October 9, 2022

Title: QUICK WEST COAST TRIP

Constructor: Zhouqin Burnikel

Editors: Anna Gundlach & Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

WASH AND WEAR (16A: Like clothes that don't need much ironing)

ORE MOUNTAINS (26A: Czech-German range known for its mines)

CAL RIPKEN JR (59A: Oriole who played in 2,632 consecutive games)

Theme synopsis: The first words of the theme answers are abbreviations of WEST COAST states. From north to south, our QUICK TRIP takes us through Washington (WASH), Oregon (ORE), and California (CAL).

Things I learned:

• ALLAH (13A: The Almighty, to most Uyghurs) The Uyghurs are a Turkic ethnic group originating from Central and East Asia, and are one of China's 55 officially recognized ethnic minorities. The predominant religion of the Uyghurs is Sunni Islam.
• ICE (7D: Cubes in Mul-naengmyeon broth) Mul-naengmyeon is also known as Korean cold noodle soup. ICE-cold beef broth is poured over buckwheat noodles, and topped with other ingredients such as cucumber, pear, and eggs. ICE cubes are added to the broth prior to serving.
• DENIM (11D: Material for joots (jean boots)) Although the answer here was inferable thanks to the "jean boots" hint, I had never heard of joots. I was envisioning that joots were simply boots made out of DENIM, but no. In fact, joots are a jean/boot combination also referred to as pantaboots. Julia Fox and Kim Kardashian have been spotted wearing joots (which tells me I cannot afford them).

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• EIGHT (38A: Number of words that are in this clue) This is a fabulous self-referential clue!
• CAL RIPKEN JR (59A: Oriole who played in 2,632 consecutive games) My first thought when I read this clue was, "Oh, a sports thing...I have no idea." However, once a few letters were filled in I realized I did indeed know this answer. CAL RIPKEN JR. played baseball for the Baltimore Orioles for 21 seasons, and he holds the record for consecutive games played. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007.
• GOD (65A: Zeus or Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli) Zeus is an ancient Greek GOD. Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli was a GOD in the Aztec religion.
• K-POP (45D: Music genre for Red Velvet) Red Velvet is a South Korean girl group. I first learned about the K-POP group Red Velvet from the March 23, 2021 puzzle. 
• DOLMA (50D: Stuffed dish similar to sarma) DOLMA is the name used for a variety of stuffed dishes in Ottoman cuisine (the cuisine of countries once a part of the Ottoman empire). Sarma is a dish of stuffed leaves - often cabbage or grapevine. The leaves are filled with grains and/or minced meat.

Geography review:

• MOCHA (14A: Coffee drink named after a city in Yemen) Yemen is a country in Western Asia located on the southern end of the Arabian peninsula. MOCHA, also spelled Mokha or Mukha, is a city on the coast of Yemen along the Red Sea. MOCHA is a port city, and was important in the coffee trade from the 15th to 18th centuries. Although the city doesn't have the prominence in the world of coffee that it used to, its legacy lives on in the name for the chocolate-coffee drink known as MOCHA.
• ORE MOUNTAINS (26A: Czech-German range known for its mines) The ORE MOUNTAINS are located on the border between the Czech Republic and Germany. The area has been extensively mined for over 800 years. The Mining Region in the ORE MOUNTAINS (Erzgebirge/Krušnohoři Mining Region) was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019. The mining operations in the ORE MOUNTAINS have impacted the ecosystems of the area. Although mining operations are ongoing, the majority of the ORE MOUNTAINS are now protected as nature reserves.
• LAKE (43A: Poyang Hu, for one) Poyang Hu is the largest freshwater LAKE in China. It is located in Jiujiang, a city in Jiangxi Province, and is fed by the Gan, Xin, and Xiu rivers.

Sunday is a great day to take a QUICK WEST COAST TRIP. I enjoyed this interesting theme, even more so because my husband and I are wrapping up a two and a half week trip (so not exactly QUICK) in which we visited Washington, Oregon, and California (in that order). We've also been in other states on this trip, a total of 12! In addition to the theme, I liked the answers PHENOMS, EMERALD, PSYCHE, and ROTTEN EGG, and the clue for SANTA (52D: His address is 123 Elf Road, North Pole 88888). This puzzle was a wonderful way to begin my Sunday.

One more thing: If you've been waiting for the last day to send me your answer to the Sally's Take Contest, today's the day! Don't be put off if you're usually stumped by meta-puzzles, this one is on the mild side. Here's a hint: Start with the September 1 blog post and look at every blog entry for September, gathering one "bit of information" from each post. When you find the answer, email it to me at hoelscher4[at]yahoo[dot]com to be entered in the drawing for a Sally's Take mug. I'll randomly choose a winner tomorrow from all of the correct entries.