South Water Caye...day 3

The morning started beautiful as usually. The sun rising up over over the reef just made it a perfect day and the day hadn't even started to say.

We took the kids around the island, which doesn't take long since it is an extremely small island, on a vegetation walk. The  kids were able to see the Australian pine, Coconut trees, Royal Palms, Traveler's Palms, and other varieties of trees. They were also shown different types of legumes.

 On the east side of the island, the students got an upclose and personal lecture on mangroves and their importance to the tropics.

 After the walk, we had lunch and divided the kids up into two groups to take them out over the
shallow lagoon on the east side of the island.

Here the kids were able to experience coralline algae, turtle grass, segmented worms, brittle sea stars, a sea cucumber, along with other organisms that use this shallow environment.

 

 

From here we headed out for a late afternoon snorkel at Horseshoe Caye. Since the forereef was really rough we opted to let the kids snorkel in an protective area since must of them hadn't really snorkeled until yesterday.

 

 

 

The kids were able to see a large variety of healthy coral, sea fans, sponges, and fish. They were also able to see the flamingo tongue snail after I pointed it out to them.  Also planned for that night, after our night lecture, was the night snorkel at the south end of the beach. Several students opted not to do the night snorkel but after they felt the excitement from the others that were going, they headed out with us. I told them that I would lead them out and lead them back. They were required to pair up with a buddy and to attach a light stick to their snorkel so those on the beach could keep track of us. We had a boat in the channel so that we wouldn't swim into it and get caught in the current. For night snorkels, there wasn't much out but the kids did have a good time and those that decided to go, were proud of themselves for doing it.

Day 3: O'ahu

Everyone was up early so that we could get to Pearl Harbor before the crush. Even though we were there early, we still had 2 hours to wait before the film and boat to the memorial. We toured around the museum and were greeted by a survivor of the attack. Getting a first hand glimpse of the harbor prior to 12/7 and after was thought provoking. Touring the memorial made you appreciate the freedoms we have in this country. Though this country has issues at the federal, state, and local areas, it still is a great nation. I am humbled by all the men and women who are willing to lay down their lives for this country; to them it's a sense of honor, duty, commitment. They know that they may be called to war and may lose their life yet they still enlist and serve. Our freedoms are because of the selfless sacrifice of so many individuals. Standing on the USS Arizona Memorial, I was reminded again of those who willing serve. You may not agree with the notion of war but as long as there are governments there will be wars and rumors of wars. You may not support the war but support those who are fighting it for you. They are doing it so you can enjoy all those freedoms you take for granted.After leaving the memorial, we headed to the Dole Plantation. Since the sugar beet can yield 2 harvest per year compared to sugarcane which needs 2 years to grow, a lot of the sugarcane plantations no longer dominate the landscape. The same with pineapple plantations. Currently the whole Dole production is now in Costa Rica. We toured the garden around the plantation. Many varieties of plant species were seen. Eucalyptus trees are native to Australia but several were seen around the grounds. The leaves of these trees have an oil in them that is like Halls cough drops. Heliconia (Lobster claw), Ornamental Ginger, Hibiscus, Beaver tail cactus, pineapple, bananas, papaya, and Rubber trees were all seen in the garden.
From the plantation, we headed to Pali lookout. Pali means steep cliff. There is a narrowing gap due to the mountains coming together. This produced the effect known as Bornoulli. High winds are channeled down through the gap. The Pali pass was used as a shorter way to Ko'olau. The windward side of Pali is covered with moss, liverworts, ferns and small vascular plants. These are considered pioneer species. Lichen was also seen on the rock strata. These species will provide enough soil over time due to erosion and this will allow for larger plant species to settle.We grabbed a bit to eat before heading to the airport for our late night flight to Auckland. While waiting to board, we had a wrap-up lecture of O'ahu and Suzanne gave her devotion on Eph. 2:10. She related the Banyan tree (massive prop roots) to the Christian life. That we need to get stronger by putting down strong roots and how we get stronger is by fellowshipping with other believers.

Day 3: Bern, city of Bears

While eating a plum and some type of cheese I couldn't pronounce, I rode the rail to Bern trying to brush up on my German. Going from a French speaking portion of Switzerland to a German speaking portion sure does wonders to the brain. By viewing the map of Bern, I realized that I would need 2 days to fully see all the sites to the city. I decided to head into one section of Bern referred to as Matte.

Bern is the capital of Switzerland and was founded in 1191. The first appearance of the city's emblem, the bear, was in 1224. In 1405, most of the city was burned to the ground. In 1848, Bern was elected the capital of Switzerland and in 1983 it became classified as a UNESCO's world heritage site.

Since Bern is the capital, the train station, Hautbahnhof, is enormous. After making my way to the street, I followed the masses and ended up in Bundesplatz. Here several governmental buildings occupy the area. The building directly across from the plaza is the Bundeshaus. Fountains in the front of the building give children a relief from the heat. This federal parliament building was completed in 1902. Due to the building being renovated, tours of the parliament building were halted. I walked down a staircase on the right of the building to come to a little park area overlooking Aare river. In the distance you could see the Alps and the Kirchenfeldbrucke (bridge). I decided to walk to the bridge from one of the side roads and crossed over to see what was on the other side of the bridge. There was some sort of Medieval castle/museum at the end of the bridge. Upon further investigation, I found out for a small fortune you could enter the grounds and witness jousting, dancing, crafts, and other time-period events. Since I was on a budget and have seen a Medieval reenactment before, I decided to head back across the bridge to view Munster cathedral.Munster cathedral was built in 1421. It is considered the largest sacred building in Switzerland. The 100m high tower was completed in 1893. For a small fee, one could ascend to the top and look over the city. Of course I wanted to torture myself some more on this day, so I paid the fee and walked the 100m to the top. If you are one who can't stand close quarters you might not want to take the walk up the tower. The passageway was very narrow, maybe 3 feet wide. Ever so often there would be a very small narrow window to look out/down. The stairs were made of stone and continued to spiral towards the top. Of course, once you made it to the top the view was amazing.













After spending some time looking over the city, I headed back down the tower stairs and into the church. The craftsmanship was unbelievable. Many carvings and statues lined the aisles of the church. There were a lot of ceiling ornaments at the apex of the arches. Tombs had wall ornaments or elaborate resting statues. Side rooms were as elaborately decorated as the main area. The number of stained glass windows was overwhelming. Many windows showed biblical accounts; some showed the arms for each canton of Switzerland; others showed zodiac signs/symbols; and yet another showed the Dance of Death.After spending a lot of time viewing the elaborate decorations inside Munster, I headed back outside to view the carvings outside the church. One elaborate carving was over the portal of the church as you entered. It depicted the Last Judgement. Gold adorned many of the statues around the portal and along side of the entrance into Munster. Makes you wonder how much money has been dumped into this building since the 1400's. Sad to think how much an individual gave because they thought that by giving, they would have eternal life. The churches are beautiful, don't get me wrong, but it makes you wonder how much was for show and how much was because of true sacrifice because of their relationship with God and not their religion.I wondered around the side streets and came across the Kirche St. Peter and Paul. The church wasn't as elaborate as Munster but still just as lovely. Across the street from the church was one of the approximately 250 public fountains that enliven the landscape. A majority of these fountains form a 6 km long line in the hub of the shopping district.I continued to roam the streets of Bern slowly making my way back to the train station. Spied Einstein's house along with Rathaus, another political building. I wandered through the shopping district and since I was in Bern, I picked up a pretzel and a sausage type structure.


While leaving the shopping district, I headed past the Zytglogge (Zeitglockenturm). This structure was the city's first west gate from 1191 to 1256. The clock still works and begins three minutes before every full hour. It was pretty neat to witness.














While riding back to Geneva I had the opportunity to speak with an Iranian couple. Both were finishing their schooling in Switzerland but were currently on holiday and were doing some sightseeing. We spoke of jobs, families, kids, politics, our countries, our beliefs and places we've traveled or would love to see. He mentioned he would love to visit the United States and meet those he has collaborated with over the years and he even invited me to visit his country. I told him that of course I would love to visit his country and other countries in the Middle East but since I'm an American and a Christian, I'm not generally accepted in Middle Eastern countries. He stated for the most part, people in his country don't have a problem with Americans, its just the government they have a problem with. Who knows maybe one day, I'll be able to visit his country and other countries in the Middle East but for now, I'll just have to experience those countries from stories, pictures, and other media sources. After several hours on the train, I arrived back in Geneva just in time for dinner. Plans for the next few days were simple: Head to Lyon with S and A for a few days and spend Sunday relaxing in Geneva before my second week in Switzerland began.

Day 3: Neuchatel

The day started very early. I got up earlier than normal and was on a train by 8 am to Neuchatel. Once arriving in Neuchatel, I walked from the train station down to the port then back-tracked through Old Towne. Old Towne is very beautiful. New construction being done in the area is designed to fit in with the surroundings, which makes this one of my favorite cities. While wandering through the tiny streets, I came to the Fountain du Banneret.

This fountain is the oldest fountain. It was built outside the former town walls and was at one time a small fountain used for livestock. It was enlarged and embellished in 1851 by Laurent Perroud. Another fountain carved by Mr. Perroud was the Justice Fountain. He carved this fountain between 1545 and 1547. The octogonal basin is surmounted by the figure of Justice and at her feet, four figures symbolise the various forms of government in olden times: a pope, a magistrate, an emperor, and a sultan.Another cool fountain seen in Neuchatel was the Fountaine du Griffon. This fountain was once in the middle of the towns crossroads and was filled with surplus water that was intended for the castle.
While walking up Rue du Chateau, I came across some steps to the right of the street. These steps lead to the Chateau and to the Collegiate Church. I was in time to take in a tour of the Chateau. Since a majority of those taking the tour spoke French, the tour guide did the tour in French. I told her not to worry about me because I would be able to pick out certain words and get the general meaning behind what she was saying and if I didn't understand, I would ask for clarification. Sometimes I like not being able to speak the language fluently because it gives you a chance to just observe and some observations can be missed when you are too busy hearing what someone is saying.The chateau (castle) has origins that go back to the 18th century. Neuchatel had a huge fire in 1450 that burned a majority of the city. The city suffered another fire in 1714. Some of the evidence can be seen in the brick walls of the castle. Today the castle is the seat of the cantonal government. The tour took visitors to the servants kitchen, the state room, the records room, the knight room and the coat of Arms room. The coat of Arms room was my favorite. All along the walls are the coats of the ruling class. Each coat of arm shows the couples origins. The room is used as a court room today. From the windows of this room, one could look out over Old Towne all the way to the port. It was a beautiful sight. After the tour ended, I headed across the cobble street to the Collegiate Church.
Construction on this church started at the end of the 12th century and was consecrated in 1276. On the north side of the church is the Cloitre, a Romanesque arcade. The church was Catholic until the time of the Reformation and is now used by the Protestant Parish of Neuchatel. Only the south bell-tower is original; its spire and the north tower were built in 1869.

The inside of church was very ornate. The ceilings were a rich blue color with gold stars. There are 15 carved and painted statues in cenotaphe which was located in the choir of the chruch. Many carved statues guarded the outside doorways of the church.After viewing the inside of the church, I spent some time looking at the sites outside the church. Since the church and the castle are built on a hill, the view was amazing anywhere you looked. One of the small roads leading from the church brought you to the Prision Tower. This building was built in several stages and the bse is believed to be from the 10th century. In order to view the tower, a small fee was required. After paying the fee, you were able to view models of Neuchatel as it looked during the 15th and 18th centuries. Then the long steady climb to the top begins. Small prision cells were located on each landing. As you got higher up the tower, the wooden stairs became steeper and the clearance space smaller. The view from the top of the tower was great. Not a cloud in the sky so you could see the town, the lake, and the Alps. After climbing back down the deadly stairs, I headed back down the hill and to the port again. As I was down Market Crossing, I came across Corbets Passage. This closed spiral staircase is done in the Renaissance style was nestled gown Masion des Halles. One of the little hidden gems of Old Towne. At then end of street is Masion des Halles (the covered market). This building was originally built as a grain and cloth market by none other than Laurent Perrond between 1569 and 1575. Today it is now a restaurant. While entering the square, another market day was in full swing. I grabbed some fruit and cheese and headed back up the hill to the train station to catch a train to Bern, Switzerland's capital.