Last Friday I took the kids to Dunseverick where there are deep rock pools to swim in. It was at least the mid 20’s and the pools were like a warm bath. Then within a day or 2 we were on Benone beach further west with that great view of Mussenden temple. This time, time in the water was limited and most of us retreated to the car pronto. Little work for the lifeguards.

I posted shots on Facebook at the weekend of the fireworks at Portstewart taken from the Strand beach. We arrived in plenty of time and went for a walk. The sun was setting across the bay. Certainly beats being in the middle of a crowd waiting for the street lights to go out.

The Grand canal taken from the Rialto bridge,

a door that looks like it needs some attention

one of the many many smaller canals which criss cross Venice.

Everywhere you turn there is something beautiful to photograph.

Venice is a beautiful city even when it is overwhelmed by tourists. Which in July it is. The only thing to do is to get up early and go out with your camera when the city is just waking up. This is a view across to San Giorgio taken from a bridge about 7am just around the corner from Piazzo San Marco.

I took this shot on our last night in Venice. This is one of my first attempts with a long shutter speed. There had been some rain so there was a large puddle in the middle of the square. Unfortunately a cluster of tourists had worked out that the reflection could make for a good photograph so it was difficult not to have people in the way.
However it’s a magical place. Live quartets make it very atmospheric! One played the Titanic theme tune – unfortunate choice on a small island!

Should have been to B+Q to buy a love lock and leave it behind us on a bridge in Venice. A lot of the bridges have clusters of locks attached. I remember this in Paris when we went there for our 20th wedding anniversary. This is the Accademia bridge which crosses the Grand Canal.

Taken from the play park at the seafront in Portstewart last weekend. For those not familiar with the area you can just make out County Donegal beyond the shafts of sunlight.

At Dunseverick on the North Antrim coast there are 2 large rock pools – deep and large enough to swim in. One of them connects with the ocean when the tide rises, the other is fed by the highest waves crashing over the rocks at high tide. In between these waves this pool is like a giant mirror reflecting the sky.  This shot was taken just as a wave splashed over.

It was stunning outside when I woke up this morning – so I took a walk from Dunseverick castle west along the path towards the causeway. The views are spectacular in all directions along that stretch of coast line. The views in land are not bad either.