Winter approaching

Last week I returned to Wells, where I'd taken photos of the last of the fallen leaves in late October. The yellows and oranges of autunm are starting to give their place to bare trees and brightly coloured grass. Winter will soon be here.

Young masquerader

This is one of the youngest masqueraders participating at last Monday's illuminated carnival at Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset, SW England.

Autumnal pinks

Proof that autumn isn't just about golden leaves and bare branches.

Christmas fellows

These adorable Christmas fellows are on sale at my local supermarket. I wish I could take them all home!

Last of the fallen leaves

I took this picture two weeks ago in Wells, SW England. After the latest storms hit the west coast yesterday and today with winds of up to 100mph (160km/h), I reckon these were the last of the fallen leaves for this year.

Greenwich by night

These are two photos I took tonight while walking along the river Thames in Greenwich. I only had my little camera with me (the one I keep in my handbag for emergencies) so the photos aren't very sharp. It was drizzling at the time and I was running late for my meeting - not a good combination for successful photography, but still.


The first photo is the view towards the Docklands on the north bank. I love the combination of low-rise traditional housing in the foreground and modern skyscrapers in the background, as well as the reflection of the lights in the water. To me, this view is iconic and sums up London very well.


The second view shows the Millennium Dome, also known as The O2, a large dome shaped entertainment centre originally built for the new millennium. It looks as if it's on the north bank, but it's in fact located on the south bank, just a little further along the river from where I was standing.

The bunch of lights on the left hand side of the picture is a Thames Clipper commuter boat speeding down the river. The short line in the sky on the right hand side is a plane approaching City Airport. The long green line you can just about make out on the left side (click to enlarge if you can't see it) marks the Prime Meridian, i.e. the line at which the longitude is defined to be 0°. The Prime Meridian passes through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, located on a hill diagonally behind the spot where I stood to take this photo.

Venetian beauty

I love taking pictures of dolls in shop windows. I snapped this one in Venice, Italy, at a shop near the Rialto bridge.

La Tour Eiffel

The Eiffel Tower is a 19th century iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. It is the tallest building in France's capital and the single most visited paid monument in the world; millions of people climb to the top every year. It was named after its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, who designed it as the entrance arch for the 1889 World Fair. Since then, it's become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognisable structures in the world.

The tower stands at 324 m (1,063 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-story building. Climbing to the top isn't for the faint-hearted, or those with severe acrophobia.

I've only been on it once, on a rainy, windy day, and wouldn't recommend it. The views just weren't worth it. I bet it's a different story in summer though - if you don't mind queuing for ever.

Docklands

This is a river view of the Docklands, once part of the Port of London, now redeveloped principally for commercial and residential use. I snapped this picture while travelling to Greenwich on a river boat.

The tall building with the pointy roof is Canary Wharf, which I've previously shown you here. You can see a different view of the Docklands here.