- Torch Lily
A lovely pharmacy garden in the hospice. - Beaune
Usually one would not want to connect driving school and vineyards. Usually. - Château de Chenonceau
Everywhere in the castle were huge bouquets of wonderfully arranged flowers. They give the castle a royal touch :-) - Château de Chambord
The residences of François Ier include a large wardrobe and closet. They surely dressed ... royally. - Château de Chambord
Wallpaper in the 18th century apartments. - Château de Chambord
My kids were fascinated by the 'minecraft trees'. - Château de Chambord
View of the castle from the road. - Mont Dol
An almost 400 years old chestnut tree. - Plage de Cherrueix
Such an impressionist view! Hot air and water reflections do their magic. - Route D673
One cannot not stop here. What a lovely place. On the road D673 just south of Calès. - Lavender
A lovely tiny lavender, growing wild in Massif de l'Esterel. - Lavender
I find it fascinating that lavender grows in the wild. - Nature morte a la sole et aux trois oursins
Most of the drawings/paintings in the Picasso Museum are like this. Maybe I don't get art, but I have dozens of very similar drawings from my kids. - More poppies
I didn't have my camera, just my phone, so the photos are not that great. But not too bad either :-) - Île Sainte-Marguerite
View of the Sainte Marguerite island. And the beautiful sea in between. - A wild orchid
My favourite plant identification app PlantNet says this is Long-leaved Helleborine (Cephalanthera longifolia). - Des oeufs de bouc
One of the windows/openings of the cave. - Heaven.
- Daisies
- Carpobrotus
- Kažun
Typical Istrian dry stone huts. - Kažun
Typical dry stone huts in Istria, these are close to Vodnjan. - Church of St. Fosca
Originally from the 7th century, expanded in the 12th and 17th. Famous for its 12th century frescoes, but unfortunately closed when we were there. - Church of St. Fosca
The church is also a pilgrimage site. - Church of St. Michael (Sv. Mihovil)
The "new" church was built from the remains of the old one. - Church of St. Michael (Sv. Mihovil)
More remains from the old church reused in the new one. - Church of St. Michael (Sv. Mihovil)
This "new" church of St. Michael close to Peroj was built in 1456. - Church of St. Michael (Sv. Mihovil)
The remains of the old church from the 5th and 6th century. - Poppies!
- Golden cape (Zlatni rt) in Rovinj
- Still life
Let's just say: you had to be there to understand ;-) - Alhambra palace
View of Alhambra from Mirador de San Nicolás. At sunset, as it should be. - Carmen de los Martires Gardens
Entrance to the Gardens of Carmen de los Martires. Fuente de la Ninfa de la Gruta. - 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 :-) - Fuente de la ola
What a lovely wave fountain. - Strawberry Tree
A lovely garden very close to Alhambra. And free. And almost empty. - Carmen de los Mártires
No true palace without a couple of peacocks. - 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
- 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. - Zellij in Alhambra
More wonderful zellij pattern in the palace. - Patio de Lindaraja
16th century Renaissance-style addition. Originally an open garden, but closed when new buildings were added. - 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
- Window shopping in Granada
This are some superbly executed fruits, veggies, plants, flowers, birds ... - Window shopping in Granada
Somehow I can see Louis XIV walking around in such shoes. Ok, maybe the heels are not high enough for him. - Window shopping in Granada
- Plaza de la Trinidad
- Alhambra palace
Alhambra palace from Mirador de San Nicolas. With Sierra Nevada in the background. - Plaza de la Merced
Mimosa trees are full of pink blossoms... ... and green parakeets. Look closely :-) - Cathedral gardens
What a lovely gem, the cathedral gardens. - Frangipani!
I just love frangipani (plumeria)! - My favouite statue!
An adorable 5 m tall statue by local artist Javier Calleja is called Heads V2. - Patio de la Alberca
Patio de la Alberca (Pool courtyard) in the Nasrid palace. - Mont Blanc
Mt Blanc as seen from Chamonix. We stayed in Camping de la Mer de Glace and walked to the town centre. - 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
Mont Blanc and blooming Rhododendron - Beaune
Remparts de la Comédie, the ramparts around the town is actually a street with some charming houses. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
The reason why we came to Beaune: The hospices. Founded in 1443 as a hospital for the poor by Phillip the Good was in use until 1971. - Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune
View of the glazed-tiled hospice roof from the cour d'honneur, the main inner court. The roof type probably has central European origins, but is now a trademark of Burgundy. - Tapestry
A magnificent almost 8 m long "thousand flowers" tapestry is from the 16th century. What an interesting motif... - Meursault
A lovely town known mostly for its wine. - Côte-d'Or
No wonder these (and nearby) parts are called Côte-d'Or. - Pont-Canal de Briare
The water bridge is lavishly decorated. - Briare
What a lovely place Briare is. This is Pont du Rialto, one of the many bridges in town. - Château de Chenonceau
La tour des Marques The only remaining (and renovated) part of the medieval castle owned by the Marques family. - Château de Chenonceau
View of the castle from the gardens of Catherine de Médicis. - Château de Chenonceau
Such a wonderful lavender. - Château de Chenonceau
The avenue leading to the castle. Great shade in the summer heat. - Château de Chambord
Chambord is the largest château in the Loire Valley. Built in 1519–1547 as a hunting lodge for François Ier. A hunting lodge! - Château de Chambord
The residence of François Ier, built between 1539 and 1545. This is how the rooms looked like when the king came to stay. Super cosy. - Château de Chambord
The view of the French gardens. Louis XIV had a similar view from his bedroom. Not bad. - Falaise
View from the falaise of the Falaise castle. - Arromanches
Arromanches beach was the landing area during the D-Day Normandy Invasion. - Arromanches
The endless windy beaches are perfect for flying kites! - Les Roches de Ham
A lovely walk. A wonderful view. Delicious galettes. And cidre. - Fougères
Now THIS is a castle. Built from 12th to 15th century, it occupies an area of two hectares. - Cherrueix
I really like this town. - Mont Saint-Michel
This was my third time visiting Mont Saint-Michel and every time there was a different parking regime. With free shuttles one can finally enjoy the natural surroundings. - Digue de la Duchesse-Anne
The constructions of these dykes started in the 11th and 12th century. The dykes still separate cultivated polders and salty marshlands. And of course offer a great opportunity to hike or cycle :-) - Pointe du Grouin
A lovely walk close to Cancale. And some wild currents in the sea! - Pointe du Grouin
GR34. So so so tempting, but we needed to move on. - Le Fort du Guesclin
As everything in Brittany, this place is also full of history. Romans, destroyed, fortress in 800s, destroyed, fortified castle built by Bertrand du Guesclin in 1100, destroyed in 1598, this one built in 1756... - Cap d'Erquy
If you can, take a walk on Cap d'Erquy. You will not regret it. - Cap d'Erquy
- Cap d'Erquy
- Côte de granit rose
What a vibrant colour! - Cairn of Barnenez
It is considered one of the oldest man-made structures. And yet not many visitors! - Cairn of Barnenez
Early Neolithic monument (4800 BC). It's 72 m long, up to 25 m wide, and over 8 m high. - Cairn of Barnenez
Art exhibition by local kids. Love it! - Mont Saint-Michel de Brasparts
The consequences of a terrible fire in 2022. - Manoir de Kervaudu
Close to Le Croisic close to the Guérande salt marshes. - La Dordogne
Dordogne river. What an interesting place this part of France is. View of the river from our campsite. - Château de Montfort
There are numerous castles along Dordogne. The Montfort castle was first destroyed in 1214. And three more times. So far. - Château de Beynac
The castle was built in the 12th century by the barons of Beynac, and later remodelled and enlarged. - La Roque-Gageac
Oh, another spectacular village. - La Roque-Gageac
A truly spectacular village.