A WHALE OF A PLACE
As I have mentioned thousands of times, I grew up in an amazing place... New Bedford, Massachusetts, the former richest city in the world because of the whaling industry.
Whale oil lit the homes of the rich folks as well as the palaces of the so-called nobility. However, when oil was discovered underground and extracted rather easily, whaling died, and New Bedford had to spend more energy on its textile industry.
Some residents felt a need to remind the world about the brave men who attacked one hundred-long sea creatures with five-foot-long harpoons while trying to keep their balance in flimsy wooden vessels, while they were buffeted by giant waves.
(Thinking about this, I can feel my blood quicken!)
If you haven't yet, check out Melville's classic, Moby Dick.
The residents established the world-famous New Bedford Whaling Museum, a "must see" that should be on everyone's "bucket list."
In a short period of time, the city began to love those big blubbery creatures and start to advertise whale watches and such.
Almost all Nations agreed to stop trying to catch whales. Using high powered boats and weapons, some Nations like Japan continued the chase, hypocritically saying that whale meat was a necessary food for their populace.
Some Nations were slow in stopping the chase, including the U.S.A. When we visited our favorite restaurant in Baltimore (Haussner's) during the 1960's you could get a whale steak (hvalstueck) for a relatively low price. Shame on those so-called gourmands who ordered it from the menu, and shame on Haussner's for making it available.
Those of us who claim New Bedford as our ancestral home, love the whales, especially the sperm whales that lend themselves so nicely to paintings and cartoons.
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