Tag Archives: TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY

June 4, 2010 · 12:33 am

nairobi.

a glimpse of kenya’s capital city.

punch buggy blue! nairobi national park :: nairobi, kenya.

in march i traveled to kenya where i celebrated my 30th birthday in nairobi! i only spent a few quick days exploring the capital – a whirlwind tour of the city! with a population of more than 3 million people, nairobi is brimming with diversity and full of wild contrast. sprawling out from a bustling downtown, the city center is surrounded by lush villa suburbs with colonial architecture, british names, and modern shopping centers. yet, nairobi is also home to one of the largest urban slums in africa: kibera is about the size of new york’s central park and has over 1 million residents who live in roughly constructed shanty dwellings without electricity or running water.

nairobi’s national park is less than 5 miles from the city center – a safari crazy close to a metropolis – with skyscrapers providing a surprising backdrop for the roaming wildlife.

i was anxious to get to the coast, but absolutely enjoyed the days i spent roaming nairobi – crisscrossing downtown on foot, dining by candlelight when the power went (a frequent occurrence in the city), skirting the wild rains, taxi-safari-ing through the national park (chasing zebras off road!) and of course fearing for my life on (possibly one too many) wild matatu rides through infamous nairobi traffic at breakneck speeds.

enjoy!

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the nairobi railway station:

the edge of kibera:

nairobi national park:

spring valley, upper parklands estate:

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Filed under africa, photography, theatre

Tagged as africa, BLONDE PHOTO, KENYA, NAIROBI, THE BLONDE PHOTOGRAPHER, TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY

July 8, 2009 · 11:59 am

redwood roadtrip :: the coast

following the redwood and sonoma coasts on the shoreline highway.

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part II :: redwood roadtrip :: the coast

the amazing northern california coast bears little similarities to the glamorous beaches of socal, but it’s natural beauty is even more striking. windswept and often deserted, the beaches along the redwood and sonoma coast are pristine and the cliffs that rise to meet the highway are exceptionally dramatic. as we explored the redwoods in the dense, temperate rain forests of the pacific northwest, we made the trek to the coast often. in some areas flat paths lead a few miles to the shore as in big sur, while beaches like goat’s head beach (above) and gold bluffs beach were accessible only by car – separated from the road by sheer cliffs.

making our way along shoreline highway from mendocino to bodega bay the view was truly breathtaking. at times we had to slow to 5-10 mph to handle the curvy highway with it’s multiple switchbacks. despite the gusty wind, we relished the cool salt air and admired at the rocky, rugged coastline below. cloudless and clear, the sky along the coast was in sharp contrast to the thick clouds that lay low in klamath and the dense fog that lingers in san francisco.

the towns along the coast were perfect and picturesque – from wandering through on old russian cemetery in fort ross, to horseback riding in the mountains of elk, to watching the sun set over the pacific in gualala. we even visited bodega bay to buy saltwater taffy and a admire the set of hitchcocks’s movie the birds.

having passed through san francisco on our way north from big sur, we decided to make another visit on the return trip. on father’s day we lunched on the water in sausalito, strolled along baker beach, and climbed the rocks for a spectacular view of the golden gate bridge. the ideal end to a fabulous trip.

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*note* i separated this trip into two blog posts, the forest + the coast, based on the strikingly different landscapes. however, the forest and the coast are in fact very much intertwined – at times separated by only a few miles, as the redwoods have a close relationship with the sea. to see the forest photos and read more about our adventure click HERE.

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Filed under nature, photography, travel

Tagged as BLONDE PHOTO, BODEGA BAY, REDWOOD COAST, SAN FRANCISCO, SONOMA COAST, THE BLONDE PHOTOGRAPHER, TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY

July 8, 2009 · 11:07 am

redwood roadtrip :: the forest

from big sur to (very) big trees.

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part I :: redwood roadrip :: the forest

a few weeks ago i took off with my dad for our father’s day redwood roadtrip to see the giant redwoods of california. our goals were simple: see the tallest trees on earth, hike the forest, check out the coast, and relax and recharge while simply enjoying time together. from central california to just shy of the oregon border, we logged nearly 1500 miles along the scenic highways – trading the 101 for the avenue of the giants, cruising through the impressive landscape – at times with the forest canopy high above, and then astride the steep cliffs dropping to the sea below. along the route we paused in tiny towns, to fulfill our curiosity, to buy fresh cherries from roadside farmers, to amuse ourselves with oddities like the “artichoke capital of the world” in castroville, and of course to drive our car through an actual redwood – the famed chandelier tree in leggett.

flying into san jose from dc, we drove first to big sur. intrigued by this famed region and enamored with the idea of seeing mountains of redwoods rising abruptly from the sea, i knew it would be an excellent start for our journey. hiking a few miles through the los padres national forest, we immediately encountered giant redwoods. in pfeiffer state park the largest tree, the colonial tree, has an outstanding circumference of 27 feet. emerging from the forest we trekked in the andrew molera state park to the windswept coast – stunning and seemingly abandoned, covered in driftwood. from big sur we pushed north, driving across the golden gate bridge, 500 miles to klamath – a quiet town nestled in the redwood forest, about 30 miles south of oregon. this was our base for exploring the tallest trees – redwoods that soared 360+ feet into the sky, creating a canopy so thick that sunlight barely makes its way to the forest floor. despite the profound serenity i found among the redwoods, there is also a strong buzz of life and energy – of tress that have stood for thousands of years, so old that they are hollow in the center and unable to be accurately aged. from the banana slugs to the roosevelt elk that we saw, and the black bears and mountain lions that we didn’t see, the region was teeming with life.

making our way through the redwoods we drove, we hiked, we rode horseback, and we paused often to pay homage to nature and its spectacular beauty. i believe that traveling shapes us in ways that we don’t immediately realize, and that it changes us forever. i feel incredibly lucky to have experienced the glory of the pacific northwest redwood forest and indebted to trees that have survived for centuries so that i could look up at them, and realize my smallness – not in size alone, but in time and space. i am so very thankful that i was able to share this experience with my father by my side – it was a fantastic journey.

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*note* i separated this trip into two blog posts, the forest + the coast, based on the strikingly different landscapes. however, the forest and the coast are in fact very much intertwined – at times separated by only a few miles, as the redwoods have a close relationship with the sea. to see the coast photos and read more about our adventure click HERE.

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