Tag Archives: 52photosproject

52 Photos: End of the Season

This week’s prompt was related to summer coming to an end, something I’m loathe to face, even though the evenings are coming more quickly. So I dug into the archive and came up with the bright, vivid colors that mark fall and give me light and warmth to hold on to as it gets darker and colder.

North Cascades slope:

fall colors

Frilly Japanese maple leaves:

fall frilly maple leaves

This was taken just over a year ago in Koya-san, Japan:

fall harbinger

Leaf skeletons in Kanazawa, Japan:

fall leaf skeletons

Autumn leaves, swirly fence:

autumn leaves swirly fence

Share Button

52 Photos: The Sign Says

Even though this week’s prompt wasn’t literal, I’m going with a sign.

sign for Angel's Landing

The sign says:

ANGEL’S LANDING

Strenuous climb
Narrow route with cliff exposures
Hazardous during thunderstorms, darkness, and ice/snow conditions

I’d heard stories from friends and family members about this hike before I did it last week. I knew it wasn’t for the faint of heart or anyone with fear of heights. I was pretty certain I would do okay, but I still had some niggling doubts. I’m not known for dazzling anyone with feats of physical strength, but I managed to surpass my girlfriend’s expectations. I just walked right up the rock like it was nothing. And as I expected, the openness didn’t bother me at all.

My girlfriend asked what had happened to me. She thought I’d be whining and clinging to the rock with fear. Truth is, I probably would have a couple of years ago. I just kept putting one foot in front of the other and made it to the top. I told her, “I’ve finally found my voice and my feet!”

First portion with chains:

climbing Angel's Landing

Can you see the chain to the right side of the image?
Angel's Landing formation

Ridge to final approach and summit (See the people in the lower part of the picture?):

ridge to Angel's Landing

I told a friend the other day I felt like I was climbing in an ant farm. You tell me if you think I’m exaggerating! Here’s the horde we found at the top (and where my healthy fear of heights kicked in – no way was I going to go gallivanting through them)!

hordes of hikers

I’ll give you a few more signs, since I only put one up there:

feral cats or chickens

warning sign

And finally, the fallout shelter sign on my apartment building (and no, there isn’t actually one):

fallout shelter

Share Button

52 Photos: Luang Prabang

The prompt this week was somewhere you visited. As many of you know, I’ve been a lot of places. Picking one was hard.

I decided to go with Luang Prabang in Laos, because I’ve talked about visiting Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia, but not Laos, which was the fourth country in my tour of SE Asia.

I visited temples:

Wat Xieng Thong

that had disco elephants as decoration …

mosaic elephant

I drank bale fruit tea:

bale fruit tea

and BeerLao, the champagne of beers (or so I was told).

Beerlao

I watched monks collect merit contributions:

monks collecting merit contributions

and the sun set behind the Mekong river.

sunset behind the mekong

If you ever have a chance to visit Luang Prabang, I highly recommend it. It’s a special place.

Share Button

52 Photos: Stairs

This week’s prompt: stairs. For you, a few staircases and a brief story. First the pictures:

The staircase in the shopping center at the JR Train Station in Kyoto:

lighting design on JR Kyoto stairs

Spiral staircase in Lisbon:

spiral stair

Dragon staircase in Chiang Mai:

dragon staircase

Powell’s bookstore in Portland, Oregon:

self-published

Ayutthaya Staircase:

stairs to ferry

Before I start telling you this story, I have to show you a picture of something else. It’s a bicycle:

Good luck bike #2

In 2011 I spent 3 months in SE Asia. The first place I went after I got my head sorted in Bangkok was Ayutthaya. It was a great place for me to rest and sink into a new rhythm. The guesthouse where I was staying had bikes available to rent. This was my trusty steed as I ventured out from the safety of my idyllic quarters. What you can’t tell from looking at the picture is how heavy that bike was. I’d guess it weighed around 25 pounds. Nothing like my lightweight 15-pound aluminum frame bike at home.

And yes, I did carry that damn thing down those damn stairs. And back up on the other side. And then again in reverse. And I felt quite pleased with my accomplishment.

Share Button

52 Photos: At the Water’s Edge

This week’s prompt was at the waters’ edge. I didn’t think I had much, and then I realized I was going to Discovery Park for a -3 foot low tide! For your viewing delectation, I present without further comment, this week’s set.

discovery park panorama

clam shell with seaweed

clam shell vista

green and purple seaweed

You can see the rest of the pictures here.

Share Button

52 Photos: In Flight

This week’s prompt was In Flight. I have plenty of bird pictures, but not many of them actually flying. So here’s my assortment, plus a bonus. There’s a scooter in air, a bald eagle being harassed by a red-winged blackbird, and a breathtaking snowy owl on the day of its release from rehab. It looks like pelicans are quite popular this week, so I’m adding one of mine. They’re like a box of chocolates – something to satisfy every taste.

scooter in the sky

Bald eagle and red-winged blackbird

Snowy in flight (closeup 2)

brown pelican in flight

Share Button

52 Photos: Powder Blue

This week’s prompt was powder blue. Some weeks, like last, I have a hard time coming up with images to share. This was not one of those weeks. Hope you enjoy!

fORD

blue and yellow fORd

I am mother, hear me roar:

I am mother, hear me roar

Blue umbrella

umbrella

Nigella bloom

nigella bloom

Even though this isn’t blue, I wanted to show you the pod of the Nigella, too:

nigella pod

Blue house in Lisbon, Portugal

blue house

Blue Pool, Green Trees at Norris, Yellowstone National Park

blue pool, green trees

Share Button

52 Photos: Busy Street

This week’s prompt was busy street. I really wanted to post a picture of the insane traffic that my mom and I experienced in Hanoi, Vietnam. But the three pictures I took just don’t capture the intensity. As a matter of fact, I had friends who warned me about the traffic in Hanoi before I left. And they gave me advice on how to cross the street. As if I didn’t know how to cross the street! Turns out, I needed their advice.

cars and scooters

If you want to cross the street in Hanoi, (I hear Saigon is much worse), you wait until a pack of motor scooters comes. Then you step into the street and move slowly, with focus and consistency, until you reach the other side. You do not try to make eye contact with the drivers. Apparently this just throws them off. It is an exercise in trust, above all else.

I would link arms with my mom, and we would start walking. We moved at the pace of a small child or an elderly person. I would say, “We are the rock. They are the river.” We would clutch each other tight. When we reached the opposite side, we would rejoice in our success.

Since I find that picture doesn’t evoke the terror we felt every time we stepped off the curb, I’m sharing this delightful image of a pair of robots from the 2005 Fremont Solstice Parade.

robot couple close-up

Share Button

52 Photos: The Light Arrived

This week’s prompt for 52 Photos was The Light Arrived. As many of you know, I am a connoisseur of light. I love love love light. I had so many pictures I wanted to share, but I managed to hold myself back. I took some liberties in interpreting this one. There are a mixture of natural and man-made lights. I hope you enjoy!

Japan

I took this picture from the top floor of our hotel in Tokyo. The lights were on and they were reflected in the window, so I got this neat image that looks like a double exposure. It’s the light from inside as well as the lights from the buildings and cars outside.

Light and dark in Tokyo:

light and dark in Tokyo

Here is a shot without the reflected light, of just the cars on the street. I love this image, because it looks like an old computer punch card. I imagine there’s some code in the pattern, if only I can discern it.

Car lights in Tokyo:

car lights in Tokyo

The temple we stayed at in Koya-san had this rock in a little garden off to the side. Even though it was a Buddhist temple, it reminded me of the Taoist origin story. A version I learned told about a cosmic egg that was broken open. From the one came the two, from the two came the three, and from the three came the ten thousand things.

Light and dark/split rock:

light and dark/split rock

Cambodia

I don’t think the one needs explanation.

Sunrise at Angkor Wat:

sunrise

Seattle

Light through the trees:

light through the trees

Chandelier at the Paramount:

Chandelier at the Paramount

Vancouver, B.C.

“And the raven brought the light into the world …”

raven brought light

Share Button

52 Photos: Good luck charms

This week’s prompt for 52 Photos was Good Luck Charm. I’ve been struggling with this one, because I don’t really have anything I think of as a charm, nor do I subscribe much to good luck. This morning I was thinking about it again, because I love participating in this community every week. I let my mind wander and make its own connections. Good luck is a kind of magic, and I find magic everywhere (to paraphrase Dar Williams). And lo and behold, there are a few things that spike high on the chart when it comes to magic.

Some of you know I’m a gigantic fan of cetaceans. Orcas, great blue whales, bottle nose dolphins – I love them all. The best dreams I dream contain Orcas or great blues. I always feel completely peaceful and connected. I took these dolphin pictures off of Sanibel Island in March. I love their playfulness and connection to each other.

Leap of joy:

leap of joy

Triple dolphin action:

Triple dolphin action

Pelicans also hold a special place in my heart. Perhaps it’s their inherent goofiness. I can’t quite say.

brown pelican

white pelicans + reddish egret

Finally, a Hello Kitty Lucky Cat that I saw when I visited Miyajima in Japan:

Hello Kitty Lucky Cat

Share Button