DR. Romance Blog

Cultural musings

We're having a great time on the cruise.  Today, we're in Loreto, Mexico, and it's a beautiful little town, very picturesque.  Richard and I took a "time out" from the larger group, slept in a bit, and went into the town later on our own, took a ride in a horse-drawn cart, and visited Nuestra Señora de Loreto the oldest mission church (16th Century) in all of California.  It was lovely, and I noticed that the emphasis on Jesus' suffering was not as evident there, as in other Mexican churches.  The church in Topolobampo showed close-ups of Jesus' wounds in the stations of the cross, but in Loreto, the emphasis was on his rising to heaven.  There was no depiction of him on the cross, only rising above it.  As I am not Catholic, this has only historical and artistic significance to me. But, it was such a profound difference it caught my attention.  I know faith becomes really important during times of suffering, so the suffering of saviors from Promethius to Bhudda to Jesus is comforting to others going through pain, but I like to see the focus on the more positive aspects -- the release from suffering.

Dr. Romance has been having a great time people-watching and culture-watching on this trip.  One lady today, commenting on the town, said "it's not too touristy" which is amusing, since she's the very sort of tourist she's complaining about.  Ah irony, how pleasurable you can be.  Travel can be very useful as a new viewpoint from which to look at yourself, as well as to get a reality check on the world.  The people always seem to find a way to make their lives work, no matter how crazy the governments, the churches, or the media get.  In Israel, in 1988, this was evident at a border checkpoint between Israel and Palestine.  You can read about that in "Getting Along With Each Other"  if you're interested.

In the meantime, what have you learned from your travels?

Sailing, Sailing

I'm posting this aboard the Holland America Ryndam, heading around the tip of Baja California, on the way to Puerto Vallarta.  The 10 of us traveling together are all connected by the newlyweds, Mitch and Jackie.  As Mitch's father's wife put it, our group consists of the newly weds, his parents, two stepmothers, two stepfathers, and the bride's parents.  I'm one of the stepmothers.  Our group is amazingly congenial.  My husband (who was married to Mitch's mother, helped to raise Mitch, and has been married to me for the last  25 years) and I have been close to Mitch's mom and her current husband for the whole 25 years, and we've seen Mitch's dad and his wife on occasion, and we spent three weeks in Thailand with Jackie's mom and dad last June, after the wedding.  So, I guess that means we're a modern family.  Although we all had a bit of trepidation before starting on this trip, we've been having a great time together, dancing every night before dinner, eating most meals together, and bumping into each other in all sorts of activities.  Tomorrow is our first port, Puerto Vallarta, and we're going to hire a van and driver for a city tour and then go to Richard's and my favorite restaurant, La Palapa, right on the beach, for lunch. 

Dr. Romance is fascinated by all the connections.  Mitch's mom, for example, is here with two ex-husbands and her current spouse.  Mitch has to deal with six parents, and Jackie is the bridge between her mother, who only speaks a little English, and the rest of the group.  Still, with goodwill and a desire to get along, all of it can work.  Dr. Romance calls this a "Family of the Heart"

I grew up in a small upstate NY town where everyone stayed together forever.  It's a brave new world now, and we all have to make it up as we go along.  We're having happy travels.  How about you?