Two's Company

Another Place is a set of 100 iron men sculptures by Antony Gormley. They are set out over 2 miles of beach at Crosby Liverpool.Each figure is 189 cm tall (nearly 6 feet 2½ inches) and weighs around 650 kg (over 1400 lb). In common with most of Gormley's work, the figures are cast replicas of the artist's own body. As the tides ebb and flow, the figures are revealed and submerged by the sea. It's a place that I never tire of!!

At certain times of the day, the light on the water is beautiful at Crosby beach and makes spooky silhouettes of the Iron men. Sometimes you'd really think it was a real person standing there :)

A different angle of the Liver Building

It really is such an unusual and intricate building. I've not visited it before so it was great to see it properly this time. I loved the old clock which stood near it too.

This herdwick sheep in the Lake District was very friendly :)

This old vintage tram has suddenly appeared in the Albert Dock, I think it sells drinks. There seem to be a lot of these old vehicles about these days which have been given a new lease of life. It adds a colourful splash to the waterfront anyway, which I've enhanced with Topaz effects.

The Cuban-born sculptor Pardo created this piece for the 2006 Biennial and it is arguably the largest piece of public art in the city centre. In Homer’s Odyssey Penelope was Ulysses’ wife. Penelope faithfully awaited her husband’s return from the Trojan war. She put off numerous suitors by saying she had to finish weaving a robe, unravelling her day’s work each night to maintain her fidelity. The stalks are references to both Penelope’s weaving and to the local history of rope-making.

I thought a shot of the Liver building was long overdue :) It looked especially beautiful this morning in the spring sunshine.

A handsome peacock displaying. Such a magnificent sight.

Today is the 100th anniversary of when Britain joined World War One. The lights will go out across Merseyside at 10pm tonight to commemorate the event. A virtual candle will be projected onto the Liver Building at 10pm. It will fade away at 11pm and be replaced with info-graphics about World War I. It is inspired by then-Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey’s famous remark on the eve of the outbreak of war: “The lamps are going out all over Europe; we shall not see them lit again in our life-time”. Britain declared war on Germany at 11pm on August, 4, 1914, ushering in one of the darkest periods in the country’s history.

Happy new year! :))

This is the sculpture captures the remarkable moment in December 1914 when enemy soldiers along the Western Front laid down their weapons and emerged from their trenches to shake hands, sing carols, exchange rations, and even take part in small-scale kickabouts. I'm not quite sure where it is going next, but I'm glad that I got to see it today.

Or a little bit of it...I liked the missing chimney pots and loved the weather vanes with the royal crowns on which I've never noticed before.

The last rays of the sun disappear over the horizon at Brighton Pier.

I didn't sadly, but this little squirrel was very used to people and came right up and looked in my lens! :)))

I posted one shot of this lovely old saddle/bike last year that I came across at the national waterways museum, but couldn't resist processing another. The textures in the cracked old leather and the rust are wonderful.

All that remains of the West Pier in Brighton. Brighton's West Pier was closed to the public in 1975. Sadly a huge storm in 2002 and two arson attacks in 2003 reduced it to ruins and it has gradually been re-claimed by the sea ever since. It still casts an eerie beauty on the seafront though.

On a bright sunny day back in June...and of course the obligatory bike got in the way :)

A lovely old Honda scooter that I came across while on holiday in Cyprus.

The residence of her Maj...and it looks like she was at home too :)

Liverpool's Albert Dock. A great place to wander for a while, especially with a camera.

Hadlow Road Railway Station, Willaston, Wirral. It has been restored back to the 1950's and is well worth a visit.

There has been lots going on again this weekend with the arrival of many tall ships and naval vessels for the river festival. For once the sun was shining and it was glorious on the waterfront.

Lots of urban colour this year in Liverpool.

I really like this old box at the National Waterways Museum in Ellesmere Port. The old signs dotted around are great too :)

This was taken back in July, sadly all gone now. Never mind - Autumn colours are on their way! :)

Urban poppies grow in an abandoned field in Liverpool.

It will be a sad day when the West Pier is finally claimed by the sea. In the meantime, it was a beautiful sunny day when I sat on the beach to take this and there were hardly any people around....bliss!

The temple dedicated to the goddess Athena needs no introduction :) As you can see though, storm clouds were almost upon us and we just about managed to get back to our coach before the storm arrived! Sadly there were so many people there that I had to get in closer with my camera than I wanted, but managed to get a few shots.

I was driving home from the city centre today when I saw a patch of land filled with poppies and cornflowers. It was a lovely sight! It was rather windy though and rather difficult to take photos so I'll try and go back again tomorrow if the weather is better.

I went to Formby point early this morning for a walk and can't believe that I've not been here before. I had a delightful hour with the gorgeous squirrels all to myself! I had a bag of nuts in my pocket just in case...and became very popular! It was drizzly and foggy, but well worth the visit. I put 4 nuts down for this little one, and it ate one then studiously buried the other three :)

The Ford Prefect was first produced in October 1938 and remained in production until 1961. This one was a beauty but I couldn't photograph the whole of it due to the crowds!

The rain seems endless here at the moment, but every now and again it stops. There are still so many poppies around the city, I thought this one looked pretty with it's raindrops.

The starlings almost obliterate the end of Brighton Pier for a moment this evening. What a wonderful sight it was!

Mersey Ferry Snowdrop is a dazzling addition to the waterfront these days as she busies up and down the river mersey :)

I've wanted to visit Portmeirion for ages and finally had the chance on Sunday. Such a lovely and colourful place - a photographers dream!