Buds

Scoliosis

I don't know what to name this

Moss

[caption id="attachment_2414" align="alignnone" width="660"] Moss[/caption]

Last days of Autumn

Trip to Baba Tomor - Stary Night

[caption id="attachment_2333" align="alignnone" width="660"] Stary Night[/caption]

Beside a sky free of light pollution, the moon as well, was nowhere to be seen. The landscape looks well lit because of strong lights from the water processing plant a few kilometers away. The photo is a 10 sec. exposure, ISO-800, shot with a SMC Pentax-M 50 mm F1.7 on my K-x.

Trip to Baba Tomor - Part 1

[caption id="attachment_2312" align="alignnone" width="660"] East of Tirana[/caption]

This album is a delayed one, the trip took time on August 22nd. I was thinking to post some of the photos as standalone images but then I thought this way would be more helpful for future travelers.

Baba (Father) Tomor is a mythological figure in the Albanian folklore. He is regarded as the father of gods and humans, like some sort of Zeus but no similarities with the latter. His home was on top of Mount Tomorr, in Berat (UNESCO World Heritage Site) and he lived there with his wife, Earthly Beauty. From 20-25 August, he top of Mount Tomorr is also a pilgrimage site for Bektashis, an Islamic Sufi Order. Their world headquarters are located in Tirana. Albanians are not that religious and most of us embraced Bektashism because it allows you to drink alcohol and it allows you to drink yogurt while fasting. Pretty cool huh? I'm not sure though, that's what I heard from people claiming to belong to this order.

Ok, that was a short intro about the mountain, the legend and the religion. We decided to visit the top of Tomorr during those days for a couple of reasons. It would be easy to find a ride to the top because my car stood no chance to those unpaved roads. It would be safe since there were a lot of people with tents sleeping for 4-5 days there. It would be easy to find food and water, although we knew beforehand that there are many springs around that area. Last but not least, there would be the perfect conditions for astrophotography, like clear skies, visible milky way and zero light pollution. And so me, my wife and 2 other couples begun the trip from Tirana to Kucove. The rest will follow in the next days. 

Love Sees No Color

[caption id="attachment_2307" align="alignnone" width="660"] Love Sees No Color[/caption]

The Message

[caption id="attachment_2199" align="alignnone" width="660"] The Message[/caption]

There must be a message hidden somewhere there.

I just love this place...

Lonely Tree (sort of)

[caption id="attachment_2139" align="alignnone" width="660"] Lonely Tree[/caption]

This tree is found on one of the three islands of Ksamil. The island is quite small and covered in bushes but this tree sort of tried to get away. To reach the island you can swim, it's like 50m from the shore. There used to be a bar there but the local government demolished it (and it was a great decision).

Windowless Window

[caption id="attachment_2095" align="alignnone" width="950"] Windowless Window[/caption]

I took the path to the water pump. There was a guy in front of me.  I followed him until he disappeared behind the trees.   The pumps building was stripped from everything and it was kinda spooky. I took a couple of photos and got back to my wife.

Somewhere in Kosovo

[caption id="attachment_1862" align="alignnone" width="950"] Somewhere in Kosovo[/caption]

Vineyards in Kosovo

[caption id="attachment_1856" align="alignnone" width="950"] Vineyards in Kosovo[/caption]

Fallen Tree

[caption id="attachment_1679" align="alignnone" width="950"] Fallen Tree[/caption]

Another bloody sunset

[caption id="attachment_1676" align="alignnone" width="950"] Another bloody sunset[/caption]

When the lights are on...

[caption id="attachment_1558" align="alignnone" width="950"] When the lights are on...[/caption]

Lonely Tree

[caption id="attachment_1361" align="alignnone" width="950"] Lonely Tree[/caption]