Katam Corner - Chiang Mai

One of Chiang Mai's major attractions is its "Old City". Built some 700 years ago, it was once an entirely walled square surrounded by a moat. Today, it is one of the rare cities in Thailand where the old surrounding brick wall is almost intact, especially on the corners with their walkways and arrow slits.

There are five gates around the city with the most famous one being the Tha Phae Gate, entirely reconstructed in the 1980s to give an idea of what the walls once looked like. Tha Phae gate is now pedestrianized and is part of the "Sunday walking night market" every weekend.

This photo here is the "Katam Corner", one of the corners of the Old City (South-Eastern corner), and it happens to be right in front of the apartment we are renting. The wall is clearly visible surrounded by the moat.

It is truly a beautiful old city.

Golden Greenhouses [HDR]

This is a place close to my heart.
It's the village in Lebanon where I used to hang out every summer. The hilly isolated village where I went to explore with my cousins and came back home covered in mud and thorns.This place called "Wata el Jaouz" right below the famous Faraya in Central Lebanon carries all my childhood memories.
Many inhabitants are farmers so these greenhouses are everywhere. They sell mostly vegetables that have a heavenly taste.
Now, this safe little haven is becoming overcrowded, with luxurious villas popping here and there, belonging to multi-millionaire sheiks from the Arab Gulf who spend their 1 week holiday per year behind guarded walls.

This is another HDR shot I am posting this week. What do you think? I always try to keep it more subtle than the flashy ones we see on the net all the time.

Landscape Painting?

I like it when the light is diffused. It makes the colors look soft with no harsh shadows. 

It sometimes makes a landscape look like a clichéd painting, like this one from Spain. 

I know there are a lot of broken rules in this photo. The horizon is in the middle, but I felt it was better this way as both the foreground and sky created a nice balance. The trees are out of focus, because of wide aperture, but it gave them this "painted" look. The colors are soft like on a  watercolor painting.

I kind of like the result! What do you think?

Galician Chalet

Galicia is one of my favorite regions in Spain, located on the North-Western part, right above Portugal. Although it's the most rainy region, I find it extremely beautiful with its mountains, forests and Celtic culture.
I took this shot while on the Camino de Santiago, around the last week before arriving to Santiago de Compostella. There is a steep climb on mount Cebreiro with magnificent landscapes.
Who wouldn't want to live in a chalet like this with this beautiful view every morning?