Eaten Alive

/ Karina Pinella / 14 Comments

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They say the alley buzzes with flesh-eating flies. What nonsense, Hugo thinks, as he jogs by the narrow passage that stinks like someone used it as a public privy. He looks around to see if there are homeless people or a passed out drunk lurking about, but the area seems deserted. Although the sky was clear when he started out his early morning jog, a cloud appears to hover above. He shrugs and sprints. A few blocks down, his curiosity gets the better of him, so he retraces his steps. Still jogging in place, he peers through the alley and sees nothing unusual. Just an alley, for heavens’ sake. What the hell . . . Continue reading →

A Collage of Falls

/ Karina Pinella / 4 Comments

Waterfall collage

Iceland has nearly 40,0000 waterfalls. The waterfalls featured here:
Seljalandsfoss – you can walk around this waterfall
Skógafoss – the one with the rainbow in front of it
Gullfoss – the largest waterfall in Europe
Öxarárfoss – the small waterfall in Thingvellir National Park



©2015 Karina Pinella

Hot Pursuit (a movie review)

/ Karina Pinella / 5 Comments

This is one of those movies that is funny in some places, while not in most. Definitely not one of Reese Witherspoon’s better movies. She plays an earnest cop who becomes involved in transporting a key federal witness, played by Sofia Vergara, to safety. It’s your typical “partner movie” in which the two women distrust each other. Eventually, they bond and then become fond of each other during their attempt to run for safety and justice. It’s more a showcase of how good they both look than about the plot, which is predictable, but I won’t spoil any more of it. It’s a chase movie, hence called “Hot Pursuit.”

Strokkur and Litli Geysir*

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Strokkur gushes so majestically and the Litli Geysir squirts



*Both the big geyser Strokkur and Litli Geysir are located in the geothermally active valley of Haukadalur in Iceland.

©2015 Karina Pinella

Mad Max. Fury Road (a movie review)

/ Karina Pinella / 8 Comments

This movie is one adrenaline rush after another. Because it is a post-apocalyptic movie about surviving, it is violent and has some gruesome scenes. Tom Hardy plays the title role of Mad Max, who gets captured by a gang ruled by a warlord, Immortan Joe. Since Joe has control over many resources—water, food, and gas—he controls the majority of the survivors. One of the group members, Furiosa (who is played by Charlize Theron) decides to run away with some of Joe’s treasured assets. Furiosa had planned her escape well because she flees in a war rig vehicle. Max gets involved after he is dragged into going after Furiosa. Soon they end up partnering with each other to fight off their mutual enemy. Continue reading →

Gullfoss*

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Borne from glaciers
Reigns like a queen that she is
Gullfoss waterfall

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*Gullfoss is considered the queen of Icelandic waterfalls and the largest in Europe.

©2015 Karina Pinella

Thingvellir National Park*

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Magma turned basalt
Forming gorges for haunting
By the White Walkers

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*Thingvellir National Park is northeast of Reykjavik and is where the Mid-Atlantic ridge surfaces on land for all to see, splitting North America and Eurasia. White Walkers are from the series, Game of Thrones, which used this park as the setting for some episodes.

©2015 Karina Pinella

Hallgrimskirkja*

/ Karina Pinella / 8 Comments

Loving Reykjavik
Risen from volcanic ash
Snaps from church tower

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*Hallgrimskirkja is the largest church in Iceland, standing tall at 240 ft. Its highest point is a tower with windows overlooking different views of the colorful rooftops of Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik. The focal point of the interior is an organ with 5,000 pipes.

©2015 Karina Pinella

©2015 Karina Pinella

Boulevard (a movie review)

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This movie is Robin Williams’ final on-screen performance. Robin Williams plays a banker who has been in the same position for 25 years, which is almost about as long as his character has been married to or known his wife. I can’t remember. They have no kids. Their social life is rather minimal. We know that Williams’ best friend since college is a college professor played by Bob Odenkirk of the Breaking Bad fame. As a momentary aside, Odenkirk’s Saul character spun off into another series, Better Call Saul, which is just as good and equally engrossing as Breaking Bad, but the second season doesn’t start until early next year. Continue reading →