Mark and Elizabeth

Sayulita, Jalisco. . . January 2011

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Muy rico, muy sympatico, muy breve

Images Along the Malecon

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Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco

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From our temporary home above old town, we walk steep cobblestone streets to the local bus stop. At 8am the bus is packed, mostly workers, standing room only. Up along the cliffs it's a rough ride. The end of the line is Boca de Tomatlan, a tiny village. Pelicans above the beach soar while a fisherman lets out his nets. A delicious lunch of mahi mahi on the beach while men & boys load fruit onto boats for points south. Water taxis come and go.

On the Mighty Mississippi

2009-10-08T07:31:00.000-07:00

Mark is Lock and Dam Operator, Army Corps of Engineers, Lock and Dam #1 since July. Overlooking the lock at St. Anthony Falls from our balcony inspired him to get even closer to the river. Peregrine falcon and mink nests, a film crew in two canoes beginning a trek to New Orleans, barge traffic at 3 am, a riverboat of rowdy revelers prompting the captain to have police meet the boat when it arrived at the lock. . . life on the Mississippi. Earlier this summer we crossed the mighty waters at their source in bare feet at Itasca State Park.

Housesitting in California

2009-01-08T10:14:00.001-08:00

Not knowing a lot about our home for a month, we flew to California to take on a dog and a cat for a housesit in a city we've never explored. We realized Northern California is cold, grey and often rainy in January, but Minneapolis is colder. We've traded the snow and below zero temperatures for a few new challenges. We love warming ourselves by the fire in the den, our Shelty is faithful and obedient, our kitty sweet but shy.
"Expect nothing, live frugally on surprise." -- Alice Walker

Northland Winter

2009-01-05T10:59:00.001-08:00

One kind word can warm three winter months. ~Japanese Proverb

Antisthenes says that in a certain faraway land the cold is so intense that words freeze as soon as they are uttered, and after some time they thaw and become audible, so that words spoken in winter go unheard until the next summer. ~Plutarch, Moralia

Christmas in the City

2008-12-18T10:45:00.000-08:00

We're happy to be home surrounded by family and friends.

Happy Holidays and a Blessed New Year to all!!

Paris, Je t'aime

2008-12-18T07:15:00.000-08:00

We arrived by fast train, coming out of the station in a taxi turned the corner to see the Tour Eiffel. . . our apartment a few blocks away near the Seine. . . the D'Orsay, L'Orangerie, Monmartre, Sacre Coeur

Traveling by Metro or on foot, Paris is still the most romantic city on the planet.

Chinon and the Loire Valley

2008-12-01T20:21:00.000-08:00

Achingly beautiful and tranquil, the gite (or farmhouse) where we stayed outside of Chinon. The food was impossibly delicious, the wine free-flowing, the Loire valley evocative of long-past eras of kings and queens, intrigue, the foundations of stories and the history our civilization is built upon.

Summertime

2008-12-01T19:35:00.001-08:00

Spring passed by in a jetlagged blur, renting on the river in Marine on St. Croix, then housesitting again at the graceful mansion in Kenwood. . . feeling vulnerable and rootless, the desire for a place of our own became irresistible -- we found ourselves renting a condo in Minneapolis with a view of all the bridges on the Mississippi. Amazingly grounding to see our old stuff emerge from the depths of our storage locker, and then, zoom, off to France to meet David and Barbara, Mark's brother and sister-in-law, for another adventure.
The view from our balcony -- Elizabeth's watercolors of summer still life

Ayutthaya, ancient capital of Siam

2008-07-18T10:14:00.000-07:00

Our friends Kik and Simon took us to Ayutthaya, Kik's home town. We visited her family home and had a spontaneous Chi Gong lesson from her very much in shape 70-year-old father who does Chi Gong every 15 minutes all day. We saw the temples that were covered in gold when the city of up to a million inhabitants in the 14th-18th Centuries was a destination from all parts of the globe.

Below,the Summer Palace, where the elephant topiaries were Kik's playground when she

went with her school to welcome dignitaries with their songs

Magical Chiang Mai

2008-07-18T09:40:00.000-07:00

From shamans dancing in the park, to Philip and Dao's orchard retreat,to a mountain temple with golden Buddhas, Chiang Mai was a magical moment

Bali, Indonesia

2008-04-19T21:06:00.000-07:00

In the Indonesian archipelago, the island of Bali. White and black sand beaches, jungle ravines, rice fields, Bali is a graceful dream. Hindu, in a Muslim nation, descended from artists, priests and musicians who came from Java to Bali in the 15th century. A mellow time with friends Frank and Lynn who graciously invited us to share their villa for a week.

The People of Cambodia

2008-04-02T06:06:00.000-07:00

ANGKOR WAT CAMBODIA

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ANGKOR WAT "the city that became a pagoda,"
the capital of the Khmer Empire for over 500 years, 800-1300AD.
A million people lived here then,
one of the great and remarkable civilizations of Asia.

In the midst of the jungle, ruins of temples rise out of the mist,
over 60 square miles, large deep moats, still with water, long narrow
causeways into these temple compounds, where Hinduism and Buddhism coexist, in earthly and otherworldly harmony.

Bangkok, Krung Thep, "The City of Angels"

2008-03-19T22:16:00.000-07:00

Mark is consulting on an exhibit for UNESCO and the National Science Museum of Thailand and we are living in the center of Thailand's megalopolis. The Guinness Book of Records registers Bangkok's name as the world's longest name for a capital. It can be translated "the city of angels, the great city, the residence of the Emerald Buddha, the impregnable city, ...the grand capital of the world endowed with nine prescious gems..." It is also a city built on and around canals, with 5.7 million vehicles and less than 5% of its space for roads, about one-fifth the percentage of most American cities. We live in a quiet soi two minutes from one of the busiest corners and most popular night street food markets in the city. We travel on the back of motorcycle taxis driven by men in orange vests, by Skytrain, tuk-tuk, taxi and boat. The most incredible beauty exists inextricably interwoven with poverty, squalor and the evidence of years of wear and tear and pollution on this once graceful city.

We miss the children of Shanghai, and the fulfillment that came with teaching them, but our life here and work with UNESCO are great growth opportunities.

Some Bangkok children

Hangzhou, "not a city on Earth to compare"

2007-11-05T04:56:00.000-08:00

So said Marco Polo when he arrived in Hangzhou shortly after 1279 when Kubla Khan moved China's capital to Beijing.
We found Laughing Buddha with big pockets carved into the hills along a stream . . . cycled around West Lake -- visited Ling Yin temple with thousands -- an escape into the peace of the ancients all around us.

Second Shanghai Moon

2007-10-19T20:21:00.000-07:00

The moon is waxing again in Shanghai, its thumbnail outline appeared in the sky as I was biking in the 6 pm darkness a couple days ago. We celebrated Mark's birthday on the 38th floor above Tomorrow Square, looking out on the city and People's Park.

A typical street scene, with all the contrasts between old and new.

Sights of Shanghai

2007-10-14T03:33:00.000-07:00

We have been in Shanghai for a month -- an amazing and fascinating place. Longua Temple was our unplanned destination Friday. We set out on our bikes for People's Park and the Shanghai Museum, but took a right turn and followed Zhongshan Lu instead of Ya'Nan for miles!! But the thriving temple, with many Buddhist devotees lighting incense and praying to the many statues was more than worth the trip.

We can post images to the blog, but we can't see our blog -- no access from China!! Our whole school turned out Thursday
for this performance on the athletic field -- they do these exercises every day, and it was awesome!

This morning our Tai Chi teacher let me film him teaching Mark, which will help both of us practice. We love our teacher, and
Tai Chi. Shanghai continues to fascinate and delight us every day!!

These are our neighbors, Vila and Lois, taking us on a bike ride to the library. Vila and her husband Owen invited us for dinner the other night, as their first foreign guests we were very honored. And we had lots of laughs with them, they are so openhearted and friendly!!

Golden Week in Shanghai

2007-10-05T01:41:00.000-07:00

SHANGHAI DISPATCH 1

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Arrived in Shanghai late at night, came into the center on an elevated road, we could look down into layers of Bladerunner landscapes lit by the strange Chinese neon. Somehow we found a quiet neighborhood, surrounded with trees, gated community, but two blocks to 6000 noodleshops, just walking the street is mind blowing. So many visual feasts, thousands an hour. Actually it seems less polluted than Buenos Aires and less traffic, it may just be this little neighborhood in this part of town. Haven't seen much of this city yet.

Got an apartment for 600$, very cool place, 6 rooms, marble floors, birdseye maple cabinets, windows, 5 floors up. No elevators -- nice as any place I have ever rented. Went through the maze and opened a bank account and reported to the police, as all foreigners must. To say Shanghai is booming is a wild under statement.

Have stumbled into some very good food, everything we have eaten has been 100 times better than any Chinese food back home. Went to this little street open air market nearby to buy a rug, and saw tubs of eels, and small turtles, and tubs of colorful fish to eat, and 10,000 other things I could not describe. People coming up on bikes to buy a bag of turtles for soup. Just wandering this neighborhood will take a lifetime.

We are fortunate we have a beautiful school in a less busy part of town. The students are beautiful, challenging, we will need every bit of wit we have to keep them interested and enthusiastic! They are amazing and bright and we are enjoying the humor and freshness and moment-to-moment challenges of doing this.

The typhoon missed our part of town, and has been downgraded to a tropical storm, blowing in some fresh air. Just walking down the street in the rain, we look at each other and know how lucky we are.

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Life in the City

2007-08-21T15:35:00.000-07:00

Living in Minneapolis this July and August, housesitting for friends in a beautiful three-story home near Lake of the Isles.
The art here is spectacular and we adore our 3rd floor garrett apartment! We're loving seeing the kids so often and being so close to them and the family. Proximity to the Walker -- the Picasso show -- the Lagoon and the Uptown Theatres, we've seen Herzog's latest, "Rescue Dawn", "Manufactured Landscapes", "La Vie en Rose", and "Broken English. Not to mention "Sicko". All recommended.

We're packing for Shanghai, leaving mid-September, to teach English to seven-to-10 years olds for three months. Wow!
What have we gotten ourselves into? 上海育伦教育集团!!!!!

Wild and scenic

2007-07-31T09:09:00.001-07:00

Pine Needles cabin, our two-room home overlooking the river at Marine on St. Croix. Mark, the Artist in Residency, creates his Book of Heron. We are surrounded by family and friends -- fresh air, tranquility, beauty. . . . so much to be grateful for!!

At dusk, from the canoe, we see heron, deer, racoon and otter, their secrets revealed in the twilight.

The Sacred Valley of the Incas

2007-05-27T08:16:00.000-07:00

Peru is a colorful dream, everyday amazing things happen to us. After tiny dark cabins in the eucalyptus forest, we splurged for 2 days on a beautiful hacienda for 55$ a night, and the owner was the head archaeologist for Machu Picchu in the 80´s-- he came to talk to us for three hours after cafe con leche about the history and vibration of the stones, and the soul of these white granite mountains, and the spirit world that is meshed with the architecture, the living Quechua myths, the spiritual truth of the Andeans compared to the educated world of truth, how fluid truth is, heady conversation, left us in a daze of wonder.

This valley is the heartland of the Inca, feels good to be here, this little town is tourist free right now, just us, there is a festival going on, fire works at 6 am, fermented corn beer flows, the Quechua here are celebrating the harvest, it´s going now into the late fall-winter, dark at 6pm, and some patron Catholic saint day, the combination of two spiritual truths. The mountains here are like the energy of the ocean, tall straight up to the sky, with clouds dancing beneath the snow capped peaks, they feel alive. The Inca knew they were alive, this is where the gods and the mother earth connect.

We got on a local bus today, VW van, with 20 people on board, most in their native dress, and their wild colorful peruvian hats, each village has its own style of hat, the driver kept stopping, we couldn´t possibly get any more in, and we keep stopping, we went 15 miles for thirty cents. We were so packed in the driver had to get out and help us puzzle out the door. Tonight we are in a new village, Ollayantambo, the streets were laid out by the Inca, in 1450, and it still is the same village and streets, straight, all stone, with a water trought down one side, 8 feet wide.

Machu Picchu

2007-05-12T11:59:00.000-07:00

We are staying at the base of the steep sheer cliff mountains of Machu Picchu, with the beautiful Urubamba river flowing by. A four hour train ride from Cusco through valleys, jungles, snow-capped peaks brought us to Aguas Calientes -- this is one beautiful country! The sacred valley of the Incas. Our hotel Gringo Bill´s gave us the best room with a view of four mountains and the funky little town with visitors from all over the world. At 6 am we awoke and took the shuttle bus up unpaved switchbacks to the site of Machu Picchu before most everyone and had it almost to ourselves. The low morning clouds sometimes obscuring everything, then shifting, transforming and revealing this awesome sight through the mist.

So filled with energy and beauty, the perfection, the spiritual intention of the architecture, the magic fills you. It took 100 years to construct but it´s impossible to imagine. By 9 the clouds lifted and Mark was way up on the summit of Wayna Picchu, the mountain behind Machu Picchu, seeing everything from 360 degrees, and I was exploring the ciudad Machu Picchu alone, finding an incredible picture around every corner. It is a dream come true to be here!!

Later that evening we find a French Peruvian fusion restaurant and have the best meal of the entire adventure, local trout with a sauce we can´t identify but tasty and spicy, quinoa-stuffed peppers and Peruvian potatoes, you just have to eat potatoes in Peru.

PERU!!!!

2007-05-12T09:00:00.000-07:00

May 1 we arrived in Arequipa, charming second largest city in Peru. We stayed at ¨La Casa de Mi Abuela¨ or the house of my grandmother, and it was an oasis nestled at the foot of snow-covered peaks but only 5 blocks from the main square of Arequipa --

the adventure to see the condors in the Colca Valley followed -- here is Mario with our driver Carlos and Mauricio, our guide. . . .

and one of the fantastic condors

The Tango

2007-04-19T06:02:00.000-07:00

Mario and I asked a friend to photograph this closeup of our feet while doing the tango -- muy divertido!

Street art in Buenos Aires is everywhere, and unbelievably good! This couple performed in the square in San Telmo for pesos that they collected in a hat after the performance.

Last nite we saw over-the-top salsa performed on the boulevard Florida, with a huge crowd and anyone who cares to joining in! Maybe we can catch it thru our pores, and salsa and even tango one day with hip-swaying, feet flashing, twirling spinning dipping ease . . .

The Delta to the Rio de la Plata

2007-04-16T17:30:00.000-07:00

Our escape from the metropolis to the Delta and the Hosteria Los Pecanes lost us in a maze of backwaters that go on for miles and miles. Mark captures the charm of cyprus trees and the little inn in a watercolor . . . .
The only guests, we lapped up the peace and quiet, the only disruptions the antics of the four dogs who had the run of the place, dozens of hummingbirds, or one of the wooden boats dropping mail or supplies on the dock.

Ana, our hostess, fed the hummingbirds three times a day, and wild turkeys from her hand thru the kitchen window.

A watercolor from Elizabeth's journal.

The Artist at Work in Buenos Aires

2007-04-09T14:24:00.000-07:00

Mark has been awarded a position as Artist in Residence for the month of June in a beautiful little cabin on the St. Croix river just down from William O'Brien State Park. We will be living there. He will be doing water colors, creating journals out of the flora and fauna in nature. Hopefully this will lead to other Artist in Residence positions. This program is run by the St. Croix River Research Station.
Here in Buenos Aires, Mark is drawing and painting the city, starting with some nice street scenes of the city.

A Student! and A Holiday

2007-04-09T13:50:00.000-07:00

We have been hired by an organization called Small World to teach English here in Buenos Aires.
We'll be tutoring individual students, and I(Elizabeth) met my first student, Francisco, on Thursday and
had a two hour lesson with him on Friday. He is about our age, and has very good English, enough so
he can carry on a conversation about politics and philosophy. He is a delight, teaching me a lot about Buenos Aires and
Argentina. He thinks the US is a very successful culture, that this Bush Presidency will go down in the history books as a very black period, but that he sees a change for the better coming soon! Encouraging words!

On another note, we celebrated Easter in San Telmo with the portenos and here are some of the scenes we enjoyed.

Recoleta - Evita Peron's Final Resting Place

2007-04-04T13:11:00.000-07:00

Another rainy day we spent at the somewhat disturbing but awesome Recoleta Cemetery, where people still make the pilgrimage to Eva Peron's crypt. We saw these fresh flowers laid at her grave. The gray skies, the rain on our umbrellas seemed like a fitting background as we visited this place where marble angels and gargoyles stand watch.

San Telmo in the rain

2007-04-04T06:44:00.000-07:00

San Telmo is the flea market, antique shops, sidewalk cafes and street performers. . . .and even in the rain it was crowded on a Sunday afternoon! We had a great time with Hans and Sash, and this tango street band was fantastic!!

The View from 19G

2007-04-01T07:25:00.000-07:00

We moved to Retiro, downtown Buenos Aires. We are enjoying the view, and our weekend guests Hans (who has just visited his vineyard in San Rafael to the west) and his son Sash, who flew in to see his dad from NYC.
Today the four of us are off to explore San Telmo.

Frigata Sarmiento

2007-03-31T14:27:00.000-07:00

This beautiful sailing vessel circled the globe 40 times between 1899 and 1938, and over 23,000 Argentine naval cadets and officers were trained on her decks and in her engine rooms. We visited the ship that is now docked in the harbor at Puerto Madero and has been made into a fascinating sailing museum.

100,000 strong

2007-03-27T16:25:00.000-07:00

Saturday, March 24 we found ourselves in the main square in the midst of some 100,000 porteños protesting the takeover of the government 31 years ago by the military coup responsible over the next decades for the deaths of tens of thousands of Argentinians. They are "The Disappeared" -- almost every family in Buenos Aires has a connection to one who has disappeared. This march protests the coup and is in honor of them.

Buenos Aires has many fabulous art museums, native son Ernesto "Che" Guevara is immortalized here at the MALBA Museum of Contemporary Art. We're reading Che's The Motorcycle Diaries, about the young doctor's trip with his friend Alberto thru Argentina, Chile and parts beyond. The nickname "Che" is actually a term used to identify an Argentinian guy, and he often makes sure he is overheard calling Alberto "che" so that people they meet know they are from Argentina.

And on a lighter note, today porteños are very fond of their dogs, resulting in a common sight being the "paseaperros" or professional dogwalkers, here two of them and their charges.

Puerto Madero/Along the Waterfront

2007-03-26T07:26:00.000-07:00

Saturday afternoon we took the subway to El Centro and walked to Puerto Madero -- the newest barrio in Buenos Aires, along the waterfront. We walked the cobblestone promenade fronting four dikes that lead from the harbor -- passing upscale condos in reclaimed brick buildings, sidewalk cafes lining the cobblestone walkways.

The boy points to the fantastic pedestrian bridge that is supposed to represent a couple doing the tango. It was built mostly in Spain, cost $90 million US and rotates 90 degrees to let water traffic pass.

Primera Semana en Buenos Aires

2007-03-17T09:15:00.000-07:00

From our balcony in Palermo Hollywood to Parke Tres de Febrero to Microcentro and back - 13,888 steps logged on our longest walk - our first exhausting and amazing week in Buenos Aires. . . .

Buenos Aires

2007-03-15T18:01:00.000-07:00

Hola, Buenos Aires, we have arrived! More later

Warm Winter Happenings

2007-02-26T10:56:00.000-08:00

Many eventful days and so much love we have experienced in the last few months. We are grateful for all our family, friends and all the blessings.

February Snowcone

2007-02-24T18:15:00.000-08:00

With snowstorms in Minnesota, we leave next week for autumn in Buenos Aires. We're counting on remembering what we learned in CELTA -- thankfully in November and December we had practice volunteer teaching English. Our students were from Afghanistan, Liberia, Nigeria, Brazil, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Somalia. It was a privilege to work with such courageous, amazing people.

At Home in Marine on St. Croix

2006-11-11T18:32:00.000-08:00

Renting a beautiful place on the river, have loved our time with family and friends, holiday celebrations ahead. Most important is anticipating with joy the wedding celebration of our daughter Emily to Blake next weekend. . . .

We are arranging a place to volunteer to tutor English for the next month and a half, and have tickets to Buenos Aires in January, where we plan to teach English, learn more Spanish, and experience the wonders of that South American culture and people.

Adios Southwest

2006-10-18T12:15:00.000-07:00

Santa Fe, city of sights and many delights, museums, restaurants, shops, magical mountains and beautiful sky . . . . seeing a film of Georgia O'Keeffe still vibrant at 89 years, her iconic face graced by wrinkles that seemed supple somehow . . . . a full moon, a little camping cabin, on to Colorado.

Earthships, Earth dwellings, 21st Century Taos

2006-10-06T14:54:00.000-07:00

Taos is a place that's hard to wrap your mind around. We stayed right in town at the beautiful bed & breakfast inn called the Posada de Taos, with people from as far as Argentina, and as close as Albuquerque. A peaceful, quiet spot, a base to explore bookstores, art galleries, museums, wabi-sabi stores, bombarding our senses from many directions.

Our last night in Taos we spent in the middle of the desert in an Earthship -- the model of sustainability in dwellings, built of recycled tires stuffed with sand, recycled bottles and cans, and finished with adobe. Solar powered, with collected water in cisterns used three times, first for drinking, then washing and plants, then plumbing. We walked the desert that night looking up at the big sky with the designs of Earthships resembling Spaceships more than anything else. The moon was waxing, near full. . . . next stop Santa Fe.

Amazing Taos

2006-10-05T19:49:00.000-07:00

Taos . . . . the pueblo that continues its traditions into the 21st Century, Tewa people reclaiming their land and living the culture of sustainability centuries before it hit the radar of those who came to threaten their peace. . . . the light and air that drew artists and writers to this land, and continues to draw visitors such as ourselves to experience its beauty.

The Road to Taos

2006-10-05T19:34:00.000-07:00

Along the road to Taos, situations and characters materialized --
encounters we can't explain. . . .or don't want to.

Mesa Verde Mountain Camp

2006-10-03T09:35:00.000-07:00

Four beautiful 80 degree days, and 38 degree nites camping in Mesa Verde!! Climbing up and down canyons, up ladders 32 feet high with nothing but 2,000 feet of canyon behind us -- the awe of being inside these ancient dwellings was an experience worth every bit of imagined hardship (and sheer terror, if you are afraid of heights like me [E.])!!!! We studied the star charts by day and by our campfire and the light of the half moon found Ursa Major, Cassiopeia, Arcturus and Draco the Dragon.

Canyon de Chelly

2006-10-02T10:40:00.000-07:00

Canyon de Chelly has been home to the Navajo continuously for hundreds of years, and its peacefulness and beauty totally enchanted us. We hiked to the bottom of the canyon -- a two and a half mile roundtrip journey, and spent a couple of hours there writing, drawing.

Camping the Grand Canyon

2006-10-02T10:22:00.000-07:00

We arrived in the Grand Canyon and saw this elk, saw a coyote walking across the highway, and heard coyote thru the tent walls at night. Next morning walked to the edge of the Canyon at dawn, where people from all over the world were taking photos and marveling.

LA BLUES, AZ REDS

2006-09-23T20:26:00.000-07:00

Left Waikiki for LA -- had a fabulous time with Mark and Barbara from Mark's art school days. They live outside of LA in a Frank Gehry house that he designed for them c. 1988 it's a great house in an incredibly beautiful setting.
Came down with colds that struck in force about the time we reached Las Vegas. Now we're in Sedona, putting off camping but tomorrow may take the plunge. We have all the gear...it's about time....

More CELTA Memories

2006-09-17T00:43:00.000-07:00

A rainbow covered the whole hill behind Kapiolani as we left our school, CELTA certificates in hand.

Last Week of CELTA

2006-09-17T00:21:00.000-07:00

Our last week of CELTA training was eventful and unbelievably beautiful. Our teachers and fellow students surprised us with a chocolate cake on September 12, our third wedding anniversary, and gave us a book with their pictures and some personal notes....we taught our two last classes in "new language" (code word for grammar) and language skills, turned in two 800 word papers each. Then on Thursday night we began celebrating at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel with our teachers and our fellow classmates. Friday we had a party for our students from Japan, Korea and Russia instead of the usual classes, and taught and learned card games and other games from the different countries we all represented. Kimiko had a barbeque on Friday nite, complete with leis for us, her teachers, and a wonderful celebration with all of our students. We have been very blessed, and to think that we're not going to be at 1601 Kapiolani Blvd on Monday morning at 9 am with all the people we've spent the last fabulous four weeks with is bittersweet at best. We've been stretched beyond what we thought we might be capable of, teaching from our second day out, spending almost every waking minute either teaching, studying or writing papers...6 and 1/2 days a week -- but it's hard to break away, it's been so enriching.

Homework Week

2006-09-03T16:50:00.000-07:00

There's a lot happening this week, mainly centered around school and writing two papers of
about 800 words each, going to school on Labor Day, (since Cambridge requires a 20 day course),
and of course the usual: Waikiki, sun, rain, palm trees, surfers, our next door neighbor out on his
balcony stoned and rapping using the typical lexical set of hip hop slang while we study proper grammar!

The highlight of our week was going out dinner with Atsushi, our classmate from Japan, who teaches
English in Okinawa.We ate at the Royal Hawaiian in Waikiki with a short trip to happenin' Chinatown
for First Friday art crawl nite. The three of us walked home barefoot along the ocean in the moonlight,
feeling the cool silky sand of Waikiki between our toes.

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Further Adventures in Waikiki

2006-08-27T15:05:00.000-07:00

Mark has been telling me that one of his big dreams in life has been to surf, and that he thinks he may be a natural, possibly a new career. He took lessons last Sunday. On his 8th attempt rode one gnarly wave. I haven't seen him since.

2006-08-21T20:09:00.000-07:00

Room With a View

2006-08-21T19:59:00.000-07:00

We moved into the 16th floor of an apartment hotel two blocks from the beach. We have a wonderful balcony that looks out onto the surfers at Waikiki. We walked down to the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, the light pink hotel from the 1920's and had a Mai Tai and looked out on the sunset and the hundreds of people walking by from all over the world. Later we walked down the beach and into a hula festival featuring dancers as young as 8 years old. Their Hawaiian teacher, a grandmother who played the uke had a gorgeous smile on her face as she sang and her students performed. The Aloha spirit of love is everywhere.

Look closely at the surfers on Waikiki. The next blog installment will include photos of someone you will all recognize surfing.

Aloha Kauai

2006-08-18T15:46:00.000-07:00

Our last days on Kauai were spent at the magical Fish Shack, a one room shack with outdoor shower 20 feet from the waves. Funky perfect. We explored the East Side, saw the documentary film Of Wind and Waves about Woody Brown, who learned how to fly with Charles Lindbergh, set an altitude record for gliders, invented the first fiberglass surfboard and designed catamaran.
Oh, also he was a pioneer big wave surfer in the 1950's and surfed until he was 90, he's now 94 and on tour with his documentary. Worth seeing!

The beautiful Hawaiian owner of Da Fish Shack befriended us. On our last morning, she brought her mother-of-pearl inlaid ukelele and sang in Hawaiian, a song she composed. Another magical moment in our journey. That was our Aloha to Kauai.

Watercolors and walks

2006-08-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

Mark painted this watercolor looking in a mirror wearing a fresh lei that he got when we checked into the Bali Hai Villas. One of a series of self-portraits Mark has been doing for the last several months.

We hiked yesterday on the Napali coastline -- a beautiful day in the sun! It rains frequently there, as we could tell from the muddy portions of the trail (which were very slippery, climbing over boulders and up and down steep inclines!) It was a two mile hike from Ke'e Beach near Hanalei to "Secret Beach" up and down a mountain and then back in the afternoon sun another two miles! A great workout.

Last night we had a great dinner overlooking the mountains, ocean and sunset listening to some local jazz. It was our last night in Princeville. Now to our next place called Da Fish Shack. On the ocean with outdoor shower only.

The picture of the buddha on the tombstone is from an old Japanese cemetery on the South side of the island. This was an ancient cemetery with incredible Japanese characters chiseled into stone. It was hauntingly beautiful. Elizabeth painted the watercolor from the picture while we were here in Bali Hai.

Next week we move to Honolulu.

North Side of Kauai, Week Three

2006-08-10T23:54:00.000-07:00

Today we visited Kilauea Lighthouse, a bird sanctuary and the lighthouse that saved the first flight from the continental US to Hawaii when it overshot the islands and nearly was lost in the middle of the Pacific. Then, watched some surfers on a beach near Kapa'a, checked out some Fijian tapacloth in a bookstore called the Tin Mailman, and bought our first Noni juice, which will cure us of all ills, or so we now are convinced. Have a whole file of papers "tasks" to go through before starting class August 21, going to have to buckle down soon. Or, ?

Happy Birthday David!

2006-08-09T11:23:00.000-07:00

David is 24 years old today, a son we are so proud of! He returned from two and a half years on his own in Seattle, cooking, running, taking courses at Seattle Community College and generally having a fantastic adventure in the Northwest. Now he is catering at the Como Pavilion for weddings and banquets, tending bar, and contemplating school in the fall.

At 6:30 this morning walked along the ridge overlooking the Napali mountains. Cooler without the sun up, palm trees, birds of paradise and hibiscus in hedges(!). Got rained on (of course), dried off, sun came out with a fantastic double rainbow. Jumped in pool, ready to start the day. We have only 1 week before class to finish 4 grammar books! Yikes!

Third week of the journey

2006-08-08T23:52:00.001-07:00

Walking the beaches, today the Napali coast. It rains, it's sunny, it's windy and it's still, all in the same day, every day. Hard to figure out what to wear, but usually flip flops and bathing suit are ok. Yesterday we went to Kapa'a and stumbled into a Tahitian hula contest -- lots of drumming, wild costumes, shaking hips and then a deluge of rain!

We're learning how to travel together, taking time together and time alone. Harwood Benton III gave a delightful watercolor class we took last week -- we each did a watercolor using the same techniques and elements, as you can see (can you guess whose is whose?).

Mark thinks he bought the most beautiful and unique Hawaiian shirt "known to man" and encouraged Elizabeth to wear her Hawaiian lei as shown...We each received a lei for attending a timeshare lecture in order to get a free $100 dinner. Unfortunately, we bought the timeshare, making the dinner less of a deal. But, fortunately, we came to our senses, cancelled the timeshare and now our grandchildren and greatgrandchildren will not inherit a week every other year in Hawaii at the Hanalei Bay Resort! But who knows, someday soon if there's another dinner opportunity, there could be more weeks per year and better deals.....

Ginger plant

2006-07-26T19:45:00.000-07:00

waterfall on the Eastern coast of Kauai

2006-07-26T19:34:00.000-07:00

Kauai bamboo

2006-07-26T19:20:00.000-07:00

Aloha! We are slowly acclimating to the time change and atmospheric changes in our surroundings! Aloha spirit is everywhere, and we have swum and snorkeled in the ocean on the North side of Hawaii at the start of the Napali coast, eaten some fantastic ahi, enjoyed the company of Myles and Ann, our friends from Northfield. Today we toured one of National Geographic's 50 must-see destinations (or so we were told and can believe), Allerton Garden, 110 acres of tropical botanical gardens, and the place where they found the dinosaur eggs in Jurassic Park.