- Demidoff Gallery in Napoleon's villa
Demidoff was Count Anatolio Demidoff, husband of Napoleon's neice Matilde di Monfort. This is a map of Elba by Ferdinando Bertelli from the 1560s. - Chiessi
Probably my (and my kids') favourite place on the island. - Chiessi
- Church of the Madonna della Neve
The original building dates back to the Romanesque-Pisan period of the 12th century, the rest is mostly from the 16th century. - Capoliveri
Parrocchia Santa Maria Assunta - Sea daffodil in Lacona
Pancratium maritimum - Sea daffodil in Lacona
Pancratium maritimum - Elba
- Santo Stefano alle Trane
- The Virgin and Child
The Virgin and Child Enthroned (~1415) by Lorenzo Monaco. I like the throne. - Three legends of St Nicholas
Three legends of St Nicholas (1500-1520) by Gerard David. In this painting, he is saving three impoverished girls from prostitution by giving money for their dowries. - The Virgin and Child
The Virgin and Child with two angels (1470-1480) by Ferrarese School. Notice the illusionistic painted frame. And I love the black angel wings. So goth! - An allegory of melancholy
An allegory of melancholy (1528) by Lucas Cranach, detail. This is a group of witches riding in the sky (a boar, a cow, a cat? ...) - Twins Clara and Albert de Bray
Twins Clara and Albert de Bray (1646) by Salomon de Bray. The children of the artist's nephew. Apparently portraits of living babies were highly unusual there and then. - Stormy sea
Stormy sea (1650-1652) by Philips Wouwerman. - An allegory
An allegory (1590) by El Greco, Domenikos Theotokopoulos. A very unusual painting, probably illustrating "the simple moralising message that lust appeals to our foolish and baser instincts". - Gianlorenzo Bernini
Portrait of Gianlorenzo Bernini (1675) by Giovanni Battista Gaulli, Baciccio - St Bavo's Church in Haarlem
The Interior of St Bavo's Church in Haarlem (the Grote Kerk) (1648) by Pieter Jansz Saenredam. - St Bavo's Church in Haarlem
The Interior of St Bavo's Church in Haarlem (the Grote Kerk) (1648) by Pieter Jansz Saenredam, detail. A graffiti in the church, which is indeed the author's signature. - St Bavo's Church in Haarlem
The Interior of St Bavo's Church in Haarlem (the Grote Kerk) (1648) by Pieter Jansz Saenredam, detail. - Still-life
Still-life (1708) by Thomas Warrender. One of my favourite paintings in the whole gallery. - A Highland wedding at Blair Atholl
A Highland wedding at Blair Atholl (1780) by David Allan - Reverend Robert Walker
The Reverend Robert Walker skating on Duddingston Loch (1795) by Sir Henry Raeburn - Flower Still-life
Flower Still-life in a Sculptured Stone Vase (1718) by Jan van Huysum. Oil on copper. - The honourable Mrs Graham
The Honourable Mrs Graham (1775-1777) by Thomas Gainsborough - The Ladies Waldegrave
The Ladies Waldegrave (1780) by Sir Joshua Reynolds - The finding of Moses
The finding of Moses (1730-1735) by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo. I'm sure they wore clothes like this, right. - The Monarch of the Glen
The Monarch of the Glen (~1851) by Sir Edwin Landseer - Forest scene
Forest scene (~1820) by Achille-Etna Michallon - Lady Agnew of Lochnaw
Lady Agnew of Lochnaw (1892-1893) by John Singer Sargent. That is a perfect portrait. - The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania
The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania (1849-50) by Sir Joseph Noel Paton, detail. - The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania
The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania (1849-50) by Sir Joseph Noel Paton, detail. - The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania
The Quarrel of Oberon and Titania (1849-50) by Sir Joseph Noel Paton, detail. There are so many details in this painting... Lewis Carroll counted 165 fairies :-) - Whisky Map
In one of the bars in Teviot Row House. - Whisky Taste Map
- Teviot Row House
- Peephole in Teviot Row House
Now this is an interesting peephole. You can see from the outside whether the room is occupied or not. - McEwan Hall
Here is the complete dome with Arts and Sciences: Physics, Biology, Music, Fine Arts, Jurisprudence, Oratory, Medicine, Philosophy, Divinity, History, Poetry, Mathematics and Astronomy. - The Queensferry Crossing
- Royal floors
Pattern in the pavement, marking the reign of Queen Isabella I and King Ferdinand II. - Iglesia del Sagrario
The church next to the Cathedral, built in 1704. - Granada Cathedral
The Cathedral tower, as seen from Plaza de la Romanilla. - Local art
Some interesting local art. - Fuente de los Gigantones
The fountain was built in the 17th century. Moved several times, it now ended up in Plaza de Bib-Rambla. - Carmen de los Martires Gardens
Entrance to the Gardens of Carmen de los Martires. Fuente de la Ninfa de la Gruta. - Magnolia Grandiflora
The majestic magnolias blossoming all over town. - Ferdinand VI
The inscription on the statue ends with "Rex Cat". While I'm sure this doesn't mean "King Cat", it surely looks like it :-) - Carmen de los Mártires
These are some headless statues... - Monasterio de San Jerónimo
A very very busy renaissance church. - Granada Cathedral
- Granada Cathedral
The ceiling of the Cathedral. Very pure. - Granada Cathedral
The interior of the Renaissance cathedral. Built between 1523 and (officially) 1704. This place is big. - Granada Cathedral
The interior of Granada Cathedral. Another very heavy church. - Mexuar
Tiles on the wall of the Mexuar Council Hall, which served as the entrance to the Nasrid palace. Plus Ultra was the motto of king Charles V. - Zellij in Mexuar
This style of mosaic tilework is called zellij. Charles V was not only King of Spain, but also Holy Roman Emperor, Archduke of Austria, and Lord of the Netherlands. Maybe I missed some titles. Anyway, the double-headed eagle represents the Holy Roman Empire. - Mosaic in Nasrid palace
- Hall of the Ambassadors
The Nasrid palaces are very crowded. Very crowded indeed. - Hall of the Ambassadors
Wall decorations in the Salón de los Embajadores, which is the largest room in Alhambra. The inscriptions are Qur'anic verses and poems. - Hall of the Ambassadors
Detail on the Hall walls, part of a larger inscription in Kufic script. One can still see traces of blue colour, as these arabesque and geometric motifs were originally painted with bright colours. - Court of the Myrtles
Patio de los Arrayanes is the center of the Comares Palace. The reflective pool is 34 m long! - More mosaic
Mosaic in Comares Palace, part of the Nasrid Palaces. Begun by Isma'il in the early 13th century and modified by Yusuf I and Muhammad V. - Court of the Myrtles
Court of the Myrtles with the Comares Tower in the background. The name of the Court comes from the myrtle hedges. Built in the 14th century. - Court of the Lions
The Lion Fountain that gives the name to the Court. On the rim of the fountain, there's a poem by Ibn Zamrak, describing the beauty of the fountain. - Court of the Lions
The Court was built by Muhammad V around 1380. - Hall of the Abencerrajes
The ceiling in the Hall of Abencerrajes. The decorations are called muqarnas, and in the museum is a very instructive exhibition on how such a ceiling was made. Basically a lot A LOT of tiny pieces (alveoles) put together. - Court of the Lions
One of the pavillions in the Court. - Ornaments
- Another ceiling
Ceiling in one of the side halls, covered in muqarnas. - Zellij in Alhambra
More wonderful zellij pattern in the palace. - Stucco in Alhambra
Detail of stucco on the wall indicating that the decorations were indeed colourful. - View from Alhambra
Wonderful view towards Albaicin and Sacromonte. - Church of Santa María de la Alhambra
The only way to take pictures without the crowds it so hide them behind the bushes :-) - Window shopping in Granada
This is a very bold dress. - Traffic sign
Traffic sign for a campaign against domestic violence. - Window shopping in Granada
Take a look at these merengues! Below are some normal-sized cakes. They must be around 20 cm tall! - Granada
The streets look pretty even when the shops and restaurants are closed. - Window shopping in Granada
- Puerta de la Justicia
The southern entrance to Alhambra palace, built in 1348 by Yusuf I. - Alhambra hammam
Ceiling in the Alhambra's public hammam, constructed under Muhammad III. - Alhambra hammam
Every room you enter has more holes in the ceiling. The rooms follow a standard layout: changing room, cold room, hot room, boiler room. - El Bañuelo
These baths are very similar to the Alhambra baths. - Iglesia de San Nicolás
Yes, an unusually trippy church ceiling indeed. - Málaga Cathedral
- Frangipani!
I just love frangipani (plumeria)! - Alcazaba
Interesting multifoil arches in the Taifa palace (11th century). - Patio de la Alberca
Patio de la Alberca (Pool courtyard) in the Nasrid palace. - Alcazaba
What lovely patterns! - Mont Blanc
Mt Blanc as seen from Chamonix. We stayed in Camping de la Mer de Glace and walked to the town centre. - Dôme du Goûter
If Mont Blanc is hidden in the clouds, there is always Dôme du Goûter (4304 m) to admire. - Grand Hôtel des Alpes, Chamonix
The Grand Hotel in the centre of Chamonix. - Chamonix
The town centre was crowded as the Marathon du Mont Blanc was taking place. And the white mountain was hiding in the clouds. - Modern times
Modern times in campsites. - Aiguille du Midi
Aiguille (3,842 m)as seen from our campsite early in the morning. - Flégère
We took the cable car up the Flégère (1877 m) and started our hike to Lac Blanc. With spectacular views: from Grandes Jorasses over to Mont Blanc. - Mont Blanc
What a great view of Mt Blanc (4809 m) and Dôme du Goûter (4304 m). - What a view!
The prominent mountains from the left: Aiguille Verte (4121 m), Grand Dru (3754 m), Grandes Jorasses (4208 m), Dent du Géant (4013 m), Aiguille du Grépon (3482 m), Aiguille de Blaitière (3522 m) and Aiguille du Plan (3673 m). Thanks to Peakvisor. - Le Lac Blanc
I was hoping to see a reflection in the white lake... But there is a reason the lake is called white. Oh well. Le Lac Blanc (2352 m). - Alpine chough
- Alpine chough
It is so dark, it almost looks like a crevasse in the ice. - Grandes Jorasses
From Grandes Jorasses/Pointe Walker (4208 m) to Dent du Géant/Pointe Graham (4013 m). And Aiguille du Grépon (3482 m) on the far right.