21 09, 2015

Museum Monday: Fayum Portrait of a Young Woman

By |September 21st, 2015|Categories: History, Museums, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

The Städtische Galerie Liebieghaus in Frankfurt, Germany doesn't just have statues, it also has a few beautiful Fayum Portraits. These portraits were often painted during life on wood, and were placed over the mummy upon death. Portrait of a young woman Read more about Fayum Portraits here. Museum Monday is an every other week series about museum news, objects, and reviews.

22 08, 2015

Souvenir Saturday: Bodhrán

By |August 22nd, 2015|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Bodhrán, an Irish Drum with a "tipper" to play it. I remember in middle school, my dad found his old drum set. I had fun watching him play, and even attempted some beats myself.  So when I saw this drum in Ireland I brought it home so I'd have my own little drum. It is a Bodhrán, a drum that is opened at the back, and is nicknamed the "poor man's Tamborine". You can hear how it is traditionally played. I found this drum in the shops near Blarney Castle. The back of the drum. Souvenir Saturday

8 08, 2015

Souvenir Saturday: In fair Verona, where we lay our scene…

By |August 8th, 2015|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Romeo and Juliet is one of the best known plays by Williams Shakespeare and takes place in Verona, Italy. In Verona you can visit "Juliet's Balcony" which is in a courtyard and use to have a statue of Juliet. It is said that those who touch her right breast you'll be lucky in love. So many people touched her breast that it destroyed the statue and was recently removed. People also leave pleas on notes or graffiti on the way into the courtyard also looking for Juliet's help. I found it a bit ironic due to how the story ends.

3 08, 2015

Travel Missteps: Negotiating a Discount

By |August 3rd, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Follow my blog with Bloglovin The Leaning Tower of Pisa is a gauntlet of gaudy souvenir hawkers and littered with people taking that same vacation snapshot. Neither of which is necessarily a bad thing. As long as you are aware of that going in, you’ll be fine. So after enjoying the lesser known Pisa Church and Baptistry my sister and I made our way out of the area when one of the many souvenir sellers called out to us, and his wares caught our eye. The Leaning Tower of Pisa He had fashion watches, jewelry, and knock off

22 06, 2015

Travel Missteps: No Cocktails at the Pub

By |June 22nd, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Ireland was the first trip abroad where I was able to and wanted to drink. Thankfully Ireland has no shortages of drinking establishments, and none are so iconic as the traditional Irish pub. So on our first night my family and I headed out to the Temple Bar district of Dublin to get a drink. At first we tried a pint of Guinness for its 250th anniversary, but no one in our family really liked it. I wasn't surprised as I actually hate most beer. But we did greatly enjoy the traditional pub atmosphere and we learned a lot of drinking

15 06, 2015

Museum Monday: Athena

By |June 15th, 2015|Categories: History, Museums, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Today's feature comes from Städtische Galerie Liebieghaus in Frankfurt, Germany. It is a statue of Athena, the goddess of war and wisdom. I was struck by the detail the folds of her dress and her helmet. This ancient greek statue would have been painted. Athena goddess of wisdom and war. Close up on the detail of her helmet. Museum Monday is an every other week series about museum news, objects, and reviews.

13 06, 2015

Souvenir Saturday: Eiffel Tower

By |June 13th, 2015|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

A trip to Paris isn't complete without a visit to the Eiffel Tower. I remember taking an elevator up to the main section. Back then it had a little shop and post office. I bought postcards there, and took photos on old film cameras, and climbed a bit higher. The Eiffel Tower is also an amazing sight from the ground. I remember walking around the wide boulevards and taking a cruise down the river Seine while looking up at it. One thing I didn't do right away was buy a kitchy Eiffel Tower. They were sold everywhere but seemed a bit

8 06, 2015

Travel Missteps: The Expensive Scarf

By |June 8th, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

My first morning in Italy I was so excited. I had a brand new DSLR Camera and I felt like a Pro photographer. I got up early and went into the piazza near our hotel. There was a local market going just getting ready for their first customers. I wandered through it, taking photos here and there. A festive fish stall My sister found me and we wandered towards the edge and found a woman selling pashmina scarves. It was late December and I realized I had forgotten yet again to bring a scarf for the cold weather.

27 04, 2015

Travel Missteps: *Sigh* “American Right?”

By |April 27th, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: , , , , , , |0 Comments

Many people travel to countries where they don’t know the language. Prior to my trip to Italy I had traveled to England, France, Mexico, and Japan. In middle school and high school I had taken some Spanish, French, and Japanese classes, so I didn’t feel that lost language-wise when traveling to those countries. So Italy was a first for me, not knowing any of the language. After a long day of traveling, our group stopped into a roadside shop. It was like a mini-grocery market combined with a restaurant and a chocolate shop. I was tired and decided to buy

4 04, 2015

Souvenir Saturday: Bagpipe Practice Chanter

By |April 4th, 2015|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

I grew up learning to play many instruments from piano, drums, guitar, and the clarinet.  Which is probably why this Practice Chanter to help learn how to play Bagpipes caught my eye in Scotland. Scottish Bagpipe Practice Chanter I bought it right after seeing Edinburgh Military Tattoo right outside Edinburgh Castle. It is a double reed instrument that feels like a cross between a clarinet and a recorder. But the sound is much closer to a Bagpipe/recorder hybrid. This particular Chanter...is very cheap. It is hard to play the notes, and the reed isn't the best quality. But