Knobs and Knockers

I'm sure that somewhere, tucked away in a dusty office in an ancient university, is the world expert on Spanish 17th Century door furniture.  However, I don't think we need to disturb any experts to understand what the creator of this door had in mind when this church (!) door was commissioned. This could be the front door to every house in every 'Carry On' movie.

There be Dragons!

One of the most refreshing things you can do on a hot summer day in southern Spain is walk up a water-filled gorge. Unless you walk for seven hours, but that is another story and the current subject of much domestic discussion...  Anyway, it turns out that humans aren't the only ones who enjoy the cooler environment at the bottom of the gorge.  This dragonfly enjoyed a brief rest on a stalk of grass from what seemed like a very busy life.

Confession time: my insect recognition leaves a lot to be desired. This may be a damselfly rather than a dragonfly...

Olives and Milk

There are many things to get excited about during a holiday in Spain; perhaps a lack of light is one of the less obvious ones.  The dark skies of the Spanish countryside allow the stars to glow beautifully, providing views that are denied to us in built-up areas.

Here the milky way galaxy arcs over an olive grove, with just a hint of civilisation lighting up the distant horizon. 

Fight to the Death

It's easy to imagine that all of the great life and death struggles of the animal kingdom take place on the searingly hot plains of Africa, but this battle took place in a slightly damper and cooler environment.  If you look closely enough, the coastal forest of northern Scotland is teeming with life; it's just on a much smaller scale.  Which is good - walking the dog wouldn't be much fun if there was a reasonable chance of being eaten.

This moth encountered a small spider and, despite the obvious size difference, the spider decided that it had found lunch.  The spider attached itself to the tail of the moth and clung on as the moth tried every trick in the book to dislodge its unwelcome passenger.  I'm guessing that some form of poison was injected by the spider though, as the relatively enormous moth succumbed in surprisingly quick time.

New Kid on the Block

This magnificently complex gothic edifice - Liverpool Anglican Cathedral - looks as if it has towered towards the heavens for many centuries.  In fact, that couldn't be further from the truth.  Construction was started a year after man's first powered flight, and wasn't finished until nine years after the first moon landing.  Famously, it is connected to the city's Roman Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral by Hope Street (more by coincidence than design unfortunately).  It is the longest cathedral in world and if you're fit and free from vertigo, its huge bell tower provides tremendous panoramic views of the surrounding countryside.