Simon Levin's workshop

We started Simon's wood firing workshop 10 days ago by loading the kiln; a strange order in terms of pottery process. He also reversed the "pecking order" by letting the participants to actually do the loading. Mat is very happy be the first to be cramped in the very back. Simon is giving advice and handing him whatever pots he is calling.

I loaded this part, put a few of my plates in the middle shelfs. The whole kiln was loaded and started firing by next day noon.

Then came the demos and lectures.

The excellent exhibition in the Lighthouse Art Center is not exactly part of the workshop, but it does show great examples of wood fire works.

Simon invented this "Hoga -好假' technique. hehe...... the advice is don't try this at home.

But then he did show us something we can try at home.

The kiln is done with firing last Sunday, and then we all went to Tampa, Florida for NCECA while it's cooling. Got back today, open and unload.

Brian shows how to hold a live fish properly. Using Susan's pot.

Karla is happy with her re-fired pot.

Justin's special wadded cup.

All the works lay out from the front to the back of the kiln.

That is what we learned from this firing; some things will be done differently next time.....

Showtime! Title: Shock Wave I, which was suggested by my astrophysicist sister in law.

Of course then, this one is "Comet III".

I'm thinking this pair maybe "Dark Nebula".

"Brown Dwarf"

Last Stop

It was like a different planet. Those who live here seems that they live for a different reason. Also for a few days, they are powered mostly by alcohol and/or caffein.
The later it get, the more active they become.
This was about a month ago. Carnival at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. My Dad and I went to the Saturday night Parade in Sambadrome. It rained off and on the whole time, but it didn't stop the crowd from going out to enjoy the shows. We sat/stood/danced through 4 sambas schools before heading back to the B&B on the subway way after midnight, dripping wet.

As the saying go:

Parade ticket - $80

Bottle water - $3

Subway ticket - $5.6

Dancing in the rain (with Dad)

Priceless

Buenos Aires

No books can prepare you enough for foreign land. I guess that's part of the excitement of self-guilded travel. I thought I was well prepared when I handed in my USD$140 of entry fee in BA airport the day we arrived, but the clerk pushed my notes back and said "MARK!". It means my notes has some marks on it, and it's not acceptable.
Put aside Fung Shui , our hotel has the best view of the famous Recoleta cemetery, which has not only rest the graves of some of the most important Argentines, but also home of a lot of street cats.
I am in awe of this flower. It claims it rotates and always face the sun, close at night and open in the morning....... until it has some mechanical problems. I think modern solar farm should have more flower like this.
I might not be the first to say Argentine women is among the most beautiful. They are all elegant, have great legs, great taste and not shy of what they got. BTW, you can do a lot of people watching on the hour long train/ subway ride, which only cost a quarter or two.
Somehow, among the whole street full of choices, we decided to pick this one, which is not cater to tourist. Unlike the others, they don't try to talk you in, neither do they speak English. We went back again after the cruise, they don't even fire up the wood grill on Monday and Tuesday. We're the only table till 9pm.

Talking about no book can tell you what's it really like until you're tasting it, being there, doing it yourself. I found this book when I search for "Wood Firing", in the mind of a potter. It does give you the interesting background of the culture, the link of their land and culinary. Glorious photos of mostly outdoor grilling in setting like Patagonia Mountains. I couldn't taste it then, but it put great expectation in my mind.

Uruguay has more than soccer

Before this trip, I had no idea Uruguay is border with Brazil and Argentina, the least corrupt in Latin America, and the first to provide every child a free laptop and internet.
From shop signage, architecture and graffitis around the capital Montevideo, you know this is not a very rich nation but you can see Uruguayan is full of creativity and culture, in their unique way.
Excited to see the volume and quality of preservation works going on.
For a moment, I was thinking..... if I give up my shoes.... and my travel pillow...... maybe I can take it home.
Happened to be there on a saturday flea market. Locals and tourists fill up the park quick.

Lucky weather @ Cape Horn and Puerto Madryn

As a sailor, I was not very proud of the way we get to Cape Horn, Chile. It was equivalent of climbing Mount Everest by helicopter. Also because of "Lucky good weather", we didn't get to experience the usual violence/ extreme sea conditions, which have made this place infamous as sailor's graveyard.
We traveled far on bus to see the wild lives in Puerto Madryn, Patagonia, a popular whale watching destination. We didn't see any whale there, but you can see whale skeleton everywhere. In fact, we saw some other animals on the way, but I was either too slow, too lazy, or my lens not long enough to catch anything worth showing. So, here I borrow someone else's site to show you what I saw (other then the penguin). It almost never rain there, but the day before we arrived, it rained so hard, it washed away the road to see penguins and elephant seals.
The port is also famous as ship graveyard.
Journey back up along the coast. Another day at sea before Uruguay.

Land animals in Ushuaia

They're everywhere inside Tierra del Fuego National Pack, and you can get very close, unlike those at home.
Both of them came out of nowhere, and begged for petting. We name the white one backpack, he is very interested in the backpack.
This one waiting outside a telephone/ internet cafe.
This one think tax free is boring.....
This is during the 3 hrs turned to 4 hrs "little train ride" - a 100 years old convict's logging project. They kept stopping the train and try to fix the PA system, which was broadcasting the story, in many languages.

Ushuaia, fin del mundo

Feb. 18th, right after we left Elephant Island, weather forecast from the research stations further south was not optimistic. Not only stronger head wind, but also zero visibility. As we were still more than one day sail to Paradise Bay, the Captain made a tough decision to turn around and head back north to Argentina. It was a surprise and disappointment for most passengers, especially for those who didn't know that about half of the time, this ship couldn't make all the ports because of weather. Here is as we enter the Beagle channel early in the morning 2 days later. Leaving all the weather behind.

Arrived Ushuaia at full moonset. Never thought about will see his mega Yacht - Octopus (blue and white docked on the right) here, at fin del mundo, the end of the world.
We took a catamaran excursion to see the sea lion colonies. Pups are few months old, and cling to the side of big Mama. Of course, every colony has a big Alpha male.
No, they are not penguin. They are cormorant, maybe penguin's close relatives, but they still can fly.
Lovely waterfront property. Especially the dog house!

Elephant Island, Antarctica

Departing Falkland for Elephant Island, the Infinity encountered 30 feet swells and 40 knots head wind in the Drake Passage. I took a strip of "Zentrip" (A Japanese brand of Meclizine Hydrochloride, actually tastes like bitter tangerine) before I went to bed. I dreamt about Shackleton's ship "Endurance" icebound on my bed......
Here was the forbidding place where Shackleton's crews remained behind, waiting for rescue.
History tells us again, faith is what keeps people alive, especially in the very difficult condition. I used to wonder how much luck was involved for Shackleton to find South Georgia, 800 mile away in a 22 ft open lifeboat under continuous gales and stormy seas, in order to get help. Now I decided it wasn't luck, it was a miracle.

In the last couple of days, seeing all those photos of boats washed ashore in Sendai, people waiting to be rescue. I borrowed a prayer: May all those in Japan be comforted. May all trapped be found. May all injured be helped. May all the frightened be calmed.

Port Stanley, Falkland Islands

On Feb. 16th, after 2 days at sea, we arrived at our first port of call - Port Stanley. It's interesting to set foot on the Island, the British and Argentina fought over, wasting lives and ships almost 30 years ago.
Share with you the two postcards I came up with, after a brief excursion.
Map of our 14 night cruise route on Celebrity Infinity. It happened to be the last chance for people like me to visit Antarctica. Given that

a. my tendency of seasick on small ship in big sea

b. the expense of smaller ship is beyond reach anyway

c. large cruise ships to Antarctica would be banned as of June 2011.

Link to more photos.

七佰碗

放下心頭七佰碗 輕裝南遊冰火國

七佰碗 seven hundred bowls

For the last few months, there were several hundred pounds of clay in my mind all the time.

Thanks to a handful of local potters, who spent hours after hours, weekends after weekends in front of the wheel.

Thanks to over a hundred artists who volunteer their talent and passion.

Thanks for everyone who make these possible.

We together, make this year Empty Bowls Project a new record. I feel like lighten by several hundred pounds. Please come get a bowl and soup if you will be in town.

冰火國 Continents of ice and fire

On the other hand, it doesn't seem that long ago (last April) when I sat in front of the computer, planning for the up coming trip (this Friday). I can still remember arguing with a travel agent that there is an inexpensive direct flight from Miami to Buenos Aires by LAN. Yes, that's the Pandora's box of Internet for traveling. So, I end up becoming the travel agent for my group of 3. This will be my first trip to Argentina, Antarctica and Brazil. When I first read about advice for Carnival in Rio, I didn't believe you really have to book hotel a year in advance. Now, I do. I also couldn't believe Brazil charge American $140 for it's visa, but HK passport holder don't need visa. I still have a hard time to believe AA had cancelled our flight home, and wanted to send us to New York. Seems that the only constant is CHANGE.

OK, the last challenge before take off is how to pack light for the ice and fire.

Last regatta of the year

It was very cold in terms of Miami's sailing. I had everything I could put on but still got wet and frozen fingers (even I'm on a small power boat, not a sail boat). I have a lot of respect for all of our young sailors (over 600 of them), bearing the cold and strong breeze, and staying out for hours to finish race after race. The forecast says, it's going to warm up, however, the wind is going to die. Seems that we will get busy in the protest room.

Christmas project

After years of careful planning (aka procrastination), we cleared out a small area in the front yard for this project - "Shade House for Orchid". There are some serious considerations for this kind of project, other than Fung Shui and construction designs. For example, how much resources will be needed after the completion (translation: how many more Orchids, how much money, time and effort to maintain) and willingness to go for permitting process. So far, the project has been under budget (less than $200), on schedule (2 days of work), with no major accident (except digging/breaking into a electric conduit). Other than the shelving and misting system, I just need warmer night temperature.