Travel

"To my mind, the greatest reward and luxury of travel is to be able to experience everyday things as if for the first time, to be in a position in which almost nothing is so familiar it is taken for granted." -- Bill Bryson

More Paris, More Coughing, More Naps

I know you are growing weary of seeing pictures of Paris, but I'm still only part way through processing my copious amounts of images, and I just can't get enough of seeing the sites again.

Each time I work on one, I'm immediately transported back there, and during the holidays I found myself gushing about the French and everything pertaining to Paris or France in general.  I'm sure it was a little like someone with their first grandchild breaking out the brag book every time someone new...or old, stops by!

So I'm afraid you will either have to turn away, or bear with me as I work through my francophone'itis.  And the other reason I'm still showing pictures of Paris is the fact that I really haven't picked up my camera much since I've been back.

Along with francophone'itis, I'm also apparently sporting bronchitis, which I found out by visiting the doctor this morning.  So I haven't been doing much of anything except cough a lot since our company left and the holidays have come to a close!

Not doing much includes not returning emails, cleaning, and a whole host of other things I "should" be doing but just don't feel like doing.  The doctor assured me that a round of antibiotics and some days of real rest, where I'm not worrying about everything I'm not doing, is what I need to be back in fighting form again.

So for once I'm listening and I'm actually heading to take a nap as soon as I post this.  What a good girl I am...sometimes! ;-)

Though out of sequence, all of the pics in this post were taken on our last full day in Paris.  The weather was less than ideal, cold, windy, and at times very rainy, but we decided to do something we hardly ever do...play tourist, and we opted for a Seine River cruise.

We were the first in line, only because we didn't feel like packing ourselves onto a very crowded boat we could have taken, and just hung out on the dock and waited for the next boat.  It was a wise choice in that we were not packed like sardines, but the down side was that about 5 minutes into our trip it began to rain...not spitting rain, but lots of the wet stuff.

Rain in and of itself isn't a bad thing, but expensive cameras and rain are not friends, so we moved from our prime upper deck seats to the glassed in bottom deck...also not a friend of cameras since glass distorts your images and makes it hard to focus.  So in the end we braved the cold and the rain and hung out by ourselves under the metal structure of the upper deck so that I could get a few shots.

I have to say that I'm glad we decided to take the cruise because the highlight for me was being able to photograph Paris and its many gorgeous bridges from a totally different perspective.  So if you are ever in Paris, be sure to take a cruise down the Seine...just check the weather forecast first! 

I hope everyone's new year is off to a good start!

Ringing in a New Year

In order to make it to midnight and the celebrated dropping of the ball in Times Square tonight, I plan to fortify myself with this...a bit of Paris I brought back with me.

It won't be the same as taking tea in one of Laduree's beautiful tea rooms...I splurged and went several times while I was there, each time to a different location.

There is something magical about tea rooms, the tea always tastes better there, and they are ideal locations for people watching, so I never mind drinking a few cups alone.

At the Bonaparte location, I spent a lovely hour sipping from my pastel china, nibbling macarons, and eavesdropping on french conversations that I could only catch every 3rd word of...but it was still wonderful.

And even though I'd picked up a sizeable amount of tea to bring home already, when Mr. Tide and I popped into the Rue Royale shop on a very rainy evening to warm up and grab a bit of dessert (before dinner), I added to my reserves just before they locked up for the evening.  For a true tea lover, you can never have too much tea!

Mr. Tide does not drink tea, so my tea obsession is a bit of mystery to him...though he gladly gulps down chocolat chaud with something decadent and chocolatey whenever we go to a tea room, so he never minds too much!

We have long since given up the desire to attend fancy parties, dress in all of our New Year's finery on New Year's Eve, and we now opt for something much more low key.  So I will be one of the boring ones this evening.  Armed with yummy tea, warm pjs, and a few friends from around the world via our computers.  Mr. Tide and I will share a kiss, and we will wish all of our online friends a very Happy New Year...some on London time, some on Oslo time, some on East Coast time, and places all the way out to British Columbia.  So the night will be filled with many New Year's wishes throughout the evening.

Our kids may or may not be here tonight, we will share dinner early, but we will phone them if they aren't here the second that the ball drops to shout Happy New Year!  And then tomorrow we will begin our adventure into 2013.

How do you ring in the new year...I would love to hear your plans!  

Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So Many Pictures, So Little Time

I took so many pictures while in France that I'm a little confused as to what to show you first.  There are pictures of the Opera, pictures of Saint Chapelle, pictures of bridges, buildings, and places we had tea.  Add to that the fact that there is still no Christmas tree at my house, I am sick as a dog from whatever I caught on the metro or the plane ride home, that my in-laws will be arriving in a few days and I haven't finished shopping... to say that this old brain of mine isn't really able to make too many thoughtful decisions at the moment would be an understatement. 

So after processing a few images, and darting from day to day, I finally decided to just start at the beginning.  The real beginning was on the 6th of December when we flew out, arriving on the 7th to very cold temps and snow...so there aren't very many pics from that day.  The real picture taking began on the 8th, when we ventured out to visit Notre Dame and wander the streets surrounding that part of Paris.  Most of the pictures in this post are from the inside of Notre Dame, and the light was VERY low as it was evening time, not the best for hand held pictures, but tripods are strictly forbidden.

A lovely statue of Joan of Arc...

One of the many gilded reliefs found in the cathedral...

Beautiful light and graceful arches dominate this ages old structure.  Just a few days after these were shot they celebrated the 850 year anniversary of Notre Dame!

Ornate ironwork, like these lovely gates, can also be found here.

So much to see, and well worth the visit...

Even the ceilings are beautiful!

As are the chandeliers.  It must have been a sight to behold when these were all lit by candlelight!

And when the organ plays...oh my, it will bring you to tears...truly!

Now, I better go start cleaning and get my tree up since I don't think posting the pic above from the opera will suffice...pity really as it was truly perfect!

Contrasts

We arrived home from Paris last night after 10 wonderful days.  Constantly surrounded by beauty, sometimes so amazing that it literally took my breath away and brought tears to my eyes.

And I will share some of that beauty with you, just not today.

While we were in France we made a special trip to Notre Dame.  It was with mixed emotions that we visited this beautiful cathedral once again, it was on my birthday and during the celebration of the Immaculate Conception.  

As the organ played, and the procession began with angelic voices filling the church for the service, we were reminded of those we had come there to honor.  We lit a candle for dear friends, those who are suffering from cancer and those who have been healed.  And we were also there for one special friend who lost his 10 year battle with cancer just days before.  The 8th was the day of his funeral back in Indiana where my husband is from, and standing there in the cathedral helped us feel connected even though we were so far away.

As we left the church I looked up and saw this beautiful shadow being cast by an angel and decided to try and capture it in the dim light.  Little did we know that in just a few days more sadness would befall so many back home in the United States.

During our trip I felt almost compelled to try and find, and capture, images of angels...maybe now I know why.  

Such contrasts there are in life, where there can be so much beauty and peace, there also exists ugliness and pain.  My heart breaks for lives cut too short, and I hope it makes us all realize how precious each day is.  

For the families and friends of those who have lost loved ones, be it to illness, accidents, or the unthinkable tragedy experienced by those in a quiet elementary school in Connecticut, I wish you peace....comfort...and the knowledge that angels will always cast their shadow upon us, even in our darkest hour.

Bonjour from France

Just a quick note to say bonjour from Paris!  I have been walking my legs off, and taking pictures of course.  There is never a lack of photogenic subjects in this beautiful city...just look at the exquisite carvings on the Louvre!

And you can't come to Paris without doing a little shopping right?!  I popped by Merci today and picked up a little something.

It has been very cold and sometimes rainy while we've been here, but I had to brave the freezing temps tonight to get some pictures of the Eiffel Tower.  And I have to say that it was well worth not being able to feel my feet for about a 1/2 hour after we got back home.

We are having a wonderful time and I am seeing parts of the city I have never seen before, so it's like a new adventure each day.  I can't wait to get back home and process some of the images I have taken since I have taken quite a few HDR shots of the city.

The French have been so warm and welcoming, and last night I had a lovely conversation with an elderly French woman who was out walking her dog.  Between her broken English and my broken French we managed to tell each other all about our families, our pets, and our shared love of Paris.  She then told me that this was the city of her birth, and you could tell how much that meant to her...it was very touching to see her still in love with this beautiful place.

I have much more to tell (and show) you all when we get back...including the chance meeting we had tonight with another artist and her husband who were seated next to us at dinner.  I feel so very lucky to have had this opportunity to travel once again.  The only thing that could make this better would be if our kids were here with us...next time I hope!

Until next time...

At Loose Ends

Isn't it funny how when you look back at the same time of year last year how different things can be?  It was just over a year ago that I was wandering the flower markets of France and dreaming about where I hoped I'd be a year from then.

I was dreaming of where I wanted to take my photography, how I wanted to market and sell my artwork, ways to better myself as a person, and all the wonderful possibilities that travel opens you up to.

So why is it that when that one year mark rolls around, and we've met some some of our goals, and exceeded others, that we find ourselves unsure of which way to turn until we find the next inspirational turning point?!

The past few weeks I've been re-evaluating just about everything it seems...

Like what I want to create next, what color to paint our bedroom, and today I cleared out the black cabinet in our living room, and tore apart the guest room closet.  Now keep in mind that I have LOTS of other things I should be doing, like processing pictures, vacuuming up dog hair, making something for dinner besides sandwiches (which Mr. Tide has been making btw!), and putting out some of my fall decor that resides in the huge tubs taking up valuable real estate in our living room!

Mr. Tide lays low when I get into one of these phases, he's learned over the years that "this too shall pass."  He simply nods and agrees with my grandiose plans to sell everything we own and move into a teeny tiny house one minute, and then announcing that I want to replace every stick of furniture in the living room and buy a hot tub the next.

And he never even misses a beat when he comes home from work to find swatches of every grey known to man adorning our bedroom walls.  He knows that my "I think I want to paint our bedroom," has turned from a 2 year long idle notion into a quest worthy of the crusades!

The walls will be painted...color still yet to be determined, the need to purge will give way to loftier pursuits, and my desire to live the simple life in a one room shack will be replaced by a need to buy a second home in Paris...or maybe the Cotswolds.  Yup, I will find new ideas and dreams to churn around in this little head of mine.

Some of those dreams will become a reality in a year, some will be long forgotten, and my loose ends will be nicely tied up like the ribbon that holds a dozen roses bought at a french flower market!  Am I the only one who goes through this?!

Taking a Second Look

Thanks everyone for your support about my Etsy situation from my previous post.  I'll keep you posted as to how it all turns out, but for now I'm just waiting in the wings to see what happens.

Instead of dwelling on not so nice people, I thought I would reminisce a little.  It was this time last year that we were preparing for our trip to Germany and France.  Oh how I wish we were in the midst of making preparations to go to Europe right now, but we bought a new mattress instead!  Who knew that a good night's sleep could cost as much as flying 2 people to Europe?!!  I better sleep like a baby when it is delivered in a little over a week, otherwise it's going back to the store from whence it came, and I'm booking 2 tickets to Paris!!!

I thought I might have some fun by re-working a few of the images I took in Germany and France last fall, and I have to say that I much prefer the way they look the second time around.  I know so much more about photo editing than I did back then, and I'm truly finding post processing to be like a little form of meditation for me.  I think it's the creative part that gives me such joy and relaxes me somehow.

I also love that you can do the same thing over and over again, or you can switch it up, and because I'm easily bored, this is a godsend for me!

Sorry for the obnoxious watermark in most of these pics, but it's there because some of these images will be for sale on an online gallery in the very near future...woohoo!  I will have ready to hang high quality wrapped canvases for sale and I can't wait to spill the beans on the whole deal but for now it's still hush hush.  It's been in the works for a LONG time, but it's moving forward a little more slowly than anticipated and I'm chomping at the bit to get it going.  I'll be sure to let you know just as soon as it's up and running.  There will also be a few giveaways, so stay tuned!

The image above is a great example as to why you never throw out those pics that might have the slightest amount of potential.  It's an HDR image of a cafe in Strasbourg, France taken late one night as we wandered home from a lovely meal.  I had never combined the images to create the HDR because it just never appealed to me, but after trying out some of the new software I've been testing, I decided to give it a go figuring I had nothing to lose.

I was not wowed by the original HDR after combining the individual images to create it, but as I began trying different things and playing with the shadows and light I fell in love with it.  I don't love it because it's the best image in the world, but I do love that it transports me right back to that evening and makes me long to stroll those streets and visit those cafes again...it makes me long for Europe.  To me, that is the magic of photography, it gives you the chance to take a second look at someplace you consider to be special!!! 

Wish You Were Here

Thank you everyone for your wonderful comments about our new chairs, we really are loving them!

This has been a crazy week with work stuff, spending 6 hours in the ER with our daughter (who is feeling better but still needs to figure out what's going on), and then Mr. Tide had to head to France with only a few hours notice.  Never a dull moment around here I can tell you that!

Can I just say that I'm a teensy weensy bit jealous that Mr. Tide is in France...ok, I'm actually green with envy.  I would have gone with him, but stupid me let my passport lapse, it expired in May...how could I let that happen?!  So instead of visiting local brocantes, exploring tiny villages, and taking pictures of the south of France, I'm here watering plants, sweating, and wishing I had renewed my passport like I knew I should.

Because Mr. Tide goes to some very interesting places for his work he often remarks that it's not someplace I would enjoy or even a place that he would like to go back to, but when he lands in France that is never the case.  I just got off the phone with him and it looks like he will be heading to Paris tomorrow...sigh!  He did at least say "wish you were here,"...and all I can say to that is...me too!

I hope you each have a wonderful week!

Dreaming in Black and White

I've been dreaming, or maybe scheming of a way to get back over to France.  The last time I was there, we didn't have enough time to visit Paris, and my heart longs to stroll her city streets.  My heart also longs to revisit places in the south that were once home to our daughter.

It would be a working trip, requiring many long hours of photographing beautiful sites and taste testing food of course...but I think I am up to the challenge of all of this strenuous work! ;-)

Before I go, I will need to consider the physical harm I might have to endure, you know, neck strain from looking up...

And those thigh crushing, ahem...toning hills that parts of France are so famous for.  It may not look steep in this photo, but trust me it was!  And if you ever want to feel inadequate, stand on the steepest street you can find in France and watch as women in 4 inch heels glide up these uneven cobblestone surfaces, closely followed by people in their 90s lugging their daily groceries!

I have to admit that I was totally bummed when we didn't win the mega millions.  First of all I was just sure we would win, I mean we never buy tickets, and the odds were SO in our favor, but alas it wasn't to be.  Had I won though, you can bet your bottom dollar that the first thing after talking to an attorney, a few charities, and a financial planner would have been contacting a realtor in France to purchase my weekend home.

I would have booked my ticket to France so quickly that it would have made anyone's head spin.

It's funny how certain places grab hold of your heart and never let go.  And it's not as if I have visited France many times, but the time I have spent there has given me wonderful memories...which I hope to add to in the years to come.

I want to thank all of the new visitors that have stopped by from Diana's lovely blog today!  It's so nice to have you here, and I truly appreciate you stopping by!  Thank you for the sweet shout out Diana!

If I truly ever did win the lottery, I would hope I would do something exactly like this!

I've Been Framed

After a long day of working yesterday, Mr. Tide and I decided we would head out for a walk on the beach.  It isn't a beach right by our house, but one a little ways from where we live that we like to visit.

The skies were blue and there was a nice crisp chill in the air.  Mr. Tide thought I was crazy for wearing a light jacket, but I thought it felt refreshing.

Each morning when I wake up, I look out the window in our bedroom and on days like this, when the air has a nip in it and there isn't a cloud in the sky, I can see the houses on the opposite shoreline of the river.

Those houses are 5 miles away, so being able to see them is something that goes away when the hot hazy days of summer roll around.

These images were all taken from a beach on another river at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, and it was so clear yesterday that I could see the land all the way across the Bay.  That is even more impressive than seeing just 5 miles across the river where we live because it's a whopping 12+ miles across the bay at that particular point!

Maybe I have a bit of ancient mariner in my blood, because for as long as I can remember I have always been thrilled to be able to see that far across the bay.  It's as if a part of me once knew that spotting land after a long journey meant you were almost home.

Also yesterday I took some pictures of a few of my latest projects.  I've had some of my images professionally framed and I'm really pleased with how they've turned out.

I found out yesterday while trying to photograph these that because we have added so many windows to this house that it is nearly impossible to find a dark, reflection free place to take pictures of my pictures.

These were all shot in a tiny hallway by my laundry room, and even there you can see that there are reflections of the windows, my camera, the tripod, whatever, in nearly every image.  And the colors are a little off, but that's to be expected when you don't have a nice set up for photographing framed artwork.

But hopefully you can get the gist of how they look.  I especially love the faux bamboo frame that surrounds the orchid picture, it just gives it a little added oomph I think.  Sorry it has the little corner protectors on it, I couldn't remove them from all of the pictures without a lot of trouble so I just left them on.

And I also love the barnwood frames used for the horse photo above and the boats image as well.  The horse pictured actually belongs to friends of ours.  This picture is a gift to them, let's hope she doesn't read this particular blog post before I give it to her in a few weeks!

So, there you have it, what I've been working on.  If you would like to have one of my framed giclee prints to hang on your wall be sure to check out my latest Giveway by clicking HERE.  You don't have to choose one of these images, or even one of these frames, but these will at least give you an idea of what yours might look like, so hurry on over and join my Giveaway, you have until Friday!  

Thank you!