Winter is here; but indoors two of my four orchids have decided to come into bloom for Advent time; and the other two seem not to be far behind. Above is the first blossom to open up, a few days ago.
Outdoors, it’s cold and frosty now. Today the sun showed its face as well, so I took the camera for a walk into town and back. The first frost always adds some interesting effects to nature. The sun is very low now, even around noon, involving some extra photo challenges. (Some of the photos below had to be edited more than others, or they would show nothing but silhouettes.)
Bridges are the most treacherous places to cross when the cold weather sets in… (This is a footbridge over a railway.)
Heather plantation in the nearby graveyard.
Love the little “fairy lights” showing up in this backlight photo…
“Snowberries”
Ice has begun to form along the sides of the river in some places.
As long as there is open water, the mallards never seem to mind much whether the weather it’s hot or cold!
In the city centre, the footbridges across the river to the park have been decorated.
The Christmas tree in the square has already been up for a while but is now also decorated. I didn’t attend the ceremony of turning on the Christmas lights in the city last weekend – I had been out earlier in the day and did not feel like going out again…
Couldn’t resist zooming in on this guy walking ahead of me on the street… Brrr! (I know that rolled up trousers, sockless and bare ankles was the fashion back in spring/summer… But in frosty November?! Really??)
Lovely photos, winter looks good in pictures. My feet would be freezing without socks.
ReplyDeleteThanks Janet. For me it's been socks + leggings + high boots this week... ;)
DeleteYou haven't posted in a long time. But when you do, it is really worth it! Wow, this is all so beautiful!! The snow berries fascinate me, I don't think we have any. They are so big, round, and white! Just befitting winter.They look like they have been sprinkled with sugar. I just looked them up, and they are native to North America! Your orchid is gorgeous, I did not know they bloom in the winter. The first thing I thought of when I saw the bridge was "How treacherous!". The Heather is a heart! That cannot be a coincidence! The square arches and hearts are beautiful and different to anything here. What is the foliage that looks like tiny stars? The frost on the bigger leaves is so pretty.
ReplyDeleteGinny, I'm astonished how quickly some weeks flutter by! I've been keeping myself busy with various pre-preparations for Christmas. Hopefully I'll be making up for it on the blog in December...
DeleteSuch beautiful photos, Monica, thank you! My pink azalea (a gift from my dearest neighbour, 86-year-old Ms. S., whose garden is my kitchen window view) has been blooming like mad all of November, and there is no end in sight. My orchids have developed new green leaves but no blossoms.
ReplyDeleteThe bare ankles are a familiar sight here, too; I think that fashion started last year or two years ago and it looks a bit ridiculous seeing young ladies with their upper bodies half-wrapped in huge, thick woollen scarves and then their skinny legs and bare ankles with less than adequate shoes for the time of year. I suppose they rather sacrifice comfort and health than look "unfashionable", and I wonder how many of them miss days and weeks at work or school because they catch colds and bladder infections.
Meike, fashion can be a cruel goddess to men and women alike these days, it seems :) (in this case, the bare ankles belonged to a young man) As for myself, I'm kind of glad to be old enough now to care more about keeping warm and comfortable than about the latest dress codes!
Deletethe snowberries are gorgeous... as is every photo you took. so festive and beautiful.. my ankles would be freezing but bob would do that
ReplyDeleteSandra, I hope you'll be spared frosty days in Florida! ;)
DeleteThanks!
ReplyDeleteYou take beautiful photos. I can't really imagine a cold Christmas now although I did it once many years ago. Christmas is for fun, for being outside, for tiny swimsuits and long cold drinks.
ReplyDeleteThere's some nice splatterings of frost going on there. It'll be Christmas soon.
ReplyDeleteThat is a beautiful selection of photos. There is definitely something wonderfully uplifting (mentally though often fall-causing physically) about blue skies with frosty vistas. The snowberries are quite special for me because I cannot recall seeing them here at all. As for the cold ankles and thin shoes they are definitely not for me.
ReplyDelete