- I took a four-day vacation with my family to Las Vegas this past April. I planned and for the most part executed a full schedule of events, and was mostly happy with it.
- I joined the community at AlternateHistory.com with new simulations of events in which I mix athletes from different eras together. That was not my plan, but I was invited at the end of April by a member of another forum that I have "known" for a long time, and I accepted.
- Besides, I frankly ran out of ideas relating to my second family. However, that will change in the next few weeks. More details of that presently.
For now, I bring you, as I promised long ago, the entire season of my new spin-off TV show, Brandy and Bunky R.O.A.M. In case you've forgotten, siblings and first cousins of Buddy Wayne have traveled the world in search of the possible effects of the prophesied Second Coming of Jesus. Along the way, they meet people and participate in experiences.
These are episodes 1-5; the first is revised from a previous post, while the next four are entirely new.
Episode #1 - Jamaica
The first stop on their journey around the New Earth is Jamaica. Located in the Caribbean Sea, the country may have the most features of the region that are indelible in the public mind, including its laid-back lifestyle and exotic food, music, and lifestyle. However, despite appearances, it is far from paradise for most of its residents. Due to economic hardship and exploitation, many of its residents have emigrated to other countries - mainly Canada and the U.K., with some moving to the U.S. The return of Christ changed everything, especially in the restored city of Port Royal.
Port Royal, once known as the bawdy headquarters for Caribbean pirates, was destroyed in an earthquake in 1720. After Christ returned, Bertland McSween - a pastor and entertainer - found the old plans and convinced the Jamaican government to rebuild it as the centerpiece of post-Christian life in both the country and region.
McSween hosts a tour of the port and downtown. He points out that Port Royal is now a thriving, multicultural city with four languages - English, French, Spanish, and Dutch - that are commonly spoken in the various neighborhoods. McSween is especially proud to show off Blackbeard's Playhouse.
It is where he conceived of Port Royal Review, the Caribbean entry in the King David International Festival - the same entertainment event at which Brandy and Bunky performed as part of Back Down Home. On this night, the siblings enjoy two of the acts that were part of that review: R&B/reggae diva Zellie St. Brown[1] and steel drum virtuoso Lewis Pipersburg.
The next day, McSween takes Brandy and Bunky to a sugar mill that was founded by British colonials but now run by descendants of the same slave labor brought in to work there. The employee owners share their gratitude of being able to enjoy the results of their harvest. That evening, the siblings join the locals for jerk chicken dinner, followed a dessert of cake made from the local processed sugar.
[1]Short for "Battimamzelle," Old French word for dragonfly
Episode #2 - British Isles part 1
A plane trip across the Atlantic takes Brandy and Bunky to Heathrow airport in London, where Brandy reveals that she has landed a role in The History of Dance, a new performance review created by Blinky Blink. She will dance in a ballroom portion with her partner, Hylton Tripp. The duo met at Lena Peacock's studio in Meadow and have competed professionally.
Once on the ground, they embark on an ambitious five-day tour of the United Kingdom:
⦁ On Day 1, they start by visiting the home and museum of Barabbas McRipper, the warrior-king who united Ireland as an independent country for the first time in its history by freeing Ulster from British rule. Then it's on to Dublin, and lunch at a cafe owned by sisters Bonnie and Connie Ryan, who rediscovered the art of fine Irish living after moving there from the U.S., where both their parents were firefighters. (In fact, one of Connie's uncles was among the 343 firefighters killed in New York City on 9/11.) Finally, it's on to a local theater, where the couple learns the traditional moves from the award-winning Beatha McCaughtry (another veteran of the KDIF) before having a cameo on-stage that night.
⦁ Day 2 is spent in Scotland. In the morning, the couple visits the castle of Duncan MacMalcolm, the holder of the throne of the fully restored Kingdom of Scotland. From there, it's on to one of the Highland Games as VIP guests, but Bunky wants to participate anyway, so of course he does. (He doesn't win anything, but ends up OK.) It's on to MacMalcolm's castle for the night.
⦁ Day 3 takes them to Wales and southern England. The highlight is a trip to a bog garden, in which the revived plant life that once was the area's famous coal has been reshaped into many beautiful designs.
Episode #3 - British Isles part 2
⦁ On Day 4, Brandy and Bunky go to England. First up is a trip to Bedford, the town from which John Absalom Barefoote emigrated to the United States in 1671, establishing the family line in the U.S. they are part of today. After some considerable work, they find John and talk to him about his journey and share what has happened in their clan. This is followed by a tea and then a pleasant all-day horse carriage trip into the heart of London to spend the night.
⦁ The final day has Brandy and Bunky in the heart of London, and they also make a jump in time from medieval times to the 19th century. It's a city of Victorian influence with the backdrop of steampunk. Bunky tries out a perpetual motion machine and can't stop raving about it: "We should take this thing back home, since our family needs it." But the climax of this whole trip is the chance to see Piper's Remorse, a production of Lord John Flemming, a playwright so talented that William Shakespeare is said to have learned from him.
Episode #4 - Italy
Brandy and Bunky then visit a country which will be known as the "living time machine," because the people and environments will be from radically different times in history.
Days 1 and 2 are spent in Rome and Vatican City, where the world center of Catholicism is cheek-by-jowl with a revived imperial metropolis. The siblings see a card of chariot racing at the Colosseum and sit in on a meeting of the Roman Senate. On the second day, they see a classical Italian opera.
An overnight train trip to Florence follows, then a tour of the people and lifestyles of the deMedicis that shaped the Renaissance era. The highlight there is seeing the fully restored version of The Lord's Supper, using upgraded materials than the original, which makes the fresco last longer.
It's then on to Venice, where the backdrop is the time of the Doges in the 14th century. After finding out that the famous gondoliers don't really sing (bummer), the siblings enjoy a banquet and entertainment show at Piazza San Marco.
The last of the five days is spent in a cottage near the city of Reggio Emilia, from where Brandy's and Bunky's great-grandfather emigrated to the United States in the early-1900s. Giovanni Pizzoli is obviously glad to see their descendants, and he shares the story of how his branches have spread all over the world. But he is quick to add that everyone couldn't wait to come back home to Italy. They then spent the night before leaving the country.
Episode #5 - Kashmir (India/Pakistan)
Up next for the wandering pair is the mountainous region of Kashmir. Since the late 1940s, the region has been in dispute between India and Pakistan, and it has become symbolic of the desire of the common cultures of the Indian subcontinent to live in harmony and peace. With the New Era comes the realization of the dream.
The Bhatt family is one of so many that were reunited. Their backgrounds and lives are similar to those of the Barefoot clan in the United States. Rajiv Bhatt, the head, was an accomplished cricket player and his wife Sunita starred in many Bollywood movies and was a best-selling pop singer. They live with seven children, two grandchildren, and several aunts and uncles.
And like the Barefoots, the Bhatts have chosen to live a simple life on their farm which have endeared them to millions of people in their country and throughout the world; the TV show chronicling their adventures has some 200 million weekly viewers in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh alone.
The siblings participate in the Bhatts' traditional activities during the day, then join them on stage for a community morality play that night. After a two-days' journey, which places them within sight of K2 (the world's second-tallest mountain) and the Khyber Pass, the siblings pick local "neutralized" poppy flowers. They do not contain the seeds from which opium are made; therefore, they contain all of the beauty but none of the danger.
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