ISTANBUL STREET ART...

 Having nephews who appreciate street art & body adornments,
this post is dedicated to street art!

(ALL art was found in Istanbul)

bold & thin line lettering!

lettering = AMAZING!

Roger Rabbit & his motorcycle...

Mr. Spray Can...

building art near Galatasaray High School!

art in the alley way!

Spider Man & a modern woman...

(Bosphorus Strait)

Artist name? or musical instrument?

(at the bottom of the Galata Tower)

street art requires skill & talent... I can barely manage a paintbrush,

SO, I know using a spray can to create art must be a lot more difficult!!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 7.14.13

SHS 7.14.13

Oh my! I'm beginning to feel like I've been touched with the summer bug!

I've been moving slow-as-molasses the past few days.

This time last summer, JPE & I were exploring PERU ~ an amazing trip! 

(well, with the exception of the humidity in the Amazon River)...
we just ENJOY traveling!

This week's SHS words

are: RELAXING, INSPIRING PERSON, WRITTEN WORD,
MEMORIES & BEST FRIENDS

& were pulled from my PERU archive.

Other SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY bloggers can be viewed at RAMBLING & PHOTOS.

RELAXING

In the Sacred Valley, we RELAXED with a glass of "chicha" & played a few rounds of "sapo"... Chicha looks like a blender drink - but don't let the peachy, strawberry color fool you! Made from fermented corn or yucca root, chicha has a "kick" to it.

As we finished off our glasses of chicha, we played sapo - a coin toss game. Sapo is actually the Spanish word for "toad" which is found in the middle of the game board. 

INSPIRING PERSON

Lucio & Pepe were tour-guides extraordinaire! tour guides can make a country come alive! & these two were remarkable, INSPIRATIONAL PEOPLE.

Lucio showed us the amazing sights along the Amazon River... the Amazon Rainforest, different modes of transportation (the tut-tut), exposed us to Peruvian color and colors of Monkey Island...  we especially curious about seeing how people live along the Amazon River! Lucio took JPE birding one morning (at the crack of dawn) - talented at identifying birds by sight & sound, Lucia could mimic the bird calls back to the birds. He taught himself the scientific & English words for thousands of birds living in the Amazon River.

Pepe, our tour guide for Lima & the Sacred Valley lives in Cusco, but was raised  in the Sacred Valley (his parents were missionaries). A fabulous story-teller, he made the history of Peru come alive. Tall & long legged, it was not difficult to find him in a crowd, but following him up all the terraced steps of Machu Picchu & the Sacred Valley was a bit challenging (especially with the altitude change). He continually reminded us to "hydrate"... 

WRITTEN WORD

Don't you love the hand-written signs? these WRITTEN WORDS were found along the Amazon River... the precise penmanship of a teacher (private school); a sign advertising foods & drinks; & a weathered, hand-painted sign for the wild-life preserve at Monkey Island.

MEMORIES

There are so many MEMORIES from this trip... What I most want to remember is: the vibrant colors of the clothing & home decor items created in the Sacred Valley. Visiting children at their school. Seeing the corner marketplaces. AND catching a piranha on the Amazon River. 

BEST FRIEND(S)

Peruvian people are used to visitors...  Seemingly reserved, they didn't hesitate to connect with us by smiling or checking us out. As in the states, man's BEST FRIEND is a dog! JPE & I participated in a spiritual ceremony & were blessed by this Peruvian shaman... it was obvious these adorable little girls were BEST FRIENDS. They had their arms wrapped around each other as we walked up to the door of the soup kitchen.

Hope you loved digging into my photo archives as much as I did sharing these memories with you...  

Next week's SHS words are: CAMOUFLAGED, NUTTY, ALIKE, IDENTICAL & JAUNT. Ummm... looks like I have my work cut out for me!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 4.14.13

SHS 4.14.13

Last week got away from me!

I'm "on the road again"...

Spent Saturday & Sunday with ACE (Allie-bug) & Lola!

& snapped a few pictures for today's hunt.

This week's words:

GLOW, OLD, SHADOW, SPRING & SMILE.

GLOW

Don't understand how this happened? I know I wouldn't be able to duplicate this process if I tried. We were in a store looking at big screen televisions - I was taking photos of the pictures that were showing on the TV screen. Sort of a GLOW, don't you think?

OLD

This picture was mounted inside a store window! I wonder how many elementary school children could identify this OLD telephone?

SHADOW

Loved the repetition of the SHADOWS on this building. Sorry, I don't know where this building is located (this is another "photo" of a "photo on the TV screen" as I mentioned in the GLOW photo, above).

SPRING

SPRING means "bugs" --- this picture was taken in the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto.

SMILE

We went to Penzy's Spices... this SMILING pirate was on the wall just above the "coloring table" for children. Great way to keep children occupied while their parents wandered the store looking at spices. If you haven't heard of Penzy's - check it out HERE!

Well, if you've visited before, you know Ashley @ Rambling & Photos is the hostess for SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY. It's easy! check her blog for details.

Two of five words in the next hunt will be tough! Wish me luck in finding something... The words are: HAPPINESS, SPRING in BLACK & WHITE, FAMILY or FAITH, FUZZY, GATHERING or PROVIDE.

See you tomorrow - off to Sacramento!

(a week of grant reading!)

FRIDAY FUNNIES!!! 12.21.12

The nights are getting longer & seem so much darker!

Don't you LOVE this time of year???

Lydia, Katie, Derek, Matthew & Ada

...put on your thinking caps...

 GOTTA THINK about this one!!

so, who got that one?

How about this one?

 

Lydia's at the cabin in Big Bear, 

so I think she probably guessed the answer....

Ummmm... I'm making Christmas cookie dough today!

JPE & I'll see

Derek, Katie & Matthew in a few days

....Lydia in a week

& Ada, you'll have some visitors flying in to see you on Christmas Day.

Do you think they'll see SANTA while they're on the plane?

BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD!

"IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD"

...as Mr Rogers would have claimed!

Our Thursday flight to Washington DC was delayed several hours
(leaving LAX, so we didn't arrive at Dulles Airport until after midnight).

Some pics from our flight from LAX to Dulles, Washington DC (yesterday)...

Chugging along the runway (LAX)

Lift-off!
(looking at wing from my seat)

Oil tankers - Long Beach or San Pedro ??

Reaching our cruising elevation!

Above the clouds!
(thru dirty airplane windows)

Although we're on vacay - we're both working remotely!

Ah, the wonders of technology! Actually, it's quite nice working AWAY from the office...
it's easier to focus on a single task instead of managing interruptions common in a cubicle situation.

JPE has been out for a run...

SLE arrived mid-day to work from home...

MB completed closing arguments on his court case & the jury is currently deliberating.
His legal team is playing cards while they wait.

JPE & I are headed out for coffee & pastry in an hour...

Will be dining at CAVA @ Clarendon Metro stop (a few stops away from SLE & MB's condo)...
Their work days are long & they eat late... 

My closing comments... here's "a beautifully painted, historical mural of Santa Barbara's rich history"...

(taking a few pointers from my legal team)

Santa Barbara Airport - next to security check-in

UPDATE - MB's Court Case

US v. Makarita

:: Dentist, Makarita - found GUILTY on 8 of 15 counts ::

Awesome job... MB!

COMPROMISE!!!

Chihuly glass ~ Mountain View, CA Medical Building

The ELECTION is over!

we have an opportunity to CHANGE the way we treat each other!

and the way we look at the problems that divide us...

as the election results rolled in... 

I felt a variety of emotions!

excitement
at the percent of newer voters (18-30 year olds) who took time to learn about the issues, registered to vote & expressed their opinion by voting
   
 anxiety
at the difficult task to "close the gaps" that divide friends, families & neighbors
 
hopeful
that we accept the opportunity to become educated, speak thoughtfully about the issues & with respect instead of hatred
  
my 22 year old niece posted this on Facebook,

"I want to prompt any disappointed voters to remember that bashing the president is not a constructive use of time... we are one country and we will need to compromise if we are ever going to accomplish anything. I would have felt this way regardless of the results tonight, but personally I AM SO HAPPY"  

Thank you, Lauren!!

 

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 8.12.12

CERAMIC BULL - SACRED VALLEY, PERU

Digging into my photos from PERU for this week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY! 

This week's words are: MOBILE, HANGING BY A THREAD, COLLAGE, ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE & HOME.

MOBILE

In Lima, the more affluent Peruvians have MOBILE (cell) phones. For those who don't, they can use the pay phones found on the main streets of town.

HANGING BY A THREAD

You may recognize Rosita from this post! She's the 14 year-old weaver we met at the "weaver's cooperative" in Moray, Peru. In addition to showing how sheep's wool is cleaned... she also demonstrated "spinning" wool onto a spindle. Wool ready for dying is HANGING BY A THREAD.

COLLAGE

I played it "safe" (meaning, I selected an item that doesn't move or frown just before I click the shutter)... by creating a COLLAGE of flowers captured in the garden of our hotel, Villa Urubamba. It's amazing that I've seen ALL these flowers in my area of California.

ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

Children in the Sacred Valley were eager to have their pictures taken; especially when you showed them the digital results. Walking barefoot down the dusty road, this ten-year-old girl was walking to work... Pepe, our Peruvian tour guide, asked her to show us the contents of her pack... a LUNCH! about two handfuls of dried beans, corn & seeds. In spite of her poor living conditions, she broke into a brillant smile... gosh, what a glorious demonstration of ALWAYS LOOKING ON THE BRIGHT SIDE. 

HOME

Most HOMES in the Sacred Valley (Cusco, Pisac, Ollantaytambo & Chinchero) have a pair of ceramic bulls on their roof. Peruvians believe that placing two bulls will bring happiness, wealth & fertility to their HOMES. Generally, the bulls are attached to a cross, which is thought to keep the bad spirits away.

To see other interpretations of this week's SHS words, hop over to Ashley's blog, Rambling & Photos. 

UNIQUE SIGHTS IN PERU...

Door in MiraFlores, Lima, Peru

WHOA!

A door that leads to an inner courtyard.

Where's the rest of the fence?

Dog walking in MiraFlores, Lima, Peru

MiraFlores is an upscale neighborhood in Lima.

Check this out...

Dogs that walk their owner!

Bathroom sign!

Found in ALL Peruvian bathrooms!

a sign that translates to...

"Do not throw paper in the toilet"

Peruvian LEGO man

JPE & I just cracked up!

A huge LEGO man

(wearing a scarf in Peru's flag colors of RED & WHITE)
was sitting on top of the new supermarket, WONG'S.

Electrical lines in Iquitos, Peru

What a mess!

Need some electricity?

it looks like they just string another line...

Wonder how many of these electrical lines are LIVE?

Church in MiraFlores, Lima, Peru

Another sign, translated...

"Turn off your cell phone.

You don't need a cell phone

to talk to GOD!"

SIGN on the counter at STARBUCK'S

Steph & Mazen, this sign is for YOU!

"Mothers with infants,

Pregnant women,

Persons with a disability"

can go to the FRONT of the line!

Don't you LOVE the unique-ness of PERU!