7 Things to Love About High Speed Rail

Luggage on train

[Some thoughts Phillip wrote down during our journey from Rome to Venice on a high speed Italo Treno train. –S]


Italo Treno

How do I love thee high-speed train travel? Let me count the ways!

After my first trip on high speed rail in Italy, I’m a believer!

View from train in italy

Here are some things I loved about traveling on a train instead of flying:

1. You don’t have to check your luggage, so it’s way less likely to be lost.

2. Quick boarding and deboarding time.

Luggage on train

3. You can move around. Since there’s no turbulence, there’s no “fasten seatbelt sign,” and you can get up and down whenever you want.

4. No extreme pressure changes.

5. No taxi time or Air Traffic Control delays. (For example, when we were traveling back to Phoenix, our plane was stuck on the ground close to 40 minutes at JFK airport).

Luggage on train

6. You can keep your phone on. No need to put it in “airplane mode” on a train.

7. Still very fast (250 kmh/150mph). A plane travels around 500 mph, but with all the extra time and hassle at the airport, it might still take about the same amount of time to get to your destination.




We were guests of Italo Treno.

October 2017 Photo: Sedona

Sedona

Sedona

During a mid-October camping trip in Sedona, I took this photo from the terrace of a coffee shop that closed just before we got there. At least we still got to enjoy the view!

Speaking of which, I was trying to take a panoramic photo of the same view and this (I’m sure perfectly nice but totally oblivious) couple just stepped right into the frame when I was mid-pan. Oh well. Bob and Doris, you’re part of this now.

Finally, I also messed around with time lapse shots a bit on the same trip. I propped my phone on the hood of our car to capture the sun setting over our campground.

 




Microblog Mondays: Write in your own space

Autumn and Indigo: A Color Story

We tend to think of fall colors in the family of rusts and browns, pumpkins and mustards. But you can also reach across the color wheel and pull in some cooler hues. Shades of indigo and slate are a perfect match for warm harvest tones, complementing them beautifully without taking away their autumn feeling.

So here is some fall color palette inspiration – with a few projects and recipes along the way.

Roasted carrots

Ceramics by Easy to Breathe

California dreamin' by @rockswell_

DIY orange garland by A Daily Something

Venice door

1. Roasted Carrot Salad via Brooklyn Supper. 2. Easy to Breathe plates via Jungalow. 3. Cheery vintage design for when all the leaves are brown and the sky is gray via Aaron von Freter (@rockswell_). 4. DIY Dried Orange Garland via A Daily Something. 5. Door in Venice, Italy.

Roasted beets and wild rice

Marigolds

Thanksgiving cheeseboard by what's gaby cooking

Willcox AZ

Tablescape by Casa de Perrin

6. Roasted Beets with Creamy Romesco + Wild Rice via Snixy Kitchen. 7. Marigolds via Viewed from Another Angle. 8. Beeline Cafe, Payson, Arizona. 9. Thanksgiving cheeseboard via What’s Gaby Cooking. 10. Near Apple Annie’s in Willcox, Arizona. 11. Casa de Perrin Tablescape via Poppytalk.

What colors spring to mind when you think of autumn?




Microblog Mondays: Write in your own space

DIY Pumpkins and Pie!

Pumpkin pie

Here are 11 pumpkin-pie-inspired ideas you can bake or make!

DIYs and pumpkin pies

Eat+Drink

Pumpkin Pie – First, a classic. You can make pumpkin puree for pies and other recipes from a sugar pumpkin or even a regular carving pumpkin. (Really! I did it!)

 


Holiday Spice Mix – Blend these ingredients for a versatile, cinnamony spice you can use as pumpkin pie spice or sprinkle into hot chocolate.

 

Spiced pumpkin martini

Spiced Pumpkin Pie Martini – A pumpkin pie garnish on your cocktail?! Why not? After all, it is the holidays.

 


Downeast Maine Pumpkin Bread – You can use canned pumpkin or your own pumpkin puree for this addictively good quick bread.

 


Pumpkin Pie Smoothie – This is a great breakfast on-the-go – especially during the holiday season when you have a lot of pumpkin around and not a lot of time. I added pecans and an extra cup of plain Greek yogurt to Jamie’s recipe.

 

Pie Slice Cookies – I haven’t made these, but they were so adorable that I had to include them! (If you’re looking for cookie decorating ideas and tips, there are TONS on the Sweet Sugarbelle blog!)

 

Pumpkin pie garland by martha stewart

Craft

Thanksgiving Pie Garland – Turns out paper pie slices make perfect pennants! #TeamPie

 

Fall Succulent Planter – Rachel of Maison de Pax planted succulents directly into ceramic pumpkins. Another option would be to place potted succulents inside a real (or ceramic or foam) pumpkin and take them out when you take down the autumn decor.

 

Pie necklace

Pumpkin Pie Friendship Necklaces – StudioDIY shared a tutorial for this making polymer clay pumpkin pie necklaces as part of a Friendsgiving post!

 

Mini Pumpkin Candles  – A simple project from Faith Durant at The Kichn that turns a pumpkin into a candle.

 

Botanical Pumpkins – Fall leaves and Modge Podge are a striking way to decorate pumpkins!




Photos via:
1, 2, 4. Me.
3. A Beautiful Mess
5. Love Bakes Good Cakes
6. Sweet Sugarbelle
7. Martha Stewart
8. Maison de Pax

9. Studio DIY
10. The Kichn
11. Country Living

Art Inspires Expeditions in “Headhunt Revisited” Documentary

An unusual expedition set sail from San Francisco in 1926.

Headhunt Revisited Lagoon

It was composed entirely of two women with cigarette tins full of art supplies in tow. Their destination was the South Pacific. And their mission was to document cultures in danger of disappearing.

Headhunt Revisited - Caroline Mytinger

Artist Caroline Mytinger and her partner Margaret Warner did not seem fazed by the western dismissal of Melanesians as ruthless headhunters. In fact, Mytinger often turned the phrase around, referring to the search for faces to paint as her own “headhunt.”

Headhunt Revisited documentary

The documentary Headhunt Revisited: With Brush, Canvas and Camera follows another woman-lead expedition with photographer and filmmaker Michele Westmorland retracing their steps 80 years later.

Mytinger Sketch and Westmorland photo

We travel along, not just through the Pacific but through time, as the film superimposes past and present. Its cinematographic shots are interspersed with grainy archival footage of traditional dances, art, and daily life on the islands. Westmorland’s narration dovetails with excerpts of Mytinger’s writings (as voiced by Lauren Hutton).

Elders, artisans, and family of Mytinger’s original portrait subjects share stories that give us a window into their worlds and the lives of their ancestors.

One of the artists we meet is Papua New Guinean painter Jeffry Feeger, who created a series of portraits that parallel Mytinger’s. His subjects come from the same places but are dressed in street clothes, rather than the traditional attire.

Mytinger’s portraits are like a colorful time capsule. The film is an equally vibrant exploration of the people, places, and traditions behind the paintings.

Headhunt Revisited screened recently at the Friday Harbor Film Festival, the Hawaii International Film Festival, and LA Femme Film Festival, where it won Best Foreign Documentary.

Hopefully, it will have a wider release soon. If you have a chance to see it, I recommend taking that journey.

 

UPDATE: Headhunt Revisited is now available for purchase on DVD or USB!

 




Images and preview courtesy of Headhunt Revisited: With Brush, Canvas and Camera.