Rippling Reflections

I hope you like green!

If you do,

 let yourself imagine that you're a water sprite

living in a poetic, watery setting in nature.

By clicking on each photo

to enlage the image, you will be able to see each tiny detail and every delicate hue.

Snatches of blue sky mingle in-between the green reflections

A few burnished leaves show themselves here and there

Cascading and ondulating

becoming abstract in quality

Here you can see the reason for these reflections and ripples

On the left of this image, the circular pattern comes from a source flowing into the pond.

Mesmerizing

Even the duck is enjoying the movements in the water

Can you bear a bit more green...?

This one is my favourite

The circular movement of the water,

the touches of blue

and the different shades of green.

All is made up of reflections except the hanging branch on the upper right.

A final look

this time at the other end of the pond

which gives a more serene atmosphere.

Water sprite:

An elf-like creature or water fairy.

Some people believe in them,

others prefer to look upon them as supernatural legendary creatures.

Whatever your belief,

I hope you enjoyed being a water-sprite during your visit!

Conkers

A conker

is the hard, shiny dark brown nut 

of a Horse Chestnut tree.

I've always loved conkers

The way they hang on the tree in their spiky green capsules

and when they ripen,

the gorgeous, shiny, rich brown nut

appears and falls to the ground.

Every part of the conker is beautiful and harmonious,

even the inner capsule.

Some years ago,

I planted a conker and a wonderful horse-chestnut tree

started to grow.

I put it in a huge pot on my balcony

and every year it grew taller and more beautiful.

It grew taller than me and started to touch the top of the balcony.

One year, it gave flowers and I was hoping to get my own conkers.

but they didn't develop.

 The following year,

a very late frost killed my tree already covered in fresh leaves.

Maybe one day, I'll plant another conker and watch a new tree grow.

Just to explain a slightly confusing issue:

Conkers come from the Horsechestnut tree Aeseculus hippocastanum

 and are inedible.

Chestnuts come from the Sweet Chestnut tree Castanea sativa

 and are edible.

***

Extra Note:

Artist, Clare Willcocks

kindly asked me if she may paint a picture of one of my conker photographs

She has done a very good job of it here:

Clare Willcocks Art

A Small Medieval Town

This is a fortified medieval castle

in a small town high up on a hill overlooking the green landscape below

It's Le Château de Gruyères

in the canton of Fribourg.

A canton is a way to divide the land of a country.

It is like dividing the country into different regions or states.

The word comes from the Latin: canto

which means: 'a section of a country'.

It's a steep climb up to the little town on the hill

before we can go through the archway at the top to reach the centre.

Glancing down into the valley below as the castle walls get closer.

This is the main street with cobbled paths.

No cars are allowed to circulate and have to be left down below.

A closer view of the mountain in the background

called Le Moléson.

It's a well-known landmark in this canton.

On the upper right, against the sky,

you can see see a sign which says Hotel de Ville.

The bird depicted in the middle is a stork (la grue in French)

which is the symbol of the Gruyères region.

Perhaps you have tasted the famous Swiss cheese

called Gruyère which is made in this region.

The town is beautifully decorated with geraniums in all the windows 

and on the terraces.

People sat outside, many of them eating cheese fondue, among other specialities.

There are many old doors with carvings and decorative stonework.

This one dates back to 1591.

Equally charming windows adorn old facades.

Don't you love the points on the extremity of the shutters

which slot into the shape of the stonework around the windows?

Could this be the door to the cellar full of vintage wines?

Heart shapes are everywhere, 

carved in the window boxes

and lacy hangings in the windows.

Doesn't this bench look inviting?

A place to sit and watch the people passing by.

I couldn't resist these windows with their reflections of the sky and clouds.

More attractive stone work with the pointed scallops

typical to the Renaissance style.

In the wrought-iron work,

we can see the symbolic grue (stork) once again.

Isn't this a romantic window?

Could there be a young damsel inside

waiting for her gallant cavalier to pass by?

Now I will show you how we finished off our visit

to this picturesque town

Does it look good?

Besides the cheese fondue,

this is another typical dish from this area:

Fruit of the season, served with meringues

and incredibly thick Gruyère cream.

Have you ever seen cream this thick in its natural state?

Go on!

Taste a bit.

I've put three juicy blueberries there just for you!

Here is the castle seen from afar.

This photo was not taken by me.

Alpine Lake Hike

During the last week of my summer break

I was able to do a few beautiful outings

One of them was to hike around an Alpine lake.

The light was perfect.

The lake was surrounded by rugged mountains and green pastures.

If you look carefully, you will see a waterfall in the distance

and on the upper right you can see the white tip of a glacier.

Zooming in on the waterfall from the other side of the lake.

Quite impressive 

and I was happy enough to walk at the base of these rocky slopes.

Each part of our hike gave us a different scene.

A chalet nestled in a clearing surrounded by pine trees

and fresh green slopes.

Another chalet on our trail.

There was smoke coming out of the chimney

and look at those lovely cow bells all lined up!

A wooden jetty leading to the lake

Lake reflections

taking on the green colours of the surrounding scenery.

The air was so pure and clear

The views change constantly

and there's such peacefulness.

We were so blessed with the best sunny day of the week to do this outing!

Now I'm back in work mode, I have this lovely day to remember!