BYLINES AND BYWAYS It is a working vacation, courtesy of our two kids, that took us away from the usual routine. Work for me is to achieve 3 writing assignments: the research and writing of the first century of Christianity in Mindanao which is to be read at the Philippine National Historical Society annual confab in Vigan in the 23rd of October; the second edition of A Fire on the Island that should incorporate the latest evidences as we near the 500 years of our Christianization in 2021; and a draft of a new work - The Caraga Heritage. In between the writing bouts is also a time to explore a foreign land and to learn a few essential things which might be useful for my community, for whatever it is worth. Viewing my homeland from a different lens, to see it from a distance and from a prism of another country, perhaps might afford me an insight that I could use back home. It is a third visit so that gives one a sense of familiarity of these places, but a far greater intimacy is afforded to our progeny as they carve out their own independent lives here. Some musings and reflections then as I pen my bylines, and as I trod the byways of another continent. A SLICE OF KENTUCKY 1. The Mammoth Cave Its a state I always wanted to see, not so much by KFC, that ode to obesity, but by what Ive read about Daniel Boone, Abraham Lincoln, Gen. George Patton, and a host of other Kentuckians over the centuries. Bluegrass, horses and bourbon define Kentucky. Not among the most progressive of states, but there was something about it that stoked my curiosity. It was still dark when we set out from the state capital of Columbus, the new posting for the couple, Tatum and Vic, from Dallas. Rushing through the freeways in the vast plain of the Ohio Valley we soon see the sights of Cincinnati, right at the border marked by the Ohio River, across which the terrain begins to climb gently - Kentucky. One has to adjust the watch back by one hour to Central Time. Its rolling terrain is marked by wooded hills and lovely quiet meadows. We still have to spend the rest of the morning crossing south towards one of Natures greatest geological wonders - the Mammoth Cave. Linked end to end, the surveyed tunnels now total 390 miles. The sheer magnitude of the cave truly deserved its declaration as a national park in 1941, as a World Heritage Site in 1981, and an International Biosphere Reserve in 1990 - designations that make it a common heritage for all of mankind. Set in a 53,000-acre parkland with 80 miles of trails, Mammoth Cave averages 600,000 visitors a year, making it one of the most visited sites in the country. It is so large that there are so many tours to choose, and in the short time that we were there, we chose two. We spent the night camping in the woods, in between the tours. This is our second visit to a huge cavern, the first one being that in San Antonio, Texas, in the National Bridge Cavern. This is far smaller than the Mammoth Cave, but it has some wonderful formations that I love, even more than in Mammoth. But the latters sheer size is something that makes it awesome. Theres a small historic section where the Americans, desperate for nitrate supply for their munitions during World War II, would mine saltpeter from the cave and thereby unnaturally widening its openings. But there are very tight corridors with very low ceilings that they aptly called the Fat Mans Misery, and also a bottomless pit, a sinkhole 105 feet deep, and even more, some underground rivers 200 feet deep into the earth. Geologists explained that 350 million years ago, Mammoth Cave was a shallow sea located slightly south of the equator. It was this tropical ambience that made possible the deposit of tiny shells that are the source of this gigantic limestone formation. These dead organisms piled up some 700 vertical feet of limestone and shale. With the movement of the ancient land called Pangea, in the eons of geological time this part moved upwards in what is now the American continent. We dont go far nowadays to see a gigantic cave because the most recent find is in Vietnam which is astounding, also of overwhelming size, and the tremendous mystery of nature, of the largest dome of any cave in the world and a tropical forest inside it. Closer to home, we have a great marvel in the Sohoton Cave Complex in Bucas Grande island, Surigao del Norte. It has the most delicate species, and the sea penetrates deep inside its caverns. It is now part of a national protected area system called the Siargao Islands Landscape and Seascape. But a nearby threat might yet destroy it in our lifetime, because just across it are the huge mines of Taganito and Hayanggabon in Claver town, just 30 minutes by pumpboat. So much of those mountains of minerals go to the greater glory of China.
Posted on: Mon, 28 Jul 2014 20:58:13 +0000
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