The Unconditional Surrender

On San Diego’s harbor, right next to the maritime museum aboard the aircraft carrier USS Midway, stands a 25-foot-tall statue depicting a sailor kissing a nurse. The sculpture titled "Unconditional Surrender” is based on a famous photograph clicked by Alfred Eisenstaedt in Times Square of New York, on August 14, 1945, after U.S. President Harry S. Truman announced the end of World War II. The photograph appeared on the 1945 issue of Life magazine, and since then it has become one of the most iconic image of America’s victory celebration.

But "Unconditional Surrender”, as well as the original photograph, has been drawing heat from women’s right groups as well as other vocal members of the public, in recent years, for depicting what appears to have been a sexual assault rather than a celebration of love between two willing partners.

As news of Japan's surrender and the end of the brutal conflict spread throughout America, people began to spill out on to the streets to celebrate. Amid joy and relief, booze flowed, people danced, kisses were planted. But some of the jubilation quickly devolved into riots, and some into unprovoked acts of assault, as in the case of 21-year-old Austrian-American and dental hygienist Greta Zimmer Friedman. Like others, Greta too was celebrating the end of World War II in Times Square when a sailor, later recognized as George Mendosa, grabbed her by the waist and delivered a forced kiss.

Life photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt managed to capture the moment in his camera. Later, Eisenstaedt wrote:

"I was walking through the crowds on V-J Day, looking for pictures. I noticed a sailor coming my way. He was grabbing every female he could find and kissing them all–young girls and old ladies alike. Then I noticed the nurse, standing in that enormous crowd. I focused on her and just as I’d hoped, the sailor came along, grabbed the nurse, and bent down to kiss her."

Controversy ignited in 2012 when a London-based blogger argued that the picture depicted not a moment of romance, but a “sexual assault by modern standards,” pointing to extracts from Greta Friedman’s interview where she said things like — “It wasn’t my choice to be kissed,” and “That

man was very strong. I wasn’t kissing him. He was kissing me.” Friedman also described his embrace as a “vice-like” grip from which she couldn’t escape. Mendonsa himself admits to having been intoxicated at the time.
Neither Mendonsa nor Friedman were aware of the photograph or their role in history until many decades later. In 1980, when Life put out a request asking the subjects of the photo to come forward, one of Mendonsa’s friend showed him the photograph. Mendonsa recognized himself in the photo and contacted the magazine. Although many had come forward, calming to be the famous sailor, Mendonsa was decisively identified due to his matching scars and tattoos.

Likewise, three women came forward claiming to be the nurse, but Greta Friedman had already recognized herself in the photo when she saw it the 1960s. It was many years later before her identity was confirmed.

Greta Friedman, however, doesn’t believe Mendonsa was sexually assaulting her because she

George Mendosa, the sailor, and Greta Zimmer Friedman, the nurse

understood the circumstances in which the act was performed.

“I was grabbed by a sailor, and it wasn't that much of a kiss, it was more of a jubilant act that he didn't have to go back [to the Pacific]”, she said in an interview to The Library of Congress. “It was just somebody really celebrating,” she added.

Over the years the photograph became an enduring symbol of the joy and relief felt by a nation at the end of the war. The famous image has even been commemorated on a U.S. postage stamp.

The sculpture “Unconditional Surrender” created in the likeness of the famous kiss was designed by American artist Seward Johnson, who is also responsible for the controversial 26-foot-tall sculpture at Palm Springs, California, of Marilyn Monroe trying to hold down her skirt against a gust of wind. The sculpture titled “Forever Marilyn” was criticized by citizens for its provocative stance which gave viewers the chance to gawk at her lacy underwear.

“Unconditional Surrender” was originally built out of styrofoam for a temporary exhibition in Sarasota, Florida in 2005. Sensing a possible interest in the sculpture, Johnson offered three different versions made out of three different materials —styromfoam, aluminum, and bronze— at three different prices, for any body who would like to have the sculpture installed in their cities or towns. Sarasota bought the aluminum version and installed it in Island Park, on the bay front by the Marina. It was struck down by a car in 2012, but is now replaced.

But the bronze copy that San Diego bought for $1 million is the most famous. Other copies of “Unconditional Surrender” have appeared in Hamilton, New Jersey, Pearl Harbor, and in Caen, France.

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The Catacombs of Odessa

Underneath the city of Odessa, in Ukraine, is an extensive network of tunnels believed to be the largest catacomb system in the world. Largely unmapped and spread haphazardly under the city, the huge maze of underground passages extends for over 2,500 kilometers. If it were laid out in a straight line the tunnels would reach all the way to Paris. Incidentally, Paris is also the place where the world's second largest catacombs are located. But Odessa’s catacombs are five times longer than those in Paris.

Underneath the city of Odessa, in Ukraine, is an extensive network of tunnels believed to be the largest catacomb system in the world. Largely unmapped and spread haphazardly under the city, the huge maze of underground passages extends for over 2,500 kilometers. If it were laid out in a straight line the tunnels would reach all the way to Paris. Incidentally, Paris is also the place where the world's second largest catacombs are located. But Odessa’s catacombs are five times longer than those in Paris.

Mining continued throughout the entire 19th century and into the 20th, until the outbreak of the Russian Revolution of 1917. The mines fell into the hands of criminals and vagabonds who began to use the underground to meet and smuggle goods. At one time these dark and dingy tunnels were even used by slave traders.

When the Nazis arrived in Odessa and began massacring the city’s population, the catacombs served as hiding place for Soviet partisans fighting the axis forces. The hideouts were turned into

comfortable living spaces by the guerilla fighters. There were recreation rooms where men played checkers, chess, or dominoes by candlelight. Rooms for accommodation had shelves cut into the walls where men and women slept. Kitchens were equipped with stoves made of limestone and smoke was vented into empty chambers above. There was even a hospital and an operating theater.

Some of the tunnels have been reconstructed today, allowing visitors to see the exact conditions that the partisans lived in. At the ‘Museum of Partisan Glory’ near Nerubayskoye, there's a kilometer-long section of catacomb neatly arranged with period-costume dummies and rusty WWII weapons.

There are more than a thousand known entrances leading into the mysterious labyrinth filled with hidden caves, where modern explorers routinely discover century-old artifacts such as coins, tools, items of clothing, cooking pots and utensils, rifles from World War II, and old newspapers.

Going into the tunnels without a guide is extremely dangerous. It’s all to easy to wander into the darkness and never return.

Amateur map of a section from the Odessa catacombs.

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Yareta, The 3,000 Years Old Plant

These rocks on the highlands of the Andes looks like they are covered with moss. Actually, they are a type of flowing plant known as Yareta and it lives in colonies which can be thousands of years old.

Yareta (Azorella compacta), also known as "Llareta" in Spanish, is a flowering plant that belongs to the family Apiaceae. It grows in the cold Puna grasslands of the Andes in Peru, Bolivia, northern Chile, and western Argentina at altitudes between 3,200 and 4,500 meters, where the wind blows unceasingly and the cold cracks even granite. To survive the extreme conditions, Yareta grows in packs so dense that its stems can take the weight of a human. The plant keeps close to the ground in order to retain as much heat in as possible. This also helps to resist the powerful high altitude wind, which would tear up the roots of any plant. To prevents moisture loss through evaporation the Yareta has wax covered leaves.

Another trick the Yareta has learned to survive the inhospitable mountains of the Andes is to grow 

extremely slowly, almost at a geological pace of 1.5 cm a year. A large blob of Yareta growing on

the rocks can thus be thousands of years old. Many Yaretas are estimated to be over 3,000 years old.

Because the Yareta is dry and dense, it burns well, like peat, and was traditionally harvested for fuel. The amount of yareta being removed had become so significant that it threatened the very existence of the plant. Yareta is now a protected species and being such a slow grower, it has also made it to the endangered list.

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Colma, The Town of The Dead

South of San Francisco, near Daly City, lies the small town of Colma where the dead outnumbers the living by a thousand to one. It’s less than 2 square miles in size, but crammed within it are as many as 17 cemeteries where rest the bodies of more than 1.5 million souls.

Nearly all of the dead were once proud residents of San Francisco, both during their lifetime and after. But at the turn of the last century, the city passed an ordinance that banished all dead from within city limits. The government argued that cemeteries spread disease, but the true motive for the eviction was the rising value of real estate —land in San Francisco was too precious to waste on dead people.

Hundreds of thousands of dead bodies were dug up and transported to vacant lands south of the city and the town of Colma began to take shape. For the better part of the century, Colma’s residents were mainly gravediggers, flower growers and monument makers. It was only after the 1980s, that other types of people and businesses began settling next to the dead. Today, the little

town has many thriving businesses, including car dealerships and shopping centers. In recent years, Colma has held many boxing events.

The history of Colma actually goes back to the middle of the 19th century, and begins with the California gold rush of 1849. The lure of quick riches brought hundred of thousands of prospectors, merchants and other immigrants from all over the world to California. Tens of thousands ended up in San Francisco. But gold seeking was not an easy business. Thousands died from accidents while others succumbed to diseases such as cholera, and San Francisco, then a small settlement of about 200 residents, found itself in need for more cemeteries. More than two dozen cemeteries were established and they were nearly filled to their capacity.

Cemetery owners than started looking towards Colma, a small community of homes and small businesses along El Camino Real and the adjacent railroad line. The first cemetery, the Holy Cross, was established in 1887.

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The Orange Rocks of Bay of Fires

The Bay of Fires, on the northeastern coast of Tasmania in Australia, is a large bay that extends for about 30 km from Binalong Bay in the south to Eddystone Point in the north. The bay was named by the British navigator and explorer Captain Tobias Furneaux, in 1773, when he noticed numerous fires along the coast, which led him to believe that the country was densely populated. 

Evidence of settlement by aboriginal people can still be seen along the coast.

The Bay of Fires is characterized by white beaches, blue water and huge granite blocks that are colored bright orange by lichens. Perhaps, Captain Tobias Furneaux named the bay after these fiery red rocks. Who knows?

Lichens are a combination of algae and fungus that live together in a symbiotic relationship. The algae provides food by photosynthesis, while the fungus provides a protected environment for the algae. The combined life form has properties that are very different from the properties of its component organisms. Lichens are classified by their fungal component and are given the same scientific name as the fungus species in the lichen, irrespective of what alga lives in the fungus.

The lichens responsible for the orange hue in the rocks of Bay of Fires belong to the family Hymeneliaceae. The color is contained in their thallus, which is the vegetative part of the body. Lichens are grouped by thallus type, since the thallus is usually the most visually prominent part of the lichen. But in some lichens, the thallus is difficult to distinguish. As a result many lichens remain unclassified.

Aside from lichens, there is a wealth of local wildlife to discover around the bay area, including birds, corals and the rich marine diversity that the reefs attract.

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TRUE or FALSE: Siq, Petra’s Spectacular Gorge

TRUE or FALSE: Siq, Petra’s Spectacular Gorge: The ancient city of Petra, located in the heart of the mountainous desert of southern Jordan, had different approaches in the past. One po...

Siq, Petra’s Spectacular Gorge

The ancient city of Petra, located in the heart of the mountainous desert of southern Jordan, had different approaches in the past. One possible route was from the south, across the plain of Petra and around Jabal Haroun or Aaron's Mountain. Another approach was from the high plateau to the north. But modern visitors approach Petra from the east, through a narrow gorge called the Siq, that ends dramatically in front of the elaborate ruins of the “Treasury” or Al-Khazneh in Arabic.

The Siq is not really a gorge because it was not formed by water erosion but by tectonic forces that caused the sandstone mountain to split in half creating a deep, narrow pathway. Later, water from flash floods gradually rounded the sharp edges of the gorge into smooth curves.

The entrance to the Siq once contained a monumental arch, but it collapsed in 1896 following an earthquake. Only the two abutments and some hewn stones of the arch remain.

The path through the Sig meanders for 1.2 km between beautifully-colored sandstone cliffs that tower 150 meters on either side. The Siq is no more than 3 meters wide on average, but occasionally the path widens enough to allow in warm sunlight and even a tree. In other places, it becomes so narrow that one can touch both walls with arms outstretched.

Along the way are several archaeological artifacts such as ancient water aqueducts that run along the sides of the canyon and brought water down to the center of Petra. Small niches are carved out of the rock, high up the ground and can only be accessed by stairs. There are also remnants of what must have been large and impressive statues. Along the Siq are also some underground chambers, whose function is not clear. It’s thought that they housed the guards that defended the main entrance to Petra.

As one approaches the end of the Siq, a thin sliver of the Treasury comes into view through the narrow opening. Upon exiting the Siq, visitors can have full view of its jaw-dropping grandeur.

The Treasury was originally built as a mausoleum and crypt, but legend of it containing ancient riches had earned it its current name. The loot was rumored to be hidden inside a stone urn high on the second level. Local Bedouin tribes had tried to test the theory by shooting at the urn in hopes of breaking it open and spilling out the "treasure”. But the decorative urn is, in fact, solid sandstone. Its façade is now riddled with bullet holes.

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The Mid-Atlantic Ridge in Iceland

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a submarine ridge located along the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, that wraps around the globe for more than 65,000 km like the seam of a baseball. It is the longest and the most extensive chain of mountains on earth, but being located underwater, more than 90% of this mountain range remains hidden from view. There are only a few places on earth where it juts out of the surface of the ocean, in the form of a few islands, one of which is Iceland.

Iceland represents the largest portion of the mid-Atlantic ridge exposed above sea level. Formed from volcanic eruptions on the Mid-Atlantic ridge, about 24 million years ago, it is one of the few places where you can stand on the ridge on dry land. This makes Iceland very special and a popular place for geologists and scientists.

This is the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. A visitor stands between the two tectonic plates. 

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is geologically significant because it marks the boundary where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet and separate. Volcanic eruptions at this boundary create new ocean floor and at the same time push the two tectonic plates apart at rates of 1 cm to 20 cm per year, a process known as sea-floor spreading. As oceanic plates move apart, rock melts and wells up from tens of kilometers deep producing enormous volcanic eruptions of basalt, and building the longest chain of volcanoes in the world.

The place where the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is best visible is at Thingvellir National Park, in southwestern Iceland. The continental drift between the North American and Eurasian Plates can

be clearly seen in the cracks or faults which traverse the region, the largest one, Almannagjá, being a veritable canyon.

The section of the ridge that includes the island of Iceland is known as the Reykjanes Ridge. The ridge is spreading at an average rate of about 2.5 cm per year. Over the past 10,000 years the Thingvellir Rift Valley has widened by 230 feet (70 m) and sunk by 131 feet (40 m). Not only is the mid-ocean ridge changing the geography of Iceland, it’s also responsible for the volcanic activity which created the island. As the two tectonic plates shift, fissures periodically form in the crust that allow molten rock from underground to surface as lava, creating Iceland's many volcanoes. Iceland is one of the most geologically active places on Earth with more than 15 volcanoes that have erupted in the last century.

Map of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, running from top to bottom, between the continents of North/South America and Africa.

Visitors walking next to the North American plate. On the right is the Eurasian plate

 

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