Chicago and the river, Tribune Tower, Michigan Avenue, Walker Drive, painted view from the 11th floor of the London House hotel ...

Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego California

...A long weekend stay at the hotel for the Gensler Principal's meeting...

Helsinki central train station Finland

Painted view of the whole station southern facade, entrance and tower...

Travel to Helsinki, Finland, painted view of the central train station

114 unbelievable degrees today!

Hanging out at a Adobe HQ in San Jose

Myojoji temple scenes

Myojoji Temple in Ishikawa softened view

Myōjō-ji Temple consists of a set of large buildings, set on atop a hill, which were created over the last six centuries. One of them is the priest’s living quarters, built in 1593, and some of the more striking ones include the Goju-no-To (35m tall 5 storied pagoda) built in 1618 and the Joroku-do Hall, located at the very far end of the temple.

Wandering around the Myojyoji Temple on the Noto peninsula...

... a portion of the scene from the temple grounds...

Founded in 1294 by the Japanese saint Nichizo, a disciple of the Nichiren Sect, the Myōjō-ji Temple is located in on the Noto Peninsula south of Wajima, and is now the head temple of the Nichiren Sect.

Myōjō-ji Temple consists of a set of large buildings, set on atop a hill, which were created over the last six centuries. One of them is the priest’s living quarters, built in 1593, and some of the more striking ones include the Goju-no-To (35m tall 5 storied pagoda) built in 1618 and the Joroku-do Hall, located at the very far end of the temple.

I spent three humid hot hours wandering the grounds of the temple and buildings.  Dragonflies darted in the shadows and Semi (cicadas) were singing in the trees.  It looked like it would really rain but no water ever touched the ground...

Temple doors in Ishikawa Ken, Japan ... Myojyoji Temple

My Daughters "best lunch ever!"

Place a bowl of rice mixed with egg and seaweed with a topping of ikura in front of my daughter and she will be very very very very very happy...

A visit to Kamakura on a very hot humid day in July...

... On a travel day going from Hayama back to Tokyo, we took a side trip to visit the Daibutsu in Kamakura... traveling on the Enoden train from the Kamakura station over to Hase station, and then walking north to the site ...

Travel map Japan 7-2017

... first draft of travel map to Noto, Ishikawa ...

Domo-kun found on side of the bus in Tokyo ...

#Domo-kun #どーもくん sighted on the side of the bus from Shibuya station #NHK mascot found dressed up in costume...

Friday morning TV Tokyo characters

It's Friday in #tokyo on the morning #TV show for #children like me! #kinyobi #きんようび 

Flying from California to Japan today>....

The buildings of Chicago always thrill me...

Starting with the Wrigley building... a simple line drawing and then adding more to the scene below...

Carl Sandburg wrote this poem about the city...

CHICAGO

     HOG Butcher for the World,

     Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,

     Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler;

     Stormy, husky, brawling,

     City of the Big Shoulders:

They tell me you are wicked and I believe them, for I

     have seen your painted women under the gas lamps

     luring the farm boys.

And they tell me you are crooked and I answer: Yes, it

     is true I have seen the gunman kill and go free to

     kill again.

And they tell me you are brutal and my reply is: On the

     faces of women and children I have seen the marks

     of wanton hunger.

And having answered so I turn once more to those who

     sneer at this my city, and I give them back the sneer

     and say to them:

Come and show me another city with lifted head singing

     so proud to be alive and coarse and strong and cunning.

Flinging magnetic curses amid the toil of piling job on

     job, here is a tall bold slugger set vivid against the

     little soft cities;

Fierce as a dog with tongue lapping for action, cunning

     as a savage pitted against the wilderness,

          Bareheaded,

          Shoveling,

          Wrecking,

          Planning,

          Building, breaking, rebuilding,

Under the smoke, dust all over his mouth, laughing with

     white teeth,

Under the terrible burden of destiny laughing as a young

     man laughs,

Laughing even as an ignorant fighter laughs who has

     never lost a battle,

Bragging and laughing that under his wrist is the pulse.

     and under his ribs the heart of the people,

               Laughing!

Laughing the stormy, husky, brawling laughter of

     Youth, half-naked, sweating, proud to be Hog

     Butcher, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with

     Railroads and Freight Handler to the Nation.

4th of July!

Views east from the window at the New Hotel Jen revealed the CCTV building and CITIC tower.  Views within the hotel illustrate the desk setting, built-in seating, Samsung screen on arm, and warm wood and carpet finishes...

Beijing CCTV tower once again in purple ...

dà kùchǎ (大裤衩

Every time I see this building, I have to draw it, here's a view from the restaurant level at Hotel Jen...

The CCTV main building is not a traditional tower, but a loop of six horizontal and vertical sections covering 473,000 m²(5,090,000 sq ft) of floor space, creating an irregular grid on the building's facade with an open center. The construction of the building is considered to be a structural challenge, especially because it is in a seismic zone.  The architect, Ren Koolhaas has said the building "could never have been conceived by the Chinese and could never have been built by Europeans. It is a hybrid by definition". Because of its radical shape, it's said that a taxi driver first came up with its nickname dà kùchǎ (大裤衩), roughly translated as, "big boxer shorts'.  Locals often refer to it as "big pants". A Chinese critic said that the structure was modeled after a pornographic image of a woman on her hands and knees, which Koolhaas has officially denied.....  From Wikipedia...