City of Noumea

Cities change constantly and Noumea is no exception. In the fifteen years since I’ve been back here, a lot of change has occurred, especially in the last five years. This photo was taken from the top deck of the P&O Pearl cruise ship back in 2014.

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I recommend to anyone to do a cruise at least once in their life. This was my first and though it left Sydney to visit the the island of my country, New Caledonia, it was a fun and eye opening experience. I actually went on this cruise to surprise my brother and a couple of friends who often went on them.

Seeing Noumea from the top deck of the ship was amazing. It took me a while to put the city into perspective even though I’ve rediscovered it for the last eight years. In this photo you’ll notice the Société Le Nickel (SLN) with the white smoke coming out of it’s four chimneys. The Bingo building just below it. The Municipal Police to the right of that and the Pacific Arcade apartments. The Mobilis tower on the hilltop to the right and the Galliéni 1 building below it. Then we have the Bingo parking between it and Sound City and in front of that the Quai Jules Ferry parking… which doesn’t exist anymore. Three large buildings now adorn this space with their respective parking lot. The smallest of the three buildings situated in front of the Bingo is already occupied by Fitness Park, the other two are not quite finished yet. This project is a follow up from the south Quai Ferry construction built in 2010. The hope is to provide bars, restaurants and commerce to revitalise the area and the city. Either way, tourists should have a better view of Noumea when arriving from cruise ships.

When I get the chance, I’ll photograph the buildings and share it with you. See you soon.

NIKON D7100

Nikon’s D7100 is a 24 MP crop sensor DSLR camera (body only). It produce sharp images with great quality. This was my first DSLR and I loved it.

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NIKKOR DX STANDARD ZOOM LENS

This Nikkor AF-S DX 18-105mm ƒ/3.5-5.6G ED VR is a standard zoom lens for crop sensor Nikon DSLRs. I’ve captured great images with this lens.

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SANDISK EXTREME PRO MEMORY CARD

SanDisk Extreme Pro SDXC memory cards are fast and reliable. With 128 GB you never run out of storage for photos or videos, 4K included. It’s what I choose to use.

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GIOTTO CLEANING KIT

This lens cleaning kit from Giotto includes a Rocket blower, a soft dust brush, pointed/rounded cotton buds, a microfibre cloth and cleaning solution. I also use it to clean the outside of my camera.

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WANDRD CUBE INSERT

The WANDRD camera cube insert is a perfect fit for the PRVKE backpack. Can also be used on it’s own too.

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WANDRD PRVKE

PRVKE 31 lt. travel/camera backpack from WANDRD. Has a laptop sleeve, a tablet sleeve, a hidden pocket, room for a camera insert and storage to spare. Also extends to provide 6 lt. of extra storage. It’s my everyday carry.

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Kuto, Isle of Pines

Nearing sunset, I decided to head down to the beach to find a potential photo. Hoping for some colour in the sky even though the beach faces east. No colours or dramatic skies but I came away with this photo as I was trying out my filters before the sun set.

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The beach at Atchu Camping is small, about 50 metres long, and has a lot of seaweed and algae on it’s powdery white sand. Though secluded and isolated, it’s only seconds away for users of the campsite. We were there for five days and rarely saw someone on the beach let alone in the water. I have to admit, we didn’t swim there either but did stroll along a few times. The beach faces east, great for sunrise or front lit scenes like this one. And the two isles in the distance just add to this paradise scene. Isle Adventure is largest of the two and spans from the right to behind Isle Duroc, which is small, round and in front of it’s big brother. I’m on the far north end of the beach here and like the southern end, it’s dead coral. You can only get here by sea or through Atchu Camping.

I got here half hour before sunset and stayed almost half hour afterward. This was the best shot I came away with. It’s actually a blend of two images to get sharpness throughout the image. One focused on the foreground and the other on the islands in the background. To get the long exposure of 15 seconds, I had to use my Little Stopper (6-stop filter) because it’s always windy here so the water is a little choppy. I also added a 3-stop ND soft grad. filter to control the bright sky and a polariser filter to cut the glare on the water’s surface. It also adds a bit of saturation to the water and sky. Editing was done in Lightroom except for the blending of the two images which was done in Photoshop. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, the Calibration panel in Lightroom can do wonders to images when used right. There’s a small learning curve but once you get it, you’ll use it often. Especially on landscapes images. Try it out.

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SONY a7 III

full-frame mirrorless camera (body only)

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TAMRON E 28-75mm ƒ/2.8 Di III RXD

standard zoom, E-mount lens

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VANGUARD TRIPOD

VEO 235AB Tripod with TBH-50 Ball Head

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LEE FILTER HOLDER

100mm filter holder system

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LEE POLARISER

100mm polariser filter for LEE 100mm filter holders system

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LEE GRADUATED FILTER

ND.9 (3-stop) neutral density soft graduated filter

Kuto, Isle of Pines

On my last post, I mentioned Atchu Camping but didn’t elaborate on it. This is where we pitched our tents for four nights in Isle of Pines. Sleeping in tents was the only camping activity we did though, for our stay here was a lot more comfortable.

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Atchu Camping is situated on the other side of the eastern point of Kanumera Bay. And at the end of the dirt road that’s to the left of the Ouré Lodge reception. The easiest way to get there is by shuttle bus which you can book online at the same time as your camping. Note though, that the shuttle drops you off at Ouré Lodge reception and you’ll have to walk the rest of the way to the campsite. It’s a five to ten minute walk so don’t bring too many or heavy things. You’ll have to walk back to the reception when leaving too. Road’s a little bumpy for a small car but you can drive right to the campsite if you hire one. Now don’t be fooled by the name, Atchu Camping is much more yet stays modest. There’s a family hut and a few bungalows if you prefer a little more comfort than a tent. There’s a small snack/restaurant, Chez Didas, that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast is simple with bread, butter, jam, fruit, juice and tea/coffee. Lunch is more on the snacks side of things with burger, panini, sandwich and dinner is a small menu of five or six dishes. We tried all three and can highly recommend eating Chez Didas. Reserve in advance though. They do have an outdoor kitchen with, just about, everything you need to cook. It’s a another way to save money and meet people. And talking about meeting people, if you’re someone who’s constantly connected to social networks, don’t worry, free WiFi is available throughout the campsite, except when eating. That’s right, they turn off the WiFi at breakfast, lunch and dinner times and I’m guessing it’s to promote their own social network between their customers. I think it’s a great idea. We ended up meeting and conversing with people at breakfast and dinner, and had a great time. They also have a couple of outdoor sheltered seating areas with electrical power strips to recharge your batteries or whatever. What more can you ask for? Toilets? Showers? Yes, they have those too but bring your own toilet paper and soap. Atchu Camping is constantly windy, which is great for those hot and humid summer days and nights. The campsite is clean and quiet, perfect for those looking to get away and relax. And it’s only a fifteen to twenty minute walk to Kanumera Beach.

We had our tents pitched about ten meters to the left of this photo. I was waiting for my friend and her two kids, to head to breakfast, when I took this shot. It just seemed like a nice scene. Sun, sand, palm trees, turquoise water… it was a beautiful morning. The shot was taken with a polariser filter to remove glare from the water and accentuate the colours. I over-exposed slightly to what the metering gave me and glad I did because I got more details out of the shadows. Editing was very basic apart from an orange/red cast on the wood fence and ground which reduced with the red saturation slider under Calibration (Lightroom). I played around with the other two sliders, the green and blue saturations, to make the colours pop a little. I tell you, the Calibration sliders can do wonders to an image.

Well that’s it for now, the next image is a night shot, I think, from this little beach. Cheers.

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SONY a7 III

full-frame mirrorless camera (body only)

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TAMRON E 28-75mm ƒ/2.8 Di III

standard zoom, E-mount lens for Sony cameras

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LEE FILTER HOLDER

100 mm filter holder

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LEE ADAPTER RING

67mm thread adapter ring for LEE 100mm filter holder

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LEE POLARISER FILTER

100mm circular polariser filter for LEE 100mm filter holder

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SANDISK EXTREME PRO CARD

128GB SDXC memory card

Kuto, Isle of Pines

It’s been a little hectic since I’ve come back from my trip to Isle of Pines. So I apologies for the lack of content but I was finally able to edit this photo. Though we had Uesi Cyclone approaching from the north, it didn’t really affect us apart from some light showers in the middle of the night and on our last day. As you can see, beautiful sunny days during our stay. Very hot too but we were lucky to have constant, cool wind at Atchu Camping, where we were staying.

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Isle of Pines is right down the southern tip of New Caledonia and part of the Province Sud (Southern Province). You can get there by plane (through Air Caledonie) or by boat (through Betico 2), we chose the latter. It's cheaper and though you leave early in the morning, there's a snack bar for breakfast or other things. The trip takes two and half hours along the south-west coast of the mainland and is absolutely beautiful. The boat moors in Kuto Bay at the end of the beach with the same name, located south south-west of the Isle of Pines. Kuto Beach and this one, Kanumera Beach, are world renowned for their white and very fine, powder-like sand. Feels likes your walking on flour, no joke, that's how fine this sand is.

Our trip here was purely for relaxation. And relax we did. We spent most of our time on this beach and Kuto's as well. We did hire a car at Kou-Bugny Hotel for a day, just to visit the Grotte de la Reine Hortense (Queen Hortense’s Cave). That took most of the morning then we drove to Gadji for a look. We had lunch at the Meridien Hotel (expensive but nice) before heading to Vao for a swim at St. Joseph Bay. Then we slowly made our through Vao village before heading back to Kuto. A nice and easy day round the island.

As with most of the beaches in Isle of Pines, Kanumera beach is paradise. It’s split in two by a huge rock formation where snorkelling, all around it, is magnificent. If snorkelling isn’t your thing, you can enjoy the fine, white sand and turquoise water with a cocktail in your hand from the Banian bar & restaurant, of the Ouré Lodge, situated at the far end of the beach in this photo.

And talking about the photo, the one difficulty I had, was getting the exposure right in camera. The sand is so white and bright, as with snow, the camera under-exposes to balance the overall exposure. So I had to over-expose the shot by about a 1 stop to get the correct exposure for this scene. Not sure of myself, I did take two other exposures just in case. Better too many than regretting. Also had a little trouble with the White Balance. At first I based it on the boat but it gave me a too warm of an image so in the end I used the eyedropper on the sand and warmed it ever so slightly. Oh and if your colours don’t look right sometimes, play around with Calibration (in Lightroom), you’ll be surprised how effective it can be.

OK, well, I’ll get myself into gear and try to post more photos from the Isle of Pines for the next couple of weeks. Hope to see you back here soon. Cheers.

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SONY a7 III

full-frame mirrorless camera (body only)

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TAMRON E 28-75 MM ƒ/2.8 Di III RXD

E-mount standard zoom lens for Sony cameras

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LEE FILTER HOLDER

LEE 100 mm filter holter

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LEE ADAPTER RING

LEE 67 mm thread adapter ring for 100 mm filter holder

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LEE POLARISER FILTER

LEE polariser filter for LEE 100 mm filter holder

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SANDISK MEMORY CARD

SANDISK Extreme Pro 128GB SDXC memory card

Kuto, Isle Of Pines

I’m heading over to Isle Of Pines in a couple of days and it reminded me that I had photos dating back from 2014 of this place. So I went through my catalogue and found this one to share with you. Technically not the best image but it portrays an essence of this island. Tranquil waters, blue skies, traditional pirogues and the feeling of being isolated.

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Isle Of Pines is situated at the southern most point of New Caledonia and is renown for it’s fine, white sand beaches. You get there by either boat or plane and both offer exquisite, though very different, views of the mainland and the surrounding islands. You also get to see the reef line, more islands and the different colours of the water by plane. By boat, you’re in the middle of it all with the smell of the sea and the wind in your hair, if you so choose to. Enjoy a drink and/or a snack as you make your way along the south/west coast. Personally, both are a must.

In 2014, I was there with my brother and friends. It was our first stop from of the P&O cruise ship holiday we were on. I had just received the Nikon D7100 with the Nikkor 18-105 mm kit lens a few days earlier so the cruise was my learning ground. For this image my intention was to have the pirogue in focus and the background a blurred. So I chose to go with an aperture of ƒ/5.6 thinking it would be enough to have the whole pirogue in focus and throw the background out of focus. Not the case. Now the background is blurred but not enough for my liking and the pirogue is not totally in focus. If I remember correctly, my focus point was the closest perpendicular bar on the pirogue side, thinking the depth of field would extend to the back and front of the pirogue. Once again, not the case. And though I had a shutter speed of 1/3200th, the focus point isn’t as sharp as I had hope it would be. At first I blamed the fact it was a hand-held shot but with a shutter speed that high my guess is the auto-focus didn’t quite lock-on as I took the shot. I should’ve taken more care and time though when checking the image on the back of the camera. I tried to correct the blurred pirogue in Lightroom but you can only do so much before ruin everything. In my opinion, a beautiful image nonetheless but technically not good.

As I said, I’m heading back to Isle Of Pines in a couple of days so I’m looking forward to capturing a sunrise, sunset and a starry night shot, if I’m lucky. I might even make a small video of my time there but not promising anything. See you when I get back.

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NIKON D7100

24MP crop sensor DSLR camera (body only)

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Nikkor AF-S DX 18-105mm ƒ/3.5-5.6G ED VR

NIKON Crop sensor STANDARD ZOOM lens

Bourail, New Caledonia

Situated on the shores of one of the world's largest lagoons, the Sheraton New Caledonia Deva Spa & Golf Resort is one of the more luxurious and isolated hotels in New Caledonia. I’ve never stayed here but I have popped in two or three times for a meal or a drink whilst staying in the area. This was one of those time.

A friend was house-sitting at La Roche Percée which I took advantage of to do some astrophotography. Not a lot of light pollution around these parts. You may have seen a photo from an earlier post, The Man Between The Milky Way & Turtle Bay. We came here to checkout a lookout from one of the hiking trails behind the hotel. Magnificent views of Deva Domaine, the lagoon and the Sheraton. We had lunch there once we’d finished wandering around.

I only took my camera to the lookout. A decision I regretted as I took this shot. Wishing I had my polarised filter with me. The water looked very flat, colourless and had no definition even after my global edits in Lightroom. To my surprise though, I was able to recover a lot of it by selectively using the Dehaze slider. Now that’s what I saw when I shot this image. A beautiful view of the Sheraton New Caledonia Deva Spa & Golf Resort and our stunning, world renowned lagoon.

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28 mm, 1/640th second @ ƒ/11, ISO 400

Motosu, Japan

Our last full day in Japan brings us to the Fuji Shiba-Sakura Festival located in Motosu, Minamitsuru District, Yamanashi Prefecture. A beautiful festival around diverse moss phlox flowers. Though a creeper plant, the Japanese call them lawn-cherry (shiba-sakura) for their resemblance to cherry blossoms. The festival happens in Spring from mid April to late May.

It’s a two and a half hour trip southwest from Tokyo to the festival. We caught a bullet train, local train then a coach to get there. A pleasant trip, I must say. Especially on the local train where we got to see Mount Fuji in all it’s magnificence. No photos unfortunately but keep a look out for the video.

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They have an upper deck with a gorgeous, panoramic view of the festival. If you’re lucky, on a clear day you can see Mount Fuji in the background. As you can see we weren’t that lucky as Mount Fuji (a touch to the right from centre) is covered by clouds. It never cleared up except once on the local train back home.

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They have about height varieties of moss phlox on display. They do have other flowers like these Blue Bells but the festival is all about these lawn-cherries. Of course, Mount Fuji is very important in this region. So much so it’s represented as a flower mount (to the right in the panorama photo above).

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We here a lot about this event and yet very little about the Mount Fuji Delicious Foods Festival held inside the same grounds. They’re the restaurants, stalls and shops you see as you enter. Offering the finest foods from the Mount Fuji region, you can find anything from traditional to modern meals, sweet or savoury treats, there’s something for everyone. There’s even a huge shaded dining area so you can sit and enjoy your meal, and maybe even meet people.

So if you’re into flowers or food or both, the Fuji Shiba-Sakura Festival & Mt. Fuji Delicious Foods Festival is a must.

Kanazawa, Japan

Originally the outer garden of the Kanazawa Castle, Kenroku-en is one of three great gardens in Japan. For it to be so, it must have certain attributes and be beautiful throughout all four seasons. It was the end of Spring when we visited and it was magnificent. With luscious green foliage, ponds, waterways, waterfalls, paths, bridges, teahouses and the list goes and despite all that, the garden is harmonious and peaceful. You can easily find solitude and tranquility as you walk through it, even though the garden is spacious and there are many visitors. You may have seen another photo from a previous post of the largest pond of the garden. It’s one of my favourite photos of our Japan trip.

As you can see in this photo, Géraldine is alone. I asked her to walk up the path and had plenty of time to frame and take the shot. I didn’t have to wait for anyone to get out of my frame nor was anyone waiting behind me for me to finish. Yet there were a lot of people visiting. Having Géraldine there also helps give dimension to the scene without altering the mood. I really like this image.

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41 mm, 1/400th second @ ƒ/2.8, ISO 100

Kanazawa, Japan

We only spent one day in Kanazawa and no, it’s not enough to see or do everything they have to offer here. We arrived around 11 am and headed straight for the hotel. Once unpacked, we went back to the Omicho Market, which we walked through to get to the hotel, for some lunch and a bit of a wander.

Kanazawa Castle was only a couple of blocks from the hotel so we headed there next. Wide, open grounds outside as we approached and the same goes for inside the compound. Unbeknown to us, we entered through the main gate called Kahoku-mon. The photo is taken looking back out from where we came in. I saw the huge, wood and metallic doors and frame and used them to, well, frame the Hishi Yagura. Which is a part of the Castle. From the gate to the grounds to the castle, the workmanship, the details, the beauty is amazing. And quite peaceful as you stroll through the grounds. This Castle is a must when visiting Kanazawa.

Once again I used my preferred split-tone preset, at the moment, for this image. Not a lot of colours in the middle of the day and black and white just wasn’t good enough for this photo. And I think it suits this kind of image well.

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28 mm, 1/320th second @ ƒ/11, ISO 100

Kyoto, Japan

Better known as the Golden Temple or Golden Pavilion, Kinkaku-ji literally means Temple Of The Golden Pavilion. It’s located on Rokuon-ji complex, Deer Garden Temple complex. That aside, I have to say, this temple is magnificent. Photos do not do it justice. Unfortunately, you can’t visit the temple but just walking round and being so close to it is impressive enough and worth the visit.

Though there were a lot of people here, I was able to capture two or three images void of them. You just need a little patience.

The surrounding pond is stunning with it’s tiny garden islands. I’d love to see this place in winter or autumn. Beautiful surroundings as you snake your way through the grounds towards the exit. Here you’ll find the teahouse and many stalls of food and souvenirs. A few interesting things to see and taste here.

It’s well worth the trip and visit, and it doesn’t take long to tour the complex. Just to see Kinkaku-ji in person is worth the visit.

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46 mm, 1/250th second @ ƒ/11, ISO 200

Kyoto, Japan

The Arashiyama Bamboo Grove is just on the other side of the Katsura River from the Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama. But don’t do as we did and visit the monkeys first. If you’d like a little peace and quiet and take beautiful photos void of people, visit the bamboo grove/forest first and early. Very early in my opinion. We made two mistakes. The first was to visit at midday. Way too many people and impossible to appreciate this potentially beautiful and peaceful area. The second, was bad planning on our part by entering the forest from the main street of the town. The forest didn’t feel as impressive as I had imagined and the stroll felt quite short. But that’s because, we realised later, we’d visited only half… a third of the bamboo forest. Very disappointing. You’re better off walking along the river and entering from the west. It’s a longer walk but there’s less people, it’s more beautiful and there’s more to visit. Don’t misunderstand me, you can get to see all that from entering via the town, just don’t take a wrong turn or your visit will be very short.

I was hoping to capture a couple of beautiful photos but came away with nothing special. And you’ll need a wide angle, maybe even an ultra-wide angle, lens to really capture the narrow path or canopy of the bamboo forest. I was hoping to include a lot more in this shot but 28 mm wasn’t wide enough.

Though we didn’t appreciate the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest as we had hoped, I, for one, am leaving it on my to-do list. With just a small reminder to get there very early and enter from the west. And always do your homework before visiting a place.

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28 mm, 1/80th second @ ƒ/16, ISO 200

Kobe, Japan

We only had half a day in Kobe before moving on. We decided to visit the Nunobiki Herb Gardens in Fukiaicho, just outside Kobe City. So we checked out of our hotel and headed to Shin-Kobe Satation where we left our luggages in a storage place while we visited the gardens. It’s a 10 minute walk from the train station to the ropeway station. You can walk up to the gardens but I recommend you take the ropeway up and walk down. You can take the ropeway back down but the walk is easy, worth doing and most often in shade. The ropeway is a must as well with it’s stunning view of Kobe’s cityscape and the gardens below. There is a midpoint station you can get off at but we kept going to the Herb Gardens right at the top.

You’ll find stalls, boutiques and a restaurant once there. Flower and herb gardens amongst city views and beautiful architecture too. I didn’t take many photos up here, none worth sharing anyway, but I did film the area so keep a lookout for the video. The walk back down is quite pleasant too. All down hill so easy peasy. A few more gardens and waterfalls await your descent.

A beautiful place to visit, have a meal and even stay for a sunset photo. It’s open till 8:30 so plenty of time to get that perfect shot. Nunobiki Herb Gardens, I can highly recommend it.

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28 mm, 1/100th second @ ƒ/11, ISO 100

Kobe, Japan

We don’t eat a huge amount in the morning so paying for a buffet breakfast at the hotel wasn’t worth our while. The problem though, most places open around 8 am. No matter, we went for a stroll around Meriken Park and Kobe Harborland and checked out a huge shop that opened at 7:30 before coming back here, to Starbucks, for a simple breakfast.

This shot was taken a couple of hour beforehand though. Just before I headed back to the room. I liked the reflection of the sun in the front glass panels and having the Port Of Kobe Tower in the frame, gives the viewer a location. A destination.

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28 mm, 1/25th second @ ƒ/11, ISO 100

Himeji, Japan

Himeji Castle, also known as Hakuro-jo or Shirasagi-jo meaning White Egret Castle, is a prototypical architectural example of Japanese castles. It is magnificent ! Even from afar you can tell it is something spectacular.

Himeji was only a quick stop for us before heading to Kobe for the night. We didn’t want to visit the castle, just have a quick wander around the grounds and take a couple of photos. You need a half a day to visit the castle and it’s grounds. You can actually see Hakuro-jo as you approach Himeji Station and it’s only a ten minute walk from there. We couldn’t resist the stop-over.

Again here, I used one of my split-tone presets to give the ancient era feel to the image. Check out my last post for a quick rundown on my editing process for these types of images.

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75 mm, 1/4000th second @ ƒ/2.8, ISO 100

Miyajima / Itsukushima Island, Japan

Though there was a thin layer of cloud in the sky, beautiful golden light blanketed the forest. Golden hour was here and had transformed the landscape. It was upon these trees that I first noticed it and seeing the second story of the Tahoto Pagoda protruding above the canopy was too beautiful not to photograph.

I wish I had a longer focal lens though. I would've preferred to have isolated the pagoda within the forest. Minimise distractions and simplify the composition. I like this image nonetheless.

Tahoto pagodas are very interesting and unique in their own right so check out the link above to learn more.

I’ve mentioned this on a previous post but let me stress again that the links I provide on my blog posts are purely provided for extra information and I am in no way remunerated. They are not affiliate, sponsored or commercial links and I am not payed in any way, shape or form to providing these links. If this changes in the future, I will let you know.

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75 mm, 1/13th second @ ƒ/11, ISO 100

Japan

day two

Ohayo my friends and welcome to day two of our trip in Japan. Today we leave Kyoto and head to Hiroshima. From there a local train then a ferry to Itsukushima Island, also known as Miyajima.

We had a late night and thus didn’t want to get up for the early train to Hiroshima. We decided to wait after peak hour to avoid the locals going to work and school. We had breakfast at Delifrance (of all places) but ate things that weren’t very French. Delicious though and their coffee brewing method is interesting to watch.

By the time we arrived at Hiroshima Station it was lunchtime. We left our bags at a luggage holder and went looking for something to eat. One of the dishes my friend, Géraldine, had on her to-eat list while in Japan was the famous Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki. To our great surprise we saw advertisement for the dish everywhere as we were walking through the station. A couple of floors up and we found a corridor of restaurants with two or three of them specialising in okonomiyaki. We picked the one with the most crowd, Goemon Okonomiyaki, and sat right at the counter in front of the hotplates. A very memorable experience. From watching them prepare the dish in front of us, to tasting the meal, to seeing every single staff member saying goodbye to every single client leaving the restaurant. That was amazing. It was quick, delicious and surprisingly fun.

With our stomachs full, we started our long walk to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial or more popularly known as the Atomic Bomb Dome. Though long, it was nice to see a little of the city along the way. The landmark is quite impressive in itself but to see how everything has been rebuilt around it, is just a amazing. It makes you wonder if there ever was a atomic blast. Walking around the park felt like I was on religious grounds. I’m not a religious person but I felt an inner calmness and peace. A respect for what had happened here and the courage and strength the people of Hiroshima, of Japan, had to get through it. And build a park that evokes peace. A well named park.

On the way back to Hiroshima Station, we walked by Carp Castle, better known as Hiroshima Castle. Actually, it’s the castle’s second compound that you see here. The original castle was, obviously, destroyed in the atomic blast and a replica built in it’s place. Now though it serves as a museum of Hiroshima’s history before World War II. We didn’t get to visit as time was short to get to Miyajima before sunset.

Back in Hiroshima Station, we jumped on a local train to Miyajimaguchi to catch a ferry to Itsukushima Island, better known as Miyajima. This is a gorgeous place. Little town atmosphere on the shores of Hiroshima Bay. The old and the not-so old architecture. The Itsukushima Shrine is amazing and it’s Torii is just a wonder. We got here in time to drop our bags at the hotel before heading straight back down to the torii. We stayed about two and half hours taking photos of it and the shrine, and watching the sun set. What a beautiful sunset it was too. Then we made our way to the town to have a look around and find one of the very few restaurants still open. Both Géraldine and I loved the main street of Itsukushima Town for it’s old look and atmosphere. It gave us the impression of being in a different era. We chose to eat at Mametanuki restaurant. A wonderful little place where the owner is, I think, English but the cuisine definitely Japanese. Very friendly place with good service and delicious food.

Once full and warm we made our way back to our hotel, Kikunoya. A beautiful hotel with a restaurant and onsens. When we told the receptionist we weren’t going to have dinner there, they happily showed us the locations of restaurants that were going to be open and advised not to eat to late as their kitchens close quite early. Very friendly and helpful. Oh and they have a foot spa at the front entrance.

Well that’s it my friends. The end of another wonderful day in Japan. Hope to see all of you for day 3. Oyasuminasai.

MUSIC:

Classical Japanese Koto Music - Izumi-Kai Original Instrumental Group - Rokudan

from UnexpectedExpressive

Hiroshima, Japan

We took a different route from the Peace Memorial Park to get back to Hiroshima Station. Walking by Hiroshima Castle, sometimes called Carp Castle. We didn’t visit the castle itself but could see the tiers of it’s roof from this point and from almost a kilometres back too. We didn’t have the time to spare as we wanted to be in Miyajima before sunset.

This is actually the entrance to the second compound of the castle. You may not know, I surely didn’t, but the castle is a replica of the original which was destroyed by the atomic bomb blast. It now serves as a museum of Hiroshima’s history before World War II. I would’ve loved to have visited it. Though a replica, I still find this architecture amazing.

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40 mm, 1/125th second @ ƒ/11, ISO 100

Hiroshima, Japan

Continuing from my last post, once we had finished lunch, we made our way to the Peace Memorial Park to see for ourselves the remains of the atomic blast of 6th August 1945. The Atomic Bomb Dome or officially the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.

We checked both Google and Apple maps for directions and they both us it would be a 25-30 minute walk. It took us 45 minutes. And we weren’t dragging our feet either. Go figure. We did get to see the city and especially liked the side streets with their small restaurants and boutiques, and beautiful old buildings.

When you think about the impact of an atomic bomb and the sheer destruction it can cause, you start to wonder how it is possible for this building to still be here, standing. I can understand why some would want it torn down but am glad to see it stand. A memorial of the bombing and a symbol of peace. To me, it’s also a reminder of how far mankind is willing to go to destroy each other. Very sad.

This photo was taken from the Motoyasu Bridge looking through it’s guard rail. At the time of taking the shot, there was no way of avoiding it, I wasn’t content having the modern building as a backdrop. Once home though I quite like it. Actually, now I’m a little pissed at myself for not having centred the dome with the Hiroshima Chamber Of Commerce building. Too late now. I went with a split-tone edit after I had edited another photo of the Dome beforehand. I liked it so much I applied it here.

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40 mm, 1/640th second @ ƒ/5.6, ISO 100

THE FALLS AND THE HOLE

Here are the photos from the last video. I think I added a couple more in there too. 

So to recap the third day of our New Zealand trip of the North Island, we woke up in Kaikohe, a town west of Kerikeri and made our way to Haruru Falls in Waitangi. From there we headed to Paihia where we had booked a ferry to visit the famous Hole In The Rock on Motukokako Island. On the way there and back, we stopped over at Otehei Bay on Urupukapuka Island. The Hole In The Rock is just after Cape Brett, where you will notice a hut and lighthouse on the hill. Back in Paihia I took a photo of the beautiful stone building, the St. Paul’s Anglican church.

We hit the road back towards Auckland that afternoon and stopped for the night at the Sheep World Caravan & Camping Park. A wonderful place and so is the owner.

Again, I’d like to thank Alain, my friend, for letting me use a couple of his photos.

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So now that we’ve reached the end of Newquay Promenade (Melbourne, Australia), we arrive at the last dock. A quiet, little getaway spot. Day or night. With wonderful views of Bolte Bridge, Yarra River, Docklands piers and Melbourne’s skyline.

I had taken a couple of photos here very early one morning but, unfortunately, they came out slightly blurred. It was very windy and the movement of the dock on the water didn’t help either. So I though I’d come back and a get a day shot of the bridge. Just  snapshot for a souvenir.

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1/1000 sec @ ƒ/4.5, 36 mm, ISO 100