Sunday, September 18, 2011

Flowers and artists

At Avila in Spain we came across this painter who painted landscapes and sold them. He was happy with his sales, and asked me to click his picture with the sale that he just made. He even gave us his website and asked me to look it up and post this picture there. But I kept wondering how he stood there under that hot sun all day to complete his paintings.

I did come across some other good artists too in Paris and Belgium and really appreciate the work that they have done.











We too bought a couple of these paintings in the hope of putting them up at home. (20 Euros for two of these is a fair deal I suppose)
The most common sight that you see in almost all of Europe are the flowers. Practically everything is decorated with flowers. The lamp posts, the railings, the balconies,



the buildings, the street corners, you name it and it is there.


The same street corner in the night from another angle,

It gives a pleasant and happy atmosphere to the whole place.
Some may like the flowers in the picture below and some may exclaim "wow Harley Davidson"


This one below was clicked in Belgium ( Bruges ) where this lady was just opening her shop and arranging the flowers.
Flower shop in Bruges
© Photographer: Joezachs | Agency: Dreamstime.com

While I was at it, I could hear the clipetty clop of the horses and swerved around to see a horse drawn cart passing by. I almost missed that shot. Sometimes its a dilemma as to what to click and how and when.



For example we were cruising down the Seine river listening to the recorded commentary which is attached to the individual chair. You have to take out the handset and hold it to the ear. (so one hand is engaged there) I had a tough time holding the hand set as well as taking in the sight (and correlating with what I saw) and clicking with the other hand.

And then came the announcement “Now we will be passing under the famous bridge where you can make a wish and kiss your partner”
That was one more task to juggle for me. So wifey held the hand set and I kissed her and Christine took this shot from behind. Just in time before the bridge passed over us !!

Now I am trying to figure out the wish that I made :-)




21 comments:

Rama Ananth said...

That is a beautiful shot of both of you. The paintings are really good.

Mrs Newlywed said...

aaahhhh! you both are living our dream life 30 years from now.. :) beautiful!!!

mgeek said...

beutiful!!!

Tomz said...

Thanks for introducing that painter..and have u figured out ur wish?

Connie said...

I loved seeing the art, and I would definitely notice the flowers and not the motorcycle. haha! Very sweet shot of you and your wife. I hope your wish comes true. :)

Beth said...

Beautiful artwork! I love the flowers in Europe too.

Jyoti Mishra said...

Hello Haddock...
thank u for stopping by.
I am glad u did and giving me the opportunity to land here :)
u have a lovely blog.

Definitely following n looking forward to new posts.

Renu said...

I also love the abundance of flowers in Europe.
In India also in Nainital, many painters are painting on roadsides and making beautiful ones, but they nevr get enough customers, people are always haggling with them though they sell quite resonably.

Cezar and Léia said...

The artist is very talented, those paintings are awesome!So nice to see all flowers there on the streets!
Wonderful pictures!
The last one is so lovely! :)
Léia - Bonjour Luxembourg

Anuradha Shankar said...

wonderful!!! am enjoying this tour with you!

Shivani Singh said...

Yeh i agree to what Anu said. But i also remember my own. Pity we took that night cruise on the river Seine with a fancy dinner and all that champagne and awe... but no commentary was there. So we missed kissing over that bridge. i know i would've wished and also remembered the wish just to know if wishes are really answered.:(
BTW you would've seen those locks...a variety of them on two of those 37 bridges.
Precisely over the railings of Pont des Arts.
Somebody told me they were for wishes too...of all the journeys taken...in love...with love.
LOVE LOCKS they are called.
Sharing a link of the shot taken by another
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thekjkev/4560736530/
Good of you to buy one original painting. i bought some too but they are copies...rather like black and white lithographs from the roadside shops, the tabacs cum souvenir shops.
Sure i'm content with my pictures of the famous monuments but i hope one day i'm able go back again,spend some time with some of those many artists i saw in many places instead of making those tiring unsatisfied tours of the art museums.i remember a few artists who looked eager to do ur portraits for something between 8-10 Euros.
Aha the flowers...yes i saw them too...
i must stop now or else it might look like a blogpost and less of a comment...yup using ur words...although i relish words.The longer the better it feels as a mutual exchange.:)

Jacintarao said...

thanks ..again so vivid that it made it all real ..the paintingIbought is a treasure.great kissing photo ..

Lowell said...

Thank you for stopping by our Paree blog. WE loved Paris. And the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles was one of our favorite places, too.

This is a gorgeous post. I'm jealous of your tripping around Europe. The artwork is superb. I would have bought all those pictures if I could! The artistic talent around the world is just amazing.

Thanks for sharing!

Unknown said...

Lively and fresh!
Hoping that some day I get to plan a trip to Europe!

Haddock said...

@ rama
Thanks rama ;-)

@ Mrs Newlywed
come on... 30 yrs is just around the corner.

@ mgeek
Thanks

@ Tomz
Oops.... totally forgot about it in the excitement.

@ Daisy
Thanks Daisy...... yes I think its already come true.

@ Beth
Flowers add to the joy (everywhere in the world)

@ Jyoti Mishra
Most welcome.... have a nice time and more to come.

@ Renu
Yes I have seen them in the north east, but like you said they never get a fair deal.

@ Cezar and Léia
Yes I too liked the last one and thats why I added it in the end (there were many more paintings that I did not add here)

@ Anu
Good to know that you are enjoying.
More to come.

@ Shivai
The cruise was a just before we went for the Molin Rouge show (part of the package)
I did not see the locks but had heard about it and saw it on Flickr.
As for a repeat visit, wifey is already making plans about it, and here I am not yet done with 25% of the present pictures.
Yes there was one guy making a portrait... I think I will add that too here :-)

@ Jacintarao
Hope you have put up the painting by now.

@ Jacob
Agree with you on that (buying all the paintings)

@ Ajay Jose Paul
Aha now you are talking. Rohit has already made up his mind.

Bikram said...

Brilliant pics .. you been all over europe shud have popped to UK too .. always welcome here ..

and I do hope the wish comes true sooon ...

Bikram's

Anita at Cedar Hill said...

Love all of your beautiful photography. I am a new follower.

Indrani said...

Yes, a lot of artists make a living by selling paintings, they are so talented too.
Great photo under the bridge.

Jeannette said...

Grand that in all your juggling multi-tasking you properly prioritized and kissed your wife! Great photos...especially the quick horse capture and lovely narrative.

Haddock said...

@ Bikramjit
Thanks for that and thanks for the invite.
It is already on the cards.
The next time its going to be Scotland, Ireland and UK :-)

@ Anita
Good to see you as a new follower.
More pictures coming your way.

@ Indrani
I spent a lot of time observing them, they are marvelous.

@ Jeannette
Yes priorities are to be set up at spit second decisions. After all that bridge does not come daily :-)
More horse pics coming up

Phani said...

I can guess the wish you made...'Let there me happiness for all'