April 28-29, Bologna, Italy

April 28th, our second day on our own, we explored Bologna by walking around a different area of the city center. Our guide, Benjamin, suggested that we might be interested in making use of a construction elevator being used in renovations of the San Petronio Church. The ride up at least ten stories in the rickety elevator cost 3 Euros, and we had to sign a release form before going up. After walking the last two flights of stairs, we entered a platform from which we could see out over the city of red roofs and tiles. It was a great view that included the hills north of the city.

We also found the market streets where merchants sold fruit, vegetables, meats and fish. It was clear that many locals shop of a daily basis for their groceries. Occasionally we found some produce that we could not identify -- something we don't have at home.

By evening the final four of our group arrived. We met for our welcome briefing and time to get to know one another, as well a get information regarding our whole pre-trip that goes from Bologna to Lucca.

The morning of the 29th we were met by a local guide for a half day walking tour of the city center. There is a lot to learn about this city, the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region. The town of Bologna was established in 1116. It is the home to one of the oldest universities in the world, established in 1088 and today hosts about 80,000 students. We visited one building now used as a library, but which housed the historic anatomy lecture room where they did cadaver dissections for study.

This is a city of many towers, including two famous leaning towers. The tallest, which is 318 ft. high, is the tallest leaning tower in Italy. They lean because the ground under them is giving away. Towers were built for a number of reasons; one was for safety in times of wars and conflicts, then there was vertical storage for possessions and supplies, and of course, there was prestige. Bologna was reputed to have the largest tower in the city.

Bologna is also famous for its many porticoes which cover the sidewalks. These are convenient to keep pedestrians away from the elements, but that wasn't necessarily why they originated. In order to increase the amount of living space on the second stories and above, builders started to build out further over the sidewalks, Eventually, these sections had to be supported by posts, and in that way, became porticoes. Many are very elaborately designed and decorated with arches.

Food is going to be an important theme on this trip, and today we had our first experience learning about the local pasta. Bologna citizens make their pastas with just eggs and flour; no water. We visited a shop where we went upstairs to have a lesson on how they make their famous tortellini, which is usually stuffed with pork. They were very emphatic that there is no spaghetti in Bologna, (it comes from southern Italy) and that a Bolognaise sauce should never be served with spaghetti.

After the lesson in pasta making, we stopped by a local shop where one could buy all kinds of meats and cheeses, and also get all kinds of food to eat for lunch. Most of us did not explore the place well enough first. We chose the first thing that looked good - salads. There were all kinds of other options such as sandwiches and hot dishes. It all looked delicious.

During the afternoon, which was scheduled as time at leisure, we chose to follow Benjamin. He took us back by the two leaning towers and on to the Jewish historic section of the city before heading back to the large famous Plaza Maggiore. From there we were free to do as we wished, but, since we had already been walking for almost seven hours, it was time to head back to the hotel. Resting for a while felt good before meeting in the evening for our "Welcome Dinner" at a nice restaurant just a short way down the street.

That is it for now,
Grace and Paul

April 27 Venice, Italy

The day started cool but sunny, and after breakfast at the hotel, the four of us, Grace, Paul, Erika and Melanie, took a taxi from our hotel to the train station to catch the train to Venice. It was a two hour ride, but only cost 12.50 Euros, one way. As we arrived at the train station on the Grand Canal in Venice, the sun was still shining, and continued until mid afternoon. For 7.5 Euro we caught the public water taxi along the Grand Canal and rode it all the way to St. Mark's Square.

It all looked familiar, even though it has been about 37 years since we were there the last time. Erika enjoyed showing us around, but the first stop had to be the Hard Rock Cafe for the obligatory T-Shirt for the collection. For lunch we stopped at a small cafe where we could eat along the sidewalk off the beaten path, and most of us had pizza, which was very good. Next, Erika took us by one of the hotels she represented when working for an Italian hotel company. It was gorgeous and right along the water, just a small way beyond St. Marks Square.

During the afternoon we wandered back to the Rialto Bridge, for old times sake, and walked across (up and over). It is in scaffolding on one side, for renovation, and you can't even see out the sides. What I remember as once having been higher end gold and leather shops, are now just selling touristy stuff. During the afternoon, the clouds came in bringing some wind and sprinkles, then the sun came back out. All in all a nearly ideal day.

From the Rialto Bridge we took the water taxi back to the train station. Unfortunately, we had just missed the train back to Bologna and had to wait a full hour for the 4:42 train.

When we arrived back at the Porta San Mamolo Hotel, Benjamin, our guide greeted us. We had all heard from him before leaving the states, but it was good to meet him in person. After a short time, the four of us went to have dinner at a restaurant near the end of the street, where we enjoyed a very leisurely and good dinner to finish off a delightful first full day in Italy.

After another day on our own tomorrow, we will meet the rest of our group in the evening to begin our tour. There will be four more joining us, making for a nice small group.

More later,
Grace and Paul

For the first time we spent a winter in Green Valley, AZ, and enjoyed doing many things that the area offered. Mostly, Paul enjoyed reading and the pool while I (Grace) enjoyed participating in activities at the Camera Club. But alas, it was time to come home to Portland. We arrived in time for the long rainy Oregon winter to turn into a warm beautiful spring - at least for a while.
 
It is tulip blossom time in the area, and in Woodburn, about 45 miles south of Portland, is the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, where the owners hold a “Festival” of activities every year while their fields are a mass of blooms. We spent a delightful morning there so I could take photographs. It is unbelievable that we have not gone there before, but certainly we will go there again. I may even go back soon, but early in the morning when they allow photographers to enter before opening to the general public.
 
Here are some of the photos I shot on April 1, 2016. I used my Canon 5D Mark III camera with a 24-105mm lens and a 70-200mm lens, as well as my Panasonic Lumix FZ1000 “bridge” camera with a built-in 24-400mm lens. I developed the photos using Lightroom 6.

That is all for now,
Grace

This is the first time we have had a chance to be in Green Valley, Arizona during the winter, while all of the “Snow Birds” are in town. We must say that the increased population is very noticeable.
 
Although the weather is sunny, it is not particularly warm. The lows are in the 30s and highs still in the 60s some of the time. It is much better than very rainy Portland. Actually, since we are native Oregonians, the rain doesn’t really bother us.
 
The sunrises and sunsets are frequently beautiful, and I always have my trusty iPhone with me, hoping to capture some good images. Paul, on the other hand, enjoys going to the nearby pool twice a day. He starts with the morning group at 7:00 a.m. and goes back in the mid afternoon. That does give him two workouts a day.
 

My Meetup Group (DSLR Photographers of Portland) had a scheduled Night Photography event for Sunday night, and many signed up. As the day went along, starting very nice with some sun, it turned somewhat nasty about 5:00 pm with rain and some wind. I had invited my friend Pat to go with me, so we forged ahead, going the the Meetup location on the east side of the Willamette River near OMSI. The rain was not too bad so we braved the elements and spent about an hour shooting from under the new Tillicum Bridge to past the Marquam Bridge, walking along the Esplanade. We saw one other person from our group, but there probably were more, scattered around. All in all, I'm glad I went to try out some skills I had learned previously at a session at the Green Valley Camera Club.

For those interested here are some tips.
1. Turn OFF Image Stabilizer (on a tripod)
2. Go to Manual Focus
3. Shoot on Manual
   a. Aperture at f/8-11 for depth of field
   b. ISO 100 - 200
   c. Time is your variable
4. Use a cable release or set the timer so you don't touch the camera
5. Lock up mirror, or use Live View
6. Optional: Bracket Exposures for at least three shots +/- up to 1 each way (can set in menu)
7. Shoot a lot, always being mindful of composition
8. Shoot RAW if you have a good editor like Adobe Lightroom
9. When in the rain, be sure to keep you gear dry by covering it with a plastic sleeve or shower cap, or something

You can be the judge of how my first attempt went, but I'm glad I got out there and tried. After all, I'm a native Oregonian and used to the rain.

All for now,
Grace

After only a week at home, we headed down to Walnut Creek, California to spend Thanksgiving with Paul's sister and brother-in-law and help them celebrate their 50th Wedding Anniversary. It was a great time to see all of their family, including kids and grandchildren. There were a number of flower deliveries, and these flowers provided a nice foreground for the anniversary pictures. We also had a chance to spend time with each family separately, catching up with everyone's activities and notice how the kids have grown.

The day after Thanksgiving we drove into San Francisco, crossing the Golden Gate Bridge from the north. The Disney Museum, which is located in the Presidio, at the south end of the bridge, was very interesting. There was also an Adults Night Out when we gathered at Prima, a fine Italian restaurant in downtown Walnut Creek. We all had fun together and delicious meals.

In the end, we were very glad we took the time and effort to get back down to help celebrate both Thanksgiving and the 50th Anniversary.

All for now,
Grace

Thanksgiving Day and 50th Anniversary

Disney Museum and Dinners Out

Paul and I decided to go to the Balloon Glow at the Tubac Golf Resort, south of Green Valley. We went a couple years ago, but did not expect for the huge crowd that turned out this time. This was a great family event.

The balloons were interesting and I got some good pictures and videos. It got dark very quickly, so walking around the area was a challenge without a flashlight, which I forgot. We went with Holly and Ron, but there was no way to stick together.

The lines for the few food vendors were huge. Paul was in line for a hot dog for an hour and was only half way to the food cart, so he gave up. Holly and I decided if we go again we will leave the men at home.

Not sorry we went, however.

All for now,
Grace

Tuesday night Paul and I will present the video I produced about our short stay in the Renaissance town of Slavonice, in the Czech Republic. The town dates back to the 13th century and has changed very little. We visited that town on our Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) tour called "Jewels of Bohemia" to Eastern Europe in May, 2015. There were so many interesting places it was hard to choose which part to share in the short presentation.

We stayed in the small Dum U Ruze hotel, just large enough for our group of fifteen. A tour of the wine cellar before dinner gave us a glimpse of the double deck cave system carved out under the whole town. Before dinner the hotel owner shared some of his champagne and during dinner we were entertained by an accordionist playing traditional Moravian music.

During the full day in the area, we noted the unique exteriors of the buildings carved into designs using an etching technique called sgraffito.

The day also involved visiting sites in the area, including a ceramics workshop, the ruins of the Landstejn Fortress from the 13th century, a WWII bunker system and a short section of the "iron curtain.

Throughout the area we had been driving through beautiful yellow fields of rapeseed plants. We made an unexpected stop to inspect the plants and enjoys a close photo opportunity.

The day ended with a home hosted visit and dinner with a local family. The grandmother and granddaughter were busy making potato dumplings for our meal.

This was a very interesting town and a fascinating visit.

From Slavonice we continued on, eventually finishing this tour in Budapest, Hungary. After a three day layover we joined the Grand Circle river cruise on the Danube from Budapest to Bucharest and ended with a post-trip to Istanbul.

That is a little glimpse of one fascinating town in the Czech Republic.

All for now,
Grace