I don’t know how many times I’ve heard someone from the US ask if a particular country drives on the wrong side of the road. When they say that, they are of course referring to driving on the left side rather than the right side of the road as is the rule here in the States. Often, I’ve heard them say it in the presence of someone who comes from a country that drives on the left, not realizing how that kind of question, phrased in that way, could leave another person feeling a little put out. Continue reading →
Picture tag: New York
Goblin Valley – Utah’s Weirdest Rocks
If you were blindfolded, taken to Goblin Valley and told that you had just walked through a Stargate and were now on the mysterious red planet Entrada Prime, it might just be believable. Goblin Valley State Park near Hanksville, Utah, is just that kind of place. Just a little imagination, and you can easily pretend that you’re not on Earth any longer. In fact, portions of the space comedy “Galaxy Quest” were filmed here because of the unusual shapes of the rocks. In the movie, some of the rocks were alive and attacked Tim Allen!
Knights Ferry
In our present day country, we drive about on our road system that’s probably among the best in the world, and give little thought to the hardships that must have existed when this fabulous land was a wilderness; when a wheeled vehicle had never crossed the landscape, and nothing was moved that could not be carried on your back. We drive through little towns like Moss Landing, or Sweeneys Crossing, and give little thought to how they got their interesting names. To us, they’re just names. It might be a surprise then, that the little frontier town of Knights Ferry in the California foothills between Oakdale and Sonora got its name because it was once home to a modified whaling ship used for carrying passengers, goods, and livestock across the Stanislaus River. Continue reading →