I’ve been guest blogging again for Owners Direct – honestly, anything to get my name about 
Seriously though, I do like to write and especially about photography and so am happy to contribute to any website, blog or whatever.
The theme of this blog post is “Five good reasons why you should take photographs” and is a theme I should perhaps consider for my own blog. Anyway this is the detail, please click here to read.
BIRDWATCHING FIELD TRIP IN LOS VELEZ / ENCUENTRO ORNITOLOGICO EN LOS VELEZ
ALMERIA 25 . 02 . 2012
A friend of mine is organising this excellent good value event. Details as follows:
BIRDWATCHING FIELD TRIP IN LOS VELEZ / ENCUENTRO ORNITOLOGICO EN LOS VELEZ
On Saturday 25 February, we will finally hold our birdwatching meeting in the Comaraca de los Vélez (Almería).
We will meet at the Cafetería del Hotel Velad al Abyadh (Vélez Blanco) at 09.00h.
To register, contact Jesus Contreras – indalodeoz@indalodeoz.com For administrative reasons, registration is open until Thursday 23, at 20:00.
To view the field trip programme in English, please click here
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El sábado día 25 de Febrero, celebraremos finalmente nuestro encuentro ornitológico en la comaraca de los Vélez (Almería).
Punto de encuentro en la Cafetería del Hotel Velad al Abyadh (Vélez Blanco) a las 09.00h.
Para inscripciones, contactar con Jesus Contreras en indalodeoz@indalodeoz.com. Por motivos organizativos, se limita la posibilidad de inscripción hasta el jueves 23, a las 20:00h.
Para ver el programa en castellano, pulse aqui
Lista de aves de Almeria / Almeria birds checklist
http://www.unique-almeria.com/birds-of-spain.html
Price: for ANDALUCIA BIRD SOCIETY members it is free. For non members the price is €25. / Precio: para SOCIEDAD ORNITOLÓGICA ANDALUZA miembros es gratis. Para no miembros el precio es €25.
Jesus Contreras
Field manager
OZ NATURE WILDLIFE ALMERIA
Birdwatching & Wildlife Trips
Geography Field Trips , Time Tours & Field Locations
Almeria . Eastern Andalusia . Spain
Tlf: +34 626260641
e: indalodeoz@indalodeoz.com / indalodeoz@gmail.com
Skype: jesus.contreras41
www.youtube.com/user/indalodeoz
http://www.indalodeoz.com
http://www.andalucia.org/turismo-y-deporte/almeria/oz-nature-wildlife
http://www.facebook.com/Indalotanit
During the day of the Snow Moon (last full moon – see here for blog post), I also took some photographs around the Parque Natural de Cabo de Gata where I live. Though I have already posted a couple of photographs (see here), I wanted to make a slide show of the others from the same day so people can see what sort of thing to expect from this stunning area of the world.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Contact details:
Martyn Thompson – Landscape Photography
http://martynthompson.net
http://martynthompsonphotography.wordpress.com
martyn@martynthompson.net
Facebook / Twitter / Etsy / Flickr
One of my (many) favourite places in the Province of Almeria is the Desierto de Tabernas (Tabernas Desert) or “Badlands” and I have been there many times. One of my favourite blog posts relates to a previous visit to Tabernas which you can read here.
Yesterday I took two clients to the Desierto de Tabernas as although they were regular visitors to the Parque Natural de Cabo de Gata, they had not really strayed further than the many beautiful coastal paths. The weather was quite variable resulting in some seriously moody skies and some very special light, especially towards the end of the day – the lighting conditions actually couldn’t have been better.
I’ve created a slide-show of photographs I took yesterday and hope you like them. I do not pretend to know all of the flora & fauna of the area and welcome comments in this respect.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Anyone interested in taking a photography experience to the Desierto de Tabernas, please contact me.
Martyn Thompson – Landscape Photography
http://martynthompson.net
http://martynthompsonphotography.wordpress.com
martyn@martynthompson.net
Facebook / Twitter / Etsy / Flickr
In addition to the photography experiences I offer to these Badlands, my good friend Jesus Contreras of Oz Nature offers the most fantastic Geography field trips. These are well worth attending and very educational. His contact details are given below.
Oz nature
http://www.indalodeoz.com/
http://www.andalucia.org/turismo-y-deporte/almeria/oz-nature-wildlife
indalodeoz@indalodeoz.com
Facebook / YouTube / DepositPhoto
There are a couple of “must-dos” whenever I go back to UK, Camden Market and / or Brighton – if I can do both so much the better but often it’s not the case. This time round, I went to Brighton and would recommend this to all that have never been.
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove (formed from the previous towns of Brighton, Hove, Portslade and several other villages) in East Sussex on the south coast of Great Britain. For administrative purposes, Brighton and Hove is not part of the non-metropolitan county of East Sussex, but remains part of the ceremonial county of East Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex.
Brighton Sunset
The ancient settlement of Brighthelmstone dates from before Domesday Book (1086), but it emerged as a health resort featuring sea bathing during the 18th century and became a destination for day-trippers from London after the arrival of the railway in 1841. Modern Brighton forms part of the Brighton / Worthing / Littlehampton conurbation stretching along the coast, with a population of around 480,000.
The city is blessed with more than a fair share of visiting and resident colourful & eclectic characters and is home to many “arty” types. Throughout the year this is one of the most vibrant UK cities you’re ever likely to visit and has some amazing restaurants and bars.
Brighton Pavilion
The Royal Pavilion is a former royal palace built as a home for the Prince Regent during the early 19th century, under the direction of the architect John Nash. It was built in three campaigns, beginning in 1787 and is often referred to as the Brighton Pavilion. It is built in the Indo-Saracenic style prevalent in India for most of the 19th century, with the most extravagant chinoiserie Oriental interiors ever executed in the British Isles.
The purchase of the Royal Pavilion from Queen Victoria marked the beginnings of the site’s tourism dominance through the Royal Pavilion’s transition from a private residence to a public attraction under civic ownership.
Brighton Pier
Brighton Marine Palace and Pier opened in 1899. It features a funfair, restaurants and arcade halls. It is generally known as the Palace Pier for short, but has been informally renamed Brighton Pier since 2000 by its owners, the Noble Organisation, in an attempt to suggest that it is Brighton’s only pier. The West Pier was its rival but was closed in 1975 and was subsequently severely damaged by fires and storms, with the remaining iron structure being partially demolished in 2010.
West Pier
The West Pier was built in 1866 and has been closed since 1975 awaiting renovation. The West Pier is one of only two Grade I listed piers in the United Kingdom, but suffered two fires in 2003. Plans for a new landmark, the i360, a 183 m (600 ft) observation tower designed by London Eye architects Marks Barfield, were announced in June 2006. Plans were approved by the council in October 2006. Development work has yet to happen!
Volk's Railway
Volk’s Electric Railway (VER) is the oldest operating electric railway in the world. It is a narrow gauge railway that runs along a length of the seafront. It was built by Magnus Volk, the first section being completed in August 1883.
Today the line runs between terminal stations at Aquarium (a short distance from the Palace Pier) and Black Rock (at Black Rock, not far from Brighton Marina), with an intermediate station and depot at Paston Place. The line has a gauge of 2 ft 8 1/2 in (825 mm), It is electrified at 110 V DC using a third rail, and is just under 1 1/4 miles (2 km) long.
Operated as a historical seafront tourist attraction, the railway does not usually run during the winter months, and its service is also occasionally liable to suspension due to severe weather or maintenance issues.
The seafront has bars, restaurants, nightclubs and amusement arcades, principally between the piers. Being less than an hour from London by train has made the city a popular destination. Brighton beach has a nudist area (south of the easterly part of Kemptown). Brighton’s beach, which is a shingle beach up to the mean low tide mark, has been awarded a blue flag.
So what else to say? Well, lots actually – I could go on forever as there’s so much more to Brighton than you’d ever think so, why not make a visit!
…that is of course AFTER you’ve come to visit me in Parque Natural de Cabo de Gata
Contact details:
Martyn Thompson – Landscape Photography
http://martynthompson.net
http://martynthompsonphotography.wordpress.com
martyn@martynthompson.net
Facebook / Twitter / Etsy / Flickr
C A R N A V A L The Brazilian Carnival is one of the best-known celebrations today, it´s a large, festive, popular party held all over Brazil. The world´s most famous Carnival of Rio de Janeiro has become an event of huge proportions, and the most popular party on the planet, according to The Guinness Book of World Records 2011. The country stops completely for almost a week and festivities are intense (day and night). Carnival with all its excesses, celebrated as a profane event, can be considered an …
This is a really great post. Be sure to follow all the links and read related posts!
Photography as Abstract – Abstracting an Abstract.
Ooh, this is meant to be a reblog, Wha ‘appened?
During our recent trip to Almeria, we found a little Moroccan hideaway in the Almedina (walled city) district, called Teteria Almedina. I had a delicious pot of mint tea, the best I’ve ever had, even better than mint tea I’ve had in Morocco. We had a few arabic pastries, which were the perfect accompaniment. Our hosts were incredibly friendly, the decor was very traditional Moroccan style without being cheesy, and the music matched the surroundings perfectly and was right up our street. We liked it there …
