I Heart... the Crosses of Ireland

From the archives... St. Patrick's Day got me to feeling just a wee bit nostalgic about Ireland. I'm headed there again this summer, so I thought it was time to pull out my travel journal from my first trip.  

The story began here and it will continue on Monday.   Erin Go Braugh!
When I travel, I tend to choose a theme for my travel photos.  This allows me to concentrate on one particular idea when I am surrounded by new and exciting things to photograph.  Usually the theme just suggests itself in the first few days of a trip, and on my first trip to Ireland, the Crosses of Ireland were an obvious choice.  Here are a few of my favorites.  



  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Many thanks to Debbie of Deliciousbaby.com for hosting this week's Photo Friday.  Check out the other Photo Friday bloggers, here.

Link Love: Lovin' Roma!

There were a bunch of us on the same wavelength last week... lots of people blogging about Rome.  Me?  I spent all week wishing I was in the Eternal City.  Almost as good?  Reading about it. 

Here are a few of my favorite posts from last week:

EuroCheapo had a great post about Panifico Firenze, a reasonably-priced restaurant in central Rome.  I particularly enjoyed the post because I stayed in a hotel just up the block from the restaurant, and I can varify the review: the food is both good and cheap!

Debbie, at Delicious Baby, was also thinking about food in Rome when she blogged about Home Food in Rome.  Through Home Food you can eat with Romans, in their homes, enjoying the traditional foods made with love.  It's like having your own Italian family -- but without all of the drama!  I have my own Italian family, but I might try out Home Food next time I'm in Rome anyway. 

iKangaroo reviewed 3D Rewind -- a 3D movie experience about ancient Rome.  He gives it a positive spin, but he admits that the hard-core historians in the audience might take issue with a few of the details. 


Italylogue is hosting an interesting debate over the Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II in Rome.  Love it?  Hate it?  Weigh in here!  A few weeks ago, Jessica also posted a who's-who of people who Twitter about Italy.  Her list is great as are her tweets.  Follow them all (and me, too -- I'm @aknickerson).

The New York Times also had a great article yesterday about the food at the American Academy in Rome.  They had terrible food, evidently, and called in Alice Waters to fix it -- and she did. If you'll recall, Anthony Doerr was a fellow there for a year which inspired his latest book.  You can read my interview with Anthony here.

And finally EternallyCool.net just cracked me up with their photo from Rome's Palazzo Massimo.  And I will weigh in here: size does matter.

Happy Monday!  Have a great week!

This just in...
Italylogue is cleary in a Rome mood.  Her post this morning is a Rome survival guide for the first-time visitor.  Good advice!  And Jessica, I'll happily help you fall in love with Rome.  It is the place that feeds me -- chaos and all. 

I Heart... the Sacramento River

My husband and I love to drive.  We load up the dog, a few drinks, and the camera and then hit the road.  If we only have a few hours and just want to get out of the city, we head to the Sacramento River Delta.

Within fifteen minutes we are out of traffic and smog and driving along country roads surrounded by orchards, vineyards, and the river.

Just a few weeks ago we set out to watch the sunset on the river, and these are the photos I took.  It was a gorgeous evening ... no bugs, no traffic ... just the smell of the earth and the water and a full moon above.






















I've created a map with some of our favorite spots along the Sacramento River.  Enjoy!

View Larger Map


Thanks to all of you who joined me from DeliciousBaby.com's Photo Friday. I hope you will take some time to check out the other blogs participating, too. Ciao!