Photo Essay: Starved Rock in Spring
Starved Rock State Park - Illinois Canyon in Spring This is the last day of May, and one could say spring is officially over, since in the U.S. we tend to think of summer as June, July and August, even though here in Chicago temperatures have dipped to the 50s today after hitting almost 100F last Sunday. In any [...]
Photo Essay: Shanghai – The Bund
The Bund at night - the clock tower building is the former Customs House, farther along you see the green steepled roof of the Peace Hotel. Typical tourist pictures of Shanghai probably start with the Bund, i.e. views of the famed riverfront, preferably at night when it's not bathed in Shanghai's hazy bright light. That is probably why I haven't [...]
Reading: The Hare with Amber Eyes by Edmund de Waal
Edmund de Waals' memoir The Hare with Amber Eyes was my favorite memoir of 2011. I am still trying to figure out why because it defies so many of the principles of good storytelling. There is very little scene, as the book is almost entirely told in summary. Sometimes the descriptions get pedantic, and few of the characters are fully [...]
Photo Essay: Bikes in Shanghai
Just as the laundry hung out to dry on eletrical cables, parking signs and telephone booths, the prevalence of bikes in the streets of Shanghai struck me as so very different from what you see in an American city. This is an unusually contemplative and peaceful shot of two bikes parked in the market area of Nanshi, the Old [...]
Writing Exercise: Color List – Beige
I haven't done the color list exercise in a while, mainly because I thought I had covered all the main colors already. For the uninitiated, the idea of the color list is to come up with ways to evoke a color without mentioning the color itself since one of the challenges of writing effective descriptions is getting the color [...]
Photo Essay: The Dry Goods Market in Shanghai
Outrageously kitschy and cute - baby ponytail holders at the Dry Goods Market in the Nanshi District of Shanghai. Being an indoor bazaar, the Dry Goods Market is indeed "dry," which we appreciated after strolling through the outdoor market in the rain. Veggies are also for sale here, but fake. Fruit helps to learn Chinese. After the gray day [...]