America's Landmarks: Travel with D.L. Siluk

Landmarks Of America


By Dennis L. Siluk
Sept. 7, 2005

I have traveled to about 46, of the States, and they, most all of them have some kind of landmark, but here I will just mention the ones I saw myself, and thought to be at the top of my list: not in order though, for if it was, I’d pick out the Alamo (as you will know), the Empire State Building, The Arch of St. Lewis, the Space Needle of Seattle, the Grand Canyon, and perhaps, Mount Rushmore, and of course the Golden Gate Bridge; something like that; the Liberty Bell comes into this category also, as does Independence Hall.

Mouth Rushmore, I went to see in l996, surrounded by the Black Hills, of South Dakota. When I got to it, there was a fence and you could gaze up the mountain, it stands on a dynamite granite cap of a 6,000–Foot Mountain. An estimated 450, tons of rock was subtracted in the process of carving out this monument. It cost $900,000 total, at the time, and its work started in 1927.

In l986, I went to Las Vegas with my mother, we traveled a lot back then together, and I took a day to go see the Grand Canyon, I flew through its North rim, down into its gully, it is perhaps the most famous of the natural wonders of America, although I liked Niagara Falls just as much. The guy next to me in the 19-seater airplane got sick. But sightseeing from a small aircraft is the way to go, so I feel. I have used helicopters and small aircraft on a dozen geological trips.

The Gateway Arch in St. Louis is grand, nothing less, I saw it in l992, it is like a Cathedral dome, 650-feet high, without a house under it, huge, you can see it as your plane comes into St. Louis, and you descend to the airport.

Graceland is a short distance from the airport, we landed in Memphis, my wife and I, from a trip, coming back from Hawaii, or someplace like that in 2001 ((last part of November, we were on one of the planes on 9/11 that was taking off to Los Angeles, was stopped at 8:36 AM, just after the first atrocity, of the first WTC tower being hit)) we had to reschedule for Hawaii); I always wanted to see it: the Graceland and my wife and I did—had a great tour; the four hours layover allowed this, so we caught a taxi down to Graceland, Elvis Presley’s home, and it was well worth the trip. A Woman in the gift shop even gave me a free pin for my lapel. It has 23-rooms, and of course is a museum for the most part.

I was at the Vietnam Memorial, which contains 58,312 Americans names who were killed in the conflict, the war, in 2000. It is 555-feet long. The only problem in Washington D.C., and even at this sight, you got police up the tuba telling you: don’t go on the grass to take the picture, don’t touch this, don’t do that. I couldn’t wait to get out of DC, and will never go back. Georgetown was much better as far as a tourist place goes, more calm, more people orientated.

In l970, I went to Independence Hall, in Philadelphia, which is a national historical park now, in Philadelphia, where our founding fathers created the Declaration of Independence. Saw he Liberty Bell, entombed in glass. It was great to see it.

In Manhattan I walked across the famous Brooklyn Bridge with my wife, all four times I was in New York I visited the Bridge: the first time I saw it though, was in l996.

The Statue of Liberty; I saw it in l996, but when I got married, my wife wanted to go up it, and see it also, in 2000, and we did, it was her most cherished wish when coming to America, and today, September 6, 2005, she became an American Citizen (from Peru): and is most proud. She said if she had to take arms, she was ready. I told her I thought she might be too old, just turned 46, but the gesture was one of a true American.

Another nice site to see is Robert Frost's House, in New Hamsphire, and F. Scott Fitzgerald's home in St. Paul, Minnesota.