Vanessa Embling » A blog about my life & photography

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  • WELCOME!

    I love photographing people and events. I love telling stories with pictures. I love watching people and capturing emotions and feelings in an image. I love to have fun. And Laugh. And be silly.

    I am an endless wanderer and my middle name means 'bringer of light' so I try to do that wherever I go! I lived overseas for three years doing humanitarian photojournalism, which was a dream come true. I am now back in the U.S. establishing roots and figuring life out.

9.11.14

Visiting Ground Zero

I got to spend the day in NYC for my birthday in February – it was incredibly cold and windy that day.  My friend, Steve, happened to be in town from California and so together we ventured down to Ground Zero to remember 9/11 and all of those who died that day.  I was in Manhattan on September 11th, 2001 – you can read about how the day unfolded for me HERE.

I stand in awe of the courage of those who, in the face of danger, did not run away but instead ran toward it – thinking of others.  It reminds me of 1 John 3:16 “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”

The Freedom Tower and the two square pools that sit at the base of where the Twin Towers once stood, were definitely a sight to behold… along with the thousands of names that are featured in the granite, in remembrance of those who lost their lives.  VEmbling_140225_0040VEmbling_140225_0045
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Our time walking around the memorial was fairly somber and quiet… but, we did manage to have some fun here and there and enjoy some laughs…

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Filed in: Personal | Photography | Photojournalism | travel
8.27.14

Hiking the Devil’s Molar

I recently hiked La Muela del Diablo (the Devil’s Molar) here in La Paz, Bolivia.  It was on my list of ‘things to do’ although I knew it was going to be a bit of a challenge – a long hike and a large elevation gain at an already high altitude (12,550 feet).  But, the views we enjoyed along the way and at the top were so incredible, it made it all worth it!  There’s also an option to just take a car or taxi up to the end of the road, and then you have only a small climb… I think I’ll do that next time!  We covered about 10 miles on our hike.

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We started off the morning with a good breakfast… salteñas and coca cola of course!

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My new best friend!

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We took the minibus from Plaza Estudiante to Los Pinos… it cost us about 3bs (less than 50 cents)

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The cemetery and the beautiful terrain in the background.

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Most of the hike was on a steep incline and there wasn’t exactly a ‘marked path’… thank goodness someone knew where we were going. The sun is also really strong in La Paz because of the altitude so lots of people used their jackets as ‘visors’ from the sun.

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Marcelo (aka our sherpa) ended up carrying a lot of our stuff – we were all super grateful!

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This was just the beginning of the hike… but wow… what a view!

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Every day I fall in love with Bolivia a little bit more. Every day the sky is different, the clouds are different, the light is different – and as I look out at the mountains and valleys I’m simply amazed at God’s creation.

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Getting closer! Passing through the village of Chiaraque on our way to la Muela (in the background)

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Another view of la Muela…

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At the base of la Muela… I was ready to stop here. But, we rallied and climbed up the steep rock formations… it was scary!!

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Made it to the top! What a view!!

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A few brave souls climbed even higher… crazies!

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With the whole group at the top of la Muela del Diablo

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No guard rails… it’s a long way down from here!

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Another view of la muela…

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Hiking back down was almost harder than hiking up – everyone’s legs and knees hurt by the end! But it was worth it!

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Filed in: Bolivia | Personal | Photography | travel
comment
August 27, 2014 - 5:13 pm

John Willis - It looks amazing. I wish I could join you all. I admire your spirit. Your gratitude is plain to see and admirable. God is wonderful. I wish you well on your life’s journey Vanessa. 🙂

8.1.14

Back in Bolivia

After almost a three month hiatus, I’m back in La Paz, Bolivia – where I now call home!  I’m so excited to be back here.  Still adjusting to the altitude and trying to get settled into my new apartment.  I’m learning to give myself a little bit of grace as I try to navigate the woes of living in a third world country where I am far from speaking spanish fluently.  But, every day is an adventure and I’m so, so, so grateful to call La Paz home.

One of the things on my ‘to do list’ since I’ve been back here was to ride the brand new Teleferico!  It’s La Paz’s newest form of transportation – kind of like a subway system in the sky.  It has been no small engineering feat – but for a third world country to pull this off – I’m incredibly impressed!!  It costs less than 50 cents to ride it one way from the center of the city all the way up to El Alto and takes about 20 minutes.  In the past, this would’ve taken about three bus rides and an hour or more for travel time.  Did I mention it’s amazing!?  Below are some photos and a quick video I put together from my first ride on it.  We went up to El Alto to shop at the huge flea market they have every Thursday and Sunday.  Check out some of the photos and video I took with my phone below.

The New York Times also just did a great article/video on the Teleferico – you can check that out HERE!

Many more updates to come – stories to tell and of course, photos to share about my adventures in the US and all around the world!

Please post a comment or a question if there’s something specific you’d like me to share about or if there’s something you are curious about!

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This is the view out my apartment window… pretty awesome.

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Getting on the Teleferico!

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Riding the Teleferico with my friend Jackie and Melissa (not pictured)

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Filed in: Bolivia | Personal | Photography | travel
6.12.14

Road trip with my mom

We closed up the house in New Jersey and my mom and I drove the van (packed full of stuff from my Grandpa’s house) cross-country back to Wisconsin.  It was a fun road trip and I was so grateful for the time I got to spend with my mom.  Who gets to do that kind of thing with their mom?  We listened to music, we talked, we laughed, we ate food, we searched for a starbucks, we took a detour, we took the scenic route, we stopped to see the sights and we drove.  And, three days later we made it to northern Wisconsin – our final destination.  Below are some photos from the trip.

What I learned from this experience: If you get the chance to take an adventure or an opportunity that you wouldn’t normally take or maybe it doesn’t sound all that fun at first to you… step out of your comfort zone and embrace life, go for it and embrace the blessings that God puts in your life when you take a road less traveled!

We had tea and scones at High Societea before we left Jersey – it was soooo good!  IMG_8169We stopped at a scenic overlook in Pennsylvania…IMG_8294Driving through Indiana, we stopped in South Bend to see the Golden Dome at Notre Dame.IMG_8309I also got to have lunch with my Dad in South Bend – I hadn’t seen him in about a year!  IMG_8315Driving…drivingAlways love driving through Chicago, such a great city!
IMG_8337Made it to Wisconsin!  Stopped at my brother’s house for dinner and I got to meet my newest niece, Auden!  Embling family_8393We stopped at the Dollar Store and picked up some mustaches for the boys, oh the fun we had!  VEmbling_140605_8358VEmbling_140605_8360

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And then we finally made it UpNorth Wisconsin!

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As we drove through Ohio and Indiana I couldn’t help but think of Jason Aldean’s song “Fly Over States”

 

Filed in: Family | Personal | travel
6.11.14

Did you know….

Spotify has a ‘comedy’ playlist!?  How cool is that!?  I am almost embarrassed about how excited I am about this.  Here’s why:  I am currently in the US and I’m driving a lot to go here, there and everywhere… and sometimes I need a break from music or I get a little bit tired and stand up comedy is so much fun to listen to while you’re driving!  AND, because we should laugh a little every single day!  So – check it out!  I think you might have to be a premium user to access the playlist… but yo, it’s so worth it!  #IloveJimGaffigan #IloveToLaugh #hotpockets 

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Filed in: Personal | travel