Beijing Hutong

View down an alleyway in central Beijing. Although we went to see a solar eclipse in the summer of 2009, this visit to a traditional neighborhood was one of the highlights of the trip for Stephi and me. The big monuments were nice, but seeing how the Chinese actually live was much more interesting.

Champaign Camping

Thinking of selling my camper so this is a sad shot. No more campgrounds for awhile. Took this one near Champaign bringing Jono back to school last year. Go Illini.

Hawaiian Sunset

It is 15 degrees in Chicago today. Need I say more?

Hermosa Beach Bike Shop

This shot was taken in November 2009 near my hotel in Hermosa Beach. I always look for color where I can find it.

Old Montreal

Had to go to Canada last week for the first time for work. Got to visit Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. Didn't have time to take a lot of shots so I hope to go back one day while on vacation, especially to Montreal. The area called "Old Montreal" is a collection of bars, restaurants and art stores and looks like it would be lots of fun....especially in, say, June or July. In January it was cold, although no colder than Chicago the day I was there. Anyway, here is a shot of a store front in Old Montreal. Reminds me of streets in Paris and the city has a very strong French flavor. About half the conversations you overhear while walking around are in French or part French and part English.

Florence is for lovers

My friend, Kit Lawson, reminded me of this shot with one of his Photo of the Day posts on Facebook. So, I grabbed a similar shot that I took back in 2006. Unfortunately, we were both in Florence on overcast days (Kit: were we there on the same day? :) but I just love that city, overcast or no. You have to find a way to Florence. Just an amazing city. History going back to the Renaissance and unbelievable shopping all in one place. I can't wait to get back there one day.

Now, another friend teased me about trying to slip in teaching points with my pictures. Horrors!!! By the way, the Ponte Vecchio bridge is the oldest of Florence's six bridges. It is one of the city's best known images. The bridge probably goes back to Roman times with its stone pillars and wooden planks; it was built in stone but then destroyed by a flood in 1333. It was built again twelve years later. Two other points I can't pass up: I heard that the Allies wanted to bomb this bridge but held off. What a gift to the future. Lastly, the bridge originally held butcher shops back in the 13th or 14th century. The ruling family, who lives right around where I was standing, kicked them all out because of the smell. Today it mostly has gold and jewelry shops.

Don't you love history?

Santa Fe

My cousin, Catherine Silva, lives in New Mexico, a place of wonderful beauty. In her honor, I am posting a shot from Santa Fe that I took last fall. Didn't get any great shots as I was working that day. Got 10 minutes between meetings to walk around the city, but here is one that I liked. Haven't seen a blue sky like that in some time. Hope to go back one day and explore Santa Fe and the region to a greater extent.

Chicago Red and Blue

Two weeks at home before the next trip which will be to Boulder, Colorado. In honor of the long home stand, here is another shot taken from Navy Pier last summer. Love the reds and blues on such a dreary January day.

Chicago Sunrise

Didn't get many shots while in Canada and couldn't upload while there due to connection problems with my old portable computer. Looks like I will have to purchase a new one. Bummer. Really liked Montreal and Ottawa. Less impressed with Toronto. Hope to do a family trip back to the French speaking part of Canada this summer. Anyway, here is an old favorite shot of the day of the sun setting over Lake Michigan taken near Navy Pier back in 2008.

Eiffel in Blue

Just a quick post today as I am packing for a week long trip to Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal for work. So, in honor of this upcoming foreign trip, I am posting a shot of the Eiffel Tower that I took in the family's 2006 trip to visit Nina in Paris. Seems like a lifetime ago. Anyway, one of my favorite shots.

Beach Art- San Francisco

Day two. Second post.

I wonder how I am going to blog from the road? Have to travel with computer and camera, I guess. Today's shot was taken this past week in San Fransisco. I was going for a 5 mile run to the Golden Gate from my hotel and I brought along my camera. Big mistake because I kept stopping to take pictures and didn't get my run in. I am not used to running with a full size DSLR. Anyway, it got pretty chilly very quickly along the water and I was not dressed for the cold. About a mile from the hotel I saw this guy drawing on the beach with some driftwood. I don't know what this is, but he seemed pretty talented.





Here he is in action. We all need a creative outlet somewhere. At the end he planted his pole and topped it with a flag and another piece of driftwood. Ahh, the places you will go and the things you will see:

Cloud over Beijing

It only took a few seconds to set up this blog. Pretty soon everyone will have a blog and we will all be blogging but no one will be reading. Anyway, I will attempt in this blog to post interesting shots from around the US (and sometimes beyond). Don't think anyone will care, but it will be a place to drop off my pics for others to see and hopefully enjoy. Firat I have to learn how to upload pictures. Maybe if I click the "add image" link......

Hey, It worked. I though this cloud looked like a map of the North America. Now I think it might be a flying dragon. Anyway, seems like an appropriate first picture. What do you think?