I live four blocks from the beach and there, almost each night at Inspiration Point in Corona del Mar, a handful of nature lovers gather to watch the sunset. They are from a variety of national backgrounds: Polish, Iranian, Irish, and the usual mixtures, like me. But all Americans. Then on weekends like July 4, the mixture deepens. Languages are Spanish, Arabic, Russian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Farsi, and even a little English. But all are Americans.
My friend from Poland and I couldn’t find a place to sit today. We watched the kids play. We expressed our gratitude that all these people, who come on special days for the setting sun and cool evening breeze, are free to do so. It is a great place—America.
See more photos on the Photo Gallery on this site.
The Pelican is very poetic. I sometimes watch the sunsets from Inspiration Point on the Pacific here in Corona del Mar, California. On certain times of the year, like now, the pelicans soar in their lazy v-formation along the beach and bluffs, riding the uplifting breeze off the ocean. They soar and soar, seldom, it seems, flapping their huge wings. It is so poetic, so romantic.
Then when hungry, they glide over the water, high enough to see what’s for supper or lunch below the surface, then fold their wings and dive straight down to enter the ocean with their expectant long beak almost without a splash to catch that fish. And then up and off again, gliding a few inches off the ocean surface, hardly, it seems, ever flapping the wings.
Sometimes I notice that off the tail end of a winged formation is a loner, a bird that seems to be an individual, or an outcast. He moves from side to side and never gets in line with the others. Or maybe he had too much to eat. But, it is fun to watch. There is one in every flock—even human.
What a gorgeous and artistic sight to watch those winged creatures. Inspiration Point is where to be.
In my many world travels, I have never been to Kraków, an ancient city in southern Poland on the Vistula River and just north of the Tatra Mountains. I have been to Slovakia just 100 miles to the south, but not to this legendary city.
It has a history going back to the Stone Age, was a city in the 7th Century, was almost destroyed by the Mongols in the 1200s, and today the second largest Polish city after Warsaw and a major national economic, academic, and artistic center. It suffered under the Nazis and its Jews suffered the same deaths as elsewhere in Europe
Kraków is proud to be the home of the archbishop of Kraków, Karol Wojtyła, who became Pope John Paul II – the first Slavic pope, and the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. My friend Andy is from Kraków and we meet often down on Inspiration Point here in Corona del Mar and watch the sun set over The Pacific. He goes back every year to see if his home city is still there.
Yes, we should all someday go to this famous historic city, Kraków.
Tags: corona del mar, Jews, krakow, mongols, nazis, Poland, pope john paul II, stone age, tatra, Vistula
About Fred, history, Intercultural relations, Literature, Politics, The Arts, The writing process, Uncategorized, Walking on Ice | fred | 
April 6, 2011 6:59 am | 
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Ella and Sergey are from Rostov-on-Don and have been visiting me over the holidays, as they did last year. It is a pleasure to have them and they love Corona del Mar, California. I can agree with them on that Rostov is not the northern Russian city with its frigid winters and dark winter nights. It is in the far south of Russia and the gateway to Central Asia, the “—stans.” It is a cross-roads multicultural city on the Don River with a story going back a thousand years in Russian history.
Ella is a columnist for an impressive Russian entertainment magazine. To improve her English, she came to LA four years ago. Her English is great. Her writing is super and her knowledge of people broad and deep.
Sergey is a Rostov businessman and a newly elected representative to the Rostov Duma (parliament.) You can imagine the conversations we have had, on everything from Pushkin to politics. They are a young couple, about 35, and as such are vocal participants in that growing band of young and open-minded leaders who are changing things in Russia.
That line of demarcation between the old and the new I put at age 46 now. Every year it goes up of course. It will take a generation or two to have its full impact, but we have time.
Buy here “Walking on Ice, An American Businessman in Russia”
Tags: Central Asia, corona del mar, new russia, rostov-on-Don, russia, russian politics
About Fred, history, Intercultural relations, Politics, Russian Life, The Arts, The writing process, Uncategorized, Walking on Ice | fred | January 12, 2011 4:42 pm | Comments (0)
Many nights I walk to Inspiration Point overlooking the Pacific and sit on a concrete bench and watch the orange ball of sun setting over the ocean. Every night it is different. The small crew that meet there, men and some women, ages 40s to 90s, are from all over the US, a few from Iran, Poland, Prague, and some exotic place called New Jersey. Well traveled and conversant on many important topics, foreign and domestic, including the timing of the grunion run, we watch, like a bunch of Druids, the sun go down. I call them. “The Usual Suspects,” borrowing from the last lines of “Casablanca.”
It is a popular place for walkers with babies and all sorts of dogs, large and tiny. The languages heard include much of Europe, Asia, Russian, The Middle East, and even New York and Boston. Corona del Mar is a great place to live. So much is within walking distance, especially the ocean. It is, in its own way, a small village in a giant metropolis of Orange County and greater LA
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