Readers of a certain age and experience may recognize the allusion in today's post title. All I will say is that there was a film made in the 70s by the same title. The title is testament to the fact that I sometimes am at a total loss to find a creative title for my blog posts. The title is also testament to the occasional depth and breadth of my knowledge. :-)
Portugal
03-14-13 Portugal!
The thing I remember about the day we spent on Tavira Beach on the south coast of Portugal, which is considered one of the best beaches in Portugal, is that it was cold and windy. By "cold" I think it must have been in the low 70s. Boy, do I long for the cool 70s!
10-03-12 A Few Explorers
in Architecture, HDR, Travel
I am posting this to break the endless monotony of colorful fall photos. And today I am taking you to the Monument To the Discoveries in Lisbon, Portugal. I think that's Prince Henry the Navigator taking the lead. Vasco da Gama is third in line. And, if you want to know more, check this out.
05-29-12 Lisbon Trolly #12
Lisbon is famous for its vintage trolleys and If you go, you have to ride them. They are especially useful for making your way up the fairly steep hills that guard the relatively narrow central part of Lisbon. The other good thing about riding local mass transit like this, is that you get to mix with locals, who don't view the trolly as a novelty but as a practical way to get around.
05-28-12 Window Shopping
So I've gone back to Lisbon this week - at least I've gone back to the photo collection from Lisbon, Portugal. This photo was taken on the run under less than ideal circumstances. What drew me to the window was the beautiful purple tones of this fabric. But I also love the presentation, with all of the lines and curves. It has a bit of a seashell appearance to me. The window captured my attention and I captured it with my Canon 5DII. :-)
05-27-12 A View From Above
in Travel
Inspired by an article on Lisbon, Portugal,in the Travel section of today's NYT, I went back and looked at things I had from our trip there a couple years ago. This photo was taken from the top of a monument to the Portuguese explorers, who boldly went where no European white men had gone before.I am captivated by aerial shots that show shadows and of course there are strong shadows in this photo, though I'm not all that impressed with what I got. Compositionally, I would like something different, though I can't tell what that would be. If I had spent 30 minutes more, in this location, I probably could have gotten the perfect placement of my unsuspecting subjects below.
Do Corks Grow On Trees?
This post is less about interesting photos than it is about my compulsion to educate the reader about cork. So, if you are still with me, note that you are looking at a cork tree in a cork grove in Portugal (one of the world's largest producers of cork.) Then note that there are no corks hanging on this tree. Why? Well, because the cork comes from the bark - it doesn't grow like an apple or a pear.In fact the cork comes from the bark of the tree and each tree is stripped every few years and then left to build up a new layer of cork. This tree doesn't show evidence of a recent harvest but this tree does (click here.)Fascinating, isn't it?
Our Portuguese Friend
One of the best discoveries of all of our travels to Europe is a small village in Portugal north of Lisbon with stone houses that have been converted to small apartments for tourists. The name of the little town is Aldeia da Mata Pequena and we stayed in the apartment named "Caso do Jasmin." Among the ammenities were antique decorations, a kitchen sink carved out of stone and warm bread served each morning by the owner.Another amenity was the town dog, whom we nicknamed "Sparky" because we couldn't say her real name. She would come to visit when we were out on our little back patio. She wouldn't respond to our English but did accept our small gifts of bread and cheese. When she barked, I'm guessing she spoke Portuguese.
Still Life
Deb and I were in Lisbon on the last day of our visit to Portugal when I noticed these two people pondering something off in the distance. I was immediately reminded of a famous work of art by Duane Hanson called "Tourists." And so I snapped the photo. I'll have to admit that my wife and I come closer to looking like Hanson's tourists than this Lisbon couple does, though I think my wife is much more stylish.You might be interested in knowing that Duane Hanson casts his fiberglass and resin figures from real people. Most of the people in my photos are real, too.
We Can See Ourselves!
We were packing our rental car and getting ready to leave our little cottage in Aldeia da Mata Pequena, Portugal, when the two resident peacocks walked up and started to look at themselves in the dark reflection. I thought they were admiring themselves, but when they started to peck at our car, I concluded that they thought they were looking at two other peacocks that somehow posed a threat. They moved on amiably when I opened the passenger car door.
The Old Stone Wall
Like many of my photos, this photo was a bit of an afterthought. Deb and I had been out for a drive and I slowed to take in the scenery. And, though the sun was shining directly into my camera, I decided to take a shot of the little stone wall and the wild flowers (and colorful weeds) beside the road.Two things strike my about this scene. One is the stone wall, which is probably at least a century old. The labor and the time to construct this are rewarded by the longevity of the project.The other thing that strikes me about this place, is that it is only about 45 minutes north of Lisbon, the largest city in Portugal. And we are in a very rural setting. It is not unlike driving a few minutes north of Watertown and finding a landscape that is quiet and relatively free of people.Check out some of my London/Portugal 2010 trip photos here