We popped over to the beach on Saturday, and it was one of those perfect sparkly days. I took this shot of one of the lifeguard stations:
and put it on Instagram,
where it was featured on @nothingisordinary with three other photos.
A nice Easter surprise. Hope yours was wonderful.
{carole}
One of the prettiest cafes I’ve ever been to is Café Niederegger in Lübeck, Germany.
Isn’t the exterior amazing? Master confectioner Johann Georg Niederegger founded the establishment in 1806. I had no idea Niederegger was world-famous for its marzipan. Johan’s secret recipe, with “as many almonds as possible and as little sugar as necessary,” has been passed on from generation to generation since his death. According to Wiki, Niederegger marzipan is guaranteed to be 66% almonds.
Have to tell you, the word “marzipan” used to give me chills. When I lived in Germany, I worked at a resort where one of the bakers made cakes decorated with marzipan. I don’t know what they used, but the stuff made my teeth ache. Sickening sweet with a weird aftertaste. So I wasn’t exactly looking forward to marzipan cake with my coffee, but it was already paid for, and I figured I could give it to someone else.
Was I ever wrong. This cake was divine. Fine hazelnut cream covered with a soft layer of marzipan. The almond flavor was not overpowering or sickening at all. So creamy and delicious.
We had the cake and coffee upstairs, then went down to the ground floor where we saw this:
Can’t remember seeing that much heaven in one place before. 🙂 I do apologize if you’re reading this when you’re hungry.
There was a window outside for coffee to go. I’d probably go that route if I lived in Lübeck. Otherwise I’d be huge.
The area near the cafe is very busy, as it’s next to the outdoor market. You can see market photos here. There were a few street performers, and these two caught my eye:
It’s supposed to look like he’s holding her up.
A bit more dramatic from this angle. I appreciate that they let me photograph them.
Great weekend, everyone, and Happy Easter to those who celebrate!
{carole}
Sea lavender, one of my favorites, is in bloom again at one of my favorite spots, La Jolla Cove. We really are spoiled here having everything bloom before the end of March. Only the jasmine isn’t out yet, but there are signs. 🙂
Hope your week’s going well so far.
{carole}
So I decided to change our cat’s name. “Danny” just doesn’t fit our Siberian. After much back and forth, I decided on “Yuri.” As in Yuri Zhivago, one of my favorite characters.
Google image
No resemblance at all, I know. 🙂 Yuri’s not answering to it yet, but hopefully will in time.
I can’t get over his tail. It’s so long and full! He holds it straight up when he goes down the stairs, which looks so funny to me.
Right now, Yuri’s favorite place to sleep is my lap. That’s fine now that we’re having cool weather, but it’s going to be too hot this summer.
Haven’t brought out the big Canon yet, so these were taken with the iPhone. I tried to get Yuri used to the vacuum cleaner, but he still hates it. Hopefully that won’t be the case with the camera.
I’m constantly surprised at how different cats and dogs are. There’s no way Rocky would have gotten up on the kitchen counters. Or the dining room table, etc. etc. Every time I think I’ve cat-proofed the house, Yuri finds something else to get into.
It’s not a good thing to look into a dog’s eyes (a sign of aggression) but Yuri often stares into my eyes very intently while purring (see first photo) then puts his paw on my shoulder. It’s the funniest thing. I don’t know if he’s claiming ownership or devotion. 🙂
Great weekend, everyone!
{carole}
Thought I would show you a few more images of San Carlos, Mexico. I so enjoyed my time there.
One of the resorts on the beach. A Club Med used to be there, but now it’s something else.
The colors of San Carlos are so vivid and beautiful. I love that about Mexico.
There are some very nice houses on a hill in San Carlos. This area is called the Caracol or “snail” because of the way the houses are arranged on the hillside.
More of the beach during sunset.
It really is a beautiful little town. Quite a few expats from the States live here in the winter. Oh, and the seafood is some of the best I’ve ever had.
Hope your week’s going well so far.
{carole}
“With the coming of spring, I am calm again.”
~Gustav Mahler
When I heard that Nancy Reagan had died over the weekend, I thought back to the time I photographed her with President Reagan on the South Lawn of the White House.
We were living in the D.C. area back then, and one of my girlfriends was dating a Secret Service agent. She called one night and asked if we’d like to see the White House and watch Ronald and Nancy Reagan take off from the South Lawn. Reagan was due to give the commencement address at Notre Dame University that day. See a president in person? Sure! We had no idea how much we’d see, but it turned out to be a lot.
What’s crazy to me now is that we saw the Reagans just two months after the attempted assassination by John Hinckley Jr. All we had to do was provide our Social Security numbers to the Secret Service a week before we were to go.
When we got to the White House, we didn’t even have to go through metal detectors, and no one looked inside my purse. I also had a large-ish Nikon camera and no one cared.
What was really cool: we got to see the Secret Service room and they let us wander all over the ground floor. The upstairs was off-limits because the First Family was in residence. We got to see the Oval Office, of course, and all the other open rooms on that floor. My indoor pics didn’t turn out because I didn’t bring my flash–thought that might create problems.
Here is one lousy photo of the Blue Room:
I was pretty new to photography then and was using film, probably with an ISO of 100. Great for a sunny day, but terrible inside. And to tell you the truth, I was kind of in a daze. To just wander around the White House with no escort was pretty amazing.
Just as I was about to photograph the Oval Office, one of the agents came and told us the Reagans were about to depart. We rushed out the back door and stood where we were told. Luckily, the woman directly in front of me wasn’t that tall, so I could take some decent shots.
That’s the press corps and guests across from us. It’s funny now to think of me taking pictures of the press. Some photographer probably has pictures of us.
The man facing us is James Baker III, Reagan’s Chief of Staff, and later Secretary of the Treasury. The bald man second from the right is Michael Deaver, Deputy Chief of Staff. I don’t recognize any of the others.
And suddenly, the Reagans appeared. Everyone cheered as soon as they saw the President.
No matter what your political persuasion is, it’s pretty exciting to see a world leader. I’m kind of amazed that I was able to take photos at all.
I was struck by how healthy and relaxed the President looked. Especially after being nearly killed two months before. I also noticed that Nancy appeared very nervous, understandably. Reagan wanted to smile and shake hands, but she kept edging him towards the helicopter.
Call me crazy, but I could swear he was looking at me in the photo above. 🙂
It all happened so fast. One minute they were smiling and posing, then boarding the helicopter.
And they were off. That’s the Washington Monument on the left with the Jefferson Memorial in the center. Most likely a Secret Service agent in the foreground.
So many years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday.
Hope your week’s going well so far.
{carole}
Ready for more Alcatraz?
Since Alcatraz didn’t have a water supply of its own, water was imported from the mainland by tug and barge. This water tower was built in 1941.
The dining hall. Inmates were permitted to eat as much as they wanted in 20 minutes, but if they left food, it was reported and prisoners could lose privileges if they did it often.
Prisoners had to eat in complete silence.
On the ceiling rafters there were tear gas canisters which could be activated by remote control if inmates tried to riot or escape.
Here’s a closeup of one of the walls. As you can see, the paint is peeling and there’s a lot of erosion. Salt air is so hard on everything it touches.
One of the solitary confinement cells. I was surprised to learn that there was no light once the inmate was inside. These cells were also soundproof and very cold. I think I would have gone insane.
We were happy to take a break and go outside in the yard.
We went through this door.
Inmates were allowed out in the yard on Saturdays and Sundays and on holidays for a maximum of five hours. I always thought prisoners got outside every day. Maybe it’s that way now?
Even though the yard is pretty small, inmates played basketball, baseball and softball.
That’s the top of the New Industries Building with part of the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance.
Back inside the prison.
One of the bookshelves in the prison library. The room is empty now, but once held 15,000 books, mostly from the army days. A chaplain censored magazines, removing violent material.
Where prisoners talked to visitors. They were allowed one visit per month from immediate family members or approved visitors. Visitation was from 1:30 to 3:10 p.m. weekdays.
The guards’ control room. I’m just noticing the cigarette in the ashtray now.
That was basically the end of the prison tour,and once again we were outside in the beautiful weather.
The administration building where non-prisoners worked.
The ruins of the warden’s home. The three-story, fifteen-room mansion was built in 1921 and must have been pretty grand.
The views are jaw-dropping. Talk about contrast: the wardens often held lavish cocktail parties here.
The warden’s view of the San Francisco skyline.
We exited through this tunnel.
Before leaving the island, we went into the bookstore which was huge.
I was tempted to buy one of these cups like the inmates used. For about ten seconds. It’s not a place I want to remember every time I take a drink.
Something tells me the transfers didn’t happen very often.
If you’re interested, you can see the prison hospital if you take a night tour. No thanks, the place is creepy enough in the daytime!
Hope your week’s going well so far.
{carole}
Remembering springtime on the East Coast and one of my favorite flowers, Cleome or Spider Flower.
Great weekend, everyone!
{carole}
Alcatraz Island is only 1.25 miles (2.01 km) off the coast, so it was a short ferry ride from San Francisco. I missed seeing it in years past because I didn’t know you had to reserve waaaay in advance. It’s a bit easier in the winter when there aren’t so many tourists.
Here’s our ride. We had perfect weather, so I was able to stay outside for photos.
The views from the ferry weren’t too shabby at all:
San Francisco skyline
Bay Bridge
Golden Gate Bridge
And then, our first sighting of Alcatraz.
In 1846, John C. Fremont, Military Governor of California, bought the island for $5,000.
Then in 1850, President Fillmore ordered that Alcatraz Island be set aside as a U.S. military reservation following the acquisition of California from Mexico after the Mexican-American War.
A little closer.
At first I thought the tall structure was a guard tower. It’s actually the oldest operating lighthouse on the West Coast of the U.S., completed in 1854.
We came in from the north. This is Building 64, which houses a very nice bookstore on the first level. Not sure what they use the rest of the building for now, but it used to be apartments for employees. That’s the main prison on top of the hill.
Thought you might want to read the “welcome sign.” More about the Native Americans later.
On our way up to the prison, we took in the beautiful views and other buildings. The contrast between the penitentiary and the surroundings was pretty stark.
San Francisco Bay is just so beautiful.
Electrical repair shop.
Another view.
Looks like something from Al Capone’s time, doesn’t it?
This little prisoner was especially poignant. Juan Manuel de Ayala, a Spaniard, named the island “La Isla de los Alcatraces,” or “The Island of the Pelicans.” The name was later shortened to Alcatraz. I really hope someone freed this pelican.
Random fact: The “Birdman of Alcatraz” movie wasn’t quite accurate. Robert Stroud, the Birdman, was jailed with his birds at Leavenworth Prison. When moved to Alcatraz, he wasn’t allowed to keep any pets. Stroud spent 42 years in solitary confinement!
The remains of the Officers Club.
From November 20, 1969, to June 11, 1971, eighty-nine American Indians occupied the island under the Treaty of Fort Laramie. During the occupation, this building, the recreation hall, the Coast Guard quarters and the warden’s home were destroyed by fire.
The main prison block looming above. Construction began in 1909, but before that, in 1867, a brick jailhouse was built and in 1868, Alcatraz was designated a long-term detention facility for military prisoners.
We then entered the prison and basically took the same path as incoming prisoners.
First stop, showers:
When we walked through this area I was busy taking it in and shooting photos. Looking at it now, I’m kind of creeped out.
B Block. Alcatraz was a federal prison from 1933 until 1963 when Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy ordered the penitentiary closed on March 21.
Some of the more famous prisoners besides the Birdman of Alcatraz were Al Capone and George “Machine Gun” Kelly.
We saw all kinds of cells:
Most of the prison cells measure 9 feet (2.7 m) by 5 feet (1.5 m) and 7 feet (2.1 m) high.
Corridors of the prison were named after major American streets such as Broadway and Michigan Avenue.
The cells were stacked three high. I think they look like rat cages here.
One of the “nicer” cells.
More next week.
Hope your week’s going well so far.
{carole}
Pearls & Prose 