Little Pebble

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07.27.08 (Bees in our US home) - Here's a quick video of our bee extraction that took place this week. Hard to believe we had 50,000+ bees between our first and second floor. This guy was amazing at removing them w/out destroying our place. With the exception of moved furniture, you would never know that him or the bees were ever here. Stay tuned, a US tab is coming !

07.06.08 (Street Photography) - Well, this is my last entry for China. This was just an hour stroll down a busy street in Shanghai (Hongmei Lu). These are the kinds of things you see everyday and after awhile just become normal.

07.05.08 (Apartment) - I got a new flash and wanted to capture one last look at our apartment before we left. Most of these shots I bounced my flash off the ceiling to get a softer look. While it's good to be back in the US, there are times we really miss our Shanghai living.

07.04.08 (Hangzhou) - Sorry for the extremely late posting of these pictures. We've actually been back in the US for a little over two months now, but I'm just getting to these. Our last weekened in China we took a trip to this city which is very popular for it's lake and gardens. I have two more China posting before I begin my US tab, so stay tuned.

04.21.08 (Moon River Diner) - This is a burger place in Shanghai that we like very much. They also deliver ! They have great T-shirts that say 'Moon River Diner - No Chopsticks Required'. Oddly enough, they are better than some place in the US. I like the decor and you can almost forget you are in another country.

03.15.08 (Botanical Gardens - Jess) - This garden is in the southwest part of Shanghai and I went there one afternoon to explore. It has extensive grounds (200 acres) that are divided into different sections featuring roses, bonsai, bamboo, orchids, and much more. Just a few plants were in bloom, I went mainly to see the plum blossoms, so I hope to perhaps go back in a month or so. Enjoy!

02.07.08 (Chinese New Year's Eve) - Well, the pig is out, and the rat is in. Here are some shots of our New Year's Eve show. These are all taken either from our apartment or from the streets in our neighborhood. The photos do not do this justice at all. The video comes a little closer.

02.04.08 (Thailand Day 8 added) - The last of the Thailand pictures have been posted. Also, there's a short video at the end of day 8 of some local Thailand entertainment taking place at our resort on our last night there.

02.03.08 (Thailand Day 7 added) - Day 7 posted. One more to go !

02.02.08 (Thailand Day 6 added) - Just added day #6 to the Thailand gallery. Only 2 more days until the end !

02.01.08 (Even more from Thailand) - I've posted days 4 and 5 under the Thailand tab. There is also a video under day 5 of some elephants we met.

01.31.08 (More Snow Pics/Jess) - I was a bit restless yesterday, so I went for a walk with the camera in the cold. It was a short walk, otherwise I'd have more pictures to show for it. :-) The first is slightly abstract, but it is rocks under frozen ice. The snow people were made by the apartment complex security guards. The last two are cute Chinese New Year decorations (this coming year is the year of the rat/mouse) on the doors to our building.

01.29.08 (Snow in Shanghai) - This week in Shanghai we had a couple of inches of snow come down. It's been about five years since it has snowed here. Transportation is a little more difficult than usual, but it's nice to see the city in a different way. These were taken around our apartment complex before I had to rush off to work. I thought I'd take a break from the Thailand pictures and get some snow shots up before it all melts away. Stay tuned though, cause more Thailand pictures will be coming soon !

01.28.08 (More from Thailand) - I just posted day number 3. It's got lots of photos and some of my favorites.

01.26.08 (Back from Thailand) - I've added a Thailand tab above where pictures from our trip will be posted. There are two days of photos there and more to come soon. Be sure to check back often !

01.02.08 (Black and White) - I thought I'd try to mix it up for a change and post an entire entry in black and white. There's something to be said for the mood you can create by removing color. This is just some shots taken on a walk down Nanjing road. The last one is my favorite and really demonstrates how crowded it can get over here.

01.01.08 (Happy New Year) - Happy 08 everyone ! Here's some New Year's shots. The first four are some little rinky dinky fireworks that someone fired off near our apartment on New Year's Eve. I took the oppurtunity to practice my fireworks shooting for when the real pretty ones go off some time. The rest are New Year's day on Nanjing road.

12.30.07 (Other side of The Bund) - Well, this is one of our largest postings yet. Here are 25 shots Jess and I took this weekend. We decided to go to the Pudong side of the Bund. Most people go to the Puxi side for the view of the Pearl Tower over the water. Since we already have seen this and taken some pictures of it, we decided to take the road less traveled. It was hardly crowded at all and there were still plenty of photo opportunities. It was cold, but definitely worth it. We took some shots, had a Starbucks break, took some more shots, had dinner, and then took some more shots. My favorite is the last one !

12.27.07 (Funky Misc.) - These are just some random shots taken at various times and places. The first is our ayi. Her name is Xiao Lu. Ayi in chinese means auntie or someone who helps out around the house. The second is our virtual Christmas w/ Jessica's parents. The rest are some shots at the local grocery store and Cloud Nine Mall. The last two are some funky restaurant or lounge area that we ran across.

12.21.07 (Subway) - Well, it's been a while since we've posted any photos. It's been a really busy time at work and there just hasn't been much of a chance to get out and shoot these days. These photos aren't anything real special, but we thought we'd post anyway. The subway system in Shanghai is much like any other, but for those interested, this is what it looks like. We use this all the time! I've also posted a few more pictures that we shot the other night at Nanjing road.

12.02.07 (Zhongshan Park / Brian's Pics) - As mentioned below, Jess and I both went to this location to shoot pictures and see the different types of scenes we could come up with. My day was a Saturday packed full of people and not so favorable lighting conditions (cloudy, hazy). Having many people does have it's advantages. Not all of them are aware of you, or that you are taking their picture :) I tried to focus more on people, but also shot some interesting scenes along the way. It was good to see people out exercising and kids playing. We often don't get to see this side of local Chinese living in our day to day work. Kids are very hard to take pictures of because they are constantly moving and are so unpredicatable. However, that's what usually ends of making the shot worthwhile.

12.01.07 (Zhongshan Park / Jessica's Pics) - Brian is teaching me about photography (the finer details - as opposed to the auto point and shoot that I know). We decided to each take a turn taking pictures at this park near Brian's work; him not viewing my pictures until after he had had his day in the park. It was fun and interesting to see the differences. On the day I went, it was a beautiful, sunny day. There were very few people in the park, so I mainly looked for things I thought would be interesting.

11.24.07 (Park) - I took a short walk to the park near where we live. All of these shots were taken while wandering around. I just happen to catch a couple getting their wedding photos taken there. I was already taking pictures across the lake w/ my 200mm zoom lens when I saw them. The two pictures (2nd and 3rd) were taken while their photographer was not shooting and they were just hanging out. For the 4th shot, I had to prop my camera up on a rock (no tripod w/ me) and shoot a longer exposure to get the water effect I wanted.

11.23.07 (Flowers) - These are just shots of some flowers we picked up for the apartment the other day. Still experimenting w/ the new camera. I like the way the color came out on the last two.

11.22.07 (Back in Shanghai) - Well, after a very relaxing time back in the U.S, we are here in Shanghai again. While we were home, I (Brian) bought a new camera. As such, here are some photos I've taken. These are mostly just me playing around and trying to get used to all of the camera's features and settings. The first four were taken in Austin, and the last four were taken from our apartment here in Shanghai. So far I really like the camera. It's a Nikon D40x digital SLR. I'm still getting the feel for shooting w/ an SLR again. It's been about 20 years, but hopefully it will all come back to me. The 5th and 6th pictures are the grounds of our apartment complex as seen from our balcony. The light at the top of the 6th picture is the moon. It did not come out as well as I would have hoped, but it's decent considering how I had to lean over the railing to take the shot and could not use a tripod. The last two are the view from the other side of our apartment at night. They are both long exposures of the wonderful view we have of the city almost every evening.