My family and I travel worldwide and are based in the lovely state of North Carolina. We have two dogs named Winnie and Watson. I love Art, Creative Writing, Writing with lots of sarcasm, and playing outside. I love to bake, and my signature dishes are Meringues, Chocolate Mouse and Bundt Cakes.
I am writing a post about Asian Pear’s because the first time i ate one (yesterday) was eye opening. What i thought were asian pears are actually brown pears. We bought some Asian Pears at a Whole Foods somewhere between Raleigh NC and Chicago. I was skeptical about the taste of it because in truth it did not smell at all good. When i bit into it i was so surprised! It was Sweet but not too sweet and not sour. There not like apples at all because apples are very hard and these are not as hard as apples nor squishy. When you bit into it you get a burst of flavors and it is super juicy but not juicy enough to drip all over you like a peach. Colleuges
The smell is the same as the taste and the outside is just as good as the inside. Unlike pears are these amazing fruits and you never feel like there is too much. There the perfect size and great for the car (this is proven) and at home.
Please Buy these they arethe bestand if you have kids they will Love them! you can find them at whole foods and possibly at other grocery stores or just by them on Amazon (where everything comes from). Thank You for reading this Random post and Have a lovely and greatday, night, mourning, or Afternoon or Evening!
This post is all about the planets. I will cover every Planet except the Sun and Pluto. I learned all the information in this post from the Adler Planetarium in Chicago Illinois. My favorite planet is Saturn or Neptune. I wish Earth had more moons for us to explore and populate. I believe there are probably other life forms in other Galaxies or on other planets in our galaxy. I think it is really cool that we landed people on the moon but I think it is about time that we take another series of trips. I am Exited for you to read all about the planets and I hope you learn at least Five Fun Facts about each one! 🙂
Earth
Earth is the Planet we live on. (Duh) It is Blue and Green, these colors make up the ocen and gorgeous land. Itis currently the only planet that can sustain humane life. The Earth’s health is rapidly declining and we should work to keep it alive and more healthy. If we don’t, start imagining living on the other planets, you will learn about them and their harsh conditions soon. First we are going to learn Five Fun Facts about earth. Along with a Fact that links earth to another planet.
3rd Planet From the Sun
Has Four inner Zones, Crust, Mantle, Outer Core, Inner Core.
The core is 800 miles in diamiter
The Crust is 5-25 miles Thick
93,000,000 Miles from the Sun
Our Relational Planet Fact for earth is….. Earth and one other planet have polar Ice caps. Please Guesse wich other planet before.
Mars
Mars also known as the red planet, is (true to its name) Red. Humans have been exploring it for years and have discover there was once water on this barren planet. Just to clear up any confusion, humans have been exploring it by employing robots and droids to do the work; not exploring it using themselves. Now for the Five Fun Facts about Mars.
Mars has two moons
Mars’ atmosphere is so impecably thin that water cant exist as a liquid
Mars is 142,000,000 miles from the sun
Fourth planet from the sun
Mars has four Zones, Crust, Mantel, Liquid outer core, Solid Inner Core
The Planet Relational Fact is, Mars has the Same inner zones as…
Venus
Venus looks like a swirl of Red, Orange, and Yellow and in my opinion looks like marbled doughnuts. There is not a-lot to say about Venus exept that it is big and a planet. Now the Five Fun Facts
67,108,000 miles from the sun
6 robots or droids have been sent to explore, none have returned alive. Of course they have not, there stuck there for the rest or there electrical lives!
Venus’ atmosphere is the thickest of all the inner planets
Venus’ has a dry, dessert like surface
Venus’ Volcanos are 10-100 times bigger than Earth’s Volcanos
The Planet Relational fact is , Venus and another planet same the same color range. The other planet is…..
Saturn
Saturn looks like a perfectly blended painted ball with rings around it. It is my favorite planet because of the rings ,and if you compare it with earth, imagine a watermelon next to a blueberry. The rings around Saturn are made mainly of Ice. The chunks of Ice range from the size of a house, a grain of sand thick. If you stood on the top side of the rings you could dig a hole through the rings to the southern hemisphere of Saturn! Now for the Five Fun Facts.
885,000,000 miles from the sun
This planet had no crust! It is only Atmosphere
6th Planet From the Sun
Its Rings are only 30 Ft tall
Earth is minuscule compared to Saturn. Compare a pillow to a blueberry.
The Planet Relational Fact is, Saturn is a Gas Gient just like……
Jupeter
Jupiter is also a gas giant and when I say giant I mean giant. It is 460.43 Million miles from the sun! It has rings but not rings like Saturn. Its rings are stripes of color on the planet itself. It is tan and red-ish in color and sits next to Mars and Saturn. Now for the Five Fun Facts.
5th Planet from the Sun
Larges planet (besids the sun) in our solar system.
It only had three zones! Atmosphere, Mantle, and Core
Had huge Aurora Borealis
Has five moons and one Giant Red Spot( a big storm)
The Planet Relational Fact is, Jupiter shares the sam amount of zones as….
Neptune
Neptune is very, very Blue. It had some lighter and darker spots wich are probably clouds. Neptune in my opinion is not a very interesting planet. It had atmosphere, mantle and core as its three zones. One interesting fact is that diamonds are forming and as those diamonds go closer to the core they melt into oceans. Humans probably cant live on a planet without crust so we probably cant live here despite the water. Now for the Five Fun Facts.
Has 14 moons
2,800,000,000 miles from the sun
Farthest planet from the sun
One Neptune year is 165 Earth years
Neptunes gravity is almost Earth like
The Planet Relational Fact is, Neptune is warmer than one other planet despite it being the farthest from the sun. The other planet is….
Uranus
This planet might be most peoples favorite planet for obvious reasons. I don’t know who choose the name but they were definitely not thinking about all the little kids who would laugh at the name. Despite all the pictures of Uranus being white it is actually light blue or turquoise. It has small white rings. 13 rings in all and you probably can’t see them without a very strong telescope. Now for the Five Fun Facts.
1,790,000,000 miles from the sun
Coldest Planet
Three zones, Atmosphere, Mantle and core.
Has 27 moons
One planet year is 84 Earth years
The Planet Relational Fact is, Uranus and another planet have three zones. That planet is….
Mercury
Mercury looks like our moon, but a-lot bigger. This planet is pretty uninteresting. It sits between the Sun and Mars. Its core is liquid, and now lets read the Five Fun Facts.
Has 0 Moons
Is much much smaller than Earth
Three zones, Crust Mantle and Liquid Core.
Closest to the Sun
Has no Atmoshpere
This is the last planet in our learning journey so I will link it back to our first planet, Earth. The Planet Relational Fact is, Earth and Mercury both have a crust.
The controls needed to turn off on Apollo 13 mission
I woke up sad, not feeling ready to leave Africa. In addition to packing, we were all getting ready for paragliding. I was not going to participate in the activity because I was too scared, but I was happy for my siblings and parents to do it.
First, we drove to the top of Signal Hill. At the top, the wind wasn’t right for launching the paragliding, so we got some rooibos tea and waited. When the wind was good, I got in a car to be driven down to the bottom and my family got geared up to fly. I talked to the driver all the way down and when I got to the bottom, I arrive just in time to see mom land. The landings were so smooth! You just floated right to the ground and stood up.
In hindsight I wish I had done the paragliding now that I know that it is fun and safe to do. I just get timid sometimes about new experiences that sound scary, like running as fast as you can towards a cliff overlooking the city and jumping off of it (which is what you do to launch paragliding off Signal Hill). Sounds very safe, right? Next time though, I think I will be up for it.
Before Africa I did not really have a favorite place in the world. Before Africa I was sure that Africa would be the last place our family went and we would all be bitten by snakes. Just FYI we did not see a single snake besides the snakes in the museum. I have decided that Africa is my Favorite Place in the international world! The people are amazing, the food is great, the climate does not completely kill you and it is an amazing continent!
Heading Off the Gluten Path
After Paragliding we started walking back to the house we had rented, but then mom remembered that there was a gluten free bakery nearby called Off the Gluten Path. It was a little far to walk, so we got an Uber, but when we arrived at the place, it was just an apartment complex. We figured out that the location on Google Maps was outdated and the real bakery location was on the opposite side of Cape Town, about a 30 minute drive away. When we arrived, it was not an apartment complex – it was heaven! I kept asking “is that gonna be gluten free?” because I wasn’t used to things like croissants, French bread, donuts, cupcakes and cake being gluten free.
For lunch I shared some pizza with Zeb and Bardez. I also got a slice of the red velvet cake. Me and Bardez were allowed to get some little things for the plane ride later that day, so I got a carrot muffin and a croissant. When we had to go, we were all sad, but I really did have to pack, so I was kind of glad to go.
Leaving for the Cape Town Airport
After getting back to the house from our Gluten Free adventures, I finished packing my bags. We had a lot to try and stuff in to our bags, and several boxes of souvenirs we had collected along our journeys in Africa. Dad got the boxes taped up and then it was time for goodbyes and calling an Uber.
It was sad to say goodbye to my dad and older brother and sister, who were going to stay for another week in Africa, but I was also kind of excited to have a break from them and go on an adventure with just mom and Bardez. We were heading back and going all the way to my grandparents vineyard in Oregon to help with the grape harvest which had just started.
22 Hours of Flying: Cape Town to Newark, Newark to Portland
Once we got to the airport and checked our bags and boxes we headed through security and into the airport. My mom was able to take us in to the British Airways lounge even though we were flying on United Airlines back to the US. The lounge was very nice and it was a great place to have a break before the long flight. They even had macaroons, delicious brie cheese, and Appletizers. You might be asking, what is an “Appletizer”? Good question. In the US we would call it sparkling apple juice. It’s like Martinelli’s. But, these come in convenient cans and are extra tasty. I was sad to say goodbye to Africa and Appletizers.
When it was time we boarded the plane for our flight to America. We were flying United Airlines this time, not Delta. The plane was great, but the flight attendants were not very nice. They were downright mean, as if they hated that there were customers on the flight. I did not like that. If I am ever a flight attendant, I would like to be a nice one. Maybe they were just having a bad day, or maybe they should not be working on a 16 hour long flight if they can’t be polite to their customers. Hopefully United Airlines will figure out how to get its staff to be happier, like Delta Airlines staff usually are.
Finally, Arriving at Zenith Vineyard in Oregon
After flying for 16 hours from Cape Town to Newark and then 6 hours from Newark to Portland we finally arrived to Oregon! We got in our car and drive to Zenith Vineyard. My mom said we had to stay awake until 7pm so we would not jet lag too badly. I tried my best, and made it just barely to 7. Tomorrow, it’s harvest time!
Today we did a cooking experience! The lady who hosted us had lived in her house her whole life and so did her parents, grandparents and great grandparents! There was two other people doing the experience with us. Their names were Libby and Matt. We started with introductions and our host talked about herself. Then we started cooking. The first thing we did was fill the samosas. There were gluten filled and gluten free! I was tasked with frying the samosas in oil and it was very fun. While I was frying them, the others started making the curry and rice. The rice was made with cardamom and other spices to give it flavor. The process of making the curry was ridiculously simple and fast. We put the spices in then the coconut cream ingredients in then it was done! By done, I mean ready to be put on the stove to be cooked. When it was time to sit down and eat I was very hungry. The samosas were the best! The chicken curry was a little spicy for me and the rice was super good! While we were eating our host and her helpers made us a traditional dessert of Ribose tea, sweet potato, and a ball with dates in it. I liked the tea and sweet potato but I don’t love dates.
The Experience overall was amazing! Being able to learn from someone who loves cooking and has done it for many years is very special. I really enjoyed myself and I would highly recommend doing a cooking experience with anyone!
The scenery was amazing! The drive to the penguins was along the coast and through towns. We learned about the history of each town. At one point there was a tunnel that had one side open. I really enjoyed the drive and one thing I learned was, there was 14 mountains that were called the 11 apostles. If you are into awsome landscape photos I would highly recommend this drive!
Puppy the Seal
Puppy, in my opinion, is a funny name for a seal. It makes me think of a cute fat animal, wich is what Puppy is. When we saw him he was being hand fed by a man and he seemed to know what to do. We were told that he came up on the docks to get snacks and that he was very friendly. The friendly part might not be true. He was more exited about the food then anything. I think he did not mind us touching him and maybe he liked it but he was super exited about the food. While we were with Puppy I bought a really cute elephant satchel! We then moved on so we could see the penguins.
The Penguins
The penguins were awesome! We had to climb over some rocks witch was super fun. Then we had to wade through freezing water to get to the penguins. When I got to the place where the penguins were I saw what looked like a dead shark! I asked our guide and he confirmed it was a dead shark; and just to clarify, the shark was a baby so only a foot and a half long. The penguins were sitting on a rock and they would waddle into the water. I was surprised at how fast they could move under water. They were little bullets! We went to a second place with penguins but it had lots of people in it and it was less special.
