Don't have any Halloween pics, because we don't do much 'Hallowee'ing' in the Netherlands. A bit more each year, it's 'blowing over' from England and America but not as much as over there.
So today a photo which I took in februari 2008 in Edinburgh at st. John's cemetery. The light was so lovely. There was some kind of special atmosphere hanging around those very old tombes. A nice one though.
I loved this tomb monument of a family. Sad, but lovely all the same.
This morning, bright and early, we where walking in the forest. Camera in hand. The Autumn forest is so lovely now. Bright colours, red, orange, yellow. It was very quiet. We saw a roe, she saw us too and ran. I took lots of pictures. But the best of all must be these: Two ladybugs, full of early morning dew.
Most people who know me, know that my heart lies in Scotland. That I get goose bumps when I hear bagpipes and that the tears can run down my cheeks from homesickness. So it's no surprise that ones in a while you can find here and on my other blog stories or photos and music of Scotland. Home is where the heart is so they say and allthough I love my own country, a great piece of my heart will allways be in Scotland.
The Thistle, the flower of Scotland, Photo made on the banks of Loch Leven.
The Theme for this week's photo challenge is Orange. (Other Orange Photo's here) I shot some pictures yesterday. But now I can't choose!
;-) So I decided to show them all.
Mandarine pieces
Chinese Lanterns From the Chinese Lantern Plant in my garden. (Dutch: Chinese Lampionplant)
Lion.
Holland is a kingdom, the house of Orange, Queen Beatrix last name is 'Van Oranje' Of Orange. When we play the Worldcup football for example we have a lion and the colour Orange as our mascot. This lion we got with our grocceries in a supermarket some years ago.
Two years ago I was on holiday in Germany, in the Black Forest (Schwarzwald). While walking to a big waterfall we saw lots of birds. Some seemed to be used to so many tourists and just stayed there, waiting for food maybe? I was glad to shoot this lovely picture of a Nuttkracker:
Years ago when I rearanged my garden, I descided I wanted a vine.(in Dutch: Wingerd) I love the colours in autumn. For some reason each autumn the leaves were ripped off by the wind before turning that lovely red colour. But this year it seems that I'm lucky. They are still on, and turning purple and reddish. Fingers crossed!
This picture is from last year: You can see the wood beneath is suffering a bit from the vine. But on the other hand: I love wood that looks like that!
In 2006 I visited Stonehenge for the first time. I thought it to be magical. As all the places we visited that summer in Dorset. I have altered this photo in Photobucket a bit.
It's her birthday today. She's 10 now. I never forget the day we picked her out of all those jumpy little ones. She sniffed my neck when I picked her up and started to lick my ears. :-) She still wants to if she gets the chance. She is so loyal to me and my very dear friend through the sadness in the last couple of years and in happy times. She comforts me, she will never let me down and is the most true friend I will ever have. But that's the thing about dogs, they give things without asking something in return, just your own friendship and to be good for them.
I really hope she will be part of my life for some more lovely years!
Happy Birthday Jessie!
Last year when buying some garden plants, we bought not only the plants but with it came a beautiful butterfly! In Dutch: an Icarusblauwtje, in English: a Common Blue. Common? Not so common to me. Never seen one before. It was a female because she was brown with orange spots. She just sat there. I could take pictures of here up close. She even opened her wings for me. And when I had some good ones, she just flew away. That was really a moment to be grateful for!
If I have to name one big idol, than it has to be Sting. I'm a huge fan, even from the time he played in the band The Police, and I was in my teens. A week or two ago he turned 60. And this year is his 25 anniversary as a musician. Last year in oktober I saw him live. It was the 6th time I think I saw him play live.
This time it was in the Gelredome in Arnhem, his Symphonicity tour with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. It was beautiful. I really love Sting's music. Allright, he himself is easy on the eyes too even though he is 60! ;-)
This photo was taken with the mobile phone I had then: a Samsung Jet.
I love Autumn, I love walking in the forest on a Sunday morning, when all is quiet. I bring my camera with me and take pictures. Lots of them. I also love mushrooms, the eating kind but also the ones in the forest.
Same mushrooms, but the first photo I edited on my laptop:
In my garden I have a shrub called: American Pokeweed (in Dutch: Karmozijnbes). It has white flowers in summer and black berries in autumn. Last autumn I saw a blackcap (in Dutch: Zwartkop mees) in the American Pokeweed. Just one. They move to Africa in autumn, so this one was feeding himself with the berries before the long flight I guess.
My garden has a reasonable size, not to small, not to big. In that garden are some bushes, some flowers, herbs and grass and last year suddenly two trees. An American oak tree and a birch tree decided they liked my garden.
The American oak has lovely coloured leaves in autumn.
Male Swan angry at my dog came swimming towards her, and I took this picture. I love this picture. The wings, the water around him... I'm thinking about hanging this photo on my wall in a larger size.
The young swans in the pond in the street where I live, were gliding beautifully behind each other. Ducking to avoid hitting their heads against a branch hanging down.
Allthough I have a fear of spiders, it fascinates me how they spin their web. In Autumn I have a lot of shots of spiders and their webs. Maybe to lose my arachafobia?
Hiding from the pooring rain. These two magpies are coming frequently in my garden to search for food, but to my surprise, also to hide from heavy rain! How smart are they!
They can sit there for as long as they feel like it, under the roof of the house which adjoins our garden.
Today is World Animal Day. My dog is ofcourse the sweetest, cutest dog in the world. :-) She doesn't like getting her picture taken so I'm happy with this one from last years autumn.
A new (second) blog, a little introduction. My friend Daan gave me the inspiration. (thanks Daan)
One of my favorite things to do is taking my camera and taking pictures. But what to do with all those photograps? What about every day another picture? Daan does it, (she takes a new one every day) so I have a choice to take an old one or make a new one. Hope I can surprise you.
And because I'm so crazy about Scotland and the UK (even though I'm Dutch) and it's the first photo on this photo blog. I'm starting with my favorite castle in Scotland:
Eilean Donan Castle, Scotland
