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Welcome. The following are the last 5 or so pictures to be uploaded. To view more pictures click on Photos to see more.
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What with the two pier fires in England this year with Brighton Pier and Fleetwood Pier going up in flames, lets hope that this isn't the last picture of Llandudno's Pier you see, however I think not (I know nothing of Brighton's Pier) but Fleetwood's Pier have been abandoned for years and had confirmed a controversial plan to put apartments on it which was disliked by some. At least Llandudno's Pier is well loved, used and still open. The Pier looks to be booming to such an extent that they have raised the rates so businesses such as a local photographer are moving out. Should the worst happen to the Pier before that I would at least like to live to have a pint at the bar at the end of the Pier. Up until now I have yet to be able to have a pint there for one reason or another. I have a picture of Fleetwood Pier but this will have to be scanned in and is more of a depressive closed down Pier shot.
This is of course the Pier with the Grand Hotel in the foreground. You're lucky there were any pictures at all after this weekend's jaunt to the Welsh Riviera. We went to The Greenwood Forest Park where there is an exhibition with a sandstorm machine. I put the camera on top of the machine to try it out... oh yes a sandstorm and it's a little fun and then looked for my camera. Hold on the camera isn't on the top of the machine. With a little thought I started wondering if I imagined putting the camera on top so I patted myself down to check my pockets... no camera. A further look on top of the machine led to the discovery that there was no top of the machine, I had actually dropped my camera into the sandstorm machine. A bit of climbing and looking found the camera wedged next to the blower. Phew.
Other discoveries this weekend (other than the sandstorm machine has no top) were that the GPS on my phone contains a map of England, yes only England if you type in a postcode in Wales you're off the map... I should have brought my real GPS. Also we found out this weekend that Proton Satria's are not slim cars but they can park on a very steep slope at the ski slope even if it does take you several circles of the back roads to find the right one (because the GPS doesn't have it on the map). All in all good weather prevailed and short sleeves were in order for some of it along with sandy little feet.
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Yes I finally found out how to pan. Sorry for those not interested in photography but I was trying my panning techniques at Oulton Park when we were there for the Touring car meet in July. Of course with this technique you do end up with a ton of rubbish photos and just one goodish one. There was a clearer photo but the colours in this worked better.
Needless to say that it's been a bad weekend for pictures because of a bike repair situation and the awful weather but at least I got the twelve spools of film back from the shop so I have billions of rubbish photos to junk with a few gems and this (you might not agree) is one.
Just for the Oulton and car buffs here, this was taken at Druids. A bad place as far as I am concerned to view the race but by the looks of it a good place to take panning pictures with it's sweeping bend. It's rubbish as as spectator because it has trees to the right and left so you have limited vision so the cars appear as if from nowhere trying to hang onto the fast curve and dissapear as quick.
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Because I forgot I had my phone with me you will never see any pictures of the Grotto Smeraldo, but if the grotto is pretty famous then someone will have a brilliant picture somewhere of it on the web. Mind you this was never the idea behind Zamyatin so I don't know why I said that other than to console you that if you were that interested in it you could find pictures elsewhere. It's a place to go alright but there is little to see; but with a backdrop of other places such as Solerno and the Paper Museum on the Amalfi tourist landscape seeing a small cave with an under the sea opening letting in the light causing the water glow blue is an attraction in itself. Add to this a boat ride in the cave that takes you round in a ten yard circle captained by a mad man then you feel that the fifteen Euros were all worth it. Well it was more than fifteen, the chap in the boat does remind you not to forget him, as if you can. Ten of the fifteen includes the boat trip to the grotto attended by a chap telling you about all the sights all down the coast as you pass whilst he smells of beer from the night before and by the smell of it he smells of beer from today.
So back to Amalfi and lunch and then back. There appears to be what looks like a fifties style ferry that appears a couple of times a day. Half the size of the Duke of Lancaster it awkwardly and gingerly docks in harbour that doesn't seem large enough. I only mention this because it looks an impressive beast just like the Duke of Lancaster and if the pictures come out alright then I'll put them up here.
On a traffic note. On the way back to the hotel we saw an exasperated American complaining to her husband that when crossing the road a car nearly hit her. I never saw the incident but I would say that in Italy a "nearly hit" counts as a miss.
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Ignoring the guide book for a second time we set out for Positano. Consisting of little more than the obligitory marina (quite important since road access has been denied for over a week due to a landslide), beaches, bars, boutiques and a Church (S. Maria Asumpta) we walked around with a grumpy seven year old (not included in the ticket price) and left. It was pretty enough and the church was a little impresive, perhaps when the photos come back I'll scan them in and add them here.
This is a view from the ferry back. Ten or fiffteen minutes late it got a wiggle on, choosing to turn the thirty minute trip there into a fifteen minute blast back with aircon -mind you it was a bigger boat. As the grumpy seven year old put it "it's bigger than an airplane". Well it was wider as far as the seats were concerned. Grumpyness subsided when offered to sit on the upper deck outside, a luxury not allowed on the way out due to yesterday's sunburn incident. Also helping to good mood was her being handed the video camera. This fifteen minute epic naver may appear online I am afriad. This will assure it the title of the "Zamyatin the lost tapes/memory cards" along with all my other dull movies.
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It was a day of rest at the house of Zamyatin so the beach in Amalfi was the order of the day. Not that good for pictures but good for... resting. Not a seasoned rester and always in need of a good picture... OK, always in need of a picture I left the good ladies Zamyatin at the beach for an hour in the middle of a day of sunbathing for two reasons. Firstly I am no good at sitting doing nothing. Secondly I fancied doing my own thing for a bit and thirdly I heard that there was a paper museum at the very top of Amalfi and I was sure the climb would not be enjoyed by my Wife and Daughter.
The climb was hardish but not that bad so I strode to the top in usual me fashion to realise that I was sweating through my shirt as usual. I found myself in a guided tour of the place and being asked if I spoke Italian, to which I said no. Apaulingly like all (most) Brits I rely on knowing brand names and the words for please and thankyou and rudimentary counting that might even go as high as 5 or 10 if you're lucky so long as there are pauses during the latter stages if counting to 10. So the guide turned to the Italians apologetically and asked if they spoke English, of course they did. Feeling like a shunned idiot I hoped the tour would end quick and mercifully it did. What can you expect from a 3.50EUR tour? I now know that Amalfi paper is of the highest quality and is made of cotton. I also know that the next time I shall bring my daughter and when they ask if I speak Italian I shall say Si but then point to my daughter shaking my head and rolling my eyes saying essa non pug.
Anyway to the picture. There were no good photo ops in the museum and the only picture I took of the place was rubbish so I had to settle myself with this. Coming back down the gorge that is Amalfi you end up at the Marina. In the middle where all the roads join there's this statue. With no markings and nothing in the guide books this is all I have. Obviously it will be something to do with Amalfi's Naval past but I am sure you could have guessed it and I am sure there is a Wikipedia page on it. Good luck.
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