WARWICK, MA – My friend Gwendolyn recently invited me to do an overnight at a hipcamp location, called Salamander Hollow Healing Habitat. There were several sleeping arrangements one of which was a Tipi, since I’ve never done a tipi camp I decided to go for that one. I did have a good sleep but the weather kinda sucked. I had my winter sleeping bag, and a faux sherpa blanket and it was enough to fall asleep next to a fire.
Valley Moments: Salamander Hollow Healing Habitat – Warwick, MA – Wood Fire Pizza and S’mores –
WARWICK, MA – My friend Gwendolyn recently invited me to do an overnight at a hipcamp location, called Salamander Hollow Healing Habitat. There were several sleeping arrangements one of which was a Tipi, since I’ve never done a tipi camp I decided to go for that one. I did have a good sleep but the…
Hey it’s been awhile! Due to covid I haven’t really been doing a lot of International travel but admire those who push through the regulations to make it happen. I feel like I’m too spontaneous to deal with the changes. Anyway, I’ve taken an interest in car camping and domestic travel to fulfill that need, last winter I bought a small trailer that I’m converting into a camper – for example. In the mean time I’ve been working on making my sedan more camper friendly, I got a car air mattress that actually works pretty well. I’ve designed a kitchen setup for the sedan that I’ve been dying to try that won’t break the bank. Regardless, I did my first over nighter last weekend in Catskills park in Upstate New York in a pull off. No one bothered me but I’m pretty sure there was someone who shown their lights through the car!
Thankfully with the car air mattress it fits in the back of the seat, so it was actually pretty stealth. Unfortunately after only four hours of sleep (which is actually a minimum for me), I woke up to rain at 1 am at night. It was pretty quiet and the rain came down hard. I made the executive decision to leave for home and good thing I did as it continued to rain throughout the morning. I wasn’t prepared for car camping as initially I wanted to do a wild tent camp from iOverlander coordinates but could NOT find two spots I had picked out in the Catskills! Dinner went swimmingly well, I had my famous naan pizza. I pre-made the dough and brought peppers, onions and garlic. Before dinner, I cleaned out the car and moved whatever was left over from my move to the trunk and blew up the air mattress. I was definitely under prepared as I didn’t bring a pillow and no heavy blanket, but still got some sleep.
I think my next trip might be local or to Westport, CT for some mussel and clam foraging! Whatever comes first, with these gas prices these days it makes it even more difficult to do domestic travel so I’m sticking to super local destinations for now. Check out my YouTube video of my adventure below:
I connected with Jamie from Road Trip HER group on Facebook and she hosted me at her tiny cabin. My trip was brief as I just wanted to spend a day at the Stoweflake Resort and Spa
TYNGSBOROUGH, MA – Continuing my personal wellness series, I did go to a Spa in November however I’ve just been so busy with the holidays that I haven’t had a chance or frankly motivation to post. But now I have and can post a few pics. Honestly I don’t have much to say other than it was a super casual but affordable experience. The food wasn’t really much to rave about and was a bite to eat but in a pinch it worked.
LEE, MA – I have been on a personal wellness quest and figuring out the best anxiety and pain management for myself. So far I have discovered water or hydrotherapy does wonders for me. During the summer lakeside beaches really are a huge benefit but they are not open year around. I found a place recently that offers holistic baths which are a nice option because hot tub therapies usually require at least two people, which makes it awkward for myself. I was a bit early to my appointment so I explored Lee. A few years ago I visited a cafe that was known for their crepes, ironically called the Starving Artist Cafe but they were unfortunately closed. I took a few photos, so here they are from my experience.
PROVINCETOWN, MA – Today my family and I went to Herring Cove Beach in Provincetown. I am on the cape for Labor Day weekend and got lots of fun activities planned. We stopped at the beach to check out the restoration that was done after some damage from a storm awhile ago. These pictures are a reflection of that. They constructed a nice rest area with a concession stand and built up the beach and parking. After that we walked through downtown, ate lunch at Bubala’s, a favorite restaurant of ours. Before heading back I went to Wampum, etc. and purchased a replacement wampum ring finally. I had one a few years ago that broke overtime. Overall a really fun and relaxing day, perfect weather too!
BELCHERTOWN, MA – I initially got my apartment here because of several things, most I am sure most people wouldn’t have considered. One of these amenities is a public beach not too far (walkable) distance from my apartment. However, I have been here two years and this month it was my first time visiting. While a little small, it was a quiet place to getaway for a little bit. They also had a concession stand and some amenities (bathrooms, and boat launch). Earlier this month I took a few photos and was excited to learn they will remain open throughout September!
About a year ago I got the opportunity to do a media stay at San Remo Hotel in San Francisco but because of the circumstances at the time, I had to push it to this year. It’s truly amazing to me how much a year can change in terms of one’s circumstances. Since I’ve started working full-time, I’ve been figuring out how to keep a pre-established lifestyle while maintaining a 40-hour work week. Quite frankly it’s been difficult and the pace has been much slower, which I don’t mind at all. Working full-time has breathed new life into my routines that had been missing previously.
San Remo Hotel is a centennial time capsule. Just over a hundred years ago in 1906 after the earthquake and fire that destroyed most of San Francisco, Bank of America founder A.P. Giannini, constructed a new hotel on 2237 Mason St. just blocks away from Fisherman’s Wharf. The hotel has 62 rooms and was originally named the “New California Hotel” hoping to infuse optimism and rebirth after the fire into the city. The hotel ambiance is Old World: quiet rooms without phones or TVs, Victorian heirloom furnishings and hallways lined with historic photos. Guests share bath facilities, reminiscent of European pensione-style lodging.
Beginning in the 1930s, artists, musicians and poets found a home at the San Remo, some paying their room tab with a painting or two, most moving on when they could find a larger place more suitable for use as a studio. The easygoing environment at the hotel, a perfect fit for the bohemian North Beach lifestyle, attracted creative talent for several decades.
Local San Remo Hotel artists like Julius Hatofsky and Ernie Biggs were San Remo guests in the 50s. Hatofsky became an emeritus instructor at the prestigious San Francisco Art Institute after a long career as an artist, and Biggs gained a reputation in New York. Sometimes the less glamorous tenants needed a little looking after. Proprietor Nello Ragghianti, who operated the hotel from 1945 to 1972, would bank their monthly Social Security checks and dole out funds as needed so they weren’t squandered.
San Francisco itself is situated in the Silicon Valley and is home a diverse array of industries most famous for technological and biological innovation. Silicon Valley (abbreviated as SV or The Valley) is a region in the southern San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California, referring to the Santa Clara Valley, which serves as the global center for high technology, venture capital, innovation, and social media. San Jose is the Valley’s largest city, the 3rd-largest in California, and the 10th-largest in the United States. Other major SV cities include Palo Alto, Santa Clara, Mountain View, and Sunnyvale. The San Jose Metropolitan Area has the third highest GDP per capita in the world (after Zurich, Switzerland and Oslo, Norway), according to the Brookings Institution.
The word “silicon” originally referred to the large number of silicon chip innovators and manufacturers in the region, but the area is now the home to many of the world’s largest high-tech corporations, including the headquarters of 39 businesses in the Fortune 1000, and thousands of startup companies. Silicon Valley also accounts for one-third of all of the venture capital investment in the United States, which has helped it to become a leading hub and startup ecosystem for high-tech innovation and scientific development. It was in the Valley that the silicon-based integrated circuit, the microprocessor, and the microcomputer, among other key technologies, were developed. As of 2013, the region employed about a quarter of a million information technology workers.
The exhibition in Brattleboro that is in conjunction with the Vermont Center for Photography and the Society for Photographic Education is open for viewing at 118 Elliot St, Brattleboro, VT.
This year’s SPE Northeast Chapter Conference is quickly approaching, and they are thrilled to announce the talented artists chosen to be part of the conference’s Juried Exhibition! Joshua Farr, Executive Director at the Vermont Center for Photography is the juror of this year’s exhibition for our annual conference, “Is Photography Enough? Interdisciplinary Approaches Beyond the Still Image.”
Mount Tremper, NY | World’s Largest Kaleidoscope – While staying at the Emerson Resort and Spa one of their biggest features is a silo that has been converted into a kaleidoscope show. The show is an interactive display of light, sound and form and tells the story of the universe through this. The display was created by a local film firm in NYC and by two artists. After the show, you find yourself in a gift shop fill of different kaleidoscopes ranging from all sizes and prices. The team at Emerson gifted me a travel-sized kaleidoscope that I now keep on my kitchen table. Not only is it a feast for the eyes, but this experience has inspired me a bit in my own photography.
The above image was taken through a triangle tubular piece and had a mandala panting on the back wall. This image is pretty cool and makes me wonder if I can recreate the effect by creating a kaleidoscope lens. Throughout the shop there were interactive displays where you can look through kaleidoscopes and spin a bowl of marbles to create your own visuals. This activity is complimentary for guests.
