Devin's Adventures in Amsterdam Part 1

And now here is part 1 of a travelogue from EMI's writer/producer/geologist Dr. Devin Dennie about his recent exploration of the Dutch city of Amsterdam:

I recently had the opportunity to head across the pond to Amsterdam in the Netherlands.   They say getting there is half the fun but that nine hour plane trip was rough.  It takes a lot of effort to get to the other side of the world.  After landing at the Schiphol Airport, my journey had only begun.  I then had to hop aboard the great train system to central Amsterdam and headed to The Hague.

 

 

The Hague is is a city in South Holland that is sometimes called "Judicial Capital of the World" because it not only is the home of the Dutch Parliament and government, it is also the home to several international courts in what is known as the International Peace Palace:

I also visited the famous Royal Picture Gallery Mauritshuis.  It's a world renown art museum that houses some famous works of art.  One of the more well known paintings is "Girl With a Pearl Earring" by Johannes Vermeer:

 

 

More of the sites I saw are coming up in part 2 so stay tuned!

Geo-RoadTrip 2014: Valley of Fire

After leaving the Hoover Dam, we went down the road quite a ways to our next stop, the Valley of Fire State Park.  The park is full of dramatic, almost alien-looking sandstone formations.  Its appearance can be dramatic and its picturesque nature draws travelers and professionals (more on that later).

Notice the holes in the rock surrounding Devin.  Various theories abound involving water flow and mineral deposition, but these too help to add to the park's ambiance.  So much so that, like many places in the area, it has drawn the attention of Hollywood producers.  One of the many productions that have utilization this location include the movie Star Trek: Generations.  The "holes" can be seen behind Captain Picard:

Other than being the dramatic backdrop for Picard's heroics, the area has secured a place in pop culture history as being the "death place" of Captain James T. Kirk (which occurred in the same movie).

It won't be the last Star Trek related stop on our trip, so stay tuned.  Next up is Death Valley!  Also, video is coming soon!

Geo-RoadTrip 2013

And here it is folks: