Quadrilha na Festa Junina! Part 2

So, I have no idea how to explain any of these events. Just that I went and took pictures.
Hope you enjoy.

Quadrilha na Festa Junina! Part 1

First I will show Capoeira. The Afro-Brazilian martial-art likened to dance fighting.

This was actually the last thing of the Quadrilha that we saw before we left.

Naturals Game

One more entry before entering Brazil. I am sitting on a friends couch at the moment. In less that 36 hours, I will be boarding a plane from Dallas to Miami - and taking a another to Brazil.

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are NOT an exciting experience. They are awful and have probably the worst mascot I have ever seen. Strike the Sasquatch - who doesn't get excited for anything.





But there were some attractive women at the game. In fact, I believe these girls were girlfriends of the players. They are so involved in the game that they didn't even notice me take their picture.

Concluding Chicago and Moving on the Second Chapter of my journey.

Apparently what tour guides are telling foreign tourists what Americans used to look like is something like this.



Riding a tour bus is fun, but this is about all you remember. Being on the bus..and rolling along in the streets. This was a photo-shop effect that I've seen done with wedding photos..I thought I'd add the effect here for the effect of racing through the city.



Millenium Park. Huge. It was very beautiful, lots of people and so much else to see, but I just didn't get a good picture of it because of all the people.







...and time stands still?




I've been on an unintended photography break since returning from the Chicago trip. I am currently in my final week of American life - for the time being. I've had so much to do and so little time to just take pictures. Part of those activities are finishing up free photography sessions that I had promised to some friends (as if I would charge them anyway).

Life in Brazil will be exciting, scary and sometimes fun. I've a lot to learn when I get there - and next week will begin the second chapter of this little journey.

Many of the readers know about my situation regarding why I am going to Brazil, so I will just leave it at that and not explain for the time being...

Within a few days I will be visiting a farm of cashew fruit. Many Americans with little world traveling experience are unfamiliar with the idea that cashews are really a fruit. Brazil (specifically the northeast where I will be living) is one of the world's leading exporters of the nut (castanha) and fruit.

PLEASE NOTE: THE FOLLOWING PICTURES ARE NOT MINE AND ARE THE WORK OF OTHER INDIVIDUALS.




They make juices and drinks with the fruit like Cajuina or Suco de Caju. I was never a big fan of the fruit itself, but I will enjoy the experience.

I will be visiting this farm for a celebration of one of the Festas Juninas holidays. I have NO idea what that means right now - but I've seen pictures and I would say its kind of like a Brazilian Hoedown or shindig.



So, those should be among the first updates for my blog when I arrive.

Chicago Blog. Part 2

Before we get to the photos. I have a few stories to tell that did not make it into pictures.

1. I got to try authentic White Castle sliders. I've always had the ones from the supermarket, but the ones from the actual restaurant are much better. Yet they are very rough in the stomach. Unfortunately, it was a first and probably LAST experience for me.

2. I flirted with the entrance fee lady at the Fields Museum and got a senior citizen discount. Hilarious! I wasn't even trying to. I joked with her by saying "I'm a senior"..she looked at me and grinned real big. Later I compared my ticket prices to my companions. Senior discounts are fun. Especially when you're NOT a senior.

3. Wrigley Field actually is on a not-so-nice side of Chicago. When I arrived, I went out of tourist mode and into defense mode - attempting to blend in and act as if I wasn't new. After all, I wanted to seem like I've been to hundreds of Cubs games (even tho they suck) - and that was funny considering I was carrying a Nikon around my shoulder.

Funny things about waiting to enter:
a. Homeless guys going asking people for spare change..begging for it as if their life depended on it while wearing extremely nice clothing. Great shoes!
b. An Asian gangsta walking up and down the street screaming his homemade rap. Everyone stared at him. Obviously trying to get people to hear it. It was awful..and I think it was about some kind of love affair.
c. An outside-the-stadium 'security' guy (or at least he claimed he was) who was telling his kung-fu stories to a group of obvious young tourists. Get this. He claimed that his dad (a former marine) taught him to swipe someone's leg while simultaneously jamming his pinky up his opponent's nose and poking out their eye. And ...the college-age group he was hoodwinking - bought every minute of it.

So, now on to the pictures...

This first one reminded me a lot of the first two Terminator movies. This was in a prehistoric division of the museum where they were showing some of (or replica's of) the earliest human-esque skeletons that had been discovered.



At the Fields Museum, we took a break in the McDonald's there and fed french fries to the sea gulls. Tons of pigeons and sea gulls flocked to fight for the food.

I caught this one on camera catching a french fry in mid air.



The framing wasn't great, but the the movement was so fast that I didn't really have time to think about framing as he was jumping in mid-air to catch a fry. I was glad that it was as decent as it was.



For the sake of not putting readers into Chicago-exhaustion - something I felt after two very full days of Chicago - I am only putting images that encompass my experience from a realistic as well as an emotional experience. I know that sounds kind of hoky - but it really was a great trip. Chicago is probably the most beautiful city I have ever visited and probably the most notorious (other than San Francisco - where I was too young to remember all that much of it).

So, please excuse the lack of pictures that actually show you what Chicago looks like. I usually try to take artistic pictures when I can - ones that capture the emotion of the moment.

Take the following as an example.



I can't even tell you which buildings these are. But being from Arkansas, you get overwhelmed being surrounded by such tall skycrapers. They really put your actual size in perspective.



I've grown fond of panoramic shots. They provide great scope. This is Navy Pier for anyone who doesn't already know. Really beautiful, very touristy, and lots of fun stuff to do. We ate at Bubba Gump Shrimp while we were there.


This picture here - I think - is near the bottom of the Sears Tower. I DO have pictures of the Sears Tower, but it really is a boring building from the outside and unfortunately, my companions were afraid of heights, so we didn't get to go to the observation deck.



I avoided taking pictures of the Bronx-type neighborhood right behind me while I took this one.
It was probably the biggest item on my Bucket List. Hitting Chicago, seeing a game at Wrigley Field, seeing a professional sporting event outside of Arkansas was also an alternative if Wrigley field didn't work out.



This is probably my best shot of the game.




That's all for now. Please stay tuned for the final Part 3 to come later this week.

Trip to Chicago Blog - Extended Blog Part 1

The trip to Chicago was probably one of the best trips (aside from the actual work) that I've been on in a long time. Several "bucket list" items were taken care of...



Obviously, I didn't take this picture, but why come to Chicago (or any trip for that matter) if you can't get yourself in one of the pictures. I love this shot. The view from outside the aquarium was simply amazing.



From Inside the Aquarium...








The Chicago trip will be encompassed in about 3 blog entries..so come back soon!