"Hiding Places" April 7, 2023

[Kris Zacharias]

On shore, though not sure.

[Qmark]

Joining the crowd on shore, but also without the surety of a "click" moment.

[hcbirker]

[Bonnibel]

On shore with just an hour to spare.

The Easter bunny had me tied up all weekend!

Cheers!

[lacangah]

Had ‘ARAL’ instead of ‘ELBA’ - d’Oh. Looking at the center answer (‘END’), we looked at the last letters of our five words (A-L-E-I-A), and saw ‘LEI’ hidden in the string, thus converging erroneously on Pacific Ocean. Seeing all the comments of an unsure nature, we were convinced that’s what everyone was talking about - lol.

Congratulations to everyone who solved it! Have a great week, and ‘see you’ all again on Thursday!

[Colin]

Phew! Glad it had nothing to do with CAVE, ATTIC, BARS (not that I’ve hidden there before!) or THE VATICAN / WITH A CAVEAT. Have a good week eating all those eggs!

[escapeartist]

I submitted Mediterranean Sea as a last resort (after finding the hidden islands), but felt I was missing something deeper that I couldn't find.

Lots of rabbit holes, but I'm glad it wasn't a trivia contest of who got exiled on which isle whenever throughout history.

[benchen71]

Yay, no pageant!

This was, in my opinion, a true Gaffney "week 1" meta. After getting to what appeared to be an appropriate (in that it fitted the title and prompt) answer so quickly, it made me think that the WSJ should have provided "downs only" and "no prompt" versions!

[Miki]

Ok. So it is finally past midnight... Where are all of you sticklers, who wanted to point out all weekend long that one of the islands hidden in the puzzle is located in the Tyrrhenian Sea, and two others are in the Ionian sea.

I only submitted the Mediterranean Sea because I didn't "sea" any other choice. And also because I learned that the Mediterranean Sea is comprised of seven seas. I also learned that Mediterranean Sea refers to a body of water almost completely enclosed and that there are a few such seas around the globe all with the same name.

[woozy]

Ok. So it is finally past midnight... Where are all of you sticklers, who wanted to point out all weekend long that one of the islands hidden in the puzzle is located in the Tyrrhenian Sea, and two others are in the Ionian sea.

I only submitted the Mediterranean Sea because I didn't "sea" any other choice. And also because I learned that the Mediterranean Sea is comprised of seven seas. I also learned that Mediterranean Sea refers to a body of water almost completely enclosed and that there are a few such seas around the globe all with the same name.

Well, I the Tyrrhenian and Ionian are areas of the Mediterranean. I thought it might have to do with finding the specific sea but ... there weren't enough of them.

I've already given my opinion of what I'd think if that were the answer so ... I'll just say, I was hoping it was a pageant.

[Barney]

Had ‘ARAL’ instead of ‘ELBA’ - d’Oh. Looking at the center answer (‘END’), we looked at the last letters of our five words (A-L-E-I-A), and saw ‘LEI’ hidden in the string, thus converging erroneously on Pacific Ocean. Seeing all the comments of an unsure nature, we were
convinced that’s what everyone was talking about - lol.

Congratulations to everyone who solved it! Have a great week, and ‘see you’ all again on Thursday!

I originally also had “Aral” instead of Elba, because the E in Elba looked from my bad handwriting like an F.

When I corrected that, I saw Elba and the trip to the sea was a quick splash.

I did not understand all the carrying on about it.

Sometimes … a cigar is just a cigar.

[M and M]

We actually saw the islands, did the geography, came up with this answer, and thought that this couldn't be the answer, because it was so far below standard... so we did not submit it. We even speculated on MetaLuna being a sort of nudge (Middle of the moon, middle of the earth) but didn't like that either.

We need a new word that is the opposite of pageant - an answer that is so easy that it is suspect.

[Dplass]

Ok. So it is finally past midnight... Where are all of you sticklers, who wanted to point out all weekend long that one of the islands hidden in the puzzle is located in the Tyrrhenian Sea, and two others are in the Ionian sea.

I only submitted the Mediterranean Sea because I didn't "sea" any other choice. And also because I learned that the Mediterranean Sea is comprised of seven seas. I also learned that Mediterranean Sea refers to a body of water almost completely enclosed and that there are a few such seas around the globe all with the same name.

This

[Louwers]

Was about to post “Ashore, but not sure I am on the right island” without thinking.

Thankfully I realized the error of my ways, saving me decades of scorn from this group for posting a spoiled Easter egg!

[BarbaraK]

This is kind of a retro-rabbit hole. I found the Mediterranean islands on Thursday, but last night during the zoom call, I started pondering, if there were another layer, what could it be.

So, “Hiding Places” - who’s hiding on those islands? First thought was the Minotaur on Crete. And Elba is famous as the the place where Napoleon was exiled. Someone (Heidi? Meg?) offered up that Odysseus was from Ithaca. A bit of googling turned up that Neruda for a time was in exile on Capri and Ottoman intellectuals were exiled to Malta in 1919.

So in theme entry order:
Odysseus
Napoleon
Minotaur
Neruda
Ottomans

ONMNO - not a body of water itself, but look, it’s a palindrome!

Is there a palindromic body of water? Why, yes, the Exe River in England. That must be the answer

[eagle1279]

So I guess I was on shore, like @Miki also having explored the “sub-seas” in the Mediterranean. Crete was awful, so many possibilities!

Also briefly explored whether these weren’t islands at all, but the names of towns on the shores of lakes (e.g., Ithaca, NY in the Finger Lakes region). That rabbit hole ended with Crete, Nebraska.

[MikeM000]

On shore...now this one I could have gotten last week in my jet-lagged hotel room....

I had to just keep quiet outside of that comment as the aforementioned hotel rooms were in Italy, with one in Venice located on the Adriatic Sea, one of the arms of the....

[martimeryard]

Goodness. I overdid this. I found all the islands and considered briefly of submitting Mediterranean Sea. It seemed to easy of an answer.

[Flying_Burrito]

I am throwing a flag on this one. Ask anyone in Italy where Capri or Isola d 'Elba are and they would tell you Tyrrhenian Sea. The Mediterranean only start below Calabria (or below the heel of the boot). That is how we were taught geography over there. You have the Ligurian, Tyrrhenian, Ionian and Adriatic Sea that surround Italy. MikeM000, ask anyone in Venice if they think the city is on the Mediterranean.
Enough sour grapes. For the record i put down Sea: did not like the answer but it was the only common denominatior across the 'correct' seas surrounding those islands.

[Kas]

I think this puzzle was perfect.

1. I absolutely remember, lo, those many moons ago, getting my first Meta right, and marveling at how extraordinary the construction was, how incredibly genius…and the fact that we’ve gotten all these years of puzzleicious joy (and with very, *very* few repeats in the construction!!) is…amazing;

2. Sometimes the meta is difficult. Sometimes it’s less so. I’m not sure this is grounds for teeth-gnashing, hand-wringing, or stone-throwing. Not even finger-pointing;

3. I too felt I was missing something, and almost didn’t submit. In hindsight, I’m laughing at how hilarious that is…I’m sure there’s a psychological term for it…Stockholm Syndrome, or somesuch…; and

4. Lastly, I feel that those saintly Muggles who so fervently and passionately defend the constructors should be awarded a mug, just for being awesome.