Written by Brian Callender | Photography by Julie Boyd Without question, we live in a pretty incredible time period in human history. Thanks to technological advances, the world is at its most interconnected, making travel accessible to the masses. Much like it has been since people first roamed this earth, the world can also be […]
In the last post my grandson and I visited The Orange Empire Railroad Museum (LINK) while a Steampunk special event was going on. It was wonderful seeing this sub-culture and experiencing the fun and positive attitude of all the people there.
So what is Steampunk? 1987 marked the first known use of the term “steampunk”.
Steampunk perhaps most recognizably features include futuristic inventions as people in the 19th century might have envisioned them. Its basis in reinterpreting the era’s perspective on fashion, culture, architectural style, and art. Such technology may include fictional machines like those found in the works of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne, or of the modern authors Philip Pullman, Scott Westerfeld, Stephen Hunt, and China Miéville. Steampunk can contain alternative-history-style presentations of such technology.
A few weeks ago my grandson and I visited the Orange Empire Railway Museum (LINK) when the annual Steampunk fair was being held. This non-profit museum opened in 1956 to preserve Southern California’s railway history that dates from the 1870’s. With over 200 historic railway locomotives, passenger cars, freight cars, streetcars, interurban electric cars, buildings, and other artifacts from Los Angeles and the West, the 90-acre site in Perris, California is open to the public every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas (check site for current opening days, times and special events).
Up early to beat the heat.
Sunrise
It was a wonderful day surrounded by wild flowers in the desert, out with a photography group for a shoot east of San Diego. Without much more talk here are the photos I took this day.
Chesters Fort Rendering from the south
After the morning wandering and exploring Beamish we drove approximately 30 miles to visit Chesters Fort (LINK) a part of Hadrian’s Wall (LINK). Driving along beautiful countryside we had to have the car disinfected for Foot and Mouth. Arriving at the fort we visited the museum to learn the history of the wall and fort, then walked through disinfecting mats for our short walk to the fort.
Back in 2001 it was decided to visit England, Scotland and Wales and to delve into the history, architecture and culture of the country. What we discovered was an excellent way to do this, Living Outdoor Museums. This was the first Living Open-Air museum that I had ever visited and it started a search for additional ones during all future travels in the USA and Europe. Visiting one gives you the experience and a real sense of the past as you discover what life was like. Within the different buildings there usually are actors in period dress demonstrating the daily life of the time being depicted, while answering questions you might have and explaining what it was like living in those times.
On a fateful August morning in 79 AD Pompeii (LINK), a Roman town-city near modern Naples, was totally destroyed and buried under a volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius (LINK) killing around 3,000 people as the rest of the population had already fled before the eruption. A flood of ash and protoplasmic heated air rained down on the town for approximately 6 hours completely burying the town and its inhabitants in up to twelve layers of ash and debris up to 82 feet (25 meters) deep.
I heard this song and it just makes you think of all the unnecessary words spoken between people and lovers. Everyone please have a Happy Valentines Day.
It has been almost a year since I lost my love but this reminds me how much our unspoken words and our actual actions showed us both the caring and love we had for one another. I shall never forget her, Jodi is in my heart to stay. We did not need to say I love you it was given in the smiles, in our touch and through our eyes. But we never parted for any time without saying “I Love You” as we walk out the door.
When You Say Nothing At All [LINK]
Alison Krauss, Alison Krauss & Union Station
It’s amazing how you can speak right to my heart
Without saying a word, you can light up the dark
Try as I may, I could never explain
What I hear when you don’t say a thing
The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There’s a truth in your eyes sayin’ you’ll never leave me
The touch of your hand says you’ll catch me if ever I fall
You say it best when you say nothing at all
All day long I can hear people talking out loud
But when you hold me near, you drown out the crowd
Old Mr. Webster could never define
What’s being said between your heart and mine
The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There’s a truth in your eyes sayin’ you’ll never leave me
The touch of your hand says you’ll catch me if ever I fall
You say it best when you say nothing at all
The smile on your face lets me know that you need me
There’s a truth in your eyes sayin’ you’ll never leave me
The touch of your hand says you’ll catch me if ever I fall
You say it best when you say nothing at all
Songwriters: DON SCHLITZ, PAUL OVERSTREET
Well lets travel back in time with Mr. Peabody and his “Way-Back-Machine”.
Way-Back-Machine
Let us set the time machine for September of 2001 and revisit a trip to England, Scotland and Wales.
Hi everyone,
I have started to revamp the site a little bit. It has gotten long and my travels are getting pushed further back in the blog posts. So I have re configured the menu bar to make getting to older travel posts easier. See the tab TRAVELS above.
The photos on the site can still be viewed in each individual blog or you can go to my photo site HERE. There are additional photos that never make it onto this site.
Thanks everyone for following along and I am not quite done with the site yet, it is a work in progress. I’ll mention changes on future posts when they happen.
TVP Journeys 
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