Beijing, China - Temple of Heaven (Video)

Another iPhone video.. I use these videos to make panoramic photos.  If you are receiving this in an email, click on the post title to go to the actual blog to see the video.

China - Great Wall Memorial (Video)

This are is next to the Great Wall. The bamboo pieces with the red string were each unique. And yes, that is a replica of a terra cotta warrior at the end.

If you are receiving this in an email, click on the post title to go to the actual blog to see the video.

China - Great Wall (Video)

Yep. It is awesome.

If you are receiving this in an email, click on the post title to go to the actual blog to see the video.

Mobile Video Test

Denali Park, Alaska.

Dalian, China - Locked Lock (Video Part 2)

This is part of the story about our visit to the Chinese family home in Dalian.  Click here for the entire story.



Video needs to be viewed from the Internet. Click on title.

Dalian, China - Locked Lock (Video Part 1)

This is part of the story about our visit to the Chinese family home in Dalian.  Click here for the entire story.

You need to view this from the blog.

Dalian, China - Hostess Interview (Video)

This is our delightful hostess from our visit to a Chinese home in Dalian, China.  Our translator was very helpful, as we would have been lost for most of the conversation.  The hostess's warmth and good nature were very evident.

This is part of the story about our visit to the Chinese family home in Dalian.  Click here for the entire story.



Notes from original post:
This is a brief interview with our delightful hostess.

You will need to click on the title of the blog post to see the video on the Internet if you receive this by email.

London - Royal wedding videos

I don't know about you, but I have seen the video of the William and Kate wedding multiple times.  Here is a sampling of the videos taken in Hyde Park with 100,000 people.  I hope to share the emotion of the crowd as they witnessed the wedding.  Hyde Park was set up with three large screens, a great sound system, rows and rows of Port-a-Johns, and a huge semi-circle with food booths. It was a festive event!

The crowd is quiet and listening to the vows, followed by cheers.

Vienna - Cafe Griensteidl

Time for a break and there is a great place to sit, take in the 5PM "Kaffee und Kuchen" (coffee and cake), and watch the world walk by.  You will see a mix of tourists and locals walk by this location.

Vienna - St. Peter's Church (Peterskirche)

This post has several videos.
Following Rick Steve's Vienna City walking tour, we stepped off of Graben to tour St. Peter's Church.  The text in the travel guide did not prepare me for what I was about to see, although you can see that there is fair warning.

Leopold I also ordered this church to be built as a thank-you for surviving the 1679 plague.  The church stands on the site of a much older church that may have been Vienna's first (or second) Christian church. Inside, St. Peter's shows Vienna at its Baroque best. [Steves] [emphasis added]

The church is squished in a side street.
Normal and not too flashy.

Vienna - Stephansdom (St. Stephen's Cathedral)

After all of the churches and cathedrals that I have visited on this trip, St. Stephen's Cathedral did not fail to provide a breathtaking view of yet another fabulous cathedral.

An interesting comment about the reconstruction is on the wikipedia site.

The most visible current repair project is a multi-year renovation of the tall south tower, for which scaffolding has been installed. Fees from advertising on the netting around the scaffolding were defraying some of the costs of the work, but the concept of such advertising was controversial and has been discontinued. As of December 2008, the majority of the restoration on the south tower has been finished, and most of the scaffolding removed.

Read more about this fabulous cathedral on wikipedia.

The church was heavily damaged during WWII.  

A gate was drawn across this section, probably
in preparation for the upcoming Mass.
I stretched through it and took these
photos.  This is a high resolution photo,
so click on it to see it in greater detail.
This immense nave is more than a football
field long and nine stories tall. [Steves]

 The nave is lined with clusters of slender pillars that soar upward to support the ribbed crisscross arches of the ceiling.  Stylistically, the nave is Gothic with a Baroque overlay.  It's a spacious, glorious venue that is often used for high-profile concerts.  [Steves]

The organ.
High resolution photo also.

The floor

Ceiling detail

Pillar Statues: The nave's columns are richly populated
with 77 life-size stone and ceramic statues, making a
saintly parade to the high altar. [Steves]

One more task to take care of before I leave.

It was a beautiful cathedral. 

Rick Steves offers a great walking tour of the Cathedral in his Vienna book.  The majority of the Cathedral was closed at the time, but I would return to see the remaining portions closer.

Vienna – Staatsoper (Vienna Opera)

Tram #2 was the direct route from the apartment to the StaatsOper (Vienna Opera).  The outside of the building was nice, but did not tell about the beauty that was to be found inside.  I saw the place where you line up to by the standing room only tickets, which are quite a deal at 3 euro.  You can go for one act, or as long as you want to stay.  As luck would have it, there was a tour in English in 15 minutes. Tours (6.50 euros) are the only way that you can get in the building further than the lobby.  The tour was a great idea, very informative, moved at a great pace to be able to take photos and hear all of the details.  I sometimes came up to the back of the group after lagging behind to take pictures.  There was another American woman in the same boat…we agreed that we would take the photos now and look up the details on the internet.  Great plan!

Statue of Goethe in nearby park

Berlin - Unter den Linden - Fun street entertainment

This group entertained the outside diners at Einstein's.  They were really good and I was mesmerized watching them work together. At first I thought, oh great, someone else wants change.  Well, after watching, I dug out a handful of my coins and contributed to their entrepreneurial team.

Rick Steves - Berlin information in book and digital format. (affiliate link)

Paris - Chez Francis

Tina and I stopped for dinner at Chez Francis after our long walk to the Eiffel Tower and boat ride on the Seine.  Actually, "long walk" puts it mildly.  I told Tina that I would map out our journey for the day, and here it is.  Our path took us to Place Vendome, through The Tuilleries, Musee d'Orsay, Rodin Museum, Les Invalides, Eiffel Tower, Place d'Alma (where we took the boat ride on the river), then to Chez Francis.  Links to all of the blog details for these other places are listed at the bottom of this post. Click (or double click...one or the other will work) on the map to see it a bit larger. Then you can appreciate this little stroll.  Tina thought that we had walked 57 miles, but I think that she was being just a tad bit dramatic. It was a very agressive agenda today, and turned out to be a bit much. We took the Metro back to the apartment.  Good idea!

A good meal, and then we were delighted with the Twinkle light show.

The Google map gives you an idea on the location.

Snazzy menu cover

A peak at the menu. Tina ordered fish and chips
and I had the Penne rigate, tomatoes and basillic.
Keep in mind that the listed prices include
tax and tip, the great view, and the table
for as long as we want to sit at it.

I ate one penne per minute so that we could
stretch our table time over an hour and hold
our grand seat for the Twinkle.

Tina could not resist the creme brule.
I think that this won "best in category".

Tina said "Did you pick this place intentionally?"
When I looked up and saw the Eiffel Tower,
you bet that I took full credit for the great seats.

Links for the stops on the long walk:
Click here for Musee d'Orsay
Click here for Rodin Museum
Click here for Les Invalides and the church
Click here for Spring at the Eiffel Tower.
Click here for the Bateaux Mouche boat tour