by this couple is a lesson that every American host or hostess could learn when visited by a tourist from another country.

As one travels across Japan, the cities are densely populated but every open space is either bountifully landscaped or prepared for farming or construction.

A Japanese garden.

In Japan, there is an obvious effort to create garden areas as a refuge from urbanization. It is as though individual businesses are willing to provide space for mini-New York’ Central Parks to balance nature with urbanization. Travelling across Japan, one can view the care of Japanese forests, garden areas, and open spaces between cities. Highways are designed to minimize noise from automobiles on heavily travelled throughfares.

A park setting and monument to the deadly consequence of the atom bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.

Japan has government policies that keep homelessness invisible by providing housing for the indigent. It is not a perfect system as is noted by one of our guides who explains there is little help to transition the homeless to working lives. Nevertheless, one feels there is a public acceptance of cost for housing of the poor. America could use some of that compassion.

This is a model rendering of the atom bomb dropped on Hiroshima. (The red ball illustrates the location of the bomb when it exploded over the city. An estimated 70,000 to 80,000 were instantly killed with tens of thousands who died from the long-term effects of radiation and related illnesses.)

One wonders what makes the difference between cultures. Is it religion? Most Japanese are either Shinto or Buddhist (92.3%). The confluence of these two beliefs is evidence of a common belief that life involves suffering but that everything in nature is a celebration of life rather than preparation for an afterlife. To Japanese, one must have harmony with nature, sincerity, and celebration of life rather than salvation or a beatific afterlife. The Japanese strive to achieve peace within themselves. The ideal is to achieve what is call nirvana, a peace beyond suffering.

Dharmachakra - Wikipedia
The Toril Gate above and the Wheel of Dharma below are the symbols of Shinto and Buddhist belief.

I am unsure of the licensing requirements for renting a car in Japan. However, one of our guides advised that he had tried to get a driver’s license twice. He advised the written test is a snap. However, he flunked the driver’s test both times and still has no Japanese driver’s license. After travelling around Japan in taxis and buses, it becomes easy to understand why a driver’s test is so difficult to pass. The roads of Japan are often quite narrow. It is necessary to wait for oncoming traffic before you can proceed. The judgement of a driver is called upon in many narrow road circumstances and only practice reveals the appropriate maneuvers. Added to that complication is the expense of the test when seeking a driver’s license. With a driver test, the cost is $2,000. Traffic is heavy in the major cities and in some rural areas. As a visitor, public transportation is excellent–so considering a car rental is problematic, if not unwise.

Travelling to Japan is an enlightening trip. It may change your life. On the other hand, it may not. It has taken many generations for Japan to become what it is today. By age, America is a baby just learning to walk.

Here’s wishing you a great trip if you choose to go.

DAMNED & FORGOTTEN

Allen Esken’s story is too tedious and drawn out to be a great work of fiction. However, it reminds one of the injustices of life for those who get away with murder.

Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

The Quiet Librarian (A Novel)

Author: Allen Eskens

Narrated By: Livana Muratovic

Allen Eskens (Author, former defense attorney who lives in Minnesota.)

Allen Eskens has written a story of revenge and war without giving it context which diminishes its value. Having visited the former Yugoslavia which is split into 6 ethnic territories, the war that occurred between Bosnian and Serbian people can still be seen in pock marked buildings that were evidence of the war. Our guide for the trip reflects on America and NATO’s failure to aid a peaceful resolution while the conflict killed many people that may have been saved by international intervention. Eskens makes a passing comment about that feeling in his book, but the truth of that conflict is as real today as the people who lived through it.

Josip Broz Tito (Yugoslavian ruler 1953-1980, died in May of 1980.)

When Tito died in 1980, Slobodan Milošević, a nationalist Serbian leader promoted the idea of a “Greater Serbia” without accommodation to ethnic differences of the former Yugoslavian people. Milošević capitalized on the historic conflict between Serb’ and Bosnian’ ethnic and religious beliefs to acquire and hold power. Serbian Christian beliefs were used as a tool to incite support of Milošević’s rule of Bosnians who are generally Muslim believers. Many Bosnians and Serbians die as a result of Milošević. Slobodan Milošević retained power for 13 years but is removed in October of 2000 when Vojislav Koštunica won the presidency. Though Milošević supporters try to protest the election results, they fail.

Slobodan Milošević (President of Serbia 1989-1997, died in 2006 of a heart attack.)

Milošević is arrested in 2001, extradited to The Hague, and tried for war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. He is the first former head of state to be tried by the Hague court. The trial lasted for four years. Milošević is found dead in his prison cell. He was 64. Autopsy shows it to be a heart attack. No verdict is reached, leaving no closure to the victims of his perfidy.

The division of Yugoslavia after Tito’s death.

This history does not change Eskens’ story, but it offers context that helps one understand why a Bosnian emigree to America pursued a former Serbian nationalist who brutally raped her mother and murdered her family in front of her during the Bosnian/Serbian war. It is credible fiction of the consequence of war whether in Bosnia or anywhere in the world where the guilty go unpunished. The question becomes, is intent to murder a criminal by one who has firsthand knowledge of another’s heinous act equally guilty of murder? The question is not asked or answered by Esken’s story; probably because it is unanswerable.

The heroine of Eskens story is Hana Babić who emigrates to Minnesota to earn a living as a librarian.

She has adopted the grandson of a close friend who is murdered in the Bosnian/Serbian war. That adoption and her personal experience drives her to find and murder the man who destroyed her life in Bosnia. She has to choose between committing murder in America or letting a murderer go free when she finds her nemesis. However, protecting her adopted boy by letting a guilty person escape vigilante justice is what drives the author’s story. If one sticks with the story, they find her answer.

One wonders about lives of Ukrainians if a tentative settlement proposed by Putin in August 2025 is accepted by Ukraine. Territories under siege in Ukraine would be given to Russia in return for ending the war.

How many Ukrainians will leave their homeland to seek a new life? How many will stay, and secretly fight on? How many will reluctantly accept their homeland’s loss? These were decisions made by Bosnians in former Yugoslavia.

Allen Esken’s story is too tedious and drawn out to be a great work of fiction. However, it reminds one of the injustices of life for those who get away with murder.

JAPAN

Ravina’s history is helpful in preparing for a trip to Japan because it offers some basis for comparison and understanding.

Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

Understanding Japan (A Cultural History)

Lecturer: Mark J. Ravine

By:  The Great Courses: Civilization & Culture

Mark J. Ravina (Professor of History at Emory University with an M.A. and Ph.D. from Stanford.)

In preparation for a trip to Japan this fall, it seems prudent to hear from someone who knows something about Japan’s culture and history. Professor Ravina specializes in Japanese history with focus on 18th and 19th century Japanese politics; however, these lectures go farther back and forward than his specialty. There is so much detail in these lectures, one is unable to fairly summarize what Ravina reveals.

Japan is an archipelago made up of 14,125 islands with 260 of which are occupied. The four main islands are Honshu (the home of Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka), Hokkaido to the north, Kyushu to the south, and the smallest Shikoku (between Honshu and Kyushu).

Like the history of any nation that has existed since the 4th century CE, Japan’s culture has evolved based on influences that came from within and outside its borders. From indigenous beliefs to exposure to areas outside its territory, Japan has changed its traditions and culture. The rule of Japan has ranged from imperium to a battle-hardened warrior class to a popularly elected intellectual class influenced by internal and external societal and political events. At times, each social class has offered both stability and conflict. In the 20th century, of course, Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor dramatically changed its economy and influenced its society.

Japanese Emperor.

In Japan’s early centuries, an imperial and aristocratic class rose to rule Japan. The Asuka, Nara, Helan emperors during the Fujiwara era (538-1185) were respected and revered but the rise of the samurai class turned emperors into influencers more than exercisers of power. Power becomes centralized in a society that is highly stratified with nobility, Buddhist clergy, samurai, farmers, and artisans. Before 1185, territorial regents developed their own armies by relying on feudal lords who had their own warrior clans that became the fierce samurai of legend and reality.

As regents of Japan gained power and influence, emperors became symbols of culture more than centers of power. Rule and administration of territories became reliant on the power of a samurai class that at first supported the regents but soon became the true rulers of Japan.

Loyalty, honor, and focus on victory or death changed the management class and encouraged society to revere a Zen aesthetic, a belief in simplicity, naturalness, imperfection, and quiet depth. The samurai became a power behind the thrown in the 12th century and eventually the de facto rulers of Japan with emperors becoming more ceremonial. Leading samurai became Shoguns, hereditary military rulers of Japan. Emperors were revered, but their power diminished with growing influence of Shoguns that held power for nearly 700 years from 1185 to 1868.

Samurai leadership unified Japanese society.

Ravina explains the samurai period of Japan matured in the 12th century which evolved into rule by the strongest. Samurai influence shaped the political, social and philosophical identify of the people. In what is called the Edo period of the samurai from 1603 to 1868, there were long periods of peace and prosperity like that of the Tokugawa shogunate in the modern-day Tokyo area of Japan. The Edo period lasted for 250 years. Literacy grew during this period and was tied to governance, law, and moral instruction. Religious practices became more ritualized with meditation and subtlety different spiritual beliefs. A merchant class is formed during this period and the arts, like calligraphy and theatre performances, became more widely practiced. Kabuki theatre becomes an entertainment with a reputation ranging from the ethereal to debauched.

Ravina explains samurai values are not abandoned but are recast to focus on industrialization of Japan in the 19th century.

By the end of the ninetieth century, 95% of the citizens had been educated in schools, compared with just 3% in 1853. The samurai became leaders in modern institutions and businesses. They followed a samurai code called Bushido with core values of rectitude, courage, benevolence, respect, honesty, honor, loyalty, and self-control. Emphasis is put on living with purpose, discipline, and moral clarity.

A Japanese garden.

Ravina notes Japanese culture is exemplified by garden creations that represent the religious and philosophical ideals of its residents. The Japanese take great pride in their tea gardens, rock gardens, strolling gardens, some of which have become UNESCO heritage sites. The Japanese revere nature because it represents the Zen principles of simplicity, naturalness, imperfection, and the depth of a quiet life. Gardens are considered spiritual and moral spaces for quiet contemplation.

Ravina suggests Japan, like America and most nations of the world, has not abandoned its past but has adapted to the present based on what has happened in its past. Ravina’s history is helpful in preparing for a trip to Japan because it offers some basis for comparison and understanding.

BRUTALITY

What is so troubling about Grandin’s history is what appears to be the nature of human beings whether royalist, capitalist, socialist, or communist.

Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

America, América (A New History of the New World)

Author: Greg Grandin

Narrated By:  Holter Graham

Greg Grandin (Author, American historian, professor of history at Yale University.)

Before Professor Grandin, most Americans presumed the United States came from the traditions of the British empire. After reading/listening to America, América, one recognizes the powerful influence of the Spanish empire on the settlement of North America, the attitude of colonists toward minorities, the growth of slavery, and the deep entanglement of Spain in the broader Americas. America, América is a book that widens one’s understanding of the history of the United States.

When being reminded of the many atrocities of colonization and the decimated indigenous natives of the Americas, one is appalled by man’s inhumanity to man. Grandin begins his history of colonization with the Spanish empires’ expansion into the Americas long before the Mayflower expedition to America. Conquistadors set the table for the way what became Americans way to colonize the New England territory. Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro led expeditions that decimated the Aztecs in Mexico and the Incas in Peru. Looking for wealth Spanish conquistadors murdered, raped, and pillaged Latin American native populations. The conquistadors exemplified what became the modus vivendi of British colonists in America. Indigenous peoples were forced to work for Spanish landlords, later supplemented by imported African slaves. The atrocities of Spain in the 16th century are repeated by English settlers in the 17th and later centuries. An estimated 80% of the indigenous people of the Americas perished from disease, forced labor, and ethnic cleansing by Spanish settlers–a grim reminder of American settlers did to indigenous natives in America.

What is so troubling about Grandin’s history is what appears to be the nature of human beings whether royalist, capitalist, socialist, or communist. America, América shows the founding of the United States is a repeat of Spain’s early colonization of the southern part of North America. The human race appears driven by the desire for money, power, and prestige in a system that begins with attack on indigenous peoples and repeats as a perceived advance of civilization. There is some truth in that perception but one realizes indigenous peoples are equally driven and commit human atrocities among themselves in pursuit of value, power, and, or prestige.

This book is returned before completion because of its length. Its history is enlightening but its length is too much for this dilettante.

THE MEDICI ERA

The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini is not a great piece of writing, but it is an interesting perspective on the progeny of Florence, the violence of the 16th century, and the great art that came out of the Medici era.

Books of Interest
 Website: chetyarbrough.blog

The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini

By: Benvenuto Cellini

Benvenuto Cellini (Author, Italian goldsmith, sculptor, and contemporary of Michelangelo, died at age 71.)

This autobiography is alleged to have been dictated to a teenager by Cellini in the 16th century. The book is a mess but oddly interesting because of the volatile life of its author. The dictation is believed to have occurred when Cellini was in his fifties. He was born in 1500 and lived until 1571 with his death at the age of 70. Considering his volatile life and the average age of death as 30 or 40, Cellini lived a long life. Of course, the average age at death is skewed by high infant mortality, but Cellini’s autobiography shows him to be a resilient survivor.

Michelangelo, a Florence native. (1475-1564, died at the age of 88.)

Cellini tells of surviving the plague, escaping assassination, being imprisoned, escaping, and, participating in several battles as a soldier where he was wounded but recovered. However, Cellini was also an amazing artist from the same city as Michelangelo. In contrast to Michelangelo, Cellini seems to have been quite boisterous; however, like Michelangelo he was strong willed and resistant to authority. The two men new each other. They shared experience as patrons of the powerful Medici family. Cellini appears to admire and like Michelangelo in his biographic recollection. They both did work for Pope Clement VII and Cosimo I de’ Medici.

Detail
Detail
Detail

Cellini appears to have traveled as much as Michelangelo because of his life as a soldier as well as artist. Two of his greatest artistic accomplishments are the “Salt Cellar” and “Nymph of Fontainebleau” done for King Francis I of France. However, he also completed “Perseus with the Head of Medusa” for Cosimo I de’ Medici in Italy.

As a soldier, Cellini tells of the attack of Rome by troops of Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor. The leader of the attack forces, the Constable of Bourbon, was shot by Cellini according to Cellini’s autobiography. Though Cellini seems never to have been wounded in battle, he tells of several violent encounters that could have ended his life.

Statue of Cellini in Florence.

The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini is not a great piece of writing, but it is an interesting perspective on the progeny of Florence, the violence of the 16th century, and the great art that came out of the Medici era.