David's Images of the Day Photoblog
Views of buildings
Something Different from the Taj Mahal. Silhouette of a monkey traveling across the top of a building.
Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.
When I planned this trip, I included an extra day for travel to Argentina to account for weather delays. I almost needed it since it was snowing when I arrived in Dallas to change planes for the international leg of the flights. We finally did take off after waiting to have the plane de-iced. I arrived in Buenos Aires a couple of hours later than expected. I had the 10 year visa from the last visit to Argentina in my passport, so didn’t have to pay an extra $100 when going through customs & immigration. It took some time to find the driver to take me to the hotel. Once I got to the hotel, I slept until the next morning. It was a long trip.
The next morning I hooked up with several of the folks that would be on the photography workshop for a pre-workshop tour of Buenos Aires. We spent the morning in the La Boca barrio/district. Lots of street artists, colorful buildings, and street art. Also, lots of tourist — and we were warned about pickpockets and folks that might want to grab our cameras. So we worked the area in pairs, and also had a security guard in addition to our local guide. After lunch we went to the La Recoleta cemetery. Also, a photography rich environment. The sky was grey, and some light rain. I didn’t get as many pictures as I wanted because my Leica T camera stopped working. It just froze after changing the lens. Unfortunately, I only took the one camera with me for the day. (OK, I did take some pictures with a cell phone).
Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.
Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.
On the third full day of the northbound Hurtigruten voyage, the ship stopped in seven ports: Brønnøysund (00:30-01:00); Sandnessjøen (03:45-04:15); Nesna (05:25-05:30); Ørnes (09:00-09:30); Bodø (12:30-15:00); Stamsund (19:00-19:30); and Svolvær (21:00-22:00).
The ship crossed the Arctic Circle at 07:20, while it was still dark out. Champagne was served for those up early enough. Baptism for those that were crossing the Arctic Circle for the first time would be celebrated later in the afternoon. At this time of the year, and this far north dawn lasts a long time. The panorama view at dawn shows the unique pink color of the Belt of Venus and blue Earth Shadow below. Conditions have to be right to see these colors.
While in Bodø I took the bus tour — the city and out to the Saltstraumen. When conditions are right this has one of the worlds strongest tidal currents causing whirlpools or maelstroms. We weren’t there at the right time, and the weather was deteriorating. The bus driver wanted to make sure we got back to the ship before it left. Watch the time-lapse video, a scary ride in a snowstorm.
Later in the evening, we stopped in Svolvær and went to the world-famous Magic Ice bar. We entered what looked like a warehouse and were provided with warm coats. Inside the building were ice sculptures reflecting the life of the region and fishermen. Before leaving we were provided a drink in a shot glass made of ice.
On the second full day of the northbound Hurtigruten voyage, the ship only stops in two ports: Trondheim (06:00-12:00) and Rørvik (20:30-21:15). Having six hours in Trondheim allowed us to spend some time to see the city. Our first stop was at Nidaros Cathedral. The exterior of the cathedral is a target rich environment for religious statues and gargoyles. But it was cold outside. The last time I was here in 2007 I said I would love to go back with a perspective control lens to record all sides of the exterior of the cathedral. Well, I didn’t bring that lens along, so had to do with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and an older 180 mm f/2.8 lens. It was cloudy and still relatively dark in the morning, so the images are noisy. The statues can be identified here. After leaving Trondheim, we passed the Kjeungskjær Lighthouse.
Individual images from the slide show can be viewed here.
On the fifth day of the southbound Hurtigruten voyage the ship only made three stops: Trondheim (06:30-10:00); Kristiansund (16:30-17:00); and Molde (21:00-21:30). We were able to spend a couple of early morning hours in Trondheim. I wanted to get more images of the statues and gargoyles at the Nidaros Cathedral.
Individual images in the slide show can be viewed here.