Lisbon’s National Tile Museum

March 13th, 2021 Today we’re back in Lisbon after our week-long virtual tour around Portugal. We’re exploring ceramic tile, a form of art found throughout the country. What follows below is a slightly abbreviated version of my original post from 2017. If you haven’t read it, enjoy! If you read it again, thank you! If you’re not interested, hope to

Repost: A Thousand Shades of Chefchaouen

January 7th, 2021 Twelve more days, and I am not talking about Christmas. Today, we’re exploring the last stop on our virtual tour of Morocco: Chefchaouen. A closer look reveals a maze of paths, doorways, nooks and shops… one after another, up and down the hillside. Enjoy your walk around! More tomorrow, Kelly Post of the Day: Adding a bit

Morocco: Notes on Design

December 30th, 2020 Today we’re pressing pause on our virtual travel through Morocco to learn about a foundational aspect of the country’s art, design and architecture: Islamic Geometric Design. Islamic Geometric Design is found around the world and once you understand some of the basics, you’ll be better able to understand its value and complexity, while also being able to

Afternoon in Asilah, Morocco

December 29th, 2020 After yesterday’s drive, today we’re in Asilah on the coast of Morocco. Behind the fortress walls, a sleepy town basks in the sunlight — it looks a little bit Greek, a little bit Spanish and entirely Moroccan with its Berber wares and pointy leather shoes. (Oh, how I wish I had brought a pair home.) Asilah is

Tangier: A Visual Feast

December 27th, 2020 Today we begin our virtual visit to Morocco with a post I wrote in 2018. We visited the northern part of the country in May of 2017, after spending time in Portugal and Spain. Viewing these photos again now lights the fire within me. Morocco has such depth and beauty, from the medinas to the countryside. This

Artist’s Palette

October 28th, 2020 After yesterday’s excursion in grayscale, today we’re back in full color. Artist’s Drive is a one-way loop through the hills just south of Furnace Creek in Death Valley. We were the only ones on the road on this warm and sunny morning. The road leads to a colorful escarpment in shades of taupe, tan and light blue-green

Vamos a Valladolid

September 19th, 2020 Today we’re in Valladolid, Mexico for a quick photo collage from around town. Valladolid was formally established by the Spanish in the 1540s, built on the former Mayan town called Zaci centered between Ek Balam, Cobá and Chichen Itzá. Until that time, Maya civilization had developed on the Yucatán Peninsula from as early as 2,000-1,000 B.C. Today,

Angelic Ek Balam

September 15th, 2020 A hand-carved sign welcomes us to Ek Balam, above an open gate to a wide dirt path leading into this Mayan site from the Pre-Classic and Classic periods (700-1100 AD). Mayan sites were often developed over centuries, with one structure built on top of another, extending their timeline beyond one period. The path we’re on seems simple