The Boston Public Gardens

The Public Gardens in Boston is a very popular place. When Janice was a young girl, she often went there for a Swan Boat ride around the pond. When we were there with our children in 1976, we of course had to have a boat ride as well. Janice’s Aunt Flo was very happy to go along with this activity. It is not a big place and the ride was slow and very smooth. It was certainly a very fun activity which brought back good memories for Janice and her aunt. Many, many years later (in 2009) we took two of our grandchildren on this ride when we visited Boston with them. At that time we were on a cruise which stopped in Boston and we also had my sister Kai and Janice’s sister Shari with us. Talk about memories!

Freedom Trail

This is a trail of 2.5 miles in Boston. In order for our children to get some idea about the American Revolution, Janice’s father joined us to walk most of this trail. We went through the Faneuil Hall, the old North Church, the Paul Revere House, the old Meeting House and the King’s Chapel etc. We took quite a number of pictures and walked slowly for a long time. and finally we ended up at the Boston Commons. There we met Janice’s  Aunt Flo. She did not walk the trail with us but she wanted to join us for the final part of the trip.

Lake Champlain Ferry

It was a very windy ride on the Lake Champlain Ferry. We enjoyed the ride on the way to Vermont and Shari’s home near Burlington. Shari is Janice’s sister. She had two children, slightly older than ours. The ferry is the easy way to get to her home when you are coming from the New York Thruway. It is not only shorter than driving, it is also more fun. You save your energy by not having to drive and you can enjoy the scenery along the way too. And, if you are lucky, you could enjoy a rainbow along the shore!

 

Bill and Jo Gazda

The Gazdas moved to Niagra, New York, shortly after we made the decision not to buy the Watauga property together in 1974. Bill was one of the upper level staff being considered by Great Lakes Carbon Corporation for leadership in their American Branch. (Great Lakes was a German Company at the time and Bill went to Germany for training.) We visited them in the summer of 1976, and they were very much involved in boating activities. We stayed with them and not only enjoyed their home (and certainly their sand-box!)  but also had a great time on their boat. The pictures below were all taken then. This year, 2014, our friend, Bill, passed away because of cancer. We went to North Carolina to visit him and Jo six months before his death when he was struggling with the awful disease. He had a very positive attitude and was determined to enjoy the time he had left. We had great visits in both 1976 and 2014. That is life!

陈 文 环 Chen Wen Hwan

The pictures included in today’s blog below were a  big surprise to me as I do not remember that my family met this man and his family in the summer of 1976. But I do recognize his face and, with the date on the slide and it’s sequentially ordered position, I confirmed that we visited his family that summer. He was my Cheng-Kung Senior High School classmate. I do not remember where and to which University he went after our graduation. Somehow, in the summer of 1976, we got in touch with each other and our two families got together to have some pictures taken. And we have not contacted each other again since that day. Apparently he was in the ministry but I am not sure of the denomination. Life is full of surprises! How we got together there in the Niagara, NY area will remain a mystery, perhaps forever!

Child Study Center

Both Margaret and Steven went to the Child Study Center operated by the College of Education. It was located in the basement of the Education building, just cross from my Science Building, not far away. Steven started there in the fall of 1975. I was able to walk there with him in the morning and, in the afternoon, he went home with David Thayer, who lived near Washington College Academy. His father was the Headmaster. Janice would bring Steven home later in the day. This arrangement lasted for one year. During his second year, Steven went home with Alex LaPella, the son of the director of the Civic Chorale. Both Jean Thayer and Jane LaPella were extremely helpful to us with the afternoon care during those two years!

Steven was very happy at the Child Study Center, getting along well with the other children and also well liked by his teachers. He enjoyed the school too, the activities there were always fun. Janice and I were so lucky that our children both liked their schools very much and never gave us any trouble of any kind in that regard. The Child Study Center was certainly a great beginning for both of them. The pictures below were taken there in Steven’s first year!

Toronto, Canada

From Philadelphia, we drove a long way to Toronto, Canada. When Janice and I were young, it was never a problem for us to drive a long way, or a long time. Some how we just got used to this kind of traveling as our routine way. As a result, both of our children, Margaret and Steven, do not mind driving a long time. They were used to that kind of traveling.
Toronto was a very nice city. We visited a few famous places there. However, we went there primarily because we wanted to visit Linda and Jackson Yuan’s young daughter, whom we had brought back from Taiwan one year earlier. Her parents had immigrated to Canada and we were wondering how were they doing there. On a beautiful nice summer evening, we sat in the High Park along the water on the shore of Ontario Lake and listened to an orchestra performance concert. I took some pictures (see below) and I still remember that nice concert.

American Chemical Society

The 1976 American Chemical Society (ACS) meeting was held in New York City. It was the centennial meeting of the ACS, which is the oldest professional society in the US. It was first established by the congress in 1876 in New York City. I went to this 1976 meeting. Glenn Seaborg was the ACS president that year, so he was there to start the meeting and he marched in with the famous Nobel prize winner, Linus Pauling, leading the group with a shinning gold hood. It was quite a sight and a very special event for everyone there. It was certainly a very interesting occasion for me. While I was in the city, I went to see my good friend, Sherman, and his family in Queens. They had just moved into their new house. The pictures below were taken during that time:

Philadelphia 1976

After we saw the July Fourth Parade in Johnson City, we decided to take a driving trip to Philadelphia so that both of our children could get some insight into the American revolution and the Declaration of Independence. We went to see the Liberty Bell and the Ben Franklin Museum and a few related places in the area. Our kids could touch the bell, and could see the crack. And of course they saw the places where the Declaration of Independence was drafted and finalized. It was also the first time for Janice and me to see the actual places too.