Archive for the ‘Our World’ Category

Our World: Tanbark Ridge Overlook

August 19, 2013
Betsy at Tanbark Ridge Overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina.  June 26, 2013.

Betsy at Tanbark Ridge Overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina. June 26, 2013.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

In late June Betsy and I traveled to North Carolina to meet my son Robert and his family.  We took advantage of the opportunity to drive along one of our favorite roads, the Blue Ridge Parkway.

We picked up the Parkway in Asheville, North Carolina, and headed north.  We stopped at the Tanbark Ridge Overlook to enjoy the view.

TanbarkRidgePanorama13062601

The mountains and the sky were both beautiful, and I tried to capture that beauty as best as I could in this panoramic shot.

Our World: Aberdeen in Hong Kong

July 22, 2013

1987 -- Aberdeen

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

I found many things to be fascinating on my first visit to Hong Kong way back in 1987.  One of the things that surprised me was learning that there is an area of Hong Kong known as Aberdeen.

Aberdeen is on the southern tip of Hong Kong Island.  At one time in was a pirates’ den, but later became a simple fishing village.  In spite of modernization, there were still hundreds of junks and sampans that serve as floating homes for some of the people.

Aberdeen is the home to a couple of large floating seafood restaurants, which we unfortunately did not get to sample during our visit.

The collage contains images scanned from slides I took during my 1987 visit.  At the top left are some of the sampans used as homes by the fisherman.  On the right is a photo of one of the floating restaurants.  The middle photo is of a boatyard in Aberdeen.  The two photos on the bottom are from Repulse Bay, a beautiful part of Hong Kong Island not far from Aberdeen.

To see larger versions of these pictures and others, click HERE.

Our World: More Iris from Our Yard

July 15, 2013

MoreIris

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

All of the pictures in this collage were taken in our yard during May.  And although all of our iris blossoms are now gone, some of these will bloom again in autumn, so we will be able to enjoy them again.

The iris on the top left is Autumn Bugler, while Stellar Lights is on the right.  The irises on the bottom, from left to right, are Cable Car, Electric Shock, and English Charm.

Philippi Covered Bridge

July 1, 2013
Covered Bridge in Philippi, West Virginia.  September 15, 2011.

Covered Bridge in Philippi, West Virginia. September 15, 2011.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

In September, 2011, Betsy and I drove from Hocking Hills, Ohio, to Blackwater Falls, West Virginia.  It was a dreary, overcast day, but we were driving back roads as we usually do and were enjoying the scenery.

As we neared Philippi, West Virginia, we suddenly came to a covered bridge.  Covered bridges are pretty unusual, and finding one in use is even more unusual.  After we got across the bridge, we just had to find a place to stop so we could get a picture.

You can learn more about the bridge from the photo of the historical marker below.

PhilippiBridgeSign11091501

Our World: Roses in Our Yard

June 10, 2013
Our front yard as seen from the road in front of the house, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee.  June 1, 2013.

Our front yard as seen from the road in front of the house, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 1, 2013.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Many of you know that Betsy and I grow roses.  We have 57 different variety of roses growing in our yard, most of which can be seen in the photo above.  This picture was taken from the road in font of our house.

Our 'big' rose bed, with the new wall flower bed in the background.  Fairfield Glade, Tennessee.  June 1, 2013.

Our ‘big’ rose bed, with the new wall flower bed in the background. Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 1, 2013.

The picture above was taken standing at the house looking toward the road.  The rose bed in the foreground is our ‘big’ rose bed and contains 22 roses.  This is our oldest rose bed.  The rose bed in the background is along the road and contains 7 roses in addition tulips, iris, lilies and day lilies.  We put in this flower bed after building the retaining wall.

Our 'small' rose bed, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee.  June 1, 2013.

Our ‘small’ rose bed, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 1, 2013.

The rose bed on the opposite side of the driveway from our ‘big’ rose bed is the ‘small’ rose bed.  It contains 10 roses.

Container roses along the driveway, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee.  June 1, 2013.

Container roses along the driveway, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 1, 2013.

Finally, we have ten container roses on each side of the driveway.

Those of you who are mathematically inclined will note that the sum of the roses is 59, not 57.  That’s because we have duplicates of two roses.  I’m not sure how long that will continue.

Our World: Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon

June 3, 2013
The view from Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon.  June 21, 2011.

The view from Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon. June 21, 2011.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Bryce Canyon was one of the favorite places Betsy and I visited on our 2011 western trip.  The canyon was simply breathtaking.  One of the overlooks we visited was Sunset Point.  We weren’t there at sunset, but the view was spectacular just the same.

The view from Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon.  June 21, 2011.

The view from Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon. June 21, 2011.

The trailhead for Navajo Loop Trail is at Sunset Point.  If you look to the left of the pine in the picture above, you can see where the trail disappears down a narrow canyon.  Part of the trail was closed when we were there, but we did make it beyond this point before we had to turn back.

The view from Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon.  June 21, 2011.

The view from Sunset Point, Bryce Canyon. June 21, 2011.

The rock formations and hoodoos visible from Sunset Point are absolutely amazing.

Our World: Park Avenue

May 20, 2013
Park Avenue, Arches National Park, Utah.  June 23, 2011.

Park Avenue, Arches National Park, Utah. June 23, 2011.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Park Avenue, Arches National Park, Utah.  June 23, 2011.

Park Avenue, Arches National Park, Utah. June 23, 2011.

Park Avenue.  No, not the one in New York — the one in Arches National Park in Utah.  Park Avenue is one of the trails in Arches that we hiked during our June, 2011, visit.  The trail got the name ‘Park Avenue’ because the rock formations resembled skyscrapers.

Park Avenue, Arches National Park, Utah.  June 23, 2011.

Park Avenue, Arches National Park, Utah. June 23, 2011.

We got to the trail head in the morning before too many others were around.  It was a nice hike through the canyon, which we finished before the day got too hot.

Our World: Calabash, North Carolina

May 13, 2013
Calabash, North Carolina, waterfront.  May 7, 2013.

Calabash, North Carolina, waterfront. May 7, 2013.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Betsy and I just got back from a week at the beach.  We stay at a wonderful inn in Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, but we head to Calabash, North Carolina, each evening for dinner.

Shrimp boat tied up in Calabash, North Carolina.  May 9, 2013.

Shrimp boat tied up in Calabash, North Carolina. May 9, 2013.

Calabash is a fishing village that calls itself the ‘Seafood Capital of the World’.  I’m not about to argue with that description.  Calabash seafood is delicious, and there are several restaurants right along the docks where the fishing boats come in.  You can buy fresh seafood right off the boat, or enjoy a meal at a restaurant as you watch the boats coming in.

Calabash scallops and shrimp at the Dockside restaurant, Calabash, North Carolina.  May 5, 2013.

Calabash scallops and shrimp at the Dockside restaurant, Calabash, North Carolina. May 5, 2013.

The photo above shows some Calabash shrimp and scallops.  It’s definitely worth the trip from Tennessee to enjoy these yummies.

Our World: Biltmore’s Walled Garden

April 29, 2013
Tulips in the Walled Garden of the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina.  April 16, 2013.

Tulips in the Walled Garden of the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. April 16, 2013.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Earlier this month Betsy and I visited the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.  We go several times a year, and this time we hoped to be able to see the tulips in bloom.

As you can see from the picture above, our timing was just about perfect.  There were tulips at the entrance to the estate, but we went on to the Conservatory and Walled Garden.

Tulips in the Walled Garden of the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina.  April 16, 2013.

Tulips in the Walled Garden of the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. April 16, 2013.

The Walled Garden is a formal ornamental garden.  Part of the Walled Garden is a permanent rose garden, but plantings in the remainder of the garden are changed throughout the year.

Biltmore Estate's Walled Garden, Asheville, North Carolina.  April 16, 2013.

Biltmore Estate’s Walled Garden, Asheville, North Carolina. April 16, 2013.

After walking through the tulips, Betsy and I walked to a hill where we could look down on the Walled Garden.  In this picture you can see the design of the garden.  The flower beds on the other side of the arbor are mirror images of the beds on this side.

Our World: Yaki Point, Grand Canyon

April 1, 2013
The Grand Canyon from Yaki Point.  June 16, 2011.

The Grand Canyon from Yaki Point. June 16, 2011.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)

This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

In June, 2011, Betsy and I visited the Grand Canyon.  It was everything we were told it would be and then some.  I don’t think any picture could do the scene justice, bt we took many anyway.  This picture of the canyon was taken from Yaki Point.