24 10, 2016

Travel Missteps: The Dueling Grounds of Bath, England

By |October 24th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |1 Comment

Source I always was a strange kid. I loved reading about magic and ghosts, so when my family was in England I begged to do a ghost tour. My parents figured the poltergeist tours of London and Edinburg might be a little too intense for my sister and I, so instead my mother found a walking ghost tour of Bath. It was a fairly tame tour, starting out right before dusk and telling us the history of the town, from Roman times up to Victorian times. He told us about druids and ley lines, and how the

17 10, 2016

Museum Monday: Egyptian Antinous

By |October 17th, 2016|Categories: Museums, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Antinous was a lover of the Roman Emperor Hadrian who drowned in Alexandria in October 130 AD. After his death Hadrian commemorated him with many different statues and elevated Antinous to an almost god-like hero/deity. This version shows Antinous as Osiris, an Egyptian god who came back from death after his body was scattered in the Nile. This is actually a remarkable Roman take of the typical Egyptian statue pose of royalty, with one foot forward. It is on display at the Vatican Museum. Museum Monday is an every other week series about museum news, objects, and reviews.

12 09, 2016

Travel Missteps: The Pickpocket

By |September 12th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

The Paris Metro - efficient and beautifully decorated in Art Nouveau style and my first experience with Metros/Subways. It was also how I figured out I had an excellent sense of direction. I became the navigator for my family, directing us to the right Metro stops and platforms. But on our way to the department store, La Samaritaine, something strange happened. A woman and a young boy were standing close to us on the Metro. I didn't pay them much mind, until I notice the boy was coughing a lot. I actually moved a bit away from them. The woman then said in

25 06, 2016

Souvenir Saturday: Siena Palio Contrade Banner

By |June 25th, 2016|Categories: Events, Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

The Palio is a 90 second horse race in Siena, Italy that takes place twice a year in the heart of the city at Piazza del Campo. It is a race for honor and prestige for the winer representing one of the 17 Contrade (districts) within the city. Of the 17 Contrade, only 10 are randomly chosen to participate in the race. They then go on to get randomly assigned a horse, and then must find a jockey to represent them. There are very few rules to the Palio, its sort of a "anything goes" and rivalry between the different

25 04, 2016

Travel Missteps: Minutes in Pompeii

By |April 25th, 2016|Categories: Photography, Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

I love ancient history, and have poured over history books and documentaries since I was a child. So when my family planned a trip to Italy, I knew I HAD to see Pompeii. I had been fascinated with this town ever since I saw a carbonized baked bread in a school book. The fact that life changed so suddenly and this town was erased from history in mere hours was shocking. But unfortunately I found out we'd only have a short amount of time at Pompeii, likely less than 30 minutes. Since I had just completed a semester on Italian Art

15 04, 2016

Niederwalddenkmal in the Fog

By |April 15th, 2016|Categories: Attractions & Sights, Photography, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Niederwalddenkmal is a monument in the Rhine Valley dedicated to the unification of Germany. It boasts of a beautiful walking park and great views of the valley. On the day I went, it was a quiet foggy landscape where you couldn't see the monument at all! So here is the gazebo in the park, the only thing beyond a few trees that i could see. Every Friday Lili shares her favorite photography & the stories behind the photos.

7 04, 2016

Gondola Ride in Venice, Italy

By |April 7th, 2016|Categories: Activities, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |1 Comment

On a cold rainy (and a little snowy) New Years Day I found myself in a actual Venetian Gondola. I was being serenaded by a man with an accordion. And while it was rainy, it was also magical. We were the only boats out that morning, and due to the cold the typical "smelly water" was nowhere to be smelled. It was amazing gliding through the side canals, under bridges. The few other tourists we saw took our photos like they were the paparazzi. If you make it to Venice you must take a ride in a gondola, no matter the

2 04, 2016

Souvenir Saturday: German Steiff Triceratops

By |April 2nd, 2016|Categories: Dinosaurs, Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

One souvenir on my checklist from Germany was a real Teddy Bear made by Steiff, one of the first makers of the modern Teddy Bear. I have a few old and antique Teddy Bears, and figured one directly from Germany would be a great addition to the collection. But while in Munich I stopped into a toy store...on Christmas Eve of all days! It was absolute chaos. I dodged and dived between rambunctious children. Just as I was about to give up and turn around I saw the Steiff section and decided to have a look. But I had walked

21 03, 2016

Museum Monday: Antinous as Dionysus

By |March 21st, 2016|Categories: Museums, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Antinous was a lover of the Roman Emperor Hadrian who drowned in Alexandria in October 130 AD. After his death Hadrian commemorated him with many different statues and elevated Antinous to an almost god-like hero/deity. This version shows Antinous as Dionysus an Roman god of wine and ritual madness. It is on display at the Vatican Museum. Museum Monday is an every other week series about museum news, objects, and reviews.