Brown-eyed Susan

Rudbeckia Hirta, variety pulcherrima, aka Brown-eyed Susan.

Wet Flower

Wet Wire

Tango

This is Tango, my brother in law's new dog. He's still a pup and has lot of energy. It wasn't easy to get him to sit still for a few poses. Windows of opportunity are brief with animals.

PS. This is not another project. I'm just posting random shots of things, every once and awhile, just because.

Day 365 - Stick a fork in me I'm done

Wow! I can't believe this is the end. It has been quite a journey. Although it felt like a marathon at times each day was its own special blend of interesting sights and fun adventures.

Photographing something different every single day did help keep my mind off cigarettes (one year smoke free) and it was a great way to get off the couch and out of the house.

From a technical standpoint my skills didn't improve much but I do think my vision sharpened. The project required me to slow down, study subjects more carefully and try different perspectives. Daily creative exercise is quite addictive.

Thanks everyone for the kind words and encouragement along the way, I really appreciated it. I'd like to thank my wife Leah in particular for her patience and creative input during this project.

Now that Project 365 has finished I'm going to rest for a bit. I will likely start up another project someday but for now I need a break.

Day 364 - Sangria

Sangria is a wine punch made for sunny afternoons and patios. It normally consists of a light, fruity unoaked wine; sliced fruit; sweetener; spirits; ice and in some cases carbonated soda. In spain we had our fair share of good sangria, though on the whole found them a tad too sugary. The ones we liked best had less sugar or were sweetened with spirits.

Day 362 - El Mercado de San Miguel

One afternoon we stumbled across El Mercado de San Miguel, a fantastic market in downtown Madrid. The market is essentially an enormous tapas bar with a fine bodega that sells wine by the glass. And mist machines to cool down. Nice. The rest of the afternoon turned into an impromptu tapas/wine tasting.

The bodega had a good selection of interesting bottles covering broad price points. Staff were friendly and helpful, and let you behind the counter to look through their selection.

We settled on a 2007 Garnacha from Bodega Alto Moncayo. Located in Campo de Borja, Alto Moncayo is known for making high quality wines of limited production. This 2007 Garnacha had a lovely nose, intense and layered, bright fruit, long finish, matched a wide variety of food.

We secured a seat at a standing table (not an easy task) and took turns bringing back food. One surprise came in the form of a pickle stuffed with tuna and olives on the side. Basically, it was a tuna sandwich without the bread. Simple. I've never been a fan of tuna spread but this combination was quite good. The Garnacha and dill pickle were surprisingly compatible.

Day 361 - Museo del Jamón

Spaniards have a serious obsession with pork. Everywhere you look, there is ham. A fun place to sample yummy cured spanish ham is at the Museo del Jamon. When we first saw their sign we thought it was an actual museum of ham, but on closer examination found out that it was in fact a store. It is part restaurant, part bar, part butcher, and 100% serious about ham.

The atmosphere in this ham utopia is quite vibrant. It offers exceptional value, the place has a wide selection of cured ham and beer that is among the cheapest in Madrid. It's a great place to grab a sandwich and beer, but is not really the kind of spot to have a sit down meal. The place was packed when we went for lunch.

Day 360 - Tapas

One of our favorite activities while in Spain was enjoying tapas. Tapas (derived from the Spanish verb tapar "to cover") is the name given to a wide variety of appetizers in Spanish cuisine. In Spain dinner is usually served quite late - between 9-11pm. This leaves alot of time between work and dinner. To fill this gap Spaniards often go to a bar or restaurant and eat tapas.

Bars and restaurant typically have a dozen or so different kinds of tapas on display. Ordering tapas takes some getting used to as it is self serve - just go up to the counter and get it - and the bill is derived at the end from counting the number of toothpicks on your plate. Once we got the hang of it, sampling tapas became a regular part of our daily routine.

Day 359 - The Hunt for Vega Sicilia

On our third afternoon in Madrid we went wine shopping. We were interested in finding a wine or two to 'lay down.' A friend told us to keep an eye out for any wines from Vega Sicilia, one of Spain's most iconic estates. A google of 'where to buy wine in Madrid' lead us to Lavignia, a huge store with an enormous selection of wines from across the globe. The bottom floor space is dedicated to Spain (displayed by region) and the top floor, all other countries.

Jackpot. Vega Sicilia's two traditional wines, Unico and Valbuena, were both available to taste at Lavinia - a '99 Unico and a '04 Valbuena. The '99 was well out of our price range to buy so we tried a nip of the Valbuena 2004, a blend of Tempranillo, Merlot and Malbec grapes.

We liked it. Lots of juicy fruit. The tannins are smooth yet have plenty of grip. It had an open, airy mouthfeel. This seems like a subtle, refined wine that will age nicely. We bought a bottle and look forward to seeing what it tastes like on our 10 year wedding anniversary.