Recently in images Category
So, finally, my Morocco via Madrid - April/May 2010 set is "done" on Flickr, with mini diary entries composed en route.
Phew. A long job, particularly getting them (approximately) mapped.... It's been lovely having Phil uploading his photos too at the same time.
Part 1: DIY London to Casablanca via Madrid
* Day 1: London to Madrid
* Day 2: Madrid
* Day 3: Madrid to Casablanca
Part 2: Intrepid's Colours of Morocco tour
* Day 1 (DIY day 3): Casablanca (arrival day)
* Day 2: Casablanca / Rabat / Meknès
* Day 3: Meknès / Volubilis / Fès
* Day 4: Fès
* Day 5: Fès / Midelt
* Day 6: Midelt / Merzouga / Sahara Camp / Erg Chebbi
* Day 7: Sahara Camp / Merzouga / Todra Gorge
* Day 8: Todra Gorge
* Day 9: Todra Gorge / Ouarzazate / Aït Benhaddou
* Day 10: Aït Benhaddou / Tizi n'Tichka Pass (2260m) / Imlil / Aroumd
* Day 11: Aroumd / Essaouira
* Day 12: Essaouira
* Day 13: Essaouira / Marrakech
* Day 14: Marrakech
* Day 15: Marrakech (departure day)
You may spot that some of the evening photos have snuck into the next day's archives..... I forgot to adjust my camera clock at the start of the trip and I can't be bothered to update all the EXIF data. Sorry!
Clearing the digital decks before my next trip....
After much research and picking of Stuart's brains, I suggested that dad and Tom and their respective families buy me the GiSTEQ PhotoTrackr Lite DPL700 for my birthday. I've griped before about how hard it is for my to geolocate the photos from some of my trips to more off the beaten track destinations (Hello Annapurna Circuit! Hello Bhutan! Hello Central Asia!), and a easily portable gadget which promises to do all that for me seems the perfect traveller's treat.
Even though the GiSTEQ PhotoTrackr Lite is now Mac-compatible, the packaging doesn't yet say so and my heart dropped for a time until I unpacked the box to find the A4 print out of their Quick Start Guide for Mac enclosed.
First challenge, how to open the unit to get the battery in. I think I've mastered that now, but only after the same kind of struggle I have with getting the back off my various mobile phones over the years. I'm sure there's a knack - but usually it eludes me. Nails are of no avail.
Next up - downloading the software (always a doddle with the mac - phew) and syncing the time on my camera. "Syncing" suggests something rather more technical than looking at the server time or an online display of local time (aka Google-ing "local time") and manually adjusting your camera's clock setting to match - but that's all it is.
So now I'm all set to take the PhotoTrackr out for a stroll - Hazel and I are shopping in central London tomorrow and I'm planning to map the route.....
The software download page (case sensitive URL I discovered) comes complete with a link to the GiSTEQ PhotoTrackr Mac User's Guide, which I'll be reading in more depth tomorrow.
Dad and Jean have been down for the weekend.
Friday evening saw us dining in (almost) splendid isolation at The Modern Pantry, and imbibing one carafe of Marlborough red wine too many....
On Saturday morning we visited the excellent Henry VIII exhibition at the British Library, and split forces in the afternoon with Jean going to see War Horse - which Phil and I saw a few weeks ago; the animal puppets (they're lifesize, so puppets doesn't seem quite the right word) were amazing - and dad and I heading on to the BP Portrait competition exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, and taking a quick look at the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square after a reviving cup of tea in the National Gallery cafe.
Dinner was takeaway from the Barbican Tandoori, the Chawol being temporarily out of action due to a fire! An amazing sunset rounded off a lovely day.
Sunday was more gentle affair, starting off with the Garden Museum over near Lambeth Palace (a tranquil spot, with lots of history) followed by a late Sunday lunch at the Wood Street bar and restaurant - delicious.
A lovely relaxing weekend in Walton on the Naze, and a surprisingly sunny one - against all the weather forecast predictions of wind, rain and cloud. It was breezy, but that's the coast for you.
We indulged in local bakery cakes, curry at the Ocean Indian restaurant and a traditional cafe fry up......
....and read a lot. It was blissfully quiet at the Naze Marine Caravan Park - all the kids/families must have headed elsewhere in search of school holiday sun.
12.30pm at Islington Register Office....
... followed by a fantastic lunch at Vinoteca, Farringdon....
with cake by Jean
But still Mary Loosemore.
Photos
- My photos: Mary and Phil get married
- Phil's photos: Our wedding
- Hazel's photos Mary & Phil get married
- Tom's photos from 24 January 2009
- Flickr pool: Mary and Phil's Wedding
I do seem to have spent an awful lot of time getting the photos from my last trip (Central Asia Overland, with Explore) onto Flickr... but they're all up there now, in my imaginatively titled Central Asia Overland set.
All (all!) that's left for me to do is:
- Geotag/map the photos I took in Xinjiang, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. The Yahoo! mapping is so frustratingly woeful[1] that I can only cope with geotagging one place at a time... Transliteration and the original-versus-Soviet/Beijing place name variations don't help.
- Improve the tagging. I'm sure I've got lots of spelling variations myself... next time I'll be more rigorous at logging the tags I chose, and checking past conventions, before I start.
- Delete some. I'm hopeless at picking which is the best out of any particular bunch. For example, Registan square in Samarkand, the Kalon mosque in Bukhara, not to mention Khiva.....
- Defrost. With London's daytime temperatures hovering around zero our spare room-cum-office is freezing. I've been sitting at my computer clad in 2 pairs of socks plus ancient roof terrace gardening slippers, four top layers including fleece and vast woolly jumper, scarf and hat.... and occasionally resorting to wrapping up in the spare duvet too.
[1] This is the most zoomed in map for Samarkand (which you won't find if you search for "Samarkand") - see what I mean...
(and remember the Flickr/Yahoo! mapping for Bhutan?)
Hazel and have just been to the British Museum to see the Babylon exhibition. Interesting, but a bit thin once you're past the first room which has the scale models, maps and the bas relief lions and dragon from the Processional Way and the Ishtar Gate.
Actually, thinking about it there is an excellent short video of stills from the present day Babylon site, with the US army base in situ. It feels like a bit of an after thought, but maybe that's intentional.... it certainly leads you to sympathise with the quote from one of the BM experts that siting the army base there is akin to putting it next to Stonehenge or the great pyramid at Giza.
... all 779 of them taken on Wild Frontiers' Bhutan: Land of the Thunder Dragon - Spring Festival Tour in March 2008.
All photos are in my Bhutan - Land of the Thunder Dragon set on Flickr.
Photos day by day
Saturday 15 March 2008: UK - Delhi
Sunday 16 March 2008: Delhi - Bagdogra - Jaigaon (Hotel Anand)
Monday 17 March 2008: Jaigaon/Phuentsholing - Paro (Hotel Paro)
Tuesday 18 March 2008: Paro Festival (Hotel Paro)
Wednesday 19 March 2008: Taktshang (Tiger's Nest) trek - Thimphu (Pedling Hotel)
Thursday 20 March 2008: Thimphu: Folk Heritage Museum - National Institute for Zorig Chusum - National Textile Museum - 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival rehearsal - Motithang Takin Preserve - Post Office and Bank of Bhutan - shopping (Pedling Hotel)
Friday 21 March 2008: Thimphu - Huntsho Community Primary School - Dochu La Pass (3116m) - Lobesa - Wangdue Phodrang dzong and town (Dragon's Nest Resort)
Saturday 22 March 2008: Wangdue Phodrang - Khuruthang Goemba - Khamsum Yuly/Yuelley Namgyal Chorten and Mo Chhu river valley walk - Punakha dzong - Lobesa farmhouse and family - Wangdue Phodrang (Dragon's Nest Resort)
Sunday 23 March 2008: Wangdue Phodrang bazaar - Pele La pass (3420m) - Chendebji chorten - Trongsa dzong - Zungney village textile shops - Bumthang valley - Jakar (Lodge Rinchenling)
Monday 24 March 2008: Jakar - Chokhor valley walk (Jampey Lhakhang - Kurjey Lhakhang - Polling station - Tamshing Goemba) - Wangdichholing dzong - Yoser Lham shop (aka the Swiss farm shop) - Jakar town - Hot stone bath - Jakar (Lodge Rinchenling)
Tuesday 25 March 2008: Jakar - Shertang La pass (3590m) - Ura village - Thrumshing La pass (3750m) - Langur monkeys - Mongar (Wangchuk hotel)
Wednesday 26 March 2008: Mongar - Kori La pass (2400m) - Yadi - lemongrass distillation "plant" - Trashigang town and dzong - Rangjung town and Monpa or Brokpa ladies, local weaving - Bonfire and Quiz - Rangjung (Rangjung monastery guesthouse)
Thursday 27 March 2008: Rangjung - Thakcho Kunzang Choeden Anim nunnery - Radi valley walk (Khardung - fern-headed man - Khuru contest - weaving - farmhouse lunch) - Rangjung (Rangjung monastery guesthouse)
Friday 28 March 2008: Rangjung - Trashigang - National Handloom Development Project, Khaling - Samdrup Jongkhar - Guwahati (Dynasty Hotel)
Saturday 29 March 2008: Guwahati - Kolkata: Victoria Memorial / St Paul's Cathedral / market - Kolkata (Tollygunge Club)
Sunday 30 March: Kolkata - UK
Other photos from the trip
David's photos on Webshots
Maggie's photos on Flickr
Hazel's photos on Flickr
Next on the photo list: dad's 70th birthday dinner in Broadway (only four months after the event...)
Hirsel Cottage, St Andrews. Some of the photos look very familiar!
(Thanks Ruth!)
I've finally finished sorting through my photos from Iran, shrinking and uploading them to Flickr.
Mehran, Stan and Reza really were a winning team, and I would recommend a visit to Iran to anyone - it doesn't really matter where or when, and different people will be interested in different things. Once you've been and seen what an an amazing and beautiful country it is, and that the people you meet in the bazaars and at the sights are so welcoming and hospitable, rightly proud of their history and culture, I am sure you will want to return - I know that I do.
I've so many favourite memories - wandering the backstreets of Yazd, marvelling at everything in Esfahan, exploring the bazaars and mosques of Shiraz, hearing Persian poetry by moonlight at the mausoleum of Hafez, being presented by a beautiful flower by a young woman as we walked back to the hotel one evening, getting dressed up in traditional nomad wedding dress, carrying out conversations by way of the Lonely Planet Persian phrase book, being interviewed for local telly near Bazm and for an advertorial in the Abbasi Hotel, tucking into melon (various varieties), cheese and fresh bread with a breathtaking view of Mount Dena and minutes later chancing upon Qashqai nomads and their flocks on the annual migration to summer pastures - the young and the weak getting a ride tucked up snugly in carpets pockets on the back of a donkey, unexpected hail and film crews in ancient Hamadan, the Zoroastrian Towers of Silence (even when disrupted by the 21st century noise of young blokes on motorbikes), the kitsch souvenir shops, signage and stalagmites and stalactites at Ali Sadr Caves, staying in amazing converted/restored caravanserai in Yazd and Esfahan, relaxing in the Eram gardens, taking tea with the nomads near Bahvanat and trying my hand at churning butter in a goatskin, the smell of freshly baked bread and the production line four man bakeries in Kashan, Shiraz and Hamadan, the amazing switchback road climbing up and through the Alborz Mountains, through the green of the orchards and wheatfields, the grandeur of Persepolis and the peace and tranquility of the gardens of Fin, the stunning colours decorating the mosques and traditional houses, palaces and citadels - and flowers everywhere.
How: Wild Frontiers' Land of the Peacock Throne tour
When: April/May 2007
Weather: Tehran
Advice / Info: FCO, CIA Iran Country Profile, BBC Country profile: Iran Wikipedia: Iran, Lonely Planet: Iran, Pars Times: Iran
Compare:
In pictures: Life in Stanley (BBC News, March 2007)
A typical Stanley house, and a-typcial transport (My photos, December 2005)
Although at least that flat tyre seems to have been fixed and the morris minor's mobility restored.....
Taken by Rob and now available on his Rob's Journeys Flickr pages. So we get to enjoy his Skardu adventures (vicariously at least).
... and available in my imaginatively named "Hindu Kush Adventure" set on Flickr.
Day 1 (28 September 2006): Depart London on overnight BA flight to Islamabad
Day 2 (29 September 2006): Arrive Islamabad, drive to Peshawar
Day 3 (30 September 2006): Peshawar
Day 4 (01 October 2006): Khyber Steam Train up the Khyber Pass
Day 5 (02 October 2006): Drive over the Malakand Pass to Dir
Day 6 (03 October 2006): Drive over the Lowari Pass to Ayun
Day 7 (04 October 2006): Ayun town tour and into to the Rumbur Valley, staying with the Kalash at Balanguru
Day 8 (05 October 2006): Balanguru and hike to the Nuristani village of Shakanande
Day 9 (06 October 2006): Balanguru and hike to Pelaga, the Wild Frontiers hideaway
Day 10 (07 October 2006): Balanguru to Chitral town - sightseeing and shopping!
Day 11 (08 October 2006): Chitral town to Hindu Kush Heights hotel
Day 12 (09 October 2006): To Mastuj, via Buni Zom, for dinner with Colonel Khushwalalt Ul Mulk
Day 13 (10 October 2006): Over the Shandur Pass to Phander
Day 14 (11 October 2006): Phander to Gilgit, then on to Karimabad along the Karakoram Highway
Day 15 (12 October 2006): Karimabad (shopping!) and the Eagle's Nest Hotel
Day 16 (13 October 2006): Karimabad to Chilas, back along the Karakoram Highway
Day 17 (14 October 2006): Chilas to Islamabad
Day 18 (15 October 2006): Early morning flight to UK
Note: those links will take you to the photos for each day - but they display in reverse order. If you go to my "Hindu Kush Adventure set, you'll see my photos in the correct order.
Exactly 3 months after we got back to Blighty, I've finally finished sorting through my photos and uploading them to Flickr. All 359 of them now available for viewing in my Falklands Islands Trip set.
(and I also uploaded my four photos from dad's Birthday Weekend.)
It was a great holiday - here's a day-by-day synopsis, with links to photos of the day:
I'm gradually uploading photos from our Falkland Islands trip onto Flickr. Phil bought me a Pro subscription as part of my Christmas present, so I'm effectively free of the monthly limit (unless I manage to hit the 2GB monthly limit for Pro users....). It's reminding me just how fantastic the weather was, and how beautiful Port Stanley and Cape Pembroke are:
- Photos from Sunday 26 December 2005 - Our trip out to Cape Pembroke lighthouse (the day everyone got sunburn)
- Photos from Monday 27 December 2005 - Being touristy in Stanley, and walking back to Stanley via the Moody Valley, and Fran's party in the evening
Having lived a stone's throw from Battersea Power Station for almost a decade, it's fascinating to see the building's insides, courtesy of the BBC.
From our London Transport Museum visit, my money is on Phil loving image 5.
I've read their reasons why*, and I'm currently considering whether I commit to paying the annual cost of fotopic's premium service - currently
Phil and I were in Avignon for my birthday, spending a long week there courtesy of Eurostar and the TGV, and staying in a nice family run hotel just inside the old town walls. Hotel d'Angleterre's free wifi proved a hit as Phil had his laptop so we could check mail (and deal with comment spam - grrr) while on holiday.
We had a very lazy time, lots (lots!) of reading and soaking up the spring sun, with the occasional dollop of culture and sight seeing, mooching around the old streets, and heading out on a day trip into the Provencal countryside with Cars Lieutaud and taking the train up to Orange - to see the Roman theatre, sandwiched between lunch in a lovely brasserie terrace and wicked coffee/chocolate and cake in a salon du thé! - and down to Montpellier - lots of sitting in cafes and watching the world go by.... and trying to recall places and geography from when Tom was there.
The holiday all seems a long time ago now, and we only got back yesterday. Mind you, it was a relief to get back to eateries that serve at least one veggie food option as standard. We had take away from the recently opened Spice Corner to celebrate, and very tasty it was too.
On the home front, our lounge chairs arrived today, so the sofa has some companions, and the lounge area looks more like a lounge and less like a sofa + bookselves + TV/Video/DVD/Amp!
I've had a satisfying evening downloading my February and March photos from my Canon Ixus V, sorting them out into folders and uploading selected collections to fotopic:
-
Tower42, blue skies and backlit clouds
Valentine's Day Pasties, by Phil
Sunny views - Farringdon, Smithfield, Barbican
Barbican in the snow
Snowing in Camomile Street
Good bye Copper Grill, Sayonara Salon Yamamoto
Spitalfields, old and new - including the noted house for paper bags, and Dino's cafe
Dad's birthday weekend at Forty Acres - The new tree house, and walking to the Neville
White wrapped office block, demolition in progress, Ropemaker Street / Chiswell Street / Moor Lane / Finsbury Street
Easter weekend at Walton on the Naze (brrrr)
Spent the morning sorting through my digital photos, and uploading them to my fotopic album, which carries the title Intrepid Cambodia.
My favourite digital photos:
A Reflective Angkor Wat
Family Sparkler Duel
_That_ bill!
The Bike Ladies
The moonrise at Pre Rup
Me at Ta Prohm (or is it Preah Khan?)
Busty Ladies at the Terrace of the Leper King
Angkor Thom causeway guardian
Strangle tree at Sambor Prey Kok
Phil, Sarah, Sally, Kathy, Stefan, Francis, David, Eddie and Steve, if any of you are reading this, can I just say that I had a great Christmas with you all, and in fact a fab 15 days on the trip.
Hazel has already made sure our combined collection of 16 rolls of film has been developed (I shudder at the snappysnaps cost....) and provided I can fudge another few days not working at work the other side of New Year, I'll scan in the best ones and add them to the album. If you want to set up one of your own, just go to fotopic.net, register, and follow the instructions!
It's freezing here in London - looks like Hazel and I lucked out landing to 12C yesterday morning. It's max 4C here today, cf 33C in Phnom Penh. Not that we're at all jealous of those of you still enjoying yourselves in Thailand, Laos, KL and elsewhere! I'm looking forward to being wined and dined by myPhil :)
"Me and Mary with palm trees and an exploding volcano"
An early piece by Barney Cuba Angell Loosemore, 2002
Part of a private collection, currently on display at Simmons & Simmons, CityPoint, London.
TC at his BBQ, June 2002