CBBH Photo Challenge: VIEW FROM AN AIRCRAFT

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Marianne under CBBH Photo Challenge, Photo challenges

As some of you already know, I am not at home in Spain right now but gadding off around the world, as I often do during our winter months. I was racking my brains to think of a photo challenge I haven’t seen anywhere else and, as I am always camera-ready-in-hand whenever I fly, I thought that VIEW FROM AN AIRCRAFT might produce some spectacular entries for this month’s CBBH PHOTO CHALLENGE.

Whenever I fly, I always request a window seat. I love the view through an aeroplane window – because it means I´m going somewhere! These often spectacular views give a unique look at the world from a totally different perspective, and which simply cannot be seen from the ground. Sometimes I will see countries that I will never set foot in, and even if there is nothing spectacular to see, just looking at cloud patterns or sunrises can be fascinating.

With tight security rules and ever busier airports continuing to change air travel, rediscovering the romance of the window seat may be the most practical way to make flying more enjoyable.

So, Señores Pasajeros (Ladies and Gentlemen) please ensure your seat-belt is securely fastened, your tray table is stowed and your seat-back is in the upright position, and join me in enjoying a smooth approach into Abu Dhabi International Airport in the United Arab Emirates; Christchurch International Airport on the South Island of New Zealand and, of course, Malaga’s own Costa del Sol Airport on the south coast of Spain.

Abu Dhabi International (AUH) is one of the fastest growing airports in the world in terms of passenger numbers. I took this shot as we were coming in to land just after sunrise. You can see the first light shining off the houses on the left of the photograph. It’s quite amazing to see so many buildings in the middle of the desert!

Christchurch International Airport (CHC) provides not only the gateway to the South Island of New Zealand but also, with the development of many scientific expeditions, to Antarctica itself. The South Island is divided along its length by the Southern Alps, the highest peak of which is Aoraki/Mount Cook at 3754 metres (12,316 ft). As you can see, there was still plenty of snow on the Southern Alps when this photo was taken earlier this month, even though it is now summer in the southern hemisphere.

I couldn’t finish without a photograph taken on the approach to Malaga’s Costa del Sol airport (AGP). This sight is always good to see, because no matter how much I love travelling, it means I will soon be home – and that’s always a good feeling too, isn’t it?

This month´s CBBH Featured Blogs:

** Jo Bryant at Chronicles of Illusions is an Australian freelance writer now living with a demented fox terrier, two cats and a cockatiel in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. Jo always has plenty to say about life and I have particularly enjoyed reading her “Small Stones” Mindful Writing Challenge during the past month. Why not pop over there right away and take a look at exactly what I mean?

Jo takes the most amazing photographs and has something new to post most days. I don’t know how she finds the time, but I’m hoping to find out quite soon, as Jo and I are planning on meeting up when I get to the Bay of Plenty!

** If you want real, authentic, Italian home-cooking, then you should hop straight over to see what John has on offer From the Bartolini Kitchens. His recipes are always easy to follow (often with step-by-step photographs) and I especially loved his recent post describing how to make his Mom’s broth – which is sure to see off even the most dastardly of flu viruses!

John is a passionate cook who shares not only family recipes handed down from generation to generation, but wonderful tales of his childhood and family. How blessed he is to have been born into such a loving and close Italian family. When you visit John’s pages, be sure to tell him that Marianne sent you 🙂

So that´s the CBBH Photo Challenge for February, folks!

Remember, all you have to do is post your entry by the end of the month, link back to this post and, most importantly, don´t forget to share links to any two blogs that you´ve commented on during the past month, so that we can all HOP OVER and have a look. Make sure you FOLLOW THIS BLOG so you don´t miss next month´s exciting challenge!

For more information on how the CBBH Photo Challenge works click here.

I hope everyone taking part enjoys the exposure the CBBH Photo Challenge offers to featured blogs and, who knows, you may end up finding a new favourite! I´m looking forward to seeing your interpretations.

[CBBH logo Image credit: (cc) Mostly Dans]

CBBH Photo Challenge: REFLECTION

Posted on January 1, 2013 by Marianne under CBBH Photo Challenge, Photo challenges

It’s that time of year when many of us reflect over the past year and begin to look forward to whatever the coming year will bring. I’ve always enjoyed reflection – both the looking back kind, as well as the distorted or alternate view of something realistic.

Pagoda and pool, Jardin Concepcion, Malaga

Within Málaga’s La Concepción Botanical Gardens lies this Alhambra-inspired pool, which beautifully reflects the nearby pagoda. Even on a hot summer´s day, it´s a pleasure to enjoy the cool green shade and occasional sprinklers of the Gardens, which may catch you by surprise as they irrigate the surrounding plants.

Outside Guggenheim, Bilbao, Spain

In the Basque Country capital city of Bilbao, in northern Spain, lies the amazing Guggenheim Museum. Located alongside the Nervión River in downtown Bilbao, the museum is a glass and titanium structure resembling a ship, filled with modern and contemporary art. For me though, the exterior was the most impressive, with a series of outdoor exhibits including a giant spider structure, the famous giant puppy monument fashioned out of bedding plants which are renewed each spring, and this huge mirrored bunch of balloons reflecting the pool beyond.

Sunset reflected in my pool

I just had to include a photo of one of the spectacular sunsets reflected in my swimming pool. This is a sight I never tire of seeing. Can you make out the tail of the dolphin I had tiled into the floor of the pool (towards the bottom right of the photo)? This was to remind me of the time I swam with dolphins on the Caribbean island of Curacao.

The golden dome of the Stupa glistens in the beautiful sunshine

Visitors to the eastern Costa del Sol might not anticipate that there is a beautiful Buddhist Stupa within easy reach of the Mediterranean coast. The first Buddhist Kalachakra stupa built in the western hemisphere can be visited about 40 kilometres east of Málaga, just north of the town of Vélez-Málaga. Here you can see the golden dome of the Stupa reflecting the sunlight against an impossibly blue sky.

Grave reflection

“El Día de los Muertos” or the “Day of the Dead” is a celebration of life held each year throughout Spain on November 1st. Cemeteries are packed with families paying homage to their dead, as family members tend the gravestones of their loved ones by painting, weeding and cleaning them, and by placing fresh flowers and candles. It’s a time of quiet reflection – though I couldn’t help but also notice the blue sky and palm tree reflected in the polished marble of the headstone.

In addition to a physical reflection, you might want to explore emotional reflection through an image. Whatever you decide, share a photo that means REFLECTION to you.

This month´s CBBH Featured Blogs:

** Tom at The Palladian Traveler describes his blog as an ”eclectic site devoted to the pursuit of happiness from within the borders of Italy and, occasionally, beyond.” I particularly enjoyed learning about the impressive and ancient hill town of Sutri, noted for its precious archeological finds covering the Bronze, Etruscan, Roman and Middle Ages.

Tom packs his posts with lots of information and history, punctuated with beautiful photographs. I love Italy, and have very fond memories of visits there, so The Palladian Traveler is somewhere I enjoy lingering for a while. Why not pop over there right away, and say HELLO?

** If you want a recipe with a Spanish twist, Tanya at Chica Andaluza is your girl! Her recipes are always easy to follow and I especially loved her Lamb Shanks with Borlotti Beans – the most delicious comfort food you could imagine! You are sure to find something on her blog to tickle your taste buds.

Tanya is a passionate cook, aspiring writer and City Slicka turned Spanish Chica who shares the highs and lows of what she gets up to in her Andalucián mountain hideaway.

CBBH Blog Hop

So that´s the CBBH Photo Challenge for January, folks!

Remember, all you have to do is post your entry by the end of the month, link back to this blog and, most importantly, don´t forget to share links to any two blogs that you´ve commented on during the past month, so that we can all HOP OVER and have a look. Make sure you FOLLOW THIS BLOG so you don´t miss next month´s exciting challenge!

For more information on how the CBBH Photo Challenge works click here.

[CBBH logo Image credit: (cc) Mostly Dans]

Travel theme: Circles

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Marianne under Photo challenges

Here’s my entry to this week’s Travel Theme, but with a twist!

Can you guess what this photo is all about?

Edited later to add:

OK, I’ve teased you for long enough! As most have you have correctly guessed, the photo was taken inside a bullring. This particular one is in the city of Antequera, in the province of Málaga.

What I particularly wanted to show you was the burladero (from the Spanish burlar: to evade, to dodge). In regular places around the ring, the wall is pushed outwards leaving splits that allow the bullfighter to take refuge, but which are too narrow for the bull.

The bullring in Antequera dates from 1848 and was rebuilt in 1984 in a style that reflects the city’s diverse architectural influences. It is said to be one of the most beautiful in Spain.

Image credit: cc Wikipedia

More photo challenges you might enjoy:

Simple Pleasures

Blue

Repetition

CBBH Challenge: SIMPLE PLEASURES

Posted on December 1, 2012 by Marianne under CBBH Photo Challenge, Photo challenges

Everywhere we go at this time of year, we are all surrounded by the excesses of Christmas – whether it’s things you could buy as gifts for everyone you know, luxury food items you may or may not eat, and electrical goods you only just found out you couldn’t live without! Christmas as it used to be has been largely hi-jacked by consumerism of the worst kind. People are encouraged to spend more and more money on gifts each year, whilst others are still paying off debt accumulated from last Christmas. But, tell me this – can you even remember all the gifts you gave last year, let alone recall the ones you received? I know I can’t.

Given the hectic nature of our lives, it’s easy to overlook the little things that make it all worthwhile. With this in mind, for December’s CBBH Photo Challenge I have decided to focus my attention on SIMPLE PLEASURES – or, put another way, finding delight in everyday things.

So, what does it for you?

A beautiful rainbow?

Toast with peanut butter or jam?

The smell of newly-cut grass? (Click and SNIFF here for that wonderful aroma of a newly-cut lawn).

Skimming stones across a lake? (Improve your own stone skimming technique by reading this, watch some great stone skimming here or, if you´re good enough, enter the World Stone Skimming Championships for yourself!).

Squishing mud between your toes? (If you´re feeling the pinch right now, this is the ideal discount spa treatment – but make sure it’s mud you are walking in!)

Hearing a baby’s laughter? (I guarantee you can´t watch this without smiling or laughing. OH, go on, you know you want to!)

Raindrops pooling on the leaf of a lime tree after a long dry, hot summer.

The bleating of a goat on a nearby hillside, as she waits for milking time.

Walking along a beautiful, almost deserted beach and dipping your toes in the water.

This month´s CBBH Featured Blogs:

** EllaDee at elladee_words allows us a sneak peak into her everyday life in Sydney, Australia where she aims to escape from her “proper” desk and computer-centred day job in the city, and live more simply at her house in a tiny country village, 6 hours drive up the coast.

I was fascinated by Ella’s recent post All’s Well that Ends Well – Matthias and Eupham where she talks about what many Australian’s consider family history gold – convicts. Her writing style makes for easy reading – yet once she’s got you – you’re hooked! Why not HOP over there and say G’Day to EllaDee right away?

** My second choice for this month is a very friendly blog with great photos – The Sophomore Slump. Rommel loves to share his adventures around the globe and his photographs are what really make his posts come alive. What I particularly like is that he regularly features links to blogs he enjoys himself – and we all love to share a little Blog Love, don’t we?

Rommel recently posted about his trip to Las Vagas with friends, which I’m sure you would enjoy. He is always quick to leave an encouraging, relevant comment, so why not pop over and leave a message for him?

So that´s the CBBH Photo Challenge for December, folks!

Remember, all you have to do is post your entry by the end of the month, link back to this blog and, most importantly, don´t forget to add links to any two blogs that you´ve commented on during the past month, so that we can all HOP OVER and have a look. Make sure you FOLLOW THIS BLOG so you don´t miss next month´s exciting challenge!

For more information on how the CBBH Photo Challenge works click here.

[CBBH logo Image credit: (cc) Mostly Dans]

Giving thanks for the most beautiful sunsets

Posted on November 25, 2012 by Marianne under Axarquía, Photo challenges, Slice of Life

I am always thankful for the most beautiful sunsets we have here, east of Málaga. They always seem particularly spectacular at this time of year, too. Doesn’t this one look pretty, reflected in the swimming pool?

As Oprah Winfrey once said, “Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more.
If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough.”

This post is my response to the WordPress Photo Challenge: THANKFUL and this week´s Travel Theme: LIQUID

If you like photo challenges, you might like to look at these …..

When life gives you curves, flaunt them!

CBBH Photo Challenge: BLUE

Travel Theme: Texture