Paris - Part 2(Bicycles, Eiffel and Montmartre)

Trying to see two of the worlds great cities in 9 days is a Herculean task, but we gave it our best shot last month travelling to Paris and Rome. During the middle few days in Paris we dragged our friends EF and MF on a whirlwind tour. Ignoring dreary rain and chilly temperatures, we biked, walked, ate and drank our way around town at breakneck speed. 

We probably were not supposed to be taking our rental bikes on this stone walk along the banks of the Seine, but it made for a memorable if a bit bumpy morning.

A view from the windows of the Musee D'Orsay looking out onto the Louvre. It really is worth getting up early to get to these museums before the crowds, the people of Paris are not early risers which may be related to Parisian restaurants not even opening their doors until 8pm.

Arc de Triomphe. This arch sits at the end of the "times-squarified" Champs-Elysees and  got me wondering why Europeans seem to think is a good idea to turn great historical monuments into traffic circles.

We loved the Montmartre neihborhood, it is everything Champs-Elysees is not...mostly, it still feels culturally Parisian.

Montmartre is dominated by the Sacre-Coeur Basilica at the top of the hill. 

Sacre-Coeur holds a commanding view over Paris.

French wine (which is definitely better in France) combined with decadent French food and the Paris cafe culture makes for relaxing days filled with little luxuries...not a bad way to live. 

The Eiffel Tower: Iconic enough to draw a massive crowd even on a cold and rainy Wednesday in the middle of winter. 

I have heard it said that since pictures of every square inch of the planet are available in a few mouse clicks, that we have lost some of the purpose and thrill of travel. However, in my mind there is nothing that can take the place of standing in the fog looking up at this beautiful tower. If you have ever really traveled, to places far away, and seen things of unimaginable magnitude and stunning beauty, then you know it doesn't matter how large your LCD screen is, there is no substitute for the experience of travel.

Bonjour!

Paris-Day 1

After an overnight flight with minimal sleep, on our foggy first morning, it was determined that against our better judgement and the advice of our driver we will be riding these tomorrow on the crazy streets of Paris.

Le Marais, location of our rental flat.  Older of the neighborhoods of Paris.

First time in Paris!

Notre Dame looming in the fog.

Two coffee stops later, our food consumption included the longest hot dog and cheese baguette we had ever seen.  Our friend is a great sport!

Our lack of sleep left us delirious and made the day seem very dream-like.
Notre Dame

Stained glass viewed from the interior of the cathedral.

French Cuisine
I'm in love!
Our table experienced steak tar tar, duck confit, roasted duck breast, and pan seared pork with mustard seed seasoning (above plate).  Throw in a great bottle of Bordeaux and chocolate cake to call it a successful night.

Le Marais in the evening.  "Our Home in Paris" (rental company) has really impressed us with our flat, driver, and concierge.  We didn't plan anything on our travel day, yet found Paris to be very walkable and easy to navigate making it easy to accomplish so much on our first day.

Photography

It is camera upgrade season in our household.  With multiple new contraptions arriving, I am inspired to think about some of my most favorite captured moments.  Some of the photographs I take carry sentimental meaning, some are (frankly) tough shots I'm proud of, and some are great surprises.  Since there are too many to include in one post, I will stick to a gallery posting of "strength in subjects."  You will get my drift, I hope.  Here are some of my favorites (minus a few I snapped in Cuzco, Peru that may or may not be included in Cayle's upcoming post).

Try shooting out of the window of a moving matatu while also attempting to hide your camera.  It's not easy, but not as hard as pulling all of that produce. I like that the trailer has a vibrating look to it, appropriate for the location and the action taking place.

The camera is held down at my side as if it isn't on, my thumb resting the button.  They are looking up at our faces.  Beautiful, enduring children.

A solitary Acacia, winding and well trodden path, ray of light casting onto a Sub-Saharan plain and vast horizon... interpretations and representations are all too many to list.  I cherish moments while traveling where at an exact moment in time you know you are right where you should be.  There is unparalleled strength in such a feeling.

An icon of Mayan civilization, Temple of Kukulkan, Chichen Itza circa 2008.  On the spring and summer equinox, shadows are casted revealing a serpent's body down the staircase.  If visited now, the pyramid is fenced off and the land is quite barren.  

Whatever camera I had in 2007 (Kodak maybe?), I can't fault it much because it gave me this.

On one very hot, very sunny day I fought to ignore the chorus of "Jump Around" repeating in my mind while trying to absorb the cultural significance of a tribe's deep tradition.

A great blue heron looking dignified.  What I like most about this photo is the trifecta of landscapes ranging from the foreground and into the farthest distance with the green vegetation contrasting the detail of the bird.

If only this llama new it was so hip!  The "greenest" way to mow your lawn.  And the Andes, oh the Andes.  Is there a better mountain range?  P.S. it really was that green.

A moss covered Buddha surrounded by the tallest and brightest colored bamboo I have ever seen.  Allerton Garden, Kauai, Hawaii.

What I love about this photo (other than the man in it), was a complete accident.  A raindrop hit the lens of our waterproof digital right before I took this photo creating a motion effect at the rear of the kayak.  How speedy Cayle looks!

A director's chair.  How many amazing people have sat in it taking in a view of the Ugandan hillside? Or, should the emptiness of this director's chair be a metaphor for the political leadership of a country?

Some detail is lost in the highlights of the petals, but I still love the reflection of the waterlilly.

Another iPhone shot, which is forever the lock screen on my phone. We can't get enough of our Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and are very lucky he is so welcomed and loved by his grandparents while we travel.

Can't wait for our new cameras to come in!  We have some major photography candy coming up finishing 2011 in Paris and starting 2012 off in Rome.

What about a photograph of yours qualifies it as one of your favorites?

A Walk in the Gorge - Eagle Creek Trail, Oregon

Some places just feel comfortable, like home, even if you've just arrived. We recently returned from a week in Portland and the Willamette Valley. This being our first trip to the Pacific Northwest, we were not quite sure what to expect; we imagined constant rain, coffee snobs and hipsters sporting their skinny jeans and ironic t-shirts. While some of that does make an appearance here, the impression we were left with was that of nature at its most beautiful and people at there most unique and creative...pretty impressive.

We spent one morning escaping the city for a hike in the Columbia River Gorge, only 45 minutes from downtown Portland. We walked the Eagle Creek trail up to the high bridge and back(about 8 miles round trip).

The Columbia River Gorge has all the charm of moss, ferns and lichen...which is to say, a lot of charm.

Morning light through the tree's flowing off the north slope of Mount Hood

What is a hike without a beautiful spot where you could potentially fall off the mountain. Tracy is posing next to just such a treacherous drop-off.

The beautiful and semi-famous Punchbowl Falls. I am pretty sure that some people jump in from the top of this 75 foot cliff...I am not one of those people.

Little green ferns, lots and lots of little green ferns!

Thanks to impressive engineering and aggressive use of dynamite by Italian engineers in 1910, this hike maintains a gentle grade through the jagged valley making it a world class walking trail.

The view looking up Eagle Creek, taken from the bridge shown above.

Loowit Falls(I think) makes me wonder how much more impressive these falls are in the rainy season.

We passed many friendly people and their many friendly dogs while walking Eagle Creek Trail. It was such a pleasant surprise to see dogs welcome in a state park, the Midwest is such a pet un-friendly place!

In just 45 minutes we made it from downtown Portland(a city with over 2 million people in the metro area) to a gorgeous trail in a famous wilderness area...and if we had driven 90 minutes in the other direction we would have been on the Pacific coast. Not a bad little corner of the country.

Boston baby!

I'm a pretty lucky lady, especially when the hubs gives me packing instructions for a surprise 4 day vacation.  Have you ever packed according to someone else's instructions without knowing where you are going or what you are doing?  How about when the instructions say the weather will be between 55 and 80 degrees? It was a little crazy.  The surprise continued until I reached security at the airport...so fun.  Neither of us had ever been to Boston before.  Cayle had a great time being responsible for my wonderment and planning an entire trip with daily itineraries written out on cards, which I received each morning.  Surprise!

Boston is saturated with American history and significance.  We spent a day taking it in.  First stop (after spending time reading the news over coffee), the Freedom Trail.  We followed the red line through the city experiencing amazing historical landmarks and taking in this fabulous New England city.  We even had our first Lobster Rolls.  Yum!

HEAT wave in Boston anyone?  It was 90-95 degrees and stunningly beautiful. 

Granary Burying Ground was one of the stops. This picture says it all.  Celebration of life and everything that comes with it including the end.  Beautiful and serene.

Granary is the resting place of some of American history's most notable figures including Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Paul Revere, Robert Treat Paine and James Otis.

The Old Corner Bookstore from 1828 and victim of modernization. 

We spent a day strolling around Harvard Square having a splendid time shopping, eating, and reading.  We also had the opportunity to visit an exhibit at Harvard's Museum of Natural History.  These flowers were hand crafted out of glass by a father and son duo in the 19th century.  Glass!  The detail is phenomenal.

We spent another day touring through the Museum of Fine Art with an impressive efficiency.  "Rembrandt, van Gogh, Gauguin, Monet, Renoir, ok moving on to the next wing." Cayle was really thoughtful planning out the trip knowing how much I would enjoy all of the items on our itinerary...

Including an evening of live music at the Middle East Club.  Caroline Smith and The Good Night Sleeps were great!  Caroline is a sweet Midwestern lady with such a unique vocal melody.  

We loved Boston with its red brick infrastructure, great public transportation, and European feel. Such a wonderful mini vacation and romantic gesture by Cayle.  So many tokens of happiness! 

Deep in the Heart of Kenya

Very few of us make the Journey to East Africa and fewer still leave the well worn tourist trails of Serengeti Safari's and Mt. Kilimanjaro. The majority of Africans still live well outside the view of the worlds eyes and sadly, unless great tragedy befalls the people of Africa, few of us think much about what life is like there. A couple of years ago I traveled to a remote area of western Kenya to work in a mobile medical clinic trying to give what little help I could to people who are all too used to fending entirely for themselves. I was fascinated by the world I found in this little corner of Modern African countryside. Here is my attempt to show a little from this trip and a small glimpse into these ordinary and extraordinary peoples lives.

Some of what I found was beautifully rural, and African, and everything I had hoped it would be.

Although still mostly a very rural, farming culture; Kenya is dotted with small cities rarely seen by western eyes. Downtown Bungoma is a place to behold. Dirty and hot; crowded with bikes, cars, buses and people. Overwhelming the senses and leaving me wanting to at once sit down and watch the city go by and also to quickly get as far away as possible.

As is the case with many little corners of the world, the markets are center of everyday life here. Very small, very smelly, dried fish...in case you were wondering what that is being sold on the tables.

Homes here are simple but often achingly beautiful. Behind this house you can see the friendly woman who cares so meticulously for this one room house. It is not easy to care for a property like this, I saw people both sweeping dirt lawns and cutting grass by hand. 

 

Childhood in Africa is one of play and school balanced soundly by the hard work required of everyone for a family to survive here.

I found myself amazed at every turn by the ingenuity and hard work of the Kenyan people. I challenge any of you to find a better way to transport seven unstackable wooden chairs on a bicycle.

The children were infectiously happy and resilient.

The food is simple and bland(and entirely without protein). Seen here is the staple food of the region, Ugali(cornmeal) and  Sakuma wiki(boiled greens). Occasionally a chicken or goat is slaughtered, however this constitutes something like the loss of a pet and daily food provider so is only for special occasions.

Is there a place in the world you can't buy a coke?

I was endlessly fascinated by the combination of old Africa and the modern west that was often combined, usually in awkwardly comical ways.

This boy, who I met while on a walk with one of my translators, was earning a living by paddling people across a river that had no bridge for miles in either direction. He seemed to be doing a brisk business on the day I visited. In case you are curious the fare was about 10 cents, making this one of the more profitable business models I saw(at least until the government builds a bridge).

Scenes like this reminded me that Africa is still a beautiful place, but often left me wondering if the western culture and technology that is being so rapidly adopted is actually improving any aspect of the peoples lives here.

Modern Kenya is wonderful and confusing. It's amazing people are struggling daily with extreme poverty, corrupt leaders,  malnutrition and illness. They are living on the fringes of the modern world, living equally off of the land and off of the excess of the west. Spending time in Africa is an important step to understanding life in what is frequently called the third world and helps to remind us that in reality we all share the same world.