One of the more dramatic colors in Spain is blue. The sky seems to be the most intense shade of cerulean, cobalt blue that you can imagine. The lapis lazuli colored tiles of the Moroccan influenced architecture are everywhere.
The intensity of such a bright blue against the red, orange and browns of an old Spanish city in Madrid are truly breathtaking.
Today, as I write this post, I am officially "Spain Sick".
Enjoy!
Taking note from a favorite blog called "Little Brown Pen", I have started to organize some favorite travel pictures according to main colors, hues and tones. It's a fun way to travel down memory lane and travel daydream about España. Here are today's favorites in VERDE:
Where would you go if you could go ANYWHERE today? I am subbing a class of kids right now and instead of doing their work, we are discussing this topic.
Costa Rica wins with the most votes:
I don't think I would mind it either, I have never been but after surfing around the web, I think I could be convinced!
Daydream away!
Once upon a time, I went to Cuba for Winter Term Study Abroad in College. It was INCREDIBLE and I cannot wait to go back (pending Raul and Fidel getting their acts together). Enjoy a couple of photos (taken on a Kodak disposable, haha) from the trip.
Lessons I learned while in Cuba:
1. Salsa music is king - it reflects the passion, soul and joy that Cubans have maintained over years of hardship and dictatorship. If you need more proof, put "Buena Vista Social Club" on your Netflix cue, its infectious beats will have you swooning and downloading faster than you can imagine!
2. Mojitos are amazing and delicious and best made with the freshest mint you can get your hands on.
3. Despite a difficult 1/2 century in the political realm - the Arts (music, dance, visual arts, painting, poetry) have thrived since Fidel Castro took over in 1962.
4. There is a beautiful, breathtaking dichotomy between the old and dilapidated parts of Havana and the restored or well-preserved that is unexplainable and which I have not yet seen in any other city in the world.
5. The people are amazing - infectious laughter fills the streets, everyone is your new "compay", the children want to know all about the USA and the NY yankees (boo!), and somehow, even when the electricity is cut off early in the evening and restaurants run out of ingredients, parties continue and happiness is all around. One truly learns from the Cuban people that survival can be beautiful in an otherwise bleak situation!
As a younger and less-wise teacher, I took 20 high school students to Mexico for Spring Break. After all was said and done and we got our baggage released from the lovely customs official in Mexico City three days after we arrived in Mexico....it was a BEAUTIFUL vacation. (several adolescent-related details have been omitted from this story for the sake of a happy Friday!) Enjoy a travel daydream today! Next stop, Tulum.
At my school, we do what is called "The Memory Project" each year. Art students are assigned a photograph of a child orphan to create a unique and original artwork. Students have drawn portraits, a gift that the orphans truly enjoy, for children of all ages from El Salvador, Burma and Indonesia for the past three years. The project was created by one generous man in Wisconsin named Ben Schumaker. Each year Ben takes hundreds of pieces of art to children who live in orphanages around the world to present them with an original piece of artwork that they can call their own. And students in DC love to create the art as well! What a beautiful arrangement!
The favorite part of the project for my students is that sometimes they get a letter or a picture of "their orphan" holding the portrait that they created several months after the portraits were submitted for the school's deadline. The students at my school love seeing the child's face smiling and holding their new portrait.
Take a look at this great website and video to learn a little more about the Memory Project.
www.thememoryproject.org/inside
Also, if you are an art teacher or know someone who is, please recommend to them that they take part in this amazing experience for their students.
M
After returning from the coldest doggie walk ever with my beagle, I need some warm sunshine to thaw me out! Here are some of my favorite photos from Madrid this past summer. Buen Provecho! (Enjoy!) M
