Houston Marathon 2015

 

No...We weren't running...
                ...we were photographing...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

I had in mind to pop down to the 2014 marathon, to try and take some photos.  But, that trip didn't work out, rather difficult to get around downtown with all the closed streets, so I made, a year in advance, reservations at the Hilton that sits immediately adjacent to the Finish Line.

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Bren and I went downtown on Saturday afternoon, had dinner, and took a walk around Discovery Green.  It's a park in a central part of the city, in a space framed by the baseball park, the basketball stadium, the convention center, and the Hilton Americas.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

It has a small reflecting pool, paths to walk around, lawns for musical events, fountains for kids to play in during hot weather, etc.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

The Finish Line sits in the street right out in front of the hotel.  The staff member in the yellow jacket saw my camera and asked if we'd like to cut through and take some photos. 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

The big events are the full marathon and the half-marathon, which are run on Sunday morning.  From 5 to 6am, there is a steady stream of runners into the convention center, to register, check bags, stretch and prepare themselves for the run.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

We hiked 12 or 15 blocks over to the starting area.  They "corral" the various groups on several side-streets, in order to manage the 25+ thousand, yes, thousand, entrants.  Of course, after the bombing at the Boston Marathon, security is very tight.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

They arrange the start so the expected front runners aren't caught up behind that massive crowd.  Here you see the earliest full marathon group, lead from the beginning by the African contingent.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

At that hour, the low light makes it difficult to stop the action of the quickly moving runners. 

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

We were very close to the action.  I was right on the curb, without any fence, trying to make sure I didn't lean out too far and get hit by the shoulder of a runner.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Like I say, you only have the light you have, so you have to get what you can get.

 

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

There was a solid stream of people, running quickly past us, no gaps, for a full 38 minutes to let the whole 25,000 of them pass.

 

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

So then we ankled it back over the Finish Line area, arriving just in time to see the fastest finishers of the half-marathon.  By the time I got in place and could take some shots, I got the first women.

 

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Not long after, the first of the full marathon participants using hand-powered cycles and wheel chairs came in (well ahead of the runners).  (The "half'ers" were running right of the line of cones in the photo, and on the same street, the full'ers were running on the other side).

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

More and more coming in, most of the half'ers coming in before the first full'ers...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

 The youngest of the ages I heard called out was this eleven year old fellow.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

 



And finally, here came the first of the full marathon runners, this year, as goes for most years in Houston, it was the Ethiopians and Kenyans who claimed the fastest times...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

 ...both for men...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

 
...and for women.  You can see that this young lady was most pleased to be coming to the finish.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

And, as I mentioned, given what happened in Boston, security for the Houston Marathon is in the hands of several thousand pretty serious looking dudes.  Bully for them !!

 

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

So that concludes our little impromptu trip to the marathon.  Knowing more about the layout, we might place ourselves a bit better for the Start (but where we were this morning wasn't bad).  The Hilton is right at "ground zero" for racing activities, so clearly we couldn't beat that.

 

 

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Oh...I must have had some fans in the crowd.  ;-)

Y'all take care,
-Mark

 

 

 

Something Fishy ... (Chungbu Market, Seoul)

Trip before last, when driving in the taxi toward the big curvy, stainless steel building (see below "Dongdaemun"), I saw a market.  I couldn't tell what kind of market it was, but it looked interesting, so I decided to go back...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

So, when you are walking by yourself in a foreign city, sometimes you have to look around, hoping  for clues as to what's going on.  It's coolest to have a friend to guide you, translate and explain, but (at least when you're in a safe city) you can't just "not go" because you don't have anybody with you.  So, in I went...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Ok, so the first things I see are "dried things", nuts, almonds, peanuts, cashews, pumpkin seeds...all bagged in bulk, like maybe the customers here are restaurants...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

...and then other dry stuff, dried bananas, peppers, maybe apricots...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

...and then, dried (very small) shrimp...several sizes, sorted carefully by size, the smallest about 3/4" (20mm) long.  And then I saw what I expect is the main product here, dried...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

...Fish !!
These look they are slit down the belly, gutted, and spine/bones taken out.  Then the sides are spread out until the fish is flat, and it's dried, stacked and bundled.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Then surely, this being the Far East, if you have dried fish, you gotta have dried octopus !!

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Over and over in Seoul, I see small businesses, small stalls selling ALL sorts of stuff, as you see in the several market areas I've posted photos of.  This facility is one of the nicest, newest places I have seen such stalls set up in.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Chest-high bundles of those same, flat-dried fish...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Here's another variety.  Hard to see, but there is a stick, stuck through the top of the fish's head, coming out by its chin, and going into the next fish, 10-fish-to-a-stick.  About 16" (400mm) long, VERY uniform, maybe farm-raised, to get all at the same age/size, and maybe 150 fish to a bundle.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

And really surprising, these are all small-to-tiny, silver-sided fish.  The biggest are smaller than sardines, the smallest are maybe 3/4" (20mm) long.  Tiny, and a GO-zillion to a box, box-after-box...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

More nuts, seeds, peas (green pumpkin seeds)...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

This I didn't understand.  Eight to ten inches (200-250mm) long, tied 5 in a set, with yellow plastic, they didn't look gutted, or dried, to me. 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

I took this fellows photo, he smiled and didn't mind.  I should be braver, and ask more people.  But...I was by myself.  There were several little old ladies, all bundled up against the 18 deg F (-8 C) weather.  I think they wouldn't have minded.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

One characteristic of ALL these markets is the tight, cramped spaces.  Seoul has a LOT of residents, 25 million I think, so space is at a premium.  A guy with a 2-wheeler, carrying a huge load of boxes into and out of the market is a scene I've seen repeated many times. (this is very early in the morning, sun is just up, no customers are in the market yet...throw in several hundred shoppers, and THEN it will look crowded !)

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

This kitty has a nice quiet refuge...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Peppers, LOTS of them...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

In this stall they are grinding the peppers (from coarse to fine)...might be ground sea-salt in the front containers.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

More dried fish...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

 More bundles / pallet-loads...fish, fish and more fish.


So, the lesson is, as I always say,
photos don't come to you,
you gotta' get up (pretty early sometimes)
and get out there,
hot, cold or whatever, go !

Seoul

I shall not,

soon tire,

of this city !

 

Y'all take care,
- Mark

 

Montreal - 2012

It's been over 2 years, but finally I'm getting around to posting some photos of Montreal.

 

I've been pretty lucky, having a free moment coincide with a beautiful day.

Montreal was no exception.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Montreal is on a large island in the Saint Lawrence Seaway.  There weren't too many tall ships in the section of the port I walked through, but this one looked pretty cool.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

THE best way to see a city you aren't familiar with is to cruise around with a friend, a local person who knows some cool things to see.  I have taken long walks, in several cities I was visiting by myself, and several times I've had really good luck finding things.  But there is no substitute for a local friend, you can avoid wasting time and you can see things you might never have found by yourself.  There are several beautiful churches in Montreal.  This is Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral. 

We also visited Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal.

 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Amazing inside.  The backdrop for the alter was a beautifully lit blue,
complimenting the colors of the alter.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Fantastic detail...beautiful.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

And when you turn to leave, you walk under the huge pipe organ in the choir loft.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Now, art, beauty, interesting visuals are definitely in the eye of the beholder.  Looking up at sunsets, blue skys, church towers is great, but now and then, you have to look down.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

...and THEN, there's beauty !  I don't just mean an attractive young lady.  I mean all the curves, the lines, the way the sunlight plays on her skin.  But underneath all that, I mean for a woman laying out in the sun on such a fantastic September afternoon, under it all, I'm betting, is attitude !  And that, can be beautiful too !!

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Get out there, find some sunshine, and have fun !

Y'all take care.
- Mark

 

Cool Place ! - Dongdaemun

In Seoul again last week.  On a morning when we didn't have meetings, my friend Harri and I went on a brief photo excursion.  On one of the tourist maps of Seoul, I noted a place called the Dongdaemun Cultural Center.  We had no idea what to expect, so we planned to have an early breakfast, and get there as soon after sun up that we could.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

From several blocks away, we could see it as we drew nearer in the cab.  A cool looking place, all rounded and smooth, stainless steel skin gleaming in the early morning sun.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

The early sun, still at a very low angle, bounced in around and through the place.  The stainless reflected the light beautifully, and picked up the colors reflecting from the surroundings.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Wonderful, smooth, rounded shapes, interfacing with the concrete walkways and hand railing.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Then, Harri noticed that the "dirt" patches that we could see around us were areas where ruins of earlier constructions could be seen.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Several things are combined on this large, full city block facility.  There is a subway station under it, causing a steady stream of people to be headed down the wide walks and through the portals, headed to and from work each day. 

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Part of the roof was covered with artificial grass, and sticking into it were thousands of artificial white flowers.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Another part, a central open space well below the elevation of the street, had more ruins, and included a restored section of an ancient fortress wall.  They have not determined which quarry produced the original stones, so the restoration stones, taken from a different quarry, are lighter colored, and you could easily tell which were the originals.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Cool the way the light played off the stainless.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

 Harri...

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

The stairs leading from the street down to the subway station entrance.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Light reflecting off stainless and the very smooth concrete surface.

Photo by Mark W. Laughlin

Girl ascending the stairway, into an ethereal light.

 

 

If you are in Seoul, check out Dongdaemun.  It's easy to reach, just a quick cab ride from Sejong-daero.  Lots of cool photo op's !

Y'all take care,
- Mark



Seoul Fortress Wall, Dongdaemun History Museum,
Dongdaemun Stadium Memorial, Design Gallery,
Event Hall, Café, Outdoor Performance,
Dongdaemun Stadium Memorial Museum
http://tour.junggu.seoul.kr/tour/eng/h03_tour/h31_recom_07.jsp

 

Missed Opportunity !

Well, after getting up early, making a 14-hour flight to Tokyo, waiting 3 hours to connect, I was on the flight to Seoul, hoping we would get a good view of the sunset as we took off.  Well, we sat on the ground until the light had mostly faded so, as tired as I was, I closed my eyes. 

Photo by Mark W.  Laughlin

I had my cell on "airplane mode" specifically so I could snap a photo, but my better camera was packed away.  Then, as we ascended after take off, we got high enough that the sun was again just beneath the horizon, and the color came back.  Even better, right there, silhouetted perfectly on the horizon, was Mt. Fuji.

 

Unfortunately, the plane began a slight left turn, making it harder and harder to get a shot of Fujiyama.  I clicked, but the only half-good one was this one.  The dark part in the center is Tokyo Bay.  To the right, Tokyo, and down the far side of the bay are Kawasaki and Yokohama.  Really wish I could have gotten better clarity, and a better angle on Fuji.

But, I guess you get what you get...
- Mark