Tom and Margot's Adventures in Photography

Family Thanksgiving in Slidell, Louisiana Part 4

2024-12-20T08:06:00.004+08:00

One day Mike, Marguerite and I went to a local spot to see what we would find. These next few are Brown Pelicans.

When they spot a fish they go all in.

They don't actually disappear completely, usually.

I thought the silhouette was kind of cool. By the way, I wasn't even close on getting the spelling correct on silhouette. Had to look it up.

Again, a completely committed to getting that fish.

Marguerite found some pretty flowers to pick.

Mike took this picture of this Snowy Egret and Little Blue Heron as we drove down the road.

Latter in the day we drove into New Orleans and visited the Audubon Aquarium and Insectarium.

They had some birds there, also.

This is the infamous Lionfish, It is an invasive species in the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and along the southeast coast of the U.S. The are voracious eaters and are harming coral reefs.

They had all sorts of insects in the insectarium but the butterflies were the prettiest and easiest to photograph.

Earlier postings

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Family Thanksgiving in Slidell, Louisiana Part 3

2024-12-06T02:56:00.004+08:00

There were several good places to look for birds near where we stayed. This was in lagoons behind The Harbor Center.

This is a Palm Warbler. This was a new-to-me bird.

The rest of these were along Carr Drive in the opposite direction from Eden Isles.

Great Blue Heron

This Osprey was having sushi for breakfast.

Little Blue Heron

Click any picture to enlarge.

Great Egret

Actually, this one was at The Harbor Center.

Ring-necked Duck

Double-crested Cormorant

Anhinga

Previous posts in this series.

Part 1

Part 2

Family Thanksgiving in Slidell, Louisiana Part 2

2024-12-06T02:14:00.002+08:00

We went on a Swamp Tour one afternoon. Here is a picture of the tour boat going under the U.S. 90 bridge.

We went with Cajun Encounters. They are just a few miles from Lauren's house.

It was pretty cool outside so many of the larger alligators weren't active. We did see a couple. I think this guy is resting on a decayed tree stump.

For reference, the boat captain said the best time to visit is from about mid-March for the next 3 or 4 weeks to maximize wildlife viewing.

These turtles were looking for some warmth.

These raccoons were definitely on the payroll. They showed up at the sound of the boat and were looking for a handout. Our boat captain had come prepared.

Another shot.

This is part of the Indian Village community. You can only reach the places via boat. Link below.

Indian Village location

The U.S. 90 bridge is currently closed. It is scheduled to be rebuilt in a few years along with some sister bridges toward Mississippi.

Part 1

Family Thanksgiving in Slidell, Louisiana Part 1

2024-12-06T01:23:00.000+08:00

We enjoyed Thanksgiving in the relative warmth of southern Louisiana. From left to right: Margot, Tom, Ben Bloss, Ed Elliott, Olivia Gross, Jackson Gross, Jeremy Gross, Allison Elliott (back), Emily Bloss, Marguerite Savage (front), Lauren Savage Gross, Gianna Gross, Mike Savage, Isaac Elliott, Amy Elliott, Ed Elliott, Tom Savage.

We were pretty busy. We went to the zoo one day.

You are greeted by flamingos as you walk in.

This is some flavor of Orangutan.

This is Marguerite scaring her aunt and grandmother. The live oaks were a lot of fun to climb on. Dad's on the other side.

Marguerite in a tamer moment.

I snuck out a few times to take some pictures. This is at Northshore Beach on Debbie Drive southwest of Slidell near where we stayed in Eden Isles.

Brown Pelicans and Laughing Gulls.

I didn't have to go far for this one. It was swimming in the canal behind our house. It is a feral Muscovy Duck.

I didn't know ducks had "teeth". Click to enlarge for a better view.

The are a male and female Mallard - also in the canal.

Unusual Birds of Costa Rica

2024-11-27T08:08:00.006+08:00

Here are some of the more unusual birds that I was able to photograph during our trip to Costa Rica back in August.

This is a Boat-billed Heron.

Nikon Z8, 800mm PF

1/1250, F6.3 ISO 5000

Boat-billed Heron

Nikon Z8, 800mm PF

1/1250, F6.3 ISO 4000

This Gray-headed Chachalaca is a fairly large bird - amount 17 to 23 inches.

Nikon Z8, 800mm PF

1/400, F6.3, ISO 12,800

This is a female Slaty-tailed Trogon.

Nikon Z8, 500mm PF

1/1250, F5.6, ISO 11400

Another shot of the same Slaty-tailed Trogon.

Nikon Z8, 500mm PF

1/400, F5.6, ISO 3600

This is the Common Potoo. I'm not sure why but the Common Potoo has slits in its eyelids so they can see when their eyes are closed. Maybe because they have very large eyes to see at night. Their eyes are bright yellow and might give their location away.

Nikon Z8, 500mm PF

1/400, F5.6, ISO 500

TheCommon Potoo's survival strategy is to look like part of a tree. It is a nocturnal bird and is sort of a mix of owl and nightjar. It hunts insects at night. They don't build a nest - they lay a single egg in a depression in a limb and take turns incubating them.

They are hard to spot.

Nikon Z8, 500mm PF

1/3200, F5.6, ISO 2200

The Northern Jacana generally lives on floating vegetation in swamps and ponds. The yellow bony spurs on the leading edge of the wings can be used to defend itself and its young.

Nikon Z8, 500mm PF

1/3200, F5.6, ISO 900

Cocoa Woodcreeper

Click to enlarge.

Nikon Z8, 800mm PF

1/400, F6.3, ISO 12,800

This the female Great Curassow. It seems to me to be flashier than the male which is unusual in the world of birds. This is the rufous morph.

Nikon Z8, 800mm PF

1/500, F6.3, ISO 7200

A male Great Curassow. These are roughly pheasant sized.

Nikon Z8, 800mm PF

1/800, F6.3, ISO 12,800

Here some links to earlier postings.

Small, pretty birds in Costa Rica

Raptors in Costa Rica

Pretty, small birds of Costa Rica

2024-11-20T09:08:00.001+08:00

Red-lored Amazon. This is a fairly large parrot so it isn't that small. It is the largest of this group.

Click to enlarge.

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Yellow-crowned Euphonia

This probably an immature male.

Male Scarlet-rumped Tanager

Hard to believe that the following bird is the same species.

Female Scarlet-rumped Tanager

Blue-gray Tanager.

This is Bananaquit on some sort of Heliconia.

This is a Red-legged Honeycreeper. The male in breeding plumage looks nothing like this. It is a striking blue with a turquoise cap. This is most likely a female.

This is a Golden-hooded Tanager

This is the Blue Dacnis. It is a type of tanager. There a about 10 types of Dacnis but none of them are found in the U.S. The Blue Dacnis is native to Central and northern South America.

Here is a link to pictures of some Costa Rica Raptors if you missed that blog post.

Costa Rica Raptors

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Costa Rica Raptors

2024-11-15T10:21:00.017+08:00

Crane Hawk

I've decided to resurrect the photoblog. I enjoyed utilizing the photoblog to share what we were up to when we were living abroad. I sort of abandoned it in favor of Facebook shortly after we returned. On reflection, I think it is a better choice than Facebook - mainly because not everyone looks at Facebook. Also, there seems to be some unknowable algorithm in Facebook that (seemingly at random) shares postings with friends or not.

As many of you know, Margot and I took a trip to Costa Rica back in August. I participated in wildlife photography workshop and Margot relaxed at the resort and took a couple of trips into town.

Crane Hawk

Here is another shot.

Rather than chronologically, I thought I would share some of the photos by category. Today's category is raptors. I was surprised by the number we saw over the 6 days we were there.

Click any image to enlarge it.

We stayed at the Botánika Osa Peninsula in Puerto Jiménez in southern Costa Rica. It was very nice.

Roadside Hawk

This is a Roadside Hawk. Apparently, it is pretty common. We saw several during the trip.

Roadside Hawk

Here is another Roadside Hawk.

Click any image to enlarge it.

Yellow-headed Caracara

Another fairly common raptor is the Yellow-headed Caracara.

Yellow-headed Caracara

Here is one in flight.

Spectacled Owl

This is a Spectacled Owl. It did not want to come out in the open. We were lucky to spot it, actually.

This is a Central and South America species.

American Barn Owl

This is an American Barn Owl. It was roosting underneath a bridge over the river we were floating down. This is very common in the U.S. - really everywhere from Northern U.S. down to the tip of South America.

Double-toothed Kite

This is a juvenile Double-toothed Kite.

Click to enlarge.

Double-toothed Kite

You can see the double tooth a little better on this on if you click on it.

This one seems to be a little more mature.

Common Black Hawk

This is a Common Black Hawk.

Crested Caracara

This is the Crested Caracara. I don't think I have ever heard of this bird but it's range includes much of south and central Texas and small parts of Florida and Arizona.

War Eagle

2024-10-19T00:55:00.002+08:00

It was a little frosty on Thursday morning as the War Eagle Craft Fair got started. Margot, Theresa and Sue had left even earlier so they would be sure to arrive before "all the good stuff was gone".

These first two pictures are from the highway along the bluff along War Eagle Creek just before it drops down into the valley. The cattle were getting some moisture from the dew and frost along with the grass as they grazed. (Click to enlarge.)

This was my first time to the fair but I understand these are new structures replacing the large tents used in years past. There were a lot of people there even this early.

Greg, Bob and I left the fair about 10:30 and there was a long line of cars backed up to where I took the previous pictures. A hour and a half earlier we had cruised right in.

The mill and the bridge. The bridge was built in the early 1900s. It is one way and today it alternated between cars in each direction and foot traffic in both directions.

Here are a few pictures of the mill from an earlier post. War Eagle Mill in 2015

Tubing on Beaver Lake

2018-07-07T05:05:00.001+08:00

Big day tubing on Beaver Lake today.

Emily and Ben are having fun.

It got a little more exciting!

Captain Greg at work.

Mike and Amanda took a turn.

The expression on Amanda's face presages what happens next.

Emily's googles and her pride were the only casualties.

Most of the crew.

Ben is a natural at kayaking.

So is Margot.

Ben and Lauren took a turn a little later.

Even Emily got back in the saddle again.

Star Mountain Roanoke

2018-06-03T00:55:00.000+08:00

Michael, Amanda, Misheil, Tom and I went to the Star at Mill Mountain Park in Roanoke today.

Looking north toward downtown Roanoke.

Looking to the northeast.

Here is the key to identifying the mountains.

Here is the actual star.

It was built in 1949.

Well come back at night on of these trips.

Backyard Wildlife

2017-05-26T10:01:00.001+08:00

Margot notice mother and baby in the backyard this morning when she went out to feed the birds.

There were a couple of fawns in the neighborhood last year but I never saw them nursing.

I think she heard the camera clicking.

They moved off very slowly. I'm guessing that is a survival technique.

Backyard Birds

2017-04-28T11:12:00.000+08:00

It has been a very active couple of days at the bird feeders.

All identifications by Margot.

This is a Baltimore Oriole.

This a Brown Thrasher.

These are Indigo Buntings. They are all males.

Downy Woodpecker

House Finch

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Indigo Bunting

Goldfinch

Blue Jay

Rose-breasted Grosbeek

Cardinal

Very colorful

Tufted Titmouse

White-breasted Nuthatch

Spring in Arkansas

2016-04-19T09:54:00.000+08:00

Well, the weather had been crappy all day - rainy and overcast.

But this evening the sun broke through and lit up the soft green colors of spring beautifully.

Click to enlarge.

I think this picture is actually nicer.

So last weekend we took a drive in the countryside. As we passed this barn I commented on the weather vane on the roof. Margot said she thought it was a bird.

Sure enough - it was a turkey vulture sunning himself. The temps were pleasant but a little cool. I imagine the rusted roof was nice and warm.

Mediterranean Cruise - Day 5 - Rome

2015-11-16T09:04:00.000+08:00

On the fifth day the ship docked near Rome. We took an early bus ride to the city.

This is a picture of the courtyard at the Vatican Museum.

Our first stop was a walk to the Trevi fountain. The fountain is under reconstruction so no pictures. It was filled with scaffolding instead of water.

This is a street sign near the fountain.

Later we headed to the center of ancient Rome. This is the Forum of Peace from the late imperial period. It was built by Emperor Vespasian between 71 and 75 AD to commemorate the Roman victory in Judea of 70 AD. Some of these ruins just came to light during excavations in 2000.

The sort of block buildings are part of the Curia Julia built in 44 BC. It is the Senate House built by Julius Caesar. It survived more or less intact because it was incorporated into the basilica of Sant'Adriano al Foro in the 7th century.

This is, of course, the Colosseum. It was finished in 80 AD. The exterior is being cleaned. If you click on the picture you can see to difference in the before and after. There were a lot of people waiting to get in.

This is the Arch of Constantine built in about 315 A.D. to commemorate a victory. It had a similar function as the Arc de Triumphe in Paris. The emperor and his army would march through when returning from battle.

These modern day gladiators were posing for pictures.I assume they will put the cell phone away if you ask for them to pose.

Sue and Bob at the Colosseum.

Margot and me posing.

I don't remember the name of this area but the open area in front of the ruins was used for chariot races.

I took this picture from the bus as we crossed the Tiber river into Vatican City.

We didn't see any of the Swiss guards in their fancy dress. This guy was controlling access at Via Sant'Anna.

This is the Vatican Museum or I should say one tiny part of the museum. The amount ot statuary and other art was incredible. There were a lot of people there, too.

Many of the ceilings were beautifully painted.

Click to enlarge.

Lots of statuary. If you can read Latin please click on the picture and let me know what it says.

Another ceiling.

This is a tapestry from Brussels.

I assume it is Jesus leaving his tomb on the 3rd day.

The entire ceiling in this corridor was painted.

We had to rush through. You could spent days, weeks, months studying all the things there.

This is the ceiling in the Sistine Chapel. They are terrible photos since I had to sneak them. Photography is strictly prohibited. Not sure why but probably to keep the visitors moving. It was very crowded. Or maybe somebody decided it detracts from the decorum or somehow desecrates the chapel. Anyway there are a lot better pictures online if you want a refresher in the iconography of Michangelo's work. He painted the ceiling from 1508 to 1512.

Mediterranean Cruise - Day 4 Afternoon - Pisa

2015-10-30T18:30:00.004+08:00

After lunch at a small cafe on the street in Lucca. We got back on the bus and headed to Pisa.

This is the view that greeted us as we entered through the wall around the Piazza dei Miracoli.

Everyone talks about the leaning tower but the first building you see is the Pisa Baptistery of St. John. I was completed in 1363. It has a slight lean to it also.

There is a large cathedral between the baptistery and the famous tower.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the campanile, or freestanding bell tower, of the cathedral. I hadn't thought about this before but the tower leans in only one direction. As you walk around it the amount apparent lean changes to almost imperceptible.

It is harder to see from this angle but if you click on the picture above you can see that an attempt was made to straighten the tower after the first few floors were built. The results in the curved appearance. However the tower continue to lean more as the higher floors were built.

The tower used to lean 5 degrees but after some restoration and preservation work in the 1990s the lean is about 4 degrees. That means the top is about 13 ft off from the base.

We stopped for a break under this olive tree in a small cafe.

The tower construction start in 1173 but was halted for almost 100 years in 1175. The long break was because of almost constant wars between the Republics of Pisa, Genoa, Florence and Lucca.

In 1272 construction was restarted and the curve was added to compensate. Construction halted again in 1284 and the 7th floor was finally completed in 1319. The bell chamber was added in 1372.

This is the wall neat the entrance. There is Piazza dei Miracoli includes a huge lawn around the buildings.

This is the wall on the outside. I thought the plants growing out of the wall were interesting.

There is additional interesting history from modern time at Wikipedia.

If you missed any and want to catch up on the other postings in this series here are links.
Day 4 morning - Lucca
Day 3 - Cassis
Day 2 - Palma de Mallorca
Day 1 - Barcelona

Mediterranean Cruise - Day 4 Morning - Lucca

2015-10-29T02:13:00.000+08:00

On day 4 we docked in La Spezia in northwest Italy. It is the jumping off point for visits to Tuscany. We chose a day trip to Lucca and Pisa.

The bus ride was interesting in itself. We passed by a number of these incredibly picturesque hilltop villages.

Lucca dates back to Roman times but is most famous for its intact Renaissance era wall.

This is San Michele in Foro in one of the main squares of the city. The church dates to 795 AD and was built on the site of the Roman forum. This facade was added in the 13th century.

This is a close up of St. Michael the Archangel on the top of the church.

There are a lot of churches in Lucca - about 100. I believe our guide said that the large number of churches for the size of the city was because it was on the pilgrimage route from France to Rome.

This is the interior of the church above.

Click to enlarge.

This style of double door is common in Lucca.

This sculpture is on the facade of the Cathedral of St. Martin. The Cathedral of St. Martin is one of the most important churches in Lucca.

This statue depicts St. Martin cutting his cloak in half to share with the poor man. It is probably the first in-the-round statue in the history of Italian art. This one, covered in moss, is actually a replica. The original is inside the cathedral.

This is the inside of the cathedral. It is really beautiful. The cathedral dates back to 1070. The interior was rebuilt in the 14th and 15th centuries.

This representation of the Last Supper is by Tintoretto and was painted in about 1592.

I'd never heard of him, either.

This is the Volto Santo ("Holy Face") of Lucca. It is inside the Cathedral of St. Martin.

For my Catholic friends this has an interesting story. The story goes that the wooden statue miraculously arrived in Lucca in 782. It was allegedly carved by Nicodemus, the biblical figure who helped Joseph of Arimathea remove Christ's body from the cross in John 19.

This a 13th century copy of the statue which was necessary because relic seeking pilgrims chipped away at the original until it was no more.

Get the details here - Holy Face of Lucca

There are scenes like this all over Lucca.

A small narrow street again.

This kid might have been on the tourist board payroll. Too cute.

This is the Piazza dell'Anfiteatro. Its oval shape reflects the fact that it was built on the site of the 2nd century Roman amphitheater.

The city walls around Lucca are completely intact. The modern city has grown around the ancient city with out overwhelming it.

This is one of the gates through the city wall.

You can learn more about Lucca here - Lucca

I felt like we could spend several days there exploring around the city. I would highly recommend it if you have a chance to visit Italy.

I just thought the light was nice in the trees.

Mediterranean Cruise - Day 3 - Cassis, France and Provence Countryside

2015-10-26T04:22:00.000+08:00

On our 2nd night at sea we sailed from Palma de Mallorca to Marseille, France. Margot and I chose a trip to Cassis, France for a shore excusion. This is a shot of the small harbor at Cassis.

This was the sunrise that greeted us as the ship pulled in to the port. The excursion started fairly early in the morning so we were up early for breakfast.

This harbor boat was used (I think) to help handle the lines from the ship to the pier. I was amazed that the ship never used a tugboat in any of the ports. The ship has bow thrusters to push the front of the ship in either direction. In addition, it does not have traditional engine-shaft-propeller arrangement. Instead it has 3 azipods in the rear. The main engines run generators that provide electricity to motors in the azipods that are below the hull in the water. The azipods can rotate 360 degrees. As a result the ship can move sideways as easily as it moves forward and backward. Azipod

The Provence countryside was very pretty.

If you are unsure how to pronounce Cassis I think it is pretty close to American English ka-see. I also heard ka-seese but very light on the final "s" sound. Maybe it is a regional difference. Perhaps Amanda can explain.

There were a lot of terraced vineyards. The geology was pretty dramatic as well.

This is a view of Cassis from the highway.

Our first stop was Cap Canaille. It is one of the highest marine headlands in Europe at 1293 ft.

Click to enlarge.

That is the town of Cassis at the left center of the picture.

The harbor was very picturesque. A number of working boats but mostly pleasure boats. There is a small beach as well and restaurants and bars all along the harborfront.

The only thing I learned at the beach was that you are never too old to sunbathe topless.

We decided on the spur of the moment to take a boat trip to see some of the calanques along the coast between Cassis and Marseille. A calanque is a steep sided valley formed in the limestone cliffs.

This is a view of some of the homes just outside the harbor.

The coast is very dramatic.

The waves were tossing the boat around pretty good. We initially sat in the bow of the boat but were advised we would get wet if we sat there.

Click to enlarge.

Over the years there was been various quarry activities. The stone for the base of the Statue of Liberty was quarried in this area.

Another bluff.

This is calanque is called En-Vau. It has a beautiful beach at the end but it is one of the most difficult to reach.

You can learn more here.

Calanques of Cassis

There were a couple of guys practicing their rock climbing skills on the side of the calanque.

A building in Cassis.

This farm was very pretty, I thought. I took this from the bus as we passed by.

Click to enlarge.

We did not go up to Chateau de Cassis but this has been a defensive location since the 5th century. It has recently been restored into a very nice hotel.

Cassis Castle

This is a monument in Marseille that we passed on our way back to the ship.

This cathedral overlooks all of Marseille.

This evening we went to a presentation of Mamma Mia! after dinner on the ship. It was very well done. I'd say typical of touring off-Broadway productions. It might have been even better than the version we saw in Roanoke several years ago.

Another scene. I think this is from the finale.

These sculptures? are hanging in one of the atriums between the elevator banks on the ship.

Mediterranean Cruise - Day 2 - Palma de Mallorca

2015-10-19T22:58:00.001+08:00

Our first port of call was Palma de Mallorca. Palma is the largest city on the island of Mallorca which is the largest of the Balearic Islands which are an autonomous region of Spain east of the mainland. The island is a very popular vacation spot for British and German tourists.

This garden is just left of the cathedral in the picture above. It was formerly inside the royal palace.

Narrow winding streets are going to be a common theme in all the cities we visit on this trip.

Interesting statue in the garden above. The sculpture is by the Catalan artist Josep Maria Subirachs. The poem is an excerpt from Ionic by the eminent Greek poet, Konstantinos Kavafis (Constantine Petrou Cavafy). No idea why the poem is on the base of the sculpture. No one on the internet seems to know why, either. Kavafis apparently never set foot on the island.

Any guesses on what type of tree this is?

Highlight the red bar with your mouse or finger to find out.

Olive

The tree is over 1000 years old.

These date palms were heavy with golden fruit. So heavy the fruit was falling to the sidewalk and making a bit of a mess.

Perhaps the most interesting sight to me was the bull fighting ring or Plaza de Toros. We were told that bullfighting was not native to Mallorca but was imported to give the tourists from Spain something to do.

It isn't a particularly old stadium. It was built in 1922.

The bullfighting season in Mallorca is fairly short - just a few weeks in July or August I believe.

The mezzanine corridor has a pleasing contrast between the arches and the tile floor.

Here is a look at the inside.

Here is a view of the harbor and city. I think the white tenting is placed over some of the ships undergoing refitting to keep the weather off of them. I may be intended to frustrate prying eyes, also.

There were a lot of mega-yachts in the harbor.

Did I mention that the Allure of the Seas is a BIG ship. I heard various numbers but I think there were about 5500 guests and 2300 crew on board.

This picture is about half the ship.

The is back portion of the ship from deck 15 or 16. Our cabin was on the right side about half way up. Below the courtyard is an enclosed deck or mall with shops, restaurants, etc.

The area under the anchor symbol at the back is where the water show "Oceanaria" was staged.

This picture is from the front looking back. Not sure what Sue and Bob are contemplating in this picture.

I mentioned the Oceanaria show above. We took in an afternoon show. It is a combination of diving, gymnastics and trampoline acts.

Even the stage and production coordination were impressive. People and stage elements appear from and disappear into the water and then reappear somewhere else in the production.

These guys were amazing. Follow the sequence below.

After the guy on top does a handstand the guy on the bottom rolls over.

I was impressed.

They follow that up with this handstand.

After the hand/head stand the stage they are standing on disappeared into the water and next thing you know someone is diving into the pool where the platform was located.

I should have taken some video. The still pictures don't do it justice.

Here is a look at the "mall" after dinner.

Click to enlarge any of the pictures.

This evening was the "formal" night. I still don't understand why this is such a cruise fixture.

Here Sue and Bob pose in front of the mall.

Greg and Theresa.

Margot and me (or is it I).

Mediterranean Cruise - Day 1 - Barcelona

2015-10-15T10:48:00.001+08:00

Margot and I along with my sisters Theresa and Sue and their husbands Greg and Bob took a cruise around the Western Mediterranean recently. The cruise left from Barcelona, Spain and we arrived a day early see the sights and to be sure we didn't miss the departure.

This is the La Rambla. Lots of shops, tourists, locals and allegedly pickpockets. We did not have any trouble.

The day after our arrival we toured around the Gothic quarter of Barcelona. I thought these tiles were interesting.

This is the Barcelona Cathedral. I understand the facade is actually relatively new - constructed from 1882 to 1913.

This the back side of the cathedral. You can see some of the chapels dedicated to or sponsored by various guilds.

You can see the wood planes decorating the carpenter guild chapel.

This mural is by Pablo Picasso. Picasso spent most of his youth and early years as an artist in Barcelona.

The first and largest museum dedicated to the works of Picasso is in Barcelona. No pictures were allowed inside but I did sneak this one.

The museum is in a series of 13th and 14th century mansions in the Gothic Quarter.

This is a portrait of his mother.

The Gothic Quarter is a collection of narrow winding streets.

This is a Gothic area one-way sign on a narrow street.

I'm not sure what the story is on this door but I thought it was neat.

Barcelona dates back to Roman times. Much of the Roman era structures are long gone. However, these columns from a Roman building survived because they were incorporated into a later area structure.

No idea what this says but I thought it was interesting.

We didn't have time to check this out.

In the afternoon we took a tour of the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia. On the way there we passed this Gaudi designed facade of an apartment building.

Antoni Gaudi was a Catalan architect born in 1852. Seven of his works are World Heritage Sites.

The Sagrada Familia has been under construction since 1882 and is Gaudi's masterpiece. It is the most-visited monument in Spain. Work slowed or stopped for many years but is moving along at a pretty good pace these days.

You can see in the color of the stone the various eras of the construction.

One side of the building is covered with sculptures describing the events surrounding the birth of Christ.

Here the archangel tells Mary she has been chosen to be the mother of Jesus.

Here Mary and Joseph are married.

In this scene the trumpets herald the presentation of Jesus in the temple.

The Three Wise Men.

The shepherds are dressed in traditional Catalonia clothing.

Mary, Joseph and Jesus flee to Egypt.

Here we see the Massacre of the Innocents ordered by Herod.

A local from Barcelona posed for this sculpture.

Click to enlarge.

This is a shot of the ceiling inside of the Basilica.

Here the main alter is at the bottom of the picture.

The stained glass is pretty spectacular.

A close up.

A close up of the sculpture over the chancel.

The back of the nave.

The other side of the basilica tells the story of Jesus' death.

This sculpture depicts the sorrow of Peter as he denies Christ.

Judas betraying Jesus.

At the top you see the crucified Christ and in the middle to the right you see Jesus carrying the cross up the hill.

Here is a picture of the 6 of us.

Arkansas Wildlife at the Lake

2015-10-01T06:56:00.000+08:00

Here are a few more pictures of wildlife on the lake over the last few weeks.

This groundhog or woodchuck was having dinner when I spotted him from the kayak.

He was working the edge of the lake just above the water line.

Apparently this wasn't the armadillo tearing up the grass and disturbing the mulch in our front yard. The damage continues after I took this picture.

There were 4 other turkey buzzards hanging around waiting for their turn although there didn't seem to be much meat left.

Getting some sun.

Eclipse and Blood Moon

2015-09-28T12:16:00.000+08:00

Here are a few pictures from this evening's lunar eclipse.

We almost missed it. Good thing they showed a shot on the Sunday Night Football broadcast.

The moon is almost completely in the earth's shadow at this point. I didn't notice the purple tinge with the naked eye but it shows pretty clearly in the photo. I don't think it is a camera or lens effect.

Here the eclipse is total although the light might have been a little more even a little later. At this point there wasn't enough light to autofocus. Had to do it manually.

Crystal Bridges - Andy Warhol and Jamie Wyeth Exhibit

2015-09-21T09:56:00.000+08:00

On Labor Day Margot, Mom, Tom, Misheil and I visited Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Currently they are hosting a special exhibition of the works of Andy Warhol and Jamie Wyeth.

This portrait of Warhol was painted by Wyeth.

The dog's name is Archie.

This is Warhol's Endangered Species series.

Click to enlarge.

Flowers were a common theme of Warhol's work over the years.

Nude Three-Quarter Figure Nureyev (Study #18) was painted by Jaime Wyeth in 1977. Does Three-Quarter mean from the knees up or 3/4 of a foot?

Nureyev defected in 1971 at the age of 23. He died of AIDS in 1993.

Warhol bought this stuffed dog in the late 60's thinking it was once owned by Cecil B. DeMille hence the name Cecil.

The dog was never owned by DeMille but was a champion and was displayed at the Dog Hall of Fame at Yale University's Peabody Museum until the museum closed in 1964.

Here Margot looks at some cat pictures by Warhol.

These are works of Jamie Wyeth.

Wyeth is the son of Andrew Wyeth and grandson of N.C. Wyeth.

The exhibition covered 6 decades of Wyeth's work.

Twin Houses was painted in 1969.

The picture on the left, Portrait of Shorty was painted in 1963 when Wyeth was 17 years old.

I found the sheep to be very striking. I had to remind myself it is a painting not a photograph.

Click to enlarge.

Wyeth painted Inferno in 2006.

Crystal Bridges is preparing to display Frank Lloyd Wright's Bachman-Wilson House on the grounds. The house will open on Nov 11, 2015.

This house was originally built for Gloria Bachman and Abraham Wilson in 1954 along the Millstone River in New Jersey. Because of the risk of flooding the subsequent owners decide to sell it to an institution that would relocate it. The house was disassembled and rebuilt in Bentonville, AR.

The spider sculpture is titled Maman and is by Louise Bourgeois (1911-2010). It was cast in 1999.

Here is an interesting video on the erection of the sculpture.

Erection of the Spider

World Champion Squirrel Cook-Off

2015-09-18T09:02:00.000+08:00

How can you NOT think Northwest Arkansas is the most cosmopolitan place in the U.S.?

They host the World Champion Squirrel Cook-Off, after all.

Yes, it is a real thing. Margot and I checked it out last weekend.

That's a Bobcat and a Fox squirrel.

This guy was one of the M.C.s at the event. Love the 'stache.

Here is a link to the Travel Channel's Bizarre Foods visit from last year.

Bizarre Foods - Squirrel Cook-off

The weather was nicer this year than last.

We arrived late and all the squirrel was gone so we didn't get to taste any. Each team prepared a different dish. I wanted to try the squirrel-on-a-shingle.

What would a Squirrel Cook-Off be without a gun give-away for the raffle. Yep, that's a .22 caliber rifle. They said they were giving them away early because the winners needed to do some paperwork.

Here is some more taxidermy on display.

No idea what the extensions on the front of the tractor are all about.

Anybody know what kind of flower this is?

The Bentonville courthouse square is very nice. The whole town is pretty nice. I guess being the corporate headquarters of the world's largest retailer has its privileges.

That's a statue of James H. Berry. He was a Lieutenant in the Confederate army and latter governor of Arkansas and a U.S. Senator.

Labor Day Weekend - A Few Pictures

2015-09-15T08:47:00.001+08:00

Our 4-legged grandchild really enjoyed playing on the raft. I'm sure our 2-legged grandchildren will enjoy it just as much next summer.

I just thought this was a nice picture of Tom and Murphy.

I eventually kicked them off so I could relax - and burn.

Before we rafted up with Greg and Theresa Greg pulled us around on the tube. Here Misheil celebrates a successful ride.

I even got in on the action. Greg has 5 levels of rides complete with descriptions. I chose the merry-go-round. The complete list is princess, cupcake, merry-go-round, twister and terminator (or "Is that all you got old man").

More Wildlife on Beaver Lake

2015-08-31T10:59:00.002+08:00

I think these are American cliff swallow nests. Margot spotted them from the kayak as she paddled around an island.

Before we got to the lake we spotted this Cooper's hawk on a neighbor's fence.

Not sure why he (or she) puffed up when we drove by.

So the kayak went for it's first boat ride today. We intended to go a little farther but we end up on the opposite side of the lake near the cove we are on.

Margot paddled around the island behind her while I spend some time cleaning the boat.

Pretty clear to me who had the most fun.

There are a bunch of great blue heron's on the lake - we saw 3 or 4 today.

This turkey vulture was eye-ballin' us from a cliff as we slowly passed by. I'm not sure if they were nesting here or just resting.

That's the island in question with the red arrow.