I enjoy learning and discovery of new things. Now that I am retired, I am finding I have more hobbies than I have time in the day. I find my hobbies and learning often overlap. It is my ultimate way to “multi-task” to give me energy, richness, and purpose.
Travel
Travel can spark reading, fiction or non fiction, about the places where you travel. It can be fascinating to learn the history and culture of places before you arrive. Or see interesting places and then go back and read about them after the fact. For me, photography and travel go hand-in-hand. I don’t write or keep a journal (unfortunately), but my photographs have become my journal.
For example, the photograph above of a Croatian beach sparked me fantasize if a Roman soldier or Venetian ever sat on this rocky shore or cooled off in the crisp, clean Adratic waters at this place. The following photograph documented the a Croatian village we stayed but also provides examples of the influence of Rome and spread of Catholicism in the region. Each village typically had a beautiful church with church bells that rang out each morning to announce the new day.
For this church, I loved how the setting sun glazed through the creases between buildings and created a glow around the cross and shadows through the gate.
Morning sunrise symbol of the presence of the church in a Croatian village.
Photography
The photograph below was take in Dioclesion’s Palace in Split, Croatia. Dioclesion was a famous, and brutal, Roman emperor who reined from 284AD to 305AD. Near the end of Dioclesion’s rein, he became extremely ill and ultimately abdicated the throne. Dioclesion is the only Roman emperor to voluntarily abdicate the throne. Dioclesion returned to his homeland in Dalmatia (Croatia) to retire in a highly fortified palace on the Adriatic Sea in present day Split, Croatia. This photograph was taken within the palace looking up to the sky with the Romanesque's bell town peeking over the edge. Remember, the best photographs are right behind you, or in this case, above you!
Dioclesion’s palace in Split, Croatia
Sailing
Sail of the Zenith
Even as a little boy, I loved the water. Today, that love of water takes place in the form of sailing. I have not been fortunate to do a considerable amount of sailing, though I have bareboat chartered sailboats to navigate through the San Juan Islands in Washington and San Diego Harbor and coastline.
The photograph above was taken this autumn (Sepember, 2024) aboard the Zenith sailing on the Dalmatian Coast in Croatia. The Zenith is a beautiful 53’ Beneteau yacht. Joy, our friend Liz, and I sailed as the sole passengers aboard the Zenith and the yacht was skippered by a very experienced Croatian sailor named Luka.
Our charter included a skipper as I had no experience sailing in the Adriatic and a 53’ yacht was more than I cared to handled in unfamilar waters. But it worked out great and we were grateful for Luka as he knew the best little villages to moor for the evening, the best swimming holes, and the delicious restaurants for dinner. We just sat back, enjoyed the sunshine, sights, and breathed in the salty fresh air.