Wedding Week begins!

Today, the wedding festivities officially begin! For the last week I’ve been busy running all around South Florida getting everything ready for our Key West nuptials. My fiance, Jarrod, flew into Miami early this Thursday morning to pack up all the wedding “stuff” and get it down the Keys and celebrate Valentine’s Day in paradise.

The #JarrodBettina wedding activities have begun. Road trip to Key West.

We posted photos on Instagram using the hashtag #JarrodBettina. We plan to crowd source the wedding and ask all our guests to post pictures throughout the weekend. They’ll be collected on our wedding Facebook page.

Among the packed items was a case of Francis Ford Coppola’s Sofia, our favorite sparkling wine. I was beyond happy to have several bottles of this bubbly, which brings back many fond memories Jarrod and I have shared over the last three years.  The pretty in pink bottles took over an entire section of our rented home’s large refrigerator. They served as a perfect reminder that Jarrod and I would have major hosting duties this week, as our two bedroom spacious rented home, “Lennon’s Lodge,” will serve as wedding headquarters for family and friends throughout the week.

Locked and loaded for a very fun wedding weekend! #jarrodbettina

We had headed down to Key West with the best man and his wife. The four of us decided to kick-off the festivities and celebrate Valentine’s Day and wait for the rest of our family and friends.

More updated to come. Follow all the fun using #JarrodBettina

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Happy Birthday Jarrod Agen!

I fell in love with photography as a kid, watching my father take pictures with his pintex camera. Trying to capture a memory with one still image is an art I’ve enjoyed to pursue. During the last two years I’ve been fortunate to travel the country, visiting over 30 states and taking countless adventures with an amazing partner. As I look back at these capsuled memories, I want to celebrate my favorite photographic “subject,” my boyfriend Jarrod Agen. Today is his birthday.

We’ve experience countless journeys, incredible adventures, and even some “hopeless quests” and yet, have always enjoyed the ride. We met while working in politics, a lifestyle that can, and will, take over your life. Still, with two feet firmly placed on the ground, we’ve learned to appreciate each an every free moment. In the words of Ferris Bueller : ”Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” (Jarrod is a big movie buff!) Happy Birthday Jarrod! Thank you TQM!

Here are some of my favorite pictures from our adventures…

New York’s Brooklyn Bridge (above)

Yosemite National Park, California (above)

Zion National Park, UT (above)

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Foto of the Day: Santa Cruz

Sunday was spent running on the coast of Santa Cruz Beach hoping to see whales. Unfortunately, we didn’t catch a glimpse of the enormous sea creatures, but we did enjoy the view.

On Santa Cruz Beach

Photo taken with iphone4s by my bf.

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Fotos Of The Day: Wine Country

Another beautiful weekend in Northern California…..I spent the weekend with fellow alumni from Florida International University during their FIU Wine Country Weekend festivities. We stopped in at two wineries owned by FIU graduates, B Cellars and Uncorked at Oxbow. Pictures below…

Enjoying a beautiful day in Napa, California…

Below, FIU Faculty and fellow alums celebrate FIU graduate Celeste Carducci of Carducci Wines and Uncorked at Oxbow in Napa Valley.

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FOTO: Fight the Recession, Buy Local Wine

One of the great things about living in Northern California is the proximity to the beautiful vineyards. While my political leanings might make me stand out among my left-leaning neighbors, we all agree on one thing: the economy stinks. On a recent trip I saw this poster and I fell in love:

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Fotos: Yosemite National Park

Recently my boyfriend and I went on a camping trip to Yosemite National Park. I wanted to share some of the 300+ pictures from the trip (posted 6 photos below).   Most of these photos were taken with my iPhone and used Instagram filters for some extra definition. Follow me on Instagram at BettinaInclan or view more here.

Below are some two photos of us as we climb up Vernal Falls on the Mist Trail.

This image below is of us at Yosemite, composed of a collection of photos I have on my iphone. I use the iphone app – PhotoMosaica to get the effect. Very cool.

(Photo after the jump)

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Off The Grid in Yosemite

I admit it, I am a nerd, a tech nerd.

I salivate hearing about the latest gadgets and new uses for technology. I’m that rude person that has their iPhone on the dinner table, always worried about the “just in case,” and gets jittery if I don’t check it at least once….Yet, every once in a while its good to unplug, to get off the grid….

This weekend, my boyfriend and I went on a spur of the moment trip to one of our favorite place on earth – Yosemite National Park.

For a few days we enjoyed hiking and camping, internet-free with no help from Google on “how to build a wood fire.” It was just us and mother nature – and about a few thousands other campers.

The highlight of the trip was the hike up to Nevada Falls, a 7 mile round-trip adventure, filled with strenuous up hill climbs, unforgettable ranging waterfalls, incredible overlooks and even rainbows. It’s an unforgettable experience.

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It’s Baseball Season….

One of my most vivid childhood memories was the ever-present baseball batting tee strategically placed in the front yard of my Miami home. My father had purposefully placed it a few steps outside the front door, in what I can only assume was his way to inspire the future MLB Hall of Famers inside of my brother and I.While neither my brother or I ever became good at the game he so loves, we did learn to love baseball…

My father is a massive baseball fan. Growing up in Mexico, his brothers and he would listen to béisbol games on the radio. They each had their favorites, but he loved cheering on his Brooklyn Dodgers. Now a Miami resident for over 30 years, he loves the Marlins just as much a he loves the Dodgers, and all things baseball… well maybe not the Yankees… (NOTE: I currently live in NYC and naturally go to Yankee games as much as I can.)

As we usher in a new baseball season, I have decided to learn more about the history of America’s national pass time, especially living in NYC which has so much baseball history. Thanks to Netflix, and a boyfriend whose love of baseball is only rivaled by my own father’s love of the game, I have started watching Ken Burn’s “Baseball.”

One thing I do know, and reinforced by the documentary, baseball equals America. As the historian Jacques Barzun once said, “Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball.”

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Fotos Of the Day: Boston

Pictures from my Boston, MA trip… It was the weekend of the Boston Marathon and the city and its surroundings were busy, more busy than usual. On Sunday we ventured out to see the New England coast. It was sunny but windy, making the ocean waters look like something from a Stephen King novel…

Photo below taken in a small park in Marblehead, MA

Walking over the bridge to see the Boston Marathon

The diversity of one of the world’s hardest marathons…

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Fotos of the Day: Washington DC

Today’s “Foto” is of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. I snapped the picture on my iPhone during a weekend run on the National Mall with friends as we enjoyed the rare sunny day. It was a welcomed change from this year’s winter in the Northeast.

My friend’s Rhodesian Ridgeback,  joined us on the run. I think the photo speaks for itself about the quality of our run and the energy of the dog. Anyone want to suggest a caption??

( blogging from my iPhone)

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