Views of Sequim, the Olympic Peninsula. . .and beyond
We found this letter writing station at at tiny stationery store in Victoria B.C. Remember letters? You know, those paper missives you compose, stamp, and mail to friends and family? You can even make a greeting card.
The nice people at this store will even give some basic tech support. The first step is probably training in how much force a typewriter key requires compared to a computer keyboard. And don’t forget the carriage return.
We went to Victoria B.C. earlier this month and spent a day at Butchart Gardens. It’s beautiful in any season, even at night in December when dormant plants are draped in lights. I thought it would be nice to shoot a summer shot of a specimen tree that was wreathed in glorious blossoms last April. Click here for a comparison.
Summer is about color in these gardens. There was no shortage of bright spots.
We went to see the roses, which didn’t disappoint. But I was captivated by the begonias.
We took the Edmonds ferry to get to Seattle on Monday and were treated to a clear view of Mt. Rainier. We don’t see Rainier from Sequim. It’s located to the east of Seattle. You can see taller Seattle structures at the left side of the shot, including the famous Space Needle that looks like a tiny flying saucer on a pole.
Monday. Sometimes it’s hard to face getting things back under control.
Before we head back to the U.S. and my hometown, I thought I’d show a few more buildings in Reykjavik that caught my eye while we were there. This one is on the main shopping street.
This one was nestled back in an alleyway. I love the polka dots and stripes.
And here’s a nod to Art Deco. Notice the dark shapes to the bottom left of the shot? Those were small columns with the look of basalt that were dividing lanes on the street.
The down side of taking a bus tour is that one can’t call out “photo op!” and pull over to the side of the road. But some of the sights in Iceland were so compelling I couldn’t resist taking shots through the window of our moving bus, such as they are, glare and all. Churches in the countryside rarely failed to catch my eye.
I saw a number of classic red roofed churches like that in the first shot, but there were occasional less traditional ones as well.
Mind you, these weren’t in cities, for the most part, but out in the open, sparsely populated countryside.
I so would have loved to stop and explore this structure that appears to be growing from the hill behind it. But then, if I’d had my druthers I’d probably still be there today, happily roaming with camera in hand.
Lest you think Iceland is just fire and ice, think again. There are also beautiful waterfalls cascading down hillsides across the countryside. This one, Gullfoss, flows with turquoise glacial meltwater. As you can see, it’s two waterfalls. The water rushing down the bottom of this photo virtually disappears into a long, deep fissure to the right.
This is Seljalandsfoss, a waterfall of a different sort. Behind the bottom third of the waterfall is an overhang deep enough to create a passageway that allows visitors to walk behind the falling water. You might be able to make out people approaching on the right. There are a couple of people visible as specks in the mist on either side of the falling water.
Did I take the walk? Let’s just say I prefer to keep my camera dry.
And, at this waterfall, Skogafoss, keeping my camera dry was an unexpected challenge. You no doubt can see white spots across this shot. Although we left Reykjavik on a sunny morning, as we headed toward Iceland’s south eastern coast we drove into increasingly darker clouds…until — you guessed it — it started snowing. This was the only stop where it snowed steadily. By afternoon it was just a unique travel memory.
Our guide gave us an Icelandic perspective on snow: How can you tell it’s summer in Iceland? The snow is warmer. Sounds about right to me.