sharleenstuartTell me a Story: July 2019
Posted on August 31, 2019
Summer in South Florida is hot, and this year has recorded some of the hottest temperatures. I, for one, am very grateful for air conditioning. As I get older the more I am wanting cooler weather. I feel like we should be watching the issue of climate change more and more.
That said, I had a free Friday and decided to take a long overdue walk in the wetlands. Between being sick, working like crazy to pull together some major changes, and having traveled a significant amount already this year, I found I really did not have the time or the desire to go to the hot, humid wetlands. But this Friday I did. I woke up early and headed out before 8am. OK, for some that is not early but for me on a Friday on my day off from work it is. Knowing that I was going to spend the rest of my day off working, I headed out. Did I say it was hot?? Freaking hot really. By the time I got back to the car I was dripping wet and dehydrated, despite the bottle of water I carried.
Here are a few of my favorites from the walk.
Wild fruit
Anhinga
Four Spotted Pennant
A water drop on a pond apple
A wild flower peeking through the railings
One of my favorite styles of shooting, leaves on the railings
Ready to re-seed
Shallow depth of field
Blue Dasher
Wild Hibiscus
Hibiscus Bud
Scarlet Skimmer
Fir leaves on the railing
Halloween Pennant
As you can see, not a lot of bird life. I think they left the wetlands at 7:45 am to find some shade 🙂 Truthfully, until the weather cools down a bit, I may hold off walking in the wetlands. We have had rain every day for the past 4 weeks and that just pushes the humidity levels up so much higher. I am wilting!
Thank you for joining me this month as we spend time sharing another day in our lives. This is a circle blog. Take some time to view what the other artists have for you this month. Mindy Sauvageau is up next and I can’t wait to read what she has to share.
30 Minutes in the Life: August 2019
Posted on August 26, 2019
I have been to Viscaya at least 3 times before. It is a place I can go visit and never see everything. Each time I go back I see something different. This month Daniel was car hunting, and so he and Amy were going down to Miami to look and see what they could find. Amy asked if I would like to go to Viscaya since they was down there and I was happy to. Welcome to the home of John Deering, Viscaya.
Born in 1859, in Maine, James Deering, retired in his mid fifties. Due to health reasons, James Deering decided to build his home in South Florida. It was hoped that the warm, sunny climate would improve his health. And so in 1910 began the plans to build his new home. James Deering, from everything I have seen was an interesting man and one I think I would have enjoyed having a conversation with. In 1952, Viscaya was transferred to the county and opened as a historic property well worth visiting.
As you walk around the opulent house and beautiful grounds one thing that stands out is that there is a number of influences and from what I have read he was fascinated by travel, legends and mythology. Neptune is seen around the house and very much in the gardens.
The house is rich with beautiful timeless pieces that illuminate the surroundings and the stunning wall hangings.
The ceilings match the opulence of the home and the walls reflect the very South Florida look.
Ornate edgings and beautiful doors are just a part of this beautiful domed walkway.
Heading up the stairs we came across stunning stained glass doors that have stood through the ages.
In corners and domed display areas you will find statues of interest ranging from local to international, of people or of mythology.
There are decadent sitting rooms rich with drapes and ornamental objects on display.
As we pass by a window we got a view of just a small portion of Viscaya’s beautiful gardens that lead up to a pavilion area. But beyond these gardens to the left and right are more gardens, and this time I spent time exploring those gardens.
This is a bed that little girls dream of and in James Deering’s house, many guests stayed in. Life, from what I have read, was spent in Viscaya over the winter months, very often with family or guests.
This stair case is a favorite of mine and as much as I try to lean as far over I can never quite get the full spiral.
Having explored the upstairs we went down and decided to venture out into the hot hot summers day of South Florida.
There is some beautiful stain glass windows just before you go outside and I love the view you get of the gardens through them.
We are outside and you are seeing just a portion of the house that faces the Bay of Biscayne.
To the right, by way of a pathway, and over a bridge stand a beautiful portico. A favorite spot for photographers taking wedding pictures, or Quinceañera, for the 16 year old Spanish girls birthdays.
To the left another bridge that appeared to go down to a set of steps where perhaps guest stepped onto a boat. Since the last time I was down here this area has been badly damage, I can only assume, by one of the hurricanes that has passed over this area.
My understanding was that the barge was built as a break water structure. That said history has it that James Deering and his guest would be ferried by boat or gondola to the barge for afternoon tea and at times cocktails.
A large part of the estate is built with coral and you will see this throughout the gardens.
Beautiful ponds of water lilies are visible as well.
Lining the walkways are a series of statues
And again you see the influence of international travel with the sphinx typically found in Egypt.
There is beautiful color in the gardens and whenever, I see Anthurium I am reminded of my mother. She loved this beautiful waxy looking flower, and while my father grew orchids, below them he grew Anthurium for my mother.
I have walked these gardens many times but this was the first time I really looked more closely at these statues. Shown here were mermen holding pots on their shoulders while being overseen by driver.
Reflections depict that which is above, and this statue with all its glory, has two interestingly strange looking lions at the top.
We walk up the side steps to a beautiful pavilion, which back in the day was known to James Deering’s guests as the casino. From the top of the pavilion there are levels of this beautiful terraced waterfall and on either side a series of steps.
To the left and right are secluded areas not unlike a small atrium. The inside was built with coral and, in its hey day, this appeared to be a fountain with seating to either side of it.
On the outside of the area were statues of mermen and mermaids, almost guarding those that entered in.
Beyond the steps more ponds with water lily and on occasions I have spotted a great big frog.
This was probably my favorite image of Amy and Daniel. They took a fun one just before of them on either side of the pillared portico. I asked them to stand together for this one. Granted by now we were all beyond hot and sweaty.
As we are walking back to the house there is a water fountain with frogs and iguana at the edges of it. This was not the frog that I saw in the pond either but the size does not seem far off it. Just joking. I loved how the water drops float across the image.
If you are heading to Miami, and who doesn’t want to go to Miami at some point in the visit to Florida, take some time out in your visit to stop by Viscaya. In fact, take a few hours to go through the house and the property. Winter is probably a better time to do it but whichever time you go, know that you are in for a blast into the past, and a treat that will keep you looking and wishing you could have seen everything in one visit. I know that some day in the future I will visit Viscaya for a 5th time. I don’t think it will ever grow “old” for me despite the age and time period of this beautiful building. I hope that you enjoyed taking a walk with us.
Thank you for joining us for another month of 30 Minutes. Just a reminder that this is a circle blog. We have a number of new ladies join the 30 minutes group, making us now 15 bloggers, and so I would encourage you to take some time to visit my very talented friend Crystal of Crystal Bella Photography, and see what she has for you this month. I am pretty excited to learn more about these wonderful ladies from all over the world. I would certainly encourage you to visit their pages.
Share Six: August 2019: Summer Days
Posted on August 6, 2019
Summer days, and the livin’ is easy….I can just hear the bluesy voice of Ella Fitzgerald. I think of farms, and apple picking and the breeze blowing through my hair. This is so not happening for me this month.
Summer days typically for me are on the beach and Richard playing the laid back Jimmy Buffet. But this month it most definitely was not. No this month we picked the hottest weekend to visit New York.
Why New York in summer. Well it goes back to connecting with my brother again. He was off to Philly but wanted to spend some time in New York. I opted to skip Philly and cross off another item on my bucket list and visit New York, along with a grumbling Richard. I will give him credit – he always said never again – but he hung in there and went along with the plans.
The Castle in Central Park
I am going to use this blog to kick of the New York trip images. What can I say New York, New York, I was glad to cross it off my bucket list. First impressions are that the transportation is fantastic, but at times you feel like a sardine in a tin can. The people are friendly, so we found on the buses and at restaurants. The streets are dirty, smelly and busy. The traffic flows, despite the enormous amount of congestion caused by the taxi’s stopping at random. The honking drivers certainly lived up to my expectations. New York City is just that, a bustling city. Tall buildings, endless construction and a large amount of people.
A view of the city from Central Park
Street Vendors outside the Natural History Museum.
One of the many city streets
That said there was a lot to see in New York, that was incredibly interesting. Just plan well. Do yourself a favor, buy a metro ticket. The subway and the bus system were a great way to get around. For just $33 we got a pass for 7 days and we really used it. Just a reminder that if you are flying in to LaGuardia Airport you will need to get your metro card and then a ticket at the bus stop before you get on the bus. Not sure why because you do not pay any extra. They just use your metro card around the city. If you are heading out of JFK just remember that the subway going to the airport will not take unlimited metro cards.
The subway from the Staten Island Ferry to Dumbo
Just one of the many city reflections
We were in New York from Saturday to Wednesday. We flew into LaGuardia airport and caught a bus to the cross street below our destination. Our destination was West Harlem. Richard, as per usual, said it was just a short walk to our rented Airbnb. Hats of to Shama for an awesome apartment. However, we had to get there first, and our short walk was directly uphill, in the stinking hot weather, dragging carry-on luggage and a heavy backpack thanks to camera equipment. 30 minutes later, sweating profusely, gasping for air (that is me not Richard, and I am totally convinced I am now asthmatic), we crest the hill and it dips downwards ever so slightly and I am beginning to think that maybe, just maybe I will be able to breathe again. That is before I realized that we had to take our tired selves, the carry-on and backpack up three flights of steps to the apartment. But what a pleasure it was to finally be able to stop and enjoy the beautiful apartment we had rented.
State of Liberty
New York City
We took in the city sites. This blog is just a kick off coverage of around 2000 images taken in the city and there will definitely be more blogs on our adventure. Instead of going to the Statue of Liberty, at a cost of $21 and getting caught up in long lines, we opted instead to take the free Staten Island Ferry past the Statue of Liberty instead. The boat ride was about 45 minutes each way, and we got to see a small portion of Staten Island as well. We were also able to get a view of New York from the ferry as we got further away from the mainland.
Dumbo
Manhattan Bridge
We caught a subway under the ocean and headed to the town of Dumbo, where we had to stop in at an underpass to have a beer, before we took on the Brooklyn Bridge, with its multitude of people. Rehydrate, rehydrate, rehydrate, not that beer does that but you get where I am going. Dumbo is apparently an up and coming area and I was encouraged to make sure we passed through it. I loved that I was able to get some “from the ground” up images of the bridges. When crossing the Brooklyn Bridge, watch out for the bicycles in the cyclists lane because they do not watch out for you. When you come from Boca, where pedestrians have the right of way, and hit New York, where you are last on the pecking chain, beware of those cyclists 🙂
Brooklyn Bridge
Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge took longer than I thought. I kept loosing the other 3 because they are not photographers and they have not grasped the concept that you need to stop when something catches your eye and not just take the pretty people pics. If you are walking the Brooklyn Bridge carry water, especially when it is hot. You will go through it pretty quickly. Also wear comfortable clothing and shoes. It is an interesting bridge and if you look closely there is graffiti on the railings. My favorite image was a sign that said in red writing “this is not a lock bridge” and directly below attached to the mesh was a red lock. The wiring system on this bridge is incredible. I could have spent all day looking at the bridge.
World Trade Center – inside
911 Memorial
On the other side of the Brooklyn Bridge, we walked onward, and I will confess tiredly stopping briefly to watch some street artists. My feet were killing me, but we labored on until we reached the World Trade Center. Wow, what an incredible inside to the building. I was captivated when I looked at the design outside but inside was even better. And then on to the 911 Memorial site. It is sobering to know that buildings once stood at this site and so much devastation and loss occurred here on 9/11/2001. The same day I was in hospital with Cameron, post op his first surgery of many in the USA. We had just switched on the TV and watched in disbelief as the events unfolded. This picture just shows a few of the many that lost their lives that day.
Street Art – Mother Theresa and Mahatma Gandhi
The Vessel at Hudson Yards
We took in the Chelsea Market, and ventured up the High Line, strolled along the waterfront, had a super expensive lobster roll, before heading across town to catch the bus back up to northern Central Park. If you are heading to Chelsea Market, head there early for breakfast or a bit later for lunch. There are lots of interesting places to stop and grab something to snack. The High Line is an unique overview of the city, built on old train tracks and leading through the city buildings. You are able to see some captivating art. You will also see awesome reflections on the various buildings. And finally you will arrive at the Vessel, a unique piece of art found in the Hudson Yards.
This was our action packed 5 day {Summer Days} and this is just a small snapshot of our days in New York City. There were other streets and alleyways that we ventured down. There was up time and some serious down time at the end of each full day of walking. Dinner in West Harlem was great, we ate curry the one evening, and stopped by a great Italian restaurant the other night. The upside of renting an apartment we could eat at “home” if we were too tired. The area I am told is an up and coming area, very eclectic, interesting people, and fun places to hang out at. Look out for the blogs of New York coming up soon.
In the meantime, I am dying to know how everyone else has spent their summer days this month. This is a circle blog and I encourage you to follow the links and see what the others have for you. My friend and fellow blogger Katherine of Cobert Photography follows me and she is super talented and I know I am heading over to see what she and the other bloggers have shared.
Don’t forget to head over to the Facebook Page and the Instagram Page and leave us a photo showing us what your {Summer Days} look like. Tag it #sharesix_summerdays.
Tell me a Story: July 2019
Posted on July 31, 2019
I will start out by saying Happy Summer and advise you that this is going to be a long post. I’m sorry but this place warrants it, for me. As you will recall were were in San Antonio in April and I wanted to share this day before moving on to New York blogs.
The last day in San Antonio, I managed to convince Richard that we needed to go and visit the missions. Now I will tell you that looking at old buildings is not Richard’s favorite past time. I on the other hand, love history, old buildings and anything genealogical. I mentioned it before but it is worth mentioning again, the bus system in San Antonio is fantastic. We got around pretty easily. I had listed 3 missions to visit; Mission San Juan Capistrano, Mission San Jose Church, and Mission Concepcion. If you are interested in doing this trip, just be prepared to make it a day trip so that you can take time to appreciate the essence of each mission. Make sure to take lots of water especially if you are in the summer months.
Each one was unique and well worth visiting, in my opinion. However, the one I really enjoyed the most was Mission San Jose Church. This mission is known as the Queen of the Missions. You will see why as you read through the blog.
As you enter Mission San Jose, you get the sense of being part of something so old and so historic. In February 23, 1720 Mission San Jose was founded by Father Antonio Margil.
These missions were founded to secure the land, and to be able to teach Christianity and its way of life to the local Indians. These Indians were the Coahuiltecan Indians, a small band of Native American Indians that lived in the Rio Grand Valley. This tribe of Indians was seriously diminished by disease such as smallpox, and of course, slavery.
The inside of the outer wall, we found a number of doorways. The outer wall was thick enough to build housing for around 350 Indians.
The buildings included rooms for guests, officers, a place to eat and a pantry area.
As I walked along the pathway I wondered how long, and how many people it took to build this incredible building.
In 1768, a church was built using local limestone. This church is still an active church today and Order of Friars Minor, a Catholic order, staffs the church.
In 1794, the property was given to the Indians and in 1824 the missions activities ended. The photo below shows the entrance gates into the mission grounds.
When I researched the various sights to see, I remember seeing and being fascinated with the beauty of the arches in this building.
In 1932, the buildings were repaired and restored. The walls, quarters and bastion were restored. The granary was also repaired and restored. In 2001 the gristmill was opened
I was able to walk into a small chapel in my wanderings around. It was simple and peaceful. As was the bench outside.
Below, this window is known as the Rose Window. History would have us believe that there were two possibilities to the naming of this ornate window. The first was that the window was possibly named after the creators girlfriend who, when traveling from Spain, tragically died at sea. The other possibility was that the window was named after the first Saint of the new world, Saint Rose of Lima. The craftsman however, is not known, although it is thought that he could be Pedro Huizar. This window is one of the finest examples of baroque architecture.
The tile in the image above is apparently the original tile, although somewhat faded and damaged.
While I have tried to research the significance of these two crosses, I have not found the answer.
We meandered to the back of the church and came across the granary and the grist mill, both equally interesting.
The granary was also repaired and restored. If you are interested in reading more about the granary and the grist mill reconstruction you can do so here.
There is these mini aqueducts through the garden carrying the water to the mill.
Once again we headed back to walk along the side wall heading out of the mission. I came across some interesting areas that just caught my eye.
Inside this glass casing was a miniature replica of the entire Mission San Jose.
This stunning Queen of the Missions became the showplace of the Southwest. I can certainly believe this. Its rough beauty is unparalleled to anything I have seen. If you are in San Antonio, stop by and visit this beautiful mission.
As I said, it is a long post. There were just so many corners and arches and places to visit.
Thank you for joining me this month as we spend time sharing another day in our lives. This is a circle blog. Take some time to view what the other artists have for you this month. Beth’s Photoblog is up next and I can’t wait to read what she has to share.
30 Minutes in the Life: July 2019
Posted on July 29, 2019
30 Minutes of fireworks. These were taken on the 4th July at a local park. We had some friends visiting Florida and since it was their first 4th of July as US residents we decided to celebrate that with the fireworks.
This time of the year is mosquito time and I have to be honest I was dreading sitting outside in the humidity with mosquito’s feasting on me. I believe that mosquito’s think I am their food source. So I put on a pair of jeans, sneakers and a short sleeved shirt and took a sweater. Not fun being overdressed in the heat.
We found a spot on the edge of the lake and Richard and I friends walked around I watched the beautiful sunset. Before we knew it, it was time for the fireworks and before you knew it 15 minutes later it was over.
The little girls behind us thoroughly enjoyed the fireworks and every time one explored we heard shrieks coming from them. I did not think they would have voices the following morning.
I tried different settings for these images, trying fast and slow. Some I love and some were just okay. Here are a few for this month’s blog.
Thank you for joining us for another month of 30 Minutes. Just a reminder that this is a circle blog. We have a number of new ladies join the 30 minutes group, making us now 14 bloggers, and so I would encourage you to take some time to visit my very talented friend Ivana from MaMagare KidzPhoto, and see what she has for you this month. I am pretty excited to learn more about these wonderful ladies from all over the world. I would certainly encourage you to visit their pages.
Share Six: July 2019: This is me
Posted on July 12, 2019
This month has not exactly been fun. My computer crashed and I suddenly discovered how much I loved it. That said, the poor laptop was not reviving very well. I took it off to the tech guys and they gently told me that I would be better off purchasing something new rather than spending a whole bunch of money trying to fix my laptop.
So after 3 hours of talking myself into it, I finally decided to get a pc rather than a laptop and finally added way to many bells and whistles to the pc. My bank account looks sick but I am smiling. Cameron, my son, talked me into buying a 34 inch monitor and I have to be honest it is really a sweet feeling editing on there.
The computer took forever to arrive. Downside for Dell and their 2 day delivery is that it took almost two weeks after hitting the order button the pc finally arrived. But then it had to go up to the tech guys to have the hard drive of the laptop transferred over. I happy to say that it is here. The downside is I lost my Nik plugins for Photoshop. And I really loved them.
That brings me to this month’s blog. I would love to say I got creative and took selfies but that was not happening. So I went back through the archives to find images of me. The challenging part of finding photo’s is that I am rarely on this photo side of the camera. I am normally taking them. But I found a few.
I love to travel and so these images are from places we have traveled to around the USA. I obviously love photography and the other interest that I have in life is genealogy. I love tracking down family past and present and learning more about them.
Richard and I traveled to Denver Colorado in March of 2013. What an amazing trip that was.
Part of our visit was in the Rockies and not being a snow person I was pretty wrapped up and still feeling the cold.
2014 we visited Vegas and I had fun playing with a double exposure app on my phone. I also had fun playing the slot machines in the casino.
This is me. We often vacation at the beach. We have a little pop up van that works well for the two of us and toes in the sand is what each day looks like at some point in the day.
2014 and we are hiking in the Valley of Fire. My brother was on conference and we were able to get away for the day. The Valley of Fire is awesome and I loved seeing all the multi colored rock.
2018 and we took the cable car to the top of the mountain while visiting the New Hampshire White Mountains. The air was thin up there and I had some difficulty breathing to be honest. The air was cold, we were heading out of autumn into the beginning stages of winter.
Another pic in the New Hampshire White Mountains. This particular hike was amazing. We climbed through the mountains and the sides of the mountains got closer and closer.
I am sorry that this is not more creative but honestly I am to tired to even think creatively right now.
Thank you for joining me for this month’s Share Six blog post. This is a circle blog. From the sneak peak images I have seen, you are going to want to follow the circle. Please take time to visit my friend and very talented artist Michèle of Michèle Tremblay Photos and see what she has for you this month. Keep following the circle to see what the other photographers have shared this month. Don’t forget to leave a little love on their page as well.
Come and share your images Facebook and Instagram tagging #sharesix_thisisme
Tell Me a Story: June 2018
Posted on June 30, 2019
It’s time to blog and I am sitting without a computer so I have pulled up some photo’s from last year that I had edited but not posted. Last year we did an impromptu trip to Maine. I happened to be chatting to my work colleague about how I needed to use up some vacation time but really hated wasting vacation time on a staycation. She told me she had a cottage in Maine that we were welcome to use. Having never been to Maine we jumped at the opportunity. We headed up late September. The weather overall, except for our whale watching trip, was fantastic. Not hot not too cold. The whale watching trip was bitterly cold out on the ocean, and it was foggy. We did not see whales, in fact we saw practically nothing.
If you read my blogs, you will know that when I travel I am a bit of a planner. I see very little point in going somewhere blind. Yes I know there is spontaneity in doing thing impulsively and I am game for that, but I also want to have some idea of what I want to see and have some kind of plan. If we don’t get to see it, all fine well, if we do and it is on my list, I am super happy. There is nothing worse for me arriving in a unknown place, as a co-pilot and trying to find where to go. Don’t ever asking me to do Amazing Race. GPS is my best friend.
On of the places on Richard’s list was to go up to Bar Harbor, and Arcadia National Park.
Here are a few of the images I have already edit. When I get to the rest I will have to come back and share them.
As we meandered up the coast we pulled into little towns that appeared to have places of interest or we just thought we would mosey on through.
Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse was one of those places we decided to visit. It turned out to be an interesting stop. As we started to walk down to the lighthouse there was a group of volunteers handing out garbage bags. They were asking visitors to do some cleaning up along their walk. We did not walk all the way out to the light house. I was still healing from foot surgery and long walks were still a bit of a struggle, but I did enjoy seeing the beautiful bay and watch the dogs playing in the waves.
We stopped in another small town along the way and I loved seeing this older couple walking together along the edge of the water. I hope someday that I will be able to do that as well.
Arcadia National Park was stunning and I do not do it justice with this images. They were edited for a particular purpose. Hoever, I loved seeing the fall colors for the first time in my 18 years of living in the USA. We hiked down through the trees to get to lower areas, and up through the trees to get to higher areas.
From the top of the hill in the Arcadia National Park we looked down over Frenchman’s Bay. On the edge of the photo is one of the very big cruise liners that we spotted in the bay. While this spot look tranquil and maybe a bit lonely, it was honestly bustling with too many people. I love those places were I can go out and enjoy the quiet and this was not one of those spots.
I made a new friend, or rather my lunch made a new friend, lol. I am facinated by how big those birds grow up north. Our gulls down south seem a lot smaller. These guys parade around like they are in charge of the show.
The parking was up the top, and we hiked down to a very beautiful rocky bay. The walk was so pretty with it beautiful colored leaves all around you, and there was a coolness to the air that made the walk rather pleasant.
This is just one of the many bay images taken. At one point I was standing at the edge of the rocks looking down to try and capture the water rushing up into the gulley area. The ebb and flo of the water had me thinking I may just go over the edge. Quick step back
One of the images I had seen while researching was a sunset at Jordans Pond. Sadly we were not there at sunset, however, the area was beautful and I loved getting low down to get this image. Just above this quiet spot, is a bustling restaurant, where you can sit outside and enjoy bar type food and beer. We did take a bit of time to enjoy a cold one.
Bar Harbor was a quaint and bustling little town. We walked all over and I have to be honest, food wise this was probably my favorite meal – lobster tails and calamari. Portsmouth came second with their lobster roll. We only stayed one night, so early the next morning we rose before sunrise and headed down to the harbor area. Watching the sun say hello to the day was special. If you look in the background of the pic you will see the fog that we seemed to see a lot of on this partiular trip.
We had two options on how to plan our day. Explore more in the Arcadia National Park and then head home or explore the adjacent island and then home. Given how touristy Arcadia was I suggested that we head to the next island and see what there was to see. If I have to be honest, not too much. This, however, turned out to be one of my favorite images, and one that placed relatively well in a competition I had entered it into.
Southwest Harbor was nothing really to rush out to and beyond that it was mainly housing. So that probably was not the best decision that I had made but you make choices and you live with it. So we were back on the road and headed to Wells Beach.
Our last stopping point was at Orchard Beach. When researching I found what looked like a very interesting pier. Of course, finding parking was no fun, and my co-pilot was all ready to give up but we eventually foound a place to stop. This was indeed an interesting pier, and while I was going for the silhouette look here when I edited, the pier is actually bright and colorful. We walked through the pier to the very end where we took a break, rested our weary feet and cooled our throats. Of course, we watched the locals swimming in the ocean and thinking that they were crazy, the water was freezing for these Floridians.
Hopefully by my next blog I will have a working computer, but who knows. I pushed the button, hit send after a 3 hours self debate of was I ordering the right piece of equipment. That said it is now ordered and along with that a 34 inch monitor, so I cannot wait to play. I am just hoping that the tech guys will manage to transfer the data and images off my laptop, since I just realized that my San Antonio images were on there and I don’t think I have a disc with them on. Bummer if they are all gone.
Thank you for joining me on this very quick and impromptu trip along the Maine coastline. This is a circle blog so I would encourage you to visit my friend Mindy and see what she has for you this month.
30 Minutes in the Life: June 2019
Posted on June 24, 2019
At some point in your life, you tend to come up with a bucket list of things you would like to do, and you set out to achieve them. Most of my bucket list has involved traveling, and we have done a fair bit of it. We have traveled through Europe, done more traveling in the USA than I ever imagined us doing, and I still continue to look for places to visit.
One of the places on my bucket list for the USA was Niagara Falls. To be honest I really did not think that we would get there any time soon. However, 2 weeks ago my 2 work colleagues and I headed up to Rochester, New York for training for a program we are in the process of implementing in our offices.
I knew that if we were going to go all the way up there, we needed to make time to do the trip to the Falls. We had to fly up the day before to be there to start training the next day at 9am. So with some creative planning I figured if we caught the 5:30am flight to Rochester via Atlanta we would have enough time to drive to Niagara Falls and back before it was too late in the day.
The top of Niagara Falls looking towards Canada
The Canadian Niagara Falls skyline
Of course, I am the furthest from the airport, so I woke up at 3am and began my hour drive. It becomes a very long day when you only get back to the hotel at 9pm but it was well worth every minute that we took to go out there.
On recommendation we decided to drive along the 401, the scenic route, through small towns and farmland. The downside is always the changing speed but the towns were pretty and it was good to be able to see them. Florida is one housing community after another and this was definitely a change of pace.
The day was bleak, cold, windy and overcast, which leaves the images feeling just a little gray. My first view of Niagara Falls took my breath away. The falls are amazing and the force of water going over the falls was just incredible. Water is so incredibly powerful.
The size of the boat will give you some idea of the height of the falls.
This is the Canadian side of the boat ramps taken from the USA side.
Some moments you just had to stop and stare. The image below is one of those moments. Due to the wind there was a lot of water spray coming off the falls and it leaves this hazy effect.
I focused on the tree and flower, while looking at the rocky shoreline below.
The first bridge leads to the elevator that would take you down to the base of the falls, the second bridge is the gateway to Canada.
While we heard that the view from the Canadian side of the falls was spectacular, one of us did not have a valid passport, so there was no slipping into Canada to view the falls. However, I suggested that we head down the elevator and take a boat ride into the bay.
Heading down, they hand out a Maids of the Mist rain poncho. I was still messing with mine when we got on the boat. Too much in my hand with my camera and backpack and rain poncho.
I realized that potentially there would be some water. I have a rain sleeve for my camera. What I did not realize was just how much water there would be and how misty the images would look, partially from the water in the air and partially from the amount was water sitting on my the front of my lens.
My thirty minutes technically ends here, but I did want to make the trip one blog post and so I have shared the rest of our days outing.
There was constant wiping of the lens, and doing my best to keep my camera dry. I will admit I had a few worrying moments when my camera started blinking at me. For a while I put it under my rain poncho and did nothing, but the beauty of the place had me pulling it back out again.
This is the walkway from the Cave of the Winds which gets you right up under the falls. There is a cost to doing the Cave. It’s not expensive, but there is also a cost to the boat. That’s not expensive but it still adds up if you are watching your costs. I opted not to do it based on the amount of water my camera had already seen.
We were seriously wet. My colleagues managed to stay slightly drier than I did. I found it difficult to try and focus on the camera and have the hoodie slipping around my face, so eventually I just lost the hood and decided to allow my hair to get wet. I carry a mini brush with me so at least I could tidy up my hair at the end of the ride.
The last image before I put my camera under cover was this boat coming out of the falls.
Arriving back on the base we had the option to walk up this pathway to get closer to the falls. At the base we were already getting wet, I could not imagine taking my blinking camera up closer to the falls.
Back at the top I resonated on what I had seen from the top and the bottom of these incredible falls. If you have the opportunity to visit Niagara Falls, I would encourage you to do so. We still had 1 hour and 45 minutes to drive back to Rochester. We took the lake road, and so now at least I can say that I visited and touched the water of one of the great lakes, Lake Ontario. To be honest there was not a lot to see along the lake road, but we happened to stop in one small town for dinner. Being the planner, I researched the menu before recommending the stop. I had a cup of lobster bisque to warm me up, and then my all time favorite calamari. I have to be honest the last stretch of the road trip was catching up with me and I was happy when we arrived back in Rochester at the hotel.
Thank you for joining us for another month of 30 Minutes. Just a reminder that this is a circle blog. We have a number of new ladies join the 30 minutes group, making us now 14 bloggers, and so I would encourage you to take some time to visit my very talented friend Caroline of Elles & Eux Photographie , and see what she has for you this year. I am pretty excited to learn more about these wonderful ladies from all over the world. I would certainly encourage you to visit their pages.
Share Six: June 2019: Favorite Quote
Posted on June 10, 2019
Hello, can anyone tell me how we got to June. This year is flying by. And it appears I have been doing a lot of that as well. So far we have headed to San Antonio and the Florida Keys. I just returned from Rochester NY, and we had the opportunity to swing by Niagara Falls and then in July we are planning to head up to New York. Oh yes, I can just hear Frank Sinatra singing New York, New York. It will be a first for me.
Keeping that in mind, let’s turn to Share Six. For this month’s Share Six blog we have chosen the theme {Favorite quote}. There are so many out there but this one has resonated with me for a while now.
The history behind this quote is that some years ago my daughter and I had a conversation about travel. I love to travel. In our 20’s Richard and I traveled through Europe sleeping in a tent. We got to spend six weeks traveling through France, Spain, the French Riviera, Monte Carlo, Italy, Sicily, Greece, Austria, Switzerland, Germany and Holland. We then headed on to England, Wales and Scotland. My biggest regret was that we did not visit Ireland at the time. We have not done another big international trip like that since then, although we keep thinking about it.
Beyond that we have done a fair bit of exploring with the kids. Various places within South Africa and Mozambique. Richard and I also spent time in Swaziland, Lesotho and the Transkei.
However, since moving to Florida it felt like we only traveled around Florida. As Amy and I were talking, I reminded her about the importance of travel and meeting new people and learning new cultures. Exposure to different cultures and places definitely makes you a more accepting person. I happened to mention that I felt like I needed to get back to traveling again because the older I get, the less time I have to see the places I want to see while I am physically capable of seeing them.
On my very next birthday Amy gave me a card with the following words on it:
Find life experiences
and swallow them whole. travel.
meet many people
go down some dead ends and
explore dark alleys.
try everything
exhaust yourself
in the glorious
pursuit of life.
~ Lawrence K. Fish
I really want to do that. I want to experience as much as I can, see as much as I can. Meet new people. Learn the different ways of life. Give of myself as well.
Since 2012 we have been doing a lot of US traveling and seeing the sights and so it thought it was fitting to share some of my favorite travel pics as we have exhausted ourselves in the glorious pursuit of life. I will confess I went a little overboard, but I wanted to share some of the most beautiful places we have been to.
Denver, Colorado in the snow. We arrived in Denver knowing it may be cold but not expecting snow. It was one of the most beautiful sights I have seen. I got out and explored, Richard not so much.
Wells Beach, Maine. We visited Wells Beach in Maine in October of 2019. We did quite a trip through various parts of Maine, but Wells Beach was our base. This was a busy little town on weekends, but quieter during the week. We stopped in the bay area to see what there was and found tranquility and some gorgeous reflections.
The Columbia Building, Seattle, Washington. The Columbia Building is a 76 story high building. Around the 52nd floor is Starbucks. Guess where we headed. I have to be honest, my stomach did not feel great, but I wanted the sky line and that was one of the places I could get it. When I got back down to the bottom I took this image looking up. It really does not show the true height of the building. Definitely well worth the visit.
Columbus, Georgia I had a work retreat to Columbus Georgia. This image was taken from the parking lot of the sunrise. We can experience beauty where ever we see it. We just have to take the time to look.
Seattle, Washington. Seattle was one of my favorite places to visit. And yes as you can see, I did do the back streets and alley ways. We explored Seattle far more than I have explored any other place. I would definitely head back there.
Key West, Florida. There is nothing better than a sunset cruise out on the ocean in Key West. Every time we are down there a cruise is on my to do list. Some evenings are spectacular and other are just okay, but I am always amazed at the beauty of creation.
The Seattle Library, Washington. It was suggested that I may enjoy walking through the Seattle Library, so I decided to head out and explore what the library had to offer. The Library is 10 stories high and I started at the top and walked down and around all the floors. It was a very interesting building and a great opportunity for a photo shoot.
The Riverwalk, San Antonio. San Antonio was a recent trip and the Riverwalk was the place to be. It is a bustling night spot of restaurants and guests. There is a place for everyone’s tastes. This was taken in the morning where the one place open for breakfast was a Mexican Restaurant.
Manchester by the Sea, Massachusetts. Driving from Boston to Maine, I requested that we go by Manchester by the Sea. If you recall a year or two back there was a movie made by that name and actually made in the town. So I needed to see it. Like the movie it was a quaint little town. When I stopped to speak to one of the local residents we talked about the fact that the movie was made there. She mentioned that they are much happier people than the movie depicts.
Columbus, Georgia. This was a second retreat trip to Columbus Georgia with staff. On this particular day the staff wanted to go to the outlet mall. If you learn anything about me, know that I really do not enjoy shopping unless it is for books. Being the driver, I made the trip to the outlets, dropped my passengers off and said see you later. I then headed down to the river and the river walk. I loved that I got a chance to chat to a homeless man, who went on to share with me about a nesting bird. Little moments like these create memories to draw on.
Mission San José y San Miguel de Aguayo, San Antonio. One of the best parts of our recent trip to San Antonio was a visit to the missions. This particular mission was stunning and it was well worth the visit and was a great opportunity to learn more about the role of the mission in the early history of San Antonio.
The Waterfront, Seattle, Washington. There was a Ferris wheel along the waterfront and I thoroughly enjoyed taking photo’s of it. Of course, I did not get to ride it, but I am a little nervous of heights 🙂
Nashville, Tennessee. I really love this image of this woman taking a break during her busy day. We just happened to be walking street towards her when I spotted and stopped and took the photograph. Some days you don’t get to speak to a person, but you learn something all the same. Take time to enjoy the moments.
Old Orchard Beach, Maine. In the process of researching places to visit, and yes I do a lot of research before I head out, I came across this very interesting pier. So as you may have guessed I really needed to stop by and visit and see what it was all about. We got to share a beer at the end of the pier.
The Japanese Gardens, San Antonio. The Japanese Gardens were a treat. I loved the peacefulness that you can find in these beautiful gardens. This picture was of Richard exploring and I loved how the trees framed him on his adventure.
Valley of Fire, Overton, Nevada. While hanging out in Las Vegas we got chatting to a Kiwi and mentioned that we were thinking of going to Red Rock. He told us to skip that and head out to the Valley of Fire. What we found here was multiple colored rock, red, black, white and yellow rocks that made up this amazing area. We got to do a bit of hiking through the rocks as well.
Bar Harbor, Maine. During our visit to Maine, Richard had one place he wanted to visit, Acadia National Park. So we took 2 days out of our plans to drive up to Bar Harbor. The Arcadia National Park is well worth visiting. Bar Harbor was where we slept. This is a busy little town, with lots of restaurants. If you are looking for really good calamari and lobster tails, Bar Harbor would be my go to place. A long way to go for good calamari but since we were there we thoroughly enjoyed it. Our waiter was from Serbia and we got chatting about traveling around Serbia and what it would be like if you do not speak the language. Not a problem, he tells me, everyone speaks English. Well almost everyone. So here is my mind working over time. If we ever get to Macedonia, Serbia is right next door. I am a planner 🙂
Epcot, Disneyland, Orlando, Florida. We do not do Disney all that often but once in a while we head up there. Epcot and the Garden show was our destination this year. We got to have the whole family together for a change and also to watch our new son-in-laws amazement throughout the day. Fortunately it was not too hot and not too many people.
Niagara Falls on the USA side. Last but not least this past week I got to view and experience the spectacular Niagara Falls. I had to travel to Rochester NY for work, but we had a free afternoon, and decided to make the most of it and drive 1.5 hours to the falls. From the US side you do not get the full view of the falls like the Canadians do, however, you are right up against the force of the water and it is impressive.
Niagara Falls from the decks of the Maid in the Mist. We decided that we would take a boat ride into the bay of the falls. So they give you rain poncho’s which is probably a good indication that you are going to get wet. Hello, me with the camera. I had to do some creative photography down there and honestly at one stage my camera was blinking at me. The day was overcast, and windy. The wind, of course, caused the spray to go further.
Niagara Falls from the Maid in the Mist. The power of the water is so incredibly breath taking. To be here at the base of the falls watching the water pour over the edge is amazing. If you have the opportunity to visit the falls I would encourage you to do so.
I could carry on posting images of places that I love, but you will soon get sick of me. I would encourage you head down those alleyways, stop and talk to a stranger, enjoy everything life has to offer you. Life is far to brief to waste it. Me I am in the planning stages of heading to New York.
Thank you for joining me for this month’s Share Six blog post. This is a circle blog. From the sneak peak images I have seen, you are going to want to follow the circle. Please take time to visit my friend and very talented artist Katherine of Cobert Photography and read her quote and see how she has interpreted it. Keep following the circle to see what the other photographers have shared this month. Don’t forget to leave a little love on their page as well.
Come and share your images Facebook and Instagram tagging #sharesix_favoritequote.
30 Minutes in the Life: May 2019
Posted on June 3, 2019
Yes I know it says May, and it is now June, but truth is we delayed it one week so that we would all have a chance to enjoy the Memorial Day weekend. For me it was an awesome 11 days of vacation. 5 of those days were spending in the stinking hot sun down in the Florida Keys. Phew, when shade is at a minimum, happy hour seems to be the way to go. But more about that another day.
For this month I wanted to continue with the San Antonio trip. My flu that I had just before the trip left me in a funk and so I am really behind on editing. For our afternoon session of sightseeing, my brother was going to join us. I know that he likes to visit things like Botanical Gardens and such. So we decided to jump on the local transportation (which I highly recommend as a way to get around San Antonio), and head to the Japanese Gardens, and then on to the Botanical Gardens. These photos were exactly 35 minutes of walking around the garden.
We have a Japanese Gardens locally at home, and I know what that one is like and so my expectation was that this one would be bigger. The one we have at home is a 2 mile walk. It normally takes me 3 hours to get around.
The upside of the short time frame was that we were not sure how long it would take us to get around the Botanical Gardens.
Our first view was of the beautiful lakes with pathways going through them.
In the water were koi, and the random ducks.
We meandered along random pathways taking in the beautiful stonework, the rich colors of gardens.
And were impressed by the creative building behind us. Layers of rock had been used to build the pillars, the pathways and the bridges.
The gardens were very peaceful and I guess we were fortunate that there were not too many people visiting at the same time as us.
There were small waterfalls and large waterfalls.
Amazing bridges to cross. Each stone layered one on top of the other.
Typical of our walk about, Richard is 10 steps ahead of Barry, and I am lagging with the camera another 10 steps behind. There was too much that captured my attention.
We walked past the waterfalls and slowly climbed the pathway to get a view of the area below.
We continued to meander along this random pathway until we found our way back to the building area.
My brother started out his career as a Civil Engineer, and he spent a good bit of time looking at the structural layout of these pillars and how each stone had been laid uniquely above the one below.
As we walked away from the structured building I looked down below to what was probably garden storage buildings.
Barry and I meandered along this short bridge to a deck adjacent to what appeared to be some kind of silo.
It gave us a better view of the buildings below.
Of course, it was hot, and so we ventured inside to get some liquid refreshments and sat for a while in the shade of the umbrellas. We all got to try Japanese beer.
We also had company while we were relaxing.
I took one final lookout from the sheltered area. The trip to the Japanese Gardens had been fun and it was definitely well worth going to visit.
Last but not least, this was one of my favorite images of Richard, and I just felt like it had to be in black and white.
Beers were drunk, bags packed up, we are off to the bus stop. Next stop is the Botanical Gardens. Look out for a blog post soon.
Thank you for joining us for another month of 30 Minutes. Just a reminder that this is a circle blog, so take some time to visit my friend Stacey Markel Photography, and see what she has for you this year.
Flickr Photos
Share Six Blog Contributor
30 Minutes in the Life Blog Contributor
Tell Me a Story Blog Contributor
Artist Inspired Blog Contributor
101 Ways to Shoot…
Shoot and Share
PBH (Voice, Vision, Soul) Project 52
sharleenstuart 
Recent Comments