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The Norfolk County Show
There are few things more endearingly, quintessentially British than a County Show. There are possibly even fewer things absolutely typically English than the Norfolk County Show, a county steeped in agricultural history and even on occasion the butt of affectionate humour through its connections to farming. With a slice of serendipitous timing, Michaela was last week able to join her Mum at what is one of Norma’s favourite events on the calendar, a chance to wander among prize animals, music, food, and that essential part of an English day out – eccentric characters who in their own esoteric way define Englishness. Joined by Norma’s lovely friends Daphne and Val, the…
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Michaela’s Favourite Photographs #14. Sometimes The Simple Things
Versailles, France, 2015. And here we end this short series of some of Michaela’s favourite photographs, with a shot of beautiful and stunning simplicity. Leaving the glorious palace to explore the sumptuous gardens, the rain started to fall with extraordinarily bad timing, just as we stepped away from the sanctuary of the grand building. And yet the rain brought a gift: clear, dainty raindrops clinging to leaves and flower heads throughout the gardens, nowhere more perfect than on this delicious pink rose.
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Michaela’s Favourite Photographs #13. When We Are The Mystery
Sunderbans, Bengal, India, 2017. Way beyond the end of the road network, far beyond the concept of cars, out into the world’s biggest mangrove swamp where our temporary home was to be a mud hut amongst the wild and mysterious terrain. The only means of transport was small, cramped, low slung boats across the water. Here, in these far off corners, the real mystery was us: what were these two pale skinned people doing right out here where white man is a rarity? As you can see from the faces of our fellow passengers, we were a source of friendly amusement. Elsewhere around the villages, tea sellers like this lady…
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Michaela’s Favourite Photographs #12: Village Party
A mountain village north of Foça, Turkey, 2012. It might have been a funeral, so we held back, not wishing to intrude on whatever this private village gathering was. But they called us in, beckoned us to join the strange procession in which every member of the village was playing their part. Invited to dance to the music, cans of beer thrust into our hands, the smiles of these mountain dwellers told us we were going to be part of the celebration. The event was in honour of Mohammad, a young boy passing from youth to adulthood: in essence, a party to celebrate his circumcision.
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Michaela’s Favourite Photographs #11: First Light
Tafraout, Morocco, 2016. I have to admit that this one is more my favourite than Michaela’s: I love it not just for itself, but also for what it represents. Out on the edge of the desert, the nights were cold, our breath clearly visible in the crisp morning air as we took breakfast. Within a few short hours the temperature had rocketed and the days were so hot. As we rose early one morning and braced ourselves against the cold, the first light of the day crept down from the tops of the mountains, sunshine creeping down the slopes towards the town…
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Michaela’s Favourite Photographs #10: Quiet Streets
Marrakech, Morocco, 2015 and Bratislava, Slovakia, 2014. Sometimes in the busiest and most manic of cities, it’s possible to turn a corner and suddenly find yourself in a little enclave of peace. It’s hard to accentuate this in a photograph – unless you’re lucky enough for one single person to wander into the quiet alley at just the right moment. That single figure somehow conveys peace more eloquently than a wholly empty street can….
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Michaela’s Favourite Photographs #9: Snowy Scene
Konnu, Estonia, 2015. During a city break in the Estonian capital Tallinn, we enjoyed a trip out of town for a snow-shoe hike in the forests around the small town of Konnu. This was the site where the legendary “forest brothers” departed the cities and survived in the frozen wastes for years while resisting the advances of the Soviet Red Army. Michaela was enthralled by the long shadows cast by the winter trees and sought to capture the effect in one shot: this is one of those shots.
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Next: A Journey To The Centre Of The Earth
We’ve been back in England for a month now, easily long enough for the feet to get substantially itchy and for the wanderlust to grow. Both Michaela and I are more than ready for our next adventure, bursting at the seams to get cracking again, and the other day I swear I heard our backpacks squealing “lemme out, lemme out” from inside the wardrobe. It’s been great to catch up with family and friends, wonderful to see my beautiful granddaughters, for Michaela to have “Mum time”, great to see Cornwall again and, of course, good to have a few English ales, but it’s travelling that sets us free and as…
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Michaela’s Favourite Photographs #8: The Sky On Fire
Jarun Lake, Zagreb, Croatia. 2015. Towards the southern end of Croatia’s capital city lies a large and relaxing green space, where the nation’s sporting heroes are commemorated with murals, photographs and plaques around the beautiful parkland. As the winter afternoon neared its end, so the setting sun began to bring a fiery orange to the sky. This photo opportunity, as the blazing sunset bounced its reflections off the silent lake, was too good to resist.
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Invasive Species & Changing Scenery
In our post about Winston Churchill’s family home at Chartwell a couple of weeks ago, we mentioned that we felt a bit miffed at missing out on the good weather which was being enjoyed by the rest of England while those of us on the east coast were still in coats and jeans. Well, it only got marginally better. The recent so-called heatwave is mostly over, and somehow we managed to carry on with what seems to be a newly acquired knack of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. We left our home in Kent on the very day that the high temperatures finally hit these parts,…
