Summer Holiday 2010: the planning

This Tuesday we start our 26 days long holiday trip. A lot of planning was done in the recent days and weeks: 7 flights, 16 hotels, 2 car rentals. Hope everything goes fine.
I shall endeavour to keep you up to date with where we've been with a little photo travelogue here.
PS. Thank you Dorota for the feedback.

Let the holidays begin.


Maciek.

A very special Saturday evening

This is going to be a very special wine tasting.

Red wine from the Tras-Os-Montes Northern Portugal region, from the Adega Cooperativa in Valpaços. 35 000 numbered bottles. Mine is 1609.

The wine was produced in 1956, the year that Adega was opened, stayed in oak barrels until 1991 when it was bottled as a celebration of 35 years of Adega. . So....( I´m doing a little math here...) it´s 54 years old.


Maciek.

Update:20.00 GMT.

Dark plum Porto tawny-like color.
Little sediment.
Smell: Dark forest fruits.
Taste: high alcohol content, high tannins, middle acidity, evolution phase: strong herbs, spicy. Long finish.

Jesus, Maria and Jose feast

The Varzea village church facade decorated with lamps on the occasion of titular feast and the mirror image reflection in the roof of the nearby car.

A story behind: I was completely taken by surprise. I spotted this beautifully decorated church when I was going back from my sunset-photo session. I stopped the car and went straight to the small shop on the corner of the main street to ask questions. I bought a bottle of water and asked the lady at the counter what was going on. As I was her only customer, she started to talk. This was the beginning of the one-week long Jesus, Maria and Jose ( the holy family ) ones per year village celebration feast. I stayed there a while talking to some people on the street and heaving a good time.
I don´t know if I had mentioned it before but you can not have a bad time among Portuguese people.

Location: Varzea village, São Miguel island, Azores, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D80, Tamron 28-75 mm

Aperture: f/5.6

Shutter speed: 1 sec

Focal Length: 30 mm

ISO: 700

Date Taken: July 21th, 2010, 22:07


Maciek.

Ireland: summing the things up.

The photo was honored a front page of Onephoto.net, olhares.com and plfoto.com

Killarney National Park.

To close our one week long Irish experience in a nutshell:

Pros:

1. Wonderful, friendly Irish people
2. Fantastic and not too expensive luxury hotels
3. Good restaurants ( excellent fish, nice bread, good meat )
4. Very friendly Polish people we met that live in Ireland
5. Irish weather: a photographer´s dream
7. Beautiful landscapes
8. Tons of hidden "of-the-beaten-track" historic wonders

Cons:

1. Irish weather: not too good for a sight-seeing


Conclusion:

So Ireland ! Be prepared ! We will be back !

Maciek.

Azores Islands - July 2010 ( day 3 )

Mosteiros beach. São Miguel Island.

Location: One more sunset. This time summer-time on the beach: low and quite waves, warm and pleasant water, almost no wind.
Photographed at the sunset on the beach of Mosteiros, Westernmost part of the São Miguel island, Azores, Portugal.

Gear: Nikon D80, Tamron 28-75 mm, ND hard 0.6

Aperture: f/22

Shutter speed: 2 sec

Focal Length: 28 mm

ISO: 100

Date Taken: July 24th, 2010, 21:15


Maciek.