Our Trip up the West Coast

A garden corner with yellow flowers and pottery.

Carmel  Trip to Mill Valley and the Golden Gate Park Northern California Coast and the Samoan Cookhouse Japanese Garden i Portland Tacoma Glass museums and the Dale Chihuly Glass Bridge Pikes Market Seattle Skagit Washington Tulip Fields

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Our Georgia O’Keeffe Pilgrimage March 29, 2007

Adobe-style church with a cross on top against a partly cloudy sky.

We love Georgia O’Keeffe: her paintings of giant flowers, cow skulls, desert landscapes – her unique style. Since we were visiting her turf – Taos and Santa Fe, Northern New Mexico – we decided to find out more about her. First, we visited the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe. www.okeeffemuseum.org The tour starts off…

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Paros Marble

Classical marble bust of a woman with missing arms.

Venus (or Aphrodite) de Milo – Musée du Louvre Victory of Samothrace The Winged Victory of Samothrace Paros, the white marble Island Could it be that the magic of Paros lies in its crystal subsoil? Paros, with its dramatic landscape and fertile plains, embodies all that is associated with the Greek islands. Composed mainly of…

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The Greek Islands

Santorini's iconic white buildings with blue domes at sunset.

Anafi A quiet retreat in the Cyclades, with information on enjoying its peaceful pleasures. AndrosNorthernmost island of the Cyclades, this big island is off the tourist track just enough to provide a pleasant getaway. DelosThe sacred island that today is an open-air archaeological museum, a must-see when you visit neighboring Mykonos. FolegandrosWild southern island in…

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Paros April, 2016

White buildings with blue accents under a cloudy sky near mountains.

Yasus! Hello! During our travels around the islands we encountered several women who lived there, but were not Greek. They were from Holland, Germany, Norway, etc. “Why did you settle here?” “Well, I came to Greece on a visit. I fell in love with a Greek, and I married him.” Yes, the Greek people are…

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Crete – April, 2016

Ancient fresco of a red bull behind columns at a historic site.

Crete can be the culmination of the Greek experience.  The mountains still show fingers of snow in late April.  It seems like every square meter of the foothills are cultivated with olive groves and vineyards.  Any spaces not farmed are covered with wildflowers.  Deep, chiseled gorges empty out to the Aegean where you find palm-lined…

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Travels with Anzie – Athens June 2016

View of the ancient Parthenon temple atop the Acropolis in Athens, Greece.

Athens exudes signs of a troubled economy. Many of the buildings look dingy. Many are covered with graffiti. You’d think we gave this taxi driver a great gift when we hired him to drive us the airport, at a better than market price. “Tourism is way down,†he explained. But, some things are still wonderful.…

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Dubai – November, 2010

Empty photo placeholder icon on a plain gray background.

When someone mentions Dubai, what comes to mind?  Before our visit my images involved tall buildings, sand, dry heat,Arabs with beards, and oil wells.  Reality altered these pictures quite a bit.  The reason for our visit was two-fold.  Brother Tim and his wife, Connie, have lived there for almost six years.  Tim teaches Landscape Architecture…

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A Night on Goree Island   January 5, 2004

A scenic view of a coastal town framed by a curved tree branch.

Meet Florence, a.k.a. Salimata (all Peace Corps Volunteers are given a Senegalese name by their host family during Pre-Service Training), a.k.a. Mama Africa (the name by which she’s mostly known on Goree).  She’s a 67 year old African American Peace Corps Volunteer.  She’s lived on Goree Island for three years.  She’s become a legend. Florence…

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