Cheese in France

Posted on August 22nd, 2016 by

Bring on the Cheese!

We made a very important discovery on our first trip to France. Not all cheese is created equal.

In the U.S.A. cheddar is basically cheddar. Gouda is good and Brie is…well, not so great (my personal preferences). Sure they are varying qualities, more expensive and less expensive, more or less sharp, but you can count on cheese being cheese. Until you go to France and realize that good they call brie in the United States is emphatically NOT brie! Your options are nearly limitless and they quality is, as is all cuisine in France, and art form. This is just one small cabinet outside a fromagerie to entire patrons into the shop. It’s a cheese lover’s paradise!

Cheese in France
Cheese in France

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 10 October, 2011
  • Focal length: 50mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/40s
  • Title: Cheese in France

Welcome to The Sears Tower

Posted on August 15th, 2016 by

DA BEARS

When I was in High School we (the band) took a trip to The Windy City. SNL was one of my favorite things back then so Chicago held a particular fascination simply for the accent people sometimes have in the home of da bears. I was to my disappointment that MOST people I encountered had not one iota of the accent…until I went to the Sears Tower. The lady who hosted the film on the building’s construction sounded like she WAS the original Super Fan! “Welcome to Da Sears Tower. Please watch your step,” she intoned. It stopped me dead in my tracks in the door of the theater. I looked at her opened mouthed and finally asked if she could please say “DA BEARS” for me. She didn’t skip a beat and in the same wonderful accent said, “No…Move along sir! Welcome to Da Sears Tower.” Somehow that was even better than I could have anticipated and something I will never forget.

P.S. To me, it will always be The Sears Tower!

Welcome to The Sears Tower
Welcome to The Sears Tower

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 28 October, 2011
  • Focal length: 50mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/200s
  • Title: Welcome to The Sears Tower

Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma

Posted on August 8th, 2016 by

Master Architects

Frank Lloyd Wright is one of those architects I would drive out of my way to see. Price Tower is an extremely unique in that it is to my knowledge the only “sky scraper” Wright ever created. On a trip to Oklahoma City for a basketball game, Pamela and I decided to make a detour to see this wonderful building. Sadly it was amazingly strong sun when we were there. Photos of the inside are off limits (BOO). Even in the strong sun, even denied interior photos, the building is still amazing. Everywhere you look you see more and more little details that on first inspection you miss. If you love architecture like I do, and you are even close to Bartlesville, OK stop by and take the tour (be sure to check for times)!

Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma
Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/640s
  • Title: Price Tower Bartlesville, Oklahoma

Performers on the Streets of Barcelona, Spain

Posted on August 1st, 2016 by

Taking to the Street

One of the things I love when traveling is how I tend to stumble on odd happenings. I am frequently in tourist sorts of areas during my first visit to a place, and I always expect something like this is designed to entertain and empty the pockets of visitors, but it’s still fun none the less! When I arrived in Barcelona I walked up and down La Rambla (a very large pedestrian thoroughfare) and came upon a VERY noisy parade. There were colorful costumes and bands and noise makers of every kind you can imagine. I caught this group of jovial dancers as the whirled and jingled loudly on by.

Performers on the Streets of Barcelona, Spain
Performers on the Streets of Barcelona, Spain

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 17 February, 2013
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/500s
  • Title: Performers on the Streets of Barcelona, Spain

Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Posted on July 25th, 2016 by

Looking Back

Hiking up the mountain at Fushimi Inari-taisha brings to you a near endless expanse of torii gates. This view is more simple, but still expresses the vast infinity you feel hiking through the mountains. This is early on and the deeper into the mountains you get the more the gates begin to thin out. The more too does nature take over and you less and less see other hikers. This is one of my favorite places in Japan, but please go early and be prepared to hike a long way to find some peace this wonderful place has to offer visitors.

Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan
Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/4
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 15 November, 2015
  • Focal length: 16mm
  • ISO: 3200
  • Shutter speed: 1/80s
  • Title: Looking Back at Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto Japan

Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar

Posted on July 18th, 2016 by

Locals

It’s hard to encapsulate my feelings on Peru, hard to sum up how I felt visiting this beautiful country. Perhaps most, it was the feeling that we are so incredibly privileged. There is poverty so pervasive and so insidious it will be an insurmountable force for untold generations. I was constantly confronted with guilt and humility seeing local people from our transport (getting to Machu Picchu is a serious JOURNEY). Yet, in spite of it all you find and equally pervasive humanity and joy. In this case, a small child waved to Pamela and I sitting in our comfortable train to the ruins. Just after this photo, I waved back to the small child who in turn smiled.

Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar
Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 4 September, 2015
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 1000
  • Shutter speed: 1/320s
  • Title: Waving to People in a Peruvian Motocar

Funk!

Posted on July 14th, 2016 by

Eating at the Bar

When I solo travel (and other times with Pamela) I have found it super helpful when going to busy restaurants to get a seat at the bar. Most places serve their full menu at these easy to obtain seats, plus you get the benefit of all the goings on of the bar. Many restaurants soul flows through this hub and it’s a fun place to have a conversation and see what really happens in this place. This is one of the bar stools at Flatbread Company, one of my favorite places to eat in Maui. While you might find cheaper fare on the island, you will be hard presses to find better pizza most anywhere.

Funk!
Funk!

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 26 July, 2012
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 1600
  • Shutter speed: 1/250s
  • Title: Funk!

Under London Bridge

Posted on July 11th, 2016 by

Walking Under Bridges

We were headed for a different bridge (and a museum), Millennium Bridge while visiting London when we passed under what would be a famous bridge. There have been a number of London Bridges, including one sold to Arizona. This version was built in 1974 and is actually not the bridge I was singing about the whole day after seeing the marker.

“London Bridge is Falling Down, Falling Down, Falling Down…”

Under London Bridge
Under London Bridge

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/2.8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 4 September, 2013
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/400s
  • Title: Under London Bridge

The Gerkin Askew

Posted on July 7th, 2016 by
The Gerkin Askew
The Gerkin Askew

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/8
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 4 September, 2013
  • Focal length: 35mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/320s
  • Title: The Gerkin Askew.CR2

Archives of The United States Of America

Posted on July 4th, 2016 by

Happy Birthday America!

Happy 4th of July everyone! This photo was taken on the same trip as the one I released last Thursday. I was meandering aimlessly around the mall. “What is that building?”, I thought to myself as I walked generally toward it. I did one of those stop in your tracks sort of moves when I realized it was the Archives of the United States of America! It was almost closing time and I only had about 15 minutes to go through. No photography is allowed because of the delicate nature of the documents held inside. It is quite a thing to see in person the founding documents of our Nation. Though I serendipitous discovered the archives, I would highly recommend not missing them!

Archives of The United States Of America
Archives of The United States Of America

Photo Technical Info

  • Aperture: ƒ/5.6
  • Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
  • Taken: 28 May, 2012
  • Focal length: 22mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/1000s
  • Title: Archives of The United States Of America