(click and click again to enlarge photos)
We are delighted that the editors of PacificNW magazine of The Seattle Times asked us to prepare a cover-story package for the magazine’s print edition of Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021, on the topic of vicarious vacations. Call it an epic “Now & Then.”
Here’s the introduction:
The places we visited when we were young stand stubbornly, often joyously, in our minds and hearts.
In this collection, we delve into these memories as illuminated by long-ago travel photos — many of them submitted by readers of our “Now & Then” column.
We also return to these sites, in images kindly contributed by professional and amateur photographers in places that we collectively cannot or choose not to revisit at present because of the coronavirus.
It’s a way of taking vacations without leaving home. Enjoy the trip!
And below are links to 12 fully illustrated vignettes, including video interviews, preceded by the Backstory. Special thanks to the friends and others we called upon to snap “Now” photos out of the goodness of their hearts. We hope you enjoy it all.
— Jean Sherrard and Clay Eals
BACKSTORY — by Jean
-
(Jean Sherrard) Savoring the sweet peach of memory
‘Somehow bouncing off all that ageless beauty can prompt the hitting of a reset button’
VIGNETTE 01 — by Jean
-
(Courtesy Hai Thi Nguyen) Mount Rushmore, 1994
‘When I was young, I wanted to hear about a place and wanted to see it’
—Hai Thi Nguyen
VIGNETTE 02 — by Clay
-
(Courtesy Marti Dell) New York harbor, 1963
‘I was obviously very secure in myself … that innocent confidence’
—Marti Dell
VIGNETTE 03 — by Jean
-
(Courtesy Astrid Anderson Bear) Copenhagen, 1965
‘A text of independence … I passed reasonably well’
—Astrid Anderson Bear
VIGNETTE 04 — by Clay
-
(Courtesy Lizeth Gutierrez) Iguazú Falls, Argentina, 2011
‘It was a moment of grace and gratitude’
—Lizeth Gutierrez
VIGNETTE 05 — by Clay
-
(Mary Mason) The JFK Eternal Flame at Arlington Cemetery
‘There was absolute devastation … This was very important’
—Linda Turner
VIGNETTE 06 — by Clay
-
(Barbara Zerbach) Expo ’74, Spokane, 1974
‘This must have been what Century 21 was like’
—Gavin MacDougall
VIGNETTE 07 — by Clay
-
(Robbie Fletcher) Chicago lakeshore, 1988
‘To explore without having to go on an expedition’
—Elancia (Lancie) Williamson
VIGNETTE 08 — by Jean
-
(Courtesy Bruce Greeley) Australian outback, 1986
‘The most exotic place in the world’
—Bruce Greeley
VIGNETTE 09 — by Clay
-
(Courtesy Brad DePlanche) Lake Michigan chalet, 1966
‘It was magical … The soul is still there’
—Kristen Woodward
VIGNETTE 10 — by Jean
-
(Richard Kyro) Banff, Alberta, 1979
‘I had never seen a lake that was so blissfully blue’
—Kara Kyro
VIGNETTE 11 — by Clay
-
(Courtesy Ranesto Angeles) Pinoy Hill, Seward Park, 1954
‘You really want to hold onto your culture’
—Ranesto (Ron) Angeles
VIGNETTE 12 — by Jean
-
(Courtesy Paul Dorpat) Paris, 1967
A highlight of their lives
—The Rev. Theodore and Cherry Dorpat