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Art on the Go: Sketching on a Foreign Newspaper
Whenever I travel, I love to buy a newspaper or two in the country I’m visiting. Although I’m not much of a linguist, I enjoy browsing through the articles, photos, ads and editorials to try to decipher what is being said. My other reason for picking up a local newspaper is for the paper itself. Foreign newsprint can make a great background to a travel sketch. It adds dimension and a hint of context to the location you are sketching. The process for sketching on newsprint is pretty much the same as sketching on paper. You can easily just tear out a part of the paper and start to sketch.…
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On Location: Iguazu Falls – Impressive Brasil vs. Intimate Argentina
It didn’t take long to sense the rivalry between Brasil and Argentina of which country is the best place to experience Iguazu Falls. It may not have helped to have a Brazilian guide for most of our visit because as you can imagine, he sure had an opinion on this matter. But, being able to explore both sides for myself, from gazing up at the roaring waterfall near the Devil’s Throat to peering over a 40′ drop off from a catwalk, it was pretty easy to decide which side was better. The Rio Iguazu runs between a very small portion of the border of southern Brazil and northern Argentina. Although…
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Pattern+Place: Colorful Kente Cloth from Ghana
Known for it’s bright, bold colors and geometric patterns, Kente cloth is one of the most recognizable textiles from Africa. Kente cloth weaving originated from the Ashanti Kingdom and Akan people of Southern Ghana. Historically it was worn by royalty and prestigious people for important occasions. With the advent of commercially woven cloths, it is now seen on everyday clothing and items which some feel has diluted the cultural importance of the art form. Traditional weaving of Kente cloth is done in very long 4″ strips. Then, the strips are then sewn together to make fabric. The pattern and color usage are are highly symbolic. For instance, black represents maturation…
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Travel Story: The Galápagos Islands – A Family Adventure of a Lifetime
Finding our Sea Legs and Discovering Something to Please Everyone from Ages 8-78 As we stepped aboard our home for the next 8 days, we were greeted with some severe rocking. Up, down, up, down, up down. I looked over at my seasick prone daughter and watched her turn sheet white. Her eyes looked up at me in panic as she turned to disembark. Our welcoming crew, oblivious to the drama unfolding, happily ushered us into the dining room. I took a seat with my daughter at the table nearest to the door. It was pretty clear within minutes that she would not sit there without losing her breakfast, so…
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Art on the Go: Photography Light Trails – Lights on Lombard
Playing with light trails is one of the most gratifying photography tricks out there. An unexpected, spectacular shot can actually be quite easy to achieve. You only need a little technical information, and the rest is all luck! This past summer, I headed to San Francisco for a fabulous night photography class. One of the exercises was to photograph car lights on the crookedest street in San Francisco, Lombard. The street, although lit up with lamp posts, is pretty dark. To see the zig zag of the car lights driving down the curves really captures the feeling of the street. It also provided a creative view of one of the…
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Culture: Cassoulet in Carcassonne, France
When the late afternoon sun started getting low, and the tourists all began to file out of the fortified city gates, that is when I started to fall in love with Carcassonne. Located in the Languedoc-Roussillon southern region of France, Carcassonne is reminiscent of a scene out of a Disney movie. The walled city sits high upon a hilltop. It’s impenetrable citadel and imposing towers have incredible historic charm, yet the mid-day crowds meandering through the tiny Medieval streets can get a bit overwhelming. I was advised to book a room within the city walls to really experience the town and was definitely not disappointed. There are only a few…
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Travel Stories: The Bouquinistes of Paris
I can still vividly remember the first time I visited Paris. I flew solo as a teen from San Francisco to Charles de Gaulle to meet up with my parents who had already been traveling in Europe for 2 weeks. We took a cab back to the hotel to drop off my bags, and then they whisked me to the Seine for a classic boat tour down the river. They hoped I’d get a good overview of the city but in actuality all I got was a wonderful nap instead. The sticky summer heat, and motion of the boat was the perfect cure for jet lag! When the boat ride…
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Palette+Place: Sunsets at Lake Tahoe
This New Year in Lake Tahoe, California we were treated to quite a show. Night after night we were dazzled with pure visual entertainment. Jaw dropping colors magically changed before our eyes and in a matter of minutes it was over. No this wasn’t some marketing stunt put on by a glitzy casino, or a laser light show at the local high school, this was just Nature doing her stuff. With 4 decades of trips to Lake Tahoe, and a 2 year stint living there, I’m convinced Lake Tahoe sunsets are some of the best in the world. Night after night the sun dips behind the Sierras and the sky…
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On Location: Machu Picchu After the Tourists Have Gone
The bus careened up the narrow one-lane switch back road. The densely forested road made visibility almost impossible, but at each turn, the driver somehow managed to narrowly miss the oncoming buses filled with tourists just like us. I was convinced our driver possessed some ancient Incan secret for predicting oncoming traffic. At the top, we unloaded and filed into line to enter the historic site that ranks high on most travelers’ bucket lists. After paying the fee and getting stamped, we headed up the crowded trail to get our first glimpse at the Lost City. We formed a single file line and followed a path along a meticulously built…