Well this little photog got to get out of town to Vancouver BC briefly this week – a very rare occasion – so no cleaning, child disciplining, dog-walking, or kitty-litter-scooping were done for a whole 48 hours. I didn’t even break open my laptop, do any photo-editing or check my email. Divine.
I did get to take in a lot of amazing sites in Vancouver, a city I’ve not been to in years, and had some precious adult time with my honey. Entirely too many photos were taken: I brought along my DSLR, plus my little Yunon 35mm, and couldn’t resist buying a Lomo ActionSampler, which takes 4 small shots in 1 second, exposed on one 35mm frame. And of course there was my trusty iPhone in my hand at all times for photo-taking too. Yep, too many.
There were photos I wish I could have taken though; I don’t mean the required scenic shots, the landmarks, or even catching a sunset (there was a gorgeous one last night)… Driving through what can best be called the ‘sketchy’ part of town, Chinatown, I couldn’t help but be struck by the part of the city that most people try to avoid. We only went there via taxi (advised by several that walking would be a really bad idea) to get to a gig for the band Redd Kross, which my man has been following for about 20 years. Over just a few blocks, and those were just a few over from the heavily-touristed Gastown, we saw glimpses of the dark recesses of urban life, the addicts, the homeless, the sick, the vagrant, the lost and hungry. Dark, dark streets.
I only say I wish I could have taken those photos (and I wouldn’t be taking my camera out there at 11pm) because I think it’s easy to forget there is a not-so-pretty side of every city, but that is very much a part of it. It’s sad and scary, and can be downright depressing but there are countless stories there to be told, ones that for now I’m not brave enough to tell with my own camera.
Anyway, I hope I’ll be back in BC again soon. Here are a few of my cell phone moments. Enjoy the view!
xo ~ K