The trip to Dallas was really pleasant – my companions had given me the window seat and the flight was at a height whereby I could see the landscape unrolling beneath the wings.  Also it was a relatively short flight, about 2 and half hours,  so fairly quick too.  Incidentally there’s a whole lot of difference doing an internal flight to taking an international one.  Security is nothing like so stringent.  On an international flight in and out of Orlando,  you have to confirm that your bags were touched only by you, no-one has asked you to carry anything ,etc, etc, even before you check in.   Then you have to go thorough the normal security checks with shoes off, hand baggage in the tray via the x-ray machine and so on.

Our internal flight boarding passes were obtained by computer check in and the boarding pass and my driving licence was all that was checked  by an immigration officer as we walked through to the security check.

We still had to place our shoes and hand baggage in the tray for the x-ray, and we still had to walk through the electronic search arch, but our bags were checked in with the most cursory of glances, and if we had been taking a carry on bag only, we would not even have had to check in .

The reason for pointing all this out is that the flight back from Dallas was uncomfortable to say the least.  This time I gave the window seat to my friend, and I jokingly mentioned to her that it would be just my luck to be placed by a overly large man with garlic breath and body odour ( Yes, I speak from experience as a single traveller).

Eventually after much chaos , everyone was boarded and just as I was thinking that my luck had changed and the third seat was going to be unoccupied, along comes a passenger to take the seat next to mine.

Luckily I had put the arm rest down between my seat and the vacant one!  I’m sure that without that barrier I would have been totally squashed like a bug.  What was worse, this was a very large woman in a muslim veil and burkha.  The arm rest disappeared beneath the body and my arm sort of ended up swaddled beneath all this ( let’s be polite ) clothing.

This woman could have had two kids and a dog tucked up underneath her outfit and no one would have been any the wiser. Or she could have been carrying something really dangerous for all we knew.   Even the stewardesses didn’t ask her to put her seat belt on -  so for the entire flight she was wedged on top of my armrest and into the seat next to me , and jutting out into the aisle.  Now it’s not so much the size that bothered me as it was the fact that not one member of air staff asked her to put on her seat belt ( mostly because she wouldn’t have been able to find it, much less get it around her); and the worry that she could have been a feminine looking male carrying a bomb underneath all that clothing.

Who would have known?  Who could tell?  I certainly couldn’t!

I was delighted that the flight was short and uneventful except for our arrival, when we all had to wait till she had unwedged her body from the seat and the armrest, before we could leave our seats.  Good job there was no emergency – couldn’t have got out even if I had wanted to!!!

Once, many years ago,  we managed to get down to Titusville to watch one of the Night Flights of the Space Shuttle. There have been very few experiences since then to rival it.

The long wait for the countdown, the murmurs of other people who are waiting just like you, dark shadows moving around you while all eyes are on the launch pad  far off in the distance, radios pressed to ears, listening for the latest news, and hoping and praying that there will be no last minute stand-down.

When the start of the 10 second countdown commences, eyes and ears strain to see and hear the first of the blast-off;  people craning to get their first glimpse, fingers on camera shutters ready to go………….9,  8,  7,  6,  5 .…………. now the time is getting so close, you can  feel the tension…………….you can feel everyone willing it to be a safe lift off………

.4, 3, 2,

ONE!!!

and a tremendous cheer erupts at the same time as the fiery steam billows out of the ground, and the shuttle lifts off.  Going so slowly at first, then gaining speed as it lifts away from the launch pad.  Trailing a huge cloud of orange vapour behind it like a cloak, and speeding up , up into the night sky.   Our eyes are blinded by the vision, cameras are clicking as the shuttle passes in front of the moon, and onwards, and  then comes the roar; the noise of the blast off – we didn’t expect that!   The sheer volume of sound compresses the chest,  pulses through the body, feels as though you can’t breathe for a moment  and makes you feel as though the earth itself is trembling.   We clap our hands in sheer delight and relief that everything has gone smoothly; we turn to people around us and express our amazement and awe at the sight and sound we have just experienced; we watch till we can’t see the Space Shuttle any longer…….. then everyone drifts away to their vehicles and moves on with their lives.

No matter how many times I watch the Space Shuttle take off from Kennedy, that one experience will never leave my memory, and this morning I watched another Space Shuttle take off with its crew bound for the International Space Station.   A Space Station that we could see with the naked eye in the dark hours of this morning!.   Our TV was on, showing the countdown, as it has so many times before, and we watched the incredible sight of the  lift off, then rushed outside into the dark, to see the sky lightening from the blast, then the sight of the Space Shuttle lifting about the tree line to speed across the dark skies.  We watched it till it had gone over the horizon, and walked back indoors to a hot cup of coffee.  Yes, we did take more photos, and yes, we did wish, briefly, that we had been really there at the Cape to witness this wonderful sight.

You have to admire those crew members who board this amazing piece of machinery for the ride; there are never any guarantees of safety on this ride!   STS 131 is carrying a full complement of seven crew to the International Space Station.

Discovery and Crew Delivering Science Hardware to Station
Commander Alan Poindexter is leading the STS-131 mission to the International Space Station aboard space shuttle Discovery. Joining Poindexter are Pilot Jim Dutton and Mission Specialists Rick Mastracchio, Clay Anderson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson and Naoko Yamazaki of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

Discovery is carrying a multi-purpose logistics module filled with science racks for the laboratories aboard the station. The mission has three planned spacewalks, with work to include replacing an ammonia tank assembly, retrieving a Japanese experiment from the station’s exterior, and switching out a rate gyro assembly on the S0 segment of the station’s truss structure.

STS-131 is the 33rd shuttle mission to the station.

Team Applauds Beautiful Launch for Discovery

Mon, 05 Apr 2010 08:21:27 AM EDT

During a postlaunch news conference at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the 6:21 a.m. EDT liftoff of space shuttle Discovery was hailed as a great success.

Calling the launch, “a great start to a great mission,” Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Space Operations, said the successful liftoff was a tribute to the team at Kennedy that got the vehicle ready to fly.

Mike Moses, chair of the Mission Management Team, said it was, “a spectacular launch and picture-perfect countdown.” He outlined a few minor technical issues that were recorded, but that the spacecraft and crew were ready to start an action-packed mission.

Expressing his happiness that they were able to launch on the first attempt, Pete Nickolenko, STS-131 launch director, said he was proud of the teams that make such a difficult job look so easy.

Also on hand was Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency President Keiji Tachikawa, who noted that this will be the first time two Japanese astronauts will be in space at the same time, as Discovery’s Mission Specialist Naoko Yamazaki joins Expedition 23 crew member Soichi Noguchi for the STS-131 mission.

Discovery and crew will spend 13 days in space on their mission to the International Space Station.

With only three more  Space Shuttle missions planned,  this was the last mission planned for a night-time take off, and what a fantastic sight for those of us who were fortunate enough to either be there to be able to watch it from our homes.    My thoughts go to those brave astronauts and I make the same comment I made all those years ago, when I saw my first live launch;  Good Luck and God Bless!

Along with the warming of the weather and the blossoming azaleas of early Springtime, comes the start of the Art Festivals here in Central Florida.   Winter Park kicks it off with the Art in the Park Sidewalk Festival, now holding its 51st Anniversary.

Haines City held its own Downtown Sidewalk art festival in early March, followed by a full Art Festival held in the lovely surroundings of the new Lake Eva lakeside park on the following weekend.  These two Art events were new developments for Haines City, and luckily the sun shone on both occasions, bringing a good crowd out to view the many arts and craft booths that were on show.  A live band played from the new bandstand, and food and drink vendors were on hand to top up refreshments for the onlookers and the artists themselves.

Last weekend was the occasion for the Downtown Winter Haven Art Festival, held in Central Park, and again the sun welcomed visitors to the various and varied stands.  Winter Haven also displays sculptures in Central Park, and they are there for visitors to enjoy even after the Festival is over.  Many people often consider Miami to be the heart of Art Deco buildings, but Winter Haven has its own Art Deco buildings in the central area.

This weekend, the 27th and 28th of March, sees the Lake Wales Art Festival, again attracting many visitors to the area, with stands and booths lined along the banks of Lake Wailes in the historic downtown area of Lake Wales.

Artists and visitors come from all over the world to display their talents at these Central Florida Venues and you might speak with a photographer from Minnesota and a sculptor from Scotland.

The local newspapers, the Ledger and the Orlando Sentinel give the various dates for all these festivals, and the newspapers also publish photos of the events for all  to see and enjoy.

Whether your interest lies in Photography , ceramics and pottery, jewellery making, needlework and quilting, paintings in oils, acrylics, pastel or watercolour, or just an enjoyable day out wandering around in lovely settings and enjoying what’s on view, you really shouldn’t miss these local events.

Green is the order of the day for March 17th;  if you don’t at the very least have a sprig of green somewhere about your person, then you will be in the minority.  St Patrick’s Day is a major event in the Irish calendar, and is celebrated heartily here in the United States as well as all over the world where Irish folk have made their home.

Originally the color associated with St. Patrick was blue, not green. However over the years the color green and its association with St. Patrick’s day grew. Green ribbons and shamrocks were worn in celebration of St Patrick’s Day as early as the 17th century. St. Patrick is said to have used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the  Holy Trinityto the pre-Christian Irish, and the wearing and display of shamrocks and shamrock-inspired designs have become a ubiquitous feature of the day. Then in 1798 in hopes of making a political statement Irish soldiers wore full green uniforms on March 17th in hopes of catching attention with their unusual fashion gimmick. The phrase “the wearing of the green“, meaning to wear a shamrock on one’s clothing, derives from  the song of the same name.

St Patrick was born in Britain, but was captured as a young lad and taken to Ireland as a slave.  While working as a shepherd , he discovered his vocation was to serve God, and used a Shamrock to illustrate to the somewhat pagan Irish people the Holy Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.

In the past, Saint Patrick’s Day was celebrated as a religious holiday. It started as a simple feast day to honour St. Patrick but developed into a holy day of obligation where people attended mass in the morning and celebrated for the rest of the day in the afternoon. During the Middle Ages, shops would close for the whole day as the celebration became longer and more enthusiastic. It was also during this time that St. Patrick’s Day became a one-day reprieve from the forty days of fasting during the season of Lent. For many Christians this included indulging in ale, a beer brewed from malted barley. Over the years drinking ale and other beer products became a tradition for the day.

Many cities all over the world celebrate St Patricks Day with parades and special occasions;  you may find a river running green; you may find a street parade;  the water in fountains may be green; there may be green ribbons in hats or on lapels, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth presents traditional bunches of shamrock to the Irish Regiments and  even the White House gets in on the act.  In 2009 , the White House fountain was running green.   No matter where in the world you are, you will find some form of celebration for this special day.

Central Florida holds its own special celebration on St. Patricks Day at the Youkey Theatre in Lakeland. You can go to see and hear the Regimental Band of the Irish Guards playing traditional marching tunes.  Performances take place at 2.30 p.m. and 7.30 p.m.   Tickets can be obtained through Ticketmaster.

Everyone’s thoughts turn to the Magic of Disney, or Universal Studios or SeaWorld, or many of the other theme parks and attractions  when they think of Florida, but this is a large State with many other special places, some well-known and some of them off the well-beaten track.

So this weekend, we went to MOSI, the Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa for the DaVinci Exhibition.  Easy to get to, and loads of parking was the first impression.  MOSI is huge!  There is such a lot going on there, and it’s a magnet for families.  Big families, little families, babes in arms to teenagers were enjoying all that the Museum can offer.  And don’t be misled by the word Museum;  this is not a  fusty old place where everyone walks around with hands clasped behind their backs and talks in hushed voices.  This is a full-on, hands on, enjoy yourself, kind of place.

I wanted to visit the DaVinci exhibition  hence that Sunday afternoon trip.  The name is familiar from the books written by Dan Brown, many of us learned about Leonardo in school ( a long time ago, in my case) and have forgotten most of what we know.  His fame comes mainly from the world renowned portrait of Mona Lisa, and the wall painting of the Last Supper, although scholars will tell you that he did much more then just  paint, and this exhibition will show you just how much of a Renaissance Man he was.  A musician, a mathemetician, artist, modeller, theorist, scientist – all sorts of labels can be given to his name and abilities.

It was quite fascinating to see the copies of his inventions or improvements on earlier inventions, as well as the extremely high quality copies of many of his works of art.

Leonardo Da Vinci  (April 15, 1452 – May 2, 1519),

Born the illegitimate son of a notary, Piero da Vinci, and a peasant woman, Caterina, at Vinci, Italy, Leonardo was educated in the studio of the  Florentine painter, Verrochio.  Leonardo had one main patron Ludovico il Moro and passed much of his working life in Milan, Rome and Venice.  He spent his last years in France, at the home awarded him by the French king Francis 1st.

Apart from his well known paintings, many of his works have been lost, mainly due to Leonardo’s desire for experimentation with paints, and the mixes he used.  He was also very prone to altering his paintings, never being satisfied with each attempt.  Much of what we know about his works have come to us from the notebooks that fortunately have survived the centuries.  Many of his experiments failed, although to this day we are using items that he dreamed of and drew, such as the bicycle, the helicopter, the parachute and such things as a double hulled ship.

He was also deeply interested in the human body, and although this is little known, he examined possibly thirty or more bodies after their death to learn how the body works and to draw diagrams of the skeletal structure and muscles.

Many of the wooden and fabric models on display in the exhibition show the immensity and range of Da Vinci ’s visions, from concepts of a tank to a submarine, from winches to bobbin winders.

For me it was the art that appealed the most;  much of what I saw on display was new to me, and there were several portraits of young

Italian women where the jeweled colours positively glowed. The exhibits were of extremely high quality reproductions.  Also of interest were the infra red enlargements of the portrait of Mona Lisa, showing that what the average person sees nowadays bears little resemblance to the colours that Leonardo painted.  The accumulation of years of varnish discolouration, the damage caused by vandals some years ago, and the techniques that Da Vinci himself  used, have combined to produce a dim reflection of the original.

Whether its art that interests you, or mechanical items, or mathematics, or musical instruments, this exhibition shows just what a talent Leonardo possessed.  And if this exhibition is not to your taste, go upstairs to the dinosaur display or the Art of Flight exhibition, or the butterfly garden, sit in the sun  or just go and have a cup of coffee in the cafe……….  Someone in your family will find something of interest here at MOSI.

To find out more about the exhibition go to the MOSI website – click here.