Just a couple of random shots

I took a few minutes last night, and tried (and I do emphasize the word TRIED) to read through my Nikon manual. I am not a technical, or very logically "brained" person. I could never be a computer programmer, or engineer, or anything of that sort. With that being said, I actually ventured off of my "auto" settings on the camera...made some manual adjustments, took some pictures, and promptly decided that I didn't have a clue what I was doing, and put it all back to the "auto" settings. I did get just a couple of decent shots, and thought it would be fun to share them with you here. I think this first one, of the Hibiscus, is my new favorite picture, at least of a flower, that I've taken.

Through an amateur's eye...a review of "Made of Honor"

"Made of Honor" stars "Grey's Anatomy" McDreamy -Patrick Dempsey. It also stars Michelle Monaghan as Hannah, McDreamy's best friend, and confidant. This is a typical romantic comedy, with lots of beautiful people, including Hannah's Scottish beau, Colin, played by Kevin McKidd. McKidd is a brilliant Scotsman, most recently seen in the series "Journey Man" and movies such as "Hanibal Rising", "Kingdom of Heaven" and " De-Lovely." While he is not gorgeous in the typical Hollywood sense of the word, he is a great, authentic addition to this film, has a wonderful Scottish accent, and looks fabulous in a kilt. Speaking of kilts, this movie is full of cliches, Scottish, and otherwise...goofy bridal shower stuff, goofy grandmas, bagpipers, etc. If you are, as I am, into these light, fun, "always a happy ending" kind of movies, you are sure to enjoy this one. I'd give it a solid B+...it would have gotten an A if it starred Brad Pitt....

Quail Botanical Gardens

Today I had the pleasure of visiting the Quail Botanical Gardens in nearby, lovely Encinitas. In the over 30 years (yikes! I'm old!) that I've lived in San Diego, I had never, up until today, visited this beautiful area. I was armed with my Nikon, a warm jacket, and some energy, and had a wonderful time. Here are a few from the over 200 pictures I took today.

Paris - Day 6 - Last Day of Our Sightseeing Extravagnaza!

Our last full day was spent in Paris. We took one of the earliest trains to Paris, and the last train back. We did the whirlwind trip of "Paris in a Day" visiting 5 major sights in less than 10 hours. It was hectic (we took the wrong local train out of the Paris train station right off the bat, and ended up in the wrong part of town...), exhilarating, fun, and exhausting - we never stopped to eat or relax...until we were back on the train heading back to London. Great exercise though - we walked nearly 10 miles that day!

These first two pictures are from the Hotel de Invalides - also known as Napoleon's Tomb

The beautiful Eiffel Tower
This it the view from directly under the middle of the Eiffel Tower. I thought it was pretty cool.
Looking down from the top of the Eiffel Tower - just after a burst of rain had doused us.
Looking back towards Napoleon's Tomb
Gazing down on the Arc de Triomphe
Looking down at the Louvre

The Louvre up close
The Arc near the entrance to the Louvre
Notre Dame

London Day 5

Day 5 was spent in and around central London. We stopped by Buckingham Palace, saw a lot of war memorials, walked through Hyde Park, and went on to the British Museum. I won't post pictures of most of those places, since they aren't really recognizable landmarks...but here is one for you....Buckingham Palace.

Windsor Castle & More London Landmarks - Day 4

Day 4 and we are off to see Windsor Castle. We didn't know, until we got there, that the town of Windsor was having a parade in honor of 600 troops returning from Afghanistan. It was an honor to take part in the celebration!






This picture was taken from the London Eye. You can see Big Ben, Parliament, and Westminster Abbey if you look carefully.

Stonehenge & Salisbury - Day 3

On day 3 of our sightseeing extravaganza, we ventured out, via train, to Salisbury and Stonehenge. Beautiful scenery, extraordinary sights.

The Salisbury Cathedral was celebrating it's 750th year while were were there!