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Beaumont Hotel
Ouray, Colorado is surrounded by high cliffs that tower over the town’s 19th century buildings, including the classic-looking Beaumont Hotel. By the way, a local shopkeeper shared that the town name is pronounced “you-ray” and rhymes with “say.”
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Ouray
Heading south through the mountains of Colorado, we stopped in the town of Ouray to check out the lovely 1890’s buildings on Main Street. The town is named for a Ute chief whose name means “arrow,” although the winding road out of town was anything but straight as an arrow.
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Family Selfie
Hiking in the hills above Avon and Edwards, Colorado (at over 7,000 feet), we took a family selfie. From left are Elaine, John, Elizabeth, Jeff, and Hannah, with Elizabeth and Jeff’s bouncy dog Nugget keeping an eye on the other dogs on the trail.
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Edwards Valley
Visiting our daughter Elizabeth and her husband Jeff in Edwards, Colorado made for an enjoyable weekend. Here is the view over the valley (their home is under the shaded cliff at the right) where we went for a short hike one sunny afternoon.
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Mesas
Driving through the Colorado River canyon east of Moab, Utah in early November, the dramatic mesas and buttes competed with the golden-leaved trees for your attention.
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Skyline
This ridge of vertical rocks along the Colorado River near Moab, Utah resembled a distant skyline of crowded buildings. Or perhaps a row of jagged teeth!
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River Canyon
After lunch in Moab, Utah, we cruised up the scenic Colorado River canyon under tall spires of sandstone rock.
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Figs
This stalk of figs stood out against the dark red leaves in Nampa, Idaho. That’s where we visited with Elaine’s cousin Sue for a couple days, enjoying her hospitality and the beauty of her garden.
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Little Salmon River
Traveling south on our next adventure, we drove through central Idaho along the Salmon River and this stop along the Little Salmon. Fall colors were golden all along our way!
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Sunset Bands
This spectacular sunset in late October arced incandescent oranges and reds across the western sky near our home in Nine Mile Falls. The glory of God displayed in the heavens!
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Power Shadow
Sunset light on the power line towers near our house also produced a shadow of another tower on the field below. A reminder of the other towers, stretching off to the horizon, that bring electricity to all of us.
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Japanese Garden
The Japanese Garden in Spokane’s Manito Park was showing its fall colors during a recent visit in mid-October. It was very tranquil and calm to walk around the central pond and enjoy the views.
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Heron on a Rock
The Nishinomya Tsutakawa Japanese Garden in Manito Park has lovely landscaping, but the day we visited in October the focus of all the cameras was this heron balanced on one of the rocks in the garden’s pond. I thought it was a statue, until it turned its head toward me!
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Multicolored
Looking up into the trees in Spokane’s Corbin Park, you can see a remarkable mix of fall colors and sunlight or shade that makes an image as complex and delightful as this.
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Corbin Park
If you want to see a great color show, visit Corbin Park just north of downtown Spokane in the middle of October. That’s what we did and took a walk around the park in awe of the beauty of the fall colors.
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Greenland
While I’ve never been to Greenland, I got a great view of its Atlantic coast fiords and glaciers flowing down from it’s massive icecap on our flight home from Barcelona. The plane reached 69 degrees north, the furthest we’ve ever been, before angling south across Canada to Seattle and home.
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Cracks in the Earth
Flying in to Iceland on our way back across the Atlantic, you can see great cracks on the landscape where the island is stretching apart. It’s volcanoes and hot springs are powered by the same Mid-Atlantic Ridge that continues to spread the island very slowly.
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Barcelona Harbor
Flying home after two weeks exploring the western Mediterranean, we circled over Barcelona’s busy harbor. With five large cruise ships lined up at the pier, the city continues to try to balance the economic benefits of tourists without getting overrun by them. We can confirm it’s a great place to visit!
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Courtyard
Palma’s Almudaina Royal Palace is built in several stories of galleries around this central courtyard. The Palma Cathedral rises above the palace just across the street. The two medieval structures still serve as focal points for Palma and reminders of the storied history of this Spanish island.
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Main Hall
The main hall of the Royal Palace is still used for receptions when the Royal Family is on Mallorca. It’s a dramatic space with such wide stone arches and light pouring in from the Palma harbor.
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King’s Study
Once the king’s bedchamber, this simple room now serves as the king’s study – including for the current Spanish monarch Felipe VI, who uses the building as a summer palace. It’s also the room where the last Muslim emir surrendered to James I in 1229.
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Stairway Arch
Looking down the stairs to the courtyard of the Royal Palace, the illuminated stones and iron light fixtures give a strongly Spanish feel to the view.
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King of Mallorca
James III was the last of the original kings of Mallorca (1324-1349), who would make a good model for a King Arthur. The kings of Aragon assumed the throne in Palma, followed by Spanish monarchs, who all held court in this palace.
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Stonework
The Royal Palace is simply decorated, mostly with old tapestries, leaving the solid stone floors, walls and ceilings to reinforce the impression of strength.
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Royal Palace
Palma’s Almudaina Royal Palace was a Muslim fortress before the Spanish conquered the island and turned it into a palace for the kings of Mallorca (often spelled Majorca in English). They kept the old fortifications, here seen rising above one corner of the palace.
Words Are Inadequate 