Shades of grey

Have I mentioned I miss the tropics at this time of year?

The view from my car window this morning (just south of Porto)

 It won't come as a surprise to you that grey is not exactly my favourite colour...

The view from my favourite cafe, at lunchtime (Praia da Granja)

This was as blue as it got!

If I had to attribute a colour to the year I am leaving behind, it would definitely be grey.

Here's hoping 2014 will turn out more bright and colourful in every way.


I am going to use a word that special blogger, Carol, uses often (hope she doesn't mind):

I wish all my visitors and fellow bloggers enough of the good things in life in the New Year! Happy 2014!

Do they know it's Christmas?

I wish you a Happy, Peaceful Christmastime!

Personally, I'm not ready for Christmas. This afternoon I thought I'd just pop in to the nearest shopping mall for a few things but after seeing the queues, I drove in and out of the underground parking area in less than 5 minutes!

You see, instead of shopping yesterday, I drove all the way to Lagos to visit a dog shelter. Instead of resting or shopping or putting up the Christmas decorations, I lost my head and adopted another dog, a female that has spent her entire life in the shelter (nearly 2 years), and looking back at all the others that were left behind, it occurred to me, "Do they know it's Christmas?"

All roads led to Africa today

Watching the news reminded me that everyone who is anyone on the world's political stage had to be in Africa today.

It seems fitting to post a Nativity scene with an African feel, too.

"To be free..."

It is unfortunate for Africa that other freedom fighters have not kept this in mind:-

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

                                 Nelson Mandela (1918-2013)

Rest in Peace.

Blue Christmas

In complete contrast to the previous one, here's a modern Nativity scene in my favourite colour!

It's looking a lot like Christmas...

A traditional Nativity scene

It's December and it's looking a lot like Christmas. However, I can't stand the "buy, buy, buy" aspect of the season so I've decided to focus on Nativity scenes until the 25th. The first one reminds me of the ones my cousin used to lay out in a corner of my grandmother's living room, after an outing into the woods to gather moss.

Most or all of the photos will be from an exhibition I happened upon unexpectedly in January of this year. Many of the materials used to create these Nativity scenes are recycled, as you will see.