Along with the tips for how to be a traveler that China would like to have back, the Hilton Hotels' be hospitableTraveler section also has a fun, interactive page that will give you a Chinese name. This is another way the hotel chain is helping people gear up for the Olympics in Beijing through its "be hospitable traveler" campaign.

It's simple. Fill in the boxes with your first name, last name, birth date-including year of birth, plus the quality you would like to bring to you, such as, wealth, or good character and, you'll be given your Chinese name.

The Chinese characters, the English spelling, and the meaning of your name are provided almost as soon as you hit the send button.

As the site points out, this is merely for fun. Acquiring an authentic Chinese name involves a more detailed process. Still, this is one way to while away some time.

The name I was given by the web site, Ran (surname) Ji Mao (first name) is sort of close to what my name was when I lived in Taiwan.

I was given a Chinese name where I worked in order to get paid.

In case you're wondering. Ji means: skill, ability, talent, and ingenuity. Mao means: thick, lush, dense and talented.

Dense?! Well, kind of.

Here is the link to the page that will give you your name. And here's a link to an article that lists the top 10 lucky symbols. The one in the picture means "blessing, good fortune and good luck."

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If you happen to be near Helena, Montana, here's an option for an outing you probably can't find in your own back yard. I wouldn't have known about it myself if I hadn't picked up Section D of today's The Montana Standard this morning while staying at my friend's house in Butte.

The article on The Last Chance Ranch caught my attention. The ranch offers an old-fashioned wagon ride through the forest to dinner in one of two tipis. The dinner, a home-style cooked prime rib feast, includes a performance by Bruce Anfinson who is well known in these parts as the Charlie Russell of music. Charlie Russell was a western style artist whose work now fetches thousands of thousands of dollars. I mean thousands.

Anfinson says that he aims to give people a slice of the real Montana that he loves. Songs reflect Montana history and culinary traditions. Expect huckleberries. The ranch, now owned by Anfinson, is 102 years old, and according to the article, this is a well-worth it western experience.

Here's the Web site link for the ranch with info about how to register for the dinner.

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One of the best things a person can do before traveling to a new country is to find out cultural norms in order to know how to be polite. It's a great way to make friends, get the best prices when bargaining, and to not create a situation where someone is mad at you because you've made a faux pas without realizing it.

Jim Wells at behospitable traveler.com of the Hilton Hotels hooked us into travel tips to help Americans (or anyone else for that matter) know how to behave when heading to China for the Olympic games.

This is part of the Hilton Hotels' campaign to help people be the stellar travelers we love to love. Hilton Hotels is one of the sponsors of the games and have been getting involved big time. (No, I'm not being paid to say that, it's just an observation.)

Whether you're one of the athletes or a couch potato, follow these tips and you'll leave China happy and the Chinese will be happy to have had you as a visitor.

The tips are presented by athletes in videos and print form. These are a good read whether you are going to China or not since they offer a glimpse into the Chinese value system. From this link, click on the hospitableTraveler: A call to Act box. This will lead you the tips. Click on the learn more tabs to "Thoughtfulness," "Character" and "Awareness." If you have problems accessing that link, try this one. Under the heading "Dining," you'll even find rules for using chopstick rules.

There is also a link to helpful Mandarin phrases like "Where is the bathroom?" When I was in Beijing, I used the bathroom at McDonald's several times. I bet that by the time the Olympics start, Beijing will be flush in Western style toilets.

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If you've ever wondered exactly how Jelly Belly jelly beans are made, you can do more than just watch candy being made through observation windows. The Jelly Belly Candy Company in Fairfield, California has opened its doors for exclusive tours called Jelly Belly University Tours. The tours are reservation only and cost a pretty penny.

For $47 you'll get to don a white coat, gloves and a hairnet for a personal tour through the actual factory. Reading about this reminded me a bit of Willy Wonka, except when you taste the good stuff and the experience won't turn you into a blueberry, shrink you to a tiny size, or have you taken away by squirrels.

The reason why the tour is so expensive is that it's exclusive. Only six people are taken through at a time so you'll have an up close and personal experience while surrounded by the sweetness.

If you don't want to pay this kind of cash, you can still take the company's free factory tour but it doesn't give you that personal touch. Here's the link to factory tour information.

For anyone who loves Jelly Belly jelly beans, the store would be a blast. All those flavors. My son, though, would need some coaching beforehand, or he would go totally nuts with the excitement of seeing such splendor.

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When we pulled into the driveway of our friends' house in St. Cloud, Minnesota, as part of our Great American Road trip to Montana, we didn't have any plans except to visit. The last time we saw them was at our house in Columbus, and since then they had moved from State College, Pennsylvania to St. Cloud.

As with any visit, there's always something new to find out. about the town where friends land. People who live there know the insider info that may not show up in a guidebook. Such was the case when I found out were were having yak meat for dinner.

I've been to Nepal where yaks seem as common as cows. While there, I never had yak meat. As it turns out Hoopers' Christmas Tree Farm in Cold Spring, Minnesota has a herd of 60 or so yak making this the largest yak herd in the eastern part of the U.S. Who knew?

Our friends have toured the farm and loved it. John Hooper, the farm's owner has worked with The Yak Company in China as a consultant. While there, he lived with Tibetans and, as a result, acquired an interest in Tibetan culture. My friend says that the ranch reflects this exchange.

Hooper sells his yak meat at various farmers' markets in the area. We ate yak sausages, hot dogs and marinated meat. All quite delicious. Here's a link to the page that tells all about yak farming.

Photo of Hooper and one of his yaks is by Lucille Guinta-Bates who was kind enough to email it to me.

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• French baguette
• French cheese
• Bottle of French wine
• Bottle of Champagne
• Checkered picnic cloth
• Several savory French dishes

• Tri-colored clothing (come on, you have to have something left over from the 4th of July)
• Beret

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Every time John Ur covers a state via its cinematic hot spots in his series "Cinematic Road Trip" for Intelligent Travel, I look to see which movies I've seen and what spots I know. It's always a pleasure.

This week Ur hit Ohio. Ohio, as he found, is diverse. He did skip over Columbus. I'll have to think about a movie that may have been filmed there. Columbus is not dull, but can slide under ones radar. Cleveland, however is not easy to miss. Christmas Story, one of Cleveland's most well known films is one of my favorites and one that Ur covers.

Ur also hits Cincinnati. I am partial to Cincinnati since I grew up going here as a child and I know it well. However, I wasn't aware that parts of Traffic was filmed here. Or perhaps I noticed this and forgot.

I do know of a couple Ohio locations on the silver screen that Ur missed. One can't include everything, so this is no slight on Ur. He always does a fine job.

One movie is The Shawshank Redemption. The prison outside of Mansfield, the abandoned Ohio State Reformatory was one of the main locations. A friend of mine's father was one of the extras.

Another film with Ohio scenes is Rain Man. One of Cincinnati's most spectacular buildings, at least it's my favorite, is Union Terminal. Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise spent some time here while looking for alternative transportation to California. The murals you see in the background as they walked through were done as a WPA project. The building is now mostly a museum center.

Another shot in this film is when the pair are in a car going from Cincinnati across the Ohio River on the Roebling Bridge. The bridge, also known as "The Singing Bridge" because of the sound it makes when cars go across, leads to Covington, Kentucky.

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Although we head to Montana every summer, each year holds something different. Even if we travel on the same highway, we'll take in something new. This time, I found Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park in Mandan, North Dakota, a few miles from Bismarck.

This is a perfect place for brushing up on a history lesson and getting a sense of what life was like on the Great Plains back when the Mandan Indians and Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer lived here.

The Mandans lived between the deep ravine and the Missouri River from 1575-1781 prior to Lewis and Clark's arrival on the scene. Custer and his gang were later than that, but now, each part of history converges in the state run park.

Even though the fort was abandoned back in 1882, and the settlers took down many of the buildings for lumber, Custer's house, army barracks, a granary and the stable have been either refurbished or reconstructed. There are stone markers that show where the missing buildings used to be.

We were lucky enough to roll into the parking lot ten minutes before the 1:00 p.m. interpretive tour. The tour, conducted by a dashing fellow in period army uniform, centered mostly on the house, but included what life was like for everyone from the soldiers to Elizabeth "Libbie" Custer, Custer's wife.

She was living here when he died at the Battle of Little Big Horn. In case you're wondering, she moved back to Michigan where she was from and her family still lived. She never remarried, and died when she was 91.

In one of the reconstructed barracks, you can find out what they looked like way back when. The set up is exactly like it would have looked when it housed men who were from as far away as Ireland and Sweden.

One room includes footlocker style boxes similar to the ones actually used by members of the 7th Calvary. There is a sign on each one that states the name of the person, where he was from and where he died, if known. Several died with Custer. I saw one that died in the Battle of Wounded Knee. One guy was from Ulster County, New York which is where I lived from 8th grade through high school.

Along with the tour of the fort, admission includes a tour of On-A-Slant Indian village where the Mandans lived before most of them were wiped out by small pox. That's what the guide told us. There are five reconstructed earth lodges, each set up to tell about a different aspect of Mandan life.

Before this tour, I didn't know much about the Mandan Indians. The guide pointed out details about their farming practices, tools and beliefs. We didn't have much time in the museum because of our need to get back on the highway for the Billings leg of this trip.

I could have easily spent more time, but felt satisfied because of the information gathered from the tours.

If you do head this way, there is a campground at the state park, a concession stand and a café. The book shop and gift shop are well done.

I highly recommend this stop if you're traveling with kids. As I told my son, "When you read about this part of history in school, you'll have actually been to these places where the history happened." Not a bad idea for adults either.

For the four of us, admission and parking was $21. Our son was free because he is 6 years-old. Our daughter was the student rate, $4. My husband and I were $6 each and parking was $5. The $5 parking was actually the cost to get into the park. The tours cost extra. Spend the money.

You can't get into the buildings or to the Mandan village without paying for the tour.

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• a flu-like feeling
• fever
• headache
• joint ache
• nausea / vomiting
• swollen lymph nodes
• decreased appetite

• a sudden rise in temperature
• irritability
• restlessness
• extreme sweating
• a shock-like state
  
• bleeding may start to occur under the skin or in little pinpricks
• rash

• Wear light-colored clothing to cover up bare skin especially at dawn and dusk when the "skeeters" are more likely to be out looking for a meal
  
• Use repellent with 10% to 30% DEET (some people say this is worse for you...I say pick your poison. I'd rather take my chances with DEET than end up with a potentially life-threatening sickness)
  
• Pay attention to the climate as rainy season is mosquito breeding season
  
• Bring a mosquito net to protect yourself when sleeping
• Mosquito coils! These are the best if you find yourself in a room infested with mosquitoes. (There are health reports claiming these coils are dangerous to your health so protect yourself by ensuring good ventilation when you use them.)
• Some say taking Vitamin B will make you less attractive to these bloodsuckers but there is no scientific proof to back this up
  

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When I headed to the West Hollywood Book Fair last September, I didn't know which writers I would meet or what to expect. The scope of offerings was impressive, and one book in particular caught my eye. Sacred Places of the Goddesses: 101 Destinations pulled me in for a chat with the author, Karen Tate.

Tate, who lives with her husband, Roy in one of my most favorite towns, Venice, California, is a world traveler, tour guide and an expert on goddesses. She knows exactly where to see their traces and influences.

Her book--part travel guide, part spiritual guide and part chronicle of history, includes each section of the world. [See earlier post review.]

Since we chatted in the shade of her display booth, Tate has been busy launching her weekly Internet radio show "Voices of the Sacred Feminine" and promoting her new book, Walking an Ancient Path.

We talked on the phone last fall, and I've kept up with her various activities ever since. As a person with a lens focused on travel and spirituality, Tate offers a unique perspective about how one can experience the world.

You started out on your travels searching out places of the divine feminine after age 30. How do you think this may have influenced your traveling experiences?

It totally influenced my travel 120%. I began to have a very focused and single minded passion and ambition to visit the sacred sites of Goddess around the world, including the museums that house all her artifacts. . .The prominent place Goddess once held in the world cannot be denied when one sees her presence throughout history through the lens of sacred travel and the museums.

When visiting a site considered sacred, how can people enhance their own understanding of its significance and ability to feel its power? Are there techniques you use?

This is very subjective as we all "receive" awareness, guidance and understanding differently. Some people are visual, others are kinesthetic or auditory.

I encourage people to use what has worked for them. However, I think it is important to know a bit about the site and the deity that draws you to the site so there is some foundation - but it's very important to give equal attention to the left (academic) and right (intuitive) brain.

After you are armed with some knowledge, then you have to open your senses and try to feel, hear, sense what comes to you. It's important to sink in to the space and be present and there, a part of the site as much as possible.

Quiet contemplation works for some. Walking meditation for others. Sometimes I recommend to travelers if they're about to visit a special site the next day, take a ritual bath the night before, eat light, don't let yourself be distracted and above all, ask the Divine Source, by whatever name you identify that essence, what it is you should learn from the site. Then listen and don't judge the reply.

Finally, if you receive nothing profound. Don't put pressure on yourself. Sometimes your epiphany might arrive in a dream or days or weeks afterward the journey.

Of all the places you've traveled which gave you the "Wow!" feeling the most? The kind of feeling that makes your heart beat faster-or where you want to sit down to soak in the aura.

I was very moved by Ireland and Turkey - which was a surprise because I've always had an affinity for Isis and Egypt. Being in the countryside of Ireland, among the green meadows and standing stones, I felt as if I were one with Nature and totally inspired to revel in her majesty, dance among the stones, and feel the magic of the land.

In Turkey, particularly in Aphrodiasias, sacred to the Goddess Aphrodite, I was in awe as I stood in the valley, her temple before me, the snow-capped mountains on either side of me, and I truly felt embraced in the loving arms of the Mother.

I still get the feeling of hair standing on end on my arms and neck thinking about that awareness of her essence that I sense when I was there. It was truly remarkable and it's these glimpses that we get that make the travel worthwhile and can be catalysts for transformation in our lives.

When you travel, what techniques do you use or questions do you ask in order to better understand how people see the world and their sense of themselves? Is there a commonality that strikes you?

I definitely have an open mind when I travel. And I encourage Americans to do the same. We can go to other countries and realize that these people are part of our human family. They may look different, sound different, do things differently but they are all a microcosm of the macrocosm.

We all are. We begin to see them as people - instead of being "other". We see their value and what diversity they add to the world. I think it appropriately mellows out American hubris. And I always encourage those I take along on my travels to consider themselves Ambassadors of their country, spirituality, or gender. And smile and laugh a lot. Those are always great ice breakers.

Ever since you've started your travels, talking, and writing about the divine, how has people's interest in the subject changed and why do you think this is?

I think there is a resurgent interest in the Divine Feminine, Sacred Feminine, Feminine Consciousness, Goddess -- by whatever name you want to call her or her essence and ideals. Books and films such as The DaVinci Code sparked dialog helping people realize there is more to history than they originally believed.

If someone is going to a country such as India that is filled with so many sites considered divine, how would you suggest choosing between them? What criterion do you use?

I always tell people to look inside and see what they hope to achieve from the journey. You have to take the time to research destinations ahead of time so that you know what will fit into your itinerary and so that you'll you see the places that will be most meaningful to you. I'd research itineraries for six months or more. Don't leave the planning until when you get there.

Make sure the museums are open on the day you're there. Leave yourself time to be at the sites you feel most called to visit. Spend as much quiet time in these locales as you can.

Is there a particular treasure you've picked up along your travels that has particular meaning for you? What is it, and how did you come to get it?

I'm a collector of Goddess imagery and my most significant and precious statue is that of Aphrodite from Aphrodiasias in Turkey. Her image is not the typical image we see of Aphrodite that reflects the work of the artist Botticelli, naked and emerging from a shell.

Instead we see a more authentic image of Aphrodite, with Anatolian flavor, where she's wearing a crown that reflects the walls of the city as a symbol of her being protector of the people.

Her torso is filled with images of animals, symbolic of her being Mistress of the Animals. This image shows the full power and majesty of Aphrodite, rather than her much more shallow personae as just a goddess of love and beauty. [the photo is an example, not Tate's.]

Since spirituality is one of the themes of your life, how do you stay focused and grounded when you travel?

You have to strike a balance between taking care of the mundane and linear issues, like getting from points A to B, and then be able to shift gears and put on your receptive and intuitive hat when you arrive at a sacred place.

I guess it's not unlike how we have to live our lives - always trying to avoid chaos by balancing the left and right brain, the masculine and feminine aspect of ourselves, embracing the ideals of Goddess and God.

If someone could only go to three sites of the Divine Feminine, which three sites would you recommend?

This is very personal depending on ones ancestry, their spiritual calling and their personal interests.

If I could rephrase the sentence and say of all the places I've been, which three were the most important or potent for me, I'd say feeling the living essence of Goddess in the countryside of Ireland, in Aphrodiasias, Turkey, and in the Sekhmet Temple of Karnak in Egypt.

However, that being said, you would then miss all the wonderful sites such as Knossos on Crete, the temples on the island of Delos in the Mediterranean, the Isis Temple in Philae, Egypt, the sacred Bath of Sulis Minerva in England, the wonders of India, the temples in Japan.

I think you get my point. There are so many sacred places of Goddess that span so many cultures and continents. I think a very important point that this raises is the diversity of Goddess worship that stands as a testament to Her nature of diversity and inclusiveness - two qualities many of us could certain stand to embrace, which might enhance life on our planet.

**To see Karen Tate or take part in one of the events she organizes, here is the list of upcoming dates. There are several. In October, Karen is leading at Sacred Sites trip to Turkey.

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When a friend and I headed to Denise's Homemade Ice-Cream in the Clintonville area of Columbus for a bit of ice-cream research, we found out that ice-cream is kind of like a horoscope. The flavor you order tells something about who you are.

"What flavor is the favorite?" my friend asked the guy behind the counter who had his scoop ready.

"For women your age, Salty Carmel," he said. (Our age is the above 30)

"What about not our age? And not necessarily women?"

"That depends. . ." He began ticking off categories, and assigned flavors to particular groups. It was clear that he is a people studier, and has learned a few things from his observations as he has scooped away.

"All men like nuts. Any kind of nuts. Butter pecan. African American men in particular like Butter pecan. Not Pistachio, though, except for Middle Eastern men. They like Pistachio--and Mango."

"Kids like Vanilla, Strawberry and Chocolate--and Blueberry."

Teenage girls? Thin mint chip.

Women in their twenties? Chocolate fudge brownie.

Asians like the Green tea.

He said that all this might sound like profiling, but that's not what he means. People pick ice-cream flavors based on tastes that are familiar to their cultures--and what they last ate.

When people are standing before him, undecided, he'll ask them what they ate last to help them pick a flavor. Not all flavors are chasers for all foods. We didn't ask him for this list. That's our next lesson.

As for me, I had the Tiramisu. I usually pick Rum raisin, but the woman working with him said that the Tiramisu is her favorite flavor that has alcohol.

My friend had Peanut butter chip, although she also tasted White Gold, Sweet corn and Cucumber and pronounced each of them delicious. I had already plowed into my flavor choice while she was still deciding.

Of course, not all people pick according to their particular categories, these are generalizations, but I thought about how my 6-year-old son's choice of flavors like Bubble gum and Cotton candy don't appeal to me in the least.

Two days ago, I did buy a Dreamsicle from the ice-cream truck that dings through our neighborhood for nostagia's sake. I loved them when I was a kid.

Here's a link to MakeIceCream.com that lists the 15 most popular flavors. Vanilla has 11% points over the next popular flavor, Chocolate.

By the way, I highly recommend Denise's. Located on North High Street. This is gourmet ice-cream with a capital G. There's also free WiFi, so while you're savoring ice-cream, you can surf.

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When Aaron asked in his post for "Words English needs but doesn't have," I thought of a Wolof word to add to the list, but I don't know how to spell it. enday san? n'day san?

The word is used for expressing sympathy, but much more than an "I'm sorry." It's like a combination between "I'm sorry," "I feel for you," and "That's too bad."

It's a good for tossing around if someone stubs his or her toe or loses his or her life's fortune.

I don't know how to spell it because when I was learning Wolof as a Peace Corps volunteer in The Gambia, Wolof was mostly an oral language and not widely written. Therefore, the two Wolof language trainers had their own versions of spelling and kept harping at those of us learning Wolof to listen instead of whining, "We're Americans. We're visual learners. Write it on the board."

I still know what the word listen is in Wolof, but I don't know how to spell that either.

Most of the Wolof I know, I never saw in a written format. I added vocabulary and phrasing over my two years of service by asking questions, writing words the way I thought they sounded and paying attention to context clues.

As a health education volunteer, I mostly learned health related conversations. I can whip out the "road to good health" talk on cue, but as for writing it down correctly, forget about it.

When Aaron asked for the word list, I did a Google search to see if I'd find some answers. Although I didn't find n'day san, or whatever it is, I did find this online course for learning Wolof.

Wolof, spoken in The Gambia, Senegal and Mauritania, is grammatically easy and flexible. There's one section of the Web site with audio samples. If you can pick up a few words, you'll so delight vendors that you'll be able to bargain like a champ.

What is one of the most important words to learn? Jërejëf "Thank-you." That is the correct spelling. I learned it from the Web site. Click on the word to hear how it sounds.

For those of you who find books handy, the one in the picture is one I came across in my search. Here's the link with the description.

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For those in search of that little extra umph when they travel--the something more that connects them to self or something bigger than they are, sacred place travel can offer a sense of purpose. Traveling with a contemplative eye can move one deeper into an experience.

Here is a book that offers up sacred places to visit with a twist. In Sacred Places of Goddess, 108 Destinations, author Karen Tate, presents the history of goddess worship, the role of the Divine Feminine around the world, the significance of each particular goddess, and how do you get to the places where you can experience their influence. This is part travel guide, part history lesson, part cultural analysis, --and more. Much more.

Whether it's a sacred, spiritual boost you're after, or just an unusual way to look at the places you are wandering though, here's a book to consider.

Tate's book caught my eye when I was wandering around the West Hollywood Book Festival last September. With spiritual travel showing up on the radar lately, I wanted to point this one out as a fascinating read that presents sites and information you may not come across otherwise.

Divided into sections by continents and countries, the book delves into the archaeological, sociological and historical significance of particular places and their goddess connection. Sites include: grottoes, churches, temples, ruins, particular statues or artwork of note.

Remember Hera, Aphrodite, Athena, Persephone? You'll hook up with them in Greece. Hera's Temple, for example, is in the town of Pythagorian. Tate tells you how to get to these goddess oriented spots, as well as, what it's like to go there.

"As one travels over the blue-green sea from Mykonos toward Delos, the gentle rocking of the boat and the island ahead growing ever closer becomes a trance-like journey taking visitors from the mundane world into the sacred."

Delos, Tate points out, is referred to in Homer's, The Odyssey, and is thought to be where Apollo and Artemis were born when Leto, their mother, was hiding from Hera, Zeus's wife. On Delos, you'll find a statue of the Greek goddess Isis, in addition to many temples that honor other goddesses.

If Ireland or Italy are in your future, you can also connect with Isis there. In Egypt, visiting Isis sites is a given.

Tate's book connects the sacred places through their goddess similarities to make clear the relationship these places have with each other. No matter which section of the world you are traveling, there's a goddess along the path.

Places include the well known to the obscure. For anyone with a hankering to go off the beaten track, here's an option.

Throughout the book, photos, drawings and maps highlight particular places and artifacts. Tate also offers suggestions on how to maximize sacred place travel experiences and offers her thoughts about how these places fit into the framework of modern times. The current day perceptions towards women are woven throughout. In Tate's' view, history has an influence over the present.

For armchair travelers, or anyone interested in delving further into the subject of the goddess--whether from a historical, cultural or spiritual perspective, Sacred Places of Goddess is a read guaranteed to teach you a few things you probably didn't know.

For travelers, "It's enough to amplify the spiritual wanderlust of even the most ardent sojourner." --Yoga Journal.

Check out this write-up in The Goddess Pages for an in depth review.

Look for a "Talking Travel with Karen Tate" post in the near future.

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"This button is from the coat of a Confederate soldier--or a Union soldier" is something one might hear at a Civil War relic trade show and sale.

Or perhaps you might hear this at county historical society museum. Civil War relics are often among those items passed down through generations. At a museum, they are displayed in a case for everyone to enjoy instead of being tucked in a box in a bedroom closet.

Guns, cannonballs, swords, bullets, uniforms--if it's from the Civil War, and you have it, someone wants it. Increasingly, that's what the U.S. National Park Service is finding out. Yesterday there was a story on NPR about the looting problem in National Parks. People loot the parks then sell their catch to collectors.

Here's a case in point. At the Fredericksburgh & Spotsylvania National Military Park, a ranger found 467 holes dug in the ground where a battle took place when the Union soldiers led by Grant tried to flank the Confederates.

When the guys who were doing the looting were caught, they had 200 relics with them. Naughty guys.

Although digging holes in national property to steal loot seems like an obvious wrong, there are some who think, dig away. I'm pretty sure those who are pro digging think that digging should be more methodically conducted than destroying the land. They don't think that relics should be left underground to rot away forever.

Those who say dig it up believe that if the relics are removed, they can be displayed and preserved for everyone to learn from and enjoy. The National Park Service, at least the ranger interviewed in the story, disagrees with the dig it up mentality. He believes the relics belong where they are since they are part of the battlefield, thus part of history as is.

Regardless of the ranger's desires, it is hard to stop looters in National Parks because there is only one ranger per every 56,000 acres. This means that treasures like petroglyphs, plants and other relics are also in danger of being taken.

Personally, I'm intrigued that under the ground of Civil War battlefields there are still buttons that soldiers once wore. It makes their presence seem more real. [To listen to NPR story, click here.]

By the way, all relics you see are not stolen. This is a problem with some relics.

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Two summers ago my son was wild about cicadas. They were everywhere, and each time he found one of their shells he put it in an empty bottle. His exuberance was the type only four-year-olds can generate

There's a museum in New Orleans with his name on it. Not literally, the museum is called Audubon Insectarium, but it's the kind he would LOVE. This museum is the first new tourist attraction to open since Katrina changed the landscape of much of the city and is part of Audubon Nature Institute. I found out about it through this article in the Columbus Dispatch.

The landscape inside the Audubon Insectarium is bugs, bugs and more bugs--35,000 live ones and 15,000 mounted ones--or thereabouts. As people go from exhibit to exhibit, they learn about bugs from prehistoric times through today.

Built in the historic U.S. Custom House, the museum offers entertainment and creativity in how it displays its subject matter. For example, you can get an idea of what a bug's world looks like through reconstructed tunnels that puts you in the bug's perspective. Outside the bathrooms, you can see dung beetles roll waste into balls. In case you're wondering-it's not the waste from the bathroom. There's also a chance to test your mettle against a cricket's power. Can you pedal as fast as a cricket can hop?

Another exhibit is devoted to showing what insects people eat around the world and how they are cooked. That sounds like an exhibit Andrew Zimmern of Bizarre Foods would swoon over. If you want to try an insect yourself, you can try some edible bug snacks. I've had chocolate covered grasshoppers before. The closest thing I can think of is Nestle Crunch bars.

Also, there is a section about pest control management and a live butterfly exhibit among other offerings.

Lest you think getting rid of all insects but the pretty kind, one of the main points the museum makes is that if it weren't for bugs, nothing else would live. Remember the lyrics to the song, "There was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly?" It's kind of like that.

There's Breakfast with the Bugs on July 12. Notice it's with the bugs, not eating bugs.

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Right after I posted about the Jesus Trail in Israel that meanders for 40 miles through the land where Jesus walked, I received my daily missive from Intelligent Travel. There was the post "What would Jesus eat?" Now, that's a pairing combo--eating and walking.

Travel writer, Andrew Evans just returned from Israel armed with details on food that have a biblical basis. While you're walking along the path that Jesus might have wandered, pop into the eateries he suggests and you'll have some mighty fine meals.

Evans tells which restaurants serve what and gives a bit of a background history of some of the foods, many that date back to the time of Jesus or earlier.

Eucalyptus is in Jerusalem and Muscat Restaunt and The Organic Kitchen are at the Mizpe Hayamim Health Resort overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

Here are some of the foods Evans mentions eating, although some of them are from markets he visited along the way:

• yellow lentil soup with hyssop
• lamb braised with pomegranate
• tilapia with lemon butter sauce and baked vegetables
• sage tea (thought to cure jet lag)
• pumpkin-filled Bukharian pastry
• pickled green almonds,
• black Persian lemons
• Yemeni yogurt balls
• bread sprinkled with olive oil and herbs

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"Did you know that Kermit Love died?" I asked my brother two days ago. I called him when I read the news in The New York Times.

My brother was Kermit Love's apprentice years ago, not long after my brother moved to Manhattan to attend the School of Visual Arts. Kermit Love, the creator of Big Bird and Mr. Snuffleupagus, was also an artist in other venues.

Those were the days my brother and I sat out on the fire escape of the building where he sublet a room in someone's apartment one summer. One night when I was visiting him, we climbed out the window with our dinner to watch a ballet class in session in a dance studio across the street. The studio's windows were open so we could hear the music.

During that same visit, we dressed up in halfway decent clothes to head to Broadway about the time of intermission. In the summer back then, people spilled out onto the sidewalks for a smoke or something to drink. If the show wasn't sold out, it was possible to mingle with the crowd and head back in for the second half. All one needed to do was wait at the back of the orchestra seating to find the empty spots. Such were the tricks of broke college students.

At first, while working for Kermit, my brother earned a small sum for ironing Big Bird's feathers. Those feathers don't look fluffy all by themselves. Because Big Bird travels in various shows, there's more than one costume that needs refluffing.

Eventually, my brother graduated to larger, more complicated jobs. He and two other fellows reconstructed costumes based on Love's design for a Picasso exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art. As what happens with apprentices, they work behind the scenes without getting credit up front. It was cool to go to the exhibit, though, and see my brother's handiwork. Not long after, my brother moved on. But, not before I got my trip to Sesame Street.

My brother needed to deliver something--not feathers, something else, but I can't remember what. No matter. We went to the studio where the show was filmed. It has since changed locations to Kaufman Astoria Studios in Queens.

Sesame Street looked like Sesame Street. Happy.

Carroll Spinney, the guy who has played Big Bird for years was standing around in his Big Bird legs. The top of the costume comes off in between takes, you see. It's too hot to keep on.

Kermit Love smiled when I shook his hand. I'm sure we said, "Pleased to meet you"--or maybe not. It was a brief visit, but an awesome one that has stayed with me all these years. I connect Kermit Love to a time when my brother and I were younger and nervy enough to sneak into a Broadway show as if we belonged there.

Now, when I go to Broadway show, it's with a ticket that I've bought at TKTS, the discount ticket booth near Times Square.

My brother didn't know that Kermit Love had died and there was a wistful tone in his voice when he told me he may look to see if there is a memorial service. He is still in touch with a person who also knew Love back then.

As for visiting Sesame Street again, the studio doesn't do tours. The Studio Cafe is open to the public, though. If you head there for lunch, look for a guy with stripped legs and bird feet. You'll know who he is. Ask him who irons his feathers.

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• Hurry Up!
  This gesture, shown by rubbing the forefinger and thumb together, does not mean money in Mexico, it means you need to get moving!
  
• Expensive
  Holding the thumb and forefinger up with the back of the hand to the viewer indicates that something is expensive. You'll see husbands making this gesture to their wives in the markets or other shopping venues.
• Cheapskate
  If you are haggling with someone and you notice someone else nearby tapping their bent elbow consider yourself insulted. Tapping on the elbow means "stingy" or "cheap" in Mexico.
  
• Cunning
  You should watch out for someone who is "colmilludo", which loosely translates to cunning or crafty. This is indicated by tapping one's eyeteeth which are called "colmillos" in Spanish. This gesture refers to someone that is always looking out for himself. Iker told us that it is used both positively and negatively it just depends on the context -- but I got the feeling that this is rarely used as a compliment.
  
• Asshole
  Yup...the one gesture you need to know the most since it resembles the Western "OK" sign. It is formed by touching the thumb and forefinger together creating a very small circle. This is extremely rude and never used to someone's face. See the gallery below to check out our friend Iker who kindly modeled all the gestures for us...even the rude ones.
  
• OK
  As mentioned above the "OK" sign is the same here as at home. Just make sure that circle you make isn't too small!
  
• Lazy
  The gesture for lazy is a cupped palm facing upwards, like you are holding something heavy. One or both hands can be used in this gesture. This is highly inappropriate because it refers to lifting "huevos" (which is Mexican slang for testicles). Basically the meaning behind this gesture is that the owner's "balls" are so big and heavy that he can't get up!
  
• What's up?
  People will greet you with this gesture which is often just tilting the chin up or tilting the chin up with palms upturned and a shrug. It means "What's happening?" but you will also see it used as a general greeting. I have found even the youngest kids know this gesture and use it in replace of a verbal greeting.

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