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After our very long day, we finally made it to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Mom is excited and wants to get onto the Bridge rather than just walk on the grounds around it.

So on the Bridge we went.

Both Mom and Mike wanted to walk the length of the Bridge.  I warned them that it’s more than 1.5 miles in one direction and that we have to walk back.  No matter.  They wanted to walk, so we walked.

I told

We walked and walked, often taking breaks and looking at the various views.

At the Marin County line, I suggested we head back.  The sun was starting to set, it was getting chillier, and we all were very happy to experience the walk together.

The sun set on a perfect day!

We took the bus from Market Street to the Haight-Ashbury area of San Francisco.

Although Mike was born after the “summer of love” was in full swing, he’s a fan of many of the music greats that came from that generation.  His beautiful wife, who lived in the area for a stint during those days, remains a flower child at heart.

One of a couple street musicians that I paid for the privilege to photograph.

No comment here!

While the area remains quite colorful, and hints of the lifestyle linger, much of the area is a tourist destination filled with all types of kitschy and cute flower-power things available to purchase.

If you’re an artist, you may want to schedule a stop at Mendels Far Out Fabrics.  They have a great selection of art supplies, fabrics, fake furs, fabric paints, and all types of interesting things.  And, if you’re not in the area, they have a website with an online shop.

We continued walking and went to the Golden Gate Park.  We could have spent all day there, especially with the beautiful weather.  But I had a game plan for the day, with the ultimate destination being the Golden Gate Bridge.  So we walked.  And walked.

Admired the flowers.

Admired the views.

This is one of my favorite pictures of me and Mike.  He was very happy, as was mom, enjoying the city and the day.  I also was very happy, as it’s the best birthday present that I’ve ever given and it felt (and continues to feel) great.

We continued walking, admiring many fields of flowers.

Eventually we came upon the cafeteria at the deYoung Art Museum — a much welcomed site.  We all were thirsty, hungry, and needed a break from all of the walking (we did start  early on Lombard Street).   Then, while eating, I realized there were references to King Tut’s tomb.

Then I saw the sign.  The Tutankhamun exhibit was at the deYoung Museum.  Knowing mom missed it some years back when it was at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, I decided we should go see it.  We detoured from my plan, and I got tickets to the exhibit.

The corridors within the Museum.

We entered the exhibition, first listening to a short film.  Then we headed into each of the ten galleries that showcased a total of some 130 objects from the tomb of King Tut and other ancestors.  The intricate gold work was jaw-dropping and beautiful.  We looked for Tut’s “death mask” and sarcophagus, but they were not a part of the exhibit.  Then we learned that they aren’t allowed to leave Egypt.  Makes sense. “Tutankhamum and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs” is at the Museum through March 2010.  There is lots of information about the exhibit here and to where it’s going next.

After we finished the exhibit, we didn’t explore the Museum further (something I’ll do again during the next trip), but instead ventured to the Bridge.  The sun was blaring, we did a lot of walking, and then we saw a taxi.  We flagged it down, and off to the Golden Gate Bridge we went.

Next up, the Golden Gate Bridge.

Next up, mom wanted to see Lombard Street, which she calls the crooked street.  We took the Powell-Hyde cable car up, got off at Lombard, and joined a lot of other tourists looking to do the same.  I did learn that Lombard is not actually crooked.  Rather, there is a one-block section off of Hyde Street which has eight sharp turns, like a zig zag.

The weather was clear and beautiful.

It provides for some fantastic views.

Mom and Mike are trudging up the street.  However, they both only went a couple blocks down.  Some years back, Derry and I walked to Coit Tower, up the Tower, back down, and then all of the way up Lombard to Hyde.  As we walked up Lombard, there were times I thought I was going to drop dead of exhaustion.  There were a couple times I nearly started to cry because it was my dumb idea to walk it.  We did make it to Hyde and took the cable car down to the Wharf so I could pig out at In N Out Burger.  Following years we walked up from different areas, but never from all the way on the bottom.  Lesson learned.

I’m happy.  I didn’t walk that far down. Did I mention I learned my lesson?

Everyone passes cameras around.  I took a lot of photos of a couple girls in their late teens or early 20s.  They were having a blast striking all types of poses.  I used their camera, and from what I could see, they should be very happy with the pixs.   I should have also taken a couple with my camera.  Ahh youth!

More great views – looking towards Alcatraz Island.

I tend to go to San Francisco in January, so this is the first time I got to see the flowers in bloom.

I had a long day planned for us, so it was time to get back on the cable car and head all the way down Powell.

We made it to the bottom!

Next up, we walked to Market Street to pick up a bus to Haight Ashbury.

They are both bundled up, but it was actually on the mild side (although breezy on the cruise boat).

In 1969,  some years after the infamous prison closed, the American Indian Movement claimed the Island as their own and stayed until they were forced off  by federal marshall about 18 months later in 1971.  That occupation was an awakening of the American Indian culture and was a step towards the Indian rights movement.

Alcatraz was the location of the west coast’s first lighthouse.  It was also a military fortification and the west coast harbor defense during the Civil War.  The Army eventually turned the Island into a military prison and then into the infamous federal prison until it closed on March 21, 1963.  The Indian occupation was next in the history chain, along with other civil rights movements, until in 1976 it was designated as part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.  Amazing all of the things nuggets of info one learns on these trips!

We initially started walking the grounds, visiting the various outbuildings and the warden’s residence which are weathered, crumbling, and roofless — just the type of structures I like photographing!

In addition to the sea birds, there are also all types of interesting flowers and plants.

Eventually we made our way inside.

Of course the first thing I had to do was goof around and put Mike in a jail cell – complete with his audio headphones on!

The cells are far smaller than I imagined they would be.

The prison is noted for housing some of the most notorious criminals such as Al Capone and Robert Stroud (aka the “Birdman of Alcatraz”).  The saying was “If you break the law you go to prison, if you break the prison laws, you go to Alcatraz.” Alcatraz, or “The Rock.”

Cell Block-D, where Robert Stroud spent most of his time.
The cell blocks are dismal, and our audio tour detailed many stories of dire conditions such as “The Hole,” a solitary sensory deprivation cell measuring 9x5x7 feet located in the D-Block section.

The prison houses less prisoners than I thought – the higest number being 302, the lowest 222, an the average some 260.

While it was all interesting, including the educational movie we watched, I was happy leaving the cells and exploring more of the outside.

The stairs leading to the courtyard.  This was Mike’s favorite area of the Island.

Although there were escape attempts, only Frank Lee Morris and the Anglin brothers in 1962 escaped the institution and the island, although their survival was doubtful.  Escape from Alcatraz is the movie with Clint Eastwood portraying Morris.

While walking around the perimeter of the Island, there were some gorgeous views.

The audio tour also noted that the city view from the upper level of the jail cells were a form of torture because freedom was so close yet so very far.

It’s day two in San Francisco.  Mike, mom, and I are on the cable car going down California St.

California Street never ceases to thrill me.  It’s a main road in town, some five miles or so.  We’re taking it right down through the Financial District.

Another view of California St.  Mom and Mike at the opening of Pier 19.

The Embarcadero.

We walked around the Ferry Building, perusing the various shops and farmer’s markets.

A view from Pier 19 looking at the Oakland Bay Bridge.

Another view.

Me and Mike.

It was a beautiful, clear day but a bit breezy on the Pier.

After strolling along the Embarcadero, next up was a cruise to Alcatraz Island.

There were beautiful views, and it was the first cruise I’ve taken where I wasn’t cold!

A Western Gull.  A little tidbit: Alcatraz is a sanctuary for a variety of seabirds.

And there it is: the Island of Alcatraz.  I’ve seen this island many times, but mom and Mike wanted to visit the Island, and their wish was my command.

On September 29th, my mom, my brother Mike, and I began our journey to San Francisco.  The trip began as a birthday gift to my mom, something I surprised her with back in July.  Mike, like me, has a “big” birthday coming up early November (mine is the end of October).  I decided it would be fun to celebrate all of our birthdays together.  Rich and Bonnie (Mike’s wife) both were very happy with the idea of the three of us going off to celebrate together.

We arrived in San Francisco 10ish, a.m., giving us lots of time to get to our hotel and enjoy the rest of the day.

We stayed at Grosvenor Suites on Pine Street, about a block from Powell, and between California and Bush.  We had a fantastic three room corner suite on the 17th floor with an excellent view.

It’s a great location, close to the Powell and California cable car lines.

After we got unpacked and settled, we walked down to the end of Powell, went to the tourist center where I got City Passes for all.

We then went to Market Street and took the F-trolley to Pier 39 to see the sea lions.

We strolled around, looking at the views of the Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate (plenty more images of those bridges coming soon).

We then meandered over to the Wharf area and ate at In ‘N Out Burger.  Mike, being a huge baseball fan, wanted to see Giants Stadium.  He thus went that way.

Mom and I walked all over, going up the Embarcadero and through the financial district.  Eventually we got the California line up to Powell.  It was a far longer walk than I intended, but it was a beautiful day.  We met Mike back at the suite.

Mike had a surprise for us.  He bought tickets to see the Giants play that evening against the Arizona Diamondbacks.  We took a taxi to the stadium.

It was chilly, and we were all bundled up with several layers on.  I had no doubt it would be mighty cold in the evening.

Here we are before the game started (in about an hour, the gloves and hoods were on).   Mike got us excellent seats in the lower deck area between home and third.  Also before the game, there was a group of people, including Willie Mays, being recognized for various achievements.

A couple times home runs were hit over the right field wall.  Such hits go into an area called McCovey Cove, named after the  Giants first baseman.  It is at the mouth of Mission Creek where it meets the bay.   There are people in kayaks and boats, even with nets, waiting to retrieve such balls.  Each time a home run was hit, we all got a kick out of watching on the monitor  the ball being fished out of the water.

At the end of the very chilly night, the Giants won.  We all agreed that it is a beautiful stadium, and we had a great time. More posts on our trip are coming!

On the Sunday before I left the UK this past September, Derry and I headed to Waterloo Station in London.  Waterloo is a very busy railway station that serves the southwest of England. The Eurostar trains also leaves from and arrives to this station, meaning it links to the Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel, going to Paris and Brussels.

Our train stop was Hampton Court, home of Hampton Court Palace and Gardens.

Located in southwest London, Hampton Court Palace was originally the home of Thomas Wolsey, but is best known for being the home of King Henry VIII.  It offers some 500 years of royal history.  The above image show the Great Gatehouse.

The Court Clock, an astrological clock made in 1540 for King Henry VIII and   located in the second inner courtyard of the gatehouse (also called Anne Boleyn’s Gate). According to the information provided, the clock continues to work and shows the time of day, the phases of the moon, the month, the quarter of the year, the date, the sun and star sign, and even the high water at London Bridge.  Whew!

I’m happy just knowing the approximate time when I look at a clock.

Inside the palace, there are fantastic tapestries.  We were told that at the time of King Henry’s death, there were more than 2,000 of them, including some 200 “gold-rich” tapestries!  The tapestries were made almost entirely by men, including the dyeing and weaving.

I was particularly interested in the conservation aspects, but the textile conservation studio is not open to the public.  I did read that in 1976 the focus changed from restoration to conservation, “Generally, no attempt at replication is undertaken, and all conservation work is reversible and visible to the discerning eye only.”  The prime motto: “Do no harm.”

I also learned that there are approximately 8 acres of buildings consisting of some 70 display rooms that must be cleaned once a week!  Another stat I read: 33 hours a year spent peeling chewing gum from the Royal State Apartment floors! And, it takes three conservators and one electrician to change one light bulb because many of the ceilings are about 10 meters high.

The above left is the ceiling in William III’s apartment; the right is a royal bedchamber. See footnote below.

The above right is the ceiling above Queen Mary’s bedchamber. Somewhere in my notes is information about the other ceilings.  I’ll update this when I find them.

Architecture — the windows, archways, passageways, and stairs –always captures my attention .  I take so many of this type of photo, hoping to incorporate such items into my work.

There are over 60 acres of formal gardens.

The Maze, created in 1702, is part of the North Gardens and considered the most famous maze in the world.  It has 1/2 mile of paths.  We made it to the center!

The “Great Vine” is believed the be the oldest vine in the world.

A nice pix of Derry.

It was closed when we were there.  Being a past member of the Embroiderer’s Guild of America for many years, I would have absolutely loved to see what was going on inside of this Guild, which is the “leading independent educational charity promoting embroidery.”  Next time.

Great day, but I was tuckered by the end of it!  I took a lot of little movies, but mainly to show my mom (she loves that time period and watched an entire season of The Tutors in one sitting!).  Maybe one day I’ll splice some together to add here.  Maybe.

For more information on Hampton Court Palace, visit Historic Royal Palaces.

A footnote:  While we were walking in the Palace, I started having kidney pains.  I have a long history of kidney stones and still have one that hasn’t moved in a few years.  Kidney stones can be incredibly painful, and a couple times in the past,without much warning, I ended up on the ground unable to move pending medical help. Visions of headlines started popping into my head:  “America woman passes out in royal bedchamber” “American woman soils priceless tapestry” and so on. Luckily, no such story to report.

Besides seeing Coldplay, most of the day was spent at the Victoria & Albert Museum.  I love the V&A.

I love the architecture of the building.

The drama in the foyer.  But most of all I love the art.  I visit this Museum every time I’m in London, and I never get enough of it  I am seriously envious of those living in the area who can visit on a regular basis.

“The links between contemporary design, history and the imagination form the background for this beautiful and unprecedented exploration of design art.”

The Telling Tales exhibit runs through October 18th.  If you’re in the area, go see it.  It’s free, as is admission to the Museum, and it’s provocative.

The designers are primarily from the Netherlands and most are under 40 years of age. The work showcases furniture in the spirit of story telling, something also being described as “design art.” Objects included The Honeycomb Vase made in a hive by a swarm of bees that built their honeycomb over a wire frame provided by the designer.  A chair that rotates around a central axis to stretch one chair into another.  The chairs are cast in bronze and uses digitally designed embroidered upholstery.  A huge skull called “Senosry Deprivation Skull” made of fibreglass and sheepskin.  It opens and provides a space for “introspection and medition” or “a place to get inside of your head.”  I found myself absorbing the art prior to recognizing the form’s function.

There are three sections to the exhibit. “The Forest Glade is inspired by fantasy and nature evoking the spirit of fairytales. The Enchanted Castle exaggerates and parodies historical design styles often associated with displays of status. Heaven and Hell is concerned with themes of mortality and the afterlife.”

It was the Heaven and Hell exhibit that particularly grabbed me.  …”works that evoke the universal conflict of life and death, heaven and hell, judgement and salvation … agitated designs that explore our anxious state in troubled times.”  It is in this exhibit where the huge skull sits.  I found myself stuck on “Buildings of Disaster,” pondering the inclusion of certain buildings.

Intrigued?  Learn more about the exhibit here. While photography isn’t allowed in the exhibit (it is allowed nearly everyplace else in the Museum), you can view all of the works from the exhibit, including a description of each.

A new area we discovered is the Theatre and Performance galleries.  Then we learned it was opened earlier this year.  It includes costumes, posters, photographs, and various ephemera related to the performance arts.  Above are costumes worn by Mick Jagger, Adam Ant, and Jimmy Page.  I suspect you can guess who wore what.

The above two images are a  replica of Kylie Minogues’s Wembley dressing room for the Showgirl: Homecoming tour 2007.

A close-up of the work in a stage costume.

A full version of that costume.
The V&A’s website has an excellent guided tour of stage costuming selected from the collection which “demonstrate the art and expertise of the theatre designs and costume makers.”  You can view it here.

A Peter Townshend broken guitar.

A very happy me!

Next up, some images of London at night.

I’ve a thing for clocks!  The above clock that is in front of the Dali Museum has found its way into several of my quilts.

I admit it: I’m very late with this post.  These past couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of activity, many fun events coupled with a lot of work.  During the week, I’m going to make an effort to get caught up.  I start with Coldplay.

On September 19th, Derry and I went to see Coldplay’s Viva La Vida tour at Wembley Stadium in London (our third time seeing them – the first being in Reebok Stadium in Bolton and the second at Earls Court in London).  Besides Coldplay, there were two supporting bands: White Lies – very good; and Girls Aloud, a pop music group made up of attractive women whom I suspect are appealing to young teenagers.

Jay-Z opened for Coldplay.  I had no idea what to expect, as I’m not that into hip-hop.  However, wow, he was excellent.  His new single Empire State of Mind was really good.  He totally rocked the crowd.  What a huge difference between him and the prior group!

And, finally, after some five plus hours of waiting, Coldplay came on.  They opened with Life in Technicolor and went into Violet Hill (one of my favorites, along with 42), then Clocks and what seemed like hit after hit.

During Yellow the stadium filled with huge yellow balloons that danced and bounced throughout the crowd.

They also did a sing-along using the judges of the X Factor (UK’s American Idol, including Simon) to assess the crowd’s collective singing efforts of Yellow.

They surprised the audience by performing Billie Jean, a Michael Jackson cover, at a different area of the stadium, giving others the chance to see them up close.

During Loves in Japan, a zillion butterflies were shot above the crowd and fluttered onto the open arms of the audience.

The show concluded with some fireworks and, as a thank you to the fans, a free CD, although we never saw where they were at.  No matter, it’s available as a free download from their website — Left Right Left Right Left.

Then the 70,000 plus crowd flooded out of the Stadium and partially into the tube station.  The flow moved along , and it was soon enough a memory.  This is my third time seeing Coldplayin England, and it was the best experience yet.

I have much to blog about, but the days are crammed and I’m exhausted by the time it comes to sit down and write.  I’ll be home from travels Saturday night.  Hopefully on Sunday I’ll get some of my written notes finished and up.  I have pictures from Coldplay at Wembley, the V&A, Hampton Court, and my current adventures.  Then, the fun concludes, and it’s back to full time plus work!

It seems quizzes are very common in England.  Pubs, also very common, tend to have quiz teams.  Teams compete with other teams, both with individual question rounds and group rounds, answering general knowledge questions.  In addition to the quiz leagues that generally compete one night a week for the ultimate winner of the season, there are also friendly “quiz nights” in which a group of people get together to answer questions as a team and win prizes for the night — generally chocolates and beer.  Those quiz nights are less formal, as people can be part of a team one week and not another.

Derry has participated in both types of quiz teams for years and is what his quiz mates call “brilliant” at them.   It can be the most esoteric, left-field, odd-ball question and Derry will generally know the answer — not all of the time, mind you, but most.  I am on the extreme other end of the general knowledge spectrum. Derry has been reading me questions from weekly quizzes periodically for years, and I can tell you I absolutely stink at it.  If there is an English monarchy round, I guess, tossing out random Georges and Edwards, a Richard or two.  A round on English football (which we call soccer), I am a deer in the headlights.  I can even be useless at things I should know about.  All of that being said, I will participate in a group quiz if there are no individual question rounds.  Yes, team members immediately recognize that I’m dim, but I can proudly say that each time I attended a quiz during my visit I did get at least one answer that no one else knew.

The Woodcolliers pub.  This picture does the place no justice.

Roger, the owner/manager of the pub and “quiz master” – the person who creates the list of questions, asks them, and moderates.

Derry is also a quiz master for another group. I’ll add that Derry puts a lot of thought into his rounds, including making audio rounds such as “famous guitar solos – name the artist and the song” (I was pretty good on that one!).  Generally while on ichat, he’ll test me with a set of questions prior to presenting them during a quiz.  It’s extremely humbling as I say “I don’t know” more times than I care to admit.  I suspect he asks me his questions to gauge things, as in if I can get at least one correct in a round, then the least knowledgeable person in that quiz should do okay.

Derry and his mom Dee.  She and her husband were in England (both retired and now residing in Spain for most of the year)  and joined us for that evening’s quiz.

Quiz?  I’m there for the steak & ale pie and chips.  And that is why I always bring home a few more pounds (and I’m not talking money) than what I left with.

Except, ewww, a mushroom!

Here we are, studying the pictures for the picture round.  Pints all around, except for me.  I drink J2O, a delicious juice blend which I wish was sold in the states.

A smiling Dave, what a cutie pie! He and Derry tend to form a team each week, with others  joining in when available.

Everyone has note paper onto which they write answers, show the group, and discuss if correct before writing down on the quiz answer sheet.  Except that Derry will often write an answer down before anyone even discusses it because he is 100% sure of the answer.  Can you spell annoying?  My sheet tends to be blank or has lots of doodles on it.  However, my big contribution this week?  David Letterman.  The question:  Something about Tony Blair being on an American talk show discussing bla bla bla.  What was the name of the American talk show?  I said to Derry, Blair was on Letterman a week or so back, but I don’t remember them discussing that.  Then I saw the reaction in Derry’s eyes and immediately knew, daaa, that was the answer!  The other question:  In what city is St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which Derry also knew.  But, I got something!  On my last quiz, I got the answer Bon Jovi to the question who does Richie Sambora play guitar for?  If this NJ girl got that wrong, I should be kicked out of the state!

Not only did they win three rounds (the boxes of chocolates, one box which they donated to another team), but the team was the first prize winners of the night — meaning three bottles of beer.  I suspect Roger gets tired of Derry and Dave’s team winning every week, but then he needs to ask questions that they don’t know the answer to.  Good luck on that one.

He’s happy. His team won.  I’m happy.  I’ve a full stomach and had my big Letterman contribution for the night!  I’ll add that his team won the week prior and the week after I took these pictures.  I came home with some chocolates.  When Rich saw them he asked, “Win at the quiz?”  Well, yes I was on the winning team.

After leaving Caernarfon we drove south to Harlech.  The weather was perfect.  With the angle of the light, the blues and greens glowed.

These images are somewhat out of order, as we were in Harlech first and then continued driving south, stopping at the Llanfar to enjoy the sunset.  This is Llanfar.

Above is Harlech Castle.

As the sun set, we went through Barmouth, headed into the Snowdonia area, and back into the Midlands. Beautiful day!

It’s now back to work for the week.  We’ll see what the upcoming weekend brings.