hit the high road

a new photo website

just like i said, when i had more time to plan and got more serious about the upkeep of a blog, i would dedicate a blog solely to my photography.

all or most of the posts will be posted on duchess' website as well, but are much better viewed in the other blog. the blog is clean and simple, for better photo viewing. so if you only want to keep up with some of the photos i take, that's probably the best place to do so!

the new blog is:

http://marizagaspar.blogspot.com/

enjoy. :)

lady walk

some found objects/moments from my rainy walk with lady

unicorns?

im not going to question it.

but what i will question is why a newswire is reporting on such things? shouldn't this be left to the junkie magazines?

what is it coming to when a publication starts giving out unicorn facts and tips?

anyways, here is the article from Social Media Release from a few weeks ago, it will either give you a good laugh, or make you extremely hopeful:

http://smr.newswire.ca/en/ontario-science-centre/rumoured-unicorn-sighting-reported-in-don-valley

crispy new freestyle

for robbie. and doug.

have a field day

there is nothing that i love more than a beautiful grassy field on a crisp fall day

sense of belonging

my sense of belonging project: people who wear glasses.

this is part of an ongoing project. if you would like to volunteer or know anyone that would, please feel free to contact me!

christmas in october!

we had to do a photo illustration for class. i love christmas, and shopping, so i naturally chose christmas shopping. it really put me in the xmas spirit running around to stores buying christmasy things yesterday, it also made me a bit angry that i was even able to find THIS MUCH christmas stuff in the middle of october!

kowboyz & indians

this is the way to do psychedelic / hiphop right.

foal in love

foals > amazing.

jammin' & ting

paint me pretty

rodarte spring 2010

jardim da estrela

people are quite friendly in lisbon. everywhere i went i met someone and was able to have a pretty nice conversation.

i was riding the tram one afternoon and got into a lovely conversation with the tram operator, Maria Ines! and a darling old man. we talked for a good half hour, and after persuading me to stay on the tram a little longer, we decided to take a walk together in one of lisbon's many beautiful city parks.

we walked, talked and had a coffee at the small garden cafe. it was a lovely way to spend the afternoon!

Tomas Tome Pinto was a chauffeur for 35 years for some of the worlds finer hotels. for 20 years he moved around the united states and canada before deciding to settle back in lisbon. i learned a plethora of facts about tomas, and him about me. but enough of that! here's a few photos!

from the worst pop music possible, something beautiful emerges

i never thought i would live to see the day where i made a congratulatory blog post about justin bieber. yet, here it is.

thanks to justin and his ridiculous pop song "U SMILE", one of the most beautiful 35 minute glacial-like ambiance songs has been born. how is this possible you might ask? well, thanks to the brilliancy of one man; Nick Pittsinger (SHAMANTIS), 20, of Tampa Florida. The accomplished musician/composer has taken the justin bieber original and slowed it down to 800 x that of regular speed.

the resulting sound is 35 minutes of pure audible ecstasy. images of wavering sun beams through dark waters and sprawling mountain scapes come to mind. the fact that it emerged out of justin bieber really heightens the achievement of this song. it seems to be something perfectly suited for that of a planet earth episode on the ocean depths.
this is the first 15 minutes posted, if you want to listen to the full 35 minute length feature, click here!



others have followed in pittsinger's footsteps slowing, reversing other bieber songs. its a much welcomed 'revolution' in the eyes of a regular justin bieber detester, making bieber actually pleasant to listen to!

anyways, if you like the sound of this, please be sure to check out "explosions in the sky" and "sigur ros".

beijos, portugal

im good im gone

all i have to say is thank god for the swedish, and swiss (laura) for introducing me to this wonderful artist and fantaasstic song. (the video was disabled, but please go check out the real thing, you might even fall in love!)

sob o mar

i always enjoy my tri-annual, more or less, trip to lisbons oceanarium. its was built in ´98 for the the world expo but is still just as excited now as it was back then. i think it might be one of the largest in the world, but its been over 10 years since it was built so maybe not anymore. anyways the whole area is fantastic, and really for great architecture, sculptures, parks, restaurants, museums, cultural centers, theatres and other pavilions. there is also a beautiful shopping centre with glass water ceilings which you will see a picture of as well. many picture lisbon to be old moorish, baroque or manuelian charm, but it hosts some seriously cutting edge stuff as well.

anyways heres just a few photos from the afternoon...

atlast + overdue = a fairy tale land

well, the time has finally come.

so much for that previously reassuring internet connection...i must have quite an angry neighbor about.

thank goodness for this course and my free internet acess at my school, universidade de lisboa.

anyways, enough talk. here are a few photos from my always welcomed visit to Sintra. It really is one of the most majestic, beautiful places one could visit. its like walking straight into a fairy tale. there are palaces and castles everywhere, well kept cobble stone streets, horse drawn carriages, and vast, slightly eerie but beautiful, fresh, lush forests. i think it has to be one of my favourite places in the entire world.

(i did not have much time in the actual city, so most of the pictures you see will be from palacio de pena. a wonderful and eclectic palace cituated on the very top of a mountain. if i was to be a princess and had to choose any palace, i would most definitely choose this one!..)

~~~~

though slightly illegal, i just wanted to put this up here to show the amazing work of the king. he enjoyed painting and things like this tapestry of sorts were sprawled across his entire workshop.

touro touro!

well, now that i have found a slightly permanent internet situation (stealing from some poor, oblivious neighbor!) (let's hope it stays that way) i have decided i will try my best to keep anyone who is even interested, updated on my travels and whereabouts and doings in portugal!

i am here until september so there should be lots to post. but that also depends on how willing i am to do so when i am in such a beautiful country. but, i wanted to make this a habit (the blog) so maybe i will anyways!
anyways lets get down to the point of this posting. last week i visited my first, REAL bullfight. my family casually visited one in some little rinkydink town somewhere years ago, i can't really recall much except for that the matadors etc. were in training and were using a large bull calf instead of a bull!
this bullfight, which happens every thursday night at campo pequeno, just happened to be one of the larger bullfights that happen there with extremely well known riders: luis rouxinol, vitor ribeiro and salgueiro da costa.

before you gasp in horror and wonder why i might go see a bullfight, well it comes down to two things:

one. the portuguese play much nicer than the spanish. they do not kill the bull at the end of its run. infact, it gets ushered out with some beautiful female cows decorated in sashes and bells.

two. although bandarilheiros (like spanish matadors minus the sward) on foot play a huge part, it's all about the lusitano horses and the cavaleiros (riders). and for a damn well good reason! these horses (and their beautifully dressed riders) are absolutely insane. sideways, frontways, backwards, fancy prances, hops off all fours, all the while dizzying the bull (who is mere inches away) with its spectacular training.

i can't leave these guys out either. but there are these crazy fellows who wear funny green hats called forcados, one man has to taunt the bull and jump on the horns when it charges. the other seven men follow and try to stop the bull in its tracks. now, these guys are either extremely brave, or extremely stupid. you decide. anyways, there are usually only two endings: they either get the bull with apparent ease or the man gets flung around like a rag doll and trampled. .. i suppose both make for exciting endings though.

anyways, i am much too lazy to caption all of these and i used my 200 which is horrible for indoors (we were the furthest seats away you could possibly have, no exageration!) but enjoy.