Monochrome Monday - Seagulls

Click to enlarge and see the detail.

If you've been following my other blog, The Pedalogue, you'll know that I recently spent three days on the lower Sunshine Coast. Our last day there dawned grey and rainy but I did manage to go out onto Davis Pier to catch some photos of the seagulls that hang around there. There must have been at least a hundred gulls sitting on the ledge of the pier, and as I approached, they'd fly off to another area to sit. These were the brave ones that remained until the last possible moment before taking off. I like how this looks in black and white as it reminds me of the day's rather drab colour.

Saturday Photo Hunt - Ruin(ed)

Click on photos to enlarge them.

I haven't done what I consider a lot of travelling, compared to some people, but in my mind one the best places to see ruins is in Sicily.

One of our first stops was at Segesta where we had to take a bus to the top of the "mountain" to view the ruins. Above are the remains of the amphitheater and the view from there is amazing. I posted photos of the view and other things on my last ABC Wednesday "S is for Sicily" post. Feel free to pop over to take a look.

Our next stop was at Selinunte where we viewed more ruins of Greek temples.

We continued on to Agrigento and strolled around the Valley of the Temples that is located outside of the modern city. I like the shot (below) of one of the ruins because you can see the modern city in the background.

Another stop was at Villa Romana at Piazza Armeria. Here is a shot of the marble toilets, considered quite modern at the time, that the women used.

Finally, I've included my photo of the Teatro Greco in Taormina. We spent a long time here, even climbing way up to the top and behind the seats. The view of the Mediterranean was stunning and you can see Mount Etna across the way. We actually saw fire and smoke coming out the top of famous volcano and it erupted the night we were there.

Skywatch Friday - Escape

Click to enlarge.

Last Sunday, November 9th, I took the Langdale ferry out of Horseshoe Bay to the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. It was a completely grey and dreary day when I left, but just after the ferry departed, I saw a break in the sky. Standing on the outer deck, I caught this photo of the blue sky appearing out of the grey and felt completely uplifted at the sight. The next three days bode well for good weather.

For more photos and stories about my three days on the Sunshine Coast, see my other blog, The Pedalogue. I hope you'll feel free to comment there, too. Happy Friday, everyone!

That's My World Tuesday

My regular readers know that I live in a village south of the city of Vancouver, almost on the border to the state of Washington. The village is considered a sort of "bedroom community" because most people who live here commute to work in neighbouring cities like Richmond, Surrey, or Vancouver. Around the residential area lie lots of farmland, though, and it's a very enjoyable trek of about 5 minutes to drive out to see old barns, cattle, horses, goats, rural mailboxes standing like drunken soldiers at the side of the road and the coal trains as they sidle on down the track to Roberts Bank Port. If you'd like to see a video of the train click here. Anyway, here are a few shots I thought I'd share with today from a couple of weeks ago on a brilliant sunny fall day just 5 minutes from my house, which is in the residential area.

It's all so quiet, peaceful and picturesque until suddenly looming out of the distance are a few monster houses! In the midst of this pastoral scene, these structures are ugly and to my eyes a blight on the landscape. I sure hope they don't eventually take over the entire area.

Skywatch Friday - Grey Skies in November

As always, please click on the photos to enlarge.

Now over 75 years old, the venerable Burrard Bridge is one of Vancouver’s true landmarks. This stunning structure, the ceremonial entrance to both downtown Vancouver and False Creek, has been evaluated as an 'A' on the City's Heritage Register. The Burrard Bridge, with its sculptural details, including intricately decorated towers and entrance pylons with flaming torches - a tribute to Canadian World War I Prisoners of War - is one of the only pure Art Deco bridges in the world. Opened in 1932, the bridge has remained substantially intact, except for the removal of its original light fixtures.
I took this shot of the bridge from Granville Island, a small island and shopping district located in False Creek under the Granville Street Bridge. Once an industrial area in the city, it's now a popular destination for locals and tourists who appreciate the fresh fruits and vegetables at the public market, boating, and theater. This is a typical, grey November day in my fair city.
To check out other SWF photos, click on Skywatch Friday on my sidebar. Join in or just simply enjoy the sights as you hop from blog to blog.

This photo isn't mine, but it shows some of the Art Deco detail of the bridge that I thought you all might appreciate.

That's My World Tuesday - YVR

Update: Today, November 5th, I saw the first dusting of snow on the tops of the mountains. It glistened in the brilliant autumn sunshine for a few minutes before the grey clouds scudded in to cover the sight. Hopefully, I'll be able to catch some photos throughout the winter to show you our famous "Lions," two mountain peaks that look like male lions lying on top of the Coast Range. Stay tuned.

Click on the pictures to enlarge.

On Halloween, a friend came over to help hand out candy to the trick or treaters, have dinner and a sleepover. The next day was grey and dismal, although not raining, so we headed into Richmond to a spot where I used to take my mother to watch the airplanes take off and land. My friend had never been to this spot before and we had a great time taking a few photos and I got a video, too. The Vancouver International Airport is actually in the city of Richmond,

which borders Vancouver on the south. It lies on part of an island in the delta of the Fraser River, which empties into Georgia Strait. Whenever I fly in or out, I always hope we'll take off or land over the water. When landing from this direction, it inevitably excites my senses because the plane soars in just feet above the water.
From our vantage point south of the airport, we could see the Coast Mountains rising high into the grey skies. It won't be long and we'll start to see the snow gradually move downwards from the peaks to the higher residential areas built on the sides of the mountains.

The main terminal of YVR is on the north side, but there is another terminal on the south arm of the river where float planes take off and land. Last summer, I took my Welsh friends to the pub there and we watched one float plane not only land on the water, but roll up the ramp onto pavement and drive across the road to the hangar area. That was quite an experience!

I don't know what it is about airports, but so many people just love watching the planes take off and land. Maybe it's the wonderment of technology. Maybe we just like to dream about getting away. Maybe it's the dream of seeing a faraway land with a different language and culture. For me, it's the dream of escaping the daily routine

for a bit of excitement.
I hope you've enjoyed the latest installment of "That's My World" here and will pop over to see others contributions. Thanks to the team who got this started and work diligently each week to continue to make it better.

Monochrome Monday - Hitchcock's The Birds

As I was driving down a back alley after leaving my daughter's place on Friday (Halloween), I spotted these birds sitting on the telephone wires in the pouring rain. I stopped the car and leaped out to catch the shot! If anyone saw me, they probably wondered what that loony lady (aka monochrome maniac) was doing! Anyway, this is the actual photo - no putting it into black and white because it was already a monchrome day! The rest of the way home I kept seeing all these birds sitting on the wires and I thought about Hitchcock's famous movie, "The Birds." A very eerie sight on Halloween afternoon.