I had the opportunity to spend a few days exploring Nashville, Tennessee while taking care of some business there. Nashville wasn’t what I expected in many ways; the city’s culture is vibrant and diverse, when prior to my trip all that I really linked it to was country music. Another area that surprised me was the diversity and sheer number of great restaurants- going way beyond the Southern cuisine that I expected.

The downtown areas that I visited were very clean and I enjoyed the fact that most people look you in the eyes when greeting or passing on the street. A few suburbs (Brentwood and Franklin) that I visited had thousands of amazing homes, which again, were diverse in their architecture.

I’ve lived in North Carolina and Georgia and never really got a “melting pot” feeling from any Southern cities that I visited. I guess what was so unexpected about the Nashville area to me was the diversity in just about everything.

I’d love to hear about your experiences with Nashville or your thoughts on the Nashville pictures that I’ve included below:

Pictured Above
I visited the only full size replica of the Parthenon in the world -yes, in Nashville! I also had the chance to catch Ralph Stanley, a bluegrass pioneer that still does a show here and there, at the Ryman Auditorium. Of course, I had to go out to a “Honky Tonk” and the Schermerhorn Symphony Center.

Here is a restaurant recommendation from Nashville:

Watermark (Nashville, TN) - While rubbing elbows with record producers and the complete cast of a popular reality-competition show, I didn’t have a single thing on my plate that wasn’t fabulous. My “pristine” (as the maitre d’ stated) swordfish was flown in whole from Rhode Island that morning. The wine list had quite a few names that were new to me and wound up being surprisingly good. (specifically, the Don David Reserve, Torrontes)

I had the opportunity to travel down to Belize City, Belize and interact with the people of Belize…and a few Belizean dogs, of course. Some of the scenes of bitter urban poverty were disturbing, some of which I attempted to capture in my photos of Belize.

It was extremely humid, but that didn’t stop Mia and I from covering most of coastal Belize City by foot and venturing out to some of the rather tiny islands off of the coast by speedboat.

We visited Caye Caulker, a small limestone coral island about 20 miles off the coast of Belize in the Caribbean Sea. There were no cars, only golf carts to get around since the island of Caye Caulker is less than five square miles. With Mia behind the wheel, we were able to locate and get in on a lot of great shots of the dozens of stray dogs that populate the island.

These islands are really fascinating little counter-cultures that are reminiscent of the communities that spring up at weekend-long Phish shows. I have some interesting photos of the people of Belize coming up in a few days – until then, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the shots below.

I recently returned from a second trip through Baja California Sur, the thin peninsula below California that is detached from the rest of mainland Mexico. My first trip was last year from December 2006-January 2007, when I explored the western coast by Jeep; photographing wild dogs and local personalities throughout the region. It was this trip that was to blame for my decision to move from the east coast, where I was living at the time, to Southern California the following spring.

This year, I returned to Baja with Mia to further explore the region and visit a few locals (and their dogs) that I befriended the prior year. The weather was fantastic - crisp blue skies and warm red sunsets made for some gorgeous images.

During our travels, we were introduced to an interesting drink made from Jamaica (pronounced ha-mike-ah) while we visited with Cuco and Pilar. The two local artists live a very simple life on a cozy ranch, duly named “Rancho Pilar”. Sadly, Pilar’s dog, “Chata” that I photographed last year, had passed away and she was still quite sad over it. The couple was nice enough to offer us the most amazing accommodations on the private beach at the far side of the ranch; giving us a night of the most incredible stargazing that one can imagine while we awaited our custom-made sandals, constructed from car tires by Cuco himself.

We traveled by Jeep to some rather remote areas where dried river beds were roads and were able to made it down to Cabo San Lucas, located at the southernmost tip of the peninsula, for New Years Eve.

A few of my favorite shots from the trip are included below.

La Candelaria Sunset

NYE @ Lands End

Dried Riverbed Road

Pilar

Mia and I popped back to New Jersey for what turned out to be a gorgeous autumn weekend. We did a little corn-mazing, hit up NYC and went on an afternoon kayaking trip around Clinton where I snapped a few photos which I’ve included below. I found that the secret to appreciating the weather in the North East is to live in the South West and to come back for short visits.

Mia Relaxing

“Nature”

Goose in Flight

And an old favorite restaurant that I revisited this weekend:

Origin French Thai (Somerville, NJ) - Nestled away on a little side street in the quaint town of Somerville this BYOB gem is one of the best spots in New Jersey, in my opinion. With a fusion of traditional Thai patterns, modern vibrant colors and exposed brick, the 2 rooms have a wonderful ambiance. My favorite dish is the Wild Boar, prepared with Bok Choy and Chili Peppers. I’ve suggested it to dozens of people and never had a complaint. Try the creme brulee for dessert. Origin is becoming more of a hot spot since I lived nearby, so definitely make reservation…and don’t forget a bottle of wine!

While we were scouting for locations to photograph Playa Del Rey, CA on Thursday, Mia and I decided to head to her cabin in the mountains just outside of Las Vegas for the weekend. I had no idea that such a place existed just 20 minutes from the Las Vegas strip!

With no solid plans and plenty of cotton candy to go around, we set off on what turned out to be quite an adventure, including an extended visit with our buddy Chuck E. Cheese along the way. When we got to the cabin in Mt. Charleston around midnight, it was pouring rain. (the first rain that I’ve experienced since I moved to Southern California 4 months ago!) The weather completely took me by surprise up there…only getting up to about 55 degrees during the day!

We spent most of the day Saturday hiking up to Mary Jane Falls and snapping some photos. Again, I was amazed by the snow-covered mountains that are so close to Las Vegas! When we got back to the cabin after being out in the cold all day, we fired up the stove and snapped a few more photos.

Searching for the Key

Sock Mittens

The Lions Mane

Warm and Cozy

If you’d like to see more of Mia, I put together an album with more photos.

A friend from back east popped in for a visit this past weekend and we wound up getting some great shots around Las Vegas and Malibu. This was the first time that I did the LA-LV drive and it wasn’t all that bad. (I guess the company helped a little) We left in the evening and got to experience 99 degree weather at midnight in the desert, which was pretty cool. (pun intended)

We had access to a sweet house (thanks, guys) and the weather was, of course, beautiful. We were both big fans of the dry heat…getting up to 111 degrees at one point in the afternoon out in Red Rock Canyon. When we got back from Vegas, we took advantage of a beautiful afternoon up in Malibu at one of my favorite little beaches.

If you’d like to see more images from this weekend as well as past work we’ve done together I created a photo set of Rania.

Totally random as it may seem, here is the first of many restaurant recommendations you’ll be hearing about as I discover them:

Canal Club (Venice, CA)- After having 3 different people tell me about this place in one day, I just had to try it out. Now I see why. This just may be my new favorite place to eat in my neighborhood. Amazing atmosphere (decor contributed by local artists), outstanding food and a surprisingly friendly staff.