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My favourite bits of 2013
2013 has been a great year; I got married, I had a great honeymoon, got a promotion, and got to have a lot of fun on the sides travelling around Europe and Asia and getting to a festival or two.
These are a few of my favourite experiences from the past year.
Rome
In March, on a work trip, I happened to spend one night in Rome on the very night that the new Pope – Francis – was unveiled to the world. I was in St Peter’s Square when it happened and the excitement was undeniable, even to a heathen atheist like me. Later in the year I returned to Rome and got to spend a bit more time rediscovering this fantastic city.
Three nuns, Via San Pio X, the Vatican
Colosseum at Dusk
Albergo Abruzzi in morning light
Paris
Over the course of the year I travelled to Paris quite a few times for work, and tried to get out for an hour or two’s shooting when I was able. More photos here and here.
Catching up outside Nos Ancetres Les Gaulois, Ile-St-Louis
Sunset, the Seine, and a Bateau Mouche
Notre Dame and Rainbow
Taschen Bookstore on the Rue de Buci, Paris
Provence & Monaco
A long weekend family trip took us down to the French Riviera, the Gorges du Verdon and the harbour of Monaco. More photos here.
The Watcher, near Cap d’Ail
Moustiers, Gorge du Verdon
Monaco Harbour
Glastonbury Festival 2013
I thought I was through with Glastonbury, but the lure of Chic and the Rolling Stones proved irresistible; we had a blast.
Hula Hoop Jesus (AKA Pirate Dan, AKA the Charity Bin Painter), W
The Phoenix Rises at the Rolling Stones
Goat at the West Holts Stage
Notting Hill Carnival 2013
Living in west London, I try to go to Carnival every year if I can manage, even if just for a few hours or one day of it. Always brings a smile to my face. More photos here.
Mas Dancers, Notting Hill Carnival
Family Time at Notting Hill Carnival
Bangkok
At the end of August I went back to Bangkok for a work trip and managed to find time to search out some places I hadn’t been before, including Chinatown and the Khlong Lat Mayom floating market. More photos here.
Racing Home, Chao Phraya River, Bangkok
Khlong Lat Mayom Floating Market, Bangkok
Buddhist Monk on Yaowarat Road, Bangkok
Lottery Ticket Selling is Hard Work, Yaowarat Road, Chinatown, Bangkok
Our Wedding
It’s safe to say our wedding day was the highlight of our year, and it was excellently documented by the talented Dean Govier. Go check out his portfolio of our day.
Our Wedding – Photo by Dean Govier
Our Honeymoon
Neatly closing out the highlights of the year, and recently featured in this blog, our three-week honeymoon took us through Malaysia, Java, Bali and the Gili Islands, and was a once-in-a-lifetime trip. It was hard to come home from this one!
Laughing Market Trader, Dungun Market
Sunrise at Tanjong Jara, Malaysia
Petronas Towers Sunset Panorama, Kuala Lumpur
Borobudur Panorama
Yam Cracker Lady, Candirejo Village, Borobudur
Pasar Beringharjo Market, Yogyakarta
Red Dragonfly on Leaf, Four Seasons Sayan
Jatuliwiyah Rice Terraces
Macaque, Uluwatu, Bali
Sunset from the Rock Bar, Ayana Resort, Bali
2014 has a lot to live up to….
Photos from Notting Hill Carnival 2011 – Day 2
After our abridged visit to Carnival on Day 1, we walked down from Queens Park to Notting Hill on Monday psyched up for a full session at Day 2. The mood was slightly subdued by grey skies and unseasonably low temperatures (think 17C) and, I suspect, quite a few hangovers from Day 1. But you can’t stay subdued for long once you get sucked into a mas parade full of exhuberant, brightly attired dancers with ear-to-ear grins. This time we mostly hung around Kensal Road, Golborn Road, Portobello, Westbourne Park and, to finish the day off, Gaz’s Rockin’ Blues where we were treated to a somewhat ramshackle ska set by his band, The Trojans. As usual Day 2 was a bit more crowded and edgy than Day 1, but aside from a handbags-at-dawn flareup at one of the soundsystems we didn’t see any trouble to speak of. Biggest drama of the day was, as usual, where the shortest toilet queues could be found.
The photo below might be my favourite from Day 2 – two pirates from one of the mas crews did a double-daggering on a giggling bystander right in front of one of London’s finest – and the cop couldn’t help a fit of the giggles as well. (Generally daggering at Carnival is good-natured but I could see how it would get mightily annoying from a female perspective…)
That’s enough of Carnival for now, but if you’d like to check out the rest of my photos then head on over to my Notting Hill Carnival 2011 Flickr set.
Notting Hill Carnival 2010 in Pictures
This year we once again walked down from our homes in West London and converged upon the riot of colour, sound, taste, and smells (mainly jerk chicken and spliff) of the Notting Hill Carnival. I love Carnival for the experience and the shooting, and I have learned over the years how best to approach it so as to avoid hassle – basically, I stay around the edge of the route and don’t go into big crowds if I can help it.
Mortal Coil 