2009 World trip with the Percivals

USA

Sunday 2009-03-15   Sydney Airport   Bob and Ann drove Jenni and I to the airport while Bonnie and Dennis caught a bus from Saratoga. We were in a happy state of mind.
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Sunday 2009-03-15    Boarding the plane  The Percies were in the seats behind us - good ones, the twin seats at the rear of the plane.
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Sunday 2009-03-15    Brighton-le-Sands  Huh?  This looks like Sydney. Aren't we supposed to be out over the Pacific somewhere?
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Sunday 2009-03-15    Brighton-le-Sands  Despite having "their best people on the job", the plane broke.  We were offloaded, along with our luggage, and spent the night in an airlines provided motel.  This meant a frantic phone around to let people know and to postpone our bookings at the other end.
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Monday 2009-03-16    Morning at Sydney airport  We woke up in view of the airport. To add insult to injury, the rescheduled plane left at 4:30pm, two hours later than the regularly scheduled flight.
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Monday 2009-03-16   Back at Sydney airport  We had to go through the complete check-in procedure again but this time with enormous crowds. I was randomly selected again for extra screening, the same as the day before.  We're not off to a good start here.
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Monday 2009-03-16   The Alamo car rental facility at LAX  Things start to look up. The flight was nearly empty, US  immigration and customs was less time-consuming than usual, and our rental car, a Toyota Sierra 7 seater, was superb.
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Monday 2009-03-16   Our motel for the night  From LAX we had an uneventful drive to our overnight stay at the Quality Inn in Palm Springs.
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Tuesday 2009-03-17   On I10 heading for Tucson  The next morning, not completely refreshed, we crossed into Arizona and drove to Bob and Jan's place.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging  This part of the contest is always interesting.  My model attracted many comments about the selection of colours and the graphics.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging  My Thunderbird. Claus Maikis' Stuka is in front.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging   With some of my very favourite people: Jim Hoffman and Gordan Delaney.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging   Diana Peterson from Washington State. She's lost 71 lbs and looks great.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18  >Appearance Judging   Dennis talking with Jack Sheeks. Jack is the designer of many of the models present at the Vintage Stunt Contest.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging  Me with Linda Beck.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging   Linda is the high school sweetheart of Mike Keville and they recently met again after 50 years. It looks as though the old flames never died and they are back together again.  It's such a lovely story.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging   Bob seems to be telling Jan a dirty yarn which, of course (Jan being a lady), she finds repugnant.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging   Me and Lou Wolgast - another great person and long time friend.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging  Jenni and Lou Wolgast.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging   Bonnie and Art Adamisin.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18    Appearance Judging   Art came to Australia in 1990 and stayed with both the Percivals and ourselves.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging  Claus Maikis chats with Elaine Heyworth.
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Wednesday 2009-03-18   Appearance Judging  Me and Claus.
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Thursday 2009-03-18    Bisbee Az  Jenni and some friends visit the old town of Bisbee. Bisbee was founded as a copper, gold, and silver mining town in 1880. It was named in honour of Judge DeWitt Bisbee, one of the financial backers of the Copper Queen Mine.
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Thursday 2009-03-18  Bisbee Az   Jenni went with Sandy Delaney, Jan Whitely and Bonnie.
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Thursday 2009-03-18   Bisbee Az  By 1950, the boom times were over and the population had dropped to less than 6,000, but the introduction of open-pit mining and continued underground work saw the town survive for a few more years.
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Thursday 2009-03-18   Bisbee Az    In 1975 the Phelps Dodge Corporation finally halted copper-mining operations. The resulting exodus of mine employees should have been the end of the town but Bisbee survived and today remains as the county seat.
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Thursday 2009-03-18   Bisbee Az   The ladies were supposed to do a mine tour but it had been booked out since earlier in the week - spring break for schools.
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Saturday 2009-03-21   Christopher Columbus Field, Tucson AZ   This map shows where our main activities were located - Christopher Columbus Park to the North and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in the Tucson Mountain County Park.
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Saturday 2009-03-21   Christopher Columbus Field, Tucson AZ   Claus and one of the many friends he made in Tucson.
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Saturday 2009-03-21   Christopher Columbus Field, Tucson AZ  This is the final day of the competition and Bob gives Jeff some advice in an attempt to save him from himself.
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Saturday 2009-03-21  Christopher Columbus Field, Tucson AZ   Dennis takes Bonnie shopping.
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Saturday 2009-03-21  Christopher Columbus Field, Tucson AZ  The Alpha dog and the Delta dog. Jeff's report card: Needs to concentrate. Can do better.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Tucson Mountain County Park  We're on our way to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and we enter the Tucson Mountain County Park where the saguaro cactus is in great abundance.
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Sunday 2009-03-22    Tucson Mountain County Park  Some saguaros live for more than 150 years and harming one in any manner is illegal by Arizona state law. When houses or highways are built, special permits must be obtained to move or destroy any saguaro affected.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Tucson Mountain County Park
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Sunday 2009-03-22    Tucson Mountain County Park  Saguaro Cactus' start to grow arms at between 50-100 years old.  Some spindly Ocotillo with their red flowers can be seen in this forest of Saguaros.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Tucson Mountain County Park  The saguaro blossom is the state flower of Arizona but it will be another 6-8 weeks before the flowers appear.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  We visit the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum that displays flora and fauna of the Sonoran Desert region. The Sonoran Desert encompasses parts of California and Arizona. The desert also extends into the Mexican states of Sonora and Baja California
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  On our way to the museum entrance, we spot a handler with a Harris's Hawk. These birds were the stars of the raptor show held at 2PM.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  There are 6626 separate species of desert plant at the museum and identifying each is not always possible. However, the yellow flowers appear to belong to the brittlebush, one of the signature plants of the Sonoran Desert.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  These are the red flowers of the Ocotillo. The Ocotillo is common in most of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts and extends north to the southern Mohave Desert, south to central Mexico, and east to central Texas.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum   About 40 of the 150 North American species of Agave occur in the Sonoran Desert region. Agaves have many uses, for example: fibre from the leaves of the Agave Sisalana provides 70 percent of the world's hard, long fibre for sisal ropes, rugs, and bags.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The museum is ablaze with colour.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Our first stop is Phoebe's Coffee Bar for light refreshments.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Just down from the coffee bar is this wonderful view of the museum grounds extending into the Sonoran Desert in the distance.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The Cholla Cactus. Agaves, ocotillos, aloes and euphorbias are among those often mistaken for cacti. However, the term cactus refers to a particular family of plants defined by a distinctive flower pattern.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  A Hummingbird in a walk-in aviary.  These tiny birds pollinate many of the desert plants.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The spines of the plant protect the flower from predators
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  At this spot, a lady asked if I'd take her photograph but added that I'd have to say something for her to smile.  I told her to "Lie back and think of England." Jenni said, "Oh no, you, didn't!" I said, "It's OK. She wouldn't know what it means."  And she didn't and she smiled anyway.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The saguaro is the largest cactus in the United States, commonly reaching 40 feet tall.  White flowers are about 3 inches in diameter and they bloom mainly in May and June. They are followed a month later by juicy red fruit.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The Pincushion Cactus. The Sonoran Desert species are less than 6 inches tall, with closely spaced areoles bearing many spines that obscure the body of the plant.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The beauty of the desert plants overwhelmed this Australian couple.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Mesquite is found in Northern Mexico and the US. It is an extremely hardy, drought-tolerant plant because it can draw water from the water table through its long taproot (recorded at up to 190 ft in depth).
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  This plant also has the English name of Agave Hybrid.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Jenni in the desert garden. The weather was very pleasant today with not too much wind.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The Northern Cardinal covers a large range, from southern Ontario to the Gulf states, and from the southwestern US to Belize and Guatemala. It prefers woodland edges, mesquite thickets and stream edges. The reddish bill and black face identify this bird as a male.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  An interesting sign describes some aspects of the Saguaro Cactus' adaption to life in the desert.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Yucca Brevifolia or the Joshua tree.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The Joshua tree is found only in the Mojave Desert of California. The diagram shows the extent of the Sonoran Desert extending into Mexico and the small size of the Mojave.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The desert bighorn is a heavy bodied, gray brown, deer-sized animal with a large white rump patch. Both males and females have horns, but the males' are much larger, growing into a curled spiral shape over the course of several years.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Bighorn sheep inhabit some of the driest mountain ranges in Arizona. During winter months when dew is available and plants contain more moisture, the sheep can last for several months without drinking free water. In the intense heat of summer when most green plants have dried up, they seek out cactus fruits for their water content. They can drink up to 20 percent of their body weight (up to 2 gallons) at a waterhole.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  An otter in the Riparian Corridor of the museum. "Riparian" means streamside and there were once many rivers in Southern Arizona.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The American Kestrel is the smallest falcon in the US. This is a 10 year old female; males have blue-gray wings and a more rust coloured tail than females, which are brown overall and have a lighter breast than the males.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The American Kestrel feeds mainly on insects and takes smaller and slower prey than the other falcons. In the desert, Kestrels hunt in the morning and late afternoon during summer; during winter they are active throughout the day.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The Brittlebush is a woody shrub 3 to 5 feet tall. The leaves range from nearly hairless bright green through gray green to white with a dense covering of soft matted hairs. Small yellow flowers are borne on stalks well above the leafy stems and are usually produced in late winter to mid spring.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Insects need the plants as much as the plants need the insects.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  We're walking  down a corridor of Mesquite and Prickly Pear towards the Raptor live show.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Saguaros may begin to grow arms when the plant is between 50 and 100 years of age, usually just above the stem's maximum girth at about 7 to 9 feet above ground. The number of arms and overall size of a plant seem to be correlated with soil and rainfall.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Flowers of the Ocotillo.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  There is an amazing contrast between the ugliness of the plant and its flowers.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  One of the most exciting displays you'll ever see is the live raptor show at the museum. They would dive at high speed with wings folded back, just over our heads, to land on their handler's glove. These are Harris's Hawks.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum   Harris's Hawk is dark brown with chestnut shoulder patches, leg feathering and wing linings. Its tail is long and black with white at the base and tip. Harris's Hawks occur in mesquite and saguaro habitats, semi-arid woodlands, and scrub.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  During the display, the "tame" animals were joined by a wild bird who joined their activities.  It was exciting to watch.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The Harris's Hawks have learned to float gently onto the top of the Saguaro Catus so as not to damage their feet.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Harris's Hawks are neotropical raptors that prey upon rabbits, rodents, snakes, lizards, and birds. These hawks are social and hunt in family groups.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Dense spikes of tubular, red to red-orange flowers sprout from the Ocotillo stem tips in spring. The flowering season begins as early as February at the lowest elevations in the desert habitats, and as late as May in the grassland and woodland habitats.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Some argaves grow stems with flowers.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The same plant farther up where the flowers have not yet developed.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Indigenous people use Agaves for food, fibre, and medicine. Juice from the mature plants is consumed both fresh and fermented. Fermented liquid from the cooked heads is distilled into mescal. Tequila, the best-known variety of mescal, is distilled from one species, Agave Tequilana.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  Prairie dogs. As this is near the end of winter, this is probably a pregnant female.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum   Prickly Pear in the background. The genus (one level higher than species) ranges from southern Canada to southern South America, in habitats ranging from arid desert to tropical semiarid woodlands and high mountains.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The saguaro's range is almost completely restricted to southern Arizona and western Sonora.  They grow from sea level to about 4000 feet. In the northern part of their range they are most numerous on warmer south facing slopes like this one.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The Mountain Lion or Puma is the largest cat in the Sonoran Desert. A female weighs about 75 pounds, while the male can be up to 145 pounds. The adult lion is a plain tawny or grayish brown colour with a heavy, black tipped tail nearly 3 foot long. The cat itself can be over 6 feet long, with heavy legs and large feet.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The lion is shy and elusive, yet we know there are healthy populations because we find their tracks, scats and the remains of kills they've made. Most people will never see a mountain lion in the wild, however, because it is a master of camouflage, slipping behind a bush or rock or scrap of shadow and disappearing
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  The mountain lion may wander widely in search of prey. When it finds something suitable, it sneaks up as close as it can before launching the ambush and attack. Though a powerful predator, it has a very small heart and lungs for its size, so it lacks the endurance for long chases. A 300 yard dash is about the best it can accomplish and, if its prey is not caught by then, the chase is over.
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Sunday 2009-03-22     Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum  To me it was a bit sad to see such a magnificent and intelligent animal locked up in a cage. The next day we drove to LAX to catch our flight to Switzerland where our story continues in the   Switzerland    folder.
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