Music

As I walked by the waterfront, I heard some MUSIC coming from the bushes.....

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This week I'd like to share some pictures from one of my favourite spots in the city.... The Toronto MUSIC Garden.... Located between Queen's Quay Blvd, and the edge of Lake Ontario, the garden was built as a horticultural interpretation of Bach's Suite No. 1 in G Major for Unaccompanied Cello. I blogged about it a long time ago here. These pictures are from the section of the garden representing the Gigue or "jog", a type of dance...

It serves as an open amphitheatre where free classical concerts are performed on the flagstone stage beneath the weeping willow.... I took these pictures in early spring, before the concerts began...

But here is what it looks like on warm summer day....

Unfortunately, the concert season ends on Sunday, September 16 at 4pm, if you can catch it... If not there's always next year. The schedule is here if you're interested.

Happy Photohunting Folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, toronto music garden

Shiny

Whoaw! I haven't played in a while.... but I'm glad to finally have some time to spend on my much neglected blog.... Here is a picture of the brand spanking new, and very SHINY "Crystal" at the Royal Ontario Museum.....

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You might remember that I posted this for the "architecture" PhotoHunt....

So here is the finished product.....

Here is a peek into the interior of the Crystal.... It's pretty SHINY inside too....

I should probably devote an entire blog to this thing.....

Until then, Happy Photohunting folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, royal ontario museum, ROM crystal

Rare

It may look like a regular, everyday, run-of-the-mill pigeon hiding behind that leaf.....

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but it's actually a RARE species of pigeon known as the "Bleeding Heart Pigeon"....

It's rare because it's only found in the Philippines, and because it is being theatened by hunting, and deforestation. Five separate species have evolved on different islands of the Phillipines: Mindoro (Gallicolumba platenae), Negros (Gallicolumba keayi), Mindanao (Gallicolumba criniger), Sulu (Gallicolumba menagei), and this particular one, which is the Luzon Bleeding Heart Pigeon (Gallicolumba luzonica). As its name indicates, it is found on the island of Luzon, but also on the Pollilo Islands. It's scientific name not only alludes to the bird's home island, but to its character as well... galli=chicken and columba=dove.... in fact, this bird spends most of it's life on the forest floor, much like a chicken, foraging for food. It will fly up to low lying branches to roost, or nest. It is very shy, quiet, and quite stealthy. I'm hoping it only stays rare, and never becomes endangered or extinct.

I took these pictures at the Eagle Point Dive Resort in Anilao, Batangas, where they have an aviary.


Happy Photohunting folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, luzon bleeding heart pigeon, gallicolumba luzonica

Steps?

There really are STEPS hiding underneath all that snow.....

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And I'm happy to report that all that snow has finally melted away... no more risk of broken butt bones here. Happily, this weekend is supposed to be filled with sunshine and 20's C temperatures (which I learned from my Atlanta trip equals 70's F).... I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hoping that Old Man Winter has finally decided that the last couple weeks' crazy weather was his final word for the year.

Happy Photohunting folks, hope you have a sunny and warm weekend!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes

Hobby

This week's photohunt theme inspired me to go out and do some star gazing, a favourite hobby of mine....

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It's been a while since I've had a chance to go out since I've been busy studying stuff other than the stars, plus there hasn't been anything too stellar (pardon the pun) happening up there lately, and finally, winter weather is definitely not star gazing weather. The telescope on the left was my first telescope, I just took it out to take the picture... I never use it anymore since I got spoiled with the telescope on the right. That one has a computer that tracks the Earth's rotation depending on where you are in the world... that way, it follows the movement of the sky, and you don't have to keep making adjustments like you do with the manual telescope.

The tiny little pinpoint in the sky is the planet Venus, it's easy to find as it is the brightest thing in the western sky. Here's a star chart if you'd like to orient yourself and look for it, but you can't miss it....Venus is interesting because it also has phases like the moon, so it may look like a regular "star" but if you look at it through a telescope there are times when it appears as a crescent or a "half moon".

The most amazing heavenly body, however, would have to be Saturn. Again, to the naked eye, it appears like a regular "star". But through a telescope you'll actually see its rings, and if you've got good eyesight, even some of Saturn's moons are visible. Even if you don't have a telescope, you can find Saturn in the southern sky in between Leo and Cancer. It looks like a yellowish star that does not twinkle..... (the star charts are from Toronto around 9PM tonight, but should be similar anywhere in the northern hemisphere)
One day I'm going to combine astronomy with my other favourite hobby... photography, then I could post my own pics of Saturn's rings for y'all and further combine it with another favourite hobby.... blogging!

Happy Photohunting Folks and keep looking up!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, astronomy

Water

Ahhhhh WATER...... This is definitely where I 'd rather be right now....

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It was taken at Hidden Valley Springs in Alaminos, Laguna, Philippines. The springs are warmed by a nearby dormant volcano. One of my most favourite places in the world....

I've been getting over a case of cabin fever lately, and the next picture, which was supposed to be my entry for last week's EMPTY should explain it.....This is the scene that I have been coming home to for the past few months.... an empty parking lot covered in snow.... as I traverse the snow to my lonely car near the lamp post, I imagine the rest of the people that were parked here in the morning, all warm at home, probably finished dinner and relaxing together with their families, or even already in bed.... while I'm still just making my way home.... depressing eh? Oh well, Spring is here, let's leave the Seasonal Affective Disorder behind!

Happy Photohunting Folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, hidden valley springs, alaminos, go parking lot

Architecture

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This is not my favourite example of ARCHITECTURE in the City of Toronto, but it definitely is one of the most interesting! It is the Ontario College of Art & Design. I always feel like it's going to topple over whenever I walk by.... it is pretty cool though.

This one, on the other hand, I am excited about......

It is the new Crystal at the Royal Ontario Museum, which is not yet completed, but should be by this June. A lot of people do not like it, but I love the juxtaposition of the new shiny glass and silver, with the old stone of the original facade. It definitely beats what used to sit there. I'm also excited about it because they will finally take the dinosaurs (among other things) out of storage and place them in their new home. The architect is Daniel Libeskind, who also designed (among other things) the new World Trade Center in New York City. If you live in Toronto, the opening will be at sundown, on June 2. They will leave the space empty of exhibits until June 10 so that the public can appreciate the architectural space on its own. BTW, admission will be free on June 2-3. I've been keeping an eye on it's development and taking pictures, so you will definitely see a blog about it when it's completed.

Happy Photohunting Folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, architecture, ontario college of art & design, royal ontario museum

Nermal's Photo Hunt

Nermal would like to say a big THANK YOU! to everybody who wished him well last week:

(this pic was taken when he still had his hair :) sorry if it takes long to load, please be patient)

Nermal is much happier these days because I've been coming home much earlier just to give him more quality play time, plus his human Grampa payed him a visit from New York City and kept him company.... So Thanks to everyone who sent him hugs, nudges, purrs, and ear scratches from across cyberspace!

He enjoyed blogging so much last week that he'd like to put in a few late entries for the past three Saturday Photohunts....

First is his SALTY entry.... This is a picture of him last winter (when he still had his hair) exploring the salty driveway....His entry from two weeks ago....SOFT.... which is a picture of his fur that he misses.....And here's his entry from three weeks ago....ANTIQUE:It's a picture of some cat mummies (and a falcon mummy) from the Royal Ontario Museum.... sorry for the poor quality of the photo, but Nermal's not much of a photographer and flash photography is prohibited at the museum..... Nermal would prefer cremation, however, when his 9 lives are up!

Happy and Photohunting folks! To visit more participants, click here:

TECHNORATI TAGS: cats on tuesday, cats

Salty

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Talk about SALTY! That's the pavement at the Meadowvale Train Station, and there's no ice mixed in, that's all salt in that picture. I guess they need to make sure nobody slips and breaks their butt bone :D I know all the salt they throw around at winter wreaks havoc on our shoes, clothes, and cars, but I guess it's better than having a broken butt bone!

Here's some pink salt I found in downtown Toronto......
Isn't pink salt some kind of gourmet salt.... in which case, wouldn't this be better served at some fancy restaurant? Looks too good for just our feet :)

Please take care walking, it's icy out there! Happy Photohunting Folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, salt, salty GO station, pink salt

Soft

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This is a picture of a small snow bank that accumulated on top of the spotlight at the front of the house. I think it looks SOFT. I also like the softening effect it has on the harsh light that comes from the spotlight.

Soon the soft snow will be completely melted away by the heat from the spotlight. Such is the fleeting beauty of winter, and of life in general......

Happy Photohunting!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, snow

Antique

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There's a lot of ANTIQUES at the R.O.M. (Royal Ontario Museum), but the Egyptian antiquities would have to be my favourites. This particular coffin may not be one of the more colourful and gold laden coffins on display, but I like it because of it's story. His name was Nakht, and he was a weaver from a small village on the banks of the Nile. He died almost 3000 years ago, and his family loved him enough to ensure that he was buried in a good quality coffin where his name and occupation were displayed for posterity. He may not have been Tutankhamun, but now, generations of people will know his name as they pass through the R.O.M. Here are his canopic jars which housed his vital organs.
Happy Photohunting!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, mummy, royal ontario museum

Broken

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This is a picture of BROKEN ice on the surface of Lake Ontario. I braved some pretty frigid temperatures to grab that shot! Winter's really come back with a vengance. Luckily, the groundhogs had some good news about spring last week.

I've been so busy, I didn't get a chance to play last week, so I'm adding a very late entry for GROSS:
Check out where this bus is going to at 20:50. I've always thought that that was a pretty gross name for a train station!

Happy Photohunting Folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, lake ontario in winter, old cummer

Silver

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This is Mushu, my SILVER Arowona or Dragon Fish. Their scientific name is Osteoglossum bicirrhosum which is Greek for "bony tongue" and "two barbels". This species is an ancient fish, they have been around since the Jurassic Period, and have stayed pretty much the same since then. Native to South America, they are also known there as "monkey fish" because of their ability to jump out of the water to catch prey, which usually consist of smaller fish, crustaceans, insects, and even small birds! There are also Asian, African and Australian species, and they come in a variety of colours: black, red, gold, green.

Happy Photohunting Folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, silver arowana, fish

Wild

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These are pictures of sweetie and a bunch of fish in a WILD feeding frenzy. I took them on a snorkeling trip in Puerto Galera, Philippines in 2005. I included the second picture because I also think that sweetie looks pretty wild in a bikini! It's also a bit of an experiment, because I don't think she reads my blog. She claims that she does. So if she really does, I'll probably be hearing about this picture in the next day or so. Let's see what happens :)

Happy Photohunting Folks!

TECHNORATI TAGS: saturday photohunt, saturday photo scavenger hunt, memes, snorkeling, puerto galera