A-Shooting We Go! (with a camera of course!)

Note: You can see any photo below at full size by clicking on it.
And this post contains only a few of the day's photos.
You can see ALL of today's photos at my SMUGMUG site....
by clicking the link at the bottom.

Mar 22, 2014

Yesterday my daughter and I had a D&D  Day yesterday. That's Weinstein Family-speak for a Daddy And Daughter Day. We haven't had one of those in a long, long time. In the old days, a lifetime ago it seems, I'd keep Dani out of school and we'd spend the day together here or there, just having fun, the two of us.

I'm feeling a lot of pride over the fact that my daughter has become an exceptional photograper, honing her art with specialties in children, family and landscape photography. When she asked me if I'd like to spend the day shooting some great Pacific Northwest scenes of water and mountains I eagerly agreed -- even though it meant rising at 5:00 am so we could catch the sunrise on the north east tip of the Olympic Peninsular. We'd travel north up to the lovely tourist town of Port Townsend. It's on the northeastcoast of the peninsular, bordering the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the body of water that separates Washington from British Columbia. Awesome beauty await us!

Dani shooting on the shore at Port Ludlow on our
way to Port Townsend.

We started a bit late so we couldn't reach Port Townsend for sunrise. So we got off the beaten path at Port Ludlow, a dot of a town on the way and took some photos there at a tiny 'beach access" road. Turned out to be a driveway of sorts, stuck in between two private houses that looked out on the bay. The sunrise view was awesome. In the far distance, the Cascade mountains. And every morning they'd get a sunrise of unimagineable beauty. Did the tire of this or think it boring? Who knows, though Dani observed that one of the houses had it blinds drawn.

A house next to our shooting location of a "beach access" that was
little more than a driveway between two houses. Moonset and sundrise.
CLICK ON ANY PHOTO to see it full size.

Those are the cascades in the far distance beneath the clouds.
Sunrise at Port Ludlow.

We reached Port Townsend and had breakfast at a restaurant perched under a cliff and on the bay. Then we walked around the pretty town which had nice shops, old hotels in preserved nineteenth century buildings. We visited an old (closed) lighthouse on the edge of town in a state park that had been a fort in the town's founding days and we toured the historic Victorian district before setting off for home again. A wonderful and enjoyable day spent with my daughter. 

Water Street, in Port Townsend, is lined with lovely and well-preserved
19th century buildings.

A water scene in Port Townsend, Washington.

To see ALL of today's photos go to my SMUGMUG site....click HERE.

They Say It's Your Birthday. Well Happy Birthday To Ya!

Mar 20, 2014

We picked up our rental car (and talked my way up to a bigger SUV from a smallish compact and at no charge either!) and headed the one-and-a-half hours from Seattle to the other side of Puget Sound and our family, residing in the small Washington hamlet of Poulsbo (pronounced Pauls-bo), population almost 11,000.

The red X's are Dani's house (left) and Seattle (right).

You could take a ferry straight across Puget Sound or drive all the 

way down to Tacoma (the Narrows bridge) and then up. Either way,

an hour-and-a-half. We drove.

We were welcomed effusively by the boys and unpacked our luggage in the guest room on the second floor. The Lundbergs live on a lovely cul-de-sac in a very rural area well outside of the town of Poulsbo. Erik, who's in the Navy, works nearby at the large base. It's a very convenient commute.

Tomorrow (Thursday) would be Sammy's fourth birthday and that was the chief reason for our trip: to help celebrate. Over the course of the next few days, we'd walk Ethan to the school bus, pick up Sammy at his Pre-K school, run some errands, cook some meals (that would refer to Stacey) and enjoy the company of this family that's so far away from us most of the time.

A Selfie. Grandson with Grandpa - a day before Sammy's 4th birthday.

Yesterday, Wednesday, we met Dani and Sammy's school where they had a quiet, low-key celebration for the birthday boy at the end of the school day. Four candles were lit while Dani summarized each  of Sammy's four years. Then Sammy walked around the circle formed by the other kids. He was the center of attention for a few minutes and it was very sweet.

A sweet boy with a sweet girl.

Having fun -- that' s easy for Sammy.

Today on his birthday, Ethan went off to school but Sammy had none. He agreed to let me take a special "Grandpa Photo" for this birthday. His mom is a wonderful photographer so both boys are used to having their pictures taken, um, not a few times.

A Grandpa "special" birthday photo.

Tonight we're going out on the town - dinner in Poulsbo. Tomorrow, Dani and I are going out for some photography - we'll be headed up to Port Townsend, up near the U.S. / Canadian border. That should be exciting -- just the two of us photographers. And the big bash, Sammy's birthday party, is scheduled for the weekend. Please stay tuned to the next installment of my travel blog!

To see all of today's photos, just click here for Smugmug.

Tomorrow's photo outing with Dani.
We're headed up to the town of Port Townsend up near the Strait of Juan de Fuca
that separates the U.S. from Canada. This is
the northern tip of the Olympic Peninsula - awesome beauty!

Visiting The Family - In Washington. That's Washington State, If You Please.

Wednesday, Mar 19, 2014

We'd not seen our grandchildren since November. That's when we spent Thanksgiving out at their new home in Poulsbo, Washington. It was defintiely time. JetBlue tickets were purchased back in December and we anxiously counted the weeks until our trip was to begin.

Biggie was coming with us and the three of us took car service out to JFK to board our 5:30 flight. 

Stacey and Matt....and Biggie. At JFK

We arrived in Seattle on Sunday night and checked into a sweet boutique hotel in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, The Maxwell. The area, near Seattle Center and the Space Needle, is north or the hectic downtown area. 

The Maxwell Hotel -- In the Queen Anne neighborhood.

The next day, Monday, we walked and explored and walked and then walked some more. Exploring the very well-to-do neighborhood of Queen Anne, which is on one of Seattle's hills high above and north the city center, we hiked up one flight of public steps after another. Our destination was Kerry Park, a little public overlook on a residential street. It's where all those iconic photos of the city are taken and it afforded a spectacular view indeed!

One set up city steps after another.
Each led to another street. And then another.
Each with a grander view than the one below.

The climb was well worth it. Here in Kerry Park
extrasordinary veiws of the city and Puget Sound.

After, we explored the beautiful neighborhood:quiet streets lined with lots of modern mansions and plenty of older ones as well. The houses are perched on this elevated landscape and that affords them magnificent views of the city and harbor far below. Quite wonderful (if you can afford it). We ended up at the neighborhood's commercial strip, Queen Anne Road, where we had lunch at Five Hooks, a lovely fresh fish joint. Interestingly, Biggie was welcomed too. Seattle is known for its pet-friendly tourism.

The beautiful streets and homes of the Queen Anne neighborhood.

Strolling up Queen Anne Road, a lovely
commercial street with trendy shops, cafes and restaurants.

Lunch at Five Hooks, serving the
freshest fish imagineable. And very affordable.

Lunch was great and we walked it off by walking all the way back down to the hotel where we rested for an hour.

But we weren't finished yet. At about three, we ventured into the former World's Fair site (from 1962) which is now called Seattle Center. Completely re-built, it's now the location of the city's famous Space Needle as well as many cultural attractions: museums, theaters and dance groups as well as the terminal of a monorail that takes you downtown.

We strolled through the Seattle Center, a cultural
and recreational site that once accommodated the
1962 Seattle World's Fair. 

Awesome views from the top of the Space Needle.
On a clear day you'd see Mt. Rainier to the right of the city.
More often than not it's shrouded in fog and clouds.

After ascending to the top of the Needle, where we enjoyed awesome views of the City and its surrounding area, we took that monorail and then walked around the downtown area and the market at Pike Place.

Biggie riding the monorail to downtown Seattle.

Seattle - a busy, modern city.
We loved it!

No visit is complete without a stop
in the famous Pike Street Market.

It was getting late and we had walked enough for several days. So we headed back via the monorail. Resting a bit in our room, we hit the restaurant that's ensconced in the hotel's ground floor, The Rock. It's a popular bar and pub with good pizza and burgers. We had a lovely and inexpensive dinner and retired to a long and deserving night of sleep.
Tomorrow - a rental car and an hour-and-a-half drive to the family in Poulsbo. But that'a another storey. Stay tuned.

To SEE ALL of my Seattle photos....just go HERE.