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Evening view from a tranquil return via ferryEvening view from a tranquil return via ferry
A bit of roller derby action for you! Here's the low-down: 2 teams of 5 female skaters (4 blockers, 1 jammer) skate alongside each other in a pack formation. The jammers must make their way through the pack and are awarded points based on their success. What makes it amusing is rarely the finesse, strategy, or skill, rather 'tis the fairly frequent oft-revenge-based physical contact. Both the crowd and the players are curious cross-sections of society. The question is...did this make me more or less proud of being woman?!
I quite simply adore my family! Mmmmhmmm.
Notably lacking would be a picture of the birthday girls (my mum and Elia) who shared a combined birthday Thursday night of 50-what?!?
I can now attest that it takes far less character and intelligence to purchase a snowboard that is "born to rage whereever there is snow with a Lightspeed Vision Base, Fly Core, Dualzone EGD, Biax React Fiberglass, Slantwall Construction and Negative Core Profile" than it takes to figure out how to make the laws of physics work in your favor while strapped to it! Good company, a quick read of a how-to book, a lesson, and multiple runs later, I have a bit more confidence and can boast of enduring a series of painful, body-pounding falls that go by a variety of sinister and suggestive names: The Spinal Tap, The 911 Take Down, The Hospital Smash, The Hard-Pack Smack, and The Slam. Truly, I fared much better than it sounds and I can almost link my turns repeatedly! Perhaps I'll post a few bruises after they ripen!
How does one graciously ask a partner of one's accounting firm or the project manager of a large construction site to capture the 28th-floor-view, the crane, the crammed open freight elevator, the controlled chaos, and you in your well-fitting hardhat? The bane of a blogger.
...when an individual on the 21st floor of one's building dislocates a sprinkler, inspiring a deluge to filter down to the 6th floor, where there is a consequential electrical fire? The answer: simple selfish living by inhabitants in upscale hotels with valet parking and meal allowances for 12 days. This lackluster chain of events even defined the subject matter for experimenting with a new camera. Notably, for the first time EVER, I craved my own abode and even preferred it to a hotel. Hmmm...what's that about?
The above attests to my attendance at the Keane concert at the Paramount in Seattle. How could 3 gentlemen from a small town in England with good lyric sense and an affinity for ballads be anything but enjoyable? Here's a lyric for you:...I felt the earth beneath my feet;
Sat by the river and it made me complete;
Oh simple thing where have you gone;
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on...
Here's my $1.25 worth of
vending machine irony!
(note silica DO NOT EAT packets)
Quite possibly children are a blessing!
Well...here's my reason for getting out of bed tomorrow morning: there are things in life worth travailing for, worth NOT making accomodations for, and worth holding out for...yet rising for these two would CERTAINLY be worth it!
If the prospect of a 7-day Dominican Republic eco-tour (mountain biking, canyoning, surfing, horseback riding, whitewater rafting, hiking, and cascading) intrigues you, perhaps we can talk after you check this out: Mama Knows Best!
Friday required my attendance in San Diego, so faced with the choice of where to spend the first weekend of "busy season", I turned to the weatherman for the answer. Tough! I took the trolley tour, wandered beaches in an attempt to satiate dreams to go to sea, had my palm read, ice skated under palm trees, sliced balls at a driving range, enjoyed the art museum, botanical garden and fountains in Balboa Park, and wandered the evening beach for additional water therapy. Sunday, I spent time with Frank and Manoly Rentaria...special (Spain sounds grand!)!
Azul abyss.
Contemplation of sea foam is surely more beneficial than Rorschach's inkblot test.
Tree hugger.And then returned to this: "Good evening! Thanks for flying with Alaska Airlines. Weather in Seattle is an overcast 43 degrees...." Hmm.
Only the passage of time will tell of the perspective and inspiration that this venture to the state of Chiapas in southern Mexico has provided. Below are a few pictures that cannot begin to express the extreme contrasts or the emotions felt...
Myself in in front of "The Fountain" in Chiapa de Corso's main square...a lovely quaint town!
Crocodiles bask in the sun outside of zoos?? Our guide up the Sumidero Canyon knew just where to find him...curious! This Canyon previously boasted waters that killed some of the most skilled boatmen, but has since been dammed, is quite serene, and is one of the largest sources of hydroelectricity in Mexico.
Courtyard of Na Bolom in San Cristobal de las Casas...4 nights were spent here. Na Bolom was the 19th century hacienda of the much respected archaeologist Frans Bloom and his wife, which still functions as a headquarters for the continuing research on the area's constellation of highland villages. Certainly a highlight...especially when the fire was built!
Spirited shoe polisher (and buddy) in San Cristobal de las Casas!
Horse ride from San Cristobal de las Casas to Chamula...praise be to cowgirls the world over!
While I've read that bullfights are more of a cultural dance than an adrenaline-based sport, I preferred to believe that the bull fighter was engaging in some measure of risk. Perhaps I shall have to go again to see if my naive view has merit. Never-the-less...a bullfight in Mexico? How classic!
The simple end to the beasts...note the skins on the ground!
Stellar picture of fireworks on the street...obviously not from my simple camera! Age doesn't seem to be a requirement to light these alone. We passed a park with several young boys lighting and throwing firecrackers near the bench of a passed out street vendor in a seemingly futile attempt to rise him.
Never underestimate the persistance or persuasiveness of a child...especially one who likely learned how to sew, braid, and bargain by the age of 3!! This customer looks dazed. The role of women in this society fascinates me! I am woman...hear me roar!
I didn't expect such variety in food offerings. This was a creperie. San Cristobal also had Italian, sushi, French, Thai, etc, etc, etc. Maybe now would be a fitting time to discuss the vegetarian Christmas Eve dining (smile)! Gunslinger Martina was a welcome addition with her anecdotes, multiple facts about Mayas and Aztecs, and oh...and the Lonely Planet guidebook (another smile)!
A tope is a larger-than-usual speed bump, literally interpretted as "limit", though Mexicans refer to them as "policia durmiendo" - sleeping policeman. They aren't necessarily painted, warned of, systematically placed, or made similarly. Yet...they warrant respect! I'd like to take life's topes with more grace than I managed these!
Agua Azul looking down from a deck certainly not approved by OSHA, nor located in a litigous society...which certainly has it's merits!!
Flying?
Palenque...to prove I was here!
More Palenque...one can't help but feel like part of some complex webpage with multiple links. Trying to imagine the ruins in their day of usefullness is most thought-provoking.
Serene view from a 7 am 1/2 hour chilly boat ride to the Yaxchilan Mayan ruins...note Guatamala is on the right side of the river.
I took many pictures of the ruins at Yaxchilan, but this picture retains the feel of the space. Our boatsman gave us 2 hours to view such...our early morning arrival ensured that we were nearly the only ones there...tranquil, mesmerizing, wondrous...quick, get me a thesaurus!
This photo is the result of a novel idea (not mine) to take a picture by the 'no climbing on ruins sign'...which alas, all in our company had just violated.
The remote multi-stage waterfalls near El Cheflon (35K outside Comitan). Next time, I endeavor to wear my bathing suit to bask in the pools (like a crocodile), as well as stand in line (yet another...smile) to swing like a monkey from the trees! A worthy drive down a very curvy road...passing on single lane roads - you must try it!
Who knew that a Jeep Wrangler could be climbed up on, the windshield washed, and compensation received in one traffic light?!?
Dances in the Zocolo at midday...most curious! Maybe I should have paid for a cleansing...the smoke smelled
really good!
Diego Rivera...who?? If like me, you know not...carpe diem!!
To wind this up, there was so much contrast:
- From the vivaciousness of the Mexican culture to speeding past a man recently killed lying in his own blood puddle by the side of the road (noting that locals moments before had bicycled by him);
- From the richness displayed in art and among the upper class to the simple lives of villagers or their children whose sole request was "un peso";
- From the relaxation of law and regulation to repeated checkpoints along the Guatamala border;
- From the compelling sermon of a Catholic priest to odd rituals involving pulque and a dead chicken;
- From delicious shrimp soup to uncooked sausage and cold coffee;
- From the comfort provided by continual good company and crackling fires to the discomfort on the back of a galloping horse;
- From meticulously scrubbed and swept sidewalks and streets to littered rivers and roadsides;
- From competing noises in markets and cities to serenity found among Mayan ruins and the starlit sky;
- From the anxiety of missing my first flight out to achieving "Mexico time" waiting for a taxi in Chamula;
- and, from Seattle to Chiapas (smile).
How at 30, is my world so small? Do I really need that chai tea latte tomorrow morning or could the sum be used to fund a 20 mile taxi ride in my next third world country? Ah well...surely I shall have time to remedy this!? I really can't express how grand the trip was...perhaps I can prove it to you...
Deepa, Renuka, and Sharad...ah!
Such siblings took the train for a weekend visit. After boarding the train 6:00 am-ish, they arrived 5:00 pm-ish in Seattle...crazy trip! Normally such venture would take about 6 hours, but because of the storms and seeming inefficiencies, they were privy to both the sunrise and the sunset aboard the train. We didn't have time to do much, but I am so glad they came!
This is my dear family, with whom I don't spend enough time. Grandma Bowlin is not in the first picture, but she too enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday at the Thiry house...including the tour of Douglas County and the old homeplace. Too many highlights of the week to list...perhaps I'll add more later?
Nine people in a Toyotal van...for what reason you ask? To go to a Warren Miller film, of course...nothing like revving up one's adrenaline without any risk! Good times.
Several of us spent some time on Justin and Dave's property during the Labor Day holiday. Worthy time was spent relaxing, swimming, building covert fires, as well as enjoying the company of other friends in the Okanagan Valley.
Katie, Justin, and myself took a sailing class which gave us enough skill to (theoretically) pilot a sailboat without bringing harm to ourselves or others. Who would have thought that being able to read the wind, the sky, or the water would be a necessary skill in this day and age? In any regard, sailing seems a direct route to both serentity and a sense of capability.
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