A fun food fest

Being of Polish heritage and having grown up in New England, I can safely say that I have been to a lot of Polish and/or pierogi festivals in my time. Chicopee, Massachusetts, used to be the site of an annual kielbasa fest - which several times served up the world's largest kielbasa - but that festival ended in the mid-1990s.

When I heard about the Pierogi Fest in nearby Whiting, Indiana, I knew we had to go. Where else can you see Mr. Pierogi, the Babushka Brigade, and the Lawn Mower Drill Team?

Pierogi Fest
Whiting, IN
July 24, 2009

Two great FREE reasons to visit Lincoln Park

Reason one - the Lincoln Park Conservatory.

Constructed at the end of the 19th century, the Lincoln Park Conservatory has, for over 110 years, both showcased exotic plant species as well as providing plants to be placed in the park system throughout Chicago. Can't afford or don't have the means to make it out to the Chicago Botanic Garden? The Lincoln Park Conservatory - and its sister garden site, the Garfield Park Conservatory - are easily accessible via public transport.

The Lincoln Park Conservatory is located on Stockon Drive in Lincoln Park, just south of Fullerton. It is located next door to one of the entrances to the Lincoln Park Zoo, which is also free! If you have kids, you will definitely want to take them to visit the Children's Farm, located on Stockton Drive, a little bit north of North Avenue. This "Farm"/petting zoo allows children the opportunity to get up close to a variety of domesticated farm animals, including goats, cows, heirloom chickens, and domesticated rabbits, among others, as well as providing an education about farming.

I was particularly impressed to see a pair of domesticated rabbits today. I had no idea they got so huge - the pair on exhibit were huge, bigger than my mother's cat (and my mom's cat is 17 lbs.).

If I had a superpower, I'd wish it were flight...

Seagull
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
U.P., Michigan
July 2009

Chalk this up to "signs I never expected to see"

45th Parallel
As seen on route I-75 south of Gaylord, MI
July 2009

One must wonder: they went through the trouble and expense to make this sign specifically for this spot. Since I had to circle around an exit to come back and take a photograph, I can tell you that the same sign does not exist on the south-bound lane of the same highway. That being said, you have to wonder how much Michigan saved to use a "-" symbol instead of an "&"?

It would have been fun if they had a pullout where you can take your picture with the sign, but no such luck.

I must also note that Wisconsin has no such sign, at least not along route 41, much to my disappointment. Edit - apparently Wisconsin does (see comments), but it's much more subtle! :)

Nature's palette

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore
Munising, Michigan
July 2009

Located along the northern coast of Michigan's upper peninsula (the "U.P."), Pictured Rocks is best seen from the water, which allows you full views of the spectacular cliff formations, stained with colors caused by mineral seepage from the rocks. A 2-1/2 hour boat tour leaves from Munising and gives great close-up views of the park.

You can also see limited views by driving into one or two access points within the park; or hike the park's trail system (the park contains more than 42 miles' worth of trails). The park is popular with hikers and campers - the lakefront campsites are incredible.

Life is but a dream...

Fantastikals
Bristol Renaissance Faire
Kenosha, Wisconsin - July 2009

Room with a view

View of Pritzker Pavilion and Lurie Gardens
as seen from the new Modern Wing at the Art Institute
Chicago, July 2009

People watching people

Everybody likes people watching
Shigatse, Tibet

One of my favorite pictures from my China trip two years ago - I was looking down into a courtyard where I could see a few members from our tour group relaxing on some steps. Behind them stood a pair of Tibetan women, one in more traditional and one in more "modern" gear, discussing the foreigners and occasionally pointing at something (I couldn't quite figure out what).

Why costume contests are fun

I don't usually "show off my geek" here, but this entry from the 2009 SOE Fan Faire contest was so much fun that I have to share it:

I can't even begin to explain about the guy in the banana suit.... ;-)

Memories of summer

Navy Pier, Chicago
June 2009

A book worth getting if you're into HDR

The world of photography has become a strange world: there are many photographers, like myself, who prefer to create their imagery straight from the world, to capture the essence within the original snapshot with minimal post-processing their final image; and there are just as many if not more who take the original image and turn it into something else. Where is the fine line when you have crossed from straight-up photography into 'art', when the photograph is no longer exactly what your eye could have seen? After all, even Ansel Adams, the patriarch of American photography, manipulated his film images into something spectacular and almost unworldly; but nobody would hesitate to call his work anything but photography.

I'll be the first to admit that I generally declare myself on the fence when it comes to HDR (high dynamic range imaging). With the advances in digital photography to create images far closer to film than ever before, combined with a sensitivity beyond most eyes, however, photographers began experimenting with their images and have created a new kind of art, HDR.

I consider HDR to be more art than pure photography, I admit, because it IS art. Most HDR photos are combined using several exposures to create images that range from eye-poppingly color-saturated to extreme resolutions/shadings that make your eyes and brain feel as if you're looking more at a three-dimensional artwork than a flat image. (Flickr is full of people's experimentations in HDR.)

Trey Ratcliff, who has an excellent HDR tutorial on his blog, Stuck In Customs, has now released a book about HDR, and it features plenty of his own very, very excellent HDR photography. If you're interested in the HDR artform, this book or his blog would be an ideal place to start your explorations.

Prithee, may I eateth of thy brains, madam?

Miss the Zombie March in Chicago last month? Want to get your ren faire AND your zombie fix at the same time? (How awesome is that?)

Just got this update from the organizers of the Zombie March Chicago:

BRAVE KNIGHTS, FAIR MAIDENS, BAWDY WENCHES AND HUNGRY CORPSES!

Chicago's favorite zombie Kitty invites you to travel back to Ye Good Olde Days at the Bristol Renaissance Faire for PLAGUE DAY - Saturday, August 15th. What is Plague Day? ZOMBIES AT THE FAIRE! Bristol has opened its oaken gates to Chicago/Milwaukee's zombie citizens, offering a VERY special zombies-only discount, and sectioning off the Cotwolds Commons area exclusively for the undead! There'll be prizes, contests, raffles, activities and more! Also known as The Glade, the Commons will be appropriately decorated with a medieval (med-evil?) zombie theme to give it that freshly-dug-grave feeling. So come out to the Faire, grab a pint, eat a wench and enjoy the simple undead pleasures of a bygone age! Although it should go without saying, we want to see period costume zombies - no Armani Zombies! Now obviously if you don’t have a costume or simply can’t afford to come in costume, we understand. Just bare in mind that there will be contests JUST for those in costume.

For full details, tickets and information, go to http://www.plagueday.com!

Gamer zombies will also want to check out RenQuest, in its second year at Bristol.

Forget 'cheeseburgers in paradise' -- gimme my coffee fix!

Generally, when I travel abroad, I am not looking to indulge myself in McD's and Pizza Hut and the like. I try to eat like a local, although I do have my limits (namely: bugs, anything that's a house pet back home, and anything still wriggling).

However, perhaps partially inspired by Winter's 'Starbucks Everywhere' project, I have taken to hitting up Starbucks wherever I go. It really wasn't intentional at first, and honestly, I haven't tracked or written down each and every Starbucks I've been to. However, I love seeing how and where Starbucks has fit into foreign cultures, and honestly, if you're feeling a little homesick, there is no surer destination for Americans abroad than Starbucks. (You also get coffee diehards from all over the world, so it's actually quite fun to pop into Starbucks wherever you are.)

It's also interesting to see how Starbucks "culture" has translated into other parts of the world. For example, my drink of choice - as I've written about before - is a grande Java Chip Frap, no chocolate syrup, add a shot of espresso. Not a difficult drink, but it is genuinely baffling how many ways barristas around the U.S. have gotten this wrong (the most common is to leave the syrup out of the drink, but then still spritz it over the whipped cream. No syrup means no syrup. It's too sweet for my tastes.)

I have yet to get my drink wrong in a foreign Starbucks. And in some places, notably the Chinese and Japanese Starbucks I went into, they really take tremendous pride in what they're doing for their job. It's awesome.

So far, aside from various airport Starbucks (as well as those in New England, Florida, NYC, Chicago/Midwest and California), I have been to Starbucks in:

- Zurich, Switzerland
- Yu-Yuan Gardens, Shanghai, China
- Central Xi'an by the Bell Tower, Xi'an, China
- Bei Hai park, Beijing, China
- Actually, multiple locations in Beijing... I was on a serious coffee craving three weeks into my China trip
- Somewhere in Tokyo, Japan (Shinjuku, I think)
- Bangkok, Thailand

And now, I can add Nassau, Bahamas, to that list. There's several around Nassau/Paradise Island, apparently, but a need for a big Frappucino led to me checking out the Starbucks on Woodes Rodgers, the street that faces the docks where all the cruise ships come in. It's a nice-looking store, with great balcony seating (perfect for watching the tourist parade below while you soak up the sun). Sadly, their drink and food menus are a bit more limited than they are at home (no Java Chip Frap! No vanilla bean scones!), but I was able to get my caffiene fix.

Starbucks, Woodes Rodgers, Nassau, Bahamas
July 2009

The store was messy - I've worked enough coffee shops over the years to recognize that the store employees were a bit swamped. But the drink came out fast, and correct, and I happily got my Sbux buzz for the afternoon. Mmm, coffee....

Taxi driver, Nassau, Bahamas
July 2009

This gentleman was my taxi driver from my hotel to the Nassau airport. He was a very good driver, plus he was clearly very proud of his island, giving lots of information and tidbits about places we passed along the way. I should've asked if he had a business card - he seemed like the kind of guy who would be good to hire for a half- or whole-day tour around Paradise Island. I particularly liked that this gentleman was so nicely dressed, and clearly took care and effort in his appearance and his job. I shook his hand at the airport and he had a lovely, firm grip. (Learn to have a good handshake. It says volumes about you as a person!)

He was a very pleasant change from the driver I'd had when I had arrived on the island, who blasted the stereo and drove in a manner that made me worried about making it to the hotel intact!

Tropical relaxation

Sunset over Nassau, Bahamas
July 4, 2009

Friday when I got in, I was tired, the weather was indecisive, and when I went back to my room to do some reading to wait out an afternoon rainshower, I ended up crashing around 6pm. By the time I woke up, it was already dark. I almost did the same thing on Saturday night, but managed to wake up just in time to catch a few quick snaps of the sunset. (I get very frustrated when my travel time is short and I miss the sunsets!)

I guess I was really worn out... I slept a lot, especially for what was only a weekend trip. On one side, it felt very wasteful to have journeyed several hours and then spend a lot of it asleep, but on the other hand, I realized how badly I need some tropical relaxation time. I am definitely revisiting the idea of Belize or Costa Rica in the fall; it's just a matter of figuring out how to fund that. (Bad timing strikes again - right before my two weekends away, to Vegas and Nassau, I had to dish out quite a lot for car repairs. Yay. *sigh....*).

Sometimes, you don't think you need time away as badly as you do, until you actually go away. And then you go, wow, I really needed this. This weekend was definitely one of those times.