Susan Solo – Photographer | Traveler | Adventurer

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Blinded by the Light

You know I’m not done talking about Iceland right? I have a few more posts in the works on that topic, but in the meantime, how about a short and sweet house update? Remember when I said we were done updating the brass light fixtures in the house? Well, spray-painting those three octagon-shaped builder fixtures was a temporary fix while we spent the money on other things (a.k.a., plane tickets) and while I we decided on the perfect replacements. In the past few months ~~I’ve~~ we’ve finally managed to make some decisions and upgrade two more of the lights.

This fixture sits at the top of the first staircase in the hall on our main floor. I had my eye on it for a long time and finally decided that it would be a fun detail for this spot.

And then this one hangs above the little landing adjacent to the loft on the top floor. It’s in the same collection as the pendant lamp hanging at the bottom of the staircase, but I liked that it wasn’t super matchy-matchy. It was another “fun” installation – the electrical box was originally installed a little too recessed into the ceiling and a bit off-center, so we came up with the MacGyver-worthy solution of wedging a few coins in the gap for a better fit. So if a future homeowner in this house ever changes that fixture, they’ll find a bonus of about $0.30!

Much to Chris’s dismay (installing lights isn’t his favorite), there is one remaining original fixture in the foyer that I spray-painted, but I’m still on the hunt for a replacement that will give our our tiny and awkward entryway some more personality. Oh, and there’s also the master bathroom that desperately needs a complete makeover including a lighting update, so he’ll still get to flex his electrician skills a few more times in this house. I might try to start tackling that master bath in the fall, although my updates will be very budget-friendly so that we can save money for some upcoming trips instead (hint: Peru isn’t the only South America destination on our short list!).

September 29, 2014
Photo Friday – Happy Fall

My favorite season is here! Fall has always appealed to me for so many reasons – sweaters, boots, crisp cool air, everything apple, Halloween, football (I’m not a huge fan, but I love how much my dad and husband love it), and of course the leaves!

September 26, 2014
Tourist at Home: Air and Space Smackdown

My in-laws were in town this past weekend when we had the most gorgeous last-days-of-summer weather, so Chris and I decided we would all head out to the National Air and Space Museum (NASM) together. None of us had been to the museum in several years and it’s a favorite, so it seemed like a good time to visit. (I mentioned to Chris that the last time I went I was a senior in high school to which he pointed out, “That was more than half your life ago!” Ack.) I was also curious to compare the museum to the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center closer to home, hence what I’m calling the Air and Space Smackdown.

In this corner, the classic National Air and Space Museum…

…vs. the newcomer, the Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

Two contenders go into the ring, and there can be only one winner. No, just kidding. Both museums belong to the extensive Smithsonian Institution, but they are separate entities in location so I’m pitting them against each other for fun. Here’s a quick run-down:

Price & Location

The National Air and Space Museum is in D.C. on the National Mall along with many other museums belonging to the Smithsonian complex. Entrance to the NASM is free, so we only paid for a Metro ride out to the heart of the city. Udvar-Hazy is situated along Rt. 28 in Chantilly, Virginia, fairly close to the Dulles International Airport. It’s about a 40-minute drive from D.C. to Chantilly or a 1.5 hour trip via combination of Metro and public bus. So if you’re only visiting D.C. for a short time and you’re staying in the city, Udvar-Hazy can be a bit tricky to access. Admission is also free, but there is a pricey $15 parking fee if you arrive by car before 4pm (parking is free after 4pm; the museum is open until 5:30pm). One extra bonus to the Udvar-Hazy Center though – the Donald D. Engen Observation Tower where you can take in a 360-degree view of the airport and the surrounding area. Other than that though, there is nothing next to Udvar-Hazy, so the location isn’t really conducive to other activities. Both locations have the same fees for optional activities such as the IMAX movies and flight simulators. So +1 for cost and location goes to the National Museum where you can easily visit for free and on foot if you’re already in the D.C. area perusing other museums.

Exhibits

The collection of artifacts across both locations includes over 60,000 pieces to document the history of aircrafts and spacecrafts, including airplanes, rockets, satellites, spacesuits, gliders, and balloons. Other artifacts such as documents and various media complete the collection. One of my favorite displays at the NASM location was a glass case in the World War II room that housed small objects like black-and-white photos, medals, hand-written letters, tiny song books, and other mementos in a scrapbook-like format. I’m trying to compare the exhibits in a fair and unbiased manner, but it’s hard when Udvar-Hazy has a space shuttle on display! When we visited a few years ago, Chris and I saw the Explorer, but it’s the Discovery that is currently on display in the James S. McDonnell Space Hangar. NASM does have the Hubble test telescope and the Skylab space station that you can go inside, but for me it just doesn’t get any better than getting up close and personal with a space shuttle. Plus there are just so many pieces at the Chantilly location (see the next section for details on square footage). I fact-checked this – there are more than 3x the number of aircraft on display at Udvar. +1 goes to Udvar-Hazy for exhibits.

Photography

Both locations utilize the same photography policy – commercial photography is not permitted without contacting the museum for permission, but photography for personal use is allowed and encouraged! Just leave the monopods and tripods at home. NASM does have more window light, but I personally enjoyed photographing inside the Udvar-Hazy Center because I felt like I had more elbow room to step back for wide shots and to get close for detail images. And I wasn’t just imagining the extra space – at 760,000 square feet, the Udvar-Hazy Center is almost five times the size of the NASM in D.C. which has 161,145 square feet of exhibition floor space. Wow! So +1 goes to Udvar-Hazy here.

And speaking of photography, here are a few photos from both locations starting with the National Air and Space Museum:

How about a spacesuit reflection selfie?! And that’s Mel and Marianne to the left. Mel was a pilot in the Air Force, so I think we definitely need to visit Udvar-Hazy next time for the sheer number of planes on display.

This is the “scrapbook” display in the World War II room that I enjoyed perusing.

And then here’s the Udvar-Hazy Center. Chris and I took these photos a few years ago, and we’ve visited the museum a couple of times since then for functions at work – the entire museum can be rented out for a special event. The entrance is quite impressive, as is the extensive layout and roomy floor space within the hangars. And of course, there’s also a space shuttle inside!

And the Winner is…

My own personal favorite is the Udvar-Hazy Center! I like the layout and the sheer size of the space. But if you are an avid air and space enthusiast, you owe it to yourself to visit both museum locations (especially if you’re a local). If you’re a casual fan and/or only in the D.C. area for a short period of time, I would stick to the National Air and Space Museum – they have plenty of displays and artifacts there to keep you busy and educated for hours. It truly is remarkable and awesome how much the human race has accomplished in the air and space arena over a short period of time.

It is difficult to say what is impossible, for the dream of yesterday is the hope of today and reality of tomorrow. — Robert Goddard

September 24, 2014
Packing for Iceland in the Summer
A shorter post would be titled, “What I Didn’t Bring to Iceland.”

My dad always told me that when I travel, I should only ever bring what I can carry on my own back. (Note: my dad is awesome and would have carried my extra stuff for me if needed, but I think he was trying to teach me a useful habit.) To this day I still follow that rule, with the caveat that I am pretty darn strong and can carry quite a bit. But oh, how I do wish I were one of the cool kids who carry only the essentials on their backs in a backpack. Our trip to Iceland wasn’t going to be the trip where I tried to pare down though.

Before we left, I found plenty of information on what to pack for Iceland in the winter, but not as much help on what to bring in the summer. I learned that temperatures in August vary anywhere from 55-65 for the high to 45 as the low and that we could expect unpredictable precipitation. Plus, we planned a range of various activities in several regions, so I knew I’d need a little bit of everything.

That said, I think I did a decent job of packing and organizing the massive amount of stuff we brought, especially thanks to Eagle Creek packing cubes. I always use these to keep things neat in my suitcase, but usually I unpack everything upon arrival. This time the cubes made it super easy to stay organized on the road since we were in a different hotel each night and it wouldn’t make sense to completely unpack each time.

The temperature for our trip in the last week of August ranged from 50-55 degrees as the high. Half of the days were cloudy, windy, and/or rainy, and the other days were sunny and lovely. Here’s what I packed for a week-long trip in August to the land of fire and ice:
- 2 short-sleeve shirts (one I wore on the plane)
- 3 long-sleeve shirts
- 3 hoodies (two pullover, one zip-up that I wore on the plane)
- 1 tank top (for sleeping)
- yoga pants (worn on the plane – it was a red-eye flight so comfort won over fashion)
- 2 pairs of hiking pants (one waterproof)
- 1 sweater
- 1 pair of jeans
- warm vest
- waterproof jacket
- waterproof hiking shoes
- casual sneakers
- wool hiking socks
- undies and wool long underwear for layering
- beanie hat (for warmth) and baseball hat (for sun)
- gloves
- swimsuit & flip-flops
- sunglasses
After lugging it all to Iceland (this list doesn’t even include our camera gear and gadgets), at least I ended up wearing all of the clothes I brought except for the sweater and the waterproof pants. I brought the sweater for a nicer option at dinner, but just didn’t end up needing it because most of the places we ate were casual and we were surrounded by other hiking-boot-waterproof-jacket-wearing travelers. I would have worn the waterproof pants on the glacier hike since it was raining so much, but we didn’t end up going on the hike because it was raining so much. There wasn’t a day where we could wear just short-sleeve shirts, but I layered them under hoodies. On the chilliest day we truly did need wool base layers so I was happy to have them. Oh, and I didn’t wear the casual sneakers. I just wore my waterproof hiking shoes the whole time, and they were great.

Missing from my list? An outfit for enjoying the nightlife in Reykjavik. I was certainly curious about the party scene I heard so much about and wished we could have experienced it, but sensibility told me that we wouldn’t join the revelers on our first night (jet lag), and we wouldn’t give it a go our last night either after an exhausting week of exploring. So lame, I know, but I was right. We passed out each night by 11pm, and my understanding is that the partying doesn’t even start until well after Midnight. Next time!

The items I ended up using the most were: 1. my waterproof North Face Resolve jacket that kept me super dry and warm every single day; 2. comfortable and water-repellant Mountain Hardware Chockstone hiking pants; 3. super comfortable North Face Ultra Fast Pack GTX waterproof hiking shoes; and 4. a cute warm vest for layering from Athleta.

I debated whether or not to bring a heavier jacket like my snowboarding coat since it’s waterproof, but in the end I figured that would be a little too warm for summer and I was right – it’s better just to do layers. One additional note about my hiking shoes – they were great for comfort and for waterproof-ness, but for our hike to the volcano I could have used just a tiny bit more ankle support. I also noticed that the sides got a little chewed up on that trail of loose rocks and in the lava fields. So whether or not you want to bring legit hiking boots is obviously up to the level of activity you’re doing and on what terrain. I knew we’d only be doing short hikes and didn’t want to carry a heavy pair of boots, so I figured I could get away with a shoe. No matter what though, go with waterproof.

Chris brought a similar mix: long sleeve shirts, a waterproof outer layer, waterproof hiking shoes, and water-resistant hiking pants. If you plan to do any lengthy outdoor activities or if you want to stand behind waterfalls, I highly recommend (broken record warning!) waterproof everything, not just water resistant.

So in summary, August weather in Iceland really does require some warm layer options and definitely calls for, say it with me now, waterproof clothing! Think like an onion and go with layers that you can peel off as needed, making sure that your outer layers will keep you dry and protected from the wind. We didn’t always need the waterproof layers, but we sure appreciated them when the weather called for it.

Have you traveled to Iceland in the summer? If so, did I miss anything important on the list?
September 22, 2014
Photo Friday – Husband at the Harpa

I could have spent hours photographing the interior and exterior of the Harpa Concert Hall in Reykjavik. I posted the vertical version of this image already, but I love both orientations and I also experimented with the saturation in this image. Plus the silhouette is of perhaps my most favorite subject so I can’t help but post the landscape version of this photo.

September 19, 2014