CRUISIN’ ON THE EDGE

Ever since the cruise industry reopened last June, after being shut down by the pandemic for more than a year, I have been on two cruises to the Caribbean via Celebrity Cruises. The first was on August 14th while the second one was on September 25th, both times on the Celebrity EDGE ship. This ship is one of Celebrity’s newest and largest with a notable feature called the “Magic Carpet”, which is an orange platform protruding from the starboard side of the ship. Meanwhile, the interior of the ship is very contemporary, which is a good departure from the traditional classic look of older cruise ships. Here are some photographs I took around the ship and of our stateroom using my iPhone 11 Pro Max. I also created a video tour of our suite and posted it on my YouTube channel. Here’s the link to the video: https://youtu.be/2lVIQlhzO_M

OUTDOOR SPACES

Cabanas
Walking/Running Path
The Magic Carpet
Rooftop Garden
Poolside

INDOOR SPACES

Solarium
Grand Lobby (Nighttime)
Grand Lobby (Daytime)
Main Theater
EDEN (lounge bar and restaurant)
Luminae (Dining room for suite passengers)

OUR SUITE

MAGICAL EPHESUS

I visited the ruins of the ancient city of Ephesus near Kusadasi, Turkey during my Eastern Mediterranean cruise in October of 2014. Back then I was more excited about our stop in Athens that I didn’t even bother to research in advance about this historical site. I just booked the excursion through the cruise company then waited for the day of my tour. My absence of knowledge about Ephesus somehow made my visit more exciting and memorable. Seeing for the first time the impressive architecture and learning about its rich history while walking around the ruins was such a mind blowing experience. The tour guide was also very generous with her trivias pointing out the city’s port where Cleopatra and Mark Antony’s boat docked when they honeymooned in this ancient city and then took us to the theater, the largest in the ancient world with a seating capacity of 44,000. For me, the most impressive of the archeological remains is the Library of Celsus (main photo), which once housed more than 12,000 scrolls. The facade of the building is still almost intact and stands majestically right in the heart of the city ruins. After Rome, Ephesus was the second largest city in the Roman Empire. Below are some of the photos I took during my visit to this archeological wonder.

The Theatre
Main Street
Road towards the port of Ephesus

JORDAN POND

Jordan Pond is a lake inside the Acadia National Park in Bar Harbor, Maine. I visited it on my way to the peak of the Cadillac Mountain, which is the highest mountain in the Atlantic coast of the United States. I was there in the summer of 2019 and it was a sight to behold. Imagine this place in the fall, the colors are probably breathtaking. I was like on a trance that day having just stepped out of a hearty lobster bake for lunch. I actually don’t remember much this part of my trip including the time I stood by the lake to take these photographs. It was only yesterday as I was going through my iPad’s photo albums that I realized they’re actually a decent bunch of photos worthy of a feature in my page.

THE LITTLE ISLAND

New York City has a new public park called The Little Island located in the west side of Manhattan right on the Hudson River. This architectural masterpiece rises from the remnants of Pier 54 and is made up of concrete piles and tulip-like pots, which makes up the surface of the park. This new attraction also provides the much-needed additional green space from all the concrete that blankets this mega metropolis. It is open to the public but requires reservations for visits after 12 noon. Unfortunately, this visitor failed to check some info and arrived at 12:40 pm so now you know why my photos are all taken from a distance…I didn’t make it inside the park. 😢 I am presenting these photographs in monochrome as it works well on this architectural subject. I did spare the last photo in color so you’ll have an idea of how it looks in real life. Next time I visit New York I’ll make sure to come earlier or make a reservation so I can get some inside-the-park photos. By the way, these photographs were taken using an iPhone 11 Pro Max.

A LITTLE BIT OF OLD IN NEW YORK

I was walking down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan when I saw this vintage car awaiting for the green light right beside the Saint Thomas Church. From across the street it didn’t look interesting enough to deserve a shot but when I got closer at the crosswalk I realized it looked great with the church and the skyscrapers in the background. I immediately pulled out my iPhone and switched the camera to wide angle lens and took this single shot. I opted for a wide angle shot as it allowed me to get closer to the car closer while still capturing the crucial scenes in the background. The photo also makes you feel like you’re viewing the scene with your own eyes. I edited it to black and white for a more classic look and to evoke a sense of nostalgia…as if it was taken from a different time.

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