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John C. Barry

My reminiscences, thoughts, and travel experiences

  • California Christmas 2022, New Year 2023

    California Christmas 2022, New Year 2023

    California, Reminiscences, San Francisco, Travel
    January 22, 2023

      Day 1. Friday, December 16, 2022   I woke up at 5:00 am today, three hours before the Uber driver was to drive us to the airport, and six hours before our flight.  Our weather is below freezing, and that is the forecast for the rest of the day.  By 6:00 am I was […]

  • Wrist Operation August 2022

    Wrist Operation August 2022

    Biographical, Observations, Reminiscences
    August 13, 2022

    Thank you doctors David Siverhus and Adam Wooldridge and supporting team members

  • Italy May 2022

    Italy May 2022

    Italy, Travel
    June 20, 2022

    We visited Rome, Florence, Montefioralle, Impruneta, Badia a Passignano, Tavarnuzze, San Gimignano, Volterra, Montepulciano, and Pienza, we walked in the Umbria region, from Assisi to Spello, to Bevagna, to Montefalco, to Trevi, to Campello Alto, to Spoleto. 

  • San Francisco and Walnut Creek, California.  December 12, 2021, to January 5, 2022.  A great vacation experience.

    San Francisco and Walnut Creek, California. December 12, 2021, to January 5, 2022. A great vacation experience.

    California, San Francisco, Travel
    January 23, 2022

    Day 1. Sunday, December 12, 2021. We left our condominium at 5:00 am using Uber to drive to Milwaukee General Mitchell Airport to travel to San Francisco International Airport.  Our Delta flight had a stopover in the twin cities of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota to change planes.  We elected to fly Delta Comfort to enjoy extra […]

  • Barry’s on TV in the USA

    Barry’s on TV in the USA

    Reminiscences, South Africa, Travel
    August 18, 2021

    After arriving in Brookfield, Wisconsin, USA, some 35 years ago, Linda and I were interviewed twice due to political developments in South Africa.  One of our local television stations, TMJ4 (WTMJ-TV), is an NBC affiliate.  For the first interview, news team Melodie Wilson and Mike Jacobs were on air, and reporter Bob Nenno interviewed us […]

  • Fear. Creative writing by a beautiful teenager.

    Fear. Creative writing by a beautiful teenager.

    Observations
    August 6, 2021

    Olivia’s “Fear” Friday, July 30, 2021. Olivia, my 13-year-old granddaughter, took part in Red Oak Writing’s summer camp during the week of July 26, 2021.  Friday 30th was a culmination of the week where each of the eleven participants shared their creative writing works.  Kim Suhr, the Director, offers classes to adults and school-age students […]

  • My Cape Town Conundrum.  Factors in deciding an investment decision

    My Cape Town Conundrum. Factors in deciding an investment decision

    Biographical, Observations, Reminiscences, South Africa, Travel
    May 15, 2021

    The contrast: the United States of America with South Africa In a moment of irrational exuberance, I thought of buying an apartment in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa.  My sanity cautioned me, so I will not do it.  Why not? In and around Cape Town, with views of The University of Cape Town, Cape […]

  • COVID-19: Science behind vaccination development.  Weekly updates with statistics and the latest news

    COVID-19: Science behind vaccination development. Weekly updates with statistics and the latest news

    Travel
    April 10, 2021

      It took Moderna 48 hours to produce a vaccination.  It took 48 years to accomplish that feat.  As you read this account, did you or your children elect to forgo vaccinations for Polio, Tetanus, Influenza, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis A, Rubella, Measles, Whooping Cough, Streptococcus vaccine, Mumps, Chickenpox, and Diphtheria?  What about the pain inflicted […]

  • Marriott Ocean Pointe, Singer Island, Florida, Vacation March 2021

    Marriott Ocean Pointe, Singer Island, Florida, Vacation March 2021

    Observations, Reminiscences, Travel
    March 18, 2021

    With trepidation, we planned to stay at our timeshare at Marriott Ocean Pointe, Palm Beach Shores, on Singer Island, Florida, for a portion of February and March 2021.

  • Inheritance and Alzheimer’s. A family history of love, dedication, and devotion

    Inheritance and Alzheimer’s. A family history of love, dedication, and devotion

    Biographical, Reminiscences, South Africa
    January 14, 2021

    A welcome Inheritance

  • In A Class Of Our Own.  Rondebosch Boys High School class of 1963

    In A Class Of Our Own. Rondebosch Boys High School class of 1963

    Biographical, Reminiscences, South Africa, Travel
    November 1, 2020

    To have read about one’s erstwhile classmates before seeing them again at the 1963 class reunion would add even more to those brief encounters!

  • Montagu Country Hotel, Western Cape.  The only art deco hotel in South Africa

    Montagu Country Hotel, Western Cape. The only art deco hotel in South Africa

    South Africa, Travel
    June 30, 2020

    Montagu Country Hotel the only Art Deco hotel in South Africa

  • Minocqua, Wisconsin, a lake resort vacation community

    Minocqua, Wisconsin, a lake resort vacation community

    Travel
    June 17, 2020

    If you are looking for a great vacation spot, I highly recommend Minocqua, Wisconsin, and especially the Marmes’ cottage.

  • Cape Town COVID-19 Adventure

    Cape Town COVID-19 Adventure

    Observations, Reminiscences, South Africa, Travel
    April 2, 2020

    We left the US on March 5, 2020, for a 37-day vacation in South Africa to visit family and friends.

  • Timeless Karoo, Western Cape, South Africa

    Timeless Karoo, Western Cape, South Africa

    Observations, Reminiscences, South Africa, Travel
    March 12, 2020

    The Karoo in South Africa’s Western Cape provides some of the most fantastic touring sites and vacation places.

  • Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa

    Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa

    South Africa, Travel
    January 7, 2020

    A magnificent village full of charm and attractions. A great vacation spot.

  • BluVines Restaurant.  Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa.  Not to be missed.

    BluVines Restaurant. Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa. Not to be missed.

    Reminiscences, South Africa, Travel
    November 11, 2019

    Richard Weilers opened his establishment in April 2019 after remodeling a farmhouse into a restaurant, wine tasting venue, and conference room facility.

  • Huguenot Tunnel on Du Toits Kloof Pass

    Huguenot Tunnel on Du Toits Kloof Pass

    Reminiscences, South Africa, Travel
    October 26, 2019

    Western Cape, South Africa Living in Southeast Wisconsin, alongside Lake Michigan in the United States, where the countryside is flat, makes visiting southwestern South Africa around Cape Town and its environs exciting with its many majestic mountain ranges.  You may get the impression that I am obsessed with the beauty of mountain passes of the […]

  • My 50-year career.  Life’s challenges, disappointments, and successes

    My 50-year career. Life’s challenges, disappointments, and successes

    Biographical, Reminiscences
    October 25, 2019

    As I look back on a 50-year career, what have I learned, and what have I achieved?

  • Western Cape, South Africa.  Impressions from my 75-day visit during Q1 2019.  Comments about the history and political reality of the country.

    Western Cape, South Africa. Impressions from my 75-day visit during Q1 2019. Comments about the history and political reality of the country.

    South Africa, Travel
    April 28, 2019

    The scenery in South Africa is magnificently dramatic. The beauty of the countryside with its vast, majestic mountains, great oceans, gorgeous weather, and a large variety of fauna and flora, is breathtaking.

  • Franschhoek, Western Cape, South Africa. Together with history and select wine farm details

    Franschhoek, Western Cape, South Africa. Together with history and select wine farm details

    South Africa, Travel
    March 10, 2019

    Franschhoek has blossomed as a tourist destination, especially with the wine farm tours and tastings.

  • Paternoster, West Coast, Western Province, South Africa.  A tourist destination

    Paternoster, West Coast, Western Province, South Africa. A tourist destination

    South Africa, Travel
    March 3, 2019

    Paternoster is a fishing village set on the Atlantic seashore

  • Norval Foundation, Cape Town, South Africa.  Great art, magnificent food

    Norval Foundation, Cape Town, South Africa. Great art, magnificent food

    South Africa, Travel
    February 18, 2019

    The Norval Foundation is home to one of the largest privately owned collections of South African modern art in the world.

  • Boyes Drive, Cape Town, South Africa.  A scenic route.

    Boyes Drive, Cape Town, South Africa. A scenic route.

    South Africa, Travel
    February 17, 2019

    Cape Town is not short of scenic drives as you might have seen from the Chapman’s Peak Drive post.  The YouTube video below starts on the main or beach road and exists onto Boyes Drive for a beautiful view as we crest the mountain and descend the other side to provide views that are even […]

  • Chapman’s Peak Drive, Cape Town, South Africa. Scenic Splendor, Route History, and Upgrades

    Chapman’s Peak Drive, Cape Town, South Africa. Scenic Splendor, Route History, and Upgrades

    South Africa, Travel
    February 8, 2019

    The magnificent Chapman’s Peak Drive

  • A week on O‘ahu in Hawai‘i, a Magical Paradise, documented with historical information

    A week on O‘ahu in Hawai‘i, a Magical Paradise, documented with historical information

    Travel
    December 7, 2018

      With each thumbnail image or image, click to get a larger image.  With multiple photographs, click on the far-right arrow to advance or the left arrow to go backward. In presenting photographs, I take them using a high-resolution camera, with my Nikon and a few with my iPhone.  As a result, these are large and […]

  • US Canadian Trip September/October 2018, 207 photographs, 10 videos, with historical and geographical information

    US Canadian Trip September/October 2018, 207 photographs, 10 videos, with historical and geographical information

    Travel
    October 20, 2018

    Please click on the image(s) to see a larger display.  It is the route we followed. Outbound on the northern route, homebound on the southern route. The Chocolate Garden and University of Michigan Logo Navigation: When viewing a larger photograph image, click on the photograph pointer at far right or left in the middle to advance […]

  • Movie Experience, South African romantic movie in Afrikaans with English subtitles

    Movie Experience, South African romantic movie in Afrikaans with English subtitles

    Observations
    January 31, 2018

    A Uniquely Different Movie Experience. How did it come about that I watched an exceptional movie twice on the same day? A first in a lifetime experience. Wednesday, January 30, 2018, was my mother-in-law’s 91st birthday.  I completed my daily tasks by lunchtime.  What was I going to achieve in the afternoon?  Going for a […]

  • Homeless

    Homeless

    Observations
    January 18, 2018

    I had an interesting encounter yesterday.  The sequel was unpredictable. We live in a condominium complex consisting of three buildings.  Ours is the largest, an L-shaped three-story with fifty-two units, named Cornerstone at New Berlin’s Residences at City Center.  The heated parking garage is below our building.  We bought our unit ten years ago.  We […]

  • Arabian Horses: Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa

    Arabian Horses: Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa

    South Africa, Travel
    November 20, 2017

    Areli Arabian endurance horses

  • Road Construction, Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa, comparison to Wisconsin, USA

    Road Construction, Montagu, Western Cape, South Africa, comparison to Wisconsin, USA

    Observations
    November 20, 2017

    We all understand that Governor Scott Walker of the State of Wisconsin is running for reelection in 2018.  We also understand that to get re-elected he needs to follow the Republican playbook of cutting taxes for the very wealthiest mega donors and large corporations.  We also understand that to pay for those incentives to the […]

  • Jacques Pauw, South African Investigative Reporter, Author– President’s Keepers: Those keeping Zuma in power and out of prison, Restaurant Owner

    Jacques Pauw, South African Investigative Reporter, Author– President’s Keepers: Those keeping Zuma in power and out of prison, Restaurant Owner

    Observations
    November 12, 2017

    Jacques Pauw, South Africa’s most celebrated investigative author.  The President’s Keepers: Those Keeping Zuma in power and out of prison.  Jacques’ book was released Friday, November 3, 2017, and sold out the first print run of 20,000 copies in hours.  The African National Congress (ANC), the ruling government party in South Africa fought to have […]

  • Home – New Berlin, Wisconsin

    Home – New Berlin, Wisconsin

    Biographical
    September 30, 2017

    Unites States of America flag, map of the 48 contiguous states in America (excludes Alaska and Hawaii), map of Wisconsin, map of the Great Lakes, map of Wisconsin’s 72 counties, map of New Berlin, map of our condominium location, a photograph of a portion of our condominium complex, sculpture by Richard Taylor, a light pole […]

  • Rondebosch Boys School, Cape Town, South Africa: My School Days

    Rondebosch Boys School, Cape Town, South Africa: My School Days

    Biographical, Reminiscences, South Africa
    September 30, 2017

    Rondebosch Boys High School 2013 50th Class Reunion. My rugby photographs with coaches left to right below: youthful me, Mr. Laidlaw U10A,  Mr. (Mousy) Clive Young U15C, Prof. Tinkie Heyns U15C, Mr. Sam Wiggett U16B, Mr. Willem Dieperveen U19.   Laidlaw (U10A) Back: Peter Barrett, Chris Munday, Hugh Hodge, Fred Versveld, Owen Ashley, Malcolm McCrosty, Center: Frank Einhorn, […]

John C. Barry

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