If you can stand yet one more post on my road trip, this is it. My last
stop before Hendersonville, was in Cincinnati, Ohio. I've been through
here before and I think it's a beautiful city, situated on the banks of the
Ohio River. I had never taken the time to explore, as I was always in
a hurry to get somewhere else. On this day it would be my halfway point,
where I would stop and spend the night. I had an afternoon to play.
One thing I knew I wanted to do while I was here, was try out the famous
Cincinnati Chili. When I was telling Mark about it, he said he had never
heard of it before, so maybe it isn't as famous as I thought, but it is a local
specialty and you know how I feel about eating the local cuisine.
After getting checked into the hotel, I got online and googled Cincinnati
chili and found all kinds of places that claimed to have the best. Lucky
for me I didn't have to travel too far, as Skyline Chili was almost within
walking distance.
When I went in to the cafe, I noticed right away that everyone
was referred to as honey or babe. Cute. I informed the waitress
that this was my first time to have Cincinnati Chili and she explained
that it is called Ways, because it can be ordered from 3-5 ways.
3-Way Chili is their signature dish.....steaming spaghetti, covered
with their original recipe chili and topped with a mound of shredded
cheddar cheese. 4-Way Chili is a 3-Way with diced onions and
5-Way is all of the above with the addition of red beans. Well, what
the heck - I was feeling adventurous so I decided to go for the 5-Way
Chili - in a small size. I was a little surprised when she came back to
my table with a plastic bib and proceeded to tie it on me. "Do I really
need this?" I asked. She assured me that it was part of the experience.
I figured no one in this restaurant would ever see me again, so I just went
with the flow.
A few moments later she set a mounding serving of chili in front of me.
If this is a small, I'd hate to see what a large looked like. I'm a cheese lover,
but this was just too much cheese. I took about half of it off and then got
busy eating the rest. It was good.....different, but good. The chili was spicy,
but not too spicy. Once I got past the thought of eating spaghetti without an
Italian type sauce, I began to enjoy it. I beg to differ with anyone who thinks
we southerners eat the most unhealthy food. We certainly do have our
share, but just look at this plate. This was a stick to your ribs meal and if
eaten very often, would start sticking to other places as well. I don't think
I'll go home and search for the recipe, but I'm glad I tried it here in Cincinnati.
For a few minutes I felt like a local, even though it was very evident that I
wasn't and when the employees in the restaurant found out I was from NC
and this was my first Chili experience, they kept coming to my table to talk
to me and see how I liked it. They even rounded up some souvenirs for me
to take home. I felt like a celebrity of sorts.
Since I had just eaten the only meal I would need that day, I had the
afternoon to explore the city. I decided to spend my time in the
Underground Railroad Museum.
This was one of the nicest museums I've visited in a long time. Of
course I knew the subject matter was a sad one, but I had no idea how
much I would learn and how this visit would lead me to ask questions
that would shake me into some kind of action.
All the visitors receive this cool ipod that is programmed with information
about the exhibits.
This is a square from a huge quilted mural that hangs inside the entrance.
It tells the story of slavery in a visually appealing way and shows the people
being carried over the ocean from Afrika to Amerika.( spelling on quilt)
This 177 year old building was discovered on a farm in Mason County, KY
and donated to the Freedom Center. Enslaved men, women and children
were kept for days and sometimes weeks in this Slave Pen.
The slaves were chained to this ring on the floor of the second level.
This map show how the slaves travelled though the underground railroad to freedom.
This wagon had a "false bottom" for the slaves to hide underneath
the boards. What courage the abolitionists demonstrated as they worked
to free the slaves.
The third floor of the museum portrayed three centuries of slavery
from it's introduction into America, to its abolition at the end of the
Civil War. These bronze statues tugged at my heart.
I cannot imagine what it would be like to in bondage to another ;
to have someone else dictate where I would live, how I would
work, what I would eat. And less we think that slavery is a thing
of the past, one area of the museum was devoted to modern day slavery.
100,000 minors are in the commercial sex trade in the US alone. When
I saw the movie, "Taken" (with Liam Neeson- you need to see it, if you
haven't), I couldn't stop thinking about it for weeks. It bothered me so
much. I had no idea that trafficking of young women for sexual exploitation
was going on right here in my own country. How can things like this be
happening? While I sit in my nice home and eat great food and live a
wonderful life, there are people who are living life as slaves. Don't those
of us who enjoy freedom have a responsibility to help those who are
less fortunate?
I left the museum with a stack books to read and a list of websites to check out.
.
* www.freetheslaves.net
* www. ijm.org
* www. polarisproject.org
* www.endslaverynow.com
*www.notforsalecampaign.org/action/
I also want to be more responsible with how I spend my money. Many
of the "cheap" items that Americans seek out for purchase are made by
men, women and children who are forced to work long hours in factories
with very little pay. The little girl in the picture above was rescued from
such a factory in Nepal. The thought of spending my money to buy items
that some little child has been forced to work and make, often in the cruelest
circumstances, is appalling to me.
Beyond becoming more knowledgeable, I don't know yet where this will lead
me. I keep asking myself the question, "What can I do?" and so far I don't
know the answer. I do know that we are all God's children and as Christians
we have been given the mandate to serve others.
I'm praying about how to do that.
