Was Hurricane Katrina really five years ago? It could have been last week. I distinctly remember taking this photo at Penn Stn and thinking, ‘it’s not going to be a pretty situation down there’.
And I’ll never understand the dire response the US government in the days and weeks afterwards. Just awful.
Forgot to post this..taken while trekking across Richmond Park in mid-July.
I’ve seen sunsets everywhere, but this one was more spectacular than just about all of them.
That David Beckham, he’s so talented. First a footballing legend and now a genius at the keys?
Oh. PECKHAM. Nevermind.
Over the extended weekend I spent time in New York catching up with really good friends. It’s been some years since I was last there. I always missed it, but I didn’t realise just how much until emerging from the PATH station under the WTC Plaza site. The best thing about NYC is that it’s a walking city. And I walked stupid amounts, more than I ever used to.
Another thing I miss about NYC (and my old East Coast stamping grounds in general) – real seasons. This weekend it was mainly spring. Though someone pressed the ‘summer’ button by accident on the Sunday.
Four days of living what feels like every block and neighbourhood, and I’m a happy, physical wreck. I’ll be back in the autumn for more of the same.
Right, so now I have a new favourite place on Earth.
SW US Day 6: Death Valley from Andy Martin on Vimeo.
The final scenes were fitting to the trip. Driving back through the eastern gateway, the sun setting, looking like the entire sky was exploding throughout the valley behind me. And then it vanished behind a mountain. I drove back into town in a weird Nevada desert half-light. The day over, the trip done in terms of amazing things to see.
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| Southwest US 2010 |
And with that, I’m going to mill around Old Vegas for a bit, take a couple more pictures and head home. London and bills and househunting and post offices queues and signal failures at Battersea Park…all that reality awaits me.
The longest drive of the week turned out to be the most rewarding. With an early start out of Phoenix, I headed north on the I-17, up through the snowline to 7000ft and stopped off in a freezing Flagstaff. Then off again, deep into Navajo country and arriving at Monument Valley just shy of lunchtime.
I’d been dreaming of the place for years, and in no way has it disappointed.
And there’s this I captured from the balcony of my room.
SW US Day 4: Monument Valley from Andy Martin on Vimeo.
Today I’ll Utah, back down to Flagstaff and then along to the town of WIlliams (another little place perched on old Route 66). No Grand Canyon this time around.
This is my favorite part of the year. No-one really knows what day it is, what’s open or closed, whether 6pm will bring the evening news or Wallace & Gromit. In the midst of everything, people just go to ground and stay home staring at their rapidly shedding Christmas trees, their eyes unable to obtain focus through near-diabetic comas brought on by too many dips into the Celebrations tin.
It’s also a superb time to go walking. Enough room on the pavements to swing a dozen cats attached to an industrial bungee cord.
Testing the new WordPress 2 client for iPhone. So far so good, it’s not died on me yet! Photo integration seems ok as well. If this works I may celebrate somehow. Maybe another coffee?
