Travel
I'm lucky enough to travel a lot but I also aim to understand a place in some depth. So I like to find out about the local history, sociology, wildlife and local arts. I prepare for a trip by looking up photos of the famous sights, they're usually a good guide both about the local visual interest and also a warning of what has already been done or over-done.
I try to use the tools of modern photojournalism and photography to communicate how I feel about a place. You’ll see that I have used Portrait, Street, Interior, Historical, Abstract, Landscape, Historical, Wildlife, Phone-camera and Selfie genres at different times for specific effects.
Photo-journal of my day trip to Ventnor and Shanklin on the Isle of Wight.
This was a day trip as there was a sunny day (rare so far this summer) and I’ve never been to the Isle of Wight. I spent slightly more time on the island than in trains but the travel is a lot of the story of my day.
Impressions? In just a phrase, Shanklin reminded me of Key West. Less tropical and very English but I reminisced amongst the outdoor living and white-painted wooden house fronts, lush gardens and the wind-blown Cabbage Palms. And the people: families on a beach holiday, young couples, senior couples and the beach bums sleeping who knows where.
Not the first time I’ve ended up staying somewhere one day more than planned... trains south on the West Coast Main Line were cancelled yesterday afternoon so we had to bus it back to Keswick and try again this morning. Yesterday was dry in Keswick, but there was enough flooding on the track at Tebay to close the southbound rail line so there were a number of trains in front of the one we saw stuck in the station at Penrith. I decided to bring us back to Keswick although at that time there was no useful information from the train company. Sure enough our booked service made it no further than Carlisle.
So the weather has the last laugh yet again: after a week of soggy days, we had one more breakfast in Cumbria and enjoyed this morning’s brilliant view of Skiddaw (931 m.) on our way to the Three Bears bus stop in Keswick. The train arrived on time in Euston.
Magnificent, majestic, marmottes and motorcycles. Snow at the Col de la Cayolle (2327 m.), on its first day of opening this year. The route connects the valley of the River Var (which goes to the Mediterranean at Nice) with the valley of the River Ubaye in the Alpes-de-Haut-Provence. The Col de la Cayolle was one of the original cols forming the Route des Grandes Alpes, the tourist route to Nice originally proposed by the PLM railway company.
More photos: First day open on the Col de la Cayolle (2327 m.)
2024 Renault Clio Techno TCe 90 at Col du Lautaret (2057 m.)
More than 2000 km with this full petrol 2024 Clio Techno TCe 90 has been an interesting experience. A ride with lots of the impressive-sounding driver assistances, adaptive cruise control, hill start assist, parking assist with 360° view and Lidar (presumably) sensors giving stereo beeps. An electronic driver display (speed, revs, fuel etc) plus a 9.3 inch entertainment and navigation screen. A whole load of the Clio Techno’s functions can be controlled by an app if you want to. So a tekkie treat on wheels.
Beaumes-de-Venise
Sablet
Touring some of the villages and vineyards that make the Côtes du Rhône Villages wines that we see on the wine lists and supermarket shelves. The actual villages and locations are as varied as the wines. It’s easier to relate the taste and labels to the wines having seen the geography, maybe also understanding a little more about which are the more favoured locations. The Côtes du Rhône Villages are a varied lot, small producers and vast vineyards seemingly stretching to the banks of the Rhône or the rocky limestone crags of the Dentelles de Montmirail.
