One of the things both Ron and I value a great deal is a really good design. A well engineered road is a joy to drive; an esthetically pleasing and comfortable chair is a delight. And when it comes to tools, there is nothing more frustrating then a bad design, but nothing you can be [...]
Posted on July 2nd, 2009 by dianagene
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Intrigue, smuggling, shifty characters dealing in the black market; say, could this be
Marseille with its, literally, thousands of years of history as a port and center for trade of all sorts, legal and “un”?
Although the old harbor area is a bit seedy not unlike many harbors, it is also beautiful and just down the coast [...]
Posted on June 22nd, 2009 by dianagene
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The world’s tallest vehicular bridge….
can be seen from a long ways off.
In fact, its first design plans for Le Viaduct de Millau were filed in 1987 and it was completed December 14, 2004 on budget and three weeks early. So Jacques Chirac, then the president of France, could see it a long ways off as [...]
Posted on June 21st, 2009 by dianagene
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We got up early and headed for the Montparnasse train station in Paris. We were going to the small town of Chartres about 50 miles southwest of Paris. We watched the gray morning countryside slide past as the train gently jostled its way in the early mist. We had only done the barest of research [...]
Posted on January 2nd, 2009 by dianagene
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The Parisians LOVE Christmas! They start working on it even before Americans do and there is evidence of La Fête Noël everywhere you look. The streets, stores and monuments don their decorations insisting you get in the spirit. Even with the massive crowds of shoppers competing for les cadeaux parfaits and a place to [...]
Posted on December 17th, 2008 by dianagene
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We are waken in the middle of the night. We know without thinking we need to go as quickly as we can; gather our waiting gear and move out. There are so many things that can go wrong, but we won’t let ourselves think of that. “We WILL have good weather; all transport WILL perform [...]
Posted on October 4th, 2008 by dianagene
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So how does a couple of basically down-to-earth, roll-around-in-the-dirt campin’, mini-van dwellin’, whopper eatin’ ‘mericans find themselves on the elegant Queen Mary II?
No worries dear reader - I have not fallen completely in love with my own writing. Again, there are too many pictures below - scroll on down if you wish.
Funny you should ask. [...]
Posted on September 25th, 2008 by dianagene
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Over the years, I have had mixed feelings about the popular image one gets when they think of the great American architect, Frank Lloyd Wright. I used to think the “Ranch-style” house attributed to Mr Wright, had been the demise of suburbia. By creating a tool which greedy developers could use to cut-up the countryside [...]
Posted on September 25th, 2008 by dianagene
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Dear Reader,
Our utmost apologies for the blog bog down. The rigors of travel along with round 37 in the down-sizing trauma/drama (now we’ve sold the van and are living out of two suitcases each - CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!) have left too little time to update you on our big adventure. Hence this missive.
We set [...]
Posted on September 2nd, 2008 by dianagene
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Becoming “rootless” may not be as easy as you think. Especially if you’re a couple of pack rats, and victims of Mega-Spoiled American Syndrome (MSAS), the idea of packing up your individually firmness controlled king-sized bed to sleep on a camp cot or equivalent for many moons to come may give you pause.
BUT despite the [...]
Posted on May 28th, 2008 by dianagene
Filed under: Uncategorized | 75 Comments »