Showing posts with label Architecture. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Architecture. Show all posts

Sunday, October 14, 2012

City of Murals


A day trip to the old cowboy town of Toppenish gave me a chance to catch up on local art. The town is covered in murals, one commissioned each year to honor the community's history and culture.


No surprise they call it the "city of murals." Enjoy the mini-tour!












This one was my favorite.









And though it's totally unrelated, let me just share a couple obligatory apple tree photos, from apple capital of the planet. It was a big deal for me, since the branches were bare when I came to visit last December.



Friday, October 12, 2012

Fun with Fake Vintage Prints

 A little fun on the road with the Android spinoff of Instagram, called Retro Camera.
Good news for mediocre photos and subpar photographers.
A boring old snap on the road looks like a unique and intentional shot. Glad I have a way to beef up those iffy pictures. Thanks, hipsters, for making bad pictures seem cool!

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Bridges, Beer and Box Scores


When we woke up near Coos Bay this morning, we needed to get some more miles under our wheels and were quick to get back on the road. Of course, we did make a few stops on the way.

 How can anyone turn down the chance to see the world famous sea lion caves? The sea lions weren't inside, but we could still see America's largest sea cave.


 And some marine anthropology specimens throughout the cave.

 Back on the road, I was surprised by the number of bridges in Oregon. This is one out of about a million.
 My dad isn't much of a city guy, but I've been aching to go to Portland for a while now so he had to yield. We kept it mellow with an obligatory trip to Powells Books, a stroll along the river and a fancy cupcake downtown.

Of course, we couldn't forget the multitude of microbreweries and great food, either. At Hair of the Dog, a flight included an aged beer from bourbon barrels. Over Caesar salad and duck confit, my dad asked me to check the Niners score on my phone. Wow. I was not expecting their win to put us in such a great mood.

Little did I know it would lead to an involved explanation of how to read a box score. I guess anything to make me more well-rounded! What I love about beer is how much smaller it makes the world and all its problems, even if they are just about the intricacies of sports statistics.

Extra thanks to the Niners for making a 45-3 victory help a guy feel comfortable in a new city.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Grant's Tomb

More photos discovered from the New York trip! Today, it's from Grant's Tomb. Did you know that not only is it right in New York City, but is also the largest mausoleum in the country? I was happy to cross this off my old history buff list.



Grant and his wife.








Beautiful mosaic work in the park outside the mausoleum.


For more info, go to the official website here. More news and info here.

Friday, March 30, 2012

Upper West Side

I am spending the next couple days organizing my New York trip, so here are more from my adventures from the other week. The beauty of the city is there will always be uncharted territory. I toodled around the Upper West Side and took the bus a hundred blocks to view the city from the top down.

First stop, Riverside Church.



Barnard campus.


The famous front from Seinfeld.

New York- the Heart of America behind spring blossoms.
Sidewalk sculptures.


Columbus Circle.

Central Park at 59th.

And endless architectural wonder.