March 3, 2017 - Today's adventure was a trip that we had to take, knowing full well that it would probably involve some typically Californian offbeat characters. We were headed to Landers, CA to see the Giant Rock and Integratron. Our first stop was the Giant Rock, which is a large freestanding boulder in the Mojave Desert that covers almost 6,000 square feet of ground and is seven stories high. It has been a Native American spiritual site for thousands of years. It is purported to be the largest freestanding boulder in the world.
That's Judy between the rock and the "chip."
That is some big rock!
Our second stop was the Integratron where we had a scheduled a one hour "sound bath" within the facility. Integratron literature notes that "Its creator, George Van Tassel (1910-1978), claimed that the structure is based on the design of Moses’ Tabernacle, the writings of Nikola Tesla and telepathic directions from extraterrestrials. This one-of-a-kind 38-foot high, 55-foot diameter, all wood dome was designed to be an electrostatic generator for the purpose of rejuvenation and time travel." They claim that the sound bath “Is kindergarten naptime for grown ups in a sound sphere." They also claim that it is an unforgettable sound experience for those who seek deep relaxation, rejuvenation, and introspection. All of these claims sounded like Rod Serling's introduction to his TV show: "You're traveling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That's the signpost up ahead, your next stop, the Twilight Zone!" We really didn't know what to expect.
That's Judy's hand sticking out of the hammock.
There's a lot of desert art here created from salvaged pieces found in the Mojave.
At 12:15 PM our group of about 30 people were ushered into the facility. The building is two stories high and this is the ground level. The stairway on the left is how we entered the dome.
Because of the acoustics in this parabolic dome, the sound is unbelievable. If you stand in the center of the room, like this man is doing, your body experiences a complete sensation of vibration, from head to toe. If you speak or hum, the sound waves bounce off the dome and back onto you. It feels like you're in a moving tunnel going at a high rate of speed.
A trained artist "plays" the solid quartz crystal bowls for the first half hour while everyone relaxes on their mats. The second half hour recorded "bowl music" is played, which doesn't give the same sensation as the live "bowl playing." The live playing gives a unique sensation of the sound moving through your body, it's unforgettable.
It is quite an experience and we were very happy that we took it in. The people running the place were very down to earth about the whole thing. They knew that George Van Tassel was "eccentric" and they didn't seem to believe his stories. However, what they were doing was letting visitors know what it's like to experience the unique sound sensations that this structure produces.
Well, after all of this interstellar adventuring it was time for some lunch. Time travel makes you hungry! There are a couple of choices here in Landers and we decided to try Five Dollar Pizza Place for their chicken wings. It doesn't look like much from the outside but, their "Suicide Wings" were delicious. There's a convenience store/gas station next door where we bought a beer to wash down our wings. It was a great adventure!
