 
We spent time in Alberta with Marilyn’s sister and four brothers, one of whom celebrated his and wife’s 50th anniversary
in July. We couldn’t be there then, so it was good to be there for a nephew’s wedding. And it was great to see the yellow
fields of canola in central Alberta, on the farms of two of Marilyn’s brothers – one of which is where Marilyn grew up.
Canada, August 2025
We walked around two lakes –
Lake Louise
in Banff National Park and
Emerald Lake
in Yoho National Park in British Columbia. Years ago we hiked up to the glacier with John’s cousin & his wife,
who were visiting us from Wooster, Ohio. And we have also hiked up on the slopes above Emerald Lake where
students were digging for fossils in the Burgess Shales.
Canada, August 2025
We walked on the many trails in
Canmore
and we had wonderful views of Ha Ling and the Three Sisters from friends’ homes, that we lived in while they were away. Twenty-two years
ago, we climbed to the saddle of Ha Ling. This summer we also enjoyed being with friends from Ralph Connor United Church. One studied in
London, Ontario, where our young friend from Gaza is now studying.
Canada, August 2025
We took the gondola and a chair lift to
Sunshine Meadows
where Marilyn skied many years ago. We went there the summer of 2003,
with a friend from Switzerland, to see the alpine flowers. It is on the Great Divide so water on one side of these mountains goes to
the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans - and on the other side, it flows to the Pacific.
Canada, August 2025
We hiked in two canyons –
Johnson Canyon
where 22 years ago, we looked for Black Swifts with John’s cousin, who is a birder.
There are also Black Swifts in
Marble Canyon
We remembered when we hiked here with big backpacks to an Alpine Hut that
burned in a forest fire – just two weeks after we stayed overnite there.
Canada, August 2025
We walked on the wall around Old Dubrovnik and saw brown tiles on roofs that had been destroyed during the war in 1992.
The red clay of the original tiles could not be found. We also saw domes of churches, including St. Blaise, the
Cathedral and St. Ignatius.
Click here for more photos of Dubrovnik. Croatia, September 2024
We took a ferry to the island of Mljet where we walked up lots of steps to the park. Then we took a water taxi to the rock
with a Dominican Monastery. And from our hotel room with a balcony, we saw beautiful sunsets.
Click here for more photos of Mljet. Croatia, September 2024
We took another ferry to Korcula Island and walked along the wall next to the sea, which was lined with eating places. Old Town
Korcula has lots of stone houses, including one that is the birthplace of Marco Polo.
Click here for more photos of Korcula. Croatia, September 2024
While in Rome we had lunch with Mission partners that Noroton Presbyterian Church in Darien,
Connecticut supports. They are the regional directors of Cru (formerly Campus Crusade). They live near a
university with 180,000 students, and they conduct bible studies and try to bring some of the unchurched
youth to Jesus.
Rome, August 2024
Also in Rome, we visited the Pantheon one day and spent another day at the Forum and Colosseum. Then we
went to Tivoli and spent a day in the beautiful gardens. An organ there plays
with the pressure of the water from fountains. Amazing! See more of
Rome
and
Tivoli
here.
Tivoli, August 2024
Then from Rome we went to Dubrovnik and inland through the mountains to Podgorica in Montenegro to spend a few hours with a
pastor who works with the Roma people there. His church is a rented room in a building that is owned by a Roma
man – and his work is more like social work than evangelizing. He helps people find jobs and encourages parents
to send their children to school.
Montenegro, August 2024
Lake Louise in Alberta, Canada is one of our favorite beautiful and peaceful places. We have visited it every winter
(except in 2020) of the thirty-three years since we married. And now lots of other people from lots of other places
have discovered it.
Canada, December 2023
Marilyn has four brothers and a sister who live near where she grew up on the prairies in Central Alberta.
We visited them – and a couple of her cousins and some long-time friends in Edmonton and Calgary. It was a
time of remembering things from more than fifty-seven years ago when she lived there.
Canada, December 2023
Hawaii was the only state that John had not been in, and he wanted to visit the Submarine Museum in Honolulu.
He will be giving his Submarine presentation at Norwalk Community College on October 27th, and he will include
some of what he saw and learned in Pearl Harbor.
Hawaii, September 2023
Marilyn wanted to see lava flowing from a volcano into the ocean. But we would have had to have been
on The Big Island of Hawaii five years ago to see that. Now there was only steam rising in the biggest crater.
Hawaii, September 2023
We flew to Cape Town, South Africa, and stayed in a retreat and conference centre in the wine country for four days. It was
a short drive to the beach where there is a colony of African penguins. We saw “baby blues” and chicks, and adult partners
who take turns sitting on the eggs and then feeding their little ones.
South Africa, August 2023
Then in Sydney, Australia, we walked in the Botanic Garden and toured the Opera House, which is a World Historic Site. We also
took a train to Wombarra to visit friends, a mother and her violist daughter who had rented our home in CT five years ago while
we were in Kenya. And we got to meet the rest of their family and some of their friends too.
Australia, August 2023
We flew to Calgary, Alberta after Christmas – where we spent our first day with friends. Then we went
to Canmore and Lake Louise – our favorite places in the Canadian Rockies. The snow and the weather were
great for cross-country skiing, which Marilyn enjoyed.
Canada, December 2022
We spent New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day with two of Marilyn’s brothers and their wives – and with
Marilyn’s godchild and her family. We watched the ball drop in NYC at 10 pm (Alberta time) - and then
the next day, we visited the graves of Marilyn’s parents, grandparents, great grandparents, a nephew and
a sister-in-law. This has become a tradition, as we’ve been doing this for more than 30 years.
Canada, December 2022
We stayed at the YMCA Three Arches in Jerusalem, and from there we walked down the hill, through a glitzy
mall, up the stairs and through a gate into the Old City. From there we walked to the Western Wall and
the Temple Mount – and then up Via Dolorosa, where Jesus had carried His cross, to the Holy Sepulcher,
where he was buried.
Israel, September 2022
We spent four days in the Mount of Beatitudes Guesthouse, where from our window we looked out at the Sea of
Galilee. From there we visited the site of the Loaves and Fishes miracle, the synagogue and Peter’s Home
in Capernaum, Cana, Nazareth, and the Galilee Boat.
Israel, September 2022
We went to Akko, which is featured in “The Source”. It is a port on the Mediterranean, and it was mentioned
in Egyptian Texts 4000 years ago. We walked along the Old City wall, and then took a train back to Tel Aviv
and Jerusalem.
Israel, September 2022
We spent most of our last day in Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives. We saw the eight 2000-year-old olive trees in
the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prayed and was arrested. It was very moving to see people kneeing with their
hands and faces on the rock in the Basilica of Agony.
Israel, September 2022
The Baptismal Site is first place in Jordan that we visited. Marilyn went there in 2021 while John was in our hotel room
after testing positive for Covid. This time he got to see the muddy Jordan River – the middle of which is the border between
Jordan and Israel. The nearby fount with clear water is a more inviting place to be baptized.
Jordan, August 2022
Our next stop was Mount Nebo, where Moses looked out at The Promised Land. It is mostly brown. The green areas are irrigated. You
can see the Dead Sea which is really salty. The Jordan River flows into it with water from the Sea of Galilee, but no water flows
out of it. The Israelis are desalinizing the water and using it for irrigation – to turn the desert into a garden - with lots of
olive trees.
Jordan, August 2022
We went next to Wadi Musa (the Valley of Moses) – and we climbed up the 900 stairs to The Monastery in Petra. It is really impressive!
It’s larger than The Treasury – and this World Heritage treasure has been well maintained.
Jordan, August 2022
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