2018 in Review (a little late)

2018 began with a photo shoot for Cincinnati Refined.  This is called Broomball.  Players wear gym shoes instead of skates and use a broom-shaped stick to slap the ball into the opposing goal.

Here are additional shoots I did for them.  This annual event was called the Polar Plunge…burr.

The Benison Event Center in Hamilton, Ohio.  At one time, it was a bank.

The Monkey Bar & Grille in Maineville, Ohio (a suburb of Cincinnati)

Ludlow Garage, Cincinnati, Ohio

Wine Over Water, held on the Purple People Bridge (a pedestrian only bridge), featuring wine merchants from around the area, live music, and general mingling fun in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The UniverSoul Circus was a quite spectacular!

The annual Flying Pig Marathon.  This was the women’s champion.  I got a little emotional while taking this photo.

The Camargo Hunter Trials in Indian Hill, Ohio was a great event for action shots!

I was very busy growing my business, Cincinnati Urban Adventures.  I had hired two freelance Tour Guides in 2017 and together we took 1000 people on tours (anywhere from 1-12 people per tour unless it was a private tour).  By the end of 2018, I had hired an additional 3 guides and we took 1700 people on tour.  We moved into first place on Trip Advisor!

I did a handful of photo shoots for my business Sherry Lachelle Photography…

A senior photo shoot

For a friend’s new business website…

On June 2nd, my husband of 22 years, passed away from Cardiac Arrest.  I gave him CPR until the medics arrived.  This is the last photo I took of he and our dog, just a few weeks previously.

We lived on 5 acres in the country (only 40 minutes from downtown Cincinnati) and for the following 11 months before selling our home, I had the huge task of selling most everything he/we had accumulated through the years.  Some of the big items were a boat, Harley, hot tub, jeep, truck, car, tractor, log splitter, and so much more…4 bicycles, 3 chain saws, 3 lawn mowers, 3 ladders, snow blower, power washer, welder, hunting, fishing, golfing stuff, so many tools.

I was devastated.  My son was devastated.  He was closer to Randy (his step-dad) than his own father. 

Later that year, my son and his girlfriend announced their engagement.

I went to an outdoor concert with friends and it poured rain the entire time.

Went boating with a girlfriend…

I visited a friend in Dunedin, Florida for a week in December…

I was so happy my son joined me at my brother’s house Christmas Day. His fiance chose to stay at her family’s.

After Randy’s passing, so many things reminded me of him, coming across food items he liked while at the grocery, hearing a Harley’s rumble, and of course Face book gives you reminders.

There were other family and friends get-togethers throughout the year.  I tried my best to cope with the grief and have a happy and full life. 

2017 in Review (a little late)

2017 began with me on assignment at the Casino in Cincinnati for Cincinnati Refined.  A very colorful and loud party to photograph.

I continued finding much joy taking photos in my free time…like the sunrise captured in this church window a couple of minutes from our place in the country.

and Fountain Square in downtown Cincinnati at night…

The Licking Riverside Historic District in Covington, Kentucky with a beautiful view of Cincinnati’s skyline.

Get-togethers with friends…

Over-The-Rhine, Cincinnati, Ohio

Family time…

My brother, sister-in-law, nephew, and niece.

I was busy growing my new business, Cincinnati Urban Adventures.  Friends accompanied me on trial runs for some of the tours.

The Carew Tower, Cincinnati, Ohio

My husband, son, and a girlfriend were models on my Over-the-Rhine Sights and Bites tour for my website.

I hired a few models for my Beyond the River tour in Covington, Kentucky.

Here are some of the photos shoots I did for Cincinnati Refined…

Cumberland Falls, Kentucky
Eighteen at the Radisson – a revolving restaurant on top of the Radisson Hotel
Cabana on the River, Cincinnati, Ohio
Diner en Blanc (everyone wears white and brings everything for the party including chairs/tables, decorations, food, drinks)
Taste of Cincinnati, an annual event
The Renaissance Festival
The Circus School, Cincinnati, Ohio
Danger Wheel
The Thanksgiving Day Race – I got up very early to be downtown in time and it was cold!
The La Boheme Opera at the Aronoff Center in Downtown, Cincinnati

I began managing an Airbnb located in Covington, Kentucky…

I had a few photo shoots for my own company, Sherry Lachelle Photography. A senior photo shoot…

A family photo shoot…

I was the Tour Guide and Photographer for a wedding with 40 people.  It was 5 hours long, but everything went smoothly.

And I photographed my first gay wedding – 2 beautiful ladies.

I attended an annual weeklong Urban Adventures meeting in Portugal and arranged a trip to follow for a few friends.  They met me in Lisbon, Portugal, where we saw the sights for a few days before moving on to Seville and Granada, Spain.

The La Alhambra, Granada, Spain
The Plaza de Espana, Seville, Spain

Cheers – Salud!

My husband and I were able to get away to Florida for a week in December.

As you can see, my year was very busy, filled mostly with photography and growing my business, with a little travel sprinkled in.

Best hiking in Ohio

Remember the handsome and helpful Park Rangers I mentioned in my last post about hiking the Ledges, well this is the gorge they told me to visit instead of going to Rocky River Reservation.  It’s called High Bridge Glens Park and there’s an overlook that you would easily overlook (no pun intended) unless someone in the “know” told you about it.  As I walked out and saw the view, I literally said “wow” out loud!

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Looking to the left, I changed from my wide-angle lens to my 18-200 zoom lens and captured this series of cascading waterfalls way down below…

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I got back in my car and drove a couple of miles down the road to hike the Gorge Trail.  All of this area is part of the one of the Metroparks…

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There are two trails and one of them was down by this lake, so I decided to see where it took me…

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I came to a boardwalk…

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that led me to this cascading waterfall that I’m assuming is a dam…

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After that gulp of beauty, I drove to Brandywine Falls and walked along a boardwalk until I came to these stairs…

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and another boardwalk…

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to these stairs and alas…we can see the falls!

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It’s beautiful, but I’ve heard when there’s been a lot of rain and in the spring they’re even better!

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Stepping back to take in the view…

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and down the boardwalk we go to another vantage point up above to see them.  I took a photo from that view also, but it’s better in person.

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I probably got in a total of 4 miles of hiking.  Cleveland’s Metroparks are amazing!

Hiking the Ledges in Cuyahoga Valley National Park

I’ve hiked all over the world, but absolutely loved my 1.8 mile hike at the Ledges in Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio!  It was my third and final day in the Cleveland area and the Ledges were first on my Itinerary for the day.  In contrast to the hot sunny day yesterday for biking, this day was overcast and a bit humid.

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These rocks were so massive and they went on and on for most of the trail!  I was happy to see a few people along the trail to provide a perspective of the scale of the beautiful formations…

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Backing up to my arrival at the trail head.  I ran into these two friendly Park Rangers who gave me pointers about the trail and also information about their recommendations for hiking at the area Metroparks later in the day.

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I entered the trail here…

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Very green and serene.  I felt like I had entered the enchanted forest…

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Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio has six floors of memorabilia, history, and amazing exhibits of the music and artists that were/are passionate about this genre of music; and how it has evolved thru time.  The architecture of the building itself is amazing!

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Good thing I had my wide angle lens with me!

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Rock and Roll in particular has been very vocal in the political arena and continues to lobby for positive changes our society wants and needs!  Also, spreading the message of love, peace, and acceptance!

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How cool are these!

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and from the back…

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Urban Hike in Cleveland

The last time I was in Cleveland was the year 1963 and all I remember is sticking my hand out of the car window to pet a policeman’s horse to only have it slobbered on!  Well, Cleveland definitely impressed me this time!  She has whimsical toys for children in front of the Science Museum…

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I awoke early (as usual), and after a 30 minute drive from my Airbnb, arrived downtown at 7:15am.  My first stop was going to be the West Side Market, but they were closed…so I changed gears and walked all over downtown, lots of miles, and took the free trolleys a couple of times.

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A visit to the Victorian era Arcade in the Gateway District was on my agenda.  I wanted to go to the second or third level, but the Hyatt Regency doesn’t allow non-guests upstairs…

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This outdoor seating area is great!

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The Old Stone Church is lovely…

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The Fountain of Eternal Life is beautiful!

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Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in Cuyahoga Valley National Park

The 85 mile long Ohio & Erie Towpath Trail runs through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio (near Cleveland) and I have to admit I didn’t know there was a National Park in Ohio until a couple of months ago!  When I found out, I decided to see it as soon as possible.  I planned my three day itinerary after booking an Airbnb.  Located less than four hours from my house near Cincinnati, I began my adventure bicycling 21 miles along the trail from the Big Bend trail head in Akron to the Canal Exploration Center trail head closer to Cleveland, and then took the Scenic Train through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park back to my car.  It’s only $3.00 for bicyclists to ride one way!  There are 13 trail heads within the Park.

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As you can see, the trail is beautiful!  There’s construction going on between the sections of Big Bend and Botzum and not much scenery, so I would begin in Botzum.

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I bicycled day before yesterday, a Wednesday, so there weren’t many people on it, which was nice.

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The Beaver Marsh area is really cool…didn’t see a beaver though.

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There were frogs and turtles…

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I Made the Sun Disappear at Auschwitz

I planned our visit to Auschwitz on the last day of our eight country…33 day European adventure and was hoping for overcast skies to match the horrific history of this place.  Unfortunately, it was a bright blue beautiful day, but I made the sun disappear…

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While touring the Auschwitz and Birkenau camps, things I had read ran through my head.  Over 1 million people murdered here.  I tried not to think about it and focused on taking photographs…I wished I could go back in time and save them!

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A Rainy Day in Krakow

Sometimes it even rains when you’re on vacation, which is fine with me, so long as it’s not an all-day pounding rain!  It makes everything look different and there are cool reflections…

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and the sky is interesting!

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Some times (not for this photo) umbrellas are fun to photograph…

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I love to photograph entryways, tunnels, etc.

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A Sunny Day in Krakow

I reserved three spots on a train from Warsaw to Krakow a month in advance of our travel date to make sure I received the lowest price.  On July 2nd we boarded the 8:25am train and arrived in Krakow at 10:49am.  I then purchased our bus tickets while still at the train/bus station for our trip to Auschwitz two days later.  I couldn’t find an online site to purchase them before I left the United States.  We had about an hour to kill before we could check-in at our Airbnb, so we walked to a restaurant across the street from the train station for lunch.  After walking 10 minutes to our Airbnb and dropping our luggage, we strolled through Planty Park and made our way to the main market square.  These are some of the sights we passed…

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On a warm day, water fountains are quite popular…

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and the children really enjoyed the misting water…

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The View from St. Anne’s Church in Warsaw

If you’re looking for a great spot to climb up for a beautiful view of Old Town Warsaw, St. Anne’s Church is the place!  As I was surveying the scenery, I noticed a Nun cutting flowers…

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Here’s part of Old Town Warsaw…

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Love tiled roofs, dormer windows and color…

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Simply beautiful…

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I heart Warsaw!

The Streets of Warsaw, Poland

With only 1 1/2 days to explore Warsaw, I made the best use of my time walking the streets and taking lots of photographs!

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Warsaw was much prettier than what I had envisioned.  I loved all of the quaint sidewalk cafes!

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The center of Old Town was much like that of the other Eastern European cities we visited.

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The Central Market was well stocked and very nicely laid out!

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Lazienski Park in Warsaw, Poland

We arrived in Warsaw on June 30th via the 7 1/2 hr. Lux Express bus from Vilnius, Lithuania, and took a taxi 1 1/2 miles to our Airbnb.  After meeting with our host and dropping our luggage, we walked a couple of miles to the gorgeous Lazienski Park.  The 187 acre park is Warsaw’s largest, and dates back to the 17th century.

The Palace on the Water in the Park was even prettier in person!

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We explored the lovely interior…

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Out on the terrace, a couple of peacocks were making lots of noise (maybe it was mating season).  They are my favorite bird!

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Magnificent Trakai Island Castle in Lithuania

Situated only 45 minutes bus ride from Vilnius, Lithuania, Trakai Island Castle is a perfect day trip.  The morning of June 29th, I escorted my tour participants to the Central bus stop in Vilnius, a 15 minute walk from our Airbnb for the short ride to Trakai.  The buses run every 10-20 minutes per day to Trakai and cost about 2 Euro each way.

The bus lets you off about 2 km away from Trakai Castle, so I was glad we arrived early enough to walk to the Castle before it opened at 10:00am.  Having seen photos of the Castle, I was so excited when it finally came into view.  It’s like a fairy book castle!

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The first phase of the Castle was built-in the 14th Century and had great military strategic importance.

Beyond the gate is a spacious courtyard.  Once inside, we agreed to meet back in an hour and went off exploring on our own.

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The drawbridge is massive!  Those are people standing beyond the door…

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It’s set up like a museum now, with lots of artifacts and exhibits from the Castle’s history.

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As you can see, the weather gods were shining on us yet again!

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I just had to pose in the guillotine type structure.  It was heavy!  That’s my purse hanging down on the right.

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Uzutrakis Palace is off to the left of Trakai Palace…

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Here are my tour participants, Paul and Jing…

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After our explorations, we had lunch at one of the outdoor cafes bordering the lake with a view of the castle!

Views from Gediminas Tower in Vilnius, Lithuania

If you’re looking for some wonderful views in Vilnius, Lithuania, head to Gediminas Tower!

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We arrived just as they were opening at 10:00am and began climbing to the top…

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Paul and Jing — bringing up the rear…

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