Amazing glass beach in Vladivostok--Eastern side of Siberia. "Drinking" beach, bottles thrown down, waves work their magic, gorgeous . . . flight out never takes off . . . no refund, no reschedule . . . driving across Lake Baikal . . . "driving up from the lake into the regular streets of a city was an abrupt, peculiar experience." Page 380-81 Strange story of two flamingos falling from the sky into Siberia . . . rescued by boys and then given to strange Winter Garden . . . Yakutsk, at the latitude of Nome (p. 3500) has over 200,000 residents. Wendell Wilkie visited (!) and said it reminded him of Elwood, Indiana . . . Today Yakutsk has The Gap, 31 Flavors, and many more American chains while Elwood, Indiana (a dying, manufacturing town) has NONE.
February 1895 (Alice died in 1892) Money problems, jealousy of Wilde; time spent with Lord Wolseley1; off to Ireland to lick his wounds; Irish unrest--Irish landlords boycott all social events; much time spent with manservant Hammond (homosexual attraction again); fancy dress ball, appalling to James, who is only happy in company of Hammond, though Hammond remains a servant and no more; little girl alone on the grounds--inspiration for Turn of the Screw?; conflict with Webster who alludes to Wilde's successful play and HJ's failure; Wolseley was an Anglo-Irish officer in the British Army . He became one of the most influential and admired British generals after a series of successes in Canada, West Africa, and Egypt, followed by a central role in modernizing the British Army in promoting efficiency. He served in Burma, the Crimean War , the Indian Mutiny , China, Canada and widely throughout Africa—including his Ashanti campaign (18...
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