Tag Archives: nature

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This morning’s hoar frost

Hoar frost is a strange term, isn’t it? It comes from Middle English, circa 1300, is actually spelled “hoarfrost” over in England, and it means exactly what you’ll see in the photos I took this morning in our garden. Enjoy!

Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Frosty, foggy winter morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
Hoar frost on a cold January morning, Medias, Romania
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Places

A jaunt through the mountains near Bran

During our recent visit to Bran Castle, we had a few spare hours that we chose to spend wandering through the mountains above Bran. We found a dirt road that wound its way up the mountains through a beautiful village called Sodohol and then entered into Bucegi National Park. We stumbled onto it by chance and followed it till we could go no further without damage to the underside of our car, so we parked it and walked. We had a wonderful time and I hope the photos you see here will show it. Some of them are high-resolution panoramas and one includes a view of Bran Castle from afar. Enjoy!

In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
A panoramic view of the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
In the mountains near Bran, România
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It’s not often I wake up early enough to see the dawn. I usually work late into the night, because I find that’s when I can gather my thoughts and be at my most productive — when I’m alone, the noises of the day have subsided and the only sounds I hear are the reassuring churning of the hard drive platters in my Drobo and my own breath.

When I do manage to wake up early (or work through the night and into the dawn), I get these gorgeous, glorious views of the Earth waking up as that huge fireball called the Sun starts to light things up. Mind you, I’m not talking about the sunrise. It’s the dawn, also known as the daybreak. It’s when the darkness of the night starts to fade away and shapes begin to form out of the mist. It’s when things unseen become seen.

I thought I’d publish a gallery of various photos I’ve taken in recent years of the dawn. Some of the photos are from places where I’ve lived, others are from places I visited and most are from the road. My wife and I would often just get in our car and drive to some town where we had business in the middle of the night, so we’d be there in the morning. The roads were quiet and it was an experience unto itself to be in the middle of nowhere, our car a capsule of civilization and warmth in an otherwise cold place at a cold time, its headlights eyes, peering out into the darkness and making sense of it. Now that we have a small daughter, there’s no night driving. We’re too exhausted. We’re happy to take any and all sleep we can get. Which is what I’m going to do after publishing this post, because it’s way past midnight here.

This gallery isn’t exhaustive, it’s a work in progress (I hope I’m around for a long, long time to capture countless more dawns on bits and bytes) but I think it’s beautiful to look at and I hope you do too. Enjoy!

Dawn, Grosvenor Park.
A colorful sky at dawn on a crisp and cold January morning.
Dawn starts to color the sky in our neighborhood. Taken right from our apartment’s terrace in North Bethesda, MD.
Bridge over Intracostal Waterway, early morning long exposure, Hollywood, Florida, USA.
Sandpipers pace the beach at dawn. Hollywood, Florida, USA.
Dawn sky, Grosvenor Park.
Shore, Intracostal Waterway, early morning, long exposure. Hollywood, Florida, USA.
A hillside on the outskirts of Tulcea, Romania, blanketed in soft fog.
Near the city of Brasov, Romania. The dawn sun is flooding the distant valley (just behind the peak in the foreground) with a lot of golden light. Meanwhile, the portion of the road where I stand is still covered in shadows.
Long exposure looking out over the Intracostal and A1A.
First snowfall of the 2010-11 winter, Medias, Romania.
Lacul Bicaz and the surrounding mountains, as seen from the pension Vila Ecotour, in the village of Ceahlau, Moldova, Romania.
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The Tulcea Monument, early morning.
Above Pisa and Livorno, Italy. Not an ideal photo but the dawn colors were wonderful.
Daybreak, Grosvenor Park.
Somewhere in South Carolina, on I-95. Life and travel are often alike, aren’t they? If you don’t stop to look around, things pass you right by.
Mt. Prislop at night, Bucovina, Romania.
A bright orange sky above distant mountain peaks signals a new day, while a winding road descends slowly into the fog-covered valley below.
Daybreak, Grosvenor Park.
Grottammare, Italy.
Somewhere in the Carpathian Mountains, about 50-60 km from the city of Brasov, in Transilvania, Romania.
Winter at its best. Snow everywhere, clear blue sky.
Dawn, January morning, Grosvenor Park.
Grottammare, Italy.
Rome, Italy.
Mt. Prislop at night, about 2 am, Bucovina, Romania.
A long, straight road, lined with poplar trees and covered in fog. Somewhere in Dobrogea, Romania.
Hilltops in the distance, somewhere between Fiser and Rupea, Transilvania, Romania.
There was a gas station right behind me when I took this photo. 

We’d been driving through the night and stopped to get gas somewhere in North or South Carolina. The station was closed and so were the pumps. 

I paused to take a few photos. I stood the camera on the roof of the car and exposed this scene for a little over a second. 

It was mid-winter. I was thoroughly frozen and my teeth were clanking by the time I got back into the car.
Morning sky at sunrise.
Antennae and trees, morning fog.
Places

The dawn

Gallery

A few years ago, I visited the Grand Canyon; more precisely, a portion of its South Rim. It was winter, so the snow provided a nice color contrast to the golden-hued soil and rocks typically found there. I would have liked to spend more time there but our schedule allowed us only a few hours.

Here is a gallery of photographs from that trip. And there’s also video from the ride in the propeller plane that took us there.

Enjoy!

South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
Nevada desert
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
Panorama, South Rim, Grand Canyon
South Rim, Grand Canyon, USA
Places

At the South Rim of the Grand Canyon

Gallery

This marks the third year in a row that I publish photos of flowers from our garden. It’s gotten to be somewhat of a tradition. These beautiful flowers are a source of joy for us and I hope that by sharing them with you, some of that joy brightens up your day as well.

This year, we’re particularly happy about our tulips. Ligia loves collecting various tulip bulbs and seeing the beautiful flowers they make each year. You’ll see a number of parrot and ruffled tulips among our photographs. I counted rococo, black parrot, apricot parrot, silver parrot and a very special bloom which I call striped peppermint, which I chose as the featured image for this post.

I freely admit I am a novice when it comes to flowers and botany, so please correct me if I made any mistakes with the names of the tulips.

Places

Springtime in our garden

Gallery