{"id":598,"date":"2012-07-31T18:54:42","date_gmt":"2012-07-31T18:54:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wordsthatsing.com\/?page_id=598"},"modified":"2012-07-31T18:54:42","modified_gmt":"2012-07-31T18:54:42","slug":"travel","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/?page_id=598","title":{"rendered":"Travel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Travel
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/strong>I\u2019ve been fortunate enough to enjoy pit-stops on several continents in recent years, often tagging along with husband Peter Mahaffy, a professor at The King\u2019s University College, who travels in international chemistry education circles.\"\"<\/a><\/strong>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Closer to home, the Alberta Rocky Mountains figure large in this family\u2019s snatches of leisure time. In winter, it\u2019s screaming down mountain paths on cross-country skis (shouting \u201cLord, have mercy!\u201d according to eyewitness accounts). In summer, the menu shifts to hiking. And biking, which in our family is not only recreation, but a mode of transportation\u2014substitute for a second car.<\/span><\/p>\n

When time permits, I relive our travel experiences in words. Not everyone in the family remembers those trips exactly as I do, nor do they always appreciate being the butt of gentle jokes\u2014but that\u2019s the power of wielding the cursor.<\/span><\/p>\n

Excerpts from a few of those remembered journeys appear here. For a full list of destinations or to arrange an assignment, contact <\/span>cheryl@wordsthatsing.com<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Desperately seeking solitude: Had enough of the world? Escape to the back country
\n<\/strong>Westworld,<\/em> November\/December 1999, pp. 20-28\"\"<\/a> <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/strong>Canada\u2019s Rocky Mountains boast dozens of tucked-away cabins \u2014hidden magnets that pull skiers far away from toil, tailpipes and even T-bars. Some of fer the deluxe lodge experience, with gourmet meals, duvet-topped mattresses and guided tours. Others take the rustic pack-it-in-yourself approach that\u2019s easier on the pocketbook\u2014but harder on the heels. In the past few years, my husband Peter and I have tasted both\u2026.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n


\nSiberia discovered: Shades of northern Alberta\u2014a case of same, yet not the same<\/strong>
\nEdmonton Journal, <\/em>Saturday, January 16, 2010, I 1-2
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/strong>Siberia. More than any other place on Earth, the very word evokes exile \"\"<\/a>and vast nothingness. To be frank, it stood nowhere on my \u201cmust see\u201d list, not even at the bottom. Then opportunity knocked. Invited by the Russian Academy of Sciences to speak in Siberia at an event celebrating Dmitri Mendeleev of periodic table fame, my husband Peter posed the question: Why not come along?<\/span><\/p>\n

So here I am atop a cliff in Tobolsk, the ancient capital of Siberia where Mendeleev was born 175 years ago. Far below, the lower town meanders into the distance, its mix of shambles and brightly shuttered homes speaking volumes of the ebb and flow of fortune. In the golden light of late afternoon, church spires throw long shadows, dogs yap, cows graze unfenced and a worker heads home, coat slung over shoulder\u2026.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n


\n\"\"<\/a>Seven days in Tibet
\n<\/strong>Edmonton Journal, <\/em>September 2, 2006, K1-2<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0Entering Tibet at GongkharAirport, we drive around the base of a mountain to reach our hotel in Lhasa; returning to the airport one amazing week later, we zip under<\/em> the mountain instead, through a tunnel so new \"\"<\/a>that the toll booths aren\u2019t yet in place.<\/span><\/p>\n

Husband Peter and I welcome the fact that the new tunnel shaves a half hour from the 95-km trip between Tibet\u2019s capital city and its major airport, particularly since our driver slept in. Yet we\u2019re all too aware that this shortcut further pav es the way for foreign forces to overwhelm the unique culture of this long-isolated land of mountains and high plains, the storied \u201crooftop of the world.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a9 2006 by Cheryl Mahaffy.\u00a0<\/em>All rights reserved.
\nFor reprint information, contact\u00a0 Cheryl@wordsthatsing.com<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/h1>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/strong><\/em>What lies beneath Vieques Island<\/strong>
\nEdmonton Journal, <\/em>January 28, 2006, K1-2 <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

For two Alberta landlubbers who\u2019ve never snorkeled before, it\u2019s a revelation: beneath the seemingly empty waters off Puerto Rico\u2019s Vieques (vee-AY-kes) Island lives a bustling metropolis. Neon schools of fish in tight formation dart past rippling fronds; desperate prey dodge coral ledges with predators in cold pursuit. Quite like the madly kicking feet beneath the fixed smile of a synchronized swimmer, I think. Or like the history of the people who call this island home\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a9 2006 by Cheryl Mahaffy. <\/em>All rights reserved.
\nFor reprint information, contact Cheryl@wordsthatsing.com<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/h1>\n

\u00a0<\/span>
\nFamily canoe challenge
\n<\/strong>Edmonton Journal, <\/em>August 14, 2004, K1-2\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Yee hah! Two canoes buck the whitecaps of northeast Saskatchewan\u2019s Amisk Lake, carrying five nearly novice Mahaffys. While the parental duo proceeds with wary determination, sticking fast to the prescribed 45-degree angle against the waves, the sibling trio emits shouts of glee. Mos t gleeful of all: Miriam-in-the-middle, the 12-year-old who, when we began this excursion two sleeps ago, was loathe to step foot in such a tipsy craft. Particularly with parents who knew barely more than she did about surviving this sport.<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019re hardly the crew Gerry and Ruth Angell had in mind, I suspect, when their Denare Beach outfitting business donated this three-night canoe trip\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a9 2004 by Cheryl Mahaffy. <\/em>All rights reserved.
\nFor reprint information, contact Cheryl@wordsthatsing.com<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/h1>\n


\nAll ages show for this trek: Backcountry hiking with family and friends, aged 6 to 60
\n<\/strong>Edmonton Journal, <\/em>May 4, 2002, K 1-2<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/strong>You\u2019re hiking how far<\/em> with that crew of kids? Time becomes the most realistic unit of measure when dodging rocks, roots and muck in a group whose 40 legs range in age from six to 60-plus. By that reckoning, our route to the Wates-Gibson Hut in Jasper’s backcountry stretches a long seven hours or more. For our porters striding ahead, meanwhile, it’s a mere 19-kilometre walk in the woods — a morning’s play made lucrative by the $2-a-pound we gladly pay to offload food and fuel\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

For adults, this trip is about the wonder of tucked-away majesty, the accomplishment of getting there, the joy of camaraderie coupled with snatches of stunning solitude. For the younger set (who thoroughly destroy that solitude), it’s certainly not about getting there. Rather, about being there\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a9 2002 by Cheryl Mahaffy. <\/em>All rights reserved.
\nFor reprint information, contact Cheryl@wordsthatsing.com<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/h1>\n


\nOn the road again: Fun is up, cost is down in touring Eastern Europe
\n<\/strong>Edmonton Journal, <\/em>April 14, 2001, K 1-2<\/span><\/p>\n

Nursing cool drinks on the floating patio of the Hotel Peter Schlott, our tired but contented fivesome watches low-slung barges snake through Frankfurt on the River Main. As ducks paddle up hopefully, we\u2019re enjoying a reunion: husband Peter has just flown in from a five-week academic stint in Eritrea, northeast Africa, while the three kids and I crossed the ocean from Edmonton, sardined between close-set Air Transat seats but well fed and watered.<\/span><\/p>\n

We can thank 12-year-old Naomi for choosing this moored hotel for the first night of our three-week loop through Central Europe\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a9 2001 by Cheryl Mahaffy. <\/em>All rights reserved.
\nFor reprint information, contact Cheryl@wordsthatsing.com<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/h1>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Travel I\u2019ve been fortunate enough to enjoy pit-stops on several continents in recent years, often tagging along with husband Peter Mahaffy, a professor at The King\u2019s University College, who travels in international chemistry education circles. Closer to home, the Alberta Rocky Mountains figure large in this family\u2019s snatches of leisure time. In winter, it\u2019s screaming … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-598","page","type-page","status-publish"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/598\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordsthatsing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}