Nov

In the Wake of the Paris Attacks

by Meredith Mullins on November 23, 2015

Le Carillon, one of the sites of Paris attacks of 13 November, with flowers and messages showing the spirit of French cultural beliefs. (Image © Meredith Mullins)

Flowers and messages surround Le Carillon, one of the restaurants attacked on November 13.
© Meredith Mullins

French Spirit and Cultural Beliefs Are Woven with Strength and Courage

We don’t usually foresee danger in our daily routines—in restaurants, bars, sports stadiums, or concert halls. We expect to be safe in movie theatres, office buildings, trains, churches, airplanes, and schools—even with past history embedded in our memory.

Sadly, at this time in a world where hatred, violence, guns, and insanity are more common than we could have ever imagined, the risk of danger becomes hauntingly familiar. The possibility plants itself at the edges of our consciousness.

And then the unthinkable happens. Terrorists attack the very essence of everyday rhythms. They assault innocent people—people eating, laughing, cheering their team, drinking, dancing to heavy metal, talking with friends and neighbors.

Commemorating the victims of the attacks at the Place de la République
© Meredith Mullins

The Paris Attacks

Paris suffered such attacks on 13 November, 2015. A night of shock and terror, endless sirens, confusion, and tragedy hanging heavy in the air.

A night that brought to light the fact that there is much we do not know about the terrorist underworld. A night that exposed the weaknesses in many of the systems built to keep us safe. A night that was followed by police raids, more attacks (Mali), and threats of attacks (Belgium). A night that reverberates around the world.

French soldiers guard Notre Dame after the Paris attacks, which brought out the best of French cultural beliefs in the aftermath. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

French soldiers guard Notre Dame Cathedral.
© Meredith Mullins

French President Hollande declared a state of emergency. The police went into overdrive, putting pieces of the puzzle together and doing everything possible to identify those responsible and shut down future attacks.

Museums and monuments closed. Soldiers patrolled the streets. The country and the world mourned the dead and prayed for the wounded.

Moments of silence
© Jerry Fielder

The Spirit of France

These dramatic events were filled with “Oh, I see” moments. The most meaningful, for me was the immediate emotional and heartfelt stance for the values and cultural beliefs that are at the heart of the character of France.

Sign showing the spirit of French cultural beliefs after the Paris attacks. (Image © Meredith Mullins)

The spirit of Paris
© Meredith Mullins

Liberté. Egalité. Fraternité. Strength. Resilience. Defiance. Solidarity. Love. Desire for peace. Courage to overcome fear. Respect for life.

Place de la République was transformed into an impromptu memorial to commemorate the victims and pledge allegiance to freedom. The words même pas peur (not afraid) became not just a headline, but a mantra.

Place de la République after the Paris attacks showing the spirit of French cultural beliefs. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Même Pas Peur (Not Afraid)
© Meredith Mullins

The Eiffel Tower shimmered with the proud blue, white, and red of the French flag.

The motto for the city of Paris “Fluctuat nec mergitur” emerged as a cry of defiance. The French national anthem (La Marseillaise) burst forth spontaneously in small crowds of patriots.

The Paris Coat of Arms shows the spirit of French cultural beliefs after the Paris attacks. (Image courtesy of the City of Paris.)

The Paris Coat of Arms
Image Courtesy of the City of Paris

Drawing of Eiffel Tower by Stefan Kaufmann, showing the spirit of French cultural beliefs after the Paris attacks. (Image © Stefan Kaufmann.)

Fluctuat nec mergitur (“She is tossed by the waves but does not sink.”)
Image © Stefan Kaufmann

People paid tribute to the victims of each attack site, with silent prayers and reflection, candles, bouquets, and messages of sadness and hope. Flowers filled bullet holes.

Bullet holes at one of the restaurants in the Paris attacks, with flowers showing the spirit of French cultural beliefs. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Flowers filled some of the bullet holes at one of the targeted restaurants.
© Meredith Mullins

Signs of solace and solidarity covered the closed-up buildings and hung from police tape that circled the once lively terraces.

Signs on Le Petit Cambodge showing French cultural beliefs in the wake of the Paris attacks. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Messages on the shuttered wall of Le Petit Cambodge, including “Love is stronger than hate.”
© Meredith Mullins

As the names of victims were released and news spread through their neighborhoods, more prayers, flowers, and messages were offered for the 130 people who lost their lives—at their homes, businesses, and places of worship.

Child's drawing showing French cultural beliefs after the Paris attacks. (Image © Fiona Kemp-Griffin.)

A child speaks from her heart, drawing her tears and her sadness.
Image courtesy of Fiona

The Power of Tears and Flowers

Our lives have changed forever. France sheds tears for the loss of life and the affront to freedom. We are sad, but as many of the messages read, “We will not succumb to hate.”

With a response of courage and the conviction of core cultural beliefs, there is a glimmer of light and hope—especially when a child (in the video below) believes that les méchants of the Paris attacks (“the bad guys”) can be overpowered by the warmth of candles and the beauty of flowers.

(If video does not display, watch it here.)

Vive la France.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Meredith Mullins 4 Comments

Cultural Heritage & Traditions/France (Paris)

Nov

Webcam Wanderlust

by Meredith Mullins on November 10, 2015

A show that’s hard to beat: the sparkling lights of the Eiffel Tower
© Meredith Mullins

Virtual Journeys: Seeing . . . and Being Seen

Have you been waiting for the hourly light show at the Eiffel Tower?
Are you ready for a stopover in Sydney?
Do you want to see if the sun is sparkling over Niagara Falls?
Can you make time for a peek at the vivid autumn colors of New England?
Are you up for a climb to Machu Picchu?
Do you crave the energy of Times Square in New York?

All it takes is a click on a webcam link, and you are there.

Niagara Falls webcam fuels virtual wanderlust. (Image courtesy of Earthcam.)

A virtual journey to Niagara Falls via webcam.
Courtesy of Earthcam.

In the wonderful world of webcam wanderlust, you can visit places around the world whenever you want, without leaving your computer chair. There are webcams everywhere.

Real Places, Real Time, Real People

You can see the Northern Lights flash, watch pandas mate, hear the wind in the mist of thundering falls, check out gondola traffic on a Venice canal, or assess surf conditions at a Mexican beach.

Venice Grand Canal webcam inspires virtual wanderlust. (Image courtesy of Skyline Webcams.)

Feel as if you’re floating on the Grand Canal in Venice via webcam.
Courtesy of Skyline Webcams.

Of course, a virtual journey lacks the vibrancy of being there, where all your senses come alive. And webcam resolution is not the best. You are sometimes looking through raindrops, suffering from shaky camerawork as winds rock the camera, or peering through the graininess of night.

But, at least, you can see, in real time, what’s happening in the world (even if you have to wade through a few ads to get there).

Times Square at night via webcam inspires virtual wanderlust. (Image courtesy of Earthcam.)

The energy of Times Square via webcam.
Courtesy of Earthcam.

What makes the webcam scenes especially interesting are the humans who enter the stage (often quite unknowingly). I wanted to be one of these webcam stars.

Star Power

Perhaps it was all those childhood hours practicing musical numbers in the living room after my parents went to bed. Perhaps it was the fact that I had little history of being on camera—there were no home movies in my family. Perhaps it was just an obsession with fame.

My “Oh, I see” moment was clear. I wanted to appear on webcams—as many as I could find. I wanted not only to see, but to be seen.

Turning the Webcam Tide

My first audition was in St Malo, France, during one of the “high tides of the century.” One webcam there faces the sea. You can watch the tides race in, faster than a galloping horse (well, a strolling horse). And you can appear on the boardwalk, with the ebbing and flowing tide as background.

Virtual wanderlust via the St Malo webcam. (Image courtesy of city of St Malo.)

Watching the St Malo tide roll in via webcam.
Courtesy of the city of St Malo.

I alerted a friend 6,000 miles away (nine hours difference in time) that I would make my debut on webcam at a certain time. Shortly before the appointed time, the wind was howling and the waves were crashing over the boardwalk. I sent a “postponement” text and opted for the warmth and safety of my hotel room.

My friend didn’t get my text message right away and watched the fuzzy webcam image vigilantly, thinking every bundled up figure might be me. When he found out my webcam premier appearance had been postponed, he created his own imaginative reality.

Wave crashing over Meredith Mullins in St Malo, virtual wanderlust inspired by a webcam. (Image © DMT.)

Creating a webcam reality
© DMT

Messing Around in Metz

I vowed to keep my next webcam appointment no matter what the challenges. The Hôtel de Ville (City Hall) in Metz, France, provided the perfect opportunity. The webcam pointed at a large statue in the Place d’Armes. It would not be hard to position myself to be seen, and it would be easy for my viewer to see me.

Place d'Armes in Metz, virtual wanderlust inspired by webcam. (Image courtesy of the city of Metz.)

The Place d’Armes in Metz, a perfect place for a webcam debut
Courtesy of the city of Metz.

At the appointed time, I lifted my arms toward the camera. The visiting school group around me quickly backed away (as in “Step away from the madwomen.”). I held my pose and waited to be sure I was recorded.

Although I was just a fuzzy black speck on the webcam image, my moment had arrived. I was a part of webcam history. A successful (potentially award-winning?) premier.

Small black figure in the Place d'Armes in Metz, virtual wanderlust via webcam. (Image courtesy of the city of Metz.)

My webcam debut. I’m the black speck with arms raised.
Courtesy of the city of Metz and DMT.

In Pursuit of a Dream

I will continue my quest to appear on the webcams of the world. Wanderlust of the best kind.

Will I see the Big 5 on safari in Africa?

Virtual wanderlust via Tembe Elephant Park webcam. (Image courtesy of Earthcam.)

The cast of characters at the Tembe Elephant Park in southern Africa (via webcam)
Courtesy of Earthcam.

Should I toast my Irish heritage at a Dublin bar?

Virtual wanderlust via webcam of a Dublin bar. (Image courtesy of Earthcam.)

Dublin in the rain via webcam.
Courtesy of Earthcam.

Will I vacation near an azure sea on the beach at St Bart’s?

Virtual wanderlust via the St Bart's Island webcam. (Image courtesy of Earthcam.)

A dream vacation via webcam, with white sand and turquoise sea
Courtesy of Earthcam.

I hope so. But, in the meantime, I can make a virtual visit any time.

And I will caution those who may be unwitting characters in a webcam drama. Be aware. A webcam may be focused on you anywhere, anytime. The whole world could be watching.

Thank you to Earthcam, Skyline Webcams, and Africam, as well as the cities of St Malo and Metz.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Meredith Mullins Comments

Art of Travel/Worldwide Sites

Nov

Survival Essentials for Adventure Cycling

by Eva Boynton on November 2, 2015

Biker riding with hands in the air, demonstrating the appreciation of living only with the survival essentials during adventure cycling along Mexican toll roads. (Image © Eva Boynton)

Living off the bare necessities and feeling on top of the world.
© Eva Boynton

How Mexican Toll Roads Change Perspective

There are two main roads weaving through Mexico: the calle libre (free road) and the autopista (toll road). When four friends and I, all engaged in adventure cycling, biked through Mexico, our choice in road shaped the future.

We chose the toll road. Not only did it develop our appreciation of the survival essentials, but it also irrevocably changed our perspective.

A toll road for cars with rain clouds above, illustrating the survival essentials for bikers engaged in adventure cycling along Mexican toll roads. (Image © iStock / aidaricci)

.A toll road has different meaning to a car driver than to an adventure cyclist.
© iStock / aidaricci

Toll roads are government-owned roads that require payment (free for bicycles!) for maintenance efforts. They are:

a direct path from one big city to another
time-savers—15 to 30 miles shorter than free roads
built to offer beautiful views from bridges, smoother pavement, and a spacious shoulder for cycling

But beware! With these welcoming attributes comes a set of challenges for the adventure cyclist. The fast track means a lack of off ramps and, therefore, a lack of resources.

Signs for upcoming cities and a place to find resources, illustrating the survival essentials for bikers engaged in adventure cycling on toll roads (Image © Eva Boynton).

Toll roads, by design, bypass the smaller towns along free roads where food, water, and shelter are plentiful. They teach, through trial and error, the three survival essentials of choosing to travel on the toll road.

Survival Essential #1: Water

The first question for survival on a bicycle is: “How much water can you carry?”

Water bottles strapped onto a bicycle, showing a survival essential for adventure cycling along the toll roads of Mexico. (Image © Eva Boynton).

Our team of cyclists learned the answer the hard way.

After a 4-hour-climb in the mountains of Guerrero, Mexico, our crew stopped to fix a flat tube. When we reached for water to hydrate, we realized our bottles were empty. The midday heat was kicking in, and there was no water resource in sight.

While most of us morosely shook the last drops of water onto our tongues, my friend grabbed his empty bottles and started waving them like a madman at cars zooming by.

An 18-wheeler truck driving on the highway, illustrating how adventure cycling on Mexican toll roads changes perspectives (Image © iStock/vitpho).

Although big trucks are normally intimidating with their size and roar,
this 18-wheeler became our best friend.
© iStock / vitpho

In an act of both desperation and creativity, we followed his lead. After many cars zoomed by, our 18-wheeler salvation arrived. A cargo truck rumbled toward us and slowed with a crunch-screech of breaks.

Catching up with our empty bottles in hand, we jogged underneath the passenger’s window. A pair of hands tossed out a gallon of water. We shrieked, “Muchas gracias!”, and the anonymous driver and truck rolled into the distance.

Woman hugging a gallon of water, showing the appreciation of a survival essential during adventure cycling on Mexican toll roads. (Image © Eva Boynton)

Although water may be an obvious survival essential, our toll road environment changed our perspective. Water became a precious commodity due to rare access and the physical need from cycling for 6 or 7 hours a day.

When we were gifted water from a truck driver or passerby, we became giddy children opening presents on Christmas day. The value of things we carried changed. Excess items (like clothes, even electronics) were left behind and replaced with the weight of water.

Survival Essential #2: Shade

We found ourselves in a desert of sun, and shade became an essential during the hottest hours of the day.

At the mercy of the weather and climate, we began to form a daily routine, where the break in the middle of the day was the perfect time to find our shade “oasis”:

8:00 am: Hit the road
2:00 pm: Find shade
4:00 pm: Continue cycling
6:00 or 7:00 pm: Look for a place to camp

What was our cue to look for shade? When we heard the sizzle of our backs frying like eggs or felt the salty sweat roll down our faces.

Three cyclists resting in the shade during an adventure cycling tour along Mexican toll roads, showing that shade is a survival essential. (Image © Eva Boynton)

Sometimes, we began to see mirages. The shadow of a small tree became an umbrella planted in the white sand with a beach chair awaiting beneath. We stopped there.

A group of bicycles parked in the shade of a tree, showing a survival essential during adventure cycling on Mexican toll roads (Image © Eva Boynton)

While resting near an overpass, I looked over to see our teammate Gaby fast asleep on a comfortable bed of cement. A memory foam mattress would not have given her better sleep or a softer surface.

A girl sleeping on the side of the road during adventure cycling along Mexican toll roads, showing how shade is a survival essential. (Image © Eva Boynton).

Our second survival essential was surely shade. We took it wherever we could find it. At midday, drivers looking out their car windows spotted five cyclists curled up in the toll road’s shady places and knew not to disturb.

Survival Essential #3: A Place to Camp

As the sun began to sink behind the mountains, exhaustion crept into our legs. We kept our eyes peeled for a place to stop, cook, and sleep.

People setting up camp under a tree during adventure cycling along Mexican toll roads, showing how a place to camp is a survival essential. (Image © Eva Boynton).

We began to have an eye for finding the “perfect” place to camp. A space with flat ground, enough room for three tents and perhaps a tree for rain cover. For an extra 10 points, the perfect spot was hidden from the view of traffic (avoiding car lights and any interested passersby).

Simple, but perfect for us.

Three tents set up on a space on the side of a highway, illustrating how a good place to camp is a survival essential during adventure cycling along Mexican toll roads. (Image © Gabriela Díaz Cortez).

Our perspective on the perfect place to sleep changed when towns and hostels were nowhere in sight. Along the Mexican toll roads, a dirt turnout was often the only option for setting up camp. But because we carried our homes with us, the perfect place to sleep became less about the amenities and more about the freedom to stop and sleep anywhere we chose.

Appreciating the Small Things

Our time on the toll road was full of challenges that developed an appreciation for the smallest things. “Mi amor!” (My love!), I would shout in excitement for a patch of shade, a forgotten bottle of water, the beginning of a downhill, or a surprise snack at the bottom of my front basket.

A travel bicycle parked on the side of a Mexican toll road during an adventure cycling experience, showing the how the simple things are the survival essentials. (Image © Eva Boynton)

Oh, I see how traveling by bicycle on Mexican toll roads changed my view of what is essential—a cell phone or computer could not provide us the shade, a place to camp, or water to drink, the things that really mattered.

Things we took for granted, seemingly small, were now at the forefront of our attention. They were not only survival essentials, but the simple essentials.

A Mexican toll road at sunset, illustrating how the survival essentials during adventure cycling can change perspective (Image © Gabriela Díaz Cortez)

In the end, when pedaling up to a fork in the road, a decision arises: autopista or calle libre? For adventure cycling, I recommend trying the autopista (toll road) at least once for the experience of learning your own survival essentials and perhaps a change in perspective.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Eva Boynton 3 Comments

Adventure Travel/Mexico

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