The Hiwassee Meeting House in Reliance, Tennessee

My cousin, his wife, and I spent the day driving around in the Cherokee National Forest. We came upon The Hiwassee Meeting House. As we drove up to the building there was a woman standing on the porch and she was getting ready to open the door.  I grabbed my camera and ran up the steps.  When I came to the door, I asked the woman if we could take a look inside. She said that we could.  It was our lucky day. 

The Hiwassee Meeting House dates back to 1899 and is located along the bank of the Hiwassee River in Polk County, Reliance, TN.  It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Reliance Historic District.

 Here is the text of the historic marker provided by the Southeast Tennessee Tourism Association from their Religious Heritage Trail:

Erected about 1899 through the joint effort of the Hiwassee Union Missionary Baptist Church and the local Masonic Lodge, this two-story, frame structure served as a multi-use community building. The upper floor was for Lodge meetings while the first floor served as the church meeting hall. The first floor was also used as a schoolhouse for a brief time. 

Originally the first floor had a full front porch. The porch was enclosed in 1927 when the church added two small meeting rooms, leaving a narrow entry way into the main hall. The church and the lodge moved to new facilities less than one mile to the east on Highway 30. 

It was founded on October 8, 1848 as Hiwassee Union Baptist, and then in 1859 as Sweetwater Baptist Association. In 1861 the Ocoee Baptist Association was formed, so they asked to be released from Sweetwater's Association and joined the Ocoee Baptist Association. Hiwassee Union Baptist went on the join Eastanallee Baptist Association in 1871 and finally it joined the Polk Baptist Association in 1921.

I have never seen a building held up with stacked rocks like this before. The whole thing was fascinating to me.

A lot of questions went through my mind as I wandered outside of this old building. How in the world does it keep from blowing over in a gust of wind?  What keeps those rocks firmly in place?  On and on the questions rolled through my mind. I will never know the answer.

They have weddings and special occasions here and I believe one can rent a house a little bit down the road from the Meeting House.  Tennessee is an amazing place to visit and I would recommend that you visit at least once in your life.  You will enjoy the all of the spectacular views. 

Chasing Lighthouses

What better way to start the new year than by going on an adventure. Michigan's coasts are filled with lighthouses. So, a friend and I headed out on Friday afternoon for a mini holiday. January is not the greatest time of year to visit the beach but we didn't care about that. We piled on warm clothes and took a trip into the north country where snow is abundant and the Northerners aren't afraid of the weather. 

The first lighthouse that we visited was the Petite Point au Sable Lighthouse at Silver Lake State Park, near Mears, Michigan.  The blue skies accentuated the beauty of this brick lighthouse. 

Following the loss of the schooner called Pride in 1871, the government approved funding for the lighthouse in 1872 and construction began shortly thereafter. The first keeper of the lighthouse was James Davenport of Mackinac Island who lived in the keepers house built next to the lighthouse from 1873-1879. In 1899, the lighthouse was painted white so that it could be seen easily, but in the 1970's it was restored to its original brick.  Later the house was torn down but the lighthouse remained. 

My friend climbed the dune and was able to get a lovely view of the area.  The dunes were covered with snow and they were slick, so I stayed on the beach. 

When she climbed to the top, my friend discovered that the only way down was on her bum, so she slid gracefully to the bottom. 

  

We then traveled south to Grand Haven and happened to see a large boat in the harbor.  I tried very hard to catch up with it but was only able to see if from a distance. It still amazes me that something that large can float. The lighthouse was built in 1839. At night, it is lit up with lights marking the entrance of the Grand River. (It was here that I fell more than I walked along the pier the night before)

  As the day progressed, we decided to stay until sunset. 

I had never seen the sun go down near a large body of water and was anxious to witness the event. The wind was blowing at a surmountable speed and the temperature was felt far below what it actually was. Thirty minutes felt like forever in the wind and our lower extremities felt the cold more than our upper parts. 

The photographers lined up to see the show. Even Mickey Mouse wanted to have a look. (We counted 17 photographers) 

Then slowly the sun faded into the horizon, only to repeat again the next day. 

At the end of our adventure, I realized how special it was that two sets of footprints in the sand are much better than one, no matter where you are or what you are doing. "Experience is much better than the material things one can buy on adventures." She told me. Except when one needs hiking boots in order to be able to walk. The experience was priceless. 

Traverse City, Michigan and Autumn

Last week, when I arrived in Michigan it was cold and raining.  Snow was predicted for that evening.

As I emerged from my hotel room, I was greeted with crisp air, sunshine, and fluffy clouds.

I walked on the beach for a while, trying to take it all in.

Then I went for a long drive.

The landscape was filled with amazing color.

This is pure Michigan.

Eritrea: Where in the World is it?

Have you ever heard of Eritrea?  I haven't either if you are one us poor Americans who didn't pay attention in Geography class.  It is in Africa, located in the horn of Africa to be exact. Asmara is the capital of this tiny country and the largest city in Eritrea with beautiful Italian-style architecture and fascinating historical sites for sightseeing. Asmara has breathtaking scenery and excellent opportunities for trekking. It is also the only place to visit in Eritrea that does not require a travel permit to travel in. Islam is the primary religion along with Eritrean Orthodox and Roman Catholicism.  There are about 650,000 people that inhabit this small country and only 59 % are literate. 


Street Scene in Asmara


The desert areas along the coast of the Red Sea is hot and dry. The highlands have a Mediterranean-style climate. The best time to visit Eritrea is from October to March when the weather in Eritrea is dry and pleasant. 


Wedding in Eritrea

Eritrea has been inhabited for at least 8,000 years by African tribes that had strong trading relations with the neighboring areas. Eritrea is a former Italian colony and the Eritrean culture, cuisine and architecture has been influenced by the Italian culture.


A house in Asmara

Colonized by Italy in 1890, Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, after a 30-year struggle of independence from the Ethiopian rule. The traditional Eritrean way of life can be experienced in the tribal villages where people live by farming and herding.  Isn't this the best way to get to know a country by visiting the country folk? 

I am currently reading a book called, The Consequences of Love by Sulaiman Addonia who is from Eritrea and I will be giving a book review very soon. 

Oh just quit your job and travel: Kien Lam did.

Can you imagine being able to quit your job and travel for a year?  A photographer by the name of Kien Lam did just that.  He travelled to 17 different countries during the span of a year.  As I write this I am thinking of places that I would like to visit. He went to: USA, England, France, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Bolivia,  and Peru. He stayed in hostels, slept under the stars, on a bus, and various other places. 



He took over 6000 photographs and then made this video. If you could do something like this, where would you go?  Enjoy the beautiful scenery.

Chicago and Strange People

I live about a three hour drive from Chicago.  It is such a treat to go there. 

We saw a wonderful clock

Strange looking apartment buildings

Peaceful walkways with a good friend

A lovely view of the skyscrapers...

and silver people

   

not just one

 They were everywhere.