Category Archives: Postcards

Postcard From Nazare, Portugal

Nazare, Portugal

Our second stop en route to Porto was Nazare (NAZ a ray). Because we had extra time in Obidos, Nazare was a quick stop to see the views and visit the cathedral. I only took a few photos there, but this view was pretty nice.

Summer time is a very busy time with vacationers visiting the beaches. Later in the winter, Nazare will host some of the largest waves in the world, and surfers will come from all over to try their luck. The town was pretty quiet on this early winter day.

Postcard From Obidos, Portugal

Obidos, Portugal

We disembarked our cruise ship in Lisbon, Portugal this past Wednesday and had arranged transportation to Porto with stops in Obidos and Nazare along the way. Obidos (OH bee dose) is a cute little place with a main street full of shops, the requisite churches, a fort and – of course – cobblestones. It even has the remains of an ancient Roman aqueduct.

Obidos is also known for producing ‘Ginja de Obidos,’ a sweet and sour cherry liquor that is served in little chocolate cups about the size of a shot glass. And of course we bought a bottle as a souvenir! 😉

Postcard From Tenerife

Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands

Well, Kathy & I are on another cruise. This cruise is a transatlantic cruise from Port Canaveral, FL to Lisbon, Portugal. Along the way we stopped at Tenerife in the Canary Islands. This was the view of the port of Santa Cruz as we approached the island after 7 days at sea.

We love sea days, but 7 days was a long time, even for us. Today we are sailing toward Lisbon, where we will disembark for 18 days in Portugal and Spain while the ship goes to drydock. We’ll re-board the same ship in Barcelona to return home.

(Another) Postcard From Bourbon Country

Jim Beam Distillery in Clermont, KY

We got to Bardstown a day earlier than we anticipated. So what do you do with a bonus day in Bourbon country? You taste wine, of course!

Kentucky does have some pretty decent wine, it seems that Chambourcin and Cabernet Franc grow especially well here. So of course we picked up a few bottles. 🙂

We did stop by the Jim Beam Distillery, although they were not open. It’s still very scenic place and one we have enjoyed visiting in the past.

Postcard From Grand Teton National Park

View of the Teton Range from Mormon Row Historic District, Grand Teton National Park

We wrapped up our western swing with a 2 day visit to Jackson, WY and Grand Teton National Park. This is a classic view of the Teton Range from an area called the Mormon Row Historic District. The photo is a bit of a cliche but I can’t imagine a photographer passing it by. Some photographs just need to be taken! We had some pretty nice clouds on this day, which helps a lot.

Postcard From Yellowstone: Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

Lower Falls, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Yellowstone National Park

The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone is a beautiful location, where the Yellowstone River has carved a magnificent canyon with several waterfalls. We were fortunate to time a visit to Artist Point to photograph a rainbow that occurs at the Lower Falls at certain times of the year.

Artist Point was originally named in 1883 by Frank Jay Haynes who improperly believed that the point was the place at which painter Thomas Moran sketched his 1872 depictions of the falls. Later work determined that the sketches were made from the north rim, but the name Artist Point stuck.

Postcard From Yellowstone: Midway Geyser Basin

Midway Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park

Midway Geyser Basin is home of the famous Grand Prismatic Spring as well as a number of other equally impressive features. We did see Grand Prismatic, but on the day of our visit the temperatures were in the low 30s, making for a lot of steam. Despite being in the “off season” the place got so busy later in the day when the temperatures did warm up, that we elected to go in the morning before all the selfie-shooting tourists showed up and crowded the boardwalk.

Postcard From Yellowstone: Old Faithful

Old Faithful Geyser, Yellowstone National Park

Kathy & I have decided that there is such a thing as “Geyser Fatigue.” 🙂 But geysers are one of the highlights of visiting Yellowstone. The most famous one of all is Old Faithful, so it deserved a spot on this postcard. We had a room facing the geyser basin and specifically Old Faithful, so we watched it erupt numerous times over the four days we stayed at the Old Faithful Inn.

Postcard From Yellowstone: Mammoth Hot Springs

Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park

Kathy & I are wrapping up our visit to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. It’s been a great couple of weeks, with beautiful scenery, abundant wildlife and some interesting weather. We had very limited connectivity in the parks (a good thing!) and also limited time to look at photos (also a good thing). This is a sample of the images from our first stop in Yellowstone, at Mammoth Hot Springs.