Bard Performing Arts Center and Landcaping

 Bard College is north of New York City near the Hudson River.  The Performing Arts Center, above, was designed by Frank Gehry.  

Landscaping includes magnificent old oaks and sculpture, like the 'Stargon' by Robert Perless from 1986.  http://inside.bard.edu/arboretum/

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The Parliament of Reality

 The Parliament of Reality is a large landscape sculpture at Bard College, made in 2009 by Olafur Eliasson.
http://www.bard.edu/ccs/exhibitions/olafur-eliasson-parliament-of-reality/

The Prime Minister of Reality, above.

Staunton Virginia Music Festival

 Opening night at the Staunton Virginia Music Festival was a costume ball at Mary Baldwin College.
  This is a wonderful event with many concerts of classical music over a whole week in a great setting.
http://www.stauntonmusicfestival.org

General Director of the music festival, Jason Stell, below, with an admirer.

Thunderstorm over Aargau

 This series of photos shows several favorite things:  color, weather, and Switzerland.

The location was in rolling hills southwest of Zurich, looking south toward Lucerne.

North Philadelphia to Milan

 Alan and Cyane departed Philadelphia at the regional rail station above.  
  18 hours later, arrival was at Milan's Stazione Centrale, clock shown to left.  Construction was completed during the fascists' rise to power in Italy (1931) and is a monument to imperial ambitions.
  
  The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, below, may be the first and most successful pedestrian shopping mall (1865-1877).
  
  Milan has many expressions of distinctive design, old and new.

Bologna Colors

None of these pictures are photoshopped, retouched or enhanced in any way.  These are the real colors.

Start of Apennine Hike: Passo del Cerreto to Northwest

 We started a short hike in the Apennines at Passo del Cerreto at 1261 meters.  This is the meeting of two cultures and two biomes. To the west and south is the Mediterranean culture of Tuscany with olive groves and large settled powerful cities.  To the east and north in the region of Parma is a more harsh continental climate, cuisine based on butter and cheese, and small scattered small towns in the mountains.

Passo di Petra Tagliata, 1780 meters

Day 1 of Appenine Hike: Hot and Humid Afternoon

 Martina and ? are the caretakers at Rifugio Citta de Sarzana, where we had a nice break.

Starting out, it was so hot and humid that things seemed blurry and hazy.

Alan walks across a giant talus slope toward the evening rest stop at Prato Spilla.

Day 2, Morning Climb to Ridge

 As we climbed to the ridge, it was still relatively clear.  This view is looking back southeast down the chain of the Apennines.

The ridge was 1,700 to 1,800 meters; the path follows the top.

A wind from the east blew over the Ligurian Sea, bringing moisture and clouds as the day wore on.