Travelling solo.. and photographs

I've pretty much decided that Europeans, in general with a handful of exceptions, are more concerned with photographing the subject person rather than the backdrop / scenery.
In a non-intentional experiment involving me stopping random strangers to help take my photo in front of a particular statue, monument, building etc of interest, they (whether man or woman, no gender bias here) tend to focus on me as the subject at the expense of the sight. I have several megabytes of photos to prove this. There you have me, full length from the top of my woolen cap down to the toes of my boots, but the focal point of interest is reduced to a partial background of no particular memorable significance.
Wassup with that?
So I've resorted to self-snaps which are often hit or miss but the good thing about digital cameras, we can erase the mistake and re-take as many times as needed. The only problem is in the biting cold, patience is a virtue. So cue camera timers and my ever indispensible "octopus". Such nifty inventions they are (,")

A Day Of Flower Power!

Aah.. sweet memories! How I miss the crisp fresh air and the riot of colours at Keukenhoff. A visit to Lisse (the tulip region of The Netherlands) is not complete without paying a tribute to the tulips at this beautiful outdoor park. The park is only open for the Spring season from March to May and it features the exquisite blooms that is synonymous with this country in every imaginable shape, size and colour. On display are also other types of flowers but understandably the tulips are given centre-stage and pride of place.

The tulips are planted in clusters under trees, in interesting patterns. Almost all of them will sport an ID tag to identify the species and also the name of the grower and the district from which it originates. This serves as an exhibit if you may of the grower's latest offering to the gardening community. So I'd like to think of Keukenhoff as not just a garden but also a trade fair.

Walking around, my uncle spotted several patches of tulips from his district, Voorhout. Coming from a family of tulip farmers, he was naturally excited and insisted that they got the grower's name wrong. Yep! That's my Uncle Piet. He loves attention and as if stomping all over the grass near 'his' tulip patches is not enough (there's a sign saying "Stay Off The Grass") he even tried to attract the attention of the park attendants to correct their 'mistake'. *rolling eyes*

Featured around the park are sculptures and works of art by famous artists although, in my eyes, they are merely 'accessories' to the natural splendour before my eyes. This is truly God's best works on display. If ever you mention the 'Garden of Eden', this is how I would imagine it to be like.

After a full day of oggling and getting my neck twisted around in a knot, it was time to leave. Not that I wanted to, but my camera ran out of juice and memory to store all the images I captured. I bid farewell to my Garden of Eden, and returned home with a heavy heart. I made a vow that day. I vowed to come back with my family one day to share with them the splendour that is God's doing. ~Jas (;") 11.04.2004~