Vegas, baby, Vegas.

2 nights in Vegas before embarking on a week camping trip around Arizona and Utah to visit all the glories of nature.

The Vegas I expected...

And the Vegas that delighted me...

Battle of Gettysburg

A day at the historic battlegrounds of Gettysburg.  The photo below is of a statue in commemoration of the 111th New York Infantry.

2 1/2 days in Reykjavik

Our summer travels began with a 2 1/2 day stop over in Reykjavik, Iceland.  We spent our short time there walking around the city and then embarked on a bus tour into the Thingvelir National Forest.

View of Reykjavik from the church steeple.

One stop on the bus tour - geysers!

The photo above is of "Litle-Geysir" or "Little Geyser".  The oldest geyser in Iceland is named "Geysir", hence the root of the word commonly used today for these.  Geysir is no longer active, and Litl-Geysir has yet to be active.

Camden Market

Walking around Camden Market on a warm, sunny (!) day in London.

A lovely day at the seaside

Ah yes, the historic English seashore of Whitstable, the pearl of Kent.  It was invigorating to breath in some refreshing salty air, shame we had to go to England to get it, though.  The beach may be filled with rocks and oyster shells but it's just not the same as the breathtaking and often eery rocky coast of Maine.  Soon enough, though.  Soon enough.

Also, here is a short video I came across about oyster fishing circa 1909 in Whitstable.

Hindi Wedding

My darling Nisha got married.  A beautiful wedding, equipped with tons of family and friends, delicious food, and unexpected reunions.  :-)  So happy I was able to make the trip.

Swing lo, sweet chariot

Lounging in the woods on a surprisingly warm day in March.

No if, ands, or butts about it

This is the Freiburg Munster, of which I see almost everyday.  It is certainly a beauty to behold, and anyone who is able to should certainly climb the tower and dine on the beautiful view of Freiburg and the nearby Black Forest.

Dadaism

As a self-proclaimed creative mind of sorts, I feels it's only appropriate to honor various art forms, whether or not I partake or prescribe to them.  Today I want to enlighten you to Dadaism.

Cabaret Voltaire

This is Cabaret Voltaire (located on a little side street in Zurich, Switzerland) as it was when my mom arrived for her German adventure.  We caught a graffiti artist in action, as part of the "support local artists" initiative.  This tiny nightclub (or so defined by Wikipedia, I would consider it more of an art cafe, then again I have never been upstairs at night) which was founded by Hugo Ball and Emmy Hennings in 1916.  The cabaret began as a bit of an artist refugee, where all artists could come to express and experiment through spoken word, dance, and music.  This is considered the birthplace of Dada, as it is where Hugo Ball read the Dada Manifesto.

This is a very famous photo, and certainly not my own.  This is Hugo Ball performing a Dada reading.  His outfit is as obscure as his poem/reading was.  Dada is about sounds, and feelings... and above all forgetting about the words.  I enjoy this in the way that it forces you not to derive meaning from words (as Dada often includes no words at all, but mere vowel sounds), but just to feel.  On the other hand, it is a little silly, and admittedly so...

"How does one achieve eternal bliss? By saying dada. How does one become famous? By saying dada."

- Hugo Ball, Dada Manifesto.

Strangers with candy...

It's okay if it's Fastnacht.