Maui 26 April

What a day. We got up and had a 5:20 am flight to the Island of Maui. We were not sure what the plan was but we decided to go whale watching first, hunt for water falls, visit the volcano (yep another one) and then go to the Iao Valley. The photos below are just an example of the great time we had. The whale watching was a 2 hour cruise on a very flat and calm ocean where we saw a Mother and her calf. WOW this was an great experience. Hiked into a water fall and got luck to capture a long exposure since I did not bring the tripod. Learned a lesson, always bring the tripod. Next we drove to the summit of Haleakale Volcano in the Haleakala National Park. It is somewhat difficult to tell the depth of the volcanic crater due to the constant clouds that filled the basin. As they moved out a new cloud formed. Beautiful. Maui is a stunning island that really caught my eye. I will be going back some day.

The best part is that we rode to the airport in a stretch Limo.

Big Island of Hawai'i

It's been a couple days since the last entry due to our travels and the time that we arrived back at the hotels. On Saturday, 25 April we went to the bis island of Hawai'i. We left at 5:52 am and returned at 10:30 pm. You'll see that I had no time to write on the next blog. 

The Big Island was nice we went over to the Volcano National Park to see if we could see any active lava flows. Unfortunately, there were no active flows but we did hike throughout the park and really enjoyed the views and the varied landscapes. We were able to look down into the crater of the one of the largest active volcano in the US and walk through a rain forest. Some of the photos below will give you an idea of the landscape and the sights that we saw. I especially, liked the one shot of the lava covering the road. There were tremendous lava beds through out the park that are dated from different times. Some of the older lava beds are seeing a rebirth of life with trees and plant life growing, as noted in the photo of the palm trees in the lava field. At the site of the lava crossing the road there was a very bad smell of sulfur from the activity just a few weeks ago.

 More to follow in the Hawaiian Adventure. Leave me a comment and let me know that you stopped by for a look.

Hawaii Day 2

Today is our second day in Hawaii and a full one at that. Do you remember youtr mom telling you not to use that four letter word that ends in "K"...Not that one I'm talking about WORK. Well that seems to get in the weay at times when you want to be out and about taking photos. Here are a couple that I took today. One is a different view of Diamond Head and the others are of what else the beach. I liked the one of the beach in the daylight due to the way that the suns rays were filtered through the clouds. The second beach shot is a peacful sunset with the catamarans coming back in. Beautiful day. Stay tuned over the next few days as I will be visiting the Big Island and Mauai. Should be a lot of fun. Til then....

April 23rd Again

The title says it all. We are now in Hawaii which means that we got to live April 23rd again. We left Korea around 8:50 pm on the 23 April and arrived in Honolulu on 23 April at 1000 am. Time travel is a good thing but let me tell you we are all beat.

So this one will be a bit short and you will get to see a lot more of the week each day so please check back to see what we were up to.

Once we arrived and were able to check into our rooms we headed out for a short walk to see some of the sights. Now Hawaii is well know for it's beaches and we were not disappointed. Along the beach folks were surfing and playing beach volleyball. Couple of photos of the surfing and the volleyball.

We continued to walk down the path along the beach and I took this shot of Diamond Head. Might have to see about climbing it. As we came back we spotted a couple of Red Crested Cardinals. Now I am sure you are asking how I knew they were Red Crested Cardinals, right...well I looked it up in a book. Not bad for someone who is extremely tired.

Well this is all for the day. I will be adding more tomorrow. Not sure what the plan is after work but it will be fun.

Crazy Car Towing

We were walking around The Itaewon District of Seoul. Right next to us a tow truck backs up and has it's little arm reach out and scoops up the car. The tow truck driover did not even exit his truck to make this happen. This was so funny as you'll hear in the video. Only thing that would have been funnier is if the owner of the car showed up and chased the car down the road. Check it out.

  

More Korean Food

I just want to continue a bit with the Korean food theme. Four of us went out tonight for Korean Barbecue again to the same restaurant that we went to the other night. Here are some photos of the food we had that I have to say was delicious. Need to find a Korean barbecue in Frederick.

Korean Food

It's been a few days since I updated so I thought I should give a quick run down. Been working a lot and only have a little time in the evenings to go explore. On Tuesday night a few of us went to a Korean barbecue which was a lot of fun. We had no idea how it worked so the waitress gave us the run down and helped cook the food. Korean Barbecue is cooked at the table and eaten like a burrito. Only difference is that instead of a flour or corn tortilla you wrap it in a leaf of lettuce or a sesame leaf. Really good. I've add a couple of pictures from a street vendor, it looks like beef that is being cooked. Maybe tonight I will venture out and give it a try.

Gyeongbokgung Palace 2

I wanted to add a few more photos from the palace that we visited on Sunday, 19 April 2009. Leave a comment if you are up to it.

Gyeonbokgung Palace

19 April 2009

Today we went to the Gyeonbokgung Palace in Seoul. The palace was the residence of the Royal Family during the Joseon Dynasty, which ruled from 1392 to 1910. Here are a few pictures of the changing of the guard ceremony. We just caught this ceremony when we walked up to the palace.

Here is a small video clip of the drummer.

Trip to Korea

Wrote this while on the plane heading for Seoul, Korea.

Well we took off from Dulles International Airport and we are in route to Seoul, South Korea. Flight thus far is very good; attendants are very nice and helpful. We just ate I had Bibimbop, Seaweed soup and white sticky rice. It was really good and I can not wait to try the food on the ;
local economy vise airline food. I'll try to put up some photos of the food so you can have a look.

Looking at the in flight map it appears that we will be flying in sunlight the entire trip. I ques sleep is out of the "picture" so to speak. We are traveling at 494 mph at 34,000 feet. The total distance of the trip to Korea is 6,073 miles. Just opened the window shade and we are over the Hudson bay which is still frozen. I'll put a couple of shots of that up.
Hudson Bay

I've decided to keep this somewhat running in order to have something to do on the flight. Right now it is 1908 east coast time (Fri 17th Apr) and 0828(Saturday in Korea) We just crossed the Arctic Circle above the Northwest Territories approaching the Beaufort Sea and the Yukon. Not much to see out the window, everything is very bright snow. Flight has been smooth so far and hope it stays that way (and it did). Still no sleep.


Arctic (above the Arctic Circle)


OK we landed in Seoul International Airport which is actually in Incheon Korea. Drove to the Dragon Hill Lodge where we will be staying and got a nice scenic view of the country side and the city of Seoul. Can't wait to go explore the city and get some incredible photos. Here is a shot of a Street vendor selling rice cakes on a 6 lane (all one way) highway. Radical.



Street Vendor selling rice cakes

Spring

Well it looks like spring is finally here. With the warmer temps it’s time to get out and enjoy the world around us. Last weekend in Washington DC they held the Cherry Blossom Festival, with major grounds where ever you ventured to along the mall. We decided to go see the blossoms for the first time and enjoy the warmth of the day. We walked all along the mall from the Smithsonian to the Viet Nam Memorial Wall. We took in the sites of the tidal basin over looking the Jefferson Memorial and absorbed the fragrances of the cherry blossoms. While at the tidal basin the gulls were soaring in the warm air while those of us on foot managed to get through the crowds. Good time by all.

Soccer Game

As the coach of the office soccer team I am happy to announce that we won our first game 7-5. Record now stands at 1-1, but we are on a roll. The first game was miserable with the wind, snow flakes falling and the general lack knowledge of the game. The team only has a few players that have played organized soccer in the past. Great time and look forward to the games next week. Stay tuned for more soccer updates.

First Post

Stay with me as I continue to explore the usage of the blog. I will be using the blog to keep everyone updated on my photography and what is happening with me. To see my complete photographic gallery visit My Site Check back soon for updates.

Mike