PENINSULA VALDES

In the northeast region of the Chubut Province in Argentina is a peninsula extending out to the Atlantic Ocean hosting diverse ecosystems unique to that part of the world. The Peninsula Valdes is home to the guanacos, rheas and maras while it’s shorelines are littered with sea lions, seals and the adorable Magellanic penguins. The land meanwhile varies from rocky cliffs and beaches to mudflats, sand dunes and expansive grasslands. This dynamic ecosystem was declared a UNESCO Heritage Site in 1999 and was one of the places to explore when my cruise docked at the nearby town of Puerto Madryn. I took hundreds of photographs of the interesting flora and fauna and will feature them in groups on succeeding posts. The photographs in this post were taken at one of the lookout points for elephant seals and whales and I thought the flat and arid terrain was really interesting especially for someone who lived around palm trees all his life. I love the colors of the grasses and shrubs, a beautiful combination of brown, yellow and green, carpeting the flat terrain as far as my eyes can see. Argentina is such a beautiful country that I wish I had more time to explore and photograph it. Maybe someday fate will allow me for another visit.

CASA MILÀ

A trip to Barcelona, Spain isn’t complete without visiting Casa Mila, which was the last residential building designed by the legendary architect, Antoni Gaudí. This modernist architectural wonder was built between 1906 and 1912 and declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1984. The building is also known as La Pedrera, which means “The Stone Quarry” due to its unique rough-hewn appearance. Fortunately, this famous landmark is just a block away from The Majestic Hotel where I was staying making the visit very convenient. The building’s design is very unconventional due to it’s undulating facade and spectacular rooftop covered with skylights, chimneys and staircases that look like sculptures using materials such as glass, broken marble and lime. The photos above and below were taken at the roof terrace of the building featuring the unique sculpture-like structures that are truly out of this world. I decided to zoom into the structures to emphasize the curves, angles, shapes and surfaces in order to make it look less familiar. Just so you know, people still live in this building to this day.

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