Since joining the Eyes of Hawaii photography club in Honolulu, several people were asking me about what it was like to live in Ecuador. Being a photography club, I decided the best way to explain it was by creating a slide show / video for them. In looking over our photographic resources from our living […]
Indonesia 24 – Toraja 3 – Bamboo Orchestra
We spent several early mornings getting into position to photograph the sunrises over various volcanos. When doing that, you are at the mercy of the weather, and sometimes you get a beautiful photograph, and other times a bust. Here is a sunrise overlooking terraced rice fields at Batumonga, Toraja in South Sulawesi. After the sun […]
Indonesia 23 – Toraja 2 – Raising the Dead
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First off, we apologize for the amount of text in this blog post. Please read it all though. Torajan funerals are very complicated affairs that are likely completely foreign to anything you have ever seen or even considered. Without understanding some of this background, none of the photos or video will make sense. Funerals in […]
Indonesia 17 – Java 7 – Ramayana Ballet
We frequently appreciate seeing the cultural activities of the countries we visit. While in Java, Indonesia, we attended the masterful Ramayana Ballet in Yogyarkarta, which is considered a highly stylized dance form. This Javanese ballet combines music, dance and drama, and is performed outdoors with the base of the ancient Prambanan Temple as the back […]
Indonesia 13 – Bali 5 – More Karya Agung Temple Ceremony
An Odalan or temple ceremony usually lasts for three days, but larger ones, which occur every 5, 10, 30 or 100 years, can last for 11 days or longer. This is one of the larger celebrations that occurs every 30 years, called Karya Agung, or “Great Ritual,” and was held at the Pura Puseh Temple at Tulikup […]
Indonesia 12 – Bali 4 – Karya Agung Temple Ceremony
Bali is known as the land of a thousand puras or temples. The reality is there are up to 20,000, since every family also has their own private temple. The Karya Agung temple celebration is a significant event at the 30 year point, in which they ask the gods to come down and join them. […]
Cuenca – Pase del Niño Parade 2021
This year’s parade was like no other before it… and yet it was exactly the same. Read on to see why… In 1823, the Vicar of the Archdiocese of Cuenca took a doll of the baby Jesus to various Holy sites around the world. The pope blessed the doll when it went to Rome. This […]
Cuenca – Music and Theater 2021
Cuenca is filled with music and theater year round. With the pandemic, Azuay Community Theater (ACT) endeavored to remain active by creating a series of Radio Talk Shows. For this time of year, they chose to perform Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, adapted by Anthony E. Palermo. Directed by Paula Bailey, the show opens up […]
Cuenca – Jazz Jam Session
Some consider Cuenca as the cultural capital of Ecuador, which is filled with art of all types. There are visual arts galleries, weavers, quality crafts, ceramics studios, and there are also a variety of music and theater venues available every week, all year long. You can hear blues, country, pop, classical, trova, jazz, traditional Latin […]
Hawaii – Steel Guitar Festival 2021
This past Saturday was the 11th annual Steel Guitar Festival. Normally this is a week long event. It was cancelled in 2020 due to COVID restrictions, and this year was constrained to a single day’s event instead of the normal week. There were four professional steel guitar players in the morning, and four young players […]