-
Xi'an II
My favorite part of Xi'an was the Muslim Quarter and Great Mosque. I'd read rave reviews about this part of town on tripadvisor and other blogs and so I wanted to check it out. It lived up to its reputation. The streets are lined with amazing market stalls, small alleyways separate the buildings leading…
-
Beijing III
I continue to be shocked at how populated, build up, and advanced it is here. I knew that Beijing and Shanghai would be modern, developed cities, but I expected the others to be more like large villages. My ignorance has been blaring. Even “small cities” in China number in the millions of occupants. With Chongqing…
-
Beijing II
I'm not quite sure of the best way to go about sharing and documenting this trip. I'm taking SO many pictures and we're seeing so many incredible things that I'd love to share. If I feel like I'm experiencing China for my younger sisters, nieces and nephews then I suddenly see it through various…
-
Beijing!
After a restful night's sleep Tom and I arose perky and ready to go at 5:30AM. (Much to the chagrin of my in-laws!) We set out first thing to explore the hutong (historic neighborhood) around our hotel. I was intrigued by the maze like structure, “make do” mentality, and sheer tightness of the living…
-
Flying through Tokyo
We had a three hour layover in Tokyo before heading to Beijing. I was shocked by the landscape we saw flying in. I guess having heard how overpopulated Japan is, I figured I would see nothing but skyscrapers and high rise apartment buildings. Instead, what I saw was this: miles and miles of rice…
-
Soaking up Cleveland
My emotions have been strange these past weeks. I tend to be quick to cry- be I happy, sad, or angry. I just have over-active tear ducts. That being said, they’ve been particularly refined these past weeks. I had my final student voice recital Friday- no tears. I cried my eyes out a few years…
-
Savoring Spring
I love this time of year when the world is erupting in life and color. Knowing that this is my last spring in Cleveland I’m particularly savoring the changes. I’m loving these purple-hued dogwood buds agains my amber forsythia. There is about a week each spring when the baby burning bush leaves are so new,…
-
Come have a peek!
(I took advantage of our clean house to try and get some shots for our listing. This time I shot in raw- why haven’t I been doing that? Wow. The results are dramatic.) Wanna, snoop around our casa? Come on in! And while you’re enjoying our “open house” I’d love suggestions on the staging, photography,…
-
Sometimes, it's the little things
This is one of my favorite parts of our house. . . . . . the arching faucet, the gleaming granite, the marble window seal, and the verticle lines of the backsplash. Granted my sink rarely shines like this, but when it does it sings of serenity. I have a very large sage plant right…
-
Summer
Tonight, after coming home with bags of incredibly, fresh produce from my CAS, City Fresh I whipped together a Potato and Corn Salad that was delightful. The corn, was the best I’ve had in years. I purposefully picked the long skinny ears, knowing those would be less starchy. (I’m really not into starchy corn. Yuck!) They…