GlobalMegaBlog » outings

Birthday surprise..

James — Sun, 21 Sep 2003 04:54:00 +0000

So Sarah has been planning a birthday surprise for me for some time and today I finally found out what it was.. this afternoon we drove up to Snohomish area, and went on a hot air balloon ride.. It was very cool. Never been on one before and it was a real experience. I took a load of photos which I’ll be putting up online real soon. Just hope they came out fairly well. Even if not, it was a memorable experience and I can highly recommend it to anyone who has never done it before. I was apprehensive at first, but it was actually a very serene and mellow way to fly. The only mildly worrying moment was when we landed. There was a chance we would tip on our side and be dragged through the field, but our pilot was very good and that didn’t happen (although we did lean over a fair distance). All in all, a fun afternoon out!

Harbour Cruise

James — Thu, 26 Jun 2003 06:57:00 +0000

Went to Seattle today with my folks. We took a harbour cruise, which was fun – nice views of the Seattle skyline etc. The weather was spectacular, and I walked away with my arms a nice shade of lobster.

We also visited Pike place market and picked up everything we needed for dinner, including some copper river salmon (again), which we had grilled on the barbecue. Tasted absolutely amazing. Served with salad and fresh baked french bread, followed by fresh organic strawberries. All in all, a gastronomical extravaganza.

If you’ve never seen the flying fish guys at Pike place market then A) Why not? and B) Here is a photo. They have folks standing out front with the displays, and when someone places an order, they throw the fish to the guys behind the counter. It’s highly entertaining and something everyone should experience if they get the chance. I was pleased to catch it on film, even if the fish was moving too fast to be captured clearly. At least you get the sensation of movement :)

[Edit: I should point out, the (extremely large) fish in that photo has just been hurled at great speed from in front of the counter. Occaisionally, they drop one, but not in this case, at least.]

Trip to the Olympic Peninsula

James — Tue, 24 Jun 2003 06:56:00 +0000

This past weekend we (Sarah, my mother, sister and step-father) headed over to the Olympic National Park for a weekend in the country. I took the oppurtunity to try my hand at taking some photos. Unfortunately, the weather conspired against us, and I was forced to try and get good looking pictures with heavily cloudy skies. I did a lot of experimenting with the white balance on my camera, and I’m getting a better idea of what I’m doing, although I still need a lot more practice.

Anyway, here’s some pictures. First of all, a shot in the woods around Lake Crescent. We stayed here right on the bank of the lake, and the trails through the woods had some fairly spectacular scenery.

A short walk (1.3 miles or so) from the lake, is Marymere falls. This photo is a little more blurry than I’d hoped, but it looks ok. I’d like to try again on a day with more sunlight.

The final picture I’m going to post is from Rialto beach over on the coast. I’m not entirely sure why I like this picture. There’s something "balanced" about it. Maybe the focus, the light, who knows. Anyway, despite the immense amount of cloud cover, I’m pleased with the way this one came out.

I also have lots of photos from Hurricane Ridge, but none of these came out well enough to put up anywhere. I’d like to go over there again some time to get some better pictures. There was snow up there even at this time of year (fresh fall last night), so a trip later in the year when there’s even more snow could yield some interesting results.

Anyway, nice weekend away. Good to get away from the cities and get some fresh air. Looking forward to returning again some time when the weather is a little more favourable!