Had to Have an Eye Surgery For a Detached Retina

I'm just back from Spain, and I have so much to share, but I have to wait awhile...  I immediately had to have eye surgery for a detached retina... Not a fun experience... and it does involve pain...  Until I am back enjoy a few of the thousands of photos I made!

Randy is getting presidential voting advice from a new friend in this picture...

Madrid Spain Has This Museum We Really Want to See!

I am so excited about this particular exhibit!

        

The Musee du Louvre is collaborating with the Museo del Prado to present the work of the artist Ingres, who was a portrait painter.  He is claimed to have both admired this type of art works, and both rejected it as true art form, and viewed it as more of a commercial endeavor.  He did desire to be recognized as a history painter, and for this reason he painted portraits.

I personally think that capturing the essence of who a person is in a painting is the most fascinating of all the art undertakings.  He is of course remembered as a genius of the portrait, and I particularly am interested in see his portraits of Napoleon I on His Throne and Joan of Ark.

The Colors of Faschingsdienstag

I love color, and the German holiday of Fasching brings out so much color!

Carnival Season Parade in Wiesbaden Germany

 Since 1859 Wiesbaden, Germany has celebrated Fifth Season, "Funfte Jahreszeit" as it is called in Germany.  A big festive time began on Thursday, February 4th of this year with a tradition known as Altweiberfastnacht in the old part of the city. On Saturday there was  a grand children's festival, and then on Sunday, after church we attended the children's parade watching from near the Wiesbaden Hauptbahnhof.  The tradition is for the celebrators to then to storm the Wiesbaden town hall and reign as the authority until Ash Wednesday.  We didn't participate in that tradition, but I did get awesome pictures of the parade!

Being a children's parade, clowns were in abundance, and the details of their costumes were amazing!

There were big and little clowns, smiling and solemn clowns, and little bitty dinosaurs too!

There were clowns sharing secrets...

Of course, I love the red clowns the best!