tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65723829955785593872024-03-18T21:44:06.128-07:00Love 2 TravelDana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.comBlogger182125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-61378752508825841282013-04-13T15:25:00.002-07:002013-04-13T15:33:33.360-07:00Busch Gardens: Behind the Scenes!<br />
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My husband flew to Tampa and picked us up from the cruise to stay in the Tampa area for a few days. On Monday, we headed to Busch Gardens. When we stopped for breakfast, we saw this cute little guy!<br />
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They make a little feather "animal" for the cheetah to chase using feathers from the park.</div>
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At this point, she was turning around! What a stop!</div>
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And, after playing, she got to enjoy a drink... but she's ever watchful!</div>
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Scott and her dad rode a lot of rides and I rode a few, too. I love the speed setting on my camera! </div>
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It got both the cheetah shots and this fast-moving roller coaster shot! </div>
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They are the 3rd from the back row.</div>
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Another of their rides. Alex LOVES these rides that just keep dropping you, though she found lots of roller coasters to love at Busch Gardens!</div>
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Next, it was time for our behind-the-scenes orangutan and tiger private tour. </div>
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What an incredible experience! It was just the 3 of us with a guide for 1.5 hours....</div>
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Going "behind-the-scenes" into the Orangutan House...</div>
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With the orangutans, we got to see how they train them with simple hand signals. Most of the training is so they will present various body parts for medical exams. Even a female orangutan is (if I'm remembering correctly) 4 times stronger than a human, so they really need their cooperation!</div>
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Here I am giving the signal for the orangutan to put his ear to the glass. We did these exercises with two orangutans and then got to feed them through the tube there under my elbow. </div>
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We just dropped in pieces of fruit!</div>
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And here is one of the trainers with their "smartest" orangutan. He's having her present </div>
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her belly where they can do things like use a stethoscope or an ultrasound! </div>
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She even did a cartwheel and a handstand at Alex's command!</div>
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Next we visited the tiger house..</div>
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This tiger was working on a retrieval command. There was a large stick in the water and he was supposed to jump in and get it. He preferred using his paws to try to get it to come to the side!</div>
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And this tiger needed its blood drawn. The lady near the head was feeding "meatballs" to the tiger to keep him occupied. The two ladies at the tail were trying to draw blood from the tail... the safest place to draw from! Unfortunately, they weren't able to get any blood at this time, but they didn't want to tire the tiger so they would try again later.</div>
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And, here I am using a bouy-on-a-stick to show this tiger where to put her head. This is also a training so they can observe various parts of the tiger's body for medical purposes.</div>
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And, our last stop was to go out in public to feed the 3 tigers on display. Alex chose a white tiger and was inside the glass area. She had a little tube she would drop the meatballs into - just like we did with the orangutans. My husband had a similar set-up.</div>
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But me? I was on a bridge and had to throw the meatballs over the moat and onto a little rocky ledge where my tiger was. I'm really not a good throw, but I made it to the tiger every time!!! There were about a dozen meatballs, and on the next-to-last one, the tiger tried to catch it in his mouth. So, I decided to aim for his mouth with the last meatball... and we did it!!! He caught it in his mouth!!</div>
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When we got back to our hotel for the night, we saw this cute little guy hanging out by the trash bin.</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-59799266640989424372013-04-03T11:24:00.000-07:002013-04-03T11:24:26.023-07:00Wet & Rainy Roatan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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When we woke up on the morning of our excursion to Roatan, an island of Honduras, we were thrilled to see the rain forest! And, both of our days in Mexico had been very flat. So, seeing the lush hills was quite a site! We were ready for our day... of ziplining & then playing with some monkeys!<br />
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After a lengthy checking in process, we headed up the hillside. And, once again, it started raining. We were sad to see the poverty that was so abundant. But, the people we passed seemed very happy.<br />
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There were different types of tours which were in line to go down the multiple ziplines. Our group was the very last one. And, by now, it was raining pretty hard. Alex and others were getting quite cold. There were more than 100 people in front of us as we waited to start our journey down. But, in the end, the cold & rain got too much for us and we asked for a bus back to the starting point.<br />
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That was quite a disappointment! The day before was supposed to be our first zipline experience, and we hadn't even made it to our port. And now, we missed our second chance! We were dropped off under a large pavillion and started to dry off and warm up.<br />
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At first we were just going to go back to the ship. But, the rain quit for awhile and then we just had sprinkles off and on. So, we decided to go and see the monkeys!<br />
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We were at a place called Gumbalimba Park. I didn't realize we would go on a tour and see a lot more than monkeys! We walked through the rain forest and saw hummingbirds, and waterfalls, & then arrived at the Insectarium. This little cave had a nice assortment of insect displays and insect facts.<br />
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Then we went into another cave where there were murals on the walls telling the history of Roatan. And, in the middle, was this relief map of the island. You can see Gumbalimba Park (in yellow) on the far west of the map. And, on the south side, a little to the right of the middle of this photo, you can see Mahogany Bay where our ship made port. The history of the island was very interesting complete with invaders, pirates, and buried gold!<br />
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Next, we headed to a rope bridge to cross over to the monkeys. As we started across, we saw 3 iguanas! They were quite large and all lying on branches sunning, I guess. I was thrilled to see them!<br />
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And, we could hear... and then SEE... scarlet macaws flying through the sky!</div>
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Time to cross Pirate Bridge... 5 people at a time!</div>
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I walked with one hand on the rope and the other taking photos. Near the end of the bridge the planks were farther apart and I'm glad I noticed before I had a problem!<br />
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On the other side of the bridge are the macaws. There are scarlet macaws and military macaws (which are green with blue tails). A man was holding this scarlet macaw and would let you take photos with it on your shoulder or on your arm.<br />
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My turn!</div>
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We were warned that, with the rain, the monkeys might not come out. But, after we were there 5-10 minutes, someone saw a monkey coming through the trees! We were told she was the alpha monkey and that all others would follow her. (I think there were about 13 in the group.) And, the alpha had a baby!!! Can you see it's little hand?!?</div>
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With a little encouragement, the monkeys would jump on our shoulders... or heads! The mommy with her baby jumped on me!!! It was such a neat feeling!!!</div>
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And then the mommy was coaxed onto Alex's shoulder with a little drink.</div>
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We were told not to bring anything, or even wear glasses, because the monkeys would steal things and take them up to the trees to play with. As you can see, this little monkey stole someones Gatorade. I'm sure it isn't the best thing for a monkey to drink, but he sure did look funny! He would drink some - and spill a lot! And, then he'd wipe his face on the tree. When he was done, he just dropped the bottle down on the forest floor!</div>
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We left down a different path and I got a photo of the Pirate Bridge we'd crossed earlier.</div>
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Alex and her friends in our beautiful yellow raincoats as we walked back to the pavillion. <br />
It's time to leave the RAIN FOREST!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-87098396009481345852013-03-27T17:57:00.001-07:002013-03-27T17:57:35.884-07:00Cruisin' Mexico<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WZ5zL6-7NBU/UVOGW_2PLgI/AAAAAAAAJPY/6iqlMaCC6sk/s1600/IMG_3595.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="512" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WZ5zL6-7NBU/UVOGW_2PLgI/AAAAAAAAJPY/6iqlMaCC6sk/s640/IMG_3595.JPG" width="640" /></a>Because of the propulsion issue, we ended up making two stops in Mexico.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A dolphin experience we watched in Costa Maya, not Cozumel where we did ours.</td></tr>
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When I get our disposable camera developed, I'll tell you more about our first stop in Mexico: Cozumel. We started with a dolphin experience where, besides the 'normal' dolphin encounter, you also got a "pull" (hanging on to her fins) and a "push" (using a boogie board and her pushing on your feet... what a thrilling ride!) After the dolphins, it started raining really hard and getting cooler. We did walk around some Mayan sculptures, visit a Mayan hut where we sampled fresh tortillas, and watch our friends come in on their glass bottom kayak adventure. We also had a nice Mexican buffet. But, we ended the day early because of the rain and cold.<br />
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Although the cruise line put together some last minute excursions, we decided to not take any in our second port of Costa Maya. Instead, we went with our new friends - Jill and her college-age daughter, Natalie. We first visited the high-pressure shops and Alex bought some sunglasses which she needed. Then we climbed this tower. There wasn't a lot to see, but we could see our ship!<br />
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Natalie went back to the ship while Alex & Jill hung out in beach chairs and I visited the tide pools that were right there at our port! I LOVE tide pools and enjoyed exploring these. I found several chitons which are mollusks with hard plates. They are about 2 inches long.<br />
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Dozens of shells - probably hermit crabs?</div>
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A little bitty sea urchin!!! I believe this is my first in a tide pool. It was smaller than a marble!</div>
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This is what I believe is a piece of coral. It was about the size of my hand. </div>
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Gorgeous! And so fragile looking! It reminds me of a leaf skeleton.</div>
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And, a little striped fish that got caught in the tide pool.</div>
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A self-portrait by the tide pools. You can see our ship in the background!</div>
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Alex & Jill relaxing by the ocean.</div>
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After this, Jill headed back to the ship and Alex and I found two hammocks! We had the BEST time hanging out in these! I could have stayed for HOURS, but we hadn't put on sunscreen because we thought we'd just be shopping for awhile.</div>
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Just relaxing! (Alex loves to take angled photos... they do turn out neat!)</div>
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And, a zoomed-in view of Costa Maya from our balcony. We took that little red trolley back. You can see the flag that I took a photo of, the yellow tower (behind the orange building) that we climbed, the shops (brownish triangular roofs) where we shopped, the beach (in front of umbrellas) where I looked at tide pools, and right behind the umbrellas were the hammocks where we laid out.</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-42627412522455359082013-03-27T16:29:00.003-07:002013-03-27T16:29:38.302-07:00We Were "Stranded in the Caribbean"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
Yes, we traveled on one of the Carnival ships that experienced difficulties recently. For Spring Break, we flew to Tampa, Florida to set sell on the Carnival Legend cruise. Our 7-day cruise was to visit four places: Cozumel (Mexico); Belize; Roatan (Honduras); and Grand Cayman. However, after our first stop at Cozumel, the ship just sat there... </div>
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We ended up leaving 1.5 hours later and didn't think too much of it. But, the next morning, we learned we were having "propulsion issues" and our ship was not able to go at top speed. So, instead of reaching Belize for our 2nd day on shore, we stopped for a second day in Mexico - this time in Costa Maya which is about 120 miles south of Cozumel.<br />
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After Costa Maya, we did make it to Roatan, Honduras for our 3rd day of excursions. Later that day, we were told they were unsure if we'd make it to Grand Cayman or Belize for the 4th day on shore. But, then, we got the disappointing news that we wouldn't be stopping anywhere - we were headed back to Tampa.<br />
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Carnival did compensate us for our messed up travels. We received $100 per person to spend onboard or take home. And, we received vouchers for 1/2 off our next cruise! There are guidelines, though... like it has to be 7 days or less and take place in the next 2 years. <br />
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Will we travel with them again? Maybe. Alex is eager to go on another one next year with some of her new friends. But, for now, I think we'll wait and see what happens on future Carnival cruises. I hope they get all of their problems fixed quickly!Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-19161280434818548342013-02-27T18:33:00.000-08:002013-02-27T18:33:37.121-08:00Images of a Baltic Sea Fortress<div style="text-align: justify;">
While visiting Finland, we took a ferry tour out to the island sea fortress of Suomenlinna, "fortress of Finland." This fortress was originally built by Sweden starting in 1748. In 1808, the fortress was surrendered to Russia during the "War of Finland." And, after Finland's declaration of independence in 1917, Suomenlinna was officially a part of Finland starting in May 1918.</div>
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Part of the island fortress.</div>
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A seagull that flew alongside us during our ferry ride.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBQjj972_jezzSRtb4vgf_zkd1R_40drss2S6bKsEYAqkEoaAuYBVE6qefGuAV7_gdYghFpGf6YMQZL64TU3JegxN2pknxu52y35-zI-9fjbFQqEdcrDYO2eXh_CKPwToHOewBAiXUCuH4/s1600/11-022+Suomenlinna.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBQjj972_jezzSRtb4vgf_zkd1R_40drss2S6bKsEYAqkEoaAuYBVE6qefGuAV7_gdYghFpGf6YMQZL64TU3JegxN2pknxu52y35-zI-9fjbFQqEdcrDYO2eXh_CKPwToHOewBAiXUCuH4/s640/11-022+Suomenlinna.JPG" width="640" /></a><br />
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This is Neck, a Nordic water spirit. According to tradition, he lived in the sea and parents used him to scare children to keep away from the water. He could also attrack people with his magic songs. He is now a 'guide' at a museum on the island fortress.<br />
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This poster is showing the channel of Sarkaa during the Crimean War. An underwater obstruction was built here to keep ships from passing through the channel.<br />
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The fortress island has museums, shops, boat docks and more!</div>
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In this building, they were building a boat!!!</div>
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And I loved this paint-splattered floor.</div>
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There were LOTS of baby geese! Some of them as big as the mamas & papas!</div>
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And, I loved this old building...</div>
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And this one, too.</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-71456932556917184222013-02-19T19:32:00.004-08:002013-02-19T19:32:57.475-08:00Helsinki & the Lutheran Cathedral (Finland)<div style="text-align: center;">
We only spent one full day in Finland and most of it was on the fortress </div>
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island of Suomenlinna. But, I'll start by blogging about Helsinki itself.</div>
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This is what Helsinki, the capital of Finland, looked like as we flew in. The city is on a </div>
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peninsula in the Gulf of Finland, which is an arm of the Baltic Sea. </div>
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We arrived during the night so this was our first view of Helsinki in the morning. </div>
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We walked to our first stop of the day...</div>
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Senate Square. Helsinki was founded here in 1640 and, according to a sign, this area has been the 'centre of the city ever since.' Also, according to the sign: <em>Finland was for centuries a part of the Swedish Kingdom. After the war of Finland in 1809, Finland was ceded to Russia as an autonomous Grand Duchy. Helsinki became the capital in 1812. The city centre was rebuilt and gradually assumed its present look. Finland became independent in 1917.</em><br />
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This morning, bands were practicing for a concert this evening. It was </div>
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for the "2012 Helsinki: European Athletic Championships."</div>
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Looking over Senate Square is the Lutheran Cathedral which was finished in 1852. </div>
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It was built as a tribute to the Grand Duke, Nicholas I, the Tsar of Russia. </div>
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(The previous photo of the stage was taken from the top steps shown here.)</div>
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The cathedral was built in neoclassical style which can be recognized by: </div>
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tall columns, symmetrical shapes, triangular pediments, and domed roofs.</div>
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The gorgeous organ!!!</div>
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That evening... the concert was ON and the crowds were OUT!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-61685480690410453912013-02-17T05:45:00.000-08:002013-02-17T05:45:01.134-08:00Paris: La DefenseOur last hotel in Paris was the Hilton in La Defense, the business district of Paris. It is also at one en of the historical axis ("Axe historique") or the Triumphal Way ("Voie Triomphale").<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a class="image" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Paris_Axe_Historique.gif" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" height="92" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Paris_Axe_Historique.gif/1000px-Paris_Axe_Historique.gif" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Paris_Axe_Historique.gif/1500px-Paris_Axe_Historique.gif 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Paris_Axe_Historique.gif 2x" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">image from Wikipedia</td></tr>
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At the other end is the Louvre. And, in between are places such as the Arc de Triomphe, Champs Elysees, and the Luxor Obelisk. <br />
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The large monument in La Defense is this large, cube-shaped arch known as the Grand Arche which was completed in 1989. It was built as a monument to humanity and humanitarian ideals. My brother and daughter are climbing the many steps in this picture!<br />
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And, here's a picture of the Grand Arche from the distance. On the left side, close to the arch, is a mall called The Four Times (or "Les Quatres Temps"). We shopped and ate here as our hotel is just to the right of this monument.<br />
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And here's the view (zoomed in) from the top of the steps of the Grand Arche. You can see down the busy street of Champs-Elysees to the Arch de Triomphe.<br />
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On our last morning in France, we split up and I took a photo walk while the others shopped. Here's a better view of Champs-Elysees and the Arche de Triomphe. I really wish we would have went to the top of the Arche and looked back towards La Defense!<br />
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A very neat looking water-fall.</div>
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An interesting sculpture.</div>
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A self-portrait (& I did do a little shopping... for sweets! Ha!)</div>
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I played with my camera's settings... a black & white with the colorful fountain in front and the Grand Arche in the back.</div>
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Images of buildings in a building (in b&w).</div>
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Another self-portrait with another setting...</div>
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And the "Carrousel; Jules Verne". This was so amazing with the beautiful artwork!</div>
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I tried to read it when I got home, but had trouble sticking with it. I loved these images though!</div>
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And, with that, we left Paris... and France...</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-19681148738802316912013-02-16T18:06:00.001-08:002013-02-16T18:06:05.322-08:00A Paris Cruise: Bridges & MoreWe got caught in the rain on the day we decided to take a cruise down the Seine. In Paris, there are 37 bridges over the Seine. Each is unique and we enjoyed seeing a handful of them.<br />
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But, before we get to the bridges, here's a view of the Eiffel Tower on this rainy day.</div>
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And this is Pont Alexandre. (Pont is French for 'bridge'.) It was built between 1896 and 1900 for a world's fair. It is named for Tsar Alexander III of Russia and his son, Nicholas II, laid the first stone. It features art nouveau lamps and <em>Nymphs of the Neva</em> with the arms of Imperial Russia (double- headed eagle). On the other side would be <em>Nymphs of the Seine </em>with the arms of France.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JHOp4zB5Q6o/USAHg-RsJFI/AAAAAAAAI84/x5Sav5IAd7A/s1600/09-044+river+cruise.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JHOp4zB5Q6o/USAHg-RsJFI/AAAAAAAAI84/x5Sav5IAd7A/s640/09-044+river+cruise.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The golden winged horse is also part of Pont Alexandre. The building with the glass roof is known as the Grand Palais (which we did not visit). This was also built for the Universal Exposition, or world's fair, of 1900. Today, it often hosts art exhibitions.</div>
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This building was also finished in 1900. It was originally a terminis for the Paris-Orleans Railway. It now houses the Musee d'Orsay which <a href="http://love2travel411.blogspot.com/2013/02/musee-dorsay.html">we visited</a> on a different day.</div>
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A couple on the bridge of "love locks" which <a href="http://love2travel411.blogspot.com/2013/01/a-walk-around-paris.html">we walked across</a> on another day. </div>
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I think this image looks so Parisian! Maybe they were putting on their own lock?</div>
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This is Pont Neuf, which means "new bridge". However, it is actually the oldest bridge crossing the Seine in Paris! King Henry III laid its first stone in 1578 and it was completed in 1607 under Henry IV! There are almost 400 of these faces on the bridge. Each of them unique! They are called "mascarons" which is Italian for "mask."</div>
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More mascarons on Pont Neuf.</div>
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This bridge is the Pont Saint Michel which was built by the request of Napoleon III. </div>
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A view of Notre Dame from the 'back' showcasing the flying buttresses.</div>
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This bridge is the Pont de Bir - Hakeim which has two levels - a lower one for vehicles and pedestrians and an upper one for the Metro. I believe this statue is called "Labor" </div>
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by Jules-Felix Coutan.</div>
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This is the same bridge with the Eiffel Tower in the background.</div>
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And, after we got off the boat, we came across this... the "Flamme de la Liberte"! It is an exact replica of the flame held by the Statue of Liberty which was, of course, a gift to the United States from France!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-75933530947654486352013-02-13T19:11:00.001-08:002013-02-13T19:11:15.448-08:00Musee d'Orsay<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a class="image" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:MuseeDOrsay.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" class="thumbimage" height="160" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/MuseeDOrsay.jpg/600px-MuseeDOrsay.jpg" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/MuseeDOrsay.jpg/900px-MuseeDOrsay.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/MuseeDOrsay.jpg/1200px-MuseeDOrsay.jpg 2x" width="600" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outside of Musee d'Orsay - photo from Wikipedia</td></tr>
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We visited several art museums while in Paris, including the Musee d'Orsay. This was one of our favorite art museums, though we didn't have much time here. We saw only a fraction of it - and we'll just have to go back some day!</div>
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We started out with lunch at the restaurant. It was gorgeous!</div>
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You aren't allowed to take photos in the exhibits, but many people take a photo like this from one of the upper floors. We saw works by Cezanne, Degas, Gaugin, Monet, Renoir, Seurat, and Van Gogh. </div>
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Alex and I spent quite a bit of time looking at these 'puppets' from a display about the Chat noir Shadow Theatre. As the name implies, these figures would make shadow figures and stories were told in that way.</div>
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And, isn't this a great one?</div>
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The museum is built in an old railway station and has several gorgeous clocks - including this one.</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-36197470458604685892013-02-08T06:00:00.000-08:002013-02-08T06:00:09.262-08:00Visiting the Gardens of VersailleI don't remember if we did something else in the morning, but by the time we got to Versailles via train from Paris, we only had a few hours to look around! The line to get inside the palace was very long, so we chose to just walk around the gardens instead. Some day, I will go back and tour the palace! <br />
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Our first view of the palace.... so much GOLD!!! And, the cobblestones... OUCH!!!</div>
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The first fountain inside the palace gate.</div>
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We are very close to the fountain, right behind the palace. I think practically everything you see is Versaille's Gardens! Amazing!</div>
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A view back towards the palace and that original fountain.</div>
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It was a beautiful day as we walked around. And besides the beautiful fountains, flowers, columns, and landscaping, there are a lot of statues! And, there is beautiful classical music playing over the speakers. I loved this! It really added to the atmosphere.</div>
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These are marble columns off to one side of the main pathway. It was my favorite place, </div>
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with many small fountains all around a central fountain.</div>
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Another view... with Alex.</div>
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I was playing with the fish-eye setting on my camera and liked how this turned out. When we first saw this fountain, at the back of the gardens, the water was spounting. But, each fountain is only on during certain times. Beyond this, you can see a 'lake' which is actually more like a city park and not part of Versailles. </div>
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Another 'fish-eye' photo taken from the same spot (near the back of the gardens) but looking back towards the palace.</div>
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Me in the gardens with the palace behind me. (Basically the same spot.)</div>
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A beautiful, tree-lined walk off to one side.</div>
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This is beyond the gardens into the 'public' area. You can see people boating and </div>
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there were a lot of bicyclists riding by. I wish I could have joined them!</div>
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Loved this photo of the fountain with the trees behind them... just wish </div>
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I would have waited until there weren't people walking by. Still, gorgeous!</div>
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A closer look at the cobblestones... we had to walk a long way on these!</div>
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After the gardens, we stayed in the city of Versailles to eat. Alex didn't like the outside cafe that the others chose, so we headed to McDonald's! W had a Croque McDo! We had several croque sand-wiches while in France - basically a grilled ham & cheese but the cheese is usually on the outside.</div>
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We also had nuggets with some great sauce!</div>
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And, while we waited for the others to finish, Alex used our French phrase book to </div>
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translate the name of a nearby restaurant. It was a lovely day!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-51215961264502883632013-02-07T18:23:00.004-08:002013-02-07T18:27:00.467-08:00A (Scary) Visit to the Eiffel Tower<div style="text-align: center;">
Of course, we visited the Eiffel Tower while visiting Paris!</div>
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A great view of the tower.<br />
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We heard the lines were long, but were shocked to see lines lasting about 2+ hours! We watched these people 'dancing' in a circle under the center of the tower. It was the summer solstice and we believe it was some kind of religious activity.</div>
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As we waited in line, I took a few photos of the gorgeous ironworks.</div>
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Alex and I decided to leave everyone else to their long wait... and CLIMB to the top! (An image of Gustave Eiffel on the stairs.) There are two levels you can visit. We would climb to the top one, and then climb back down to the first one where everyone else would meet us.</div>
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This is a view of the Seine River during the climb up.</div>
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We made it to the VERY TOP!!! 668 STEPS!</div>
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A view of the Seine River from the top.</div>
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A recreation of Gustave Eiffel's office on the top deck.</div>
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s we looked around, it started to get dark. It was approaching midnight!<br />
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The Versailles Gardens has a firework show a couple of times a week. </div>
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We could see the fireworks off in the distance.</div>
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By now, I believe we were back on the lower deck. We'd been separated from our family for several hours... and we couldn't find them ANYWHERE! I was getting really nervous. The tower closed at 1 am, if I remember correctly, and it was approaching that time. There were not many people on the tower walking around, and I debated on what to do.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sparkling light show that takes place at 12 & 1 am (I believe)</td></tr>
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I finally decided we should take the elevator down and that, hopefully, we'd find our family. But, they weren't at the bottom, either! It was very late and dark out. We ended up talking to a guard and asking if we could stay near him until we found our family. He didn't speak English very well, but at least I felt a little more secure. I was starting to make plans for how we'd find a taxi... it was not a pleasant thought. But, thankfully...<br />
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My family finally showed up!!! They had went to the VERY top (which hadn't been their plan) and had got stuck in a very long line for the elevator. We had caught a ride from the lower level. We were so very thankful to be reunited!!! And, we all caught a ride and were happy to get back to the hotel. We' been at the tower for about 5 hours. We were thrilled to be reunited!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-5832644182798568522013-01-21T07:04:00.000-08:002013-01-21T07:04:45.879-08:00Visiting L'Orangerie in ParisThe l'Orangerie was one of several art museums we visited while in Paris. A museum of Impressionist art, it is best known for its two oval rooms that each house 4 large murals of Monet's water lilies or <em>nympheas</em>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image of Monet's water lilies at l'Oragerie from Wikipedia</td></tr>
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As much as I enjoy Monet, I didn't enjoy these rooms that much. Maybe I was just tired of water lilies! We'd seen them at several museums already... and seen the<a href="http://alexml.blogspot.com/2012/07/do-you-recognize-this.html"> 'real thing'</a> at <a href="http://alexml.blogspot.com/2012/07/more-photos-from-monets-gardens.html">Giverny</a>!</div>
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After you left the two oval rooms, one of the first displays was this series of two dioramas. This diorama shows a model of the study of Paul & Domenica Guillaume and the museum houses their collection. You can see, on the wall, miniature recreations of some of the paintings in the museum! I recognize at least one Picasso.</div>
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I like this one even better. On the wall you can see a couple of Degas' works and several by Cezanne. And, if you look in the mirrored doorway to the left, you see the hands of the photographer... me!</div>
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My three favorite works of art at this museum were all by Renoir. This one is titled "Gabrielle et Jean." Gabrielle was the "beloved nanny" of the Renoir children and she was often painted by him. Jean is one of his sons. I just loved the image of them happily playing together.</div>
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What I loved most about this image of another of Renoir's sons, Claude, was the story behind it. Evidentally, Claude did not want to wear the tights. His father ended up bribing him to wear them!</div>
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And, I love this painting of two young girls at the piano. I have played the piano for over 30 years and used to play and sing with my sister and with my best friend, Jill. It also reminds me of the best piano teacher I ever had - she had a cross-stitch of this painting (actually, there are multiple versions of this subject) hanging over her grand piano. These are fond memories brought back by a painting!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-11229582829764274462013-01-20T16:42:00.000-08:002013-01-20T16:42:12.150-08:00A Walk Around Paris<div style="text-align: center;">
After visiting Normandy for three days, we spent some more time in Paris...</div>
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Arc de Triomphe... It was so windy & cold this day that we didn't actually walk across the street circle to visit the memorial. This was as close as we got!</div>
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A detail of a freize from the Arc de Triomphe showing General Marceau's funeral.</div>
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We spent a little time on the famous Champs-Elysees lined with luxury shops and cafes. </div>
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Again, it was so windy & cold that we didn't last long!</div>
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The Beautiful National Academy of Music.</div>
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It was lined with busts of famous composers, like Betthoven and Mozart!</div>
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This is the rotunda roof of Galeries Lafayette, an upscale department store that is about 7 stories tall.</div>
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This is one of the views from the roof! There are a few benches up here and a lot of people just lying around enjoying the day. We enjoyed sitting on a bench and enjoying the view.</div>
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We walked through the Tuleries Garden which is by the Louvre. From here, we could see down part of the "historical axis of Paris." The obelisk is the Luxor Obelisk and it's Egyptian. Behind it, you can see the Arc de Triomphe.</div>
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And, this must be how they keep the grass in the ditches in the Tulleries Garden down.' We saw this goat and were shocked. Then we saw that he was tied up here, and figured out he was the lawn mower! Looks like he needs to get busy!</div>
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This is a view of I.M. Pei's glass pyramid at the Louvre - through another triumphal arch. </div>
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This one is called the Arc de Triomphe du Carroussel.</div>
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Another view of the outside of the Louvre.</div>
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And, these are "love locks" on a bridge over the Seine! There were probably thousands of locks!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-18311394157000533412013-01-19T16:55:00.002-08:002013-01-19T17:01:14.004-08:00Visiting Mont St Michel: An Island Abbey<div style="text-align: center;">
I was not familiar with Mont St Michel when my brother said we should visit it while in </div>
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France. But, I got very excited about visiting it after doing a little research!</div>
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This was one of our first views of Mont St Michel which has been a pilgrimage site for over a thousand years. Can you imagine walking for weeks, and then watching this gothic silhouette soaring to the sky as you got closer and closer?</div>
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Today their is this causeway for visitors to walk across. But, that is a relatively recent addition having been built in 1878. The Abbey used to be an island when the tide was high creating a hermitage of solitude for the monks who lived here.</div>
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Here is Alex, ready to enter through the gate into the abbey. Yes, we drove for several </div>
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hours instead of walking for days. But, even from the parking lot you walk 20 or 30 minutes. </div>
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(On the way back, we caught a bus for part of the trip.)</div>
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When you begin the LONG CLIMB up the streets of Mont St Michel, you see a lot of shops.... </div>
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and people! It is very touristy! But, remember... even in the Middle Ages these streets were lined</div>
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with shops selling food and memorabilia to the pilgrims!</div>
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As we climbed higher, we got our first view of today's pilgrims. We were visiting at low tide which is, of course, the only time it is possible to make this trek. It is actually a part of the Mont St Michel experience I was wanting to do, but we didn't work it into our schedule.</div>
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Can you see the groups of people as the walk towards the abbey? Again, this takes place at low tide and has to be carefully planned. This is also the way the pilgrims of old made the trip. These 'pilgrims' travel barefoot through the mud. And, they have to watch out for the tide. It is incredibly fast, for a tide, and can become dangerous if people are taken by surprise!</div>
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I read while researching for the trip that, as the tide is getting ready to come in, there are voices in many languages over a loud speaker telling the 'pilgrims' to get off of the mud flats:</div>
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"the tide is coming!" </div>
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There are even parking places that have to be abandoned before the tide comes back in... </div>
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or your car or the buses will be under water! The tide comes in at 12 mph! </div>
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(That's a little more than twice as fast as I can RUN!)</div>
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When the surf goes 8 MILES in and out! That's a HUGE difference between high and low tides!</div>
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Walking up the spiraling streets is quite a long hike. An, the views are amazing.</div>
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Then, you reach the abbey! Because wood burned so often, the builders of cathedrals finally found ways to make roofs of stone. Most of the wood roofs have been replaced, so it was neat </div>
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to see a real wood roof!</div>
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More wood! And the dangling lights.</div>
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The abbey part of Mont St Michel is a cathedral - or like a cathedral. I read </div>
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that there used to be stained glass in these windows.</div>
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Gorgeous stone work!</div>
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A door I loved.</div>
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This is a cloister - "a rectangular open space surrounded by covered walks or open galleries" according to Wikipedia. We spent some time walking around these 'covered walks' where the monks probably walked in silence.</div>
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And, I LOVED this wheel! This is how they used to get supplies (stones for building, food, etc) </div>
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up to the abbey. Six men could walk in this wheel like hamsters! </div>
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A long rope was looped around the outside of the wheel. The rope had a 'sled' attached to it. </div>
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The sled was pulled up by the men walking in the wheel!</div>
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A beautiful staircase being lit by windows.</div>
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Saying goodbye to Mont St Michel!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-76710893277901466132013-01-13T08:42:00.000-08:002013-01-13T08:44:52.274-08:00The Bayeux Tapestry & BayeuxWe made the small town of Bayeux are headquarters for several nights while in Normandy.<br />
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This is a view of our cute hotel! There are two rooms per floor, and Alex & I were on the second floor on the right in this photo (our left window is open). It reminds me of the children's book, <em>Madeline</em>... "<em>In an old house in Paris covered in vines..."</em><br />
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There were actually three separate buildings and behind one of them was this gorgeous garden. We sat out here one evening and had drinks - you had to buy off the menu to come out here. We also had very nice buffet breakfasts while staying here. (I'll have to look up the name.)<br />
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The Bayeux Cathedral reaching up to the sky!<br />
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Another view of the Bayeux Cathedral. We went inside, but I don't feel my photos do it justice!<br />
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One of the highlights of Bayeux is the famous Bayeux Tapestry. Unfortunately, though I understand why, you are not allowed to take photos of the tapestry. So, these photos are from Wikipedia. This tapestry depicts the Norman Conquest of England by William the Conqueror in 1066.<br />
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Edward_der_Bekenner.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="File:Edward der Bekenner.jpg" height="286" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/Edward_der_Bekenner.jpg" width="267" /></a></td></tr>
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The "tapestry" is a misnomer and is actually embroidered cloth. It measures about 230 feet long and tells the story in cartoon like images. I wrote a lot more about the tapestry <a href="http://alexml.blogspot.com/2012/04/animated-norman-conquest-of-england.html"><span style="color: #800040;">here</span></a>. <br />
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As we walked around Bayeux, we enjoyed the sites - like this waterwheel. Inside the building on the left was a shop where we bought a few souvenirs. <br />
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And, we loved this cat sitting on the ledge of a second story window - though we were nervous, too!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-87924360558194925842013-01-11T08:41:00.000-08:002013-01-13T08:49:43.354-08:00Visiting D-Day Sites in Normandy: American CemeteryOur 3rd stop on our half day tour <a href="http://www.visitnormandybeaches.com/About.php"><span style="color: #800040;">with Eva</span></a> was the American Cemetery. When you are on the cemetery grounds, you are standing on American soil!<br />
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To get to the cemetery from the parking lot, you walk down a wooded path.</div>
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Then you entered "The Garden of the Missing". On these walls are listed "the missing in action who gave their lives in this region." If I remember correctly, they were separated by branch of service.<br />
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In cases were remains were later recovered, identified and buried, a bronze rosette is placed beside the name. As you can see, besides the name of the missing, you'll also find their rank, unit, and state from which they served.<br />
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Then you enter the memorial. In the center is a statue. On either side is a map - this one is titled "Military Operations in Western Europe: 6 June 1944-8 May 1945."</div>
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Walking out of the memorial, you get your first glance at the headstones. Usually, there is a reflecting pond here, but it was drained at this time and a man was working in it.</div>
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The cemetery is divided into 10 plots with a central path. The headstones are made of white marble with Latin crosses and Stars of David. Although the families of those Americans killed in this area were given the choice to have their remains moved home, many chose to have their bodies remain here... on the land they fought so hard to free.</div>
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This is a grave of an unknown soldier. It says "Here rests in honored glory a comrade in arms known but to God."</div>
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There are also women buried in the cemetery. Elizabeth A Richardson served with the American Red Cross and died June 25, 1945.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_YTVHXQNlPIgW2-H82WrbsJ-P6BD_ef7Ur-dDetPawG8O6nZHJExy7laU1FmHBqUjU8V9JIUixX0yAcfyemqq8wE5xrWeOjLfwRT9xxz22fbdzkTBuvtVi-eGrZxpfyjCUmeYASMPt7U-/s1600/05-106+Amer+Cemetery.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_YTVHXQNlPIgW2-H82WrbsJ-P6BD_ef7Ur-dDetPawG8O6nZHJExy7laU1FmHBqUjU8V9JIUixX0yAcfyemqq8wE5xrWeOjLfwRT9xxz22fbdzkTBuvtVi-eGrZxpfyjCUmeYASMPt7U-/s400/05-106+Amer+Cemetery.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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A Star of David headstone for a Jewish soldier. I first saw the stones placed on these graves at Arlington Cemetery in Washington, D.C.</div>
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In a second building, the chapel, there was this mosaic ceiling. According to the <a href="http://www.abmc.gov/publications/VisitorBrochures/Normandy_Brochure.pdf"><span style="color: #800040;">American Battle Monument Commission brochure</span></a>, it depicts "America blessing her sons as they depart by sea and air" on the left and "a grateful France bestowing a laurel wreath upon the American dead" on the right.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu-K8wmRTKS5pUzVeNjfnrmV-NIg0yrDYyfMbqX61qWIlD__9Ar2ZI4O8gEJk_zI5lmWLbRynF3MU-dcoNcP7BP-_3bo4OzHuEFha5mpLsZKg49s2FgjGN9NDMygRBVVUt8Y4WW0WNijki/s1600/05-115+Amer+Cemetery.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu-K8wmRTKS5pUzVeNjfnrmV-NIg0yrDYyfMbqX61qWIlD__9Ar2ZI4O8gEJk_zI5lmWLbRynF3MU-dcoNcP7BP-_3bo4OzHuEFha5mpLsZKg49s2FgjGN9NDMygRBVVUt8Y4WW0WNijki/s400/05-115+Amer+Cemetery.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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From the edge of the cemetery, you can see how it overlooks Omaha Beach. Some of the soldiers who died on D-Day were originally buried at the beach but were later moved to this cemetery.</div>
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Lastly, I want to recomend 4 videos that are shown at the cemetery's visitor's center. The first is a two minute video about the cemetery itself titled "Normandy American Cemetery." The second is title "Letters" and you meet some of the soldiers who are buried here through letters, home photos & videos, and learning more about their lives before the war and when they died. This one really had me crying! The third is called "On Their Shoulders" and it tells the specific stories of 3 men who were killed - another very moving video. And, the fourth is "OK, Let's Go" about Eisenhower's decision to launch Operation Overlord on June 6th. Another touching film! You can find all four videos at the <a href="http://www.abmc.gov/cemeteries/cemeteries/no.php"><span style="color: #800040;">American Battle Monuments Commission</span></a> site. </div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-51714310183122977142013-01-10T08:41:00.000-08:002013-01-13T08:50:23.170-08:00Visiting D-Day Sites in Normandy: Omaha BeachAfter <a href="http://alexml.blogspot.com/2013/01/visiting-d-day-sites-in-normandy-pointe.html"><span style="color: #800040;">visiting Pointe du Hoc</span></a>, Eva, tooks us on the short trip to Omaha Beach. I watched an incredible movie title <em>Surviving D-Day</em> and I'll use it for some of my facts. Again, Eva shared so much with us! But, I didn't write it down and have forgotten a lot of it.<br />
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The drive to the beach takes you past a little community of rental property. At the top of these cliffs which overlook the beach, you can see two openings (in top, bare area near center left) where Germans hid and shot their guns. As the Allies made landfall, many of them believed they would not survive. And, many didn't. Four hours before the landing, Allied planes dropped 13,000 bombs intending to knock out much of the German resistance. The Allies had bragged about their accuracy. But, there were low clouds and the planes were forced to use new radar equipment. To protect the Allied ships in the English Channel, orders were given to wait 5-30 seconds after getting to where the airmen though the target. The planes dropped their bombs too late, and not a single one of the 13,000 bombs hit the targets!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(outside of museum near Omaha beach which we unfortunately didn't have time to visit)</td></tr>
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When the landing craft opened the doors to let the soldiers attack the beach, many were shot immediately. The open doors were a target for the incredible MG42's of the Germans. These machine guns could shoot 25 bullet per second! Many who survived did not go through the opened gate, but jumped over the sides of their landing craft. Many of these drowned in their heavy gear. And, many were seasick because of the huge breakfast they'd eaten. When they reached the beaches, there were obstacles like these hedgehogs in my photo above. These had been placed on the beach to prevent a high-tide landing by the Allies.</div>
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Besides the machine guns, the Germans also fired with these artillery. This one overlooks the beach and is behind a heavy fence. The beach, when the Allies landed, wa 1000 feet long - or 3 football fields long. Besides the machinegun fire, artillery fire, and obstacles like the hedgehogs (which could also be used to hide behind somewhat), there were over 17,000 mines!</div>
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We visited at high tide and didn't actually step foot on the beach, which I regret now. The tide was going out and we aw a few people on the beach later. As the Allies fought to take the beach, the tide came in squishing the surviving soldiers together. <br />
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After capturing the beach and losing over 2,000 soldiers, the Allies would build a man-made harbor called a Mulberry Harbour. But, about 10 days later, a storm came up and destroyed this harbor. This is part of the remains of that structure.<br />
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As we left Omaha beach, we drove past this monument which says: <em>The Allied forces landing on this shore which they call Omaha beach liberate Europe June 6th 1944. </em>Surrounding the monument are 8 flags. It was noon, and they were having a flag raising ceremony! The flags were raised one by one while the national anthem of that country was played.<br />
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The raising of the United States flag was a very moving experience. I'm glad my mom 'insisted' that we stopped as we were ready to drive on by! I was, and am, proud to be an American! Thank you to those who serve in the military to defend us and defend freedom!Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-7405950831553596882013-01-09T08:40:00.000-08:002013-01-13T08:51:41.749-08:00Visiting D-Day Sites in Normandy: Pointe du HocJune 6th, 1944. The Germans occupied France and much of Europe. The Allies began their D-Day invasion to recapture the continent.<br />
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We booked a private half-day tour of the American sector sites of the D-Day invasion in Normandy. Our guide, <a href="http://www.visitnormandybeaches.com/Landing.php"><span style="color: #800040;">Eva Ruttger with Experience Normandy</span></a>, was FANTASTIC and obviously loved what she did. She told us the amazing story of the invasion and even had photos and maps to share with us. I wish I'd taken notes as I've forgotten a lot of what I learned! But, what I took away was the incredible planning that went into planning the invasion.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alex, my mom, me, my brother & his girlfriend in front of a pillbox that would have housed a 'big gun'</td></tr>
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This is a picture of us outside of one of the bunkers at Pointe du Hoc. The bunkers are where the Germans kept their 'big guns' which could shoot 10-12 miles and hit the ships at sea. Eisenhower wanted to make sure these guns were destroyed. Pointe du Hoc supposedly had five of these guns at this Pointe which overlooks Omaha Beach. Troops were supposed to land at 6:30 a.m. at Omaha Beach and the guns were supposed to be inoperable by then.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alex, me & my brother standing in a crater at Pointe du Hoc- you can see a 'pillbox' in the background</td></tr>
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American planes sent planes to drop bombs in the area of Omaha Beach. This was to clear a way for Allies when they landed. Because of bad weather, the targets were missed and Omaha Beach did not have any bomb craters where the soldiers could have hidden as they landed. But, here on Pointe du Hoc, there were craters.<br />
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After crossing the English Channel from England, the Rangers had to scale these 100 foot tall cliffs of Pointe du Hoc. While landing on the narrow shore and climbing the cliffs, they were being shot at and having gernades thrown down on them. There's a great, 9 minute <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=og7D2_wLQ3Y"><span style="color: #800040;">clip from <em>The Longest Day</em></span></a> which shows this scaling and shows the very places I've photographed and visited.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibYTgpSwnBX7qoOxmEthwViYGqs5JhhdGOuDuU799P4TZ6p2D5KRXAyk31rYUW4Mg8yZcoXSI9cY1tOhXYLdNmazZvLowprSzbxTXpVDhRUXgfUS912_z-wc0j4c1UWtzmCs68-xCkXL-p/s1600/05-062+Pointe+du+Hoc.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibYTgpSwnBX7qoOxmEthwViYGqs5JhhdGOuDuU799P4TZ6p2D5KRXAyk31rYUW4Mg8yZcoXSI9cY1tOhXYLdNmazZvLowprSzbxTXpVDhRUXgfUS912_z-wc0j4c1UWtzmCs68-xCkXL-p/s320/05-062+Pointe+du+Hoc.JPG" width="243" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of a monument at the site</td></tr>
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Here is a quote by President Reagan on the 40th anniversay of D-Day: June 6, 1984:<br />
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<em>The Rangers looked up and saw the enemy soldiers - the edge of the cliffs shooting down at them with machineguns and throwing gernades. And the American Rangers began to climb. They shot rope ladders over the face of these cliffs and began to pull themselves up. When one ranger fell, another would take his place. When one rope was cut, a ranger would grab another and begin his climb again. They climbed, shot back, and held their footing. Soon, one by one, the rangers pulled themselves over the top, and in seizing the firm land at the top of these cliffs, they began to seize back the continent of Europe. Two hundred and twenty-five came here. After 2 days of fighting, only 90 could still bear arms.</em></blockquote>
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This is a relief map from that monument. The water (closest to us) is the English Channel. The The part that sticks out is where Pointe du Hoc is located. On the left side of the photo is another American invasion site: Omaha Beach. On the right is a British invasion point: Utah Beach.<br />
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Here's a photo I took from near the tip of Pointe du Hoc. If you could see down below, you'd be able to see Omaha Beach.<br />
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Our wonderful guide is on the left - I'll have to look up her name and the name of her company. She was incredible! Anyway, this is also taken at the tip of Pointe du Hoc but looking away from Omaha Beach.<br />
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I'm standing inside of a bunker at the very edge of Pointe du Hoc. From this point the Germans could watch over the seas. The opening was maybe 2 foot tall and arched almost 180 degrees. There were also a couple of rooms in this structure where the troops must have lived or spent a lot of time. There were bullet holes in the walls from when the Allies captured this Pointe.<br />
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From here, we traveled to Omaha Beach... which will be a separate post.<br />
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Note: I got some of my information from the American Veterans site on a page titled <a href="http://www.americanveteranscenter.org/wwiichronicles/issue-xxiv/the-guns-of-pointe-du-hoc-as-remembered/?doing_wp_cron=1357956038"><span style="color: #800040;">"The Guns of Pointe du Hoc."</span></a>Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-49323608429046547642013-01-08T08:39:00.000-08:002013-01-13T08:39:51.755-08:00Visiting "Monet's Cathedral"Jumping back to our Europe trip this summer.... here are photos of the Rouen Cathedral which was made famous by Monet. While I was there, I actually didn't realize we'd found Monet's cathedral! So, I don't even have a nice photo from the outside matching Monet's famous paintings! Oops!<br /><br /><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monet, 1893 - image from Wikipeda<br />painting in Musee d'Orsay (which we saw on this trip!)</td></tr>
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I wasn't sure what this image could represent and first wrote this post just describing it. I found it on a tympanum - the area over a cathedral entrance. But, then I realized there is a HEAD in the bowl that the servant is giving the queen (who is dressed richly and wearing a crown)! And, I knew what Biblical story it was portraying: the beheading of John the Baptist. Here it is from Matthew 14:6-11:<br />
<dl><dd><em>But on Herod's birthday, the daughter of Herodias danced before them: and pleased Herod. Whereupon he promised with an oath, to give her whatsoever she would ask of him. But she being instructed before by her mother, said: Give me here in a dish the head of John the Baptist. And the king was struck sad: yet because of his oath, and for them that sat with him at table, he commanded it to be given. And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.</em></dd></dl>
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This scene is of Jesse's tree, a familiar site in art. It depicts the ancestors of Jesus and is from Isaiah 11:1: <em>There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-1"></sup></em></div>
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I am standing in front of the nave - the main long portion of the cathedral where worshipers sit (though I think they used to stand). The vaulted ceiling is high above me and it's incredible to stand in these amazing structures.</div>
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Most cathedrals are built with a floorplan like a cross (or letter "t"). The long part is the nave, while the shorter part is the transept. This is the vaulted ceiling where the two parts cross.</div>
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Looking away from the apse (where the preaching would take place) towards the door I entered in through. You can see the pipes from the pipe organ and the rose window. You can also see the 3 layers of arches as you start from the floor and go upwards: arcade (lowest), triforium (middle), and clerstory (highest). </div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-4382319744175475182012-12-19T08:37:00.000-08:002013-01-13T08:38:31.415-08:00The City of Rouen, Normandy, FranceOne of the main reasons we stopped in Rouen, Normandy (in France) was to see the place where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. But, my mother was in a lot of pain and needed to rest. So, we left her in the car and told her we'd only be gone for 1 hour. We hurried through the town looking for the memorial cross... but we never found it. We did, however, see several beautiful blocks of Rouen.<br />
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The first site we came across was this beautiful building - the Palais de Justice. This gothic building was built near the turn of the 16th century and was mostly destroyed during the Allied bombing of WWII. This, the western facade, is heavily pockmarked from WWII bullets.</div>
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A "close up" showing some of the bullet holes still left on the western facade of the Palais de Justice.</div>
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Half-timbered buildings lining a street in Rouen.</div>
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Close-up of a half-timbered building.</div>
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We stopped and had a quick drink - this was one of Alex's favorite drinks on this trip. It is a soda/juice mix! And, we were pleased to find out we could buy it at one of our local grocery stores that carries lots of international foods!</div>
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This is an amazing clock that I wish we would have seen up close. I only took this photo as we quickly turned the corner! The "Great Clock" was created in the early 1400's and rebuilt in 1527-1529. </div>
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Above is a close up of the photo I took. The clock only has an hour hand (no minute hand, as I guess the hour was close enough) and it is a little after noon. Under the VI there is a a cut out which changes each day of the week and shows a god on a chariot that demonstrates which day it is - I believe this was a Monday. Above the clock face is a globe that indicates the phase of the moon - I believe the colors are blue & silver so, this being completely silver, I think it was a full moon.</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-36099334856678284522012-07-25T08:11:00.000-07:002013-01-13T08:14:17.323-08:00More of Monet's GardensI was asked for more photos from Monet's gardens at Giverny, and I'm happy to share them with you all! Here goes...<br />
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Les Nympheas is the restaurant we ate at located at the gardens. Did you know that Monet called waterlillies by their scientific name, <em>les nympheas?</em><br />
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A beautiful snail... we saw quite a few snails!<br />
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This was our first view of the famous bridge. We are actually standing on a bridge at the opposite side of the pond. You can barely see 'the bridge' above Alex's head.<br />
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From the bridge (above where Alex is standing), if you look the opposite way you will see this boat that was also in Monet's paintings... or perhaps a boat LIKE the one he painted.<br />
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Doesn't this just look Impressionistic? (if that is a word...)<br />
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A rare shot of the bridge without any people on it. I wish there were fewer waterlillies so you could see the reflection of the bridge more clearly.<br />
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I was standing beside 'the bridge' to take this shot. You can see the lesser known bridge (the one Alex was standing on earlier) at the back of the pond to the right.<br />
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This is a second story window of Monet's house which looks over the gardens, not the pond. We were able to tour it, but not to take photos inside of it. His studio has recreations of about 30-40 pieces of his artwork. Work by other artists, including some Japanese artists who inspired Monet, are scattered throughout the house.</div>
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I hope you enjoyed these (additional) photos! We also visited the cathedral that Monet painted so many times AND the cliffs that he painted! I wasn't familiar with them, but the evening we spent on the beach by the cliffs was incredible. I'll share those next, I think.Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-88623803196626727312012-07-23T08:11:00.000-07:002013-01-13T08:12:43.325-08:00Visiting Monet's Gardens<br />
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Yes, it's Monet's Garden! We had an incredible time visiting Giverny, the place of Monet's gardens, in Normandy, France. The weather this day was perfect and the gardens were more beautiful than I had imagined.<br />
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When you enter the gardens, you are first in a real garden area. It is HUGE! There are probably 8-12 rows that you can wander down. Unfortunately, I only took closeups so I can't really give you a good idea of what it looked like. We also saw quite a few gardeners busy pruning and doing other garden jobs.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alex took lots of photos with my 'big' camera!</td></tr>
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After leaving the regular gardens, you go through an underground tunnel. I believe the tunnel went under a road. Then, you go on a fairly long path that winds around different water features... until you arrive at the famous waterlily pond (1st photo). Wow! It's gorgeous! <br />
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It's very hard to get a photo of yourself alone on the famous bridge, though we did manage to get one of my mother. It was really crowded around the main pond, but there were other, quieter areas. Alex & I posed on this bridge that was behind the waterlily pond and were able to get a shot of just the two of us.Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-28200969086197241702012-07-14T08:06:00.000-07:002013-01-13T08:09:51.076-08:00Seeing Lenin & StalinI'm going to skip ahead on our trip because I watched a movie about Stalin over the past two days. Besides France, we were able to visit three other countries: Finland, Estonia and Sweden. While in Estonia for three days, we went on a semi-private tour (7 people of which we were 5) of occupied Estonia. One of our stops on the tour was a pile of old statues behind a museum - primarily statues of Lenin, Stalin, and some soldiers.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">our family with statues of Lenin and Stalin in Tallinn, Estonia</td></tr>
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We took some photos of all of us around a statue of Lenin. To tell the truth, at the time I didn't know which statues were Stalin and which were Lenin. We were smiling and that later disturbed me. Would we have been smiling around a statue of Hitler? Is it because we don't understand the horror of these men? Maybe. But, as I thought more about it today, I realized that we were primarily smiling because of where we were... we were standing next to a piece of history. And, these statues weren't terrorizing people any more... they were piled up and neglected and no longer a threat. The people of Estonia are FREE!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">my photo of Stalin statue in Tallinn</td></tr>
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The History Channel documentary I just watched (<a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9118985704353138889"><span style="color: #800040;">online</span></a>) is called "Stalin: Man of Steel." It was an amazing tale of a ruthless man who led to the death of millions of his people... but was strangely still their beloved Father. At the end of this post I'm going to share some of the notes I took - many of them actual words from the movie. But, if you are interested in learning more about him, I recommend this movie. </div>
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My notes:</div>
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<em>The Romanov's had ruled Russia for over 200 years and it was the goal of revolutionaries, including Stalin, to overthrow them. On October 25, 1917, the Bolshevik's stormed the winter palace in St Petersburg and the Tzar was toppled. Lenin became the new leader of Russia. (Question: did Lenin take power immediately?)</em></div>
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<em>Stalin worked as an enforcer in the Communist party during the next five years and was then elected General Secretary. Eventually, he became Lenin's right hand man. When Lenin died in 1924, there were two possible successors: Stalin or Trotsky. Congress went against Lenin's will and chose Stalin and exhiling Trotsky (who would be later assassinated under Stalin's orders).</em></div>
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<em>Stalin, wanting only loyalty to himself, banned the Russian Orthodox religion and had all religious materials destroyed. He had the churches destroyed and thousands of priests executed. Then, he set himself up as a new god... and his image hung in every home.</em></div>
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<em>Russia was a land of peasants and swamplands, but Stalin started industralizing building major factories and railroad tracks. Then, he took all of the agricultural land and created "collectives" - giant state-owned farms. The farmers who refused to deliver their harvests were subject to violence.</em></div>
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<em>By 1932, modernization was taking its toll on the rural population. As 5 million people starved, Stalin had 5 millions TONS of grain exported! But, life in Moscow was good... if you followed the party lines!</em></div>
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<em>A wave of political execution followed with neighbors turning against neighbors and quotas set for how many people needed to be killed. Troika (groups of 3) went around conducting brief trials before executing people. In two years, 1.5 million people were killed.</em></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kolyma Goldmine from Wikipedia</td></tr>
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<em>Even as millions of people died in the Gulags, the prisoner's put their trust in Stalin. They thought he didn't know what was going on and would save them if he only knew. They thought he was a saint. In the Kolyma Gulag, a camp where gold was mined, the death rate was nearly 100%.</em></div>
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<em>In the late 1930's, Stalin ordered a purge of his fellow party members and military leaders. He had 8 of his top generals executed and over 30,000 officers were killed over the next two years. Stalin wanted to raise up new leaders who would be faithful only to him.</em></div>
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<em>In 1939, Hitler and Stalin signed a non-agression pact, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. But, on the 22nd of June, 1941, Hitler ignores the pact and attacks Russia. The Red Army is surprised and suffers heavy losses. The Soviet people fight for the Motherland and for their beloved Stalin. </em></div>
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<em>Russia suffers massive losses, until winter sets in and they are able to save Moscow. Leningrad, however, is under seige by Germany for 900 days and over 1 million people die.</em></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yalta Conference from Wikipedia</td></tr>
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<em>Stalin had been pushing the Alllies to start another front, but that didn't come until June 6, 1944... D-Day. In 1945, the Yalta Conference takes place in the Crimea with Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill. Stalin demands control of German territories in the East and the other leaders, tired of war, concede.</em></div>
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<em>In April 1945 the war is basically over, but Stalin pushes his army hard to be the first to reach Berlin. He sacrifices hundreds of thousands of soldiers and his officials discover the body of Hitler in his bunker. However, he keeps this information top secret. Russia is now a Superpower and Stalin is a hero.</em></div>
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<em>The Postdam Conference takes place in July of 1945 when the leaders of the 3 Superpowers - Stalin, Churchill & Truman - divide territory among themselves. </em></div>
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<em>On March 2nd, 1953, Stalin has a stroke and dies three days later. Russia mourns. Even those who have lost loved ones weep. Stalin has created himself into a mythical being... and he's turned a country full of peasants into a Superpower. </em></div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-62365310603519851622012-07-12T08:03:00.000-07:002013-01-13T08:05:31.019-08:00Outside Notre Dame CathedralI showed photos of the inside of Notre Dame. Now for some outside photos!<br />
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Welcome to Notre Dame!<br />
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Gargoyles. These are said to watch over the Seine River for drowning victims! (One of Alex's photos)</div>
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Part of the Gallery of Kings. There were 28 kings, probably meant to depict the Kings of Judah. However, there was confusion during the French Revolution and they thought these represented kings of France and they were destroyed. 21 of the original heads were found in 1977 and are now in the Musee de Cluny. These are recreations. Originally, these were quite colorful. (photo by Alex)</div>
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Another photo by Alex. I'm not sure what this represents, but someone is standing on this man!</div>
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My photo of Saint Denis, <a href="http://alexml.blogspot.com/2012/02/saint-denis-cephalophore.html"><span style="color: #800040;">a martyr I studied</span></a> before heading to Paris!</div>
Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6572382995578559387.post-80678485235174343002012-07-12T08:01:00.000-07:002013-01-13T08:02:43.991-08:00Inside Notre Dame Cathedral<br />
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One of the places Alex was most excited about visiting in Paris was the Notre Dame Cathedral. She ended up using my 'big' camera, and taking hundreds of photos. It was an amazing visit! We were just disappointed that, when we go into line to climb to the top of the towers, the line closed down for the night! Ugh! And, we had plans on going back later in the week, but we never made it.<br />
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It's amazing how Notre Dame towers over you. But, even more amazing, is the view from inside...<br />
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Wow! Pictures hardly do this justice. The ceilings are so incredibly tall! And, this was a Sunday morning and they were having a service. We were there over an hour and the service was still going on. The singing was absolutely gorgeous!!! I could have stayed for hours. <br />
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We found the Treasury very interesting. The treasury houses relics of various saints and holy people. Relics are items left behind by these people - it can be an actual part of the person (like a bone or some hair) or something used by the person (like a robe or Jesus' cross). The above reliquary has bone fragments from several saints. If I remember correctly, the center relic includes part of a jaw and a tooth of a saint. Notre Dame has 3 (unproven) relics from Jesus - the crown of thorns, a nail from the cross, and a piece of the cross. <br />
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There is artwork throughout the cathedral and I believe this painting was in the Treasury also. It's a detail showing Jesus washing the feet of a disciple.<br />
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Another view showing the incredibly high ceilings and some of the stained glass windows.</div>
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This is a view from the back. There are several thousand people sitting listening to the service. And, there are hundreds of visitors walking around, in silence, observing this amazing cathedral and taking photos. Again, the music was incredible and I wish I would have recorded a little of it.Dana Leedshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09387705697369311607noreply@blogger.com0