Lens-Artists Challenge #292 – People Here, There, Everywhere

26 mars, 2024 / Leya / 63 kommentarer

Tina leads this week, with the theme People Here There and Everywhere. At first, I too was a bit lost…I don’t do portraits or people. But, if I can picture people at work or on festivities, I am OK with it. Sometimes I ask them, but that is only when I meet people of foreign cultures. Very foreign. They don’t get offended and sometimes they even like it.

Since I don’t have many people portraits, I am afraid I have posted all of these before. I hope you will enjoy them anyway.

This lovely man in Thimpu, Bhutan, let me take a couple of photos of him – but when I showed him the results, he did not want to keep the close-ups… Some children where playing by the road, so I asked them what the old man was saying. They told me he thought his nose was too big!

In Ecuador, the people were so lovely and smiling. Maybe because it was festival times? These beautiful ladies were singing and dancing in the street in Quito, Ecuador.

We also met Miss Quito and her partner, who didn’t mind having their photo taken – we were many tourists with our cameras up in the air. My husband of course photographed the lovely lady…and as you can see, the young man gave me a nice smile.

Our main goals in Ecuador was Galapagos, the Napo River and the Amazon basin – and Fausto was our favourite guide. He was born and raised in the jungle, and knew everything about living here. Hunting, tracking, making fire, cooking food. On instagram I found him with a big anaconda around his neck…

From South America to Morocco and the market in Marrakesh – Djeema el Fna. It is one of the oldest markets in the world. Many people, many faces. An overwhelming and unforgettable experience.

Back in Europe and Lodz, Poland. She came walking down the street, and I immediately loved everything about her. The clothes, the colours, the ring on her left hand – you could see that she once was a beauty. I think she still was. When I looked at the photo afterwards, I saw the shadow in the street on her right side – is it her left, fallen off, piece of the sunglasses?

Knitting ladies in a market in Lhasa, and debating monks at the Sera Monastery. Tibetans doing their daily chores. The ladies were happy to show me their knitting technique and I showed them mine. The monks, I think, debated heavily just to show off for the tourists…

The best thing is when the pictures tell a story – so above I have presented a mixed gallery from some of my China travels. Chinese people seen on an ordinary walk – dancing, posing, playing, eating and getting married. And red is the festive colour. I was greatly impressed by the many outdoor activities, and so many elderly people playing and dancing! Very active and agile. I wish we could be like that in Sweden too. Dancing in the park every day – wouldn’t that be great?

This last gallery tells a multitude of stories – the big story of the pilgrimage and the end of a long, strenous walk to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Happy and exhausted they rest, alone, but together – each one with his or her own story as a piece of the big puzzle. I loved listening to those stories, and most people willingly shared them with us. I still dream of doing that walk…for peace in mind, body and soul.

Back in Sweden again, a silhouette of one of my best friends, a late summer evening by the lake.

So this week, our challenge is to share images of people we’ve captured along the way. Remember to link your responses to Tina’s original post and to use the Lens-Artists Tag.

Sincere thanks to all of our followers for joining us, and to Patti for last week’s wonderful Cityscape challenge. We all got an amazing world tour through your responses! Next week Sofia leads us once again on her beautiful Photographias site. Until then please stay safe, be kind and enjoy the journey.

CFFC: Men and Instruments

22 augusti, 2018 / Leya / 7 kommentarer

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Week 5 Photo – Music, guitar, instrument, men, coffee, etc.

All men…

…and good at what they are doing! Irish in the header, in Madrid I admired the glass player sitting in a street market, and…

…happy guys playing cards in the streets of Beijing.

All candid shots.

WPC: All-Time Favorites

30 maj, 2018 / Leya / 38 kommentarer

I want to thank you again, for inspiring us all to keep blogging – share our experiences and learn from each other. It has been good, so good. And tonight I truly feel sorry about losing this opportunity.

Many of us got to know each other through WPC, now some of us maybe will not have the strength, discipline or imagination to blog that frequently again. But, even in the desert there is beauty…So, I hope we will! – You have been a great help to make blogging fun and addictive in a positive way.

It will not be easy to choose an all-time favorite…I don’t believe it is easier to choose three or four either. I will think about it for an hour or two…meanwhile, I send my love to you all, and especially to: Krista, Jeff, Michelle, Erica, Ben, Sheri, Donncha, Jen, Sara and Cheri.

I cannot choose a favorite of mine among you either…and why should I? I just felt that Cheri, your words added to your picture – those words touched the heart of my blogging.

My choices… there is much feeling connected to the pictures chosen, memories and heart…While some of them were favorites of yours, some of them maybe are only favorites of mine. But they all are some years old – otherwise they could not be All-Time Favorites, could they? (More of my criteria at the end of the post. )

In the header, a lonely beach on the east coast of New Zealand. My family traveled together for a whole month, and we walked alone on this beach, each one of us…contemplating the beauty of Earth, and the end of our journey. Here is my son listening to the ocean.

Then – a hot night in Barcelona, my family and I was out walking and ended up in the middle of a gigantic motor bike gathering. Foreign feeling – but magical.

This is also a family hiking memory – very dear to me. My daughter resting on a giant pine branch in the Spanish mountains, somewhere between Spain and France.

Spain again – Segovia and its famous aqueduct. I had never seen anything like it – it goes through the city center and is still standing after centuries and centuries. No concrete, no nails – only the stones themselves. I walked, sat, stood in the steps contemplating – for hours. Enigmatic shadows as well.

This photo was taken at our summer house, when I still had both dogs, Mille and Totti. No other photo of them shows so on the spot their special temperaments. Now, who is the wild boy and who is the law abiding one? Fond memories.

My dear blogging friend Maria (Mariayarri), in Jämtland, took me to the Tännforsen waterfall in winter. I had never seen a gigantic waterfall frozen before. It took my breath away – and I remember, many of yours’ as well.

An early spring day some years ago, it started snowing on my way back home from the forest walk. This deer shed was still standing. (Now gone) The photo became a favorite with both my readers and me.

My Princess of the Night in flower for the first time. We waited for hours – and then everything was over within 20-30 minutes. A Wonder. This flower is about 20 centimeters and the scent fills the whole room. A photo is not enough to grasp the event…you need all your senses!

Meeting another dear blogging friend, Seonaid (Greenmackenzie) – from Scotland. She does not blog anymore, but I got the opportunity to visit her two times when she lived just outside Edinburgh. She and her lovely family had three Bearded Collies, and two of them looked just like my Amanda ( – before Mille and Totti). Those few, magical days with them will never leave me. Also a photo with feeling, showing well the character of the dog.

This photo was taken on a rainy trip to China. It rained every day – and the wedding couple here had a speedy walk on the Bond in Shanghai, waiting for their photographer. In Sweden there is a saying that rain in your crown on your wedding day – will give you a happy marriage. I hope this one was/is! This shot was a favorite with Sylvain Landry when he had his weekly prompts.

Catedrales beach, Spain. We just happened to find it – a World Heritage – it was not in the guide book…Kilometers of rock formations of enigmatic size and shapes. We spent several hours walking in the sunset. Incredible feeling that such a marvelous place was not marked out in any book. It made the experience even more magical.

The last photo, of Lhasa and the Pothala Palace, also marks what I see as my criteria for All-Time Favorites: Deep feeling, being in awe, magical surroundings, beauty, dream fulfilled or come true.

Travel theme: Leaves – Beautiful Dead and Alive

1 januari, 20179 januari, 2017 / Leya / 22 kommentarer

Leaves for Ailsa. Trees and their leaves do represent life, and in China I always admire the ancient Ginko tree with its beautifully designed leaves. But on our last trip there, I found these traditionally painted leaves and could not resist buying one. They were framed in glass, otherwise not possible to take home.

From China – so thin and fragile – a handpainted leaf from a Banyan tree. Some lamp light from the right side, but hopefully you can understand what it looks like on my wall.

Travel theme: History

31 augusti, 201631 augusti, 2016 / Leya / 9 kommentarer

Travel theme: History

To me, maybe China and the Great Wall stands out when I think of History. Not only is it very old, but there is so much history behind the building of the wall, so many lost lives and such a fascinating idea from the start.

So, I keep returning to it…

SL-WEEK: Reflection

16 maj, 201616 maj, 2016 / Leya / 24 kommentarer

For Sylvain Landry – Reflection. I love the way the world changes in reflections. In the header, a photo from somewhere in China, where many separate worlds are revealed …and the second photo is from my forest at home. My world.

Bäcken lever. The brook comes alive when the ice is gone.

SL-WEEK 43: Wedding

9 maj, 2016 / Leya / 22 kommentarer

According to Chinese tradition, the bride always wears red on her wedding day. So, for Sylvain Landry, this week’s wedding pictures come from China. Old tradition in the beautiful water city of Suzhou, and in the header, a modern couple walking the Bond overlooking the Pudong area in Shanghai.

SL-WEEK 37: Electricity

22 mars, 2016 / Leya / 4 kommentarer

Sylvain Landry this week – something essential in our high – tech society – electricity.

The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Yangtze River in China. The Three Gorges Dam is the world’s largest power station with a total electric generating capacity of 22.500MW.

The dam project was started in 1993 and completed in 2012,

As well as producing electricity, the dam is intended to increase the Yangtze River’s shipping capacity and reduce the potential for floods downstream. The Chinese government regards the project as a total success, However, the dam flooded archeological and cultural sites and displaced some 1.4 million people, (See the post on Shibaozhai earlier.) It is also causing significant ecological changes, The Chinese river dolphin became extinguished and there is an increased risk of landslides. The dam was built in an area of potential earthquakes, and the consequences if – this would happen, would be disastrous.

There are two series of ship locks installed – each of them is made up of five stages, with transit time at around four hours. We passed during the night. Looking out from the balcony, this is what we saw.

CFFC: Indoor Seating

15 mars, 2016 / Leya / 16 kommentarer

Indoor seating for Cee this week – I just adored this chair at J.K. Rowling ‘s favourite café (where she wrote Harry Potter) in Edinburgh – The Elephant House.

And…

in case you have got some money you do not know how to spend…