Kees' photos

When we arrived, the weather in the Netherlands wasn’t quite as fair as we had wished, but then, all of a sudden, I had to think of the wise words of a good friend of mine. She once observed that, behind the clouds, the sun is shining ... always. You know that I’m not much of a philosopher, but this I found to be true.

If you’re conditioned to find faces you encounter them everywhere.

As seen from my study. There were thunderbolts too, but they were too fast for me.

Part of the fun of taking photographs is to prove that you’ve been somewhere. Well, this picture doesn’t exactly prove that I was in Bressanone, but Robbie clearly was. Isn’t it nice to see the Alps from the other, the right side?

This man sat at a table next to us. No, I’m not a racist, but IMHO it’s very plain to see that he is Dutch; and no, we haven’t made his acquaintance...

Saturday morning, we got in our car and reached our Italian destination a few hours later... Sounds good, doesn’t it? Well, Bressanone/Brixen is utterly bilingual and, in many ways, feels more like Austria than Italy. On the other hand, we’re simple-minded, and can’t help thinking: Italy is Italy, and Italy is good. The B11 road leads past our front door directly to Bressanone: it changes its name a few times, and in and around Innsbruck you’re in serious danger of losing it, but if you keep a cool head you can’t miss it... There’s a big square in front of the cathedral, pretty crowded, people hanging around, children playing etc. (the picture suggests otherwise, but it was cropped for artistic reasons). This girl was riding her bike with such enthusiasm that I had to take a picture of her. She was darn fast, and I had to turn my autofocus off to catch her in full flight.

The church honors the local soldiers fallen in WW II (no comment). What struck me was this: “Please don’t sprinkle the statue with Holy Water. Thank you.”

I have never seen anything like this before: an automate for grave candles and matches. Yes, we live in a “no smoking” society today, and nobody carries a lighter anymore. There’s also a hole to dispose of burnt-out candles.

A wide-angle shot. The mountains seem to be farther away than they actually are. Photography is all about choices: you can’t have everything ... which makes me sad and angry, but not suicidal –to conclude in a lighter vein! ;-)

Cropped, otherwise no processing at all. You need not believe this, ’cause I wouldn’t.

The same scenery as always, but I like the detail in this picture (best viewed large).

The same scenery as always, but I like the lack of detail in this picture (best viewed as a thumbnail).

Only today, I saw that the New York Times has an article on Munich online, which might interest prospective visitors of Bavaria’s capital. Surprisingly, at least to me, is that it starts out with the Zerwirkgewölbe. The article also links to a review of the restaurant that, some years ago, replaced the original shop: “This all-vegan, part raw-food establishment sits in a house more than 700 years old where wild game used to be skinned and butchered, just around the corner from the world-famous beer palace the Hofbräuhaus, in the heart of Munich.” Indeed, life isn’t without irony... “GO VEGAN – CELEBRATE LIFE” :

Engaged in conversation and venting her unqualified opinions, thus giving the Quiet One (me) the opportunity of focusing and pressing the button.