Saturday's PhotoHunting: Work Tools

While visiting Amsterdam I took a day tour to visit Zaanse Schans to see the windmills.  Included in the tour was this cool demonstration on how those famous wooden Dutch clogs are made.  Here is a photo of the work tools they use to make the shoes.

This cutie did a quick demonstration which was very interesting and fun to watch. :-)

And here are a few examples of the final product. 

Sadly, Gattina has announced that this will be the final week for her Saturday's PhotoHunting meme.  I want to take this time to express my gratitude to Gattina for hosting this wonderful meme and for allowing us to have a forum to share such beautiful photos and creative takes on her weekly themes.  

I have really enjoyed playing and have met so many wonderful bloggers near and far from my participation on Gattina's meme. I'm very sad to see it end, but I will definitely continue to visit Gattina's blog and my other fellow photohunters who I have met here.  

Many thanks to Gattina from Keyhole Pictures.   

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Portrait

While visiting the the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, I stumbled upon this cool puzzle of Van Gogh's famous self portrait. With only three levels to work with I thought this would be an easy and fun puzzle to do.   

Well, turns out it wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be. Notice the third left eye, which I didn't notice until I saw my photos later that night.  Major fail! 

I think one of these photos is a re-post.  :)

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Keyhole Pictures website HERE!  

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Trees

I enjoy traveling during the Fall Season when the leaves on trees changes from green to bright orange, yellow and even brown.  

Here is a beautiful walking path I found on Petrin Hill directly across from Prague Castle.  Most of the leaves have fallen on the ground which seems to brighten this walking path for the walkers.

On the opposite direction down the hill most of the trees are bare, but even leafless trees can present a beautiful view when you have a picturesque town like Prague in the background. :) 

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Keyhole Pictures website HERE!  

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Wheels

The wheels on a vespa are small and cute and it makes me want to take a ride on them.

I took this photo while on a day trip to Brugges from Amsterdam. 

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Keyhole Pictures website HERE!  

Saturday's PhotoHunt: Special Decorations

I went with an obvious theme for this week's PhotoHunt and decided to create a short slideshow of a few of my favorites Holiday Photos. 

Wishing everyone a very Happy Holidays and a 

Safe, Healthy & Happy New Year!

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Keyhole Pictures website HERE!  

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Looking In

I wasn't the only one who was looking in with curiosity and delight  . . .

 

 

I was walking the streets in Amsterdam when I spotted this precious little kitty who seemed amused and curious with this vase of flowers.  The little one was so cute that I just had to stop and take a quick photo to capture the playful moment. 

 

Wishing all of you and your families a very Happy Holidays and a Safe and Healthy New Year!

 

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Kehole Pictures website HERE!  

 

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Anger

 What do you see in this photo . . . .

 

Okay, besides the nice hottie reading his book, take a look at these neatly color coded recycling containers in this train station in the Netherlands. 

 

Now, you may be asking yourself, so Kathy what does this have to do with this week's theme?   Well, here's my take . . . nothing angers me more then when people don't recycle!   I know, it's a bit of a stretch. Forgive me.  I'll do better. :)

 

Just recently I turned in bags and bags of recyclable items and got $44.00 in return plus the satisfaction that I'm doing my part to save our environment.   Next week I leave for Argentina.  Yay!

 

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Kehole Pictures website HERE!  

 

Don't forget to vote on Tuesday, November 6! 

 

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Kitchen

A present day kitchen . . . I took this photo in a very popular restaurant called the Pancake Bakery in Amsterdam. 

And here's a kitchen of the past . . . . the remnants of a kitchen in possibly a food stall or restaurant in the ancient city of Pompeii.

One of the things I love about travel is being able to visit the present as well as the past.  

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Kehole Pictures website HERE!  

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Automobile

So what's wrong with the automobile shown in the photo below . . . .

Well, it's a little too small for my taste. Ha, ha!

I took this photo in the city of  The Hague at a really cool tourist attraction called Madurodam.  It's a miniature city which looks pretty realistic.  It had amazing detail, moving parts and even noise accompaniment.

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Kehole Pictures website HERE!  

Space, the final frontier. . . to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.              ~  Star Trek

Today at work I was so lucky to witness Space Shuttle Endeavour's last flight ever as she flew over downtown Los Angeles. It was an incredible experience to witness it so up close as it flew only 1,500 feet above ground level. 

I literally jumped up and down, whoo hoo'd and waved up toward the sky. Of all days to forget my iPhone at home.  Luckily my co-worker (thanks JZ) had her phone and was able to snap a shot of Endeavour on her historic last flight!  Thank you Endeavour!

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Glass

A glass of Prosecco is so wonderfully delicious. 

I took this photo while enjoying my last meal (in an Italian restaurant) in Amsterdam. The meal and view were pretty wonderful and delicious too.

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Kehole Pictures website HERE!  

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Signs

Signs can be cute.

Informative.

They direct us to places we want to go during the day.

And guide us when it's dark.

They help to tell us what we can't eat.

They remind us when to behave.

And they remind us of our responsibilities.

Can you tell that I love taking photos of signs while traveling. :) Have a great long weekend. Whoo hoo!

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Kehole Pictures website HERE!  

Saturday's PhotoHunting: Metal (Possible End of Kunsthaus Tacheles in Berlin, Germany)

I featured the Graffiti/Street Art of Kunsthaus Tacheles in a previous post HERE and for this week's theme I thought I would post some of the creative and interesting metal sculptures I found as well.  

In writing this post and researching for more links I stumbled upon several articles declaring that an end could be in sight for this unique and popular haven for artists.  Once a thriving Department store, this structure strewn with a mixture of street art, photos, graffiti, old posters, bullet holes and a backyard of metal sculptures, an old beat up VW wagon and a pink flamingo bar may soon come to an end.   HERE is an article written in 2011 about it's soon to be demise and there are even more rumors swirling around on the Internet that the closure is pretty eminent citing the end of July 2012 as a possible date.

I do understand that times change and when they do we have to change along with it.  But there was something very appealing about this place. Kunsthaus Tacheles represents a free spirit and a venue for artistic self expression against what is supposed to be mainstream.  An intriguing and dramatic storyline about us versus them.   Maybe that is why I found it fascinating.

But having been there, this part of Berlin like many other neighborhoods in the city are constantly evolving and you might say that the writing was on the wall about its future.  I just hope that when they do build that new shopping center or high rise hotel that the owners do something to memorialize the artistic freedom and spirit that Kunsthaus Tacheles was known for, and which I find represents the spirit of Berlin and Berliners.    

So, if it is the end of Kunsthaus Tacheles, I find some solace in the fact that I can always revisit it through my memories and photos.  Here are several photos that I took of the Metal Sculptures I found in their backyard gallery.

To see more PhotoHunters, you can visit Gattina's Kehole Pictures website HERE!