Been back home from South America for a month & a half, just in time for an extended holiday season. Happy to share some fall/winter doings, and this first batch is particularly RANDOM:

A shirt sold at the La Honda Country Market, a pretty picture somewhere, and Charlie on cello. My sunroom workspace, a banana slug, a headless African drum from Karl & Rita, and some local signage. Local construction: my pool patio, Todd’s awesome house, driveway experiments. Charlie eating, Liam in his garage, a nice sunset, and the Lit Night tribute to the late David Lecount – a former colleague, local poet/philosopher, and accomplished haiku/writing prompt dude…

The first two shots are of Año Nuevo on a hike a did with Nancy above Pie Ranch shortly after returning from SoAm. Then, there’re a bunch of pix from the new trails in La Honda Creek Open Space taken on the day they opened. Note the views of the ocean, and the Red Barn from the other side! Finally, two shots of a clouded moon rise and clouded sunset…

Foraging drift wood at San Gregorio Beach…

Coach Dave Meyrovich and friends doing a Hoop Dreams fundraiser at the Harley Farms barn…

A GBH at the pond, and another sunset at the beach…

This was an interesting day – for Charlie. First, he played a gig with his band, Empire Grade, at the “dog house” in Santa Cruz. Then, he sang with the concert choir at UCSC. Musically diverse, but perhaps out of order…?

Gifts of La Honda? The first screen shot, between me (blue) and mountain bike destination (red), indicates where a cool trail could be blazed, then part of the route…?

Then, poultry, Playbowl, and our newly resurfaced tennis court…

The “Turkey Trot” Thanksgiving morning (kids and parents from LHE doing the Grasshopper Loop). A big bobcat up in the watershed.

Then, Thanksgiving and Nancy & Jered’s with all our family’s and Aiden & Justin, plus Lucas’s buddy (note victuals!). Finally, N&J’s new cabin under construction, and Charlie’s 23rd birthday…!

Geez, I guess I do hike a bit. Some ‘shrooms on one. The Shaff’s Christmas decorations on another, and their tree fairy guerilla art endeavors on yet another. Aaand, the cold supermoon of November 2025 coming up from LH Creek’s Grasshopper…

Had to take Nancy out for her birthday – first some tidepooling on a super lowtide at Pigeon Point (then dinner at Hwy1 Brewery). Then, some action at Hoop Dreams. And finally, ML’s holiday Book Club…!

Here’s a beach walk and a random purchase displayed in the backyard…

Unserendipitously, we went to see Moulin Rouge at the Orpheum in SF on the day the power – in a third of the city – went out. Show cancelled after the first song. More than a little disappointing, but I couldn’t have taken pix during the performance, so here ya go…

After a wonderful Thanksgiving at their place, Nancy & Jered and the kids came to our place for Christmas! Oops, only one shot. The rest are of a landscaping project in the front yard – digging up and resetting stones…

Finally, here’s a trip over the hill, first to the Apple Visitor’s Center at the donut campus, then some bits of Sunnyvale and Mountain View. Finally, a couple end of year culinary works, and me contemplating my naval – and the whole wide world..

OK, for the hardcore randomfans, thanks for coming along. This concludes 2025!

Wishing everyone a wonderful 2026…

x+=–<:({&}):>–=+x

After five days in Paraty, I made it back to Rio, again on the bus. The window was wavy, and I took these first two pix on purpose. Others are from the top of the hotel, this one in the downtown area, near Lapa, in an attempt to explore a different part of Rio. An evening stroll took in more of the neighborhood…

Continuing that evening stroll, even into a somewhat sketchy part of town, and perhaps wishing I’d picked the hipper seeming Socio\tel (Lapa)…?

Next day, embarked on a walk around, starting with the Columbo, one of the top 10 most beautiful cafes in the world, built in 1894. Then, into one of the top 10 most beautiful churches in Rio…

Next, in the rather unimposting Imperial Palace which had an exhibit of a prolific albeit rather unimposing Brazilian artist…

Next and next door, was the Praça Tiradentes, the old parliament building and now kind of a museum. Took a tour and learned about it and some of the history of Brazil. (Yes, it was the last country to abolish slavery in 1888.):

The Praça Tiradentes also had an exhibit about the famous Maracaña stadium in Rio which is celebrating its 75th anniversary – and hosted not just many soccer/football games and some of the 2016 Summer Olympics, but concerts featuring some folks you’ve heard of. In fact, Frank is loved – groove to ’em…!

Random ramblings downtown – a cool shop and a smaller church, etc…

An artsy batch featuring a couple of galleries (cool photography), a stylish restaurant, the national art museum which I didn’t go into, and some outstanding, very large murals on an old warehouse near the wharf – as well as some ancient unidentified ruins (an “attraction” in Google Maps)…

Felt conflicted (and outta time) about doing a Favela tour (so did not), but walked thru a funky neighborhood that mighta made up for that? Had a beer with a couple locals at an unlikely cafe on a deadend street (but not for pedestrians). Saw lotsa cats, more shootable murals, interesting buildings, and an ancient Portuguese fortress wall incorporated into the town. Take your time…

Had to come back to the spectacular Museum of Tomorrow – Museu do Amanha – and go through it almost completely. Dramatic architecture, more dramatic statements!

Unfortunately, I’ll be missing both the Earthshot Prize event here in Rio and COP30 in Belem, both of which I’d considered staying for (alas, I’m less sustainable than mother nature).

More from the Museum of Tomorrow – Museu do Amanha – which included a great exhibit on the Pantanal – where I went on my first trip to Brazil in 2000 on an Earthwatch expedition at the Fazenda Rio Negro (more here).

In conclusion – Dominos at the market…

OK, one more conclusion – airport art in Rio, and from the window over North America (ATL to SFO) – mostly the Rockies and the Sierras, but some other bits of US…

Home again, home again, jiggity jig!

Will likely stay for the rest of 2025 for family fun, etc.

Thanks again for coming along with me. What a year!

Do we need to discuss New Year’s Resolutions…?

Our own museums of tomorrow…

???

Paraty proved to be a great little town – charming, historical, with a lot of fun activities. This first batch is snipets from my AirBnb and thereabouts…

After realizing that a bike ride to some waterfalls was not a doable prospect, I booked a jeep tour which included visits to a few cachaça distilleries (a refined Brazilian homebrew made from sugar cane). Here’s the first distillery, the first set of falls, and the fact that the jeep crapped out (no radiator cap, nor fan belt! sabotage?)…

Here’s the second distillery, which included a museum displaying many old bottles of cachaça. And a new and improved jeep!

More of the local jungle (the Atlantic Rainforest), and another gentle cascade…

The next waterfall was a more developed tourist spot with a fun water slide. Note some foliage! The one after that was perhaps the most dramatic (especially with a posing [tho’ not imposing] body builder). It even had a defunct hydroelectric plant, and we ended with a stop at the cheese shop.

Yibo from Beijing was the only other non-Brazilian on our tour, and we had a couple good conversations. (He too has a blog, but has 3 million followers!!!) Cool dude…!

This last batch starts with a last supper in Paraty, followed by the bus ride back to Rio. This time I got a few shots of a nuclear power plant along the way! A few more shots coming into Rio…

I’ll end with a few timelapse videos of the few from the bus, the music/skate festival, boating among the islands, and a couple driving thru the mountains…

Last stop: Rio…

After a week in Rio, took the bus to Paraty, a historic colonial town adjacent to an archipelago of 65 islands. However, the other part of this UNESCO world heritage site – Ilha Grande – I opted to not go to, because there’s so much here. Another example of how travel choices are really where NOT to go – always tough.

But the options for exploration in and around Paraty seem rich and knowing one place more than two places a little seems better, and more convenient. A little AirBnb atop a shop, not far from the bus station, but amidst the old town, seemed a good landing spot. This batch starts there, then walks out to the pier of tour boat options, and includes some randomness…

More of colonial Paraty, including a singer whose piano playing husband/accompanist I met in a parking lot, and more of the lively evening scene. Gotta be careful when walking the cobblestoned streets…!

More of the evening, then the next day and a walk up to a cemetery and fort/museum on a hill overlooking the bay. Note the historical art…

This batch starts with more from the fort, then more from the town, which was having a music & skating festival that weekend. Note the pirate/entertainer who regaled fellow tourists with something in Portuguese, and more of the abundant live music in Paraty…

The next day I took a boat tour to more than five destinations along the Costa Verde off Paraty. Note some monkeys and capybera relatives, a turtle spotted having lunch in what appeared to be a kelp farm, a fish lunch, and myriad boats and islands hereabouts…

More of my boat tour through the Baia Carioca, including an ancient fort/military post, more cool boats, the iconic image of Paraty, and our Captain Leo…

Some random shots of Paraty – cool spots, fine dining, and interesting people…

I’m in Paraty for a couple more days before going back to Rio, then home. But why not post for now? Stay tuned for this South American jaunt’s conclusion…

After a few days recovering from the tour and taking it slow in exploring Copacabana & Ipanema, I hit some of more iconic spots of Rio – the Santa Teresa neighborhood and the highlights of Sugarloaf Mountain & Christ the Redeemer.

In this first batch, starting downtown at the municipal theater, then to the tram that goes up to Santa Teresa. Had to wait in a rather long queue for the tram, but it was worth it…!

Like the San Francisco cable cars, the Santa Teresa trams amble up and around the long and winding roads of this somewhat dilapidated, albeit charming, neighborhood. Lots of funky buildings, weathered street art, and the guy behind me was a very busy conductor, whistling from both sides to get people out of the way and hollering up to the engineer various instructions as the tram clattered thru the hood…

More of the Santa Teresa neighborhood, including a very cool lunch spot, and a lot more street art…

In the Santa Teresa neighborhood is a place called the Parque das Ruinas, an old mansion that’s been retrofitted into a public space with a spectacular view of Rio. Steel and glass was added to the brick and mortar to create a beautiful hybrid building – totally free to explore. Finished the day with a great dinner at Aprazivel, a unique restaurant, considered one of the 50 best in the world…?!

The next day, I took the cable car (gondola), actually two of them, to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain, one of the huge granite peaks around Rio (Geologically, it is considered part of a family of steep-sided rock outcroppings known as bornhardts). Having waited through some cloudy days for this visit, the payoff was spectacular…

There were some cute lil’ monkeys among the various attractions at Sugarloaf Mountain, not to mention the DJ, and here’re some other sites thereabouts…

Next, went up to Christ the Redeemer which required another circuitous train ride through lush jungle, after the Uber of course. From Sugarloaf Mountain, it had appeared cloudy, but arriving there, close to sunset, it was clear and another spot for amazing views of Rio…

A few more shots of Christ the Redeemer, yes, some of the silly ones one does there. And two of the team of sculptor/designers involved in its construction (but not the bishop). FYI, it was created by French-Polish sculptor Paul Landowski and built by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, in collaboration with French engineer Albert Caquot. Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida sculpted the face – which is striking. And more of the lovely sunset…

Some timelapse clips visiting Sugar Loaf and Christ the Redeemer…

More Brazil coming up…

Like in Buenos Aires, I’m spending more time here in Rio de Janeiro, thus not seeing the many iconic sites right away. If you’re here, I already know you can be patient!

The weather was a bit overcast, but not too much for some great views flying into Rio!

Note Sugar Loaf and Christ the Redeemer – iconic…?

From the airport to our last hotel on this Intrepid tour in Copacabana. An initial orientation walk ended with a small donation to an enthusiastic young man…

The Palace Hotel and a stroll along Copacabana at night. The band at our farewell dinner, and then another walk around the neighborhood the next morning, which included a local farmers’ market (featuring a lot of fish)…

More exploring, then a transition to a nice variation on AirBnb thru Booking.com – Pineapples. Nice old building, great floors, funky elevator, etc. Copacapana at night…

Next day, walk to Ipanema via the Forte de Copacabana, now a museum and art gallery…

In addition to the Museu, the Forte de Copacabana also has a nice outdoor restaurant. And then there’s the weaponry, artillery, and fortressy bits with big guns and great views…

On into Ipanema and Leblon. First up, a poet Felipe Arco, followed by some surfers and a variety of views…! Leblon is a nicer neighborhood, but not exactly filled with other attractions…

Someone likes art in the building…?

More Rio to come…

After three nights at the Estancia in Uruguay, we drove a couple hours to the Argentine border, crossed it, then took a 14-hour bus ride back across northeast Argentina – then into Brazil – to visit Iguazu Falls.

The uploads for this post were more than a little glitchy due to not just bad, but weird wifi, so my chronology is a bit off.

This batch shows our first encounter with Iguazu Falls on the Brazilian side. Having been a tourist destination for decades, they done a good job building walkways and viewpoints in spectacular spots. Nonetheless, working around the selfies can be tricky, just ask the coatis…!

This batch starts with our first visit on the Brazilian side, then includes dinner that night and part of the next day where we crossed to the Argentinian side and took a little train and a long walk to see the Devil’s Throat! We also saw some toucans and more coatis…!

A bit of the town of Iguazu Falls – Foz do Iguaçu – and more comida…

More of the Devil’s Throat, after which, we walked in another direction to take in more view points on the Argentinian side…

Many more view points on the Argentinian side. Lots of opportunities for a spectacular demise…?

Our last big experience of Iguazu Falls was to take a jet boat up the river and into the spray. Saw some monkeys long the way! Braved the cold & wet and, and the prospect of a damp iPhone, but enjoyed the wild ride and the upclose & personal experience of getting even more soaked. Note the pix of the 30 minute jungle ride to and from the boat dock…

This last batch shows the three corners at the confluence of two rivers – Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay – as well as another awesome dinner. Got a couple shots of the falls from the plane to Rio, as well as a glimpse of Sao Paulo where we had a connection…

ooo

After about a week in Argentina, our tour has taken us back to Uruguay. Instead of Montevideo, this itinerary goes first to Colonia del Sacramento, one of the oldest towns in Uruguay. Next – and included in this post – we have an Estancia stay, so stay tuned (I should’ve said mucho mas!).

This first batch includes the ferry ride (done already in the other direction) to Colonia, our hotel, and an initial walk around the old town – touristy, but charming. Note the cars, the lighthouse, and the views from the marina…

More of walking around the old town of Colonia del Sacramento…

Some of us happened upon a drumming parade, and had to get involved.

Then, another tour group dinner at another interesting restaurant…

A clip of the drumming parade…

The next day, Sunday, was market day, so we went. After the farmers’ (etc.!) market, took a walk up the Rambla, a pedestrian route along the coast, then turned around and returned to the old town for lunch before departing Colonia del Sacramento. Note the big cheese, street art, kite surfers, old cars, antique shop displays, and mas…

It was a few hours drive to our Estancia stay, an older farm house equipped for agritourism – cooking classes and horseback riding. There were a coupla cows, a few sheep, an ant-encrusted mushroom, and semi-retired gaucho named Roberto. We spent three nights there, each one featuring a campfire before bed…

The next day Roberto taught us how to milk a cow – and her baby got in on the action. Then, we learned how to make empanadas – from rolling the dough to stuffin’ ’em. Afterwards, we had the first of three beefy lunches (the empanadas were snacks for later)…

After lunch, we went horseback riding. Coincidentally, I’d already made friends with my particular horse, Christina. (Lunch is squeezed between horse encounters and riding.)

In fact, the cow production has declined in this part of South America, replaced by paper pulp production, manifested by the eucalyptus forests we rode through. Nice, but not natural; note the lumber at the end of this batch…

This batch starts with the empanadas we made, but mostly is of a sunset walk featuring some pastoral vistas…

The next day – our second full one at the estancia – we went to the now-defunct Anglo meat factory in Fray Bentos, a company town designed exclusively for the mass production of tinned meat.

More from the old Anglo meat factory in Fray Bentos. Not great imagining the life of the cows (killed with a hammer) – or the workers (killing, carving, packing, and doing all sorts of hard manual labor in a noisy, non-union shop)!

Yet more of the defunct Anglo meat factory in Fray Bentos.

Note the picture of the guy (twice) who, during his 40+ year career at that desk wore grooves into the wooden floor exercising his legs. Can you find them? Can you imagine…?

During the excellent tour, conducted by Nicholas, shown above, we encountered a nice doggie and some pretty birds…

Here’s a last random batch of our “estancia turistica” and some bush whacking around thereabouts…

This last batch is of one more cooking class, some lunch, and I drive back into Argentina for a 14-hour bus ride. Yay?

I know, another doozy. More editing, more cutting room floor, less is more. We can talk more about it in elsewheres…!

It was worth it to go to another part of town to check out La Boca, a neighborhood, perhaps working class, on the southern end of BA. However, the festive buildings were just paint, and it was kind of a tourist trap. But the people watching was good, particularly when I came across a school that was getting out and all the mommys & daddys were there in the street to collect their children. Enjoy…

More walking leads to more photos of interesting buildings, and to discovering cool spots like this bookstore which the proprietor said was the oldest in Latin America. In addition to a vast collection of antiquarian literature, he had a knack for display in the way I like – messy maximalism. And there was art, and there were young people looking at books…!

What is it about churches? My distain for the opulence of Catholic iconography has softened with the idea that the humble parishoner may find their faith exalted by such displays, but still, such ostentation ain’t about Jesus – leastwise as I understand the Beatitudes…?

Anyway, there’s more stuff in this batch. A slavery exhibit in the oldest edifice on the Plaza de Mayo, along with some needlework. The rocks at the base of the statue represent Covid casualties, all in front of the Casa Rosado or main government building, the center of Argentinian politics. And why not stop for a drink in charming old cafe, and some sausage in a charming old Mercado de San Telmo…

This batch acknowledges trees, more church action, an educational admin office, another charming cafe, and more random grace…

On the way to an amazing Italian restaurant, the amazing museum about the history of the revolution appeared, the Museo de Historico Nacional. In addition to the many paintings and artifacts, I witnessed the changing of the guard in the shrine dedicated to Jose de San Martin, the liberator of the south (like Simon Bolivar, the liberator of the north). Research…?

A destination restaurant, even if you don’t eat, Napoles is worth a visit! The rest of this batch is the long walk back to the hotel and some low intensity police action…

The almost last walk around Buenos Aires focuses on the Congress/Parliament building and the Palacio Barolo, a beautiful old office building nearby. Check out the website. Just walked in and took an old fashioned elevator to almost the top where two floors of stairs takes you to the outside overlooks and a restaurant/bar…!

Movie shoot on the way back. And the first dinner with the Intrepid tour group…

The tour barely touches BA, before heading off to Uruguay. Stay tuned…

Yes, the air is good, BTW!

A lot of the cultural venues in BA take Mondays off, so had to wait until Tuesday to do to the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires.

This first batch starts with some short stops along the way, then the majestic entrance, followed by some items up on the second floor (that I was not so enamored with – what do you think?)…

The floor was a bit more interesting. The Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires (MALBA) includes a couple of original Frieda Kahlo paintings, along with at least one Diego Rivera, and other good stuff…

This skull was my favorite work in MALBA, done by Mondongo, an art collective (two guys), and filled with compelling imagery. And there’s more…

Another long walk took me to the much smaller Museo Sivori. Voila, and the neighborhood…

More walking and some light comida…

The next day I went to one of bigger museums in BA – the Museo Nacional des Belles Artes. Get ready, there’s a bunch (this is the first of three batches)…

In fact, there were quite a number of big name artists, from Rembrandt and Picasso, to Monet and Modigliani. Can you find a few…?

And, this batch includes a whole series on the Conquest of Mexico – depressing, yet necessary to experience…

More classics of various genres here in the Museo Nacional des Belles Artes (can you find Goya?)…

Next, a very cool bookstore in an old theater, and the walk to Teatro Colon…

The historic Teatro Colon, and a brief glimpse of a ballet…

After a few days of AirBnb, switched to the Two Hotel, our Intrepid meeting point. Then, a walk about the neighborhood, including another big church. And, BTW, school group field trips seem happening everywhere…

Yup, there’s more – soon…