The recent rains in Fuerteventura have transformed the island. If you look at this location in Betancuria on Google Maps you’ll see a dusty field, and the street view shows mostly bare ground with bushes planted here and there.
In the background is La Casa del Queso where we enjoyed some coffee and sandwiches. Locals at the next table were served seemingly never-ending portions of food that just came out again and again from the kitchen, to be finished off by fresh oranges for dessert.
Ironically, this was taken on the nicest day of a recent holiday in Fuerteventura. A cold wind from the north blew across the island for the previous week, keeping temperatures down and contributing to a couple of rain showers. The island benefited from it with wild flowers and grass growing on the hills and fields where moisture was trapped.
Castillo Caleta de Fuste lies in the approach to the airport, so it’s not unusual to hear the roar of a jet engine overhead multiple times a day.
In the background is the prominent CHINA SHOP, selling the usual assortment of trinkets, souvenirs, bags and all sorts of other goods. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind having a single shop in Cork that carried the variety of goods they had.
This is one of those brilliant street photography moments that you absolutely cannot plan or manufacture. I’m minding my own business photographing a mural in Castillo Caleta de Fuste in Fuerteventura when suddenly I hear this voice behind me ask, “Why aren’t you taking MY photo?” I turn around and there are these two absolutely brilliant ladies marching towards me with massive grins, clearly on holiday, clearly having the time of their lives, and absolutely determined to be photographed. No hesitation, no awkwardness, just pure “we’re fabulous and we know it” energy. They posed, they smiled, and they radiated that gorgeous confidence that comes from being comfortable in your own skin.
Then, they just walked off without even asking my name or what I’d do with the photos. No social media handles exchanged, no “Can you send that to me?”, just a moment of spontaneous joy captured and then they were gone, off to continue their Fuerteventura adventure.
Coincidentally, a couple of days before I’d been reading this thread on Reddit about asking people to pose for a portrait and watched this great Jamie Windsor video on the subject so I was delighted when this happened!
The mounted fin whale skeleton is clearly visible in a photo of the museo de la sal (salt museum) in Fuerteventura. The museum was closed at this early hour and the area was roped off with stern warnings to buy tickets at the museum, but we still managed to get a few photos.
The salt flats are no longer used of course so the sunset reflection I was hoping for wasn’t to be but there were two ponds that served the same photographic purpose.
What was actually more interesting were the nearby homes and buildings. They were whitewashed with coloured surroundings and there will be a few photos of them over the next few days.
Blue hour is that magical window between sunset and full darkness when the sky becomes this gorgeous gradient from deep blue to warm orange. That’s what I saw on a cold December evening looking across the River Lee at Bachelor’s Quay.
The Millennium Bridge in Cork doesn’t wobble like the Shakey Bridge but it probably sees a lot more foot traffic as it links Pope’s Quay and Kyrl’s Quay and Cornmarket Street.
The bridge was built in 2004. I have some photos of that which I may dig up and link from here later.
November in Ireland means darkness by half four in the afternoon, which is properly depressing. I’m glad there’s a grand old stretch now, and the days are slowly getting longer and longer. Pity about the damp weather and cold.
When we arrived at Clogher Strand for a photography session last month I spotted a group of teenagers sitting in the grass. I just realised something. They weren’t looking at their phones!
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