September 29, 2014

Budding Artist in Budapest

As I walked through the book fair being held in the square near St. Matthias Church in Budapest, I saw this sweet little girl who was totally engrossed in her artwork.


"Frame It" texture courtesy of Kim Klassen.

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September 23, 2014

These Shoes Were Meant for Walking?

I have a fascination with other people's footwear choices.  I love spike heels, clogs, tennis shoes - on other people.  For myself, I go for comfort more than style.

This young woman sported high tops.  She was a fellow tourist on our walking tour in Budapest.


"Magic 0916" texture courtesy of Kim Klassen.

September 19, 2014

Hoodie

I came across this hooded falcon in Budapest.  I've never seen one this close up before.  Evidently, a hood is used in the manning process (acclimatizing to humans and the human world) and to keep the raptor in a calm state.  Often it also sports strips of strong leather called jesses on both legs.  Quite stylish, don't you agree?


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Friday Finds
Friday Photo Journal
Weekly Top Shot

September 15, 2014

Bittersweet

We've had a fabulous trip, but all good things must come to an end.

We were blessed with a beautiful day - no rain!  We were on a mission to see as much as we could pack into our last day.

We watched these happy brides and grooms line up in front of the Astronomical Clock to get their pictures taken.


Over to the Prague Municipal Library to view the sculpture "Idiom" created by Slovakian artist, Matej Kren made of numerous books.


We had a hard time finding "Slight Uncertainty," dozens of cement people dangling from umbrellas, by Czech artist, Michal Trpak.  We knew the street name and the building name - but not the address.  It took a lot of back and forth asking questions of passerby's to finally locate the work - an even hard time conveying to the doorman we wanted to see and photograph it too - it all worked out happily in the end.

I had heard of the "Lennon Wall" (think the Beatles) and quite by chance we came upon it after lunch in the Castle District .

We took our first Metro ride to find David Cerny's "crawling babies" on the Zizkov Television Tower.  I think there were 10 babies.  We took the elevator to the top of the tower for some magnificent views of Prague.

Long flight home tomorrow and back to reality.

September 14, 2014

Street Art

It rained off and on most of the day.  The temperature is mild.  The rain was little more than a drizzle - not enough to dampen our spirits.


We spent the day looking for unusual street art.  We saw so much it is impossible to post it all here.

I have no idea who the artist is - but I love this piece.  At first I thought it was for recycling - but the holes go straight through to the ground...

"In Utero" by David Černý

Franz Kafka monument by Jaroslav Rona

When you gotta go, you gotta go.  (This sign is not exactly art, but I was looking for it more often than I care to say. )  We always make sure to have coins in our pockets while out and about here.  The old adage "you get what you pay for" is so true!!


September 13, 2014

Street Scenes - Prague

One of the best things about travel is just roaming around the city - taking in the flavor of the place.  We started out towards The Charles Bridge rather early this morning.

It was quiet on the street.  Everyone sleeping in after a fun-filled Friday night?  That changed - by mid afternoon, the streets were mobbed.


 View of the Vltava River from the Castle District side.

One never knows what sights will be found on the streets.


The weather forecast called for rain - but not a drop dampened our day.  The cloudy skies made it more comfortable to spend the day outside walking up and down cobblestone streets.




September 12, 2014

Beautiful Prague...

After 5+ hours on the train from Vienna to Prague, we were happy to depart the train.  It rained the whole way.  We walked to our hotel (in the rain) which was about 5 or 6 blocks away.  Once we were settled in, the rain stopped.  Oh joy!

We're in the Old Town - not far from the Astronomical Clock Tower which we climbed and took these our first pictures of Prague.

View of rooftops...

Belfries of the Church of Our Lady Before Tyn

Everyone we met on this trip has told us how beautiful Prague is.  We are believers - it is magical.


A straight line...

We visited the Hundertwasser House here in Vienna.  Architect/Artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser.  I love this guy!  He says "The straight line is alien to mankind."  We couldn't actually tour the inside of the house since it is now divided up into residential apartments.  The outside decor is amazing.  Across the street is Hundertwasser Village - which is basically a tourist trap filled with the usual things you would expect to find there.  The WC was an experience - so colorful.  I love the fact that he created art everywhere inside and out - it just makes me happy.




We also visited Belvedere Palace- filled with totally different art - but I'll save that story for another day.

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Friday My Town Shoot Out
Friday Finds
Friday Photo Journal



September 11, 2014

rainy day in Vienna

It's been raining all day.  Everyone is out and about wearing rain gear.




We slipped into the "White Chimney Sweep" restaurant for a quick bite - very tasty!




I hope it clears up soon.  This is our last day in Vienna.  Tomorrow we train to Prague.

We have tickets for a classical concert tonight.  I'm looking forward to that.

September 10, 2014

Budapest 2

I am way behind in posting to my blog.  We've been very busy and having a great time.  The internet connections have been sloooow making blogging a chore.

We joined a walking tour while in Budapest.  Our guide Julia told us that tradition says if one rubs the balls of the Hadik Andras statue, it would bring one luck and good fortune.  Despite the fact that I was the oldest woman on our tour, I was the only person willing to climb the statue for a rub.  It must have worked because things are going along quite nicely on this trip!


Saturday is a big wedding day at the Basilica - we saw at least 4 bride and grooms parading around the square.


We attended a performance by the Danube Symphony Orchestra.


Waked from the Pest side over the White Bridge up a gazillion stairs and winding paths up to the Citadel.


Half way up...

View of the Pest side - you can see the White Bridge below us.

This monument sits atop the Gerard Hill with the Citadel behind.

Budapest has so many things to see and we hope to see them all...


September 7, 2014

Budapest

Buda and Pest are fantastic places to visit.  We didn't have as much time to see all there is to see because of the flight problems we experienced getting here.  Alas, we leave tomorrow for Vienna.

This photo shows the view from our hotel of the sunrise here in Budapest.  You can see St. Stephen Basilica in the background.



We have walked miles and miles here, eaten well and enjoyed concerts too.  I'm still uploading photos to Dropbox and plan to post more about our journey here...once we return home.  I've already lost track of what day it is - how is that possible?!







September 2, 2014

a walk on the beach...

“The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea.”
--Isak Dinesen

Original photo edited in Adobe Lightroom; Topaz Lab filters; texture and brushes added in Photoshop Elements 11.

"Frosted" texture courtesy of Kim Klassen.

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