copyright 08/08/08 TAS goAWAY shoes
butterflies and a ball mock up copyright 2008 TAS. Can't wait to see this one with a bunch of spirals and steeples that I photographed circling the globe. Will upload an album of progress.
Flamingos love to congregate. -hardly a moment spent alone. Here MM does her own alone time among the congregation of circling flamingos, copyright 2008 TAS.
Masks of me series work out copyright 2008 TAS. As an artist and avid looker inner. . . I experience moments of taking off my mask and connecting with people quickly, either through conversation or art. Then there are the moments of disconnection and silence.
I took a look at masks in miniature to see what it might represent for me. I'm guessing that in the silence, doubt and regret may set in and masks show up as likely armor. - a insincere smile, armor for the heart or even courage to reveal, become a mask. . . . when the next conversations happens and expectations fly.
outloud she cried "no more, so I'll throw them on the floor." copyright 2008 TAS
masks of me copyright 2008 TAS, the composition includes one of my
oil painting Iris 2005 and the memories of another, scanned art and CS3
Feeling Big Copyright 2008 TAS Check out Bus Blur in the right column for inspiration (click on the painting to make it BIGGER)
It's quite natural to have a feeling of simple bliss. As a child, I experienced bliss. . . sitting on the porch and watching night fall. The stillness in the air, the faint smell of green cooling in the fading light and sounds of the night creatures, signaled a time of the coming of dusk.
TAS copyright 2008 from photos taken in 2007 , Addo Elephant Reserve Lion on the Wild Coast, the Bubo bird Sumatra, Indonesia, and volcano lava expanded from Island of Hawaii 2000, Sapa, Vietnam trees 2008, girl, hand drawn 2008.
I noticed my experiences of travel and my memories are kept fresh, when I take photos. I spent a lot of my life being smug and saying hey, I want to EXPERIENCE my trip, the view and the action, not photo it and look at it as a memory!... and my perspective has changed. After traveling through the Wild Coast of Africa, hour after hour on roads with signs that say "pot hole ahead" versus having it fixed, I started to search out the round huts, all painted color on color. I spent the day snapping photos through a bus window. It became a safari game drive for me. . . some amazing shots of people and objects, hidden in the landscapes. I fell in love with color. Someday I'll go. . . to visit on the the Wild Coast, and drive slowly, taking in the views. Check out the photos named BUS BLUR on the left to see some fuzzy surprises. And remember take off - senses wide open.
FIRST THING TO DO IS TO VISIT FOR MORE THAN A DAY. I SEE BUS AFTER BUS DROP OFF TOURIST FOR THE DAY. TO GET THE FLAVOR AND EXPERIENCE OF UBUD, I RECOMMEND AT LEAST A 3 NIGHT STAY. . . MY LAST TRIP WAS FOR A MONTH IN UBUD - APRIL 2008.
HERE IS THE LIST, READ ON TO SEE DETAILS. . .10 things-Ubud Rice Field Walk, Balinese Ceremonies, Breakfast Coffee at Tutmak (everyday, there's no comparison), Salsa Dancing and Latino Band at Indus, Splurge Day at Como Shambhala, Get a Spa Treatment, everyday if you can, Yoga at the Yoga Barn with Lunch at the KAFE, Pick an Activity from the list below and you'll be in the Bali Groove, Ribs at Naughty Nuri's, Meet the Artisans, Watch a Balinese Dance performance and a One Day Dine around Shopping Experience. . .
Continue reading "10 Things to do in UBUD - Ubud, Bali Indonesia Experiences" »
I'm traveling for a month. What will I do with my pet? And should I get the rabies series vaccine for my trip? Only you know the answer to both of these questions. First, your pet needs a home where he can be himself and be loved. On my month long to Europe, I left my cat Myron with a house sitter. Myron had a nervous breakdown. He lost hair, cried into the night and developed a hyperactive thyroid. I didn't investigate the best for Myron. He needed nurturing and love. He got fed and his litter box cleaned. -Not enough. Bottomline, my house-sitter was not an appropriate pet sitter. Myron survived, and I learned my lesson to interview and hire a specialist.
Rabies- Why get the series, if you have to get a rabies shot within 24hrs anyway? Because you will only need 2 shots within 3 days on your trip and thus not delay your further travel. Rabies shots take 30 days to complete, so if you are on a time schedule and don't want to be delayed in a country, then get the first 3 shots BEFORE you go. If you get scratched by a monkey, bit by a bird, cornered and clawed by a raccoon, you will only need an immune globulin shot and one more rabies shot. Don't go MAD with rabies . . . travel happy- senses wide open.
(this image is copyright protected/encrypted via ISTOCK, please beware of copying)
Forty-five days: Vietnam, Cambodia and a few side trips Singapore, Bali and Japan
Accommodations: 50% Hotels 5 and 4 star,ecolodge, homestay pre-booked. government hotels in route.
Activities: Ten days of activities with guides pre-booked, 7 days guides, booked on site
Transport: International flight, Victoria Orient Express, speed boat, junk boat cruise pre-booked, domestic flights in route Vietnam Airlines, Bangkok Air,
Question: How is it to be on 10 flight segments and on vacations during the same 5 week period?
Continue reading "how to trip around the world- Asia in 5 Weeks -if only I had wings" »
copyright 2008 tas
To take off and explore. . . I start with a map and pin some countries, states, cities.
Maps work for me as visuals of my goals. This past summer when my bank account was bleeding in London, I used a hat . . . six country names, placed in a hat and drew, led me from Morocco to Indonesia. So mix it up. . . no plan survives reality. . . get ready to. . . take off -senses wide open.
copyright 2008 TAS
30 days San Miguel de Allende
Question: How is it, staying in the same place for a month? -ya, besides my house.
Accommodations: Casa Corazon, 1 month rental pre-booked
Transport: International Flight and Airport pick up pre-booked
3 Friends came to visit
My Experiences:
Fun Meter: The meeting of the skirts. I met Karen on the street, which led to Thanksgiving Dinner for 10, prepared in an over the top villa. Mind you, we traipsed around to 3 markets and 9 stores to get the ingredients for the dinner. National Geographic, guest speakers with photo slideshows at Theatre Bellas Artes, Instituto Allende, Academia de Fotografia for workshops, House Tours, got picked to dance with the band ( it was the skirt again), Latin Guitar, Day of the Dead, cemetary decorations and celebrations. . . . the wetlands and barrel cactus carpet at the Botanical Gardens and La Gruta's 4 pools and a cave swimming, thermal hot springs. Local wine shop full of great international wine. For upmarket art, interior,antique galleriers, shop at Fabrica La Aurora. Or worked my way from the in town food market stalls through the textiles and accessories for a mile. Excursions to Guanajuato, "place of frogs" a city of great architecture, art and artist Diego Riveria, Frida Kahlo, mummies, silver and Don Quixote museum.
$$ Money Debits- oil paints and supplies scarce and expensive. International wine
$$- Money Credits- Local Market offerings keep the food budget intact. It helped to have two visiting organic chefs too! And the locals restaurants for authentic abound.
Bottomline- 30 days in the same place is great, when it's San Miguel de Allende.
Note to self- When the town, tantalizes all 5 of my senses, then 30 days is worth a house, villa, or chateau rental. take off- senses wide open.
great blue heron, photographed 03/05/08 TAS copyright
I didn't do a gap year. I didn't take 30 days off during my career until a few months before I quit. My travel ideas came solely from the Town and Country magazine. I resorted at Cap Juluca on the BWI, island Anguilla, bicycled with Butterfield and Robinson on one of their first, over the top trips to Corsica and Costa Smeralda on Sardinia, wined and dined in most of Europes top cities. California was the farthest "east" I tripped. I wanted more: more time, more adventure, more remote, more culture, more locals, more learning and LESS of WORK. Note to self: I needed to travel with some sort of reins on my budget and less Town and Country magazine . . .
Continue reading "how to trip around the world- Experimental Europe" »
To plan or not to plan is not an easy, yes or no question. My answers come from thinking about the kind of trip, I want. Where am I headed? What's my budget? How much money do I budget for buying my way out of frustration or say bad weather?
african ellie copyright 2007 TAS
The conversation goes like this . . . "You have to plan everything. (ugh!) I take a trip and lounge on the beach. What 's to plan?" he asked with sarcasm.
"Well there's the date . . . ," you shoot back.
"Why I bet you even plan your spontaneity," he retorts.
"Hmmm, not a bad idea," you say with a smile.
This one is by me, global girl! copyright 2008 TAS
Make your own Harajuku PaperDolls by Gwen Stephani!
The painting of Isabella was sold in 2006 to a Chicago collector. And I get to keep it with me, thanks to a photo and digital painting in photoshop. with no mess! This brings to mind the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu. The gallery has the largest display of public art in New Zealand. This building is a remarkable landmark in Christchurch. Soon to come is a list of my favorite Art Galleries around the Globe.
traveling is an experience. it doesn't take, it gives. . . heard on a bus on the way to Pietermaritzburgh aka Umgungunglovu (Place of the Elephant) SA KwaZulu-Natal.
Mahatma Gandhi had a life changing experience in Pietermaritzburgh. . .
To get myself psyched up to travel for a extended amount of time, meaning one year or maybe two , I tried the mindset - Home is where I'm at. Little did I know, that over 200 beds were in my future.
The most rigorous route -Capetown, South Africa to Livingstone, Zambia- I slept in 26 beds in 31 days. - You will want to come back to this one. . . it includes an armed escort Robert Redford look alike, the time I slept with others. warthogs and more. . .
This is the Sofitel Hanoi, Vietnam. will update with 2 person tent to get you in the mood.
As much as I remember background paper. Click it to EXPAND BELOW and look to see where you and I traveled.
Happy Travel is for you IF . . . . you're into picture books or love to cut and paste. Most posts are 300 words or less, otherwise they will be tucked into the essay section. Posts always come with a photo , image illustration, collage collection or at a minimum a doodle.
The photo is a moonrise over the desert in Namibia, where the sand dunes met the petrified mountains.
