Karen Kay Buckley

Last weekend I made my way to Long Island, New York to visit the Evening Star Quilters in Mineloa.  Susan, my contact with the guild, had things very well organized.  Both of the workshops were held at the hotel where I was staying during my visit to the guild.  The classroom was about 10 doors down from my hotel room.  That was one of the easiest trips from my hotel room to the classroom ever.  The only thing easier would have been if the classes were in my hotel room!  I do like Long Island but as I mentioned getting there is a  (bleeped out) *********.  I really, really dislike that drive and I always seem to make one wrong turn.  It seems like my car always wants to go through the Holland Tunnel.  Not fun.  I am so thankful for my GPS system or I’d still be driving around Manhattan.  And as mentioned in previous blogs….just because I forgot to take photos at this guild does not mean I did not have a great time.  It was real pleasure to work with this guild and I will be returning to Long Island in the fall.

A couple of weeks ago I had two contractors in my studio to give me some bids on making some changes in my sewing room.   One of the contractors, Lewie, said, “Hey, why don’t you move out over the garage (where Joe has his man cave) and Joe could move up here?”  I said to Lewie, “Why don’t you mention that to Joe and see what happens?”  Of course Lewie said he was not going to bring it up ever again.  After the contractors left with all the measurements they needed I told Joe what Lewie had suggested and commented that I would never move over the garage to the man cave as that is Joe’s spot.  Joe immediately said, “That is a great idea”.  He said you need more space and I need less space so let’s make the change.  So, this past weekend we moved everything out of the man cave and into one of the bays in the garage until the renovations are done.  Lewie came in Tuesday and started on the shelves and design board.

One side will be shelves and the other side a design board.

By Thursday Lewie had the design board wall built and the the big shelving unit built.  One side shelves…

….. the other side design wall.  The height of this design wall is 10 feet.  This is one of the things I am very excited about.  In my previous studio the ceiling height is only around 7 feet.  So, all of the bigger quilts I have designed end up partially on the design board and partially on the floor.  Now they will be entirely on the design board.  I’m excited.

I’ll keep you posted as the progress continues.  This week I picked my paint color, Woodlawn Dewkist.  It’s a white that matches the white of the shelving.  And I picked the carpet that I want.  I have it narrowed down to two colors.  It is a light to medium beige shade.  I also had time this week to look at lighting and to talk to a lighting engineer at Yale Lighting.  Now I just need to make a decision on just what lights I want and where I want them.

Here are a few signs of spring in my area.  Remember I told you several blogs ago that April showers bring May flowers.  Well…….because of all the rain we’ve had the flowers this spring are really incredible.  The colors this year seem more vivid than usual.

I took these photos from a neighbors yard.  Tonight while she’s fast asleep I think I’ll dig some up and move them to my yard.  She has lots of them.  I don’t think she’ll miss them.  (Just kidding)

Enjoy your spring.  My next adventures take me to Virginia and Reno, Nevada.  I have been in Virginia many times because of its proximity to Pennsylvania.  But, this will be my first time in Reno.  I am a Reno virgin!

I honestly think the Outer Banks in North Carolina is one of the most enjoyable places for a week of R&R.  We have been going at least once a year and sometimes twice a year for the past twenty years.  It is a great week to do nothing.  I do check my email but otherwise I’m doing just the things I want to do.  I read several books which I’ll talk about at the end of the blog…did a little sewing…walked on the beach with Joe and the girls (my dogs) …..and vegged.  My kind of vacation.  Here are some of the things I saw this week.

Wild horses on the beach.

Doesn’t this look relaxing?

The lighthouse in Corolla.

Several years ago while were where in the Outer Banks area I yelled at Joe to stop the car, on a lightly traveled 2 lane road, and I jumped out and saved a turtle that was trying to get across the road.  I think one of these turtles is one of the ones I saved years ago!  That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Joe took this photo while sitting on the beach in front of the house we rented.  We always see the dolphins but this year we never saw them until the last day. ” Catch a wave and I’m sittin’ on the top of the world”  is not just a human sentiment.

Thanks for allowing me to share a small portion of my week with you.  I feel so relaxed.  Hope that feeling lasts….because this week I have to drive to Long Island and I have to be honest, I love the people there, but I hate the drive.  There are some rather aggressive drivers as you get close to New York City.  Now, if they all took a vacation at the Outer Banks this week I’ll be in good shape because we’ll all be relaxed.

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OK, here are some book reviews from books I read while at the beach.

The first book I dove into was “Charley’s Web” by Joy Fielding.  Charlotte Charley Webb is a columnist for the Palm Beach Post.  She is a single mother with two children.  Her columns in the paper are sometimes controversial.  She is strong willed and has recently reconnected with her mother who left her with her father when she was eight.  Jill Rohmner, a convicted child killer lures Charley into writing her biography.  The story has some good twists and kept me wanting to see how it all ended.  A great beach read.

Then I read “Summers Child” by Diane Chamberlain.

This is kind of a romance novel of sorts with some interesting characters.  Daria Cato finds a baby abandoned on the beach in Kill Devil Hills, NC.  (Just down the road from where I am sitting on the beach!)  Daria’s family adopts this baby.  Twenty years later Daria is the guardian, after both of her parents pass away, for her sister Shelly who is slightly mentally handicapped.  One of the people who lived in the cul du sac where the Cato’s live is Rory.  He lived in California for the past many years and is the host of a TV show called “True Life Stories”.  Rory was contacted by Shelly to see if he can find her mother who deserted her on the beach.  Rory has his son for the summer and decides it would be fun to bring his teenage son and see if there is the possibility of a TV show based on Shelly’s story.  Rory finds out much more than he ever anticipated.  Another good beach read.

My final book review was my favorite book of the week, “Singing With the Top Down” by Debrah Williamson.  I really liked this book.  One of my favorite books so far this year.  Thirteen year old Pauly Mahoney is the main character.  Pauly and her brother, Buddy, who is eight years old and a polio survivor lose their parents in a freak carnival accident in 1955.  At the funeral services Pauly and her brother overhear family talking about who will be taking them.  They think their grandma will take care of them but soon find out she does not want them but their Aunt Nora does.  Aunt Nora, Pauly and Buddy head out in Aunt Nora’s 1953 Buick Skylark to drive from Oklahoma to California, where Aunt Nora lives.  To safe money and for the adventure of it all Aunt Nora decides they will camp their way across the country, even though she has not camped before.  I loved all of the characters in this book and wished it would keep going.  I was not ready for it to end.  I would highly recommend reading this book.  I know you will love Pauly as much as I did.  Deborah Williamson gives her a voice that will captivate you.

You might think I mistyped the title for this blog.  But no, I made 2 trips to the Chicago area for two different guilds.  I was home four whole days between the two trips.  My first trip to the Windy City was for the Illinois Quilts, Inc. guild.  Jim Pilarski, a simply wonderful guy, was my contact with the guild.  He picked me up and took me to one of their local quilt shops where he teaches and we went to lunch at Jim’s favorite Chinese restaurant.  I am sorry I forgot to take photos of the shop because it was awesome.  (The photo below is from the shop’s website.)  The name of the shop is Fabrics Etc 2 Inc.  www.fabricsetc2.com Check out their website for a tour of the shop.  If you live near Bensenville, Ill, or even if you don’t live close by I think a road trip might be in order!  Jim was so organized and a great sponsor and the guild’s members treated me very well.  I loved my trip to the Illinois Quilts, Inc. guild.

Here are some photos from the workshop.  They are so hard at work they do not have time to look up!

One of the most exciting things for me was that a student, Carole Bates, had taken the Heard It Through the Grapevine workshop with me in the fall and brought her finished block.  I love it.  Carole added some additional elements including lots of hand embroidery and some cute little dimensional flowers in the center. Great job Carol!

I left Chicago for home Saturday night and on Thursday afternoon I was back at the Harrisburg International Airport  heading back to Chicago.  You know you travel a lot when the airline stewardess addresses you by name.  “How are you today Mrs. Buckley”.  The stewardess then asked if I was traveling with my husband.  I looked at him kind of funny.  I was sitting in a single isle by myself.  He told me there was a Mr. Buckley a couple of rows back.  The stewardess thought we might be having an argument!  (I did not know the Mr. Buckley on the plane.)  You also know you travel too much and do it from a small airport when the TAS people know you also!  “Hey Karen where are you headed today?”

My next guild was the Salt Creek Quilters in Hinsdale, Ill.  What a great group of ladies.  Linda Kennedy and Karen Walton were the program chairs.  I really enjoyed working with both of them.  They took very good care of me by sharing the duties of picking me up at the hotel and getting me to the lecture and workshop locations and to some fabulous meals.  I’ve said it many, many times before.  Quilters know the best places to eat.   Here are a couple of photos from the Kansas Rose, machine applique workshop.

Both of my trips to Chicago were rewarding.  When people leave my workshops excited about what they have learned I know I did my job.

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I have not given you a book report recently so here goes.

Highly recommended by lots of students was “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan” by Lisa See.  The story is set in 19th century China.  It tells the story of a lifelong friendship between Lily and Snow Flower.  I learned a lot about the Chinese culture and was captivated by the writer’s story line.  I would definitely add it to your list of must reads if you have not already read it.

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The next book was also recommended by lots of students and was also a very good book.  I think it is my favorite book so far this year.  The name of the book is “Still Alice” and was written by Lisa Genova.    The book is about Alzheimer’s.   The author has years of experience as a neuroscientist and writes a realistic story about Alice Howland who has early onset Alzheimer’s.  The story is heartbreaking and hard to put down.  You fall in love with Alice and feel for her mind altering changes.  This is a must read book.

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Next is a book recommended by my friend Laura.  The title is “Like Dandelion Dust” and was written by Karen Kingsbury.  The story is about the perfect family.  Everything is going great and then the floor falls out, so to speak.  Jack and Molly Campbell have an adopted son.  The biological parents want their son back.  It is a heart wrenching story.

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And the final book for this blog, “The Murder of King Tut” by James Patterson and Martin Dugard.  I listened to this on audio.  I would rate this book as good but not excellent.  It was fun to listen to while I was sewing.  The authors story follows the death of King Tut and the stories that surround it.

Thanks to those of you who tell me you follow my blog and look forward to reading it.  I look forward to writing it and sharing some of my experiences.  My next adventure is to Houston, Texas.  Hope the weather is better there than it has been here.  The weather is living up to the saying “April showers bring May flowers”.  There have been lots of April showers.

This grand adventure took me to the western part of Canada.  I flew into Kelowna and met my guild contact, Val, who drove me to our workshop location in Kamloops.  Here are some of the sights along the way.

There is still snow on the top of the mountains.

One amazing view after another.  I’ll bet in another couple of weeks when the spring flowers start to bloom this place is even more incredible.

The ladies from the Marigold Appliquers guild were just wonderful.  The location for the workshop was excellent.  It was just a short distance from the hotel and it was well lite and the students had plenty of room to work.  Here they are hard at work.

Some of them were crazy enough to spend the entire 5 days with me.  If they weren’t crazy before they started they are now.

OK, which of the two items below do you think are a power bar?  In Canada the top item is a power bar and in the United States the bottom item is a power bar!!!

Each night the ladies took me to some excellent restaurants but we liked one so much we went back a second time.  The one we went back to was a Mongolian restaurant.  When you were ready to eat you took a bowl and went through a line of cut food items which included beef, pork, chicken, tofu, lots of vegetables and sauces.  You filled your bowl and handed it to the chef who then steamed and grilled your items.  The food was excellent.  I really wish we had one of these where I lived.  I would eat there several times a week.

Some of my students who took the first class on machine applique, Oriental Flowers, brought their finished blocks back when they came for another class 2 days later.  Well done ladies.  I am so proud of you.  Below is Brenda Eckstein.

Below is Donna Hartnell.

I had a fabulous time in Canada and hope to return.  The ladies who took my workshops were so kind and full of compliments.  I could not have asked for a better response.

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Mandy Meierotto from Mason City, Iowa sent me a photo of her quilt which she finished after taking my Ocean Sunrise workshop.  Good job Mandy and thanks for sharing.

My next adventure is just a nice short direct flight to the Chicago area.  Looking forward to the windy city.

During the quilt show in Lancaster we had fantastic weather.  Here is a view of this picturesque 1700s city from my hotel window which I enjoyed each morning.

Below are more quilts from the recent AQS show held in Lancaster.

This quilt was made by Connie Brown from Asheville, NC.  She named her quilt “Prints Charming”.  I just thought this was a fun quilt with an amazing variety of fabrics.

“Bear Paw Variation” was made by Colleen Henrichs of Osceola, IA.  I love antique quilts and the fact that we can made a new quilt with reproduction fabrics look as good if not better than the original antique version is wonderful.

Ronda Beyer from Oregon made “Gypsy Rosalie” and it won the Best Wall Quilt award.

When you look at the close-ups below you can see why it won.  Good design and excellent workmanship.

Checkout this machine quilting.  I love the addition of the sparkles.

I am sorry I do not have a full shot of “Hallelujah” made by Sherry Rogers-Harrison from Normandy Park, WA.  But, I wanted to share this with you anyway.  As it was explained to me this started as a white-on-white machine quilted piece and then Sherry paints the surface.  Now that is impressive.  I mean really impressive.  If you Google her name you will find out much more about her and her techniques.  Very cool.

Is this not one of the cutest quilts ever?  I love the design and how the water shines.  Nicely done.  The name of this quilt is “Caught In the Act” and it was made by Barbara Barrick McKie from Lyme, CT.   I have shown other quilts by Barbara in previous blogs. I am a real admirer of her work.  You can find out more about her by going to her website http://www.mckieart.com/

And the last quilt I wanted to share is “A Prairie Remembrance” made by Susan Jackan from Madison, WI.  Just a wonderfully peaceful quilt.

As many quilt shows as I am able to attend and as many quilts as I see, after almost 30 years of quilting, I still am excited and impressed by what is being created.  It is a real feast for the eyes.  Thanks to everyone who shares their quilts.

I say this a lot but I honestly think I am one of the luckiest people on earth.  I get to work at a job that I love.  One of my favorite things is teaching and lecturing on quilting.  It makes me happy to see people get excited about quilting and/or to learn something new that will make them a better quilter.  This is why I teach.  One of my recent trips took me to the Friendship Quilters Guild in Hagerstown, MD.  I have taught workshops for this guild on several occasions over the past many years.   It makes me feel very good when I get invited back to any guild.  Here are some of the ladies hard at work on their hand applique projects.

This guild is very fortunate to have such a great workshop location.  This church room had lots of light-weight tables so they were easy for us to arrange and the lighting was pretty good also.   I think the reason I most enjoy going back to this guild is I have gotten to know some of these ladies over the years and they are one of the kindest and most sincere groups.  They make me feel so welcome I want to keep going back.

My next adventure took me to the American Quilter’s Society Show in Lancaster, PA.  www.americanquilter.com

This is the second year AQS has held this show in Lancaster. They use the Marriott Convention Center for many of the classes, the vendors and the quilt exhibits.  Some of the classes are held in buildings across the street from the convention center.  I taught 2 lectures and 2 workshops while I was there.  Here are just a couple of blocks from my Ocean Sunrise students.  This project is paper pieced and machine appliqued.  The students had a lot to show for the time they spent in class and it was fun to see how excited they were with their results.

One of the most exciting things for me personally was that on Saturday when I was just getting ready for my “Brunch With Karen Kay Buckley” my husband surprised me by showing up for my lecture.  But, even better, Joe brought my dearest friends, Frank and Margaret, along.  It brought tears of joy to my eyes.  Frank and Margaret, who many of you who have taken classes with me have heard me talk about, have assembled my handout packets for all of my classes for the past 12 years.  This is no small feat.  I teach a lot of workshops.  After all of these years they have never really seen what I do.  It was so nice to have them attend my brunch and since I had an exhibit of 23 of my quilts at the show it was great to walk through the exhibit with them.  Bonnie Browning, AQS show chairman, and some of her staff worked with Joe to make this surprise happen.  It was a moment I will never forget as I love Frank and Margaret deeply.

I wanted to share some of my favorite quilts with you from the show.  “Sew Is Life” received a first place ribbon.  It was made by Barbara Korengold from Maryland.  The whole quilt is stunning but I love this border.  What an incredible amount of work.

Here is another stunning applique quilt.  The name of the quilt is “My Beautiful Memory”.   It was made by Masako Kumaqawa from Japan.  I hope that she and her family were unharmed in the earthquake which has left so many of us with a heavy heart.

The quilt below is called “Daisy Dance” and was made by Kathy Munkelwitz from Isle, MN.  This quilt is very reminiscent of the quilts made in the 1920’s and 1930’s.  The quilting on it was also spectacular.

“Emily” was made by Kathi Carter from Lanett, AL.  She received the award for Best Longarm Workmanship.  I believe this is a pattern design by Irma Gail Hatcher from Conway, AR.  The name of the pattern is “Conway Album Quilt, I’m Not From Baltimore”

The machine quilting was nothing short of fabulous.

I’ll have a couple more quilts to share with you from the show in the next blog.  Have a great day!

Over the past many years I have provided a transfer paper in my Garden Medley workshop for each student.  Until now I had to refer people to try and find it at their local arts and crafts stores, which was sometimes not easy for people.  I am happy to say that I have now added this item to my website.  Each package contains 4 (9″ x 13″)  sheets of transfer paper, 2 grey and 2 white.  So, no matter if you are marking on a light or a dark background you have the right transfer paper.  I have been using this paper for around 10 years.  So far I have not had any trouble removing the lines.  I either brush them off, erase them off or use a micro fiber dust cloth to remove the lines.  I always recommend testing on a scrap of fabric first to ensure that you will be able to remove the lines.  I had 2 students who had trouble removing the grey color.  If for any reason you find the lines are not removing for you on your sample, simply trace inside the edge of each applique shape, instead of on the line, so all lines will be covered.

How to use this paper…place you fabric face up on a hard, flat surface.  Next, either tape or pin your applique pattern on top of the fabric, right side up.  You want to secure the fabric and pattern so they do not shift during tracing.  Finally, slide a sheet of the transfer paper between the fabric and pattern.  I always tell my students it is like the meat in the sandwich.  I sometimes use a stylus or just a pencil to trace.  When you remove the paper pattern and transfer paper you will have nice thin lines on your background fabric.

A big benefit to this paper is that is reusable many, many times over.  What is in this package will probably last you forever.   You can place your order on my website, under the “marking tools” section.

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One of the books I recently finished reading, or in this case listened to, was “Damaged” by John Lescroart.  The story is about a wealthy family who thinks they are above the law.  Soon after their son is released from prison there are numerous deaths that occur.  The dead bodies have a connection to the recently released son, Ro.  Between the family, legal side and law enforcement this made for an interesting read.

Another book I really enjoyed reading was “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”.  Now that title is a mouthful.  During this past year when the subject of books came up in my classes there had to be at least 10 people, and probably more, who highly recommended this book.  I have always found that if that many people are recommending a book it will be time well spent reading it.  And they were right.  I really, really enjoyed reading this book.  It begins in 1946 when Juliet Ashton, single and in her 30’s, writes to her publisher.  The book is all the letter writing that took place between Juliet, her publisher, her friend and the people of Guernsey.  Guernsey had been under German occupation and many of the letters tell of the tragic stories during the Nazi occupation.

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If you read my blog you know that I love sharing pictures of my students finished quilts.  Below is a photo of Patti Laird with her quilt that she made after taking my “Crazy Quilt Christmas Tree” workshop.  Thanks for sharing Patti.  Your quilt looks great.  Nicely done.

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Some days Joe and I meet in the kitchen for lunch and whip up something interesting.  (I work on the 3rd floor in my studio and Joe’s office is an addition in the rear of the house on the first level.)  A couple of weeks ago we made a Pumpkin Stew that I have to tell you is worth sharing.

PUMPKIN STEW

Pam olive oil spray

1 large onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 small, fresh hot chilies, seeded and chopped

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1 (29oz.) can pumpkin

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into ½” dice

1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes, drained

1½ cups water

3 tablespoons brown sugar or sugar substitute

Salt and pepper to taste

2 (15.5 oz.) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed

Heat the PAM in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onions, cover and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic, chilies and spices.  Cook for 1 to 2 minutes.  Add the sweet potatoes and toss to coat with spices.  Stir in the pumpkin, tomatoes, water, sugar, salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to low heat.  Add the beans and simmer until the sweet potatoes are tender, about 45 minutes.

Serves 4  Yummy!

Our final port of call for this cruise was Aruba.  I had been to Aruba approximately 15 years ago with some friends and had a wonderful time.  We stayed at an all inclusive resort which boasted its culinary training program.  And as advertised, the food was fantastic.  In a building connected to the resort,  the soon-to-be-chefs were preparing dishes under the watchful eye of executive chef instructors  and that food was served to the guests.  Excellent.  When we drove by the old place it looked like bombed out Bagdad.  I am not kidding.  Our driver, Edward,  informed us that it had been vacant for years and it was in major disrepair.  Oh, how things change.  But, from the ashes of many of the older hotels have sprung bigger and more glamorous resorts. The awesome beauty of the island had not changed.

I think this might be “Cuff” and “Link” from the Rocky movie?

We stopped at the butterfly farm.  Several islands now have butterfly farms where they attract the butterflies with fresh cut fruit and have them contained in a very large netted area.

Our taxi driver, Edward, took us on a nice tour of the island.  He stopped by this quaint little church.  Here is the sign in front of the church.

The interior of the church is very small and could not seat very many people. It was built in 1750 and built at a fantastic location. We were properly “at tired” when we went to this lovely chapel.

I’m guessing since the inside of the church could seat so few that they put lots of benches on the outside to seat a bigger congregation.  Wouldn’t this be an amazing location for a wedding?  Or just to sit and meditate?

The last two days of the cruise were “at sea” days which means time for more quilting classes.  I taught one hand applique class and then one machine applique class the last day.  The quilt shop that works with the travel agency provides all the necessary sewing machines.  I think that is amazing.  They have to do a lot of preparation in order to get all of those sewing machines on board.  On this cruise there were five classes each “at sea” day.  Three teachers taught hand sewing classes and 2 teachers per day taught sewing machine classes.

The quilt blocks you see behind me on the wall are some of the challenge blocks.  On each one of these quilting cruises the students are sent a piece of fabric and given a theme.  Their instructions are to sew a certain size block using this fabric.  On the last evening there is a large show and tell of what the students made in their classes and then someone is chosen as a winner of the blocks.  The teachers are given ballots and asked to vote on 3 specific things, including best workmanship.  There are also some other awards, like viewers choice.  Anyone on the cruise can cast a vote for their favorite block.

Below is one of my students, Cindy Williams.  Cindy is holding the block that we made in our last class using machine applique techniques.

And Cindy brought along this quilt, Garden Medley, which she started in a class with me in Houston this past fall.  I love to see finished projects.  Nicely done Cindy and thanks so much for sharing.

Another great cruise behind me and I’m looking forward to next year when we go to the Panama Canal.  I’ve never been there before so I am looking forward to another great adventure.  If you are interested in joining me, Christine Porter, Mary Lou Weidman and Kathy Kansier please contact www.quiltcruises.com and come sailing with us!!

Did I mention in my last email that I really liked Curacao?  I know I did.  I found so many interesting and beautiful things that I want to share with you.  Every time I looked there was another fabulous view.

We asked our  driver for the day to take us to a good place for lunch.  We ended up at “Snappers”.  And our driver, Joi, was correct, the food was very tasty.

Below are some photos of artwork that was painted on the side wall at “Snappers”.

One thing I did not expect to see on the island…an ostrich.  Actually, there were two islands that have large ostrich farms.  Apparently it is a good climate for these marvelous birds.

Another happy circumstance was that we kind of stumbled onto a local artist at work.  The name of the artist is Serena Israel.  The story as I heard it is that this project started in 2007 with just 6 painting ladies and now involves 45 women.  Serena makes the sculptures and then has local ladies come to paint them.  These sculptures are called “chichi’s”.  Chichi is a nickname for a special women on Curacao.  It is the call name and title for the eldest daughter and/sister or for a Curacao women not known by name.  Serena’s sculptures bring the Chichi’s alive in a colorful homage.

This is the chichi that sits outside of Serena’s wonderful gallery/studio/home.

Did I mention that the views in Curacao were outstanding?

I should also mention the shopping on this island was excellent.  There were numerous local artists, jewelry shops and so much more.

As we bid a fond farewell to the beautiful island of Curacao I know that we will be coming back to this island next year when we take our Panama Canal cruise.  And I for one will look forward to it as I feel we just touched the surface of the beauty this island has to offer.

In the next blog I’ll share some photos of our final stop on the cruise, Aruba.

When I last left you we were on the 5th day of the cruise.  On board it is referred to as an “at sea” day.  This means the ship will not be stopping at any ports and is moving to the next port.  It is a perfect day for a quilting class.  Here are a couple of photos of the ladies hard at work.  The hand sewing workshops are held in the dinning room since it is not being using during the day.  There is lots of table space and lots of natural light to sit and sew by all the windows.

Do you think these two ladies talked to each other in the morning and said, “Let’s coordinate our outfits?”.

The next day we woke up in Bonaire.  I have never been in Bonaire before.  I have heard of the “ABC Islands” before but I’d only been on the “A” (Aruba) island.  These islands are part of the Netherlands Antilles group.  Bonaire is known for preserving it’s natural resources and as a divers paradise.  So, Joe decided to take the day and do 3 dives.  According to Joe the diving was beyond wonderful.  Joe is already planning a trip back to this island.  If you are not a diver, honestly, there was not much to the island itself.  I wish I had a picture of Joe returning to the ship.  I was sitting by a window and hoping Joe made it back onto the ship as it was slated to depart in minutes.  If you know Joe you’ll know he was not worried in the least.  When I saw him I breathed a sigh of relief but I noted that he did not have any shoes/sandals on his feet.  Odd.  Well, Joe lost his only pair of sandals!  Is this the true meaning of  “shoeless Joe”?

The next day we woke up at the port of Curacao, another island I had never had the pleasure of visiting.  This would be the “C” island in the “ABC” group.  This island was impressive.  I would return to this island in a heart beat.  Here are some of the things we saw on our 1 day stop in Curacao.

Here are some views from our balcony on the ship of the streets in Curacao.  The colors of the buildings alone made this a very inviting place.

Connecting one part of the island to another part of the island is a pontoon bridge.  I had never heard of such a thing.  It is actually a floating pedestrian bridge, heavily used, that opens and closes for boats to pass through.  Instead of opening upward as I have seen many times before, the entire bridge shifts to the side, like on a hinge, completely out of the way until the boat passes.  Very interesting.

Even the buses are brightly colored.  Awesome.

Doesn’t this look like a great place to stop for a drink?  So we did.

This is one of the few fabric shops we found on this trip.  The name of the store is Ackerman’s.  Everything on this island was very inviting, including the brightly colored fabrics.

There were some very attractive people on this island especially the helpful staff at Ackerman’s

This island also has an abundance of fruits and vegetables.  Here are some photos of the open air, floating market.  Yummy!

What a fun way to take a tour of the town.

As Joe and I were walking through town we turned a corner and saw this in the alley.  It took my breath away.  I love this.  I want to do this on the walls of my patio……

I have lots more to show you from Curacao in the next blog.  I took many photos on this island and want to share a lot more of them with you.  This was truly a dream trip.