Photo: Nuremberg Christmas market. Dec. 2011
Dec 252011
Jul 042011
4th of July fireworks over Santa Barbara harbour. A bit on the weak side this year, so it goes…
Jun 042011
What do you get when you cross a historic German city, a river, punt boats, some creative costumes, a bit of friendly competition, and lots of (somewhat drunk) Germans? The Tübinger Stocherkahnrennen – The Tuebingen punt boat race. The race draws thousands of spectators who fill the city to the brim. Lining walls, bridges and riverbanks all to watch the race, and chaos of the day. Once things are over, it’s time to head towards a river side biergarten for some afternoon shade and some yummy käsespätzle
For 2011, the race occurs on Thursday, June 23. Events start at 12:00 noon.
I advise arriving a bit early to try and get a good position. Eberhardsbrücke is a good place to watch from and is the center of most of the action as the boats try to circle the bridge.
Location:
Tübingen is located in the center of Baden-Württemberg, on the banks of the Neckar river. Numerous trains run daily from Stuttgart (45 min – 1hr), Reutlingen, Munich, Freiburg, and other larger cities. By car, Tübingen is about 45 minutes south of Stuttgart.
My images are from when I was there in 2008.
Photo: Fires of the Ewige Anbetung light festival above Pottenstein, Franconia, Germany. Jan 6, 2009
As the light of a cold January day fades into night a thousand fires are lit, illuminating the hillsides surrounding the town of Pottenstein. The fires are part of the Catholic celebration of the Ewige Anbetung (Eternal Adoration) which occurs in Pottenstein on the 6th of January every year. The light and fire festival attracts thousands of visitors who line the hillsides and fill the streets, braving the cold and watching a display that can only described as spectacular. To see the Lichterfest in person would be a memorable moment of any winter holiday in Germany.
Photo: Burg Pottenstein and fires of Ewige Anbetung Lichterfest, Pottenstein, Franconia, Germany. Jan 6, 2009
When:
Thursday, January 6th 2011
The festival begins around 5pm as the sky gets dark. Be sure to arrive early to find parking. The fires will burn for a couple hours into the night.
Where:
Pottenstein is located in wonderful countryside of the Franconian Switzerland (Fränkische Schweiz) region of Upper Franconia (Oberfranken), Northern Bavaria. By car, Pottenstein is approximately 1 hour north of Nuremberg or 30 minutes south of Bayreuth; 10 km west from the A9 autobahn. Postcode 91278.
There are also several other light festivals of the Ewige Anbetung celebrated elsewhere in the Fränkische Schweiz region in the weeks preceding the festival in Pottenstein. CLICK HERE for more information and dates (in German)
Oct 312009
Tonight (Halloween 2009) was the Hay on Fire festival here in Hay-on-Wye, Wales. The night first started with a parade through town that slowly made its way out to the ‘Warren’ on the edge of the river Wye where the fire festival was held. The crowd numbered in the thousands to watch the fire dancing, hear the music and see the final culmination in the burning of a wicker man giant with of fireworks. By far the coolest celebration I’ve yet to see on Halloween. My pictures don’t do much justice to the coolness of the night…
Aug 072009
Today (Friday) at noon was the annual Fiesta parade here in Santa Barbara. It is mostly an equestrian parade riders from different organizations from around the area taking part, many dressed in traditional Spanish or Mexican costumes. Only a couple photos for now. I’ve made a Fiesta photo gallery: HERE, which I’ll add photos to during the next days.
La Fiesta Pequeña ( the little Fiesta) On Wednesday night marks the beginning of Santa Barbara’s Old Spanish Days, otherwise known simply as ‘Fiesta.’ Fiesta occurs every August here in Santa Barbara and is the biggest festival of the year. Traditional music and dancing combined with open air markets and parades attract thousands of people from the world over. I’ll be out and about taking photos during the next days…
Images from tonight of dancers on the steps of the Santa Barbara mission at La Fiesta Pequeña:
Jul 052009
Jun 202009
Today (Saturday) was the annual summer solstice parade here in Santa Barbara. This was the first time I’ve gone in years and years so I thought I might go and take some photos. Definitely a lot more colorful and sunny compared to how they celebrate midsummer in Germany, but I don’t think we could get away with huge bonfires here in Southern California.
Lots and lots of colorful costumes: some cool looking, some funny, some strange and some just a little bizarre. But hey, it’s summer now…
OK, this has got to be one of the coolest parade floats I’ve ever seen: a V-8 engine straight piped into a fire breathing dragon and continually revved up by some drunk dudes dressed as medieval knights. Cool!
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Click the link for more photos…
