Dreaming of Home

Sunset from my Hometown

Despite enjoying my life here in US, blessed with a very supportive husband and living in a city where I can enjoy the beauty of nature within an earshot, yet, I could not deny the feelings of missing the home I first knew and grew up in. Despite the many blazing sunsets here in San Diego, I still miss sitting in our bay and watching the sunset there. I am missing the laughters and hugs of my family and friends. I am missing the atmosphere of my first "home sweet home".

However, going home is not easy, I wish it is. One thing that I dislike the most is the travel time, it is just too long!!!! Thus, I am planning that the next time I visit home, I will make the most of my travel time by stopping by in nearby countries so that I do not have to make several very long flights for it. Goodness, I do not know how long do I need for this type of vacation, but maybe I can do two or three Asian countries each time I visit my hometown. Of course, I wanted to go to Vietnam, China, Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, Japan, India, okay......to cut it short, I wanted to experience most of Asian countries. Each time we travel, I always make my own itinerary, and I do not go with package tours despite it may be cheaper! Why? Because I love to travel at our own pace, and I really wanted to experience the place the way I wanted it. I am very much detailed in every vacation planning, from places, to activities, to hotels.

Though I have been to Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore, but that was almost 20 years ago when I was fresh out from college and was sent by my employer for a training there. The places I been to where the places determined by my employer for us to see and explore. I wanted to go back and do it my way, of course, without attending lectures and seminars anymore, but just simply enjoying what each places has to offer. Thankfully, looking for hotels in Bangkok and other cities is a lot easier now with all information we can gather from the internet. Well, we can get travel coupons even if we just spend time to really look for the best deals.

Of course, another country I would love to visit but I do not know when since I wanted also to see the Australian Open, the Grand Slam of Asia/Pacific at the same time when I go there. The schedule of Australian Open just do not match our school year :( . But maybe I can just go there some other time and just dream about watching Federer vs Nadal in a championship match at Melbourne Park :) and then watching the amazinng Mebourne skyline at night from one of the best hotels in Melbourne.  Then, visiting the National Parks near and around Melbourne the next day such as: Churchill National Park, Dandenong Ragnes National Park and Organ Pipes National Park.

Oh well, am so glad for the internet, for while these travels do not happen yet, I can just do virtual travel, surf for pictures, close my eyes, and dream I am there :)

Meeting Fellow Blogger Ebie

I really had a great time meeting today fellow blogger Ebie of The Main Ingredient, and her daughter Zee. They are fun to be with, and Zee is a great tutor in photography. What is great with meeting fellow bloggers who are also in photography is that you can learn from each other, though I must say, I learned mostly from them :). My weakness is taking pictures of people since I am used to nature and landscape photography, and it is fun to be picking up bits and pieces for people photography. Anyway, here are some pictures from our fun day today. We met first met at Flower Fields then, proceeded to La Jolla.

The Flower Fields, Carlsbad, San Diego County

Colors of Ranunculus @ Flower Fields

White Ranunculus Up Close

Ebie Taught Me How to Shoot This Without going down on my knees :)

After The Flower Fields, we went to La Jolla and Torrey Pines State Reserve.

La Jolla

Seals on Shore at La Jolla

Me @ Torrey Pines, taken by Zee 

Ebie, hope you had a wonderful time in San Diego, and hope you can visit some day and let us hike and explore more of Torrey Pines State Reserve and around.

Up Close and Personal

The week has passed and I have not been anywhere but home, this is the first spring break in many years that we have not been anywhere because we are down with cold. It's good to be home though, good to be relaxing and resting, but what is not good is dealing with cough and cold :(

Getting cold slowed us down, no more hiking, just home...home....and home....sometimes, we take a relaxing walk around though....and since we are more into sitting down and relaxing now, here are some pictures I took this week out of slowing down.

Monarch Up Close

Inside of an Orange Lily

Hug Hug Me Tight - Sipping the Sweet Nectar 

No, I did not inhale the pollen of this daisy, I hold my breath while taking this picture

The Reason Behind Allergies!

Got Ya! Inside the Rose

My Pink Rose

I guess, looking at the positive side of being down with a cold, though there are no more scenic landscape, rolling mountains and waterfall pictures to take from hiking, but stopping allowed me to take a closer look at the flowers and we have more time now to wait for the bees and the butterflies. 

Happy Easter everyone. 

Two Late Posts

I missed two Fridays of Fun Friday in our Blogging for Fun Group. Catching Up, I will be posting here two letters, V and W.

V is for very late volcanic post :( .

Lassen Peak Volcano and Lake Helen, Lassen Volcanic National Park, CA, Summer 2009

Lassen Peak Volcano Reflected at Manzanita Lake, Lassen Volcanic National Park, CA, Summer 2009

Lassen Peak is considered the world's largest plug dome volcano that rises 2,000 ft to an elevation of 10,457 ft. This is a very beautiful and peaceful National Park located in North Central California. Aside from Lassen Peak Volcano, Lassen Volcanic National Park consists of 3 other types of volcanoes. Actually, all four types of volcanoes found in the entire world are represented in Lassen Volcanic National Park, these are:

1) shield - Prospect Peak Volcano

2) plug dome - Lassen Peak Volcano

3) cinder cone - Cinder Cone Volcano

4) composite- Broke-off Volcano

Visitation at this park is lowest in March and peaks in the summer. Right now, the Southwest entrance is covered with 130 inches of snow.

Visitor Center at the Southwest Entrance of Lassen Volcanic National Park ( March 24, 2010 )

photographed by: Shanda Ochs, from Lassen Volcanic National Park website

With this kind of snow approaching the end of March, it's no surprise why the peak visitation is in the summer. In fact, last year during summer, we visited this place and this was the condition of the trail to Bumpass Hell when we hiked.

Summer Hiking to Bumpass Hell @ Lassen Volcanic

(from my multiply album, summer 2009)

It is a place where hot and cold co-exist.

snow and steam @ Bumpass Hell

( from my multiply album, summer 2009)

Fumarole at Bumpass Hell 

( from my multiply album, summer 2009)

Sulfur Works, Lassen Volcanic National Park

( from my multiply album, summer 2009 )

Now, from V, on to W. From ice and steam, to wildflowers and waterfalls at San Diego River Canyon Trail. All pictures were taken from our hike last Sunday ( March 21, 2010).

Wildflowers and Waterfall @ Cedar Creek Falls,

San Diego River Canyon ( March 21, 2010)

The hike to this 80 ft waterfall in San Diego River Canyon starts from San Diego Country Estates in Ramona. The hike is about 4.5 miles round trip, with about 1200 ft elevation gain/loss. This is a reverse hike, meaning, starting from higher elevation, we go down to the bottom of the canyon at the river gorge, and on the way back is an uphill hike. Some portions of the trail going down the river is very steep, thus we always bring our hiking poles when we take this trail, 

and those who don't have hiking poles usually end up picking sticks here and there for their poles to help them in their uphill and downhill trek. Unlike last year where there are carpeting wildflowers, this year, because it warmed up late of the year, the chilly and strong winds depressed the wildflowers and instead promoted growth of more weeds. Nevertheless, though more weeds than wildflowers, hiking is still as inspiring and refreshing.

Refreshingly Green

Here are some more pictures of wildflowers and waterfalls from our hike last Sunday.

Kids Enjoying a Dive and Swim After a Hike 

Sunflowers Above the Waterfall

Sunflowers and the River Pool Below

Cedar Creek Falls

Me, Photographing the Yucca 

yucca

Owl's Clover

Poppies

Lupines

I am sorry if I can't update this site often now, having to balance both work and studying and also having classes on Saturdays take so much of my energy that I am not as inspired to sit down and blog in my free time. On my little free time, I prefer to be taking the trails instead and get rejuvenating energy and de-stress from the wonders of nature, enjoying the simple pleasures in life out of the doors. 

Fun Friday: Ubehebe Crater

Stopping to Take in this Surreal Landscape nearby Ubehebe Crater

It is Friday once again, and time for Fun Friday in our group, Blogging for Fun. 

This week, we are working on the letter U, and U is for Ubehebe Crater, in Death Valley National Park, CA.

Ubehebe Crater, Death Valley National Park, CA

The Ubehe Crater is the largest of the eruption in this area. The crater system here contains several volcanic craters, cinder cones, ash hills, all of which are relics from an explosive hydrovolcanic eruption that occurred about 2,000 years ago. 

Can You Find me Here? , Along the rim of Ubehebe Crater

Rising magma met an underground lake where in an instant, water flashed to steam, and a violent release of steam-powered energy blasted away the confining rock above. There are numerous crater in this area, but Ubehebe is the largest, about 2400 ft in diameter, 600 ft deep and with up to 150 feet of rock debris mantles near the site of explosion. 

Desert Holly Against Black-Gray Volcanic Ash/Sand

The Ubehebe Crater is one of the amazing and mind blowing landscapes in Death Valley National Park. In this side of the world, the Earth shows its beauty and form when it is devoid of green. 

Black Volcanic Sand and Colored Badlands

Fun Friday: P is for Pelican

California Brown Pelican

It's Fun Friday again in our Blogging for Fun Group. This Friday we are working on letter P. Since my last post was about coastal birds, I decided to make a post on one of the most conspicuous birds that can be found in the San Diego coast: the California brown pelican. 

Pelican Up Close

The brown pelican is one of the eight species of pelicans. Unlike the white pelicans which I mostly see in the inland lakes of San Diego, the brown pelicans are very much coastal, they mostly stay along the shore. I love watching the brown pelicans do the synchronized dive for fish from the air. In fact, one of the distinction of brown pelicans from the white pelicans is that the brown pelicans group dive for fish from the air, whereas the white pelicans do cooperative fishing from the surface. 

Pelicans in Flight

The brown pelicans have five subspecies, which are:  P. o. californicus (California Brown Pelican) ; P. o. carolinensis (Eastern Brown Pelican) Gmelin, 1789; P. o. occidentalis (Caribbean Brown Pelican) Linnaeus, 1766; P. o. murphy (Pacific Brown Pelican) Wetmore, 1945; P. o. urinator (Galapagos Brown Pelican) Wetmore, 1945

It's a Party!

Where the pelicans are, usually the gulls are also there, a mixed party you would say.

Sea Gull and Pelican

Pelicans and Sea Gulls

Well, the pelicans are fishers, whereas the gulls often try to steal the fish right out of the pouch of pelicans as the pelicans drain the water from its bill after a dive. Sometimes, the gulls would even perch on the pelican's head or back and reach in for the fish. Before, I simply thought that sea gulls simply love and adore the pelicans for their size, but now, I understand better why it seem the gulls love to party with the pelicans. The pelicans, on the other hand, is not above stealing fish from other sea birds. 

Here are some more pictures of California brown pelicans I took over the years here in San Diego.

I wonder what these pelicans think as they watch the kayakers

Have a happy Friday everyone, and a good weekend ahead.

- Betchai-