Posts Tagged With: train

Sacramento, California

I will start this off with an apology (or reason) for my recent lack of posting. Most of you know me well enough to understand that when it’s time for friends and family, technology goes out the window (phone, facebook, and unfortunately the blog as well).
With that said, as I returned to the states for my visit, I did take a little time to show another small portion of the beautiful state of California. If you’re interested in further information, I found an entertaining link on the history of Sacramento. http://www.sacramentohistory.org/ .

Sacramento is the Capitol and has an eye catching building to represent it (which turned out to be the handstand sight!)

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I invited my long time partner in small crime, can’t live with him-can’t live without him, best buddy Walker to join me in exploring Sacramento. He keeps me smiling unconditionally, and even when the blue sky’s of California are covered in grey like today, he still points out the vibrant reds found in the fall touched trees. Perfect companion for a day strolling down town!

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Some “out of the window” pictures from the drive around the city.

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We parked in old town for a nice walk towards the river. Here are a couple of random pics along the way.

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Ooh, what’s this? Sweet tooth time!

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I zoomed in on a shirt to capture the first picture below, then caught a shot of a local ride.

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For the creative pictures of the day…

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Dear Walker, you’ve been in my life since I was sporting side pony tails and playing freeze tag in the snow. Thank you for the hours of uncontrollable laughter, genuine smiles and your unmistakable attitude that constantly forces me to be on point. Take luck, good care and always remember there’s neck tie.

Here’s Walker and I five years ago at the wedding of my dear friend Valerie, (another amazing friend who should win some “super mom of the year” award!) followed by a picture from today.

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Buddha

Brandon and I decided to be tourist for a day and venture to the 2nd largest Buddha in Japan!

The Great Buddha of Kamakura (Kamakura Daibutsu) is a bronze statue, which sits on the grounds of Kotokuin Temple. Although I had read that is was towering at a height of 13.35 meters (slightly over 44 ft), I didn’t realize it’s massive size until I was actually standing in front of his peaceful presence.

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Let’s rewind just a bit to the few photos I snapped along the journey there. One thing I love about Japan, and most other countries I’ve seen, is the convenient public transportation. Instead of driving, we got to enjoy our journey with walking, taking trains, getting lost and then more trains… Just the way I like it!

Leaving Brandon’s neighborhood, we start on foot and head towards the station.

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I have yet to mention the uncountable amounts of vending machines that line the streets, malls, neighborhoods, schools and sidewalks of each city. In 2008 there were over 5 million vending machines here, which means there’s a machine per about 23 people populating the island! Your options range from snacks, drinks and hot meals to clothes, electronics, live fish and other items (that I probably shouldn’t mention on a family friendly blog).

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Here’s a fun thought: So you’re walking to work, and you you’re ready for your coffee- Vending machine. Mmmm, a warm muffin and jam sounds good – hey look a VM (vending machine). I don’t really want to hit the store on the way home to pick up my fresh eggs and milk – VM. Oh, I forgot it’s my bosses birthday, I’ll get him a tie – VM. Well shoots, it’s starting to rain… Where will I ever find an umbrella? Of course, a vending machine. I don’t know if I can carry all of this to work today, I better just buy a smart car – Vending Machine!

*You should google “Japan vending machines” to get a kick out of the creative items being dispensed from this handy little devices!

On we go to the train station!

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Easy enough, just read the signs (enter sarcastic laugh here) and line up.

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Quick bathroom break before we transfer to the adorable old school train that will take us to the bottom of the walk to see the Great Buddha.

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A few pictures from our walk (slight detour) as we eagerly head (so we thought) towards the statue.

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Check this out, fresh octopus with a smidge of flour pressed on a grill then handed directly to you all nice, warm and crispy!

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Thirsty after that? Vending Machine! This is an alcohol serving machine that actually cards you before you’re aloud to enter money or select your choice. Can it read American drivers license? I have no idea, I was just pretending to do it. Now I wish I would have tried!

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We finally reach the entrance of our destination. This is where you have the option to cleanse your hands prior to visiting Buddha.

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Here is the sight when rounding the corner.

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Students get to come here for field trips, what an adventure… I wonder if this is extremely exciting to them, or if it’s just another day, seeing another Buddha.

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More photos that I took before we got to enter inside the beast of copper.

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Handstand shot!

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I enjoyed finding different angles with a variety of effects to capture his unique great beauty.

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What a brilliant sky for our backdrop all day!

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…till next time Buddha, thank you.

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Categories: Art, Edibles!, Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

A small touch of Munich

The dirndl and lederhosen are packed and it’s time to explore outside of the fairgrounds.
We contacted Alan (the Aussie we met in Amsterdam and ran into at the Munich train station) and he joined us for lunch with Marion (the sweet girl I met at Oktoberfest years ago). We chose the original Hofbrauhaus to give Marshall and Alan the full experience!
This time of year sends locals and tourist here to chant the traditional songs and prost to the band that plays while you enjoy authentic Bavarian cuisine.

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After lunch we said goodbye to Alan wishing him the best with high hopes to someday see him again.

Time to explore the English Gardens! This is a spot in the city that holds over 900 acres of beauty from a Chinese tea house to open green lawns larger than New Yorks Central Park. It’s complimented with a stream running throughout and several inviting paths. Here are some sights we saw including some from along the way.

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This is one of my favorite hidden spots of Munich. On any given day youll find a consistent wake flow that creates a perfect wave for surfers to come out and play. What a great addition to a massive city!

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On our way back we found the same group of pleasant people playing bocce ball. I liked the glimmer of the hanging lights in this shot.

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We drifted by the famous Marienplatz for a one last walk through and a quick handstand photo.

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Marshall was doing a fantastic job of capturing this shot when a friendly voice asks if he needed help… It was Alan! Another unplanned run-in with our favorite backpacker! He joined us to finish the walk and we part ways again with the same smiles and hopes to one day reunite.

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The next morning Marshall and I snag a train to the airport to pick up our new means of transportation, a rental car!

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As we exit the packed train and head into the international side of Munich airport, it happens… Again! It’s Alan! The universe has crossed our paths for the 5th time in 5 days! He’s boarding a flight to England as we are driving off to Austria so this will be our final farewell till next time.

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Meet our new set of wheels for the next 6 days, 5 countries and over 1,000 miles of road! We named her Flugenehienzenreich Oonglenzeugetz Strausfiker, but we call her Flugen for short.

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Next stop, Salzburg Austria!

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