Entries from ''
10 Commandments of the Shared Kitchen
- Aperture: f/2.4
- ISO: 50
- Shutter Speed: 1/20 s
- Focal Length: 4.28mm
- Camera: iPhone 4S
When I was about two years old, my parents bestowed upon me the unfortunate nickname of “The Godmother.” Apparently I earned this title by bossing around all the other toddlers in our Houston neighborhood. “No! No! No! No!” I’d say, shaking my pointer finger at them. I’d love to report that “The Godmother” nickname eventually…
Lost in wine country
- Aperture: f/29
- ISO: 200
- Shutter Speed: 1/100 s
- Focal Length: 15mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
We had planned to visit the MollyDooker winery — home of our favorite wines — from nearly the moment we knew we were coming to Australia. We were first introduced to the brand in 2006, when Him’s mom bought a bottle of the 2005 Shiraz, The Boxer. Since that time, we’ve celebrated family birthdays and…
“I’m sitting in Peter Jackson’s seat,” or a review of “The Hobbit”
- Aperture: f/2.4
- ISO: 2000
- Shutter Speed: 1/15 s
- Focal Length: 1.85mm
- Camera: iPhone 4S
- Location: 41° 17.64′ 0″ S 174° 47.04′ 0″ E
Let me begin with an admission: I’m a Lord of the Rings fan. Not a let’s-attend-Comic-Con-dressed-as-elves kind of fan, but I read the books, watched each of the films during their first run in theaters and, as a teen, hung a framed poster from the “Fellowship of the Ring” on my bedroom wall. I confess…
Riding the rails across the Outback
- Aperture: f/20
- ISO: 200
- Shutter Speed: 1/60 s
- Focal Length: 14mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
If you’re interested in traveling at a painfully slow pace through barren landscape at great expense, then the Ghan is the train for you. We rode the rails from Alice Springs in the Outback to Adelaide in the south, a trip that would amount to a 2-hour flight but drags out to nearly 24 hours…
“I’m not sure you’re built for climbing Everest, darling”
- Aperture: f/2.4
- ISO: 80
- Shutter Speed: 1/20 s
- Focal Length: 4.28mm
- Camera: iPhone 4S
- Location: 34° 55.3′ 0″ S 138° 36.47′ 0″ E
Warning: The following post describes some gross and decidedly un-ladylike behavior. Read at your own discretion. Throughout our relationship, I’ve frequently teased Him for possessing a weak immune system. If someone — anyone — at his office had a cold, he would invariably catch it. Somehow, I managed to escape unscathed almost every time, and…
Chasing wombats
- Aperture: f/20
- ISO: 200
- Shutter Speed: 1/60 s
- Focal Length: 10mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
When Him and I were in Nadi, Fiji, a remarkably witty hostel employee named Rico innocently instructed members of his kava circle to tell the group their favorite animal. Strumming on his guitar, Rico then began a sing-along in which each participant took a turn filling in the gaps of the song with two noises…
Sydney-side up
- Aperture: f/9
- ISO: 200
- Shutter Speed: 1/1000 s
- Focal Length: 20mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
I can’t imagine there are many major cities in which you’d spot someone lugging a surfboard down the sidewalk. In that respect — and many others — Sydney is unique. It’s a city of tunnels, many of them containing or leading to upscale shopping, and of water with a network of high-speed ferries available to…
Our first Bollywood experience
Nothing is open in Suva on Sundays — and, quite possibly — in all of Fiji. Nothing, that is, except the movie theater. Suva’s Village Six Cinema is located on Scott Street near the wharf. We walked past it as the weather became drizzling and dreary, so we decided to give it a try by…
Every girl needs a cannibal fork
- Aperture: f/11
- ISO: 400
- Shutter Speed: 1/200 s
- Focal Length: 14mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
Some travel guides advise against visiting Suva, Fiji’s capital, because it’s a big city with some crime, but I think we both found downtown Nadi to be more threatening due to the aggressive shopkeepers and opportunistic “guides” that will follow you down the street spouting unsolicited directions and advice in hopes of coin. More on…
“Oh my God. We’re on the wrong side of the road.”
- Aperture: f/13
- ISO: 200
- Shutter Speed: 1/400 s
- Focal Length: 10mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
That astute observation was among my first upon arriving in Fiji. I remember climbing onto the Coral Sun Express and absently thinking, “That’s odd: The bus driver is seated on the wrong side. How quaint.” We had read about Fijians driving on the left side of the road, but I didn’t remember that fact until we pulled out onto the main thoroughfare,…
