Monday, June 13, 2005
USA Trip - Episode 8
This was once again a rest and recoup period. We totally relaxed, first at Campbellsville, and later at Blacksburg. The proposed trip to Augusta was postponed to our next US visit, much to the discomfiture of friends there.
At Campbellsville, we visited the Green River State park area. It is a project, which is largely managed by the Corps of Engineers of the US Army. Surprisingly, there is more number of civilians forming part of the Corps of Engineers than the Combat soldiers. We were told that a number of Combat Engineering is in Afghanistan/Middle East. This State park is a very beautiful and scenic, which has certain historic places, connected with the civil war. The weather at Campbellsville is ideal for long walks, which we enjoyed.
On 3rd June, we drove back to Blacksburg. Although we had been on the route three weeks back, the entire stretch was most invigorating and breathtaking. The rain played hide and seek and there was foggy weather at some places. It was a great relief to be back at home in Blacksburg. In the USA, there is the concept of yard or garage sale, where unused and unwanted things are sold at near throwaway prices. Yard sales are haven for deal seekers and students. We bumped into one such sale on one of our walks, and found a Spalding golf set, priced at 5 dollars! This was a goldmine discovered. Also, a number of books were being sold for a dollar or less. These included some autographed bestsellers. The next day, we spent two hours in cleaning the golf set thoroughly. It was indeed a great pur
chase.
On 7th June, we drove about 25 miles (from Blacksburg) to the Jefferson National forest region. Here, we embarked on a four-mile hike to a very scenic waterfall called the Cascade Falls. We climbed around 750 ft along a flowing stream through jungle and hills. It was a stimulating and an enjoyable hike.
I decided to test the new possession, the “great deal” golf set in the Virginia Tech golf course. It is a fantastic course of nine holes. The green fees rates for a visitor are $18 on weekdays till 4 pm, after which a reduced fee of $13 (the twilight fee) is charged for play up to 8:00 pm. I enjoyed the game. (Compare this green fee rate in US & in Indian golf courses.)
Next day we visited the Virginia Tech library, and came across a book called Diabesity, written by Dr Francine Kaufman, a former President of American Diabetic Association. It talks about the obesity-diabetes epidemic that threatens the USA and what people must do to avoid it. It is a thought provoking and interesting book with ample verified data and examples. Experts predict that more than one third of American children born in 2000 will develop diabetes in their lifetime. A must read book.
Development of sports amongst school children and college students are an important facet of American education. Sprawling sports complexes with indoor stadiums dot almost all Universities and Schools. It is a pleasure to see such facilities at School and College level. No wonder the Americans is great performers in the Olympics. We saw one such facility in Virginia Tech.
We are now ready to return to Bangalore. During the last nearly 6 weeks we have seen quite a bit of America, American culture and people. It was been a fantastic learning experience. We would like to come back and continue with this experience as much as we can. We have, as mentioned earlier, a lot to learn from this great country.
