Photo: New Year's Dinner

Here is a photo of the table setting for the New Year's Eve party I went to last year in Santiago, Chile at the top of San Cristobal Hill.

It was a fabulous party and ended at 4 am. You can see the appetizers, masks and hats.

The event included live music, dinner, fireworks, and dawning food for the early morning.

Happy New Year's!

Enjoy new travel photos of the Town of San Pedro in Atacama, Chile on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Scott Jeffers of the Traveler

Here is a photo of Scott Jeffers, the lead singer of the Traveler musical group.

He has amazing talent. He plays celtic fiddle and many other instruments.

I love Celtic music as you know from my www.vivalavoyage.com website.

Enjoy new travel photos of the Town of San Pedro in Atacama, Chile on ourViva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Traveler Musician

Here is a photo of one of the Traveler musicians.

They have such a cool factor don't you think?

He appears to be a Native American.

Note the quiver for a bow and arrow on his bass. Quite unique.

He has style and the music was truly great.

Enjoy new travel photos of the Town of San Pedro in Atacama, Chile on ourViva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Traveler Musicians

Here is a photo of one of the musicians in the Traveler group.

Great music and a wonderful time at the luminarias festival at the Desert Botanical Gardens.

Look at his cool factor and the percussion instruments he has that he can play. I am a former drummer and I admire his abilities and station of life.

Enjoy new travel photos of the Town of San Pedro in Atacama, Chile on ourViva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Sculpture at Desert Botanical Gardens

Here is a photo of one of the comfortable areas at the Desert Botanical gardens to sit at and enjoy music.

They actually have this creative sculpture instead of a cactus, which is a bit of a surprise. I assumed everything in the Gardens would be a cactus.

The colors of the lights and the saguaro cactus sculpture make for a very interesting night photo.

Enjoy new travel photos of the Town of San Pedro in Atacama, Chile on ourViva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Stars at the Garden

Here are photos of the metallic lighted stars hanging above our heads over the dance floor in front of the band The Sugar Thieves.

Get out and see the Luminaria festival. it is a must-see Arizona traditional event.

Enjoy new travel photos of the Town of San Pedro in Atacama, Chile on our Viva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Here is a photo of a large Christmas tree at the Desert Botanical Gardens.

As you can see we went when there was a full moon.

The weather was great and the Luminaria festival is a must.

This is our holiday greeting card photo of Dave and me so cheers to everyone. Enjoy your day!

Today is Sunday so enjoy new travel photos of the Town of San Pedro in Atacama, Chile on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: The Yucca at Night

Here is a photo of a yucca at night.

I am still sharing photos of our wonderful night at the Luminaria festival at the Desert Botanical Garden.

It truly was the best event ever this year. Make sure to go out and live it.

Enjoy travel photos of the Grandeur of Bellagio Villas on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Scorpion Bells

Here is a photo of the Scorpion Bells bell ringers who performed at the Luminaria festival at the Desert Botanical Gardens.

There are different schools who have bell ringing groups who perform amazing songs only with bells and they rotate at different nights throughout the festival.

Don't they look like they are having fun?

Enjoy travel photos of the Grandeur of Bellagio Villas on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Musician At the Luminaria Festival

Domingo DeGrazia was playing his Spanish guitar music at the Luminaria Festival at the Desert Botanical Garden.

Domingo DeGrazia is quite talented and is the son of well known Arizona artist Ted DeGrazia.

I played around with the lighting that was showing on Domingo as he played and I liked this effect.

Enjoy travel photos of the Grandeur of Bellagio Villas on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Poinsettia at Night

As we walked the Luminaria festival at the Desert Botanical Garden, I saw this red poinsettia at the base of a green palo verde tree.

It was lit up nicely and looked quite interesting and colorful.

Enjoy travel photos of the Grandeur of Bellagio Villas on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Luminarias

Here is a photo of one of the lighted paths in the desert at the Desert Botanical Gardens.

You can see the skyglow lighting up the mountain and trees.

Hundreds of volunteers light a candle for each luminaria bag throughout the entire Desert Botanical Gardens. the volunteers are very committed to care for this special place.

Enjoy travel photos of the Grandeur of Bellagio Villas on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Night Prickly Cactus

Photo: As we walked the gardens at night, we saw this beautiful prickly pear cactus lit up. It makes for an interesting photo.

I really enjoy going to the Desert Botanical Garden at night. The cacti look so interesting and so different from the day time.

And we are walking around at night in December for the Luminaria festival and it is not too cold.

Enjoy travel photos of the Grandeur of Bellagio Villas on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: Life-Size Dragonfly

Here is a photo of a life-sized dragonfly that is part of the Big Bug exhibit at the Desert Botanical Gardens.

We attended the luminaria show and was able to take photos at night with these very different lights.

I hope you are enjoying the Garden at night. It is a rare treat.

Today is Sunday so that means new travel photos. We take you to the Grandeur of Bellagio Villas on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: DBG at Night

Here is a photo of the Desert Botanical Gardens at night.

If you look close at the two people at the end of this row you shall see Dave of Costa Rica Daily Photocom and my Mom.

They are good models and often pose for me when I want to take some photos.

We are showing travel photos of the magnificent colors of Cape Breton Island in the Fall on our Viva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: The Sugar Thieves Blues Group

Here is a photo of the whole band.

Yesterday I showed you only the guitarist and singer.

I love blues music and the setting outdoors among the cactus at the Desert Botanical gardens was great.

We are showing travel photos of the magnificent colors of Cape Breton Island in the Fall on our Viva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: The Sugar Thieves Blues

Here is a photo of Mikel Lander, one of the musicians playing at the Desert Botanical Gardens Luminaria Festival.

The Luminaria festival has lots of great music and food and fabulous drinks.

This group played the blues and is called The Sugar Thieves.

We are showing travel photos of the magnificent colors of Cape Breton Island in the Fall on our Viva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: The Santa Garden Life-Size Bug

Here is a photo of the Big Bug art exhibit at the Desert Botanical Gardens.

You can see the holiday spirit with the Santa hat and the luminaries.

Enjoy the luminaria festival at the Gardens and see the Big Bug art exhibit.

We are showing travel photos of the magnificent colors of Cape Breton Island in the Fall on our Viva la Voyagetravel photo site.

Photo: Desert Botanical Garden at Night

Here is a photo of the entry space of the Desert Botanical Gardens.

We went to the Luminarias festival last weekend.

Lumi, as we call it for short, is held every year at the holidays at the Desert Botanical Gardens and we always attend.

Over the next two weeks I will share the gardens at night, and the lights and cactus make for some fabulous photos, so enjoy the tour.

We are showing travel photos of the magnificent colors of Cape Breton Island in the Fall on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: One Look Back at the Residential Concert

This photo shows one look back at the patio and residence that was the site of the concert and dinner that I have shown in this series, which concludes with this post today.

During the Spring of 2012, my husband and I will be hosting one of the residential "Concerts of Note" for the Symphony. For those of you who are in the Phoenix area, you are invited to check out the Phoenix Symphony website for more information about this concert series.

We are showing photos of the fall colors of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, this week on on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site.

Photo: A Unique Symphony Performance

I have promised to reveal what was unique about this concert in the home of David Dodge. In addition to being an award-winning architect, David Dodge is a talented composer. One of the selections that the Symphony played was a concerto that he composed.

As Maestro Michael Christie explained in his introduction, we had the unique experience of hearing a symphonic performance in the very room where the music was composed, looking at the desert sunset that inspired the musical composition.

This photo captures Maestro Christie's direction of the orchestra silhouetted against the sunset in the dramatic orientation of this wonderful home. It is my favorite photo of this series.

I will conclude the series tomorrow with a little news.

Today is Sunday, so we have new photos on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site. This week we are showing some photos of the fall colors on Cape Breton Island, on the northern tip of Nova Scotia,

Photo: The Phoenix Symphony takes a bow

Here are members of the Phoenix Symphony taking their bow at the conclusion of their performance of one of the selections this concert in the residence of David Dodge. About 25 of the Symphony musicians performed at this concert, which is about 1/3 of the full orchestra.

The Phoenix Symphony is the oldest and largest performing arts organization in Arizona. My husband, David, is the longest serving member of the Board of Directors of the Symphony and has twice been awarded its top award for volunteers.

Tomorrow I will reveal what was unique about this concert.

I apologize for the quality of the photos in this little this series. Dave and I took our little point and shoot that would fit in his pocket so that we would not be obtrusive in taking a few photos to share with the readings of this blog. And we had to shoot into the light for most of these photos and did not want to use a flash. Nevertheless, we thought that you might enjoy attending this little event with us, at least through this blog.

We have photos of the churches and lobsters of Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site this week.

Photo: Concert Venue in a Residence

There were seats for about 50 people in the living room and balcony of the David Dodge residence next to Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesen West School of Architecture in Scottsdale.

David Dodge is an award wining architect. His home includes touches of Wright's influence, including a collection of Asian art. This is part of the living room where we sat for the concert.

David Dodge is more than an architect. He has other artistic talents, as I will explain in a couple of days.

We have photos of the churches and lobsters of Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site this week.

Photo: Table Setting

The patio at the Symphony fundraising concert and dinner provided a lovely setting for a dinner following the concert. The buffet that I showed yesterday was excellent, as were the table settings.

In Arizona we are lucky to be able to enjoy outdoor settings for dinner most of the year.

The series of concerts and dinners in private homes is an imaginative outreach effort by the Symphony to draw people and donors into support for the Symphony in creative ways, rather than limiting the Symphony to performances in Symphony Hall in downtown Phoenix.

Ticket sales for concerts provide only about half of the cost of a symphony orchestra. The rest must be achieved through donations at events such as these. In many older cites of the East and Midwest, endowment income provides a stable base of operating income, but the Phoenix Symphony is too new to have built an endowment, so it is much more dependent upon annual donations and special events to meet its budget.

We have photos of the churches and lobsters of Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site this week.

Photo: Buffet Dinner

I mentioned yesterday that the fundraising concert included dinner, so I thought I would share this photo of part of the buffet.

It was generous of the host to open his house for this concert and dinner. The Symphony has a series of these "Parties of Note" each year in which the hosts provide the setting and food for small ensembles of Symphony musicians to perform and so that the Symphony will receive 100% of the amount that guests pay to attend the dinner and concert.

There was something unique about this concert in this home, as I will reveal in in a couple of days.

We have photos of the churches and lobsters of Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site this week.

Photo: Dinner on the Patio

The concert in the home I showed yesterday also included a reception and dinner. Here is the part of the arrangement of tables on the patio for dinner. The lights of the Valley are visible in the distance, as this house is in the foothills of the McDowell Mountains on the northeast border of Scottsdale.

The house is adjacent to Taliesen West, the winter residence and architectural school of Frank Lloyd Wright. This is the view that attracted Frank Lloyd Wright to Arizona, along with the weather.

The home was designed by and is the residence of a disciple of Frank Lloyd Wright, award winning architect David Dodge. I will show more of this even in the next few days.

We have photos of the churches and lobsters of Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site this week.

Photo: House and Symphony of Note

I will start a new little series today showing a few photos of a fund raising event for the Phoenix Symphony that my husband and I attended. It was a concert in a spectacular private home in Scottsdale, with a sunset view of the Valley.

There is something very unique about the experience of the concert in this home that I will reveal in the days ahead.

We have photos of the churches and lobsters of Nova Scotia on our Viva la Voyage travel photo site this week.

Photo: Flower in the Winter

Here is a red flower to brighten your Sunday morning.

It is actually raining in Scottsdale right now. It has been pouring all day and all night this weekend.

Today is Sunday so check out our new travel photos on Viva la Voyage of Churches and Lobsters in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Photo: Fiery Sky

Here is another interesting sky I saw a few weeks ago.

The colors almost looked like fireballs in the sky.

Check out our new travel photos on Viva la Voyage of the Atacama Desert of Northern Chile. These photos show more of the mountains. This is a unique area of volcanoes and the Andes mountains in the driest desert on earth. With all of the publicity about a little more than one year ago with the miraculous rescue of the Chilean miners in the Atacama, you should come visit our site to see how harsh the conditions can be.

Photo: Billowy Cloud and Palm Trees

Here is a photo I took out my front door of this interesting sky.

The billowy cloud looked like it was rolling down the street towards our house.

Check out our new travel photos on Viva la Voyage of the Atacama Desert of Northern Chile. These photos show more of the mountains. This is a unique area of volcanoes and the Andes mountains in the driest desert on earth. With all of the publicity about a little more than one year ago with the miraculous rescue of the Chilean miners in the Atacama, you should come visit our site to see how harsh the conditions can be.

Photo: Egret taking off

It is theme day and the theme is action. Here is a photo of an elegant action shot.

Last week I was sharing photos of an egret I had taken at McCormick Ranch Lake.

As I moved in to get better photos, and he took off. So I quickly followed the path of his flight, and got this photo.

It was low light because it was very late in the day, and I did not have time to set my ISO higher to be able to use a faster shutter speed and get a crisper shot, but I thought I would post it anyway.

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Check out our new travel photos on Viva la Voyage of the Atacama Desert of Northern Chile. These photos show more of the mountains. This is a unique area of volcanoes and the Andes mountains in the driest desert on earth. With all of the publicity about a little more than one year ago with the miraculous rescue of the Chilean miners in the Atacama, you should come visit our site to see how harsh the conditions can be.