Sights and Sounds Ninety-Seven

Day One. CHS-Buxton-Hebden-Hebdon Bridge-Knaresborough.

It’s 5:45am in Knaresborough. The sun is blasting through the white blinds and i have only had 5 hours of sleep. I actually feel pretty awake considering the monster first day we just had. 

We left Charleston on Friday. The weather was hot but overcast with a good chance of storms but we managed to leave the gate without any delay. The United flight was a little crowded and small so thankfully it only took an hour to get to Dulles (Washington, DC). Having drank three pints of Guinness in the airport (as you do) i was a little concerned that we got held up for 20 minutes on the runway as i felt the urge to go to bathroom creep up on me. The Guinness was going to get it’s revenge. In the spirit of going back to the motherland for the first time in two years i blasted Great Northern’s “Home” through my headphones as we sped down the runway to take my mind off it. I knew i had another 15-20 minutes before i would be allowed to get up and move about the cabin. When chime of the “seat belt no loner required” finally met my ears i bolted in true Johnny Bolt fashion down the back of the little plane only to be met by the meanest United Airlines flight attendant who was walking in my direction. “Sir, go to the exit row” not catching what she said i replied “Sorry?” to which she snarky repeated herself “Sir, go to the exit row”. At this point my bladder was close to springing a leak all over Row 22. I backed up so she could walk by and i smiled and let her by (she did not smile nor did i see her smile once on the flight. Anyways, i finally got to the loo and wow that was a relief in every aspect of the word.



We landed in Washington and had a two hour layover. This is short for us as we usually plan 4 hours or so just in case there are delays so we barely had time to grab some food before we were boarding again. We ate at some restaurant burger joint and talked to some young guy who was coming home after a military tour. He had been to all those countries in the middle east you see on the news. He named off about 8 of them. What was really cool is as he went to pay the waiter told him the lady that was sitting opposite him moments earlier paid for his tab. I thought that was a really cool gesture. 

After devouring a cheeseburger we went to gate to board our flight to Manchester. It was a smaller plane than most that go to Europe only have three seats on each side with one aisle but it was pretty comfy and with the tail winds the caption announced we would be Manchester well before our scheduled arrival time. We didn't check any luggage this trip due mainly to our schedule leaving Scotland in two weeks. So the flight was great pretty smooth and fast. Dusti slept for about four of the 6.5 hours and i got a couple of hours in after a couple of drinks to help me doze off.



We landed in Manchester at 6:15am which for our bodies was 1:15am but we both felt remarkably good. We zipped through Immigration super fast and were out through customs into the arrivals lounge in no time. In fact, we were 10 minutes ahead of my brother since we had arrived ahead of schedule. But sure enough Julian was there and we were in the car on a beautiful sunny day in Manchester heading to Buxton for the day.

 It’s really cool being in England in the Summer. When we walked out of the airport we were met with really refreshing cool air. Such a contrast to the heavy humidity of Charleston. We drove out of Manchester towards Macclesfield and up into the Peak District. It was really beautiful. The sun was low in the sky and the colors were magnificent. Just outside Buxton we saw a policeman flagging us down or i guess just warning us to beware. As we drove around the corner were met by another copper who was “shooing” a cow and calf off the road! They had obviously broken out of their walled field and were going for a stroll down the country road. Without any further delays we arrived at Julian and Sarah’s and had a cup of tea and chilled….well I did anyway. Dusti thought she would feel better if she went off for a jog. The sun was out the temp was pleasant so Dusti and the family border collie Mak hit the streets of Buxton for a 5 mile run!

The rest of the day we chilled and did take afternoon naps to help us be prepared for our evening trip to Hebden Bridge to see Kate and her boyfriend Frankie and ultimately see Julian’s good friend Steve play with his band Klammer opening for the old punk band The Membranes. The drive over took about 1.5 hours. The road system in the UK is so baffling. The sat nav says it’s like miles but the roads are so twisty it takes ages to get anywhere. It was a great drive though with some super cool views. I set up my GoPro on the windshield to shoot a time-lapse of the trip. Check it out below.

This video is about Buxton_hebden


Once in Hebden we got a quick tour of Kate’s flat which was located right on the canal. It was a really cute little town. Dusti really enjoyed looking at all the old buildings and floral decorations that dawned them.

 We met up with Steve outside the club and all walked in together and had a pre-gig pint. The first band started and it was very loud. I would say i felt old but i think since the headliner of the gig was a punk band from the 70’s a majority of the clientele were actually older than me many of which were still trying to grasp on to their punk roots. 

Steve’s band Klammer



were really quite good. I had listened to them on SoundCloud so i was familiar with them some. It was about 9:30 when they finished up their set and we ha arranged to meet Frankie and Kate at another pub for quick pint before heading to Knaresborough. Of course my good brother had a Pepsi whilst Dusti, Sarah and i all drank one more beverage including a Strongbow Berry Cider which was rather tasty but perhaps a little too sweet (me thinks Judi McCabe would have enjoyed this drink). We also got a few packets of crisps (potato chips) including Ox flavor and Strong Cheese and Onion.

We finally headed out about 10:30 but unfortunately the drive to Knaresborough seemed to take quite some time due to a few road works and the complicated directions the sat nav gave us. I swear we drove in circles for about 30 minutes. I kept looking out the window a seeing the moon in one direction then it would be on the other side of the car moments later then back again. It was bizarre. We did finally make it to mum and dads arriving here a 12:05am about 31 hours after leaving our house in Mount Pleasant. 

So we are here and ready for the adventures that await us over the next 15 days. I’ll keep posting on the blog for the trip as much as i can if you wish to follow along with us.
 It’s time for a cup of tea and perhaps some eggs and english sausage!




 



Sights and Sounds Ninety-Six

So we have had a pretty chilled week here in Brevard. We went to Triple Falls yesterday. We have been there before but this time i had a specific photo i wanted to capture. I needed partly cloudy skies with a pretty good upper level wind to make the clouds really move. My goal was to take 1-2 minute high dynamic range images of the falls and then merge those shots with 20-30 second shots where i exposed for the clouds. The motion of the clouds creates a really nice effect.

Sights and Sounds Ninety-Five

After a two year break i am updating again. We have some interesting trips planned throughout this year so i decided what the hell. The last two weeks have seen me fly to Las Vegas and Boise, ID for work. Upon returning to SC i was then to immediately drive to the North Carolina mountains. Dusti and I are house/dog sitting for my brother while he is visiting our parents in the UK. Today was our first full day. We decided to go on a hike. This articular hike was 5.5 miles to and from Twin Falls. It was quite a climb in some parts but the weather was a perfect 65 degrees. The main problem we encountered was Dusti's hiking boots fell apart about 2 miles up the mountain. Both soles fell off. We tried tying them on various ways but it was to be. She managed to continue and complete the hike with basically nothing between her socks and the rocky wet and sometimes muddy ground. She's a trooper! I decided to lug my camera back pack up the mountain too so i could take some decent shots. I used my travel tripod so i could take some long exposures. I played around with a couple in Adobe Lightroom and am pretty happy with them. Here are a few. After a short nap in the afternoon and feeding the dogs we ventured out to downtown Brevard for a couple of beers and some food. We ended up at The Phoenix. Interesting little place. Chatted with some locals including Wild Bill who apparently has lived in all but 4 states and has been divorced 5 times. Highly entertaining.

Sights and Sounds Ninety-Four

Here's the UK video. Not much to it really. Just a few clips.

Sights and Sounds Ninety-Three

Here's a little video of our trip to France. I am working on a video for the UK partof the trip too but haven't finished it yet. The French one is a little longer than i intended but i just didn't want to cut anymore.

Sights and Sounds Ninety-Two

It's our last day in Paris. We just go back from our main sightseeing adventure for the day. This evening we will be taking it easy in the neighborhood and hitting the sack kinda of early for our 6:15AM start.
But today we decided to venture to La Cimetiere du Pere-Lachaise. It was about a 20 minute walk from the flat and took us over new territory. The cemetery is very well known. Famous people buried there include Oscar Wilde and Modigliani. However, the grave i interested in seeing was Jim Morrison's. He was buried there after he dies in Paris at the age of 28.

There was quite a crowd gathered at Morrison's grave and they had constructed a fence around it to keep people off of it. The cemetery was absolutely massive and we wandered around for about an hour not seeing very much of it. We decided to grab some lunch and then head over to Notre Dame to take a look inside.
The crowds were huge today but the line moved pretty quickly. There were people feeding the birds from their hands which was pretty cool.

We made our way inside where Dusti got a guide and we read about the cathedral.  Here's a few pics from the inside.

We left Notre Dame just before 3pm not realizing that a special ceremony was about to occur at 3 where they showed off what is said to be a nail from cross Jesus was crucified on and the crown of thorns. Realizing this when we walked out we opted not to stand in line all over again and instead went to find a place for some refreshments.

We headed back to our flat after this and we are now packing up before we go out for one last dinner in Paris.
This city is amazing. The people have been so friendly and there is so much to see here. I highly recommend it if you can make time. It is an expensive place but if you rent a flat like we did ($600) for a week you really get the chance to live in the neighborhood and experience the culture a little better than staying in a hotel.

Sights and Sounds Ninety-One

Here's a quick update. We have been so busy i find it hard to keep this up. The other night we ate at Chez Omar, a Moroccan restaurant in our neighborhood. We got a large bowl of couscous to share some vegetables and half a chicken. It was very good. Dusti also enjoyed choosing from the "The Party Platter" of desserts.

After dinner we stopped off at a local bar to watch the Champions Legue semi-final.
On Thursday we slept in little and didn't get out of the door until around 11. We headed to the Louvres but decided not to go in s the lines were absolutely mammoth and we would have spent several hours jut waiting. Instead we walked down the Champs-Elysees. It was incredibly busy today as the weather was warm and people were getting out. We walked all the way down to the Arc de Triomphe only stopping once so Dusti could by some french lip stick!

We had a bite to eat and walked over to the Eiffel Tower again so we could take a boat tour on the River Seine. It was awesome.  I shot mostly video and will post later. After the tour we walked towards Les Invalides not before taking another couple of Eiffel Tower shots and stopping at a Boulangerie for a little afternoon dessert.

In the evening we headed back out for the nigh time shots of the Arc and the Eiffel Tower. It was tricky but we got a couple of good ones.

Sights and Sounds Ninety

The weather has turned for the worse today with rain greeting us when we woke up. It is awfully cold too especially for May 1st. Our plans today took us away from Paris. We decided to take a train ride an hour outside the city to the town of Chartres. The train was a SCNF commuter train which was a double decker. We sat at the top and watched the french countryside go by. Even though the weather was a little dodgy the views were gorgeous. Our eyes were met with fields of yellow flowers that we guessed were mustard. When we arrived at Chartres it was very quiet. Today is a public holiday and most everything is closed (main reason we left Paris as most tourist locations were shut). We wandered up towards the Chartres cathedral which is the main focal point of the town. It was quite spectacular.
We decided to eat at Le Cafe Serpente before venturing around the town. Dusti had a mushroom omelet and i had a lamb (yes i know i already broke my vow to eat the little guys again but i swear this was my last time...i just saw someone else order it and it looked too good).

We took a quick look at the iPhone map and decided to walk around the town. We came across some pretty cool sights. The Abbey of St. Pierre and Chartres Cathederal were religious sites dating from the 7th century. Monks defended St. Pierre's at that time. A fire destroyed most of Chartres i the early 1100's. "New" reconstructions of the abbey and cathedral began shortly after the fire.
Here is a photo of St. Pierre's belltower.

We walked down towards the little canal and took in some more of this medieval town.

The rain began to fall so we headed inside the cathedral and it was simply amazing. No pictures could do it justice.

There was also one little fella that caught our eye. He follwed his master (not in the photo) around on command. we felt bad for the little pup as his master seemed rather mean.

We caught the train back to Paris and made our way back to our flat on the 3rd Ard. I did see another sweet piece of Paris street art. Time for bed now. I'll give you details of our evening at the local Moroccan restaurant, Chez Omar, tomorrow.