Destinations

If you were to say to someone in Maine that you were taking the ferry to Long Island to visit public gardens, they would look at you and think, What public gardens? They would conjure up images of an outpost in Casco Bay populated by people who fish for a living and have little time to garden, and by summer residents who might have a small vegetable garden, flower bed or hedgerow of rugosa rose. But public gardens? There are none to be found. Its a simple place where the word ostentatious isnt used very often. I like Long Island, Maine my kind of people and my kind of gardens.

Last year, I was asked to go to the other Long Island, the big island adjacent to New York City, for a Day Trip. Never having been there and based on some of the things I had read about the Hamptons, the area I would be visiting I really wasnt looking forward to it. Who wants to drive all day, take a ferry, then drive some more to see McMansions or rub elbows in an overpriced restaurant with high rollers from New York City? I did make the trip, however, and although it was quite different from Long Island, Maine, it wasnt what I had envisioned.

I had a little time to kill before taking the ferry from New London, Conn., so I took a moment to see the newly completed Athenian garden in a pocket park downtown. With a Greek-inspired mural and sculptures, it was well worth the visit. If you have more time to spend in New London, a half-day visiting the Connecticut College Arboretum also is a must.

The ferry ride across Long Island Sound to Orient Point proved pleasant aboard the 1,000-passenger MV John H. There were many interesting sights, including lighthouses and the Electric Boat shipyard in Groton, Conn., where sub-marines are built and main- tained for the U.S. Navy. One of the subs passed the ferry something I had never seen in Casco Bay!

Disembarking from the ferry, I was ready for the glitz and glitter of Long Island. The first hour of driving, however, was through rural farming areas in Suffolk County, the leading agricultural county in New York. Tomatoes were ripe on the vine and potatoes were being dug. After another ferry ride from Shelter Island, I pulled into Bridgehampton, where BMWs, Jaguars and Mercedes replaced the John Deere tractors of an hour earlier.

No celebrities were sighted, but I was immediately taken by the miles of privet hedges, Ligustrum spp., most of them sculpted to sharp angles. They delineated property lines and prevented anyone from seeing through them or over them. I became fascinated with the hedges and tried to seek out Vincent Simone, a local woody-plant expert whose books I reviewed this year in PPPs Early Spring issue. Unfortunately, I was unable to contact him until I returned to Maine (see the sidebar at left). On every road I traveled, pruning crews high on ladders used power hedge trimmers to sculpt the naturally gangly privet into something that looked almost perfect. Back in Maine on Long Island, a privet hedge might only get pruned once a year, and sometimes that would be with a chain saw.

I soon arrived at the Madoo Conser-vancy in Sagaponack and the gardens of Robert Dash, who probably is best known as an artist whose medium is canvas. I quickly found that this multi-talented character I was going to use the term gentleman, but I knew he would disapprove had an uncanny eye for develop- ing landscapes.

I do not paint in the way that I garden

or garden as I would employ the brush, although the process is often the same both are arts of the wrist, the broadest, largest sort of signature, if you will, highly idiosyncratic, the result of much doing, much stumbling, and highly intuited turns and twists before everything fits and adheres to the scale of ones intention, Dash wrote in Notes from Madoo: Making a Garden in the Hamptons (see Book Reviews on Page 132). I felt there could be no better representation of his art than that of his gardens.

In May of 1965, Dash first saw the land that was to become his passion. He bought the parcel a raw piece of agricultural land with an 18th-century hay barn and by 1967 was on his way to creating Madoo, which in an old Scottish dialect means my dove.

Upon my arrival he quickly took me to his gardens, which were designed as a series of rooms. We strolled past the boxwoods of the knot garden and down the rose walk, which features a brick-lined rill. My eye was drawn through hoops entwined with climbing roses to an exedra, a Grecian brick structure with an oculus and a linear mirror to extend the sightline. This was just the first of many garden designs befitting an artist. I have seen ginkgo groves, for instance, but none that utilize tightly pruned boxwoods, or box balls, as Dashs does.

Rather a wild stroke, he said.

We passed four quincunx beds, with a fastigiate yew standing at attention at each corner of each square bed. There was a hermits hut tucked into another garden, and Dash proudly showed me an oriental bridge surrounded by native plants. As we walked, he explained that the keys to successful growing are lots of manure and proper pruning.

Pruning? I was looking for privet that didnt look perfectly square, and I found what I wanted. Dash has taken mature privet and treated it in a way that will provide an opportunity for all gardeners with overgrown hedges an opportunity to make a statement with plants that will have visitors saying wow, as I did. Imagine 20-foot-tall privets with trunks the size of small trees pruned up a good 10 feet.

Now aged and knobby, they still look like the legs of young ballerinas, but young ballerinas wearing old rehearsal stockings, pilled and raddled, Dash wrote in describ-ing the effect.

After walking through his many other garden rooms, it was time to have a glass of wine. The wine led to a discussion of what needs to be changed at Madoo, and the amount of grape juice consumed may have influenced the fate of the knot garden. We agreed that it interfered with the view down the rill to the exedra, and it must go!

Running late, I reluctantly left Madoo and arrived at the LongHouse Reserve just as it was closing for the day. A busload of visitors was being escorted out, which allowed for a look at the gardens without anyone else present, and the setting sun created lighting conditions that couldnt have been better for photography. But being late also meant I didnt get to spend much time with Matko Tomicic, the executive director, or any time with Jack Lenor Larsen, who created this wonderful landscape filled with works by artists ranging from Roy Lichtenstein to Yoko Ono.

Garden enthusiasts come to LongHouse not so much for the plant collections as for ambitious landscaping, and for a variety of spaces sometimes referred to as outdoor rooms. Among them are the Red Garden, the Dune Garden, the Grass Garden and the Lotus Pond, in addition to several alles. LongHouse receives about 6,000 visitors annually.

About 300 daffodil cultivars blossom in April and May, primarily in whites and pinks. The property also features 60 bamboo cultivars, ranging from low pygmies to combs 50 feet high; 100 conifer varieties, and 100 ornamental grasses.

The sculptures at LongHouse provide punctuation and a destination. While many visitors might not want to walk the equivalent of several blocks to see a new tree, they are often willing to visit the Yoko Ono piece at the west boundary of the reserve, or to experience a new or famous work, including pieces in glass and ceramic by Toshiko Takaezu and Dale Chihuly.

While this garden art may be out of reach financially for many of PPPs readers, the concept can be transposed to most landscapes. LongHouse can inspire gardeners to go beyond the ordinary and take the chances necessary to make a landscape unique.

Another public garden in the area that is well worth mentioning is the Bridge Gardens Trust. The gardens had closed for the season the day before I arrived, but curator Harry Neyens was gracious enough to provide a description.

Bridge Gardens Trust has 800 antique and new roses, a knot garden, a historical collection of culinary, medicinal, textile and dyeing herbs, a lavender parterre, an assortment of topiaries, a water garden, two shade gardens, a bamboo grove and specimen plantings, he said. (We receive) 1,500 visitors annually.

The next time I visit Long Island, Ill make certain I get there before the closing date of Oct. 31!
If you enjoy visiting wineries, there are many on Long Island from which to choose. The soil (a rich loam), the climate (like Bordeaux) and the influence of the ocean all make for perfect grape-growing. A stop at the Wlffer Estate Vineyard in Sagaponack proved how well-suited Long Island is for winemaking. The Wlffer Estate Selection Chardonnay was rated Best Long Island Chardonnay by The Wine Enthusiast magazine. Even if you are not a fan of wine, the landscape and vineyard running alongside the winery make a stop here worthwhile.

There are many options for accommodations in the Hamptons, from bed-and- breakfast establishments to motels. I opted to head out to Montauk on the easternmost tip of Long Island. The town has an old summer beach community feel, with many old-style motels and 5,000 acres of public beaches to enjoy. It also has a lot of history: The Montauk Point Lighthouse was opened in 1787, and Montauk Point is where Teddy Roosevelt and his 30,000 Rough Riders landed after the Spanish-American War.

There are a host of excellent places to eat in Montauk, and I asked around about the best place to sample local fare. The locals all steered me to the Shagwong Restaurant, and a meal of freshly caught seafood proved their recommendations correct.

What is my most lasting memory of this Day Trip? The eccentricity of Robert Dash, the privet hedges, the sun setting behind the Chihuly glass wands at the LongHouse Reserve, or sunrise at Montauk Point? None of the above. As memorable as these experiences were, they cant beat my visit to Marders Nursery.

For a tree lover, nothing can compare to sitting on the rootball of a 20-foot ginkgo ready to be installed at the cost of $25,000. Yes, $25,000! This nursery in Bridgehamp-ton is beyond belief. It was started by Kathleen and Charlie Marder about a quarter of a century ago with the purpose of transplanting large trees by mechanical means. That they do, and in addition to the large trees they now have a full-service garden center, a landscaping division and an art collection on the grounds. If you need a large plant to anchor your landscape, visit them and ask to see the 40-foot arborvitae. If you think it will fit in your landscape, get the checkbook ready, because for about $40,000 it can be yours. And, of course, if Marders plants the tree, it comes with a two-year guarantee.

It was time to head back to Maine. Had I changed my mind about which Long Island I like best? Maybe, but Ill have to visit the New York one a couple of more times to fairly judge. Of course, if someone bought me one of those $25,000 ginkgos there would be no contest!

Travelling to Africa – A Guide for the Single First Timer

Travelling to Africa

If you’re from the West and your thinking of travelling to Africa for the first time or for a holiday, or to meet someone you’ve met from a dating site such as AfrikaDating or others, then congratulations! If you’ve been before you can probably ignore all this, but if it’s your first time, then it might be of use to you.

Firstly, you’re a lucky person. Not many people can afford to travel to Africa, it’s a long-haul flight in most cases and a lot of Africans would like to be going the other way! Now, do you have family there? Are you meeting someone for the first time? Are you going on a package tour? If you’ve got family or you’re going on a package tour, most things like where you’ll stay and your safety will be taken care of.

How are you travelling?

If you are going alone, then its best to make sure that the person you are meeting at the other end is genuine and you trust that person. If you’re not sure, make a contingency plan in case you get into trouble. Find out where your country embassy is in that country and their phone number. If you’re worried try and make a number of bookings yourself, such as your hotel. A lot of hotels will take email bookings but you can use cheap international calls to phone up a hotel to make your reservation. You’ll be charged a lot if you book into a Sheraton or Holiday Inn however, and sometimes those places can be strict, especially they will charge you more if you bring a guest to your room.

Health

Before you go make sure you’ve had your relevant jabs. There are certain health risks, the most significant of which are Malaria and HIV/AIDS. Take a trip to your travel clinic, GP or doctor and get the relevant jabs. These can take weeks to get, so its best to plan in advance or you may want to find a private travel clinic. Even if you are of African origin, its best to be sure since viruses and other bugs mutate over time and when you might previously have been immune, you might not be to more recent viruses.

Malaria

Check if your travelling to a malarial area. Get the relevant anti-malarial medication from your doctor, and take it. Malaria is a killer and its best not to mess about. And get an idea of the symptoms of malaria so you can recognise it in case you catch it anyway. The general symptoms include headache, nausea, fever, vomiting and flu-like symptoms, although these symptoms may differ depending on the type you’ve contracted. Malaria can come on several months after returning from an infected area, and if you get ill after you come back, make sure you mention to any doctor treating you that you’ve been to a malarial area.

Sexual Health

If you’re intending to be sexually active then take condoms with you. Some people slur the standard of African condoms however, they are generally of a high standard and can be bought readily and cheaply in most African countries. Diseases such as HIV/AIDS, Syphilis, Gonorrhoea are common. HIV/AIDS, while treatable in the west, is still one of the major killers in Africa, so take care. If you’re going to get married then you can take all the relevant tests then, in the meantime simply play safe. That’s use CONDOMS!

If it turns our you or your partner are HIV positive, its not the end of the world and there are organisations out there to help you cope with the diagnosis and help you find the course of action you are most comfortable with. This is a highly sensitive and complex area, and we’ll be adding further information on this site in due course.

Country Background

Most developed countries will have detailed country information for travellers available over the internet. The most extensive of these are with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the UK, and the US Department of State. Read them and absorb them but take them with a pinch of salt as they can scare the living crap out of you and put you off travelling. In the bureaucrat’s world, everything foreign is bad and everything indigenous is good. For example, you might find warnings against travelling to Bali due to terrorist activity, but not to Spain although both countries were attacked by al-Qaida terrorists.

Basically your government is risk averse and doesn’t want to get sued for giving wrongful advice, for example if you based your trip abroad on favourable country advice and then got bombed, you might be able to sue them. So bear that in mind. For example the FCO still advises on Kenya that “Do not accept food or drink from strangers as it may be drugged” although there is no evidence of Kenyan locals running around with drugged sweets forcing them into foreigners mouths, and it may even be based on a rumour that is several years old.

However, before I run the risk of pooh-poohing the whole country reports system, they do contain valuable information and valuable warnings. It’s a good idea to read them and familiarise yourself with the contents and the particular thing that you MUST take notice of, such as health information, visa requirements and do’s and don’ts.

Money

The banking system in Africa generally does not provide as many services as you may expect in a Western country. You might be able to use credit cards and your current bank cards in come countries, but not in others. You may be able to use your bank card in certain establishments, or there may be just one. For example, if you wanted to make a cash withdrawal on your credit card in Uganda (last time I was there), there was only one places you could do it: Barclays Bank on Kampala Road. On the other hand, throughout Kenya you can use a UK bank card in the machines there. You’ll need to check it out. Speak to your bank

Avoid taking travellers cheques. These are widely used in fraudulent activities and many places will not accept them. You might not be able to change up into local currency before you travel (you still can’t buy Zambian Kwacha in the UK!) and might not get good exchange rates anyway.

It’s best to take cash, in such currencies as British Pounds, Euros or US Dollars. The US Dollar is the most widely accepted. Take how much you are going to need and an extra 100 to 200 for contingencies. A lot of people in Africa will instantly convert their prices to US dollars for foreigners anyway, and the dollar is especially useful if you are travelling outside major capital cities where the only foreign money banks will take will be the US Dollar. So, even if you’re travelling with Pounds or Euros, its best to get a few US Dollars to be on the safe side. Another thing to take account of is that some countries had a lot of fake US bills distributed after the Iraq wars and may even refuse US Bills which are dated before 1999. So get US Bills which are dated 2000 and later if you are unsure.

Keep your money safe. Don’t put it all in the same place and don’t put any in your suitcase. If you’re out and about put some money in each pocket. Africans like stuffing it in their socks so you might want to put some there as well. Check if your hotel or accommodation has security for passports and money and use them if necessary. Bigger hotels will have a safe in the rooms.

Travel Insurance

Don’t ask. Just get it. On one trip to South Africa I was set fire to in a barbecue accident (DON’T light barbecues with petrol) and robbed at gunpoint in central Johannesburg a week later – they took everything including my passport. And I was travelling with a Xhosa local who carried a semi-automatic pistol everywhere we went. So get travel insurance. It’s mostly sold under “World Wide” policies. You’re worth it.

Cultural Awareness

If you are from the west or other rich country it’s almost inevitable that local people will have certain perceptions of you. The most commonplace is that you are rich. If you’re white it’s even worse and they might assume you have a dollar tree growing in your garden. Remember a lot of these people are broke, in countries where social security is limited to running orphanages, and thousands of westerners have passed through throwing money away on silly projects or in expensive hotels. So, you’re rich. Expect to be hassled and overcharged, and if you’re travelling alone get a local to look after you. Taxi drivers are sometimes a good choice. On the positive side, most people will just ask for the price of a beer, which is about a dollar.

But whatever you do don’t be an ass with a big head and don’t treat the locals like idiots. There will be lots you might not understand but there’s no excuse for treating people with a lack of respect. Mind your language; swearing is often frowned upon in many African countries.

Visa

In most cases you’ll need a visa when travelling to an African country. These can be bought in advance at the relevant embassy or consulate in your home country, and often can be bought at the border when you arrive, although sometimes there are long queues which can be worrying if you’ve got a connecting flight. Visas can cost more than 65 dollars depending where you go, and generally you can pay in Euros, Pounds or Dollars. If in doubt, take dollars. If you want to be safe you might want to get your visa in advance, especially if your country has poor relations with the country you are visiting. Most visitor visas will be issued for up to three months, or the duration of your stay.

Avoiding Trouble

There’s a few of things you can do before and after you get into trouble.

Information: Tell people where you are going and when you’ll be back. If you’re going for a long time then inform the embassy or consulate on your arrival of your stay in the country. Tell your friends or family back home where you’ll be staying.

Documents: Make two photocopies of your passport – the identity page, and if relevant, any visas you need. If it gets stolen then a photocopy is often good enough to prove who you are to get an emergency replacement. Leave one copy at home, and take another with you. If you have a driving licence take this also, as it can be considered evidence of identity if your passport goes missing.

Mobile phones: get your phone unlocked – that’s network unlocked – so any SIM card in the world will work in it. Buy a local SIM card when you get there – they are usually pay as you go, and cost about 10. Then SMS your family back home to give them your number there. They can use a cheap international call service to get hold of you if necessary. Get the emergency number for your local embassy or consulate on the phone so you can call your country representatives if necessary.

Money: Western Union offices are all over the place in Africa. It’s a growth industry. So if you get robbed or need money in a hurry, you can get someone in your home country to send it to you. They can SMS the details to you on your local phone number, but you’ll need some ID to pick it up, and they may ask you a test question (“What’s your dog called?”, for example).

Police: If you get into trouble with the police then stay calm. Sadly, a lot of police officers are very poorly paid and only too happy to take a bribe. If you’ve been really criminal then you are certainly in trouble so insist on your right to see your ambassador or consul. If it’s something petty or something you’ve just been accused of for the hell of it, it will almost certainly be easier to pay whatever is needed to have the matter buried. HOWEVER WE ADVOCATE THAT YOU DO NOT BREAK THE LAW WHEREVER YOU GO, and you should know differing laws for where you go. For example, in a lot of African countries homosexuality is illegal. Information such as this is held in country reports that we discussed earlier.