The Extremadura revisited

Still some 1250 miles away from home, we couldn't resist to go back to the Extremadura, this special and vast nature reserve. The good news is, that on our long way there, we pass many interesting nature reserves in France. Areas such as the Brenne and marais d'Orx. We enjoyed lovely mild spring weather there, together with the many butterflies, waders and dragonflies.

In the Extremadura, our friends the birds of prey (have a look at the Egyptian vulture), were fortunately present in abundance. The "dehesas" (pastures) are, as far as we are concerned, the most intriguing landscape in the Extremadura. There seems to be no life at all, but if you take the time to look really closely, a surprising world unfolds. Colourful little birds (like the European roller), birds of prey and insects live there in perfect harmony, in one of the most pristine natural areas of Europe. 

We are grateful to have been able to experience this once again!

Small copper butterfly

Egyptian vulture

Dehesas

Crested lark

Northern banded groundling

Leaf beetle on purple viper's bugloss

Oatplant

Algerian psammodromus

Stag beetle

Highway in Northeast Spain

Iberian spoonwing

European bee-eater                      European roller                         Woodchat shrike

Eifel autumn

The sad thing about autumn (& winter) is, that I miss my favourite creatures, the insects. Most of them are hidden somewhere in the deep, others died after they reproduced..., that's their circle of life.

On the other hand, the coloring and falling of the leaves is also an annual process and can be very beautiful.

So, we enjoyed that natural phenomenon and saw some birds like the kingfisher, the eurasian teal and thousands of cranes! They are flying this time of year from Scandinavia to Spain. We were lucky that their route went over the Eifel in mid-November. See for yourself.

Spring in France!

We think that spring is the best season to go to France. Temperatures are pleasant (20 - 23 degrees C.), and nature is waking up enthusiastically. 

We found ourselves for ten days in central France, especially in the Loire region. We saw some ten orchid species and twenty-seven different types of butterflies and of course many other insects and flowers; wonderful to experience! 

In our few days in Switzerland we found, high up in de mountains, many typical alpine flowers, such as the Soldanella alpina. From our hotelroom in the "Gantrisch Naturpark" I could observe every morning and evening, the magnificent red kite, resting and hunting for mice, a beautiful and interesting sight.

As you can see in my pictures, we look back on a wonderful nature experience.

Calopteryx splendens

Anacamptis pyramidalis

Chiasmia clathrata

Onobrychis viciifolia

Lygaeus equestris

 

Ardea purpurea

Lysandra bellargus

Anax imperator

Vulpes vulpes

The top of an alp

Soldanella alpina

Milvus milvus

Cranes, grues, Kräne, kraanvogels!

For some reason or other, we can't get enough of cranes.

So, in migration season, we went to the "Moorerlebnis (moor experience) im DümmerWeserland" to admire these beautiful and impressive birds.

They came with their offspring all the way from Scandinavia to Germany to forage. After that they'll fly on via France to Spain.

The weather was, unlike some years ago, particularly pleasant. Sometimes even beautifully misty and fairytale-like in the morning. And cranes all over the place! Apart from them we noticed of course other birds and also lots of mushrooms, flowers and some dragonflies.

Again we look back on a wonderful experience of being part of true nature!

Jan Hendrik Scha

 

The older I get, the more I realise, that my father had quite an influence on the interests I developed in my life. I'm talking about subjects such as nature, music, photography, creativity and beauty in general.

Of course, everyone in his or her own way is special and different from someone else. But some people seem to be more special than others (loosely to Orwell's Animal farm). I think that my dad was such a person.

He was creative, original, authoritarian, introvert, modest in his work, but a dandy in appearance. He had a special taste in music (such as Shostakovich and Weill), improvised on his violin, worked with enthusiasm in his own designed garden, loved my mother and spent endless hours drawing and painting in his spare time. By the way, he was completely self-taught.

For me as a young girl, it wasn't always easy, he was difficult to estimate and quite strict. But especially when I got much older, I discovered that he inspired me though.

As you can see, he used his drawing art and water color paintings in design jobs (fifties style) and artistic work. He also enjoyed using his talent for irony, such as creating fake stamps (or money ;-) and fantasy birds. His style varies from pointillistic to graphic and (sur)realistic.

All this in due memory of my father, who lived, as far as I know, an interesting and long life.

Nature fantasy

Triangles fun

Fantasy birds

The Buchstabenfresser and thistles

Design for our garden (with cute little pond)

Fantasy of printing house, my dad worked for

Endearing portrait of my brother and me ...

Still life

Old fashioned advertisement

My favourite doll, little Richard

                                                      

                  A home on Texel I lived in with my family, long long time ago

            My dad with slightly ironic smile and the fake stamp that sent the letter anyway ...