Boston is Venice?

Hello,

Most of the earth is covered by water but the 'human world' is on land; we live, work and die on land, except for those who work with oceans and rivers and other water bodies. 

Scientist say that man's abuse of the environment is causing global warming which in turn is causing the snow on the mountains to melt, causing the sea levels to rise. 

Today's story is about water from seas coming into towns.

Meera

Boston is Venice?

Sagar put his foot on one chair and leaned back on the other as he read his history book. 

Sapna came in waving a piece of paper, ""Bhaiya, on our next trip, let's go to Venice."

"To Italy? Why? It's way out in Europe."

"Bhaiya, you are talking as if we never left the American shores."

"Well, Sapna, I am reading the history of Boston's tea party and how all that tea was thrown away into the sea and..."

"Bhaiya, you and I don't even drink tea, even if our parents drink chai at least twice a day. What has that got to do with our traveling to Italy."

Sagar looked up from his book, "Oh, I sound like a nut don't I? The American history is so interesting, how everyone fights the British." 

"Bhaiya, LISTEN, what has that got to do with going to Venice?"

"Venice? I don't know, it's a city of canals."

"Exactly, and it's so pretty, look at these pictures, You don't go by car, you take a gondola -- a boat to go from place to place. And, I say, let's go to Europe next summer, especially to Italy."

"Sapna, if you wait a few years, Boston and its canals would be much cheaper."

"What do you mean?"

Sagar looked down at his book, "The other day I read in the news that sea levels are rising, the land is sinking. It's going to become a big problem for some cities on the US East Coast. The Boston people are thinking of copying Venice and Amsterdam, and becoming a city of canals."

"Huh?"

"Hurricane Sandy affected Boston area also and if had been high tide, the hurricane water in Boston would have joined with the high tide waters from the sea and the streets of Boston would have flooded."

"Oh, who says that?"

"Scientists. They say that the sea-level will rise on the US east coast by up to six feet (2 m) by the end of the century."

"By the end of the century, the east coast will be flooded? I would be, let's see, I'd be a young lady of 96! I have no plan to live that long."

"The city planners and the architects are thinking of letting the water into the city instead of stopping it and turning the city into American Venice-Amsterdam."

"You din't hear me Bhaiya, I'll be 96! I don't care! I want to go to Venice next summer, when I'm still young."

"Sapna, you should be thinking of your children and grandchildren!" 

"Bhaiya, have you lost your mind? I am only 12! Why would I think of Boston floods by the end of the century?"

"Right, you are right, let the Boston architects and city administrators think about Boston, I'll toss this article into trash and do my history work."

Sagar tossed the piece of paper into the garbage bin. 

Sapna promptly picked it up, "Thanks Bhaiya, you just gave me material for my next science project." 

The End



© 2014, Meera Desai Shah