Nimavenl - Nicole's Random Ramblings

This week's Photo Challenge photos are here! We are certainly not rich enough to own a boat, however we love spending time on the water. Living in a small and pretty crowded country means getting away from people for some peace, quiet and one-on-one time with nature is a challenge on land, which is partly why I love being on the water. So, we rent a boat for the afternoon or the day a few times every summer. Just a small boat (I guess I should call it a dinghy with an outboard motor, not a boat) however it gets us away from people and out into nature. Living in New Zealand, where one can spend hours in nature without seeing or hearing another person, has certainly spoiled me! While I enjoy living in Europe and love being able to walk around towns that are hundreds of years old, I do miss the laid-back approach to life, the natural beauty and the serenity of New Zealand. But... This post isn't about the many differences between my two home countries, it's a Photo Chal...

This week's Black and White Photo Challenge photos are from a boating trip this week, around the Alkmaar / Broek op Langedijk / Heerhugowaard area. There are several locations around Alkmaar and the Alkmaar area where one can rent a boat for (part of) the day, as we did. The photos are Black and White / monochrome as I felt like editing some of the photos, changing the look and feel of the (colour) photos. I played around with changing the colours in these photos as well, wanting to give them a filter as one might see on Instagram or other photo editing apps. Depending on how busy I am this week and whether I have time to take my camera out, some of the edited colour photos might just become Photo Challenge number nine! "De Toekomst" - Museum Broekerveiling , Broek op Langedijk Mill, Museum Broekerveiling , Broek op Langedijk Poldermuseum , Heerhugowaard Bridge, Alkmaar Flats, Alkmaar Mill, Alkmaar Angles, Alkmaar Building, Alkmaar ...

It took me a while to decide what "Photo Challenge" to go for this week. I wanted to choose my own topic this week, not one I found online. While I considered several topics such as sidewalk shots, walls, For Sale signs, trees, benches, cloud pics, water and animals, in the end I decided to go with Bridges. Although I did see lots and lots of animals - real and decorative - so that might be next week's topic. I'll think about that some more... Heck, I've got time to choose and repeat / re-visit lots of challenges, it's my party challenge after all! Functional yet decorative, bridges are awesome. I've taken photos of bridges before and have written about why I like bridges. In a nutshell, they connect worlds (there, saved you the trouble of clicking on that link!); worlds above and worlds below as well as worlds on either side of the bridge. Here's the first Bridge photo, will add more photos later today. Enjoy!   Photo Challenge: Bridge #1 | ...

Street View ~ Binnenstad Alkmaar A photo posted by Nicole M. Verhaaf (@nimavenl) on Nov 4, 2013 at 10:20am PST

You're half a bridge away A photo posted by Nicole M. Verhaaf (@nimavenl) on Jul 24, 2012 at 3:41am PDT

Around Alkmaar 01 A photo posted by Nicole M. Verhaaf (@nimavenl) on Jul 22, 2012 at 2:38pm PDT