Vacation Time

How do you really tell all the things that happened on a vacation without boring your friends and collegues to death? If you tell all of the things that happened in even a week long trip you will certainly cause their heart to stop from just plain boredom. At least the ambiguous slide show has been eliminated from the post trip schedule. Now it is the e-mail from the location or the after trip message with all of the pictures. At least that does make you edit some of the worst out of the selection just because it saves you bandwidth. It is also easier for others to just ignore the pictures because you are not present to see their true reaction. No one really will believe you when you describe the torture of an airport terminal filled with thousands of pieces of luggage because a simple chip in a computer failed and the old fashioned manual system could not keep up with the pressure of all the luggage that is generated at a peak travel time. How do you describe the pressure of trying to find food before a flight that is scheduled to board in ten minutes and that you are sure will be late – but the airline has yet to change the schedule boards. All you can do in that case is guess or hope that the gate agent gives you a correct up date. (She did and we did have plenty of time to find a quick McDonalds location in the terminal and actually finish eating before the flight boarded.)
Can you really tell about the feeling that you get when you visit our heroes of the past at Arlington National Cemetery. Not just the Kennedy family but the markers of those who have protected us since the beginning of our nation. When you have the honor of watching dignitaries from another country leave a wreath at the Unknown Solider you feel a part of the ceremony and that you have had a small part in the respect that these people were showing. The dignity of a honor guard preparing for a funeral. Yes they are in public but they are human and they did show respect by their actions while waiting to start. Could you really say that you are not affected by the sounds of the salute or of the playing of taps? Tradition must give you the emotion that you feel at these times. I have had the honor of attending several veterans funerals but the location here makes it so much more special even when you do not know the people that are involved.


If you have a few moments go over to the area next to the cemetery which is now the Navel Annex and will eventually be added to Arlington. It is the home of the Air Force Memorial. It is new and only dedicated in 2006. Its soaring beauty and the stainless steal rendition of the bomb burst or missing man formation are just stunning in the way that they have been presented. The quotes from the past and the remembrance of those who have won the Metal of Honor are simple and are right in making them perfect. The quote from President Bush just hits it directly out of the park.
There are always too many things to speak about and as I said all of them would take forever. Just say that when you visit the East Coast you should prepare yourself for rain. Never worry about time. Despite what those in the Northeast say the transportation is always slow. Do take the Acela to travel at least once. It is not truly the fastest train but it is the most comfortable. Some day we will have a rail system that will accommodate truly fast trains traveling at fast speeds. Check out the slower trains and you will see that the time difference on the schedule is more of a factor of additional stops and not of the train speed.
I know that the most relaxing vacations may be at home but travel does give you a way to see other people and that is the truly best part of any trip.