Travel and Adventure class on Kamchatka
Learning about adventure travel to Kamchatka

Travel and Adventure

Friday, 10 to 11:30 a.m., Library 1533

Terry Moss, Bob Seyfried, Tom Dole, Jennifer Kerr

The sharing of travel experiences serves as an excellent aid in both the planning and execution of travel plans. Others' experiences, both good and bad, can help take much of the mystery and hassle out of our own travel adventures.

In this seminar, members can meet informally to share such experiences, listen to speakers on travel subjects of interest, and perhaps find companions willing to team up on particular tours.

This is an open seminar limited in attendees to the number of chairs available as determined by Fire Department regulations. You cannot sign up in advance. Get there early to get a seat!

PLEASE NOTE: No food and only certain drinks are allowed in the library.

Feb. 3: WELCOME AND GALAPAGOS ISLANDS
First, a quick preview of this semester's programs. Then Richard and JoAnn Peter will share their 2011 visit to the Galapagos Islands. They spent seven days exploring several of the islands and snorkeling in the clear, tropical waters of the archipelago. These islands are a wildlife Garden of Eden, hosting an amazing collection of unusual and nearly tame wildlife, both on land and in the water. They also spent a few days sightseeing in and around Quito, Ecuador. Near Quito they stood on the Equator and climbed partway up a 19,000-foot volcano in blowing snow and sleet.
Feb. 10: DIYT GREECE
Elly Thomas is a devotee of DIYT—Do It Yourself Travel—and will talk about a very successful DIYT trip to Greece in 2009. As usual, some of the highlights involved the unexpected: pratfalls, great bargains, an adorable tour guide, finding Shirley Valentine and being constantly amazed at the beauty of both mainland Greece and its incredible islands of Mykonos, Delos, Paros and heavenly Santorini.
Feb. 17: CHINA BEFORE TIANANMEN SQUARE
Doug Stryker visited China before the famous Tiananmen Square confrontation of 1989. His 21-day tour featured mystical Guilin, Hangzhou's West Lake and Suzhou, the Venice of China. It was in Suzhou that Doug might have saved the life of a fellow traveler. The Terra Cotta warriors and the Great Wall were also visited.
Feb. 24: BARCELONA: MODERNIST ARCHITECTURE, SURREALISTIC ART
Robin Ubl-Orack, a high school and community college Spanish instructor, traveled to Barcelona, Spain, where she concentrated on studying the architecture of Antoni Gaudi and Modernism. Seven of his works in Barcelona were declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Robin also studied the art of Salvador Dali, a leader in the Surrealist Movement. She visited the Dali Museum in Barcelona, the Dali Theatre-Museum in Figueres, and the House-Museum Salvador Dali in Portlligat.
March 2: THE ANDES TO PATAGONIA: CHILE AND ARGENTINA
Phyllis Mills and Wayne Wilson spent three weeks on a busy and adventurous trip to Chile and Argentina. It included visits to Buenos Aires, the lakeside city of Bariloche, the remote island of Chiloe and the wonders of Los Glacieres and Torres del Paine national parks. They also experienced Punihuile wildlife sanctuary with Magellanic penguins, Osorno volcano overlooking Lake Lianquihue, Grey Glacier on the shores of Lago Grey, Puerto Moreno Glacier in Los Glaciares National Park, Punta Arenas, and Iguazu Falls. The views were gorgeous of mountains, glaciers, blue-green mountain lakes, waterfalls, and volcanoes. The hiking was fantastic and they also had evening Tango lessons in Buenos Aires.
March 9: ICELAND: FJORDS AND GLACIERS
Jackie DeLu and her husband spent three weeks driving the circle road around Iceland. The western fjords offered spectacular cliff views with nesting seabirds, including the very special Puffin. The center of Iceland offered an active geothermal area from which Iceland gets much of its electrical power. The southern area was covered with glaciers that calve icebergs into lakes and rivers. These huge pieces of ice float to the ocean, leaving crystalline chunks drifting and landing on volcanic sandy shores. They also visited the island upon which the first European landed to claim Iceland for Norway.
March 16: ITN and PORTUGAL
Mary Beltran of International Travel News of Sacramento will make a short presentation. Bob Seyfried considers ITN "the best of all the monthly travel mags." Then, Bud Getty and Dorene Clement will talk about their visit to scenic and historic Portugal, from the ancient city of Lisbon up to Peneda-Geres National Park in the far north, and out to the remote and beautiful islands of the Azores, where hydrangeas form flowering hedgerows.
March 23:
CSUS Spring Break; No Seminar.
March 30:
Chavez Holiday; No Seminar.
April 6: DANCING THROUGH BULGARIA
Vick Vickland and Toba Goddard joined a Folk Dance Tour of Bulgaria in 2010. Toba, who had previously attended Jim Gold's Bulgaria Folk Dance Tour, this time went as a teacher of Bulgarian folk songs for the tour group. She is a member of Zado, a local women's a capella group, singing many Balkan songs, and teaches folk dancing locally. Both she and Vick have been folk dancing for many years. This tour included many interesting historical sites, as well as visits to various villages to meet and dance with local singing and dancing groups. The main feature of the tour was going the village of Koprivshtitsa for the National Folklore Festival, featuring dancers and singers from all over the country. Together, Toba and Vick will share pictures and information about the trip and the country.
April 13: SWISS SKIING AND FRENCH ART
Jennifer Kerr takes us to Zermatt, Switzerland, in the pointy shadow of the Matterhorn for a ski/snowshoe vacation when the weather was very cold, the snow very icy but the walkable town and environs very charming. The trip then went by TGV to Nice for some sunny spring days along the Côte d'Azur with famous artists, French food, Monaco and a quick trip into Italy for gelato.
April 20: RETURN TO TURKEY AFTER 42 YEARS
Kathy Riedmiller traveled to Turkey with her husband and son, 42 years after she was a Peace Corps volunteer there. She will show pictures both from her time teaching English in the junior and senior high schools in Luleburgaz, Turkey, and from her recent family trip. Their 13-day Rick Steves tour was bookended with four days at the start and four days at the end with friends who spoke mainly Turkish. Of course, that was the best part of the trip.
April 27: AFRICAN ANIMALS AND AIDS
In October 2011, Ranny Eckstrom and Meredith Nelson traveled to Mozambique to visit Meredith's niece, the director of that country's AIDS program. While there, they travelled with her family to Kruger National Park in South Africa and Swaziland to photograph many exotic animals and learn about the countries and their struggle with AIDS.
May 4: TAJ AND GODDESS BUT NO TIGER
In January of this year, Terry Moss traveled to India. Some of the many highlights were experiencing life in a small village, viewing the spectacular Taj Mahal and joining in on festivities to say good night to the Goddess of the Ganges River (the river of life). The only disappointment was missing seeing a tiger in the wild by five minutes!