The Virtual Adventure Continues: The Mediterranean Sea... and Lapis Lazuli

The Mediterranean Sea is the body of water that separates Europe, Africa and Asia. It covers approximately 965,000 square miles,and is surrounded by 21 individual countries. Still, in describing it, the only words I can find, begin or end with the word BLUE.

Ranging from Admiral and Navy Blue, Deep Indigo, Royal Blue and Cerulean, to Teals. Topaz, Aquamarine, and Turquoise Blues nearer the shoreline. The shore waters are impossibly clear.

Ethereal.

Perfection. 

Blue.


If Eskimos have 100 words for snow, certainly the people who live on these waters must have the same number (or more) to describe the colours of their sea.

Bright sunny warm day today and I worked more on my painting of the wooden ship bow with my unfinished stormy seascape. Hopefully, I will be done tomorrow. I used my palette knives to capture the sail lines twisting and blowing in the wind. Thanks "Idgy" for my tutorial on using knives to paint, last summer.

 Can't wait for you to see the results.

They also helped me get a nice crisp edge on my billowing sail.

I am completely smitten by the blue of these waters (...can you tell???) , and have already found a silver ring (eBay) adorned with Lapis Lazuli that I am ordering this week that captures the colour forever.

There were many...but I knew as soon as I saw it...that this was the one. 

A Bit of Sunshine...the Blue Mediterranean...and Greece to wear long after the Virtual Adventure is over!

 Sailing the Mediterranean.

https://youtu.be/pBFGw7HvDag

 

Tomorrow we begin The Greek Isles, in Corfu!

The Milky Way over The Mediterranean Sea


More anon...

The World Is Your Oyster...

Make Today the PEARL.


So yesterday's grit became today's discovery!

http://www.worldwideseniors.org/

Worldwide Seniors

What a great Over 50's group.

I highly recommend it!

So many different chats, forums, interests, discussions, and people.  Some of them have been there for years!  My member # is in the mid- 1,000's but was discussing World News with a guy whose member # is in the low 70's.  Yes, we all use our names, but it is interesting to see how far back some of these members go. I met one who was #11

Everyone seems very open, welcoming, and positive. The Early Morning Coffee Cafe to Gather and Greet is a plus, and the site even offers (writing/photography) members a personal spot to share work.

The August Mall-Ratting in Bloomington with Loretta, Sharon, Judy and I, was nice. No "shop till you drop" or grand-kids this month. We were able to start the day with good coffee and Pain au Chocolat and uninterrupted chat.  I think we are all recovering from Summer's spend-fest spoiling our Grands.

September will be

Our Month

The Fall Scents are slowly creeping in at Bath and Bodyworks and we came back together smelling a lot like Caramel Apples and Candy Corn.

The Very BEST scent was discovered at Yankee Candles. One of their new seasonal candles

Caramel Apple Cake

A cross between a caramel apple and a spice cake.

This is definitely going to be my jarred candle at home this Fall. I bought a votive, and tried it when I returned.

OMG!

(...then, of course, I wanted Spice cake with apples and caramel...)

Loretta scoped out several must-have bags. I actually found (for future purchase) a very nice limestone weathered grey bag and a pair of half-boots to match.

We are hopeless together. 

Yeah..I know. she's RUINED me.




Dragged out a half-finished ocean canvas from last year I had entitled

"Where the Sea Meets the Sky" 

I am going to finish it out with the bow of a wooden sailing ship- cutting into it from the corner (with crashing waves) before I move on to the Aegean Sea and my (virtual) Greek Adventure.

 It is what I had always envisioned when I started it, but never finished.  Now, seems the perfect time.

Only

 more days until our "Rose and Idgy Fabulous Fall Adventure"

Can't wait!!!

And our joint birthday celebration featuring some permutation of this

Or to quote "Idgy"


"Fire and ALCOHOL...how could THAT possibly go wrong???"

Reminding me that after the blazing combined bonfire birthday cake of last year together

Where we actually placed (and lit) 40 candles for her and an additional 55 candles for me for a total of 95 of those little wax candles on one birthday cake.

And the blast radius and melted wax to follow. My FIRE privileges have been indefinitely suspended.

~laughing~

Finishing up my house-cleaning...then settling in tonight with a grilled sirloin and baked potato, Texas toast and a salad and home-made Custard pie for afters.
Maybe a movie.

Life is a wonderful adventure!

(Virtual) The Strait of Gibralter...and The Rock

This is the map's view of the Strait of Gibralter connecting the North Atlantic Ocean with the Mediterranean Sea.

This is the actual view from the sky.

The Greeks referred to the two land masses on either side as The Pillars of Hercules.

The view of the strait from land (the Moroccan side) the Rock Of Gibralter can be seen straight across on the Iberian Peninsula.

The Strait of Gibralter is 36 miles long and narrows to 8 miles wide through it's narrowest point. It is used as an important shipping route from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. Because of the ease of travel between Africa and Europe it is also the largest site of illegal immigrations/transport between the two land masses. 

A ferry transports passengers between Morocco and Gibraltar. A look at the interior layout of the ferry, as well as the meal service available, reminds me of an airport terminal which has somehow slipped its moorings and taken off for the other shore.  See for yourself.

https://youtu.be/LllZBZrmXiI

Approaching the Iberian Peninsula you see the monolithic pale grey limestone promontory that is The Rock of Gibraltar. It is awe-inspiring at 1,398 feet high. There is the bustling British held city of Gibraltar at its base and cable cars which will take you to the Nature Preserve at its top. A sanctuary  for Barbary Macaques and Partridges as well as other assorted wildlife.

                                    Female Barbary Macaque and Baby

The Rock of Gibraltar also has the remains of a Moorish Castle and is Riddled with Tunnels and Caves. It is a very popular tourist spot.

https://youtu.be/Gl0tquAejlQ   the tunnels

https://youtu.be/3AUD7NjQT6c   cave


https://youtu.be/n7NmP76EFbo   Moorish Castle


Tour of The Rock

https://youtu.be/NpbD1iiZbSo

The Rock and Preserve has also been noted as an Important Migratory Bird area because of the numerous species which use the strait to complete their migration patterns.


Now, having passed through the strait, we are ready to enter The Mediterranean Sea as we continue the virtual adventure...and come closer to The Greek Islands.

More Anon...

(Virtual) Sailing The North Atlantic Ocean

Learned something entirely new today. Who knew that sailing the North Atlantic virtually could make you sea-sick (real)

I always thought you had to have the hot sun beating down and the salt spray (...which I have experienced in both Florida and the Bahamas...and got...well..sea-sick...) before you would get that green gills feeling.  Not so. 

The calm sailing boat here wasn't bad

https://youtu.be/o0vuHHdfahQ

but by the time I checked out some of the North Atlantic Waves...

https://youtu.be/fmmypW0BL-E

that the area is noted for...yeah

Green Gills

The North Atlantic is fairly treacherous,  and there have been 5,000 major shipwrecks in this ocean since they first began recording shipwrecks. One of the more famous being that of the RMS Titanic.  Winter storms on these waters are legendary.

The water is a deep dark grey giving way to a steel blue on sunnier days. On grey days like this one it is lead colored dotted with whitecaps and ominous. We should have at least briefly sunny skies tomorrow. It will be a relief after 7 days of non-stop rain and storms. 

Before the Europeans sailed these waters everything outside of the Gibralter Strait was simply referred to as The Ocean...one huge body of water. We now know that there are the originally known 7 Seas...and 5 Distinct Parts to what we refer to as The Ocean.

Dinner is simpler fare tonight. There will be plenty of time for Greek EVERYTHING once we reach The Islands.

Tomorrow...the Strait of Gibralter.

Till then!

Novel: The Plan- Reunion

[ I stand in the doorway of Mark's room, an observer, at first. It is happy chaos inside. Josh is on the tile floor with Jade.  They have toy trucks pretending to zoom along some unseen-except-in-their-imagination highway. Josh has filled the bed of his truck with the sterile cotton balls that usually sit unused on the nearby counter top. He is bleating loudly. Apparently, these are sheep. Jade is laughing loudly at his antics and has her own "lumber" in the bed of her truck. The lumber, misappropriated tongue depressors from the same Formica counter top. Unwrapped individually the peeled white paper is strewn over the floor along with gloves blown up into balloons and tied. Who can resist?  Mark is not laying helplessly in the bed but wearing part of the Exo-Shel today and sitting upright bedside. On his left, the slight figure of Ohio. I would recognize those ears anywhere. Especially from the back. On his right, in full dress uniform is The General. They are laughing like old war buddies. As I enter the room they attempt at first to hide something from my sight. Three cans of beer. Mark's has a damned straw in it. I laugh out loud.]

"Hey Doc! I told you I would make it happen!"

[The General is in fine form today, grinning broadly, and very proud of his orchestration of this reunion. Once again, I find myself wondering if there is anything this Retired Lion couldn't pull off if he wanted.]


Jade is still busy with her truck full of lumber, as well as a few of her brother's sheep he seems to have willingly (or perhaps unwillingly) shared.  Josh has returned to his father and has climbed on his Exo-shel "lap" and Mark has encircled the boy, who is not quite lap size any more, with mechanical arms. It is impossible to tell whose smile is wider. His or Mark's.

Mark's good eye meets mine and I see they have done a remarkable job with the plastic surgery and his prosthetic eye. They have matched the blue almost perfectly. From a casual glance you wouldn't even know.

"Dad, this is sooooo cool!" he says, tapping the hard exterior of his father's new arm.


Jade drops the truck at the word "Dad". She pushes her way in like a small puppy that sees its litter-mate getting all the attention.

I study her little facial features and hair, and realize that what Jerry had told me in our past sessions was true. There was no way to discern which of them had been her father short of DNA testing.

The General pops the top off another beer and tries to hand it to me. I rise and close the door to his room and draw the drape near his bed. It is afternoon and the nursing staff is busy with report. They won't be by for a while.

(or we would all be, as the General laughs and says, in deep shit)




Then I enjoy the first cold swig, as we toast to Mark's Progress.

Glitter-Bomb...Paper Flowers...and Preparations for a Mad Hatter Tea Party

It looked like maybe Tinkerbell had exploded on the table in a pink cloud of fairy dust. 

By the end of the day we were smiling...covered with glitter (even the baby who will have sparkly poop for a week)  bits of confetti crepe paper and had a pile of these constructed.

Paper flowers that ranged from the size of an inflated beach ball to the size of a small head of cabbage and many sizes in between. Brilliant pinks, purples, blues and neon greens.

A wonderful day spent preparing for Emma's 10th Birthday Mad Hatter Tea Party and Sleepover, soon!
It isn't every day you reach double-digits!

Scouring thrift shops for mismatched tea cups and saucers.

Nicole also found this which will later do double duty as this year's Halloween Costume.

And the cake will look a lot like this!

                                         We're All MAD Here!

Strands of twinkling Fairy lights to hang from the trees in addition to the paper flowers and  glitter & confetti balloons.
A few of her favorite friends to spend the night.

Needless to say she is beyond excited. 

So are we...I think!

A much smaller pink crepe flower that I managed to create out of scraps and absconded with...sprayed with hairspray and dusted with pink glitter. I think I've left a trail of pink glitter from Cloverdale to Greencastle!

Reminds me of all those years spent attending the Flower and Patio show...

More anon...

From Scotland to Corfu Greece (Virtual Sea Adventure) and Conversational Greek

As the crow flies it is a cozy 1999.8 miles between Fife, Scotland and Corfu Greece. 

But we're not crows.


By Air it is a 3 hour and 40 minute flight.  Like flying from Indiana to California non-stop. Which I have done.

By Boat...You Navigate the North Sea...the North Atlantic Ocean...The Strait of Gibraltar...The Mediterranean Sea...and the Aegean Sea. 

 An Adventure.

So...boat it is, then! 

Especially when you look at today's weather, and see that the rain and grey appears to be here for a few more days. It probably actually resembles the weather of the North Sea and North Atlantic far more that it does the brilliant blues and turquoise of the Aegean Sea and Sky. 

So the view is a lot like this

Although with today's weather it feels a bit more like THIS

Yeah...I've seen a few episodes of Gilligan's Island.  
(humming the theme song)

I know where this is headed.

But there is time to study a little Conversational Greek, and I've already managed how to spell my name in Greek

Κάρλα 

Now I just have to learn how to pronounce it...lol!

Went to the (real) market and brought home Greek ingredients for the adventure. Huge Black Greek Olives, Feta Cheese, EVOO, Fresh Fruit, Yogurt, Chicken, Flour and Yeast to make Pita Bread and Rosemary Peasant Loaf, Lemons, Phyllo, Walnut, Dark Honey, Spinach, Lamb, Garlic, Cucumber, Dill, and Red Onions. I'll use our fresh garden tomatoes and some of my fresh herbs.

And found a user friendly Beginner's Traveller's Greek video

https://youtu.be/s-hZ5zRBjPo

as well as a written site

http://www.101languages.net/greek/basics.html

So a look at the North Sea

With its omnipresent storm cloud in the background and heading back to "cabin" soon to watch Jason and the Argonauts which I have found it its cinematic form as opposed to the book. This probably means I will begin Joyce's Ulysses (again) on this trip after all.

~sigh~

(...did I bother to mention that Ulysses was the bane of my college existence and that I have NEVER managed to wade completely through the damned thing...cliff notes are our friend..)


Jason and the Argonauts

https://youtu.be/lrQZTMmRqhU

The upside?

 Preparing Greek Lemon Chicken and Potatoes with home-made Rosemary Pita and Black Olives in the galley!

We eat like Greeks Tonight!

More anon...

                   Κάρλα