Weekly Photo Challenge: Rise/Set

For another (sun) Rise/Set challenge I have decided to look back in my computer and I have found couple of nice pictures of sun from my holidays. I hope you will enjoy them:

Early morning trip from Istanbul.

Sunrise above the ocean in Madeira.

Maltesean sunrise.

Couple of sunsets from Montenegro in the gallery:

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Sunset above Ta’izz in Yemen.

And finally we caught the sun during the sunset in Tunisia.

Sunset in Tunisia.

Travel theme: Dance

I want to dedicate this week’s Travel Theme: Dance to my friend Gaga from Yemen. I met him in Yemen, where he was our guide. He took us to the small village in Haraz mountains, where he grew up and where he started his career as a dancer of traditional dances. See him on the two bottom shots with yellow/black scarf on his head.

Musicians and dancers in Haraz mountain, Hajjara village (photos by Jarda Dohnal)

Few years later he came to Prague to visit us and one evening we spent with my parents. Dancing in Yemen is a mens business, so my father joined Gaga for dancing and we had a lot of fun.

Dancing in Czech-Yemen style

But the biggest fun came later, when our Fanda couldn’t resist just watching and she entered the dance, so keen, even standing on her back legs (sorry, too quick and no chance of making a picure :-(). She enjoyed the dance a lot and we did as well, watching her.

Fanda rules!

A Word A Week Challenge – Dance

For A Word A Week Challenge – Dance I show you a few dances.

The first one is from Yemen: men in their traditional dresses with their traditional Janbiyas (arabic daggers) dancing in the feet of the beautiful Rock Palace close to Sana’a, Yemen.

Yemen dancers

And the musicians are here:

The second dancing on the street is from Saturday market at Rue de Mouffetard in Paris, one man, two ladies, two dances.

Dancers at Rue du Mouffetard, Paris

First dance:

Second dance:

The third dance is from Prague, gypsy song under the Charles bridge, during Carnival celebrations.

I like this post on the same topic:

Tvor travels

A Word A Week Photo Challenge – Smile

Not very often you can make pictures of smiling ladies in Arabic countries. These shots are from the capital of Yemen, Sana’a, from the Jewish Quarter. And that is maybe the answer how I was able to see girls faces. I was thinking about the differences between people living in this place and me. They seemed to me to be much more lucky and satisfied, they smiled and laughed more … I also like the shy smile of young girls, almost grown up, surprised by all the people wanting to take their photo.

Children’s laugh

On the threshold of adulthood

Hidden … and … there it is … another smile for us

Written for A WORD A WEEK PHOTO CHALLENGE – SMILE.

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Wood

The third element in Cee’s Challenge is Wood. I invite you to visit places where you can find beautiful wood art works. We will start at the north, in Lithuania, where we will visit lake natural park Aukštaitija with its Beekeeping Museum. The next stop is in Neringa (also Lithuania), in a small village called Juodkranté, where is “witches” hill with lots of wooden sculptures, place full of stories, history and creativity. Finally I will take you pretty far to Yemen, to wadi Hadramawt, around town called Shibam, maybe you have heard about Desert Manhattan? I will show you doors, locks, door latches carved from the wood.
Beekeeping museum in Stripekai and wooden statues showing bee and/or honey connected moments, beehives.

Beehives

Bears robbing wild bees for honey

Wooden bees and honeycombs

People working in woods, honey god

Hill of Witches in Juodkranté, nice walk through the wood with lots of statues.

Seat

Musicians and devils

Faces, gods and totem

Wadi Hadramawt, Shibam.

Doors

Locks and wooden windows

Door latches or other door connected wooden objects

Weekly Photo Challenge: Beyond

As English is not my native language, I always have to study hard all the meanings of the Challenge Words. The word for this week’s Photo Challenge is Beyond. In my post I tried to use it from different views, and I hope you will enjoy it.
Seven years ago I visited Yemen, different country that is quite beyond to me. This trip changed my life, I met a lot of nice people there and I learned a lot about other culture. We visited cities and country as well, and now I want to show you some shots from this different country.

We took a walk in Haraz mountains arounf the village Al Hajjarah, it was early November morning and clouds were all around us. What’s hidden beyond them?

Walking in the clouds

Getting closer we saw crofts with grain and Indian millet.

Crofts

Buildings started to appear above the crofts.

Crofts and buildings

Soon the mountain village loomed in front of us.

Al Hajjarah – mountain village

The village was built on a rocky hill, accesible over the small valley and then we climbed up to enter the place.

Cross the valley, climb the rock – on the stairs

Finally the clouds left, sky was ultramarine blue and we saw the clay houses all around us.

Almost skyscraper, what you think?

Most of the buildings were decorated like gingerbreads, in fact pictures of these gingerbread houses had made me want to visit Yemen and finally brought me there.

Gingerbread house

What was hidden beyond the walls? Any place in Yemen, doesn’t matter how deserted it looks when you come, is soon full of children talking to you, wanting you to take their picture, laughing and opening their hearts to you.

Waiting for visitors

Finally they invited us home to find traditional interior as well as TV, where Anna and the King with Yul Brynner was on.

Living room

The visit was really precious for me, and I was able to see for just a minute, where and how people lived there, in the country that is so beyond for me.