Out and About: Oakland Zoo

Hello Friends!

Does the weekend come around and you think to yourself, Eeek!  What fun stuff shall I do with the boys so we all have a great day?  In other words, what shall I do to keep sane? ;-)

I am a creature of habit and sometimes subject my kids to the same old thing weekend after weekend. Fortunately, one thing that they never seem to tire of is going to the Oakland Zoo. Lucky for us (and for them!) the Oakland Zoo is a short drive from our home and is always a fun excursion for the family as a whole. For those who are interested, I highly recommend becoming a member.  There are times when I don't care to wander the zoo grounds or we arrive fairly late in the day, but having the family member pass makes a trip to the zoo a worthwhile endeavor even if it's only for that one hour before the zoo closes. :-)  

The boys love, LOVE riding the rides in Adventure Landing and enjoy the occasional hot dog.  The rides are super child friendly and for those parents who have little ones that like to run ahead of you ( Ahem! Yes, I have TWO of those.), the good news is that the amusement ride area is small  with one entrance also serving as an exit.  

A couple of weeks ago Mr. Other Half and I took the boys out for an early afternoon visit to the zoo.  We all needed to get our wiggles out after a morning of chores.  

This lion statue always draws attention. My child is not immune to its apparent charms. He was trying to "feed" the lion a twig.  :-)

He is pointing to his favorite creature at the zoo, the tortoise, of which there are several. 

When ended our day at Baja Grill on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland.  This is a favorite eating spot for us. The food is fairly priced given the organic ingredients used in their dishes. The fun decor is fun for the boys as they always notice something different in the framed music posters and painted chairs hanging on the walls.  The service is excellent and the personnel are very friendly and thoughtful even when they are busy. It doesn't hurt that the place is very clean.  

The end of a good and satisfying family outing. Even if we got a late start. :-)

What are your favorite places to visit in the East Bay with your family?  Please share!  :-)

Until next time.

--Carolina 

Out and About: Peace Corps + Santa Monica

Hello Friends!

Finally the long awaited Santa Monica post!  But it isn't really.  Say what?!

I've been meaning to post this for a few months now. I'm not sure what has held me back, other than regular work/life sh-stuff. Perhaps it's a feeling of not adequately expressing the love and respect I have for these incredibly lovely individuals. Perhaps it's because I am selfish and want to keep these images to myself though I did share some of these on Instagram?  Yeah, see, it doesn't make much sense.  

So let's get to this post, shall we!

Ten years ago I lived in Kazakhstan for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer. Perhaps I'll write about this in a later post but this is not that post.  It was tin Kazakhstan that I was befriended by one of the most beautiful and incredibly kind-hearted people I have ever been honored to meet. After living on my own for a year I moved in with them.  My host mom Gulnar and her family took me in literally and figuratively and I was changed forever.  Before I left for Kazakhstan I had experienced some very life altering events and as a result I was in a bit of a dark place.  I found light in Kazakhstan with my host family.  My host mom has always stayed in contact with me though I have been horrible in maintaining that level of communication (a flaw I fully acknowledge and actively work on on a daily basis). 

A couple of months ago my host mom's sister Saulet and her daughter Zhanna came to visit with me for a couple of weeks.  My only regret is that I wasn't able to travel with them to every destination!  ;-)  We did, however, make it to Disneyland, Santa Monica, Hollywood, and did several day trips to San Francisco.  

I loved having them with me!  It is because of them that I am in regular contact with my host mom through WhatsApp  and Instagram. Gosh how I love this medium for sharing information!  I'll be honest, my Russian language skills were never that awesome and my skills haven't improved over the years so writing (thanks Google Translate!) and sharing photos and videos is easier than trying to schedule a call when I am not exhausted or groggy to a loved one who is 14 hours ahead of me.  

But I digress!  :-}  Here are some photos I took while they were here. They are not in any particular order.  Just a few of my favorite images during our visit together. 

Disneyland

Santa Monica

Santa Monica

World famous Ikea.  :-)

San Francisco

Monterey

Jack London Square, Oakland

Ferry to San Francisco

Japanese Tea Garden, San Francisco

Words cannot adequately express how much I love these lovely ladies!  I hope we meet again soon!  

Until next time.

--Carolina 

Out and About: Yosemite In Winter (Part 2)

Hello Friends!

Wow!  I know, another post within a seven day period.  What other miracles will the new year bring?!  ;-)

Here are photos from the rest of our stay in Yosemite in early December. 

We came across this mellow majestic creature on a bicycle ride through the Valley to Mirror Lake.

Camp Curry was closed for the season but it was all decked out.  There were Christmas garlands and even a lit Christmas tree. It was so pretty. 

We were surprised to discover a large sized ice rink across from Camp Curry.  Mr. Other Half and our oldest decided to give it a try.  Needless to say it was probably the longest 20 minutes of their lives full of falling and gliding for nanoseconds at a time only to fall once more.  They didn't give up trying.  That is until the 20th minute.  :-)

If you have an opportunity to visit Yosemite in winter, go.  Just get in your car and go. It's worth it. The beauty of the Valley is awe inspiring and usually full of like-minded folks who are out there to visit one of America's most beautiful national parks.   

Sadly there wasn't any snow when we were there though we hope to return in the near future to see the Valley blanketed in snow. 

Do you go to Yosemite?  What are your favorite activities to do while there?

Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time. 

--Carolina 

Out and About: Yosemite in Winter (Part 1)

Hello Friends!

I won't bother apologizing for the gap between posts. This working mama has to, well, work!  I will, however, thank you kindly for checking in every now and then-- thank you! 

It's probably obvious from previous posts that my little family and I love nature. We much prefer to go on a hike than to an amusement park (though we've done that).  We would rather go camping than go to the city and stay in a hotel (though if it were just the hubby and I we'd be up for that!).  The boys are happiest when they are either wet, muddy or both and their joy makes us happy.  So it's probably no surprise that when we would take a mini vacation in our favorite place, Yosemite. 

What's not to love about Yosemite?!  It is truly a wondrous place.  The best part of this visit was that the park was largely empty the first week in December before the first snow fell. While we missed the snow - insert sad face here- we still enjoyed long meandering bike rides throughout the park, took some nice short hikes with the boys, and genuinely enjoyed each other's company in a way that we hadn't on previous family vacations. 

Here are a few photos taken of a hike near Tunnel View on our first day there.  I also shot some film and hope to share those once I get them back from the lab. That is, I will share if they are share worthy.  ;-)

These oak leaves had the most intricate patterns.

While I love nature I find photographing landscapes intimidating.  My Other Half is an AMAZING landscape photographer.  Here is my humble attempt at landscape photography. 

Today is the last day of 2014.  I wish you all a fabulously happy and successful new year.  May it be rich in health and family.  

Thanks so much for checking in. 

Until next time. 

--Carolina 

The Film Files: The Boy

Hello friends!

I know, I know, I know!  This is not a post on Santa Monica and Hollywood nor did I keep my promise to post last week.  -sigh-  I wish I could cram more time into my day with less interruptions.  Until then I will post when I can. I might even post more than once a week, but in the spirit of keeping it real, well, let's not hold our breath shall we?  ;-)  

Moving on...

I've mentioned before that I love film photography. Love it, love it, love it. I have a few frames I would like to share today from a couple of months ago I took of my oldest.  These frames were taken on a super bright day around 2 pm in September.  The sun was still high and it was a hot day! 

I did not use a light meter as I didn't have one at that time and the internal light meter stopped working the very first time I used the camera. Yeah, major bummer.  :-/   So I just used what I know of digital metering for these. I think I could have overexposed a bit more, but I must admit I like the rich and vibrant tones I did get. For those of you who are interested, the camera is a 35 mm Yashica with a Contax lense, manual focus only.  The film is Kodak Portra 400.  These images have not been edited in any way by me or the film lab.

I can honestly say that I am in love with film more than words can express. There is a soulfulness, a depth, a certain intangible something to film that digital can't exactly match (though you can get close).  These frames don't match what I envisioned but it's a start and practice makes progress, right?  :-)  

I am really excited about including film in my photography journey and hope to share more in the future.  My next goal is to take better notes in regards to settings, type of light, etc., so I can share that info as well. If you have any advice, suggestions, or resources for film photography, don't be shy- share!

Until next time!
--Carolina