Daily Archives: June 25, 2011
Dragons and Centipedes . . .
After coffee and bagels about 10:30, we headed out about 1 pm with Nick and Terry to visit the World Kite Museum here in Long Beach, WA.
This somewhat-unassuming building houses one of the best kite collections in the world.
Starting with kites made from grass, leaves, and twigs,
to kites that look like wall hangings,
and even priceless tapestries, to
prehistoric reptiles,
dragons, or even
a Phoenix rising from the ashes.
This Phoenix kite has a 25 foot wingspan.
These centipede, or disc, kites have been around for over 1000 years and can have from 4 to hundreds of segments.
The fancier ones even have one or more dragon heads.
They even have kites that look like flying horses.
They also had a display of ‘working’ kites. These ‘barrage’ kites were flown over convoy ships during WWII to help protect them from attack. The piano wire tethers would shear off the wings of attacking planes.
And these kites tow kiteboarders through the water without needing a tow boat.
We spent almost two hours enjoying the museum with our guide, Kay, who gave us an excellent tour.
Nick and I even ending up buying kites of our own.
Leaving the museum, and after a quick stop at Marsh’s Free Museum to exchange a gift, we headed out to Cape Disappointment State Park, on the northern side of the entrance to the Columbia River.
We started out on the north jetty looking out over the Pacific Ocean.
From there we could look back at the bluff overlooking the channel.
Parking closer in, we found a neat lighthouse, and a beach with swimmers and boaters.
We also found a plaque that listed this beach as the place Lewis and Clark declared the end of their treacherous journey to reach the Pacific.
Now that’s history.
Deciding we were all hungry for Chinese, we headed over to Astoria to eat at the Golden Luck Restaurant, a place recommended to us by Bill Joyce and Diane Melde.
And they were right. Everyone really enjoyed it and decided it was a place we certainly want to come back to.
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Thought for the Day:
A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. – Robert A. Heinlein
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