TravelswithCharie

The Three Shades It is both a privilege and pleasure to see Rodin's craft up close and observe the nuances of his creations,en plein air, at the Cantor Arts Center in Stanford. Seen from behind, The Three Shades are a picture of powerful musculature. These three pieces are one and the same but turned at different angles. Up close, you can see the curvatures and indentations, feel the strength emanating from the composition and enjoy the play of light on the surface. Rodin's contemporaries were the Impressionists and his works are as much about the effect of light on the object or subject as they were with Monet and his generation. And since many of Rodin's works are displayed outdoors, light is a defining factor in his ouevres . Notice the contrast of light and dark on the faces of these two Shades and how light intensifies the facial expression. And here are their hands, as expressive as their physique, like the fingers of Michaelangelo's David in the Sistine C

"There's only 1 thing, 2 do, 3 words, 4 you.....I love you. There's only 1 way, 2 say, those 3 words, that's what I'll do.....I love you." (Lyrics from 1234 by Plain White T's) Happy ♥'s Day. * * * www.youtube.com/daiyel

A friend suggested I write about what $20.00 can buy for dinner at restaurants in the Bay Area. I've chosen four restaurants (plus 1) where I've recently dined and here they are...... One of the main draws for dining at Applebee's is their 2 for $20.00 menu which includes two entrées and an appetizer. There are at least 8 entrée choices including a riblet basket, bacon double cheeseburger, fiesta lime chicken, three cheese penne pasta, sirloin steak, two kinds of salads and the double crunch shrimp seen above. The appetizer selections include mozzarella sticks, buffalo chicken wings (or honey chicken wings), spinach and artichoke dip and crunchy onion rings. What I like at Applebee's is that it is easy to ask the staff to substitute vegies with rice or mashed potatoes or french fries. Nothing's too difficult to please you. And they don't skimp on the plate of food they give you. I always go home with leftovers.  http://www.applebees.com/ The next restauran

David Lebovitz When I started reading " The Sweet Life in Paris: Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious - and Perplexing - City ", I couldn't put it down. So I read on through the last page. And then I wanted to read more of David's works. I thought I would have to wait for his next book to be published but no! Luckily Mr. Lebovitz is one of those rare writers whose works can be easily accessed. He has a blog, http://www.davidlebovitz.com/ , he's on Twitter and Facebook and his photos are on Flicker. At a book signing in San Francisco last year, David graciously autographed our books and talked to us, his fans, about his upcoming book, Ready for Dessert: My Best Recipes . David's blog is as colorful as his life in Paris and the dishes and desserts he features with recipes to boot. The stories he shares on Facebook are novel and interesting. And his tweets are one of a kind.  Here's a sample: "Had a terrific evening. Till that bird rel

Exciting times for art enthusiasts are on the calendar for 2010. The De Young Museum in San Francisco will be presenting consecutive exhibitions beginning with Birth of Impressionism : Masterpieces from the  Musée d'Orsay which runs from May 22, 2010 to September 6, 2010 followed by  Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cézanne and Beyond : Post-Impressionists Masterpieces from the Musée D'Orsay from September 25, 2010 to January 18, 2011. Some 100 paintings will be on display in the first exhibition including Les Raboteurs by Gustave Caillebotte, Saint Lazare Station by Claude Monet,  The Dance Lesson  by Edgar Degas and Portrait of the Artist's Mother by James McNeill Whistler. Other artists in this show are Bouguereau, Manet, Morisot, Pisarro, Renoir, and Sisley. The Post Impressionists' collection consists of 120 canvases foremost of which are The Artist's Bedroom at Arles by Vincent Van Gogh, Portrait of the Artist with the Yellow Christ by Paul Gauguin and selections from

Many of us have read Greg Mortenson's  Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time , his story about traveling in Pakistan and the profound effect it had on himself and the people he met along the way. Today more travelers are seeking to reach out to the communities they visit, whether as a family or as an individual, and to incorporate sightseeing or relaxing at a nearby beach resort with volunteer projects that match their interests.  There are opportunities in teaching English or arts and crafts, building schools or restoring a Tuscan village, working at an archaelogical dig or at an orphanage and studying the ecosystem, among others. Frommer's 500 Places Where You Can  Make A Difference lists various way to serve communities around the world along with detailed contact information and costs of meals and accommodations. Volunteer vacations may be short or long term depending on the traveler's requirements. But it may become in

The Strip, Las Vegas And now the much awaited list of places to go in 2010 from The New York Times is out and here are their top 10 picks: 1. Sri Lanka 2. Patagonia Wine Country 3. Seoul 4. Mysore 5. Copenhagen 6. Koh Kood 7. Damascus 8. Cesme 9. Antarctica 10. Leipzig Also making the list are Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Istanbul which is the 2010 European Capital of Culture, South Africa where the 2010 World Cup games will be held, and Shanghai, the site of Expo 2010. Frommer's and NY Times both include Copenhagen (the venue of the recently concluded Climate Change Conference) on their lists while Las Vegas appears on both the Lonely Planet and NY Times lists. It's interesting to note that the NY Times list of destinations has been pared down from 44 in 2009 to just 31 in 2010. It gives us more time to immerse ourselves in the cultures of these recommended destinations if we are lucky enough to see all of them in 2010. Happy travels! For the complete list of the