Ladee's Travels

I am always excited when there is a full moon.  I drove to several places this afternoon to scout out my "ideal spot" for tonight's event.  I have found a new favorite. Pending thunderstorms threatened to block the full moon, but I was happy to be out shooting.  Keeping a positive attitude (not always easy when it is 108 in the desert), I set up the tripod and tested the settings. I was disappointed by the cloud cover in the direction of the moon, but was able to get a few photographs before it was hidden.  The sunset, however, did not disappoint. Here are the photos, in the order that I took them.  Running back and forth from sunset to moonrise!! Thunderstorms on the way in and I was able to catch a lightning strike in the east. Facing the northwest.  The tower is at the Phoenix airport. North east, big zoom, playing with the zoom lens to see what I could get. The virga (the dark thin lines coming down from the cloud...rain!) near down...

What? This (formerly) empty field is on Central Avenue south of Camelback. It was periodically watered to minimize the dust. I met my son at Lux Coffee in the neighborhood when I returned from my Balkan trip to discover that the trees had been moved (crated in the distant background) and the field had been planted. Great use of undeveloped land and likely a better way to hold the dust to a minimum.  Ladee "There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign." Robert Loui s Stevenson

Our last night dinner was held at a restaurant high in the surrounding mountains. This view looks at Sofia.  We got off of the bus and walked a little. This is the entrance.  Benches at the front entrance.  Plaid? Goes with everything! Cold drinks were ready for us upon arrival.  A stack of logs burned in preparation for the fire walkers.  Appetizers Costumes decorated the walls.  Dancers and singers in regional dress entertained after dinner.  We then all gathered around the fire pit for the big thriller. The hot coals were spread around the pit.  Ahhhhhh!! Ladee "There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign." Robert Loui s Stevenson

The blogposts may have the price of food or products. This will help you figure out the cost in U.S. Dollars if you are interested.  Ladee "There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign." Robert Loui s Stevenson

Ever wonder how long does it take to get there?  Here is the info for the Danube River trip. The first column is time at the location, second shows the time in Phoenix.  Ladee "There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign." Robert Loui s Stevenson

I was able to put in a little time geocaching! Ladee "There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign." Robert Loui s Stevenson

Nikola Grujin was the guest speaker at the educational presentation this morning. He covered the history of Serbia and the multitudes of "rulers & conquerors" over the decades. I didn't know what to expect from our tour but knew that it would be interesting.  We started the morning with a tour of the fort on top of the hill.  We went to the public square with the only "man on horseback" statue.  The local technical school had a contest for the best robot statue. Reminds me of "transformers".  (I have several other examples!!) We walked on the pedestrian walkway with cafes and shops to the Magestic Hotel for a drink.  We also visited a church under construction. This was fascinating to see. It is expected to be completed in 20 years.  The main interior area.  In comparison the growth, rebuilding and recovery, we also saw the remains of a targeted bombing. At some point this will be torn down and new buildings will replace it. For now, it is a grim r...