Merry Christmas!

Tree image downloaded and adapted from www.oriflame.gr

Crocus cartwrightianus

803_0704 [Crocus cartwrightianus]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on November 22, 2017

Colchicum cupanii

IMG_4900HF [Colchicum cupanii]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on November 03, 2017

803_0703 [Colchicum cupanii]


Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on November 22, 2017

Silene reinholdii

801_4244 [Silene reinholdii]

Photographed on Mt. Pateras on April 12, 2014

Crocus cancellatus ssp. mazziaricus

IMG_4875 [Crocus cancellatus ssp. mazziaricus]

Perhaps the most common Crocus
in Central, Southern mainland Greece and in the Aegean islands.
Yet, so beautiful!

Interesting to note that no leaves are present at flowering time.
 
Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on November 03, 2017 

Podarcis muralis - a portrait

300_5999 [Podarcis muralis - a portrait]

Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on September 05, 2017

Crocus pallasii

803_653 [Crocus pallasii]

 

IMG_4938 [Crocus palassii]

This Autumn-flowering crocus grows from the Balkan Peninsula to West Iran but on the Greek territory - as far as I know - it can be found only on the islands of Chios and Lesvos. For some reason it also grows on one specific spot on Mt. Hymittos with its tepals being whitish rather than the commonly purple-lilac tepals of its “cousin” Crocus cartwrightianus [see here].

Both pictures were photographed on Mt. Hymittos on November 3, 2017.

Cyclamen graecum

803_0326 [Cyclamen graecum]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on October 10, 2017

IMG_4810 [Cyclamen graecum]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on October 23, 2017

IMG_0426 [Cyclame graecum]

Photographed in Lavrio on October 25, 2011

Syntagma square

IMG_2539 [Syntagma square]

Having coffee at the roof garden of a five-storey building occasionally provides opportunities for extra, non-scheduled, activities like using your mobile phone for a snapshot. In this case, I found the view inviting for a panoramic shot of Syntagma square: the “Trade Mark” we could say of Athens, Greece. One can see exclusive hotels on the left and the Greek Parliament in the distance.
 
Photographed on July 6, 2016

_8010474 [Syntagma square]

The same square photographed from the opposite side on a weekday afternoon, on September 21, 2013

Please click on the photos for a better view.

Biarum tenuifolium ssp. abbreviatum

803_0463 [Biarum tenuifolium ssp. abbreviatum]

Photographed on Filopappou Hill in Athens on October 12, 2017

Spiranthes spiralis

803_0349 HF6 [Spiranthes spiralis]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on October 10, 2017



Detail

AAA4448 [Spiranthes spiralis]


A close up shot of a different plant showing flower details.

Photographed in Lavrio a couple of years ago.

Colchicum bivonae

803_0234 [Colchicum bivonae]

Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on September 23, 2017

Sternbergia lutea

DSCN2724 [Sternbergia lutea]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on October 06, 2017

Towards the end of the day

Add caption

A shot à contre-lumière taken late in the afternoon on a very hot summer day

Photographed in Legrena on July 24, 2017

“Two for the price of one!”

_8029822 [Full moon - Eclipse]

The picture above is a composite of 30 shots taken consecutively at an internal of 140 seconds with the purpose in mind to show the direction and the course of the full moon across the sky.

I was almost at the beginning of the shooting session when I started getting worried about the fact that I hadn’t seen the full moon emerge from the sea at the expected time and that a few minutes later I could see only a faint part of the moon disk. Were there any clouds there that I couldn’t see? I wondered. It was then when a passer-by approached and asked me: “Has it started yet?” “Started what?” I asked. "The eclipse.” she said. I have to confess with some sort of embarrassment that I had no idea I was shooting not only the full moon but also a moon eclipse at the same time! If only I had known! I could have used a more suitable lens to show eclipse in magnification.

Photographed in Rafina port on August 07, 2017

Please click on the photo for a better view.

Colchicum lingulatum

803_0054 [Colchicum lingulatum]

One of about 30 species of Colchicum found in Greece; all of them being poisonous whether dry or in any other form.

Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on September 5, 2017

Circaetus gallicus

DSC_5931 [Circaetus gallicus]

This impressive and persistent hunter feeds mainly on snakes and lizards. It can fly for hours over hills and mountains and often hovers to spot its prey on the ground. When it does, it plunges on to the “victim” and grabs it with its claws.
 
Its wingspan can reach 1.78 m, while its weight can reach 2.5 kg!
 
Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on June 21, 2017

Full moon over Rafina port

_8029893 [Full moon over Rafina port]

A shot of a magic full moon night. It took me multiple shots and more time than I expected but eventual satisfaction proved a convincing reason why I could go home and leave behind the captivating night sight.
 
Photographed from a nearby hill on July 9, 2017
 
Please click on the picture for a better view.

Angling by a boat

IMG_4154 [Angling by a boat]

Shot with a mobile phone in Legrena on July 24, 2017


PLEASE NOTE:
We'll be back on September 1st!
[Deo volente.]

Until then have a nice time!

Podarcis muralis

802_9233 [Podarcis muralis]

Did you know that …

     • It usually reaches a length of 20 cm of which about 14 are the tail?
     • It has acute vision and hearing?
     • It can walk even vertically on walls?
     • It can swim but it systematically avoids water?
     • It is mainly fed with insects, worms, bugs and various fruits, with a particular preference for strawberries, oranges and plums?
     • It goes into hibernation?

I didn’t, at least some of them, until I consulted a book on Zoology* for the purpose of this post!
* Εκπαιδευτική Ελληνική Εγκυκλοπαίδεια, Τόμος 11, σσ. 307-308, Εκδοτική Αθηνών 1983

Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on June 21, 2017

Salvia pomifera

302_6274 [Salvia pomifera]

Photographed at Monemvasia on May 01, 2010

Vanessa cardui

802_6958 [Vanessa cardui]

Vanessa cardui, a regular visitor to our garden, feeding on the flower Lantana camara [here]

Photographed in Holargos on October 03, 2016

Ag. Nektarios

801_6852-HDRx5 [Ag. Nektarios]

The church above is dedicated to St. Nektarios; a saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church canonized only recently, in 1961. It is located within the convent of The Holy Trinity on the island of Aegina in the Saronic Gulf and is daily visited by large numbers of believers coming from all parts of Greece to pay tribute to the saint.

The structure is of comparatively huge dimensions. Apart from the church seen in the picture, there is another - separate - church beneath it. The total capacity of the structure is estimated to be 9.000 people. It’s corner stone was laid in December 1973 and it was inaugurated 21 years later, in May 1994. Today, it constitutes one of the largest churches of the Greek Orthodoxy.

Photographed on the island of Aegina on August 07, 2014

Please click on the picture for a better view.

Oxalis articulata

802_8746 [Oxalis articulata]

Photographed in Holargos on April 28, 2017

Lantana camara

DSCN4042 [lantana camara]

A close-up of the same flower

Photographed in Holargos on October 12, 2010

 

Gagea peduncularis

802_8047 [Gagea peduncularis]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on March 02, 2017

Borago officinalis

802_8635 [Borago officinalis]

Photographed in Ilioupoli on April 21, 2017

One’s missing! Where’s she gone?

Pic 246 [One is missing]

This is part of the façade of a building next to the “Fulton Grand Canal” hotel on The Grand Canal in Venice [See picture below]. While I found amusing the sight of penguins on the balcony watching cruise boats go by, I was also curious to know why one of the penguins in the lower right balcony was missing. Where had she gone? I wonder!

Picture 245 [One is missing-hotel]

Both pictures were taken from a cruise boat in Venice on September 15, 2005

Ophrys aesculapii

300_5895 [Ophrys aesculapii]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on April 17, 2017

Onosma frutescens

300_5876 [Onosma frutescens]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on April 19, 2017

The Cathedral of Athens

802_6445 [Athens cathedral]

The Cathedral of Athens is centrally located, very close to Syntagma Square, and constitutes a major landmark of the city. It is 40 m long, 20 m wide and 24 m high. It’s construction started on Christmas Day of 1842 and was completed 20 years later. On May 21, 1862 it was dedicated to the Annunciation of the Holy Virgin Mary at the presence of the King Otto and Queen Amalia who had laid the cornerstone 20 years earlier.
 
Throughout its history, it has been the venue of all sorts of official ceremonies ranging from coronations to royal weddings and to funerals of prominent figures of the Greek society.

Photographed in Athens on July 20, 2016



 

802_6597 [Athens Cathedral: Interior]

 The interior of the Cathedral seems to impress all visitors who have the opportunity to admire the plethora of Byzantine-style icons and frescoes, treasures like a part of the chain that Romans used to chain up Paul the Apostle in Rome, or the tombs of two saints: Agía Filothéi and Patriarch Gregory V to name a few.
 
While the night-shot of the exterior of the Cathedral was easy to take with the use of a tripod, photographing the interior proved problematic. Huge dimensions, dim light, and no tripod permitted were only some of the problems any photographer would face. The problem was partially solved with 18 pictures HDRed into 6 and then stitched into the above hand-held 2x3 panorama.
 
Photographed in Athens on August 18, 2016
 
Please click on both pictures for a better view.

Orchis purpurea

IMG_0010-2 [Orchis purpurea]

Photographed on Mt. Geraneia on April 25, 2011

Alectoris chukar

802_8382 [Alectoris chukar]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on April 01, 2017

Tragopogon sinuatus

802_8404 [Tragopogon sinuatus]

802_8424 [Tragopogon sinuatus]

Both photographed on Mt. Hymittos on April 01, 2017

Happy Easter!

[Red eggs]

Days of joy! Enjoy them!

Fritillaria graeca

802_8208 [Fritillaria graeca]

Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on March 17, 2017

The west pediment of the Parthenon

_8012090 [The west pediment of the Parthenon]

The themes of both east and west pediment representations on the Parthenon derive from the Greek mythology. On the west pediment specifically, representations depict Athena and Poseidon at the center of the composition competing with each other to become the patron of the city. Poseidon has just struck the earth with his trident and produced a spring of water for the city, while Athena did the same with her spear and produced a live olive tree. Poseidon - feeling defeated - appears to be retreating in fright. On both sides of the contestants, the horses that pulled the contestants’ chariots stood on their hind legs also frightened by what was happening. The composition is completed to the corners with other personalities from the Greek mythology.

Photographed in the Acropolis Museum in Athens on January 30, 2014
and then
heavily processed in software to eliminate unpleasant window reflections
and to give prominence to the figures.


Please click on the picture for a better view.
 

Himantoglossum robertianum

802_8124 [Himantoglossum robertianum]

Photographed in Lavrio on March 14, 2017

802_8138 [Himantoglossum robertianum]

 A close-up shot taken to reveal details

Photographed in Lavrio on March 14, 2017

Romulea linaresii ssp. graeca

802_8062 HF [Romulea linaresii ssp.graeca]

 Photographed on Mt. Hymittos on March 02, 2017