Category Archives: architecture

Jackson Falls

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I may not have gotten the photo I had in mind when I drove to Jackson NH but all was not lost.

Over lunch at a local restaurant several people asked me if I’d been to the “Falls” yet. I told them no and asked where it was. Turns out, not far from the center of town at all.

So having chased the snowless sleighs around for a bit I decided to give that a rest and see if I could find Jackson Falls.

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Just after making the turn by the  Wentworth Inn ( I think that was the name) I drove up a hill.  At the top was a place to pull over . There were quite a few cars there considering it was quite cold and beginning to spit some snow flurries. It turned out to be a wedding party getting their photos done. I didn’t want to intrude so decided to drive around some more and come back in a little bit.

I completed a circle that passed lots of scenic farms and finally brought me back to the covered bridge.

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I figured that was enough time for the photo shoot to end because the bride had to be freezing but I was wrong. The bride and groom were still there. Most of the rest of the wedding party had left. Trying not to intrude I wandered downstream away from the photo shoot but when I turned to photograph the falls I couldn’t resist a shot with the bride and groom standing nearby.

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This is one of my favorites from that day’s adventures.

Some Final Thoughts on The Road to Hana

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Early on in our drive we stopped at a park. I wish I had written down the name for you. Sandy and I had found it the week before in our explorations. It’s on the left as you travel toward Hana. If you like big waves, this is a spot to check out. When we first found it, it was so wild that there weren’t any surfers but the waves were mesmerizing.

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It was a calmer day when we stopped with the tour and surfers were out in force. Some were very young.

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There were also vendors with things like jewelry and souvenirs on display.

We  made a stop at a red sand beach. It gets its color from the iron in the sand. It rusts!

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The little coral church we stopped at is Palapala Ho’omau Church, built in 1857, it’s known as the burial ground of prominent aviator, inventor, explorer, author and activist Charles Lindbergh.

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Forty-one years after his infamous non-stop solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927, Charles moved to Maui and settled in the remote area of Kipahulu, seeking privacy, beauty and simplicity. You can find the grave of both Charles and his wife under the shade of a Java plum tree at the limestone coral church.

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A small choral group was practicing when we arrived. It was beautiful. We all stood respectfully while they sang Amazing Grace.

047Our guide skipped the Garden of Eden stop which surprised me. I’d heard a lot about this attraction. Maybe he skipped it because there is a fee.

Garden Of Eden Arboretum

“It’s worth paying to enjoy walking the grounds, which are immaculately kept up and offer all kinds of photo opportunities. Here you can see an 100 year-old mango tree, bamboo, ocean views and Puohokamoa Falls.”

You can find a list of stops online and many shops sell ‘Guided tour” CD’s but everything takes time.

Our guide did as best he could with the amount of time allowed. The 8 hour tour ended up being 12 hours so I’d have to say we got our money’s worth.

Moving Day

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Now that we know that the Ka’anapali Beach club is the “Pink Pyramid” we need to move our things from the Ka’anapali Shores. I just knew the “Pink Pyramid” would haunt me forever!

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Almost everything was packed the night before. There were just a few perishables left that we were trying to keep fresh including the pineapple I received as a Welcome Gift. Check out at the “Shores” was 10 am but even with my early check in we couldn’t get our room at the Beach Club until 2 pm. I took my larger suitcase down to the car on my way to the update breakfast with my timeshare counselor. I left Sandy in the room to wait for me to return.

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I met Tara in the Ohana Bar & Grill where we had a very nice breakfast. The table was on the deck and we could watch the breakers roll in. After breakfast we went inside to chat. I don’t know why it always happens to me but when Tara went to added a recommendation to my account she couldn’t do it.  Finally after much digging we learned that the previous counselor had added a recommendation that should have expired but didn’t. They wanted me to sign a release. Problem was that only Diamond Resorts would benefit. I’d be leaving myself open for a big cost jump if I wanted to add on at all.

Finally we came up with a compromise. They would let me move my points  from the US collection to the Hawaii Collection. That action removed the previous recommendation but it took forever to get to this point.

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In the meantime, Sandy was still sitting over at the “Shores” waiting for me. I sent her a text telling her I’d be late. Her reply was that the cleaning lady had come by twice. Tara’s boss made a call to the Shores to arrange a late check out. I’d already arranged for early check in at Ka’anapali Beach club (KBC).

Finally the paperwork was done and I was free to get us checked in, pineapple and all.

Next stop was the airport to pick up Cuz Kathy. When we arrived a band was playing to entertain people waiting for their luggage.  Kathy’s plane kept getting later and later. First the Starbucks closed down for the night. Then the musicians packed up and left. Still no Kathy!

When she finally arrived she came from the opposite side from where we were expecting her. Needless to say I about jumped out of my skin when she came up behind me.

No matter, we were all together now so let the fun begin!

 

 

Bayou Bridge

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When Sandy & I took our vacation to New Orleans we included a City Tour to see the sights. At one rest stop while everyone was in the coffee shop I ran across the lawn to take a photo of a stone bridge that I thought was gorgeous.

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Back home  it made my top 10 list for 2015. I stared at it for almost 9 months before I decided it needed to be enlarged and framed. Not to pat myself on the back but I think it came out great and it hangs in a place of honor in my living room.

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Recently I thought I should see if I could locate the name of the park. It was kind of embarrassing to keep saying “Its in a park in New Orleans”.

To my surprise as soon as I googled “parks in New Orleans” I found myself looking at “my bridge”.

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So I didn’t need any guesswork to identify the park. The bridge is the Bayou Bridge and it is located in City Park, New Orleans.

Current Weather Conditions

Some clouds. Low 71F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph.

So Wassup?

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Wow, Things aren’t letting up at all. Last weekend I stole an hour or two to head out with the camera. Still trying to get the hang of this “Raw” stuff. I got a few practice shots but I just wasn’t feeling inspired.

Museum of Natural History, Providence RI

Museum of Natural History, Providence RI

Just a day on a Swan

Just a day on a Swan

Then Sunday, Mother’s Day I left Taunton early in the morning to drive to upstate NY to take my mother out for lunch. I can’t tell you how old she is. I am sworn to secrecy but if I have her genes I’ll be around for a long time. My sister went with us to the 99 restaurant where we enjoyed a very pleasant lunch. I was back home by 8 pm.

During the week I confirmed my Maine trip in July with the Audubon Society and started doing the preliminary research for the Maui vacation in November. Then Saturday dawned sunny and warm. The first really awesome day we’ve had in forever!

I had an appointment for an oil change at 10 am. From there I planned to go to the Norton Reservoir where I’d spotted a family of Swans to see if I could get some fun pictures of the cygnets.

I picked up my car after the oil change  and headed up RT 44. At the first set of lights the car stalled out! Strange it was running fine when I dropped it off. I started it up and off I went again. A bit farther down the road I got a text message and pulled off into a Dunkin Donuts to reply. Stalled again. What’s going on?

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The last straw was as I pulled up to the reservoir. The engine started shaking and there was a squeeking, clanging kind of sound so I pulled into the parking lot for Norton Liquors and called the service station. They agreed to send a tow truck. While I waited I took a few pictures of the adult swan and the babies.

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Hurry Up.

Once back at the shop we checked the oil and it was clearly fresh and full. After a diagnostic and multiple mechanics looking it over the car was pronounced in dire shape.

It still turned over so they didn’t pronounce it dead but the prognosis was grim.The “lifters” inside the engine were done for. I needed to either replace or rebuild the engine.

It was time to go car shopping.