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.
A surprising and mad garden paradise built on a bank of the river Isère, the garden is blessed with many dozens of springs which have formed travertine pools. The first view of the garden is from above, the path leads down to a number of garden rooms which are built around water features. The design is mad... there’s a dresser filled with plants, the seats and music stands for a band which have been overgrown by plants and a frame that has nothing inside, just a view of more garden. The “English garden” has a table laid for dinner set in a pond cruised by some satisfyingly large golden carp. Not to mention the deck chairs laid with turf.
The centre piece of one of the gardens is a major waterfall falling on to cascades and pools of travertine rock. The sound of water cascades, fountains and streams is everywhere, giving a peaceful atmosphere. The monotony of the sound of moving water is broken by a number of water clocks which count time by the principle of filling containers. Their regular but unsynchronised chimes attract our attention, holding it with the fascination of working out the very visual principles of operation.
The flowers are laid out by size and colour or on an aesthetic or whimsical basis: the Jardin des Fontaines Pétrifiantes is a fantasy garden, much of it is mad and it's absolutely not a botanical reference site.
We visited on a cloudy day so heat was not an issue, this place has mmde its own micro-climate and would be a refreshing visit in the summer heat.
Jardin des Fontaines Pétrifiantes, La Sône, Isère (38), France
First week the road was open following the winter, a dramatic climb up to the sources of the river Var, the marmottes and other wildlife protected by the Parc National du Mercantour.
We were also there in 2011 see Col de la Cayolle - June 2011
Small town popular with bikers following the route back from exile by Napoleon. The river Verdon was in flood and the village in fete.
Tourettes-sur-Loup: perched village overlooking the bay of Cannes, an alluring mixture of Mediterranean art chic and Provencal charm.
The gîte for our stay for the Camp des Baous was in St. Jeannet in the Alpes Maritimes, resting on a ledge underneath limestone cliffs. Panoramic views to the coast below but high enough to be slightly out of the heat and the bustle. The town calls itself Porte des Baous (gateway to the Baous), Baou seems to refer to both the limestone cliffs and the numerous frogs who inhabit the fields below and were singing loudly in the evening sunshine... The cliffs have an appearance like the snout of a sitting frog, so maybe that’s the origin of the word. It could also be that Baou is a slang word for the people who live underneath Baous (meaning cliff). There’s a climbing school and numerous gîtes, despite the locals seemed to welcome us and our club’s booking.
