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Visiting the Yucatan Peninsula

A friend recently mentioned plans to visit the Yucatan. This brief video shares a few things to do and places to stay while exploring. The people, food, beaches, history and cenotes are terrific.

I remember fueling one day as we explored. The petrol station attendant inquired where we were from. We told him. He replied how much things have changed across his life. "People love our food (salsa and guacamole), music, beaches and visit on purpose!"

Later, while climbing around Uxmal, a young German woman joined our ascent. She was traveling the Peninsula via "Colectivo" buses and a "small as possible" backpack.

Later that evening, we chatted extensively with a family from Johannesburg, South Africa.

You'll meet people from around the globe.

Enjoy. Learn more in the amuz app.

Looker

How easy is it to stand out? We live in a sea of grey cars - Fiat's view:

And so it was, while on a road trip,

A rare, nearly extinct color flashed as it turned on the State Highway.

What was it?

Ah, BMW: when "what was under the hood mattered more than what was on the hood".

Sublime. An early 1970's 3.0cs.

"No more boring cars" - we shall see.

Plan your next journey with amuz + ibooks

The dream of Emperor Maximilian is Mexico

When he was known as Archduke Francisco Ferdinand Maximilian of Austria, he planned to retire to the good life in Trieste. Trieste was the chief seaport of the entire Austria-Hungarian empire. It is worth visiting this fascinating city on the Adriatic, which borders the former Yugoslavia.

The beauty of the building belies it’s sad history. So often when visiting house museums one learns that the visionary of these architectural opuses rarely live long enough to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

The waterfront castle in Trieste is sadly no exception. In fact, the property is purported to be cursed for all who dared to take up residence after Maximilian. He would who become Emperor Maximilian 1 of Mexico. The castle was built between 1856 and 1860 for he and his wife: Charlotte of Belgium.

The couple was pressed into duty by his brother and the French, who hoped to establish a foothold in North America. The plan was to seize power in Mexico while the American government was distracted by the Civil War, then march and take territory north of Mexico. It was ultimately a disastrous insurrection attempt.

Maximilian 1 was declared emperor in 1864. Within three years he was dead by firing squad. His distraught wife returned to the castle and went mad. Maximilian’s lasting contribution to Mexico was the introduction of European-style lager that he enjoyed due to his Austrian heritage.

The repercussions of Maximilian are still felt today. A 1920s start up called Cerveceria Modelo thrived with its namesake lager: Modelo. The company also added a lighter lager called Corona. Today Grupo Modelo has more than half of Mexico’s beer market share.

Remarkably Modelo, now brewed by an American firm - Constellation Brands - has waged its own successful insurrection - Mexican American style. With turbulence in the beer market due to some missteps by market leader Annheuser Busch, Constellation stepped in and dethroned the “king of beers”. Demographic shifts, superior manufacturing, distribution and retailing won the day for Modelo.

Explore Miramare with a few taps in amuz.

Extra Credit:

Trieste and the meaning of Nowhere by Jan Morris

"The beer is Modelo Especial, and the company is Constellation Brands (ticker: STZ). Mexico is said to have developed a taste for European-style lager after Vienna-born Maximilian I was declared its emperor in 1864. He lasted three years and died by firing squad; local brewing fared better." - Barrons

Afterglow Farm

Afterglow is defined as good feelings that remain after a pleasurable or successful experience.

Afterglow Farm is an apt name for the country home established Joseph and Ilma Uihlein.

The family fortune was due in large part to the successful creation and management of the Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company. Schlitz was a Wisconsin institution and at one time the largest producer of beer in the United States.

Afterglow Farm was established in 1929 as a summer residence by the Uihleins. A Germanic-style timber and field stone cottage is set amid large garden beds designed in the New American style. They feature long-blooming, deer-resistant perennials anchored with specimen trees.

In a nod to their German heritage there are stunning examples of ironwork in the style of German renaissance. There are many references to bears on the property. This is due to bears as common elements in German/Swiss heraldry which the Uihleins admired.

There are owl sculptures and references too. Owls and Uihlein have a phonetic connections in German. Owl in German Jan"eule" which sound’s phonetically like "Uihlein".

One can imagine gracious hospitality that may occur in such a beautiful setting. There is a quote in German Hausspruch, a typical German exterior decorative painting on the main house:

“This house is mine, yet not mine. Whoever lived here before, it is not his. Whoever comes after me must also leave sometime. So tell dear friend, whose house is this?”

Afterglow includes a maple/beech/ash woodland, wooded ravines and paths, two ponds, native prairie gardens, two small orchards and ornamental stonework on approximately 120 acres along the spectacular Lake Michigan shoreline. A lovely descent to the shoreline through the trees is tranquil and worth the trek.

The circle garden has informal plantings with gravel paths. The center of the garden features a large bear /owl fountain which was erected in 1950.

There is an asteroid attached to the garden gate. Joseph Uihlein collected petrified wood, special stones and rocks which are incorporated throughout the property.

The Uihlein family continues as stewards of the private property. The farm began wetlands restoration in 1999 and that work continues. Environmental groups study migratory birds and bats on the property. Afterglow Farm was named a Smithsonian Garden in 2009. A full time staff of five keep the grounds in impeccable condition.

Rarely open to the public, the garden was in Garden Conservancy Open Day in 2011, 2017 and 2023.

Explore Afterglow in the amuz app for iPhone, iPad and apple silicon Mac.

What is a beer head?

A beer head is that frothy layer of bubbles on top of a glass of beer. - via draft mag

sedso microlearning

The Chatham Honor System

Amidst a tap to pay (and tip) world, it was a pleasure to discover Fresh Mushrooms Daily in lovely Chatham, Pennsylvania.

Operating on the honor system - that is select your purchase, pay and make change if necessary - a visitor quickly discovers that the mushrooms are huge, delicous and a tremendous value.

All, without adult supervision.

Stop, open the door and explore fresh mushrooms, daily.

Learn more about mushrooms, here.

sedso microlearning

3474 Gap Newport Pike, West Grove, PA 19390
Maps: Apple // Google

Explore in the amuz app.

Modern Approach to Wisconsin History Celebrates Native Civil War Hero

Life stories impact UW student historians

Students in Dr. Leslie Bellais’s History 401 class are required to use historic objects as a lens to the past. The objects tell the story of people and communities who are often forgotten.

One such intriguing story is exemplified by a brass Civil War medal, which belonged to Native American Stephen Nicholas, one of the first residents of Chilton, Wisconsin. Nicholas was a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee tribe—a combination of two tribal groups who joined together when New England residents forced them out of the region. Nicholas arrived in Calumet County, Wisconsin as a child accompanied by his grandparents, who founded Chilton, in the early 1840s. On September 1, 1861, he enlisted in the U.S. Army, joining the 1st Wisconsin Cavalry. Like many other Native Americans in the Civil War, Nicholas worked as a scout.

In August 1862, after Nicholas and the rest of the 1st Wisconsin Cavalry freed over 100 slaves in a raid in Arkansas, Confederate Texas Rangers retaliated and captured not only many of the slaves, but also Nicholas and his fellow soldiers. While a POW, a Confederate general offered Nicholas a chance at freedom if he would desert the Union army. When he refused, members of his regiment fashioned a brass medal for him to honor his service and bravery. This was a particularly powerful statement because of the prejudice Native American veterans faced from their white peers. [www link. QR below]

Savannah Houdeshell, a recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree Anthropology and certificates in African Studies and History, researched the Civil War medal using the resources of the Calumet County Historical Society. This work appealed to her combined interests in military history and the treatment of Native Americans. Houdeshell plans a career as a naval aviator this summer.

History 401 leverages the amuz app [app store] to publish the student research. The idea is to help students learn in a modern way. They must do research, determine why the story might resonate with the app’s audience, and then share their work via a video, multi-media, and a timeline presentation. The object is geolocated so explorers can find areas of interest wherever they travel using the app.

Press Release [PDF]

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inquiries: nancy@amuz.com

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