Burrowing Owls

I love the little Burrowing Owls!  Brian Piccolo Park (Hollywood, FL) is home to some of these cute little creatures.  I had a fun afternoon there, photographing them.

Burrowing Owls (Athene Cunicularia) are small owls that make their homes in South Florida prairies.  Unlike most other birds, they burrow themselves into the ground where they lay their eggs and form a large family community. 

They are very charismatic, photogenic, and active this time of year, and both adults and chicks can be seen exiting and entering nests, standing guard, and hunting for prey throughout the day.   

Osprey on Blue Cypress Lake

This is the dock at Middleton's Fish Camp (Vero Beach, FL) at sunrise.  We rent pontoon boats and drift among the Cypress trees, photographing the Ospreys.

I discovered this place last year with my photography group and I had to come back again this year.  What an amazing place.  Blue Cypress Lake is home thousands of Osprey and it is such a great time to photograph them. 

I love the eyes of the Osprey.  The adults eyes are yellow, the chicks are orange.

The chicks stole my heart a long time ago.  The Osprey is probably my favorite bird.  The chicks are beautiful and charismatic.

I love to go to Middleton's Fish Camp, and look forward to going again next year.

Caracara

This is a Caracara.  We ran across them when we were up in Vero Beach the night before our Osprey outing.

We shot them (with our cameras) just before sundown.  I think I've seen them before, but these are my first photographs.

Vietnam Cruise: Bangkok, Local Performances

The evening in Bangkok was the perfect ending to our day and our entire cruise.

We started with drinks with friends at the Mandarin Oriental hotel, then took a little boat to cross the river over to the Peninsula hotel for dinner and a performance which showcased the traditional Thailand dances.

Many different styles and costumes, which we enjoyed all throughout dinner. 

At the end, they all came back on stage for an encore.  Such an amazing way to end the day, the cruise, the entire trip.  We had an early flight home the next day but my head was filled with the sights, sounds, and flavors of Bangkok all the way home.

Vietnam Cruise: Bangkok

The absolute highlight of the trip turned out to be the day in Bangkok when we got off the ship.  We had a guide and tried to get as much in as we could with the limited time that we had.

The Grand Palace was so amazing, I could have photographed that place for days!  I just couldn't click fast enough, it was so much fun. 

We also got to see the Reclining Buddha.  Again - amazing!  Such a thrill to photograph this place.  I would love to come back when I could have more time.

Many more pictures are posted on my Flickr site, you are welcome to visit there.  Hard to choose just a few to represent this day.  We started at the Grand Palace, took a little river cruise, saw the Reclining Buddha, visited the flower market - and had an absolutely amazing day.  Bangkok truly goes down as one of my favorite places.  We then had to get ready for our evening, dinner and a show.

Vietnam Cruise: Cambodia

Cambodia was one of those places that you are glad you got to see it but the only reason I would want to go back would be to see Angor Wat, which we were not able to get to from the port on this cruise.  But we did go to one interesting place - Wat Kroung - which was great fun to photograph. 

From here we went to another market, but the begging was more aggressive and the people were worse off, so it was not an enjoyable experience.  Interesting to see this country and a lot of history is here, but they are still underdeveloped and it shows. 

Vietnam Cruise: Saigon

Saigon was probably my favorite city in Vietnam, and the water puppet show was definitely a highlight.

By this time, I was used to the scooters and did not get the same culture shock as I did at first.  You still took your life into your hands when crossing the street, but now it was all part of the adventure.

More of the crazy shopping experience on the streets - we spent the day looking for scarves and other fun things.

We also had the opportunity to buys some nice things without bargaining - which I loved.  I don't like the bargaining!  They had beautiful laquered vases and many other things - very pretty.

The ship overnighted in Saigon, so we were able to have dinner at a local restaurant. I was hesitant at first.  I am not great at trying new things and eating the local cuisine, especially in a place like Vietnam.  But, it was an amazing experience.  We had such a great time that night.  All we kept saying to each other was "I can't believe we are walking the streets of Saigon!"  We were so excited just to be there.  And the food?  I had no problem, it was delicious.  I was in great company and it was a truly memorable evening.