Gallery: pick a word (April 2024)
When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.
Ansel Adams
I find it hard to believe that I haven’t used that quote before. It’s one of Adams’ most famous and so apposite to this challenge. But I can’t find it anywhere in my archive of posts, so here it is for today.
Paula has picked a fascinating set of words for us to illustrate this month, one of which was new to me. As always I haven’t stuck only to her five words, as I like to tell you a little bit about each photo. However I do try to be more succinct for this challenge than for most of my posts!
This month my photos will take you to Madagascar, North Korea, London, Chile and Northumberland (UK).
SABULOUS
Shell on Baobab Beach, Madagascar
I had to look this word up, I’ve never come across it before. The dictionary definition is ‘like sand in texture; gritty’. Isn’t it a fabulous-sounding word?! The only photos I seem to have of things that are ‘like sand in texture’ are of sand itself, perhaps unsurprisingly.
BRIMMING
Bathroom at the Foreigners’ Lodgings in Chongjin, North Korea
The friendly staff here try hard to accommodate the needs of tourists but with a very intermittent water supply the best they can do is to fill a large plastic tub with water when it is available and leave it there for guests. If you are ‘lucky’ there will be a dodgy-looking electrical element to dip in the water to heat it. We made do with cold, for obvious reasons!
GUARDING
The Household Cavalry, Blues and Royals, on duty on Horse Guards Parade in London
The Blues and Royals together with the Life Guards form the Household Cavalry Regiment. Their official name is the Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons, but they are always known by this nickname.
Sadly just the other day five Household Cavalry horses threw off their riders and ran loose through central London, after being spooked by loud noises from building work near Buckingham Palace. They caused considerable chaos, injuring three soldiers and a cyclist and colliding with vehicles. At the time of writing it’s not known if all the horses will survive this incident.
BERTHING
Small boat moored on Lake Todos los Santos, Chile
This glacial lake is surrounded by steep mountains and volcanoes, apparently! On the day we visited visibility was poor, with a persistent drizzle. But when we stopped for lunch at a lodge by the lake, in Puella, the misty conditions made for some atmospheric photos.
BIGHT
A wintery afternoon at Druridge Bay, Northumberland
I had to double-check this word too, as I wasn’t clear about the difference between a bay and a bight. From the World Atlas I learned that, ‘A bight manifests as a curve on the shoreline with less curvature than that of a usual bay.’ I don’t have any photos of the world’s major bights but I figured seven mile long Druridge Bay might fit that description, despite its name.
34 Comments
RNP
nice pics
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 🙂
wetanddustyroads
I’ve also never heard of the word “sabulous” (but your picture is fabulous 😊)! And “bight”? Don’t know the word either, but love the photo.
Sarah Wilkie
Those words seem to have been new to everyone, especially sabulous. If you’re English however you are likely to know ‘bight’ from our shipping forecasts!
equinoxio21
You are a great photographer… 👍🏻
Sarah Wilkie
Aw, thank you 😊
grandmisadventures
I love the peaceful feel of your picture for ‘berthing’ 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, it was a tranquil corner of the lake although I suspect if the weather had been better there would have been more people around!
norasphotos4u
Interesting words. The boat is beautiful. Wise decision on the cold water!!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Nora 🙂 Yes, I found the words interesting too, and fairly challenging to match. There was no way we were going to put that dodgy looking electric element into a large tub of water!
Mari Nicholson
Very satisfying read. Not only have I added two new words to my lexicon, but I’ve been taken on a journey via some fabulous images, my favourite being the misty scene of the moored boat. Once again you’ve absolutely nailed the challenge.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Mari 😊 So far I don’t think anyone had previously come across ‘sabulous’, myself included!
Amy
Excellent selection, Sarah! These photos are beautifully captured. I love the tranquility of the boat especially.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Amy 😊 The boat image is one of relatively few decent ones I got that day, the weather was so disappointing.
margaret21
You’ve smashed the challenge as usual Sarah. I’m rather taken by your portrait of those two guardsmen. As a young child, I loved going to that particular Changing of the Guard ceremony at Horseguards’ Parade. Memories!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Margaret 😊 We came across the guardsmen (a whole troop of them) on a sunny Boxing Day a couple of years ago, just by chance as we came out of St James’ Park. I got quite a few photos that day of which this is one of my favourites. Glad it brought back good memories!
Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter
I had never heard of sabulous either, but I suppose it is related to sable in French. As for bight, that sounds familiar from the shipping forecast but I didn’t know it had a meaning other than a place name. Great photos!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Anabal 🙂 Yes, I’d heard bight in shipping forecasts too, and like you I’m sure sabulous shares a root with the French sable.
Alli Templeton
Excellent shots illustrating the words perfectly, Sarah, as always. 🙂 I didn’t know either ‘sabulous’ or ‘bight’, they were both new to me! I had to smile though, because having read the definitions I can’t help feeling they’re a bit surplus to requirements. To me, the perfect way to describe something ‘like sand in texture’ would be ‘sandy’, while the ‘bight’ is like a bay but not quite as curvy. That’s really getting down to the nitty gritty isn’t it? I wonder how they differentiate between the two – do they measure the angle of the curve? ! I do love our rich and varied language! 😀 Beautiful picture of Druridge Bay, of course. 🙂
On a more sombre note, the incident with the horses in London really got to me. The poor things must have been terrified. Apparently the grey has had surgery and is recovering well, while another is having to have more serious surgery but hopefully will make a full recovery. I’m keeping everything crossed that all will be well with all five of them. Such stunning animals.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Alli 😊 Oh yes, they measure bights apparently – the same World Atlas source says that, ‘ In nautical terms, a bay is described as a curve whose apex measures less than 25 degrees from the edges.’ Glad you enjoyed seeing Druridge, it’s one of our favourite spots for a winter walk as we don’t have to drive too far out of Newcastle to reach it. As to the horses, I gather that three will return to duty but the other two are still recovering from surgery.
Marie
Well done – and very informative!!! I hadn’t heard of a ‘bight’ and as for ‘sabulous’, it doesn’t sound like a gritty sandy word does it – should be something much nicer!!! I read about the horses and saw a few images – I think two of them are seriously injured. An extraordinary thing to happen – they must be so used to noise, crowds and traffic…
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Marie 🙂 I’d heard of bight but wasn’t sure of the exact definition, while sabulous was completely new to me. But the French for sand is ‘sable’ so it makes sense. Yes, I was really surprised to hear about the horses being so frightened by the noise, it must have been very loud. Although I did once see one of those horses bolting myself. I was walking along Horseguards when it came galloping towards me, pursued by a mounted guardsman who was able to catch up and grab the reins. I think he must have been leading it at the time, so I guess it wasn’t spooked, just enjoying a bit of freedom!
Sue
Well done with illustrating those words, Sarah!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Sue 😀
Easymalc
That white horse looked in a right mess. Horrible to see! Some fine images again though Sarah.
Sarah Wilkie
I know, and one of the black ones too. Thank you Malcolm 🙂
thehungrytravellers.blog
In that case, they should rename the town where we live, “Herne Bight”! I’d never heard the word sabulous before either, but I’m sure as hell going to use it when I get the opportunity….
Sarah Wilkie
Me too!
Anne Sandler
Beautiful responses Sarah. And thanks for looking up some of the words for me!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Anne 😀 Haha, I had to look them up in order to illustrate them!
Paula
Beautiful, Sarah. Seeing that bathroom from North Korea is not an everyday sight. I hope you did not stay there long. I especially like the mood of the Todos los Santos lake in monochrome. 🙂
Monkey's Tale
A great collection of pictures to go with an interesting assortment of words. I’d have to look up sabulous and bight too. I heard about the horses in London. They must be some of the most highly trained horses in the world so the sound must have been really loud or at a certain pitch. Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
And thanks too Maggie 🙂 Yes, those horses are well trained and used to city traffic so it must have been quite a noise to have startled them so much. Maybe one was spooked and that set off the rest?
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Paula 🙂 We only spent one night at that hotel, but there was another with similar bathroom conditions elsewhere on that trip!