Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Vacation. Day 1: Oslo.
In preparation for an upcoming trip to Norway, I am going to do several posts revisiting a family trip to Norway in 2007. Some of images have been posted before, and some will be new. The trip started in Oslo. I flew in from New Jersey, and the rest of the family flew in from Florida. All together, I think there were 22-24 in the group. On this first day, we toured Oslo. At the end of the day we had pizza with Arnie. It took a fisheye lens to get the whole group in one image. During this trip, I was using a Nikon D2xs camera with 7 lenses (10.5 mm fisheye, 12-24 mm, 28-70 mm, 35 mm, 50 mm, 80-400 mm, and 85 mm). For my upcoming trip, I want to travel lighter.
Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)National Theater and Ibsen. Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)National Theater and Ibsen. Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Nobel Peace Center. Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Artillery Guarding Oslo at the Akeshus Fortress. Winter in Oslo Norway. (David J Mathre)Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Roald Amundsen. Arctic Museum, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Roald Amundsen. Arctic Museum, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Family in Norway, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Glass Menagerie, National Theater, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)Orchids, Winter in Oslo Norway (David J Mathre)
Home Cooking: Ramen Noodles with Beef and Red Onion.
There is a new food program “The Mind of a Chef” on the local PBS Station (WHYY) that premiered tonight. In the first episode the Chef David Chang featured Ramen noodles. I am glad that they are quick to cook, and was able to prepare a bowl of Ramen noodles with beef and raw red onions during the program break before the next episode started.
Ramen Noodle Soup with Beef and Red Onion. Image taken with a Leica V-Lux 30 camera. (David J Mathre)
Hurricane Sandy Aftermath: Day Seven — Halloween and a Home Cooked Meal.
Last week the Gubernator canceled Halloween due to Hurricane Sandy. By Gubernator order Halloween was rescheduled for today in Montgomery Township. No one came by, even though I had my Habanero pepper surprises ready to give out. For several years the local trick-or-treat folks stopped by for my hot peppers.
Day 8: ANPAT 12 Day 1 – Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta (David J Mathre)
I normally don’t do food reviews, but was intrigued by something that I saw at the local grocery store today. The fish department was pretty sparse with fresh fish post Hurricane Sandy, but I did see a Cedar Planked Atlantic Salmon in their frozen display. I took one home (orange & ginger flavored) to try it out. I’ve done salmon on cedar before and liked the taste that cedar smoke can add. I defrosted the salmon on the cedar plank and removed it from its shrink wrapped plastic packaging (image below). I cooked it in my oven per the directions (preheated oven at 425 °F for ~15 minutes). The house filled with the smell of the cedar burning — some smoke, but not enough to set the smoke detectors off. When I took the plank out of the oven, the cedar plank was noticeably burnt/black — but the salmon looked good (image below). The salmon did have a good smoked taste, but was a bit too sweet. When I went back to check the list of ingredients, sugar was #2 after Atlantic Salmon.
Cedar Bay Salmon (before cooking). Image taken with a Leica V-Lux 30 camera. (David J Mathre)Cedar Bay Salmon (after cooking). Image taken with a Leica V-Lux 30 camera. (David J Mathre)
Fall Nature in New Jersey. Sourland Mountain Preserve.
The sky finally cleared. I was wondering if the rain in Spain (which fell on more than the plains) followed me back home. I went to Sourland Mountain Preserve to see what changed since I left for the voyage in mid-August. September is usually the time to see the Monarch butterflies as they prepare for their trip to Mexico. The first thing I saw when I got out of the car was a Great White Heron working a pond. I watched it for a while, and managed to get some “grab” shots as it captured a frog for breakfast. I hiked up the gas pipeline trail and only saw one thistle plant still in bloom. All of the other thistle plants had already gone to seed. When I returned down the trail, I waited at the thistle in bloom and was rewarded by two late season Monarch butterflies. Then when I was going back to my car, I saw this Green Heron fishing in the pond. All in all a great day at the Sourland Mountain Preserve.
Natural Selection. This Frog Will Not Be Reproducing. Image taken with a Nikon D4 and 300 mm f/2.8 VR lens + TC-E 20 III teleconverter. (ISO 280, 600 mm, f/5.6, 1/640 sec). (David J Mathre)Late Monarch Butterfly on a Thistle Bloom. Fall Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D4 and 300 mm f/2.8 VR lens. (ISO 110, 300 mm, f.2.8, 1/320 sec). (David J Mathre)Green Heron Gone Fishing at a Pond in the Sourland Mountain Preserve. Image taken with a Nikon D4 and 300 mm f/2.8 VR len + TC-E III 20 teleconverter (ISO 800, 600 mm, f/5.6, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
Fungus Among Us!! Since I got back from the Fall Semester at Sea Voyage, everything has been damp and wet. The last two mornings there was a thick fog until late morning. Mildew everywhere – including the seat belt straps in my car. I’ve never seen a blue mushroom before. The images in this post are all from my driveway where mushrooms are abundant.
Blue Mushroom and Slug. Image taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, 60 mm, f/16, 1/13 sec) + SB-910 flash. (David J Mathre)Autumn Mushrooms. Image taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, 60 mm, f/16, 1/13 sec) + SB-910 flash. (David J Mathre)Autumn Mushrooms. Image taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, 60 mm, f/16, 1/13 sec) + SB-910 flash. (David J Mathre)Autumn Red Mushroom. Image taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, 60 mm, f/16, 1/13 sec) + SB-910 flash. (David J Mathre)Autumn Mushrooms. Image taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, 60 mm, f/16, 1/13 sec) + SB-910 flash. (David J Mathre)Autumn Blue Mushroom. Image taken with a Nikon D4 camera and 60 mm f/2.8 macro lens (ISO 100, 60 mm, f/16, 1/13 sec) + SB-910 flash. (David J Mathre)
