In numerology the number ten represents cycles ending and new ones starting. Pythagoras called ten the ‘perfect number’ because it totals the first four numbers (1+2+3+4=10), symbolizing cosmic order and completeness. We naturally count in tens, because we have ten digits. And we mark important milestones in tens too: a perfect score in several sports, each decade a significant birthday (less and less welcome perhaps as we age!).
For Terri’s Sunday Stills theme this week I thought it would be fun to look back ten years to 2016 and the photos I took then. This was well before I started this blog (in 2020). I was still very active on the Virtual Tourist website and had no idea it would close the following year. And I was still working, fitting my travels around my consultancy projects. That year I travelled to Senegal, Brindisi, the Algarve (Faro and Albufeira) Marrakesh and Chile.
Although I wasn’t blogging back then I have already used many photos from that year as I trawled my archives in response to challenges. For this post I’ve tried to find ten shots that are favourites of mine but which I’ve never yet had occasion to use (as far as I can recall). There is no particular rationale to their inclusion other than the fact that they caught my eye when browsing through folders from that year.
This has been an interesting exercise. Some images I was happy with just as they were whereas others I felt needed some adjustments. A couple I chose to crop to give a slightly different composition, while a few others benefited from editing tools I’ve acquired since then, especially Topaz AI which allows me to sharpen slightly out of focus shots.
I’m sharing them in chronological order through that year, though this isn’t a month by month selection. I hope you enjoy travelling back in time with me.

In Mar Lodj, Senegal
(February)

WWI memorial, Brindisi, Italy
(April)

Souvenir seller in Lecce, Italy
(April)

Egret by the harbour in Faro, Portugal
(May)

Silves Cathedral, Portugal
(May)

On the streets of London
(June)

Garden poppy, Norfolk, England
(June)

In Marrakesh, Morocco
(September)
Local priest in Hanga Roai, Rapa Nui (Easter Island)
(November)


Flying in over London at sunset (Wapping in the foreground, Rotherhithe in the middle distance, Docklands beyond)
(November)
37 Comments
equinoxio21
Excellent selection, Sarah.
Wapping now? Hmmm. My old offices are probably still there.
(I’ll have to ask my Mate, Dave, who’s the last one to still work at the company.)
Sarah Wilkie
Wapping is changing all the time !
grandmisadventures
Beautiful collection of pictures!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Meg 😊
Annie Berger
Call me an odd duck if you will, Sarah, but I liked reading about your working life and the exotic travels you experienced ten years ago!
Sarah Wilkie
Not sure why you think I would find that odd Annie, but I’m glad you enjoyed the post 😀
Annie Berger
It was because I didn’t focus on your photos, but rather on your text.
Sarah Wilkie
Ok, I get that 😀
Sue
Great set of images, Sarah….. I love the egret, the London woman and the blue door/shutter in Marrakesh
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much Sue – always good to hear which ones stand out 😀
Sue
Yes, certainly is😊
Teresa
So much travelling though you were still working. Glad you found them
from your archives… I guess you are very organised.
Sarah Wilkie
We did try to fit in as many trips as we could. It helped that Chris was retired and I was freelancing as a consultant so could plan time off more easily 🙂 And the organisation is down to the former librarian in me!
Teresa
Oh nice, that is where you got the organisation skills. Good on you.
SoyBend
I liked your portraits of the egret and the woman in London, Sarah. Both seemed very confident.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Siobhan 😊 That woman was very happy to pose for me and my husband!
restlessjo
Fabulous capture of the egret, Sarah, and I really love your opener too xx
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much Jo 😊
bushboy
Fabulous ten Sarah. I bet that was a hard choice
Sarah Wilkie
Many thanks Brian 😊 Narrowing it down to ones I was pretty sure I hadn’t used previously made the selection a little easier.
EgÃdio
What a wonderful variety! Great images.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Egidio 😊
Anne Sandler
Awesome images Sarah, especially that blue window covering (?),
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much Anne 😊 If you mean the Marrakesh shot, yes, that’s a shutter on a small window.
Marie
I’m also surprised that you started in 2020! It’s a lovely review Sarah….
Sarah Wilkie
It was Covid lockdowns that prompted me to start the blog Marie – thank you 🙂
thehungrytravellers.blog
Alvin Lee. Fabulous blues guitarist. There is a connection there if you can get it. Great aerial shot of London…but then they’re all pretty good, as must your record keeping be 😃
Sarah Wilkie
Ten Years After 😀 And not so much record-keeping as records management – my years as a librarian bearing fruit!
thehungrytravellers.blog
I knew 😂
Monkey's Tale
Nice stepping back in time with you today Sarah. 😊 Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Maggie, I’m glad you enjoyed this slice of time travel 🙂
Kymber @booomcha
Your photos are stunning! I’m so glad I saw them this morning. 💗🌺
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much for that compliment Kymber 😊
sheetalbravon
Such arresting photos, Sarah. To think WordPress reminded me that I began flying with it a decade back and it took your post to knock the significance of going double digit into me.😊
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Sheetal, and congratulations on your ten years of blogging 😊
Terri Webster Schrandt
What a wonderful look back at your favorites from 2016, Sarah! I didn’t realize your blog began in 2020, felt like its been longer. You haven’t missed a beat in yout photography. Long-term talent! The info about ten was also interesting! Happy Friday!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Terri 🙂 It sometimes feels like longer to me too, it’s become so much part of my life!