Window on Nature: 04 November 2007

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Let me take you on the train to NJ

My Trip Over the Week End!

I like to travel on the train. No driving or stress, you can read,
relax, sleep, or even take pictures out the window.
Here are a few of the scenes I took from PA to NJ.
Some are clearer than others, depending upon
how fast the train was traveling and how quick I was
with the shutter!! :-)

If you listen you can almost hear the rumble of the tracks

and feel the bumpity bump.... Come along for the ride and
enjoy!

Birds, ducks, birds

When you are visiting near the ocean you see lots
of water birds. In this parking lot of the stop
and shop there were plenty of gulls.

Also no shortage of Canada Geese...

Bottoms up!

You've heard of your 'ducks in a row' well here we
have geese in a row....Looks like they are waiting for
their marching orders...

Now this bird at first I thought was a loon or grebe, but
as you will see in the other pictures that wasn't so.
My friend bird girl helped me identify it.

We decided it was a Cormorant. It had a partner as you
can see it flying by.

I knew by the way it was standing that it was something
other than your run of the mill duck or gull.

these gulls crack me up how they hang out on the posts,
some on one leg.

And for the 'catch of the day'
A heron looking like he is dressed in
a feathery overcoat as the wind blew on.

Trip down to the Beach

The weather forcasted a 'nor'easter' for the NJ and
NY coast so we decided to take a trip and check
out the surf and winds. I thought it might
make for some interesting pictures and video.

We headed for Asbury Park.... where Bruce Springsteen
played at the "Stone Pony" back in the day.

The waves sure were rolling in....

and the wind, she sure did blow....

It didn't seem to bother the seagulls one bit.

Video of surf and gull

You can hear the roar of the wind and surf as it
gears up from this 'nor'easter' You can't imagine
how cold the wind was. I about froze taking this
video. I saw on the news where some young men
tried to surf and all I could think of was how
C O L D it was. Can you imagine?

I may have been freezing but not this gull...He just
stood there as if nothing was going on.

A walk in the park.....Menlo Park

Menlo Park which in Edison NJ where my husband's job
"Maidenform" moved has this awesome diner.

The Menlo Park Diner is right up my alley. I love old
diners....the way they look and the food they serve up.

This one did not disappoint. We had breakfast here.

Check out the old time atmosphere. There were jukeboxes
at every table where you could drop in a coin and listen
to an old song.

Meno Park is also a park where you can walk
and enjoy nature. It was beautifully clothed in autumn
colors.

A small stream ran right through it ..

And a natural spring that warned 'consumption of spring
water at your own risk'

Hiding among the leaves in perfect camouflage is
this darling squirrel. There were hundreds of them
as the park is filled with oak trees... hence acorns

As the sun was setting we stopped to see the new office
building for Maidenform, where my husband works.
reflectively speaking, it was colorful and bright.

Each night I was there there was an equally gorgeous sunset.

The Gift from Russia.....

While visiting Edison NJ, we also went back to Bayonne where
my husband worked previously. We were surprised to
see this monument erected in the bay across from NY harbor.

The massive memorial evokes the World Trade Center that
once sat across the Hudson River. Jagged lines divide the
monument into two tower-like pieces, and a 40-foot
steel teardrop gently hangs in the open center, like a bell.
The 100 foot bronze sculpture is awesome to behold.
The base has rows of the names of those who died.

Had I been aware that if you took the picture from the right
vantage point you could get the NY skyline and lady Liberty
in the background I would have....but not until I looked
up the site did I know that.