Jack King (Computations, 1988) is back after five glorious weeks in China. He taught English at the Huazhong University of Science and Technology during their summer session.  The experience was everything he had hoped it would be.  He found the people very friendly and the students very anxious to learn and being grad students they were sharp.  He thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of the trip.  The teaching was especially rewarding.  The University offered weekend tours in and about the city of Wuhan (the home of HUST) - a city of 8 million.  Before going to Wuhan he did a tour of Beijing and all its attractions and the Great Wall before heading to Xi'an to see the Terra Cotta Warriors.  Then it was on to Wuhan and the University for the teaching assignment.  After the summer session he did the Yangtze River cruise - 5 days of total relaxation.  The big dam site and the Three Gorges (with the side trips) were extremely interesting.   

The weather left a little to be desired - he described it as Iowa in July - hot and humid.  Once they got on the river it was very pleasant, however.  The Yangtze River is BIG and he means BIG.  It's hard to imagine 30 million people who once lived on the river's edge are being relocated.  All thru China there are mammoth building projects.  The contrast between the old and new is unbelievable; of course the whole country is a country of contrasts.  The new buildings are beautifully designed - this was probably his biggest surprise.  He’s not sure what he expected, but so many architecturally pleasing buildings was a surprise.

The HUST campus is under a major building program as well.  New housing for faculty seems to dominate the building.  Student housing is the pits, however.  No heat, no air conditioning, no hot water, and no elevators.  But they do have about 40,000 bikes.  There are 50,000 students and because of the size of the campus, each has a bike or a motor bike of some sort.  How they keep track of whose bike is who's is a real mystery.  Each entering freshman is required to take the first 30 days of campus life doing military training.  If there are 50,000 students you can assume at least 10,000 are freshman and he believed this because of the long lines of what looked like new recruits trying to march - all in the military green.  The visiting faculty housing was more than adequate:  All the amenities of home with maid service.  Most of their food was taken in the student cafeteria (and all the food there is Chinese and he’s not sure what they ate), but on some occasions he would venture to one of the two restaurants on campus - restaurants with menus in English but limited English food.

It was truly a delightful experience and one that he would do again.  If he is invited next year, he’ll be there in a heart beat. 

For any that are interested in this program, they can contact me or visit the Teach For Friendship web site.    Jack’s E-mail: meade-king@juno.com

Visit to Turkey, September 21 to October 5, 2005

Harold Pfeifer (EPD, 1993) and Jan recently returned from a 14 day, Insight Tour, with 34 other personable tourists to Turkey. The trip started in Istanbul, and for the next two weeks we were introduced to the Treasures of Turkey. Our Tour Guide (fluent in English, Spanish, and Turkish) held a degree in History and an MS in Ancient Religions; hence, all the towns, ruins, museums, mosques, monuments, and craft areas (rugs, pottery, leather) we visited, took on special meanings through his narratives. Most religions were started, developed, disappeared, and continue, in Turkey. Highlights included: Boat trip on the Bosphorous to see Ottoman Palaces and the two magnificent highway bridges connecting Europe with Asia. In Ankara (Capital) we visited the Hittite Museum and Anit Kabir, the mausoleum of Ataturk, Turkey's greatest leader in modern times. Scenic areas near Cappadocia include the volcanic landscapes and the "fairy chimneys." We were privileged to see a religious ceremony performed by the Whirling Dervishes. Nearby is the Zelve Valley where the scenery is dotted with caves and early dwellings and underground cities. We visited historic sites including Pergemon, Aspendos (the best preserved Roman theatre any where in the World), Hierapolis, Ephesus, and Troy. Comment: Ruins were carefully restored and remain in very good condition. After some 2400 miles, we returned to Istanbul to see the Blue Mosque, St. Sophia's Cathedral/Mosque, and the Topkapi Palace, a walled city perched above the Bosphorous and the Golden Horn. Truly a wonderful trip; he and Jan recommend a visit to Turkey.

Dick Hatfield (Engineering, 1993) and Sally Swanson had a fun two week, 4000 mile trip around the North central part of the U.S. in early September. After a photo-op stop in Livermore, Colorado (one store/cafe) they spent several days in Colorado Springs and Denver visiting friends and family. A cog train ride up Pikes Peak and an introduction to Coors products for Sally completed the Colorado visit. Southwest South Dakota was their next stop. This was beautiful country with the Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, and the in-progress Crazy Horse monument carving providing eye candy. A tour through Custer State Park provided close-up encounters with buffalo, antelope, and “begging” burros. Next they headed West and stopped at Spear Fish, South Dakota for a brief visit with long time Livermore and Lab friends Lee (Mechanical Engineering, 1990) and Della Dibley. Lee has finally finished restoring a 1935 Farmall tractor he actually operated when he was a teenager. Dick wouldn’t leave until Lee allowed him to drive it.

The western drive continued with short stops at Devils Tower and the Buffalo Bill museum in Cody, Wyoming. After 90 degree plus days for the first week, snow greeted them at the East entrance to Yellowstone National Park. Almost two days in Yellowstone gave plenty of time to enjoy all the sights. The scenic portion of the trip ended with a wonderful day in the Teton Mountains and a final rest in Jackson before heading home.

Evelyn Heald (Mechanical Engineering and Physics, 1993) and Joyce Brooks recently returned from a two-week tour of the New England States. They enjoyed the beautiful fall colors the first week. The tour group had just left New Hampshire when the rain and flooding started the second week

The trip was still enjoyable, but the rain did downplay the scenery at bit.  They had a good group of 42 people from all over:  Calif, Austraila, Scotland, East Coast, Colombia, Colorado, Wisconsin, Illinois, etc.   

When they pulled their suitcases from the airport baggage carousel, they were wet. First thought - oh no, more rain??? When they walked outside the terminal it was raining!  Anyway, they are both glad to be back in sunny California!

The November Retiree luncheon will be at noon Wednesday, November 16th, at the Elks Lodge, 940 Larkspur Drive, Livermore. Andrew Clark, manager of Health and Welfare at UC, will tell us about the "Latest Health Plan Changes". Retirees should have received their open enrollment packets in late October or early November. If you did not, contact the health care facilitator at the Lab., Janneta Jones at, 422-8726.

Please send any news or input (please include the date and department from which you retired) to Jane or Gus Olson. E-Mail: Jane@LLNLRetirees.org or Gus@LLNLRetirees.org. >

This is the unedited version of the Retirees’ Corner which runs in the Newsline, November 4th issue.