Fire Hydrants

 

Location: Elm Creek, Manitoba, Canada
Address: Gladys Street Fire Department
Date: Oct 2014
Website: https://www.rmofgrey.ca

    You can't park in front of them. Dogs like to pee on them. In case of a fire you hope that one is nearby. We are talking about fire hydrants. Here are some of the most interesting hydrants that we have encountered.

 

    Now we could do a whole blog just on fire trucks (and maybe we will). When the fire department shows up to fight a fire, it is a hydrant they need to attach their hoses. Only then can they get the water they need to put out the flames.

USA HYDRANTS

 

    On Ditmars Blvd. in Queens, New York we found this hydrant next to Astoria Park. It was all painted like the American flag. It stood out amongst the other plain hydrants. We are uncertain if it was special for any other reasons.

 

 

  At the Irvine Spectrum Center in California we spotted this shiny, gold fire hydrant. This must be a special hydrant, but sadly it was not real gold.

 

   The New York State Museum is located in the state capital of Albany, New York. It includes an entire Fire Engine Hall. It also includes items collected from where the World Trade Center towers fell. These are two different types of hydrants (shown above) that survived the disaster.

GREECE HYDRANTS

 

 This hydrant was located near the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. It was pretty insignificant except for the tortoise right beside it. We know dogs like to pee on things to mark their territory. We don't know if this tortoise just finished marking the hydrant as his.

CANADA HYDRANTS

 

 

 On the highway towards Dildo, Newfoundland we spotted this Minion painted hydrant. In the movie Minions there is one scene where Stuart, the one eyed minion, actually hits on a fire hydrant.
 

   The world's largest fire hydrant sits next to the Elm Creek Fire Department in Manitoba. There used to be a bigger fire hydrant in South Carolina but it has since been taken down so we redeclare this the world's largest. It is about 29 feet tall and took six months to build. It was unveiled on Canada Day in 2001.

 A regular fire hydrant sits next to the giant one. You definitely would not want your fire department or your large fire hydrant to burn down.

 Dalmation dogs were used back when firefighters travelled in horse drawn fire wagons. Since then they have become beloved companions even to modern day fire fighters. At Fire Station 314 in Toronto, this hydrant dalmation keeps an eye on the street out front.

 

 

 In Scarborough, Ontario there is a sailor hydrant near the Highland Creek Royal Canadian Legion.

   In Scarborough, Ontario there is another hydrant located in Milliken Park. The only issue here is that the hydrant is all alone in the middle of a field. We are not sure when this hydrant may be called into service. Perhaps a picnic fire?

  Near Berczy Park in Toronto we saw this hydrant exposed while some construction work was taking place. You can see by this photo how big the pipes are. This helps keep a water pressure between 50 and 100 psi.

    The hydrant in the photo above was sheared off when a car drove over it and into a restaurant on Yonge Street in Toronto. A hydrant could send out as much as 5,500 litres a minute. Umbrellas are a good idea until the fire department can get the water shut off.

  Most places do not want your dog to relieve themselves against their walls etc. We have not noticed any signs near hydrants. It seems the fire fighters are fine sharing the hydrants with their four legged friends.

  In the Toronto Santa Claus Parade every dog carried its own hydrant with them. It seems marking your territory just wasn't enough.

  Our final hydrant on this list has a celebrity connection. Mr. T filmed his television show T And T in Toronto. In Season 3 Episode 12 he sits on the hydrant pictured above waiting for a limo to pull up to a hot dog stand. It is at the corner of Queen Street West and James Street. This episode was probably filmed in 1989 or 1990. Is it possible that this is still the same hydrant from 35 years ago? While hydrants can remain in service for up to 50 years, we have to report that the hydrant currently in that spot is a newer design.

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Map of Our World
World's Largest Fire Hydrant

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Post # 348

Ted Lasso In Amsterdam

 

Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Address: Raamgracht, 1011 KK
Date: May 2024
Website: iamsterdam.com

    Ted Lasso is a television show starring Jason Sedeikis as the title character. It is about an American college football coach who ends up coaching a British football team called AFC Richmond. In England, football is the same as American soccer. In season 3 episode 6, Ted Lasso's team take a trip to Amsterdam, Netherlands. We also found ourselves in Amsterdam and while we were there we visited a few of the filming locations from this episode.

 

Higgins & Will

    The first storyline we will look at follows Leslie Higgins, the Director of Football Operations, and Will the new equipment manager. Leslie brings Will to the Prins Hendrik Hotel to explain his love of jazz music.

    Leslie explains to Will that it was Chet Baker who got him interested in jazz. Chet Baker is a well known jazz trumpet player and singer who died at this hotel. Jeremy Swift who plays Leslie Higgins is also a skilled jazz player and he proves that later in the episode on the double bass. The monument that Higgins shows Will explains that Chet died here on May 13, 1988.

    Chet fell from a second floor window of the hotel. His photo has been placed in the window. He had a history of drug addiction and his death was ruled as an accident. Higgins says, "We only know this. Drugs are bad."

Jamie & Roy & Bond

   Roy Kent wants Jamie Tartt to get some training while in Amsterdam. Jamie Tartt is a new star on the team while Roy is a veteran player and now coach of AFC Richmond. Jamie makes Roy chase him around the city. One place they visit is a bridge known as Skinny Bridge or Magere Brug. This bridge only allows pedestrian and of course, bicycle traffic to cross.

 

    Jamie points out to Roy that this bridge was seen in the major motion picture, James Bond's Diamonds Are Forever. In that movie, a canal boat passes under the bridge while Mr Wint and Mr Kidd stand on top of it taking pictures. The boat tour gets a little more than they bargained for as they see the police fishing a body out of the river. That reminds us of a boat ride we took down the Thames in London, England. Mr Wint and Mr Kidd's comments lead us to believe that they are responsible for the body in the canal.

   When Roy politely asks Jamie to stop for a second they are at the boat cruise stations beside the Rokin Canal.  Rondvaart in Dutch means cruise. There is another Bond connection here as the Rederij P. Kooij tour company provided the canal boat for Diamonds Are Forever.

    Even better, the exact boat is still operating. It changed its name from Prins Willem-Alexander to Koning Willem-Alexander when the real Prince Willem-Alexander became King of the Netherlands in 2013. The boat can be found in the Rokin canal next to the little Dutch elephant with long, yellow braids.

  Roy Kent catches his breath while sitting down on one of the concrete posts in front of the Diamond Factory. He sits on the last post which can just barely be seen (in the photo above) on the far right, between the planter and the street light. It is here that he points at the Diamond Factory windmill and declares that all windmills are fake.

    Jamie decides to round up some bicycles and go and find a windmill. It turns out that Roy has never learned to ride a bike so Jamie teaches him in front of the Allard Pierson Museum. After a little frustation, a few falls and a thrown bike, Roy finally gets the hang of it. The pair goes off in search of a real windmill.

Colin & Trent

  The next storyline follows another AFC Richmond player named Colin. He leaves the rest of the team at the hotel deciding what to do and heads out into Amsterdam by himself. He ends up at a gay bar named Prik and runs out when Trent Crimm, a reporter who is writing a book about the team, sees him there. Trent tells Colin that he knows his secret and they end up sitting at the edge of the canal near Westerkerk (the Western Church). When the bells of the church toll, Trent mentions that Anne Frank heard those same bells every night.

     Colin says she lived very close to this big pink triangle. They are sitting in front of Homomonument which was placed here in 1987. It commemorates gays and lesbians who are persecuted because of their sexual orientation.

 

Rebecca & The Man With A Houseboat

    The final storyline has Rebecca, the owner of AFC Richmond, going for a stroll through Amsterdam. She stops on this bridge where Groenburgwal canal meets Raamgracht canal because she answers a phone call.

    You can see the houses behind her. The light purple one on the left really stands out.

    As bicycles whiz past Rebecca, a man on the houseboat on the left whistles at her and says, "I have to say something to this beautiful woman."

 

     A bike rider comes close to hitting her and Rebecca loses her balance. She flips over the railing and into the canal.What is it that the mystery man wanted to tell her?  "You're walking in the bike lane."

    Rebecca gets out of the canal and the mystery man welcomes her into his houseboat. She takes a shower while her clothes dry and ends up enjoying a nice dinner and a few drinks. Her and the mystery man end up spending the night talking and having a great time. The next day she joins the rest of the team on their bus. Everyone from Ted Lasso had a great time in Amsterdam and so did we.

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Map of Our World
Roy Kent Learns To Ride A Bike , Rebecca Falls In The Canal

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Post # 337

Lahaina Hawaii

Location: Lahaina, Hawaii, USA
Date: Feb 2017
Website:  lahainatown.com

  On August 8th 2023 there was a wildfire on the Hawaiian island of Maui.  The fire burned through the historic town of Lahaina. Lahaina was the capital city of Hawaii back in 1820 when King Kamehameha II ruled. We always visited the town during our trips to Maui. This blog looks at some of the structures that have been lost or damaged in the fires. If you click the link to the website above, you can donate and help the people who call Lahaina home.

  Built in 1987, the Lahaina Cannery Mall offered free shows on its stage.  There were hula shows offered weekly.  Our favourite was the weekend keiki dance. Keiki means child in Hawaiian.

  The Kobe Japanese Steakhouse in Lahaina had already shut down before the fire.  At the hibachi table your chef would prepare food with great skill.  The photo above shows an onion volcano erupting.

  The Wo Hing Society Building on Front Street was built around 1912 as a social hall.  An increasing number of Chinese immigrants were arriving in Maui to work in the sugarcane industry and could meet here.  Wo Hing means "Peace, Harmony & Prosperity".

    The Pioneer Mill Company was the first plantation to grow sugar comercially in Lahaina in 1860.  This 225 foot tall smokestack is built of brick and concrete.  After operations ceased in 1999, the smokestack was restored so it would remain standing as a symbol of Lahaina's past.

    The Sugarcane Train ran from Kaanapali's plantations to the mill in Lahaina. The steam engine trains continued to operate as tourist trains once they were no longer in commercial use. The train above is train No. 3 and is called Myrtle.  It had just turned around in Kaanapali and released some steam.

    At the station in Lahaina the engine would be turned around on a giant wooden turntable.

    The Baldwin Home was the oldest house on Maui.  It was built on Front Street in 1834. In 1836 Reverend Baldwin and his famiy started living in the home.  The Baldwin home was always open to help those in the community or visiting travellers. Reverend Baldwin helped vaccinate local residents during the smallpox epidemic of the 1950s.

  On the north end of Lahaina sits the Jodo Mission.  This historic Buddhist temple has been here since 1932. 

  Sitting near the temple is this 12 foot tall Buddha.

  This building on Front Street was built around a monkeypod tree.  It used to be a Bubba Gump's restaurant.  A monkeypod tree is also called a rain tree.

  A little further along Front Street you will find Fleetwood's restaurant and bar.  It is owned by Maui resident Mick Fleetwood.  He is known for being a member of the popular rock group, Fleetwood Mac.

  Another Maui resident is Clint Eastwood. This stretch of Front Street has faced a natural disaster before, but only in the movies.  Clint's movie Hereafter brought a computer generated tsunami wave through this part of town.

  Front Street in Lahaina has many historic building dating back to the very early 1900's or earlier.

  One of the oldest structures in town is Old Fort Lahaina.  It was built in 1831 and demolished in 1854.  A small portion of the fort can be seen in what is now Courthouse Square.

  Once the fort was demolished, a courthouse was built on the square.  It later became the Lahaina Heritage Museum and home to the Lahaina Restoration Foundation.  The Lahaina Restoration Foundation worked hard to preserve the historic buildings around town.

    The Pioneer Inn was built in 1901 and was the oldest continuously operating hotel in Hawaii.  It sits on the edge of Courthouse Square.

  A one-legged sailor carved out of wood stood outside the hotel.  Lahaina was filled with talented artists and their work can be seen throughout the town.

  Also standing outside of the Pioneer Inn is the oldest lighthouse on the Pacific.  The Lahaina Lighthouse is a beacon for boats entering the Lahaina harbour.

  In the movie The Devil At 4 O'Clock, Frank Sinatra is a prisoner.  He is escorted from the docks and then passes the Lahaina lighthouse and the entrance to the Pioneer Inn.

  We also walked from the docks past the lighthouse and the Pioneer Inn when we did whale watching tours with the Pacific Whale Foundation.  We enjoyed Sunset, Dinner and Whale Watching cruises. 

 The waters off of Maui are full of humpback whales between November and March when the whales come to mate and give birth.

  The wildfires have taken a great toll on the people of Lahaina, but will also have a huge affect on the smaller creatures that called the town home.  This zebra dove (above) is just one of many species that will have to adapt.  Here is an older blog post about the birds of Maui.

  This little ghost crab was running along the beach during one of our visits.  His fate is uncertain as the land and the sea work together.

 

   Here is another blog post about Dan's Greenhouse.  It also shows more of Lahaina's Front street.

    We always enjoyed our visits to Maui and Lahaina, not because of the structures we mention in this post, but because of the people.  They have always been welcoming and courteous.  Our thoughts are with the residents of Lahaina who have lost so much  We know that just like their mighty Banyan Tree they will support each other and they will endure.

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Map of Our World
Lahaina

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Post # 326