At the end of March we visited a state park about an hour's drive norhtwest of Las Vegas, the Valley of Fire. The name is a bit overdramatic, and this small park doesn't compare with some of the Utah parks, like Zion, or Arizona ones, like Monument Valley, etc. Nevertheless, it has interesting rock formations, mostly Aztec sandstone, with ( Read more... )

We spent time looking at the many ruins. Virtually every cave has ruins. Some have crumbled, but in most cases they remain, with the walls fairly intact. One of the first we saw was Mummy House Ruin, so-called because early occupants [before 400 AD] buried people in "cysts" [hollows in the ground walled with slabs of rock and covered with more ( Read more... )

I spent last week in Northern Arizona, for a return visit to some ancient sites I particularly like. We went north from Flagstaff to the Cameron Trading Post. On the way, you can see the San Francisco Peaks [3,850 m] towering by the road.


( Read more... )

Spring has arrived in Las Vegas, though it is still only mid February. The deciduous trees are pushing out little green leaves, and some of the others are in bloom.

Here is a Bradford pear:

( Read more... )

Recently my friend Aya-san sent me some pictures of the gardens at Renge-ji, a small temple in Kyoto, well known for its fall colors, and at Ruriko-in. The latter is a hidden jewel, as you can only visit it for a couple of weeks in November. In fact it was closed to the public for a while, to protect the fragile gardens and buildings.


( Read more... )

This is just a short post to let you see some pictures of Takeda castle ruins [Hyogo prefecture in southern Kansai]. My friend Aya-san took them on a recent trip there. The castle was built in 1445. It fell to Hideyoshi towards the end of the 16th century, but was abandoned in 1600 ( Read more... )

We decided to have a look at Zion Park since we had a little time and the weather was great. It is definitely worth a longer visit. It is in a very mountainous area, with slot canyons, waterfalls, springs and seeps, many trees and other plants, with often spectacular scenery. We only had a glimpse of it.


( Read more... )

Our next visit near Page was to the Horseshoe. It is a bend in Glen Canyon. In fact, an interesting feature of the area, generally a flattish mesa, is all the deep canyons interrupting it.


( Read more... )

I recently stayed a few days in Page, AZ. The purpose was primarily to visit Antelope Canyon, a "slot canyon" located on Navajo Tribal land. The interest of the place is the effect of erosion on the reddish sanstone, and the play of light on the walls and the floor, though this last is more visible in summer than fall or spring.

the entrance

( Read more... )

I want to show you some pictures of the garden where we were. It felt like an oasis.


( Read more... )