Classic Motorcycle Show

 The New Plymouth Classic Motorcycle Show was packed, even though it was being held over two days.  This 1960 BSA 600cc jumped out at me - wanting to be sketched.  

Speedway Midgets

 A well attended proud display remembering Taranaki Speedway midgets.  Apparently pre 70's it was the place to go along with the movies

Fitzroy Motor Camp

 Summer camp - gorgeous weather with the world's second bluest sky

Wedding preparation at the Fitzroy Motor Camp - bridal doll just fixed to the grill

St Andrews

 

Sitting in the shade of a petrol station, using a fat 0.5 fineliner, I dashed off the fiddly bits by the roof and spire.  Sometimes the police spy from the base of the palm trees to spot drivers on their cell phones at the stop lights, and radio ahead to cops waiting further on.  I've sketched them doing this. An effective method that brings in many punters.

Infusion Food

 The vendor kindly swapped a plate of beef for a copy of my sketch.  Back to the days of singing for your supper - quite satisfying.

Palestine Protest

 Looking for reportage opportunities, we spotted this protest concerned about the annexation of Palestine.  They were at the Landing (where the original ship's passengers came ashore in New Plymouth). Apparently the protester numbers had doubled to four since their June protest.

1862 NZ Villa

 The Taranaki Sketchers were sketching early villas in the same area this past weekend.  This colourful old lady built in 1862 had its frontage added in the 1870's

Alfa Romeos

 A calm New Plymouth morning found 50 Alfa Romeos from all over New Zealand parked up by the sea for their 'Show and Shine'.

Spider

The oldest there - 1958

All the way from Christchurch - with some coaxing when starting

I gather the cross is derived from the Milanese warriors, the right hand snake part was the symbol of the influential Visconti family.  The crown for when they became dukes in the 15th Century.  However I was puzzled about the bloke in the snakes mouth.  One owner suggested it represented a Saracen.  Alfa = Anonimea Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili. Originally made in Milan in 1910, it was bought by Nicola Romeo in 1915.  The company now owned by Fiat produces in the centre of the country in San Germano, not far from the site of the Battle of Monte Cassino - known to many New Zealanders.

Pou

 The installation of our pou was a good excuse to invite our Taranaki Sketchers around.  Kowhaiwhai patterns in aluminum at the base aim to enhance the story.  Like many pous it tells a story, in our case about our family, background, interests and origins.  The waka (for us, the ships our families immigrated on) are silhouetted with dates and ship names.  Sketching as a skill was helpful in developing each part and the overall concept.  It even includes the spacecraft our son designs.  The Southern Cross at the top is also echoed in one of the waka names - SS Zuiderkruis.  Of course I had to include me sketching in the carving. So I guess I was sketching me sketching!

The White Hart Hotel

 Rejuvinated  1886 White Hart Hotel next to the clocktower - where the infamous Highwayman made a robbery (and had a drink), was a hospital for the Redcoats,  and home to gangs, bands and punks

https://www.westendprecinct.nz/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/White-Hart-Hotel.jpg

 

Today's new The Good Home Rooftop Bar

Fenton St Arts Collective

The Fenton St Arts Collective in Stratford is well worth a look. Gallery, Espresso Bar and Distillery (Gin)  Jo and Stuart have a special spot in this vintage building.  Jo is very accomplished at figure and portraiture.

California Dreamin

Our son's wedding took us to CA to negotiate the 16 lane freeways and cloverleafs.  Still a little time for this around the happy event:

Sleepy and with definite aroma, these sea lions at La Jolla  put up with the tourists close on the rocks.  The cormorants guano provided the most distinction.  A photographer with 3m lens told us they had sprayed the guano that morning to appease the inhabitants and tourists.

Variety at the famous San Diego Zoo.

Some mighty colourful lizarrds and snakes peered back through the glass at the zoo.

Simple Soledad Mission, one of many within a day's ride of each other  right up California

.  This one off the beaten track in the middle of the market garden region, all labour was Hispanic.

Loved this tin Ford Tri Motor at the San Diego Air and Space Museum at  Balboa Park.  Something  I imagine Indiana Jones or Tin Tin would fly in.

This defended the gates of Fort Hunter Liggett.  An Army base well off the freeway.

Bronze of 'The Top Men' hauling in the sheets at Dana Point, adjacent to a well restored whaler 'Boston' smelling of tar and garnered in 100's of miles of ropes.

One of Rodin's Thinkers, this one at Stanford University, Palo Alto - among 90 of his other works.  I was surprised he was a turn of the century guy.  Really early.

Permian Period

Puke Ariki Museum has a moving, growling exhibition attracting hordes of kids (and kids at heart) - the period before the dinosaurs, the Permian Period 260 million years ago.

My mum was as usual more prolific with her sketches than me

Texas & Michigan

The Dinky Drum Co entertaining the Houston Museum of Fine Art patrons outdoors - 35C

Items in the Houston Museum of Fine arts.  The mayor of Grenoble commissioned a bronze of Napoleon (because his second entry to France from Corsica came up through there).  However he changed his mind so much, this Marquette is all that is left, bought by a French officer who carried it in a special box from garrison to garrison.

Henry Ford museum of Innovation - Detroit.  The German Dr just shipped his $34,000 Italian beauty to China before Hitler took over, then just shipped it out to Canada before the Japanese entered China...

Weird cross between a traction engine and a train.  Who knows what goes on at night in the museum.  There were many trains in there.

Neath the spreading chestnut tree the village....

Thorny the glistening blacksmith pounded out railway spikes on a sweltering day at the Extravaganza Fair

1988 Mercedez Benz U1700

To keep up with Brian and Murray's truck exuberance, this Merc was parked up for the Naval celebrations for the final visit of HMNZS Endeavour's last visit to her home port of New Plymouth before being decommissioned.  They came bands playing and bayonets fixed.

Jackie and I happened to be enshrined for posterity in this video clip - about the 50sec spot

https://www.facebook.com/seeitinthecity/videos/895303103965585/

Licorice, Cinnamon and Ricotta

Three regulars in the farmyard section of the Brooklands zoo are Cinnamon, Ricotta and Licorice the alpacas.   Throw in some kunekune (wild pigs) and an Aussie import - the Brolga from Queensland.
My mum sketching next to me had little kids lining up in front of her waiting to have their portraits done.  Six pages left in her sketchbook wasn't enough!

La la land & the land where everything is bigger

On the way

26 miles to Catalina Island - do you know the song?  Take the cat from Long Beach to Avalon

The casino - not a real one, but uses the real Italian meaning of 'gathering place'

Caltech graduation - our trip's purpose - hot, happy occasion - finally a hoodie after 9 yrs!

Pasadena Jet Propulsion Lab, near Caltech - Mars Curiosity rover - 1 tonne size of a car

Clean room - in bunny suits - assembling the 2020 successor to Curiosity - Curiosity on steroids. Many years ago in Florida, we'd seen the same meticulous scene assembling the International space station.

3hrs to Texas, just USD180 for your boots

Many wonderful museums

Galveston tall ship "Elissa" - volunteers tarring ropes with half a dozen oil drilling rigs in the background.

Galveston bar

Behind the scenes for 7 hrs at the Johnson Space Center

Mission Control

Apollo series Saturn V

Astronaut chrysalis - just out of the neutral buoyancy pool (whole replica of the Space Station underwater for practicing on)

Bat colony - at dusk quarter of a million bats go out to dine over the bayou....

Artcar musuem