A visit to the Oregon Coast

Flew into PDX and was instantly greeted by 90+ degree heat and loved every minute of it. Hopped onto the "MAX" for a 1.5 hour ride out to Hillsboro to catch another ride out to the Coast which ended up being a 2 hour drive. Not bad considering I've never done it before so it was great kicking back and enjoying the ride. I have to say riding the "MAX" is soooooo much more enjoyable than having to ride BART!

My first view of Cape Kiwanda, I kept imagining that Godzilla was sleeping in the ocean ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Sunset view from the cabin we were staying at. Totally awesome place, you can see and hear the ocean.

Headed out to the beach during low tide hoping to find some clams. No luck with clams but scored on some awesome photo opportunities. The fog, mist and sunrise made for some beautiful photos. I often found myself starring out into the fog feeling as if I was on another planet.

Chester’s Thriftway was the spot! Once I found out they had beef sticks I had to stop by a couple times to stock up!

I don’t even remember how many times we stopped at Tillamook to get their Ice Cream. I don’t have a sweet tooth but I too fell victim to their Ice Cream. Oregon Hazelnut & Salted Caramel was the flavor I kept getting and it was gooooooood! If you ever stop by, do yourself a favor and get a kids scoop size. The regular one scoop they give you is huge! But of course I couldn’t resist and always got 1 scoop on a waffle cone, damn now I want one!
Their facility was real nice and the photographs they had hanging all over reminded me of “Strobist” photography. As for cheese my favorites were the “Coby” and the Pepper Jack.

Anderson’s viewpoint was pretty amazing, showed up late in the day so had the whole view to myself.

Low tide clamming at “Pier’s End” in Garibaldi. Good times with the family but make sure to head back in before the tide rises, we got the clue and head back in when the locals decided to call it a day. Cool vibes all around and a few of the locals even took the time to give us some tips.

Stopped by Kelly’s Marina for some lunch. Nothing like eating fresh seafood right out of the water while enjoying some awesome Oregon brews. We enjoyed it so much we came back a few days later to do it all over again.

Neskowin beach home of “Proposal Rock” and the “Ghost Forest.” When I walked out onto the beach and laid eyes on “Proposal Rock” I thought… “oh what the!” I was pretty surprised to see what I saw. Before coming out here, I did no research on what I would be seeing so that I’d be surprised at what I would be seeing and surprised I was!

From afar walking towards the “Ghost Forrest” it looked as if there were people standing on the beach. Once I finally got to the end I still didn’t know what I was looking at but it sure did look amazing. Basically a photographers dream!

Standing here looking at the view I almost thought I was in Hawaii.

Visiting the Oregon Coast was definitely an awesome experience. I can see myself coming back to spend more time taking landscape photos and visiting every Nike Outlet in town!

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Portrait Session

Cloudy days make great photo days!

Nothing like some clouds to add drama to a scene! If you're looking for a great vantage point of downtown San Francisco check out "Ina Coolbrith Park."

The Journey to Nine Mile Jamaica

Being the HUGE Bob Marley fan I am, visiting the House of Marley in Nine Mile Jamaica was an item I had on my bucket list for a very long time! (Glad that's one item crossed off) The drive to the compound took about two hours from where we were located. The roads were rough and consisted of narrow lanes that ran along the mountains of Jamaica. I loved every minute of it! What's not to love when you're in a bus filled other fans just as excited as you are, and all singing to the tunes of Bob Marley?!? Good times, good times... and now for the photos:

The view from Mt. Zion A photo of Bob Marley's meditation rock. Of course had to get a photo with our guide. I tell you, I was so excited/happy to be in Jamaica I was choppin it up with everyone! Nothing but love! Jerk chicken, pork with red beans and rice! These dogs definitely have the right idea... feeln' irie!        "The Sun is Shining" ~ Until we meet again Jamaica

24 Hours in Milan

24 hours in Milan Italy, the Fashion Capitol of the World. Unfortunately not by choice, we were unexpectedly booted from our flight shortening our stay in Milan. Normally something like this would be pretty upsetting to me, but it was all part of the journey. Besides the only goal I had was to explore and get lost with my camera, nothing makes me feel more alive than that!

The obligatory selfie in the hotel lobby. (Hotel NH Collection Milano President)

Hey Siri! One of the best things I did in preparation for this trip was to rent an international MiFi hotspot. If you plan on traveling abroad I highly recommend using one on your trip, unless you don't care about using public WiFi with the chance of getting your data compromised. I went with a company called XCom Global which only charged me $15 a day for unlimited usage.

An interesting restaurant sign to come across when you're actually an American.

Another good reason for getting the international MiFi is so you can use Yelp when you're starving! Here are a few dishes from Mozzarella e Basilico, first meal in Milan and it was damn good!

Sausage pork with potato puree

Saphron risotto with prosciutto

The "Double Malt"

The signature risotto dish

Calzone wrapped with prosciutto

Milan definitely has their share of interesting street performers. Although I did find some of the street vendors to be a bit annoying in the tourist areas. These were the types of people who would walk right up to you and nag you to buy a "selfie stick" from them.

Duomo di Milano

For dinner we heard good things about Da Vic – Ristorante Guerrini so we decided to call and make reservations. Good thing we did! We saw a few visitors like us get turned away because they were all booked, they even mentioned it was their last night in Italy. Da Vic turned out to be a great choice, the Chef/owner came out to greet us and talk to us for a bit which was really nice. I can't say enough about how great the food and service was. It's always a special feeling when you feel welcomed when you're so far away from home.

Loved this dish so much I had to order it again.

This octopus was amazing and super tender! I don't take octopus for granted at all! Whenever I'm in Hawaii I'll spend my time spear fishing and free diving for these guys.

Goodbye Milan it was a great experience, until next time!

andrew@andrewwongphoto.com