ABC Wednesday—U is for Uffizi

In the same gallery at the Uffizi as Botticelli's
original Birth of Venus is this "hands on"
version for the visually impaired.  I've never seen
anything like this before—have you?

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ABC Wednesday—U is for "up the stairs"

This beautiful staircase is in the
Musée Marmottan Monet.  The museum
is off the usual beaten (tourist) path,
in the 16th arrondissement.  In addition
to the impressive (pun intended)
collection of Monets and other works, is
the building itself—a former hunting lodge
at the edge of the Bois de Boulogne.
{Note: no picture-taking allowed here. As if!}

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ABC Wednesday—U is for (dead) "umbrella"

Just like the owner of this sad thing, I decided 
to walk over the Brooklyn Bridge despite
the rain.  But I knew not to try to use an umbrella.  
It can get mighty windy up there!

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ABC Wednesday—U is for "under construction"

I was a kid in the mid 20th century, a time when girls 
played with dolls—and my older brother got 
the Lionel trains, Lincoln Logs, and ... the erector set.
If I'd been allowed to play with "his" toys, who 
knows?  I might have grown up to be a good 
mom and an architect.  Just sayin'.

[To see more ABC posts for the letter U, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—U is for "up the stairs"

Must admit I chose a less direct route
from (down) here to (up) there.  
It took a bit longer, but the slope was
gentler—and even more scenic.

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ABC Wednesday—U is for "(sea) urchin"

These were on display at the rue Mouffetard
market, in Paris.  I don't think I've ever
eaten sea urchin (have you?).  All I can say
is that at that price, it had better be at
 least as good as . . . chocolate!

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ABC Wednesday—U is for "Ukraine"

I work right around the corner from the Ukrainian mission
to the U.N.  Here's what it looked like a few weeks ago. 
Now all this has been cleared away, and there's a
railing around the fence and two policemen keeping guard.
What's next, I wonder (here and there).

[To see more ABC posts that feature
the letter U, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—U is for "umbrella"

I've done U for "umbrella" before, but this
is my 7th or 8th ABC/U post, after all.
This was taken last month in Paris, late at
night in an almost empty Place Vendôme.
(Thanks to the lovely Isabelle for
providing the perfect prop for this shot.)

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ABC Wednesday—U is for "upside-down"

Who knew?  Apparently, icebergs (even really
big ones like this) sometimes flip over—and you can
see what the action of the ocean's constant movement
 does to the part of the 'berg that's underwater.
My daughters learned this when they traveled to Antarctica
earlier this year (and I borrowed this shot from Katie).

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ABC Wednesday—U is for "underwater"

When we snorkeled in the Galapagos in October,
we got to commune with sea lions and sharks (!)
and giant sea turtles—which I touched, flaunting 
the rules.  Sorry. (Actually, not at all.) Have to 
thank my fellow traveler Chris, and his cool GoPro 
camera with the underwater case, for this shot.

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