Traveler: Photo Gallery: Washington D.C. Sunset

Shot in November 2010 on my Sony Cyber-Shot camera, mostly from the Lincoln Memorial, but also other places in and around Washington D.C's National Mall. Sunset is my favourite time of the day, and it's particularly spectacular in the American capital.

(Click on each photo for a bigger view)

Jefferson Memorial - the dome above the columns is spectacular.

Tidal Basin and the Jefferson Memorial.

Tidal Basin & Jefferson Memorial. See the two people walking along the path? Amazing time for a stroll.

The Washington Monument - the most majestic of all.

Plane from nearby Reagan National Airport (Arlington County, Virginia) over the Lincoln Memorial at sunset. One of my favourite photos ever.

The Korean War Memorial and, in the distant background, the Lincoln Memorial.

The Washington Monument and the Lincoln Reflecting Pool. One of the classic views in a city full of them.

This one taken from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

 
The Lincoln Memorial, literally seconds after last light. Old Abe looks very pale.

The moon and the white spire, the Washington Monument.

 Another plane overhead, from Reagan National Airport.

Washington Monument through the trees.

A Potomac River sunset. Arlington House - formerly the home of Robert E. Lee - is visible here. See the American flag and look down from that.

Traveler: Colorado Springs, Colorado

It's an acknowledged fact in the west of America that there's little that can compare to the majesty of the Colorado Rockies.

Looking down on Colorado Springs from Pikes Peak

About an hour away from Denver - the Mile High City it, itself, a beautiful town with plenty to see and do - is the tinier Colorado Springs. About 65 miles (105km) south of Denver, on Fountain Creek, the town sits near the base of the famous Pikes Peak, in the eastern part of the Southern Rocky Mountains. In fact, Pikes Peak dominates the skyline, dwarfing everything else. You can barely escape it wherever you drive or walk around town, and why would you? Early in the morning or late in the evening, with some snow on the high peaks and sun shining at just the right angle, some of the visuals are absolutely stunning. The air is crisp, the people are friendly, and, early on, you get the distinct impression that this is a great town full of great people. And, you'd be right.

The scenic drive from Denver takes you south down the I-25, and on the day - Monday 15 November 2010 - I had occasion to be making that trip, we were delayed by nearly two hours, sitting stationary on a stretch of the four-lane highway, surrounded by other cars, trucks, busses, all the usual on-road vehicles, and no one was going anywhere. For me, this was a new definition of traffic jam. It was one long parking lot, halfway back to Denver, it seemed. 

The cause? 34 vehicles involved in three separate crashes in the same vicinity, thanks to a dangerous combination of snow, fog and ice. Apparently it's a dangerous route in bad weather. At any rate, this was a car accident like you see in the movies. Cars had spun out of control. We had a lot of time to look at the incredible scenes of wreckage before the bus finally started moving. 12 people were injured, according to the local sheriff's office, and it was a wonder no one was killed. 

Easily the worst traffic accident I've ever seen

For more, check out the Denver Post's I-25 Pile-Up (15 November 2010) album of accident images.

***

If you're looking for the one must-do attraction in Colorado Springs, you're in trouble, simply because there are a few things that you need to see/do in this city. A good starting point, though, is the Pikes Peak Cog Railway. Leaving from nearby Manitou Springs, CO - just a short drive over from the middle of downtown Colorado Springs - the 8.9-mile journey takes riders from the base of the valley, to over fourteen thousand feet above sea level. Aside from jaw-dropping views of Lake Moraine and Mount Almagre, you might be lucky enough to see deer or bighorn sheep alongside the tracks.

Manitou & Pike's Peak Railway (The Pikes Peak Cog Railway) base station: Manitou, CO

Get out at the top and be treated to amazing views of Colorado Springs and surrounds. On a clear day, you can see far across the Great Plains towards the Colorado-Kansas border. These awe-inspiring views were the basis for the famous poem, 'America the Beautiful' by
Katharine Lee Bates, a professor of English at Wellesley College, who had come to Colorado Springs to teach a summer school session in July of 1893. She took a trip to the top of Pikes Peak, by horse and then mules, and was so engaged by the beautiful vista, she wrote a poem. And the rest, as they say, is history.

The Cog Railway at the top station, Pikes Peak

Even on a partly cloudy day, the views are immense

 Once the railway passes above the treeline, the views open up

You'll probably feel a little weird thanks to the influence of the high altitude at the summit, a whopping 4302m above sea level (or14,110 ft), but that passes quickly enough, and is sent on it's way well by stopping in at the cafe at the Summit House for some delicious hot chocolate and donuts, the latter of which are cooked in a special way due to the altitude. 

The round trip is just over three hours, and, without a doubt, the best views you'll see anywhere in the area.

***

A close second on the list - on my list, anyway - of must-see Colorado Springs attractions are the spectacular, monolithic rock formations that make up the Garden of the Gods. Fifteen minutes from the Manitou Springs station of the Pikes Peak Cog Railway (or ten minutes from downtown), the Garden is an almost other-worldly collection of rock formations that are so big and so spectacular that they simply defy belief. You haven't seen them until you've seen them up close and personal. 

 I had the amazing experience of seeing them at (a cloudy) sunset, driving through the park, long designated as one of America's Top Ten Great Public spaces, on a beautiful fall afternoon when there were very few other people around, making it an even more spectacularly eerie experience. I recommend doing it this way.

Looking up towards a cloud-shrouded Pikes Peak

Stopping at the Visitor's Centre first up is a smart idea. You can pick up maps and learn more about the various formations. From there, you can self navigate, stopping as many - or as few - times as you wish at various formations. There are dozens of walking trails branching off from the main road, and with amazing vistas at every corner, all of it in the impressively foreboding shadow of Pikes Peak, it's pretty much impossible to take a bad photo. Just point and shoot - in any direction, you'll capture something incredible.

Moon, clouds, sky: a fall sunset in Colorado

***

The United States Air Force Academy is another must-visit when you're in Colorado Springs. It boasts one of the most picturesque of any college campus in America - the world? - sitting snugly against the mountains, and with the beautifully-designed Cadet Chapel as it's piece de resistance. The striking design of a row of seventeen spires pointing up into the air. 

Walk up from the USAF Academy Visitor's Centre to the Chapel

Standing at 150 feet tall and 280 feet long, the Chapel is perhaps the most distinctive building anywhere in Colorado Springs, and the focal point for visitors to the USAF Academy. Parking at the Visitor's Centre - where you can buy just about anything with the logo of the United States Air Force emblazoned on it - you make a short walk up a steep hill and on to the Cadet Chapel. It's hard not to be blown away by the majesty of the facility, which cost $3.5 million to build, because it's so impressively tall, towering over everything else around it.

A replica fighter jet on the grounds of the USAF Academy

Be there at sunset, as I was on my first visit there, and it's particularly spectacular. A fitting end to a good day. If you're looking for a spectacular place to visit, with natural splendor as far as the eye can see, you'll enjoy Colorado Springs!

Leafs vs. Canadiens Gets Ugly On Hockey Day

So it was Hockey Day in Canada and it happened that arch-rivals Montreal and Toronto were squaring off inside Bell Centre, into which nearly 22,000 absolutely fanatical Canadiens fans pack for every home game. This, though, was a contest that anyone in red, white and blue will want to forget. Toronto came out and punched the Habs in the mouth again and again and again for a 6-0 victory: a high point for the Leafs and a definite low point for the Canadiens.

How much of a rout was this? Toronto's much-maligned Phil Kessel got onto the scoreboard, his second tally, and one that will probably only marginally ease the pressure he's under in Toronto. Also in the Maple Leafs dog house, Dion Phaneuf. The Toronto captain scored his first of the year. A guyy you probably haven't even heard of - Leo Komarov - scored a goal. Noted goon Colton Orr, no stranger to going dozens of games without appearing on the score sheet, notched an assist. I mean, the Canadiens got beaten by every guy on the ice in white and blue. It was a nationally-televised rout that was ripped from Montreal fans' nightmares.

Late in the contest, which had been chippy from the outset - as befitting a big-time rivalry game on a day that celebrates everything that makes Hockey and Canada so amazing - got real wild. There was a scrum along the boards, during which Toronto's Mikhail Grabovski bites the hand of Canadien skater Max Pacioretty. Don't believe me? Have a look-see below:

The footage is pretty conclusive. That's a cold-hard bite right there, sparking ugly memories of similar action in the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals, when Alexandre Burrows did some of that sort of work...and was incredibly deemed to be "inconclusive" by the National Hockey League. It will be interesting to see what the League says about this. In any event, what we saw today has absolutely no place in the NHL. Grabovski should be ashamed and embarassed.

But that wasn't all. Late in a 6-0 rout, Colton Orr took a giant run at Tomas Plekanec and this happened:

This just in from the realm of Not-Fair-Contests. Orr and the Toronto big boys were out against Plekanec, Josh Georges, Brian Gionta and others. Frazer McLaren drew Georges, who, admirably, tried to stand his ground, but McLaren does this for a living, and absolutely pulverised the Montreal skater. The referees got in and broke it up before it got real ugly.

Colton Orr went after Brian Gionta...who had some momentary assistance from Rene Bourque. Literally, only for a moment. The Leafs enforcer absolutely knocked Bourque down to the ice with one giant punch. See:

Good life lesson here! I think Bourque might decide, in future, that discretion is the better part of valor where taking on Colton Orr is concerned.

Montreal vs. Toronto, ladies and gentlemen. This rivalry never gets old. The next match-up between these two should be interesting.

Johnathan Toews & Angry Cat: Separated At Birth

This just in, Chicago Blackhawks star Johnathan Toews looks a lot like Angry Cat. Separated at birth?

The similarity is uncanny!!

Super Bowl XLVII

I wrote in my Super Bowl XLVII half time analysis:

"...another score early for the Ravens and it might be all over. That said, San Francisco have a habit of coming back. Tough road, this one - and it'll be the biggest Super Bowl comeback. So Kaepernick and company are going to really earn the Lombardi Trophy if they can get it. Baltimore need to keep playing. The 49ers can kill you with big plays..."

And boy, was I right on nearly every count! As far as wild finishes go, Super Bowl XLVII had everything you could imagine and more. If this was the first ever NFL game you watched, regardless of whether you yet understand the rules or the game's nuances, it doesn't get much more dramatic than that last thirty minutes of football to decide the 47th National Football League Champion.

First, it was Jacoby Jones breaking an NFL record for the longest play in history with his 109-yard kickoff return touchdown to begin the third - it was later adjusted to 108 yards, tying the previous best mark - then a crazy power outage in the Mercedes Benz Superdome that stopped the game for more than thirty minutes (and probably helped the 49ers compose themselves in the face of an onslaught), followed by a furious San Francisco comeback that was just - only just - quelled in a desperate fourth-and-goal play with less than two minutes left to play...and potentially there was a holding call missed on that game-deciding play.

In hindsight, perhaps we shouldn't have been surprised. The 49ers have made a habit of breathtaking last-minute comebacks this year, and they've bounced back from adversity throughout the playoffs. It was Kaepernick's early pick-6 against Green Bay and the red hot Matt Ryan/Julio Jones combo against Atlanta, and the Niners always seemed to be able to come back. Perhaps, if the call had gone differently - a flag bringing about a fresh set of downs inside the 2-minute warning rather than a no-call that seemed to thoroughly confuse Phil Simms in the CBS booth - San Francisco might've gone 3-3. 

Alas, it was not to be and Joe Flacco, whose postseason has been as historical as it's been electrifying, led Baltimore to it's second ever Super Bowl win, Ray Lewis, the oft-discussed and rather controversial linebacker for the Ravens gets his fairytale ending - deserved or otherwise is wide-open for debate, as wide open as Jacoby Jones was on his first half TD grab off the Flacco bomb - in the Battle of the Harbaugh Brothers. All signs indicated a pretty brilliant Super Bowl, and this game certainly didn't disappoint.

Congratulations, Baltimore. Roll on 2013!

Super Bowl XLVII - Half Time Analysis

Well, the 49ers should, by all rights, be winning this game. A couple of mistakes and a few instances where they've suffered from a lack of execution, and they trail 21-3. My, how the pendulum can swing. Kaepenick's INT (the first by a San Francisco QB in Super Bowl history) was delivered on a silver platter for Ed Reed. That was an ugly play. But not as ugly as Culliver being blown by Jacoby Jones for the big score just before the half. The guy who's talked trash all week and all game looked pretty dumb there. Just shut up and play, alright? 49ers needed a touchdown at the end of the half. Field goal might not be enough.

Baltimore have taken full advantage of every opportunity laid in their laps. That call for a fake field goal down inside the San Francisco red zone was an interesting call. I wouldn't have made it - asking your punter to find 9 yards is a big ask. A BIG ask. But anyway, it worked out pretty well for the Ravens. Kaepernick almost threw his second howler of an INT on the ensuing possession, and the Baltimore ended up getting the football back on a three-and-out, anyway. 

Looking ahead to the second half: another score early for the Ravens and it might be all over. That said, San Francisco have a habit of coming back. Tough road, this one - and it'll be the biggest Super Bowl comeback. So Kaepernick and company are going to really earn the Lombardi Trophy if they can get it. Baltimore need to keep playing. The 49ers can kill you with big plays. The second they try to milk the clock, that's trouble. John Harbaugh's gotta know that. Surely.

I think Baltimore might just win this, and Ray Lewis gets his fairytale ending.

Super Bowl XLVII - My Prediction

My heart says Baltimore, but my head says San Francisco. I just think Colin Kaepernick is the wild card in this game, and I'm not sure that the Ravens defense - as good as they are - can do enough to limit the big plays that the 49ers quarterback is going to make. Nothing seems to faze Kaepernick. He makes a bad play, comes out next possession and does something extraordinary. So, San Francisco win 28-21 and Kaepernick makes enough bamboozling plays that he wins MVP.

Here it is...

Waited a long time, through a lot of hype, build-up and game narratives. Finally ready for sixty minutes to decide it. Really, take away all of the coverage, the parties, the media days, endless TV coverage, and everything else, and it comes down to 22 guys on the field at any given time, playing for sixty minutes, and the team with the most points on the board at the end becomes the 47th National Football League champion. That's pretty simple. Let's go!!!!

Movie Review: Zero Dark Thirty

Zero Dark Thirty (2013)
Starring: Jessica Chastain, Mark Strong, Kyle Chandler, Dan Clarke, Joel Edgerton
Director: Katherine Bigelow

Kitch's Rating: 9.8/10

Mild spoilers ahead

In a word: spellbinding.

The director-writer team of Katherine Bigelow and Mark Boal scored big with 2009's The Hurt Locker and have followed up that brilliant film with this, the dramatisation of the ten-year hunt for Osama Bin Laden. The Al Qaeda henchman, responsible for masterminding the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York City, had proven to be a tough catch, escaping out from under the noses of American forces during the Battle of Tora Bora in late 2001, the world's most wanted terrorist had gone to ground, despite the exhaustive efforts of American intelligence to smoke him out.

Eventually, they did, culminating in a May 2011 raid into Abbotabad, Pakistan, where Bin Laden was cornered and killed by US Navy SEALs. The film, pulsating, tense, dramatic and full of interesting moral questions regarding torture - or, as it is more properly known, enhanced interrogation techniques - begins with some confronting and disturbing scenes of those enhanced interrogation techniques in action. The first life and colour you see features Australian actor Jason Clarke, as a CIA interrogator, doing some pretty horrible things to an unnamed terrorist believed to somehow be involved in moving money around for Al Qaeda assets and operations.

These scenes, during which no one in the cinema appears particularly comfortable (and nor should they be) are slightly preceded by a black, empty screen whilst a compilation of radio transmission and mobile phone calls from the morning of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York City, and thus begins the theme of revenge that is central in the next two and a half hours of film. As the years slide by, and the hunt for Bin Laden, spearheaded by a CIA analyst named Maya, gains momentum. Some of it is luck but a lot of it is solid intelligence work, championed by the almost obsessive Maya, who, as she tells CIA Director Leon Panetta (James Gandolfini) in one memorable scene, hasn't worked on anything else in her Agency career since being recruited out of high school. Just Bin Laden.

There are no sides taken in this film. Impartiality is king, and there are scenes that'll make you smile, scenes that uncomfortable, and others that are just plain horrible. Bigelow and Boal tell the story and it's left up to the viewer to decide, for themselves, the merits of what is shown on the screen. This is one of the film's great strengths, and part of why, aside from the way the narrative progresses, that Zero Dark Thirty is being hailed by critics everywhere. Nor is there any overt American flag waving - the sort that a director like Jerry Bruckheimer likes to employ - and it only adds to the almost documentary feel of the movie.

Right from the get-go, from those opening scenes - you don't have to wait long to see what most of the controversy surrounding this film is all about, and it's done fairly quickly, too - to a team of CIA analysts piecing together the tangled trail to Bin Laden that begins with the identification of a courier who may or may not be working for the man Maya and her colleagues know simply as "UBL". There are moments where the whole world seems to be against Maya, and she's not at all afraid to take risky - to the furtherment of her career, at least - stands for what she believes in. When no one else holds much faith in the courier being their link to Bin Laden

Then comes the final, climactic raid by members of the US Navy's SEAL Team Six, the "Canaries" as they are called by some White House staffer - Australians Joel Edgerton and Callan Mulvey - into the high-walled Abbotabad, Pakistan complex where Bin Laden had been hiding for many years. Even though you know great chunks of what's happening or about to happen in this film, it's still gripping stuff.

The final raid is as tense as anything prior to it, and filmed, mostly, in the illuminate green that the SEAL raiders would have seen events through, thanks to their use of Night Vision Goggles in the dark house. It only made the raid seem more realistic. The slick professionals barely had a chance to register what they'd done, who they'd killed, before they were yanked out of Pakistan.

Fittingly, the final scene - and the official confirmation - is left to Chastain's character (for which she may well win Best Actress at the Oscars), and when she unzips the body bag to stare into the dead face of the man she's hunted for so many years, the look on her own face is one of immense relief. But where does someone who has spent so many years obsessively looking for one man go from here? It's a good question, and one that could be applied to the United States of America, too.