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| A Big Cheese, looking in the Cheese Factory |
After doing the cheesy thing, we had to take care of some mundane tasks, such as getting propane, groceries at a Fred Meyers, gasoline, and a headlight, before heading south once again, where we began looking for the air museum that sits just out of Tillamook. It's impossible to miss this structure, as it dominates the landscape, with the words "Air Museum" written in letters that must be at least twenty feet high, painted on the roof of the building, itself. I was amazed, upon seeing this building, as it doesn't resemble any type of structure I had ever seen, before. It looks like a long, gargantuan barn with a vaulted roofline. As we approached, I kept saying to Bonnie how crazy it is to have such a building, because there is no airplane in the world which would need such a huge hanger. It just didn't make any sense. After paying our money and entering, it did make sense, when we discovered that it had been a hanger for WWII blimps that were used along the Oregon coast to patrol for enemy submarines. A photo on the inside wall shows it during its heyday, when it housed nine blimps, so you can imagine the overall size requirement. The incredible thing is that the entire structure is of wood, there being no steel beams at all.
The air museum was one of the biggest highlights for me, during the entire trip, as they have managed to collect and restore planes that I have never seen before, such as a Russian Mig, a Japanese Oscar; a German Messerschmitt (Mf-109), one of the Luftwaffe's most formidable fighters used during WWII; and a jet trainer that was used by the soviet bloc nations of eastern Europe, during the cold war. Obviously, they had a lot of American aircraft, as well, including an F-14 Tomcat, an F4U Vought Corsair (my favorite), a Spitfire, a PBY Catalina, and many others. Most of these planes are not only restored to the eye, but, being fully functional, are occasionally flown.
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| Ein Messerschmitt (Mf-109) aus dem zweiten Weltkrieg. Dies war einer der gefürchtetsten Kampfflugzeugen in der Luftwaffe. Ich frage mich, wie sie es erhalten. |
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| An F4U Vought Corsair, my Favorite Plane (I used to see whole squadrons of these things droning overhead in wingtip formation, when I was a little kid) That's a small, white blimp in the background. Leaving the air museum, we continued south, until we reached Newport, where we decided to stay at the South Beach State Park, one mile south of town. However, before going to the state park, we stopped at a Starbucks, in order to do the blog. While there, we encountered a rather strange little lady who was sitting at an adjacent table by herself. Sometimes it's hard to put into words just what you feel, upon encountering others, and it's that way, now, when I think back to her. She was sitting alone, without any obvious reason for being there, other than perhaps to be around people; at least that was how it struck us. She had no book or coffee at hand, but simply sat, taking in the room full of those around her who were noisily talking, drinking coffee, and busily working on their laptops. If I were to try to describe her with one word, it might be "wistful" or "lonely," but it was hard to tell. She seemed to be very soft spoken and almost shy. While I plugged our laptop into the wall and began working on the blog, Bonnie turned around in her chair and engaged this seemingly-lonely soul in a conversation. Afterwards, Bonnie told me that the lady seems to be a person who has probably been quite capable and bright, but might now be losing some of her cognitive abilities. They exchanged names and addresses, but Bonnies feels that, when she writes to her, the lady will, sadly, probably not even remember their encounter. It was definitely one of those rare chance meetings full of human interest which leaves a clear, lasting memory, even though nothing extraordinary actually occurred. After leaving Starbucks, we went to the South Beach State Park, and stayed for the night. |
What a rip off.
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