Saturday, September 29, 2012

Sunday Snapshots

Spring forward... Today is the first day of summer daylight saving - so good! 

And, wonder of wonders, the weather is beautiful - sunny and warm.

Sofie and Manu LeGrand actually sought out a cool spot, instead of lying in the sun:



The bees are busy in the clematis:


There's plenty of choice.... 




 I really like the delicate flower on this clematis - it's not so showy, less floriferous, but still lovely:

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Thematic Photographic 214: Grounded

Thematic's theme this week is "Grounded". When Carmi's brief said the photos had to include some ground, my thoughts went straight to the region of Cappadocia, in central Turkey.
Here, people still actually live in houses in the ground and hills, as they have for centuries.

I was lucky enough to go there in 2010, and have always meant to do a post about it.
It is one of the most interesting and spectacular places I have ever been to.

Houses, churches "shops" are all built into the ground, mostly on hillsides but also in valleys:



This was the entrance to a public toilet:


It is a very popular tourist attraction, but it isn't spoilt;
the feeling is one of fascinating strangeness,
and there weren't many people around when we were there:




I would love to go back, and do the balloon trip I (stupidly) didn't
 go on when I had the chance...



Visit written.inc for more grounded posts

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Sunday Snapshots

How's spring coming along? 
I've just been for a wander around the garden, to see what's interesting...

apple blossom

cedrela sinensis (Chinese Toon)

??

choisya ternata

 an exploded seed pod (it was about the size of my hand)

arum lilies - not a flower I like very much...

clematis - this will be covered in a few days


I tried and tried to get a photo of a tui in the kowhai tree, 
but none of the ones I took was worth posting. 
I'll have a zoom lens for Christmas, please.

Here's one I found online:
 

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Retro Me - TP 213

Ahh, the 70s. 
Alexia the schoolgirl - I'm about 15. 
Would you believe I actually made that dress?
(This shot has been taken from an old slide - remember them?)



And ready for my first Ball - 16 or 17...?


Posted for Thematic Photographic; see here for more retro shots.

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Angles everywhere

Some building-a-house shots for this week's Thematic Photographic theme.
See here for some extreme angles.

These have been taken over the last couple of months:







The house is all closed in now, and they're working inside. Completion date is October 29, but we had such a wet winter that they must be a week or two behind.
Sigh.
I guess we'll get there sometime!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Sunday Snapshot

Spring is slowly but noticeably gathering momentum.
On today's walk:

At the lake, the men who play with their toy yachts were out in force



As were the ducks - though sadly, not the two families of 
baby ducks that I saw last week...
 
 

Today's weather is blustery and sunny, with an occasional flicker of rain - real spring weather:



In the garden, there is a flowering tree which is not flashy and spectacular, and which I really like -



Maybe someone out there knows what it is? 
Here's a closeup of the racemes:



The best thing about renting this house, with its huge garden, while we wait for our new house to be finished, is all of the surprises that are happening in the garden as spring moves along. I was delighted to see my favourite flowers in the world, cream freesias, appearing this week:


Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and have a wonderful week!

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

TP 211: Weathered and Worn

This week's theme sent my thoughts straight to ancient ruins, which always make me feel calm and happy. But there's lots of other things which are weathered and worn, and I've already posted a lot of photos of ruins in the past, so I've limited myself to one shot, at Delphi:



This old house made me stop the car on a recent road trip:



On a cold autumn day at Moeraki Beach I found lots of interesting 
shapes and colours:




Finally, a shot from a few years ago at Kerikeri; the evening light is kind to The Old Stone Store, 
the oldest stone building in this country:


(I guess I can include the farmhouse in my header, too)