Monthly Archives: May 2014
A Week in Northern Ireland-Visits to the “Game of Thrones” Locations
Fair Head from the West
Hi Everyone,
We always seem to be on the go and last week we enjoyed a lovely visit to Northern Ireland, for many reasons one of our favourite places in the World.
It wouldn’t have been authentic if the sun had shone every day , but in mixed weather the countywide was beautiful and we managed to tour around, visit friends and family and also visit both familiar and new destinations.
Some of these were the locations of scenes from the very popular TV series Game of Thrones.
We have not been devotees of the series but seeing locations known to us in dramas is always fascinating, especially when they have been “catapulted” back , many hundreds of years, to become the land of Westeros
So this post features some places that can be seen in the series. These are my interpretations of the scenes, and of course are not as accurate as photos but they are all original!
We stayed in delightful new cottage/apartment in Holywood (http://www.holywoodhill.com), which we would also strongly recommend if you are planning visit to Northern Ireland. Holywood is a nice small town only a few miles from Belfast with galleries,cafes,restaurants and shops and makes a good base to get around the Province.
Whitehead seen from Holywood Hills Cottages. Co Down.
Eventually I will update my guide book to Ulster with these destinations but for now I hope you enjoy seeing them in the blog, together with one or two other places that we visited .
Happy travelling and enjoy the Summer, if it ever reappears!
Brian
The Church and Cliffs at Ballintoy. Co Antrim
The Dark Hedges near Armoy. Co Antrim.
The King’s Highway in Game of Thrones
Strangford Lough and the Mourne Mountains from Greyabbey. Co Down.
Fair Head from Murlough Bay. Co Antrim. Features as the Iron Islands in Game of Thrones
Fair Head seen from Ballycastle. Co Antrim.
Back to the Sun, a week on the Cote d’Azur
Hi Everybody
How nice it is to see the sun on daily basis. That was how our week this May was back at our favourite haunt of the Cote d’Azur!
Not very hot but lovely and dry with the sun breaking through nearly all day.
The combination of scenery, the beautiful Esterel Coast, and the mountains of Provence make this a wonderful part of the world.
We even ventured into Cannes where the mayhem of the preparations for the Cannes Film Festival were well underway, but nobody asked for our autogragh!
We weren’t sorry to be leaving before the Festival started but just a short way from Cannes calm reigns and the roads are peacefulful and beautiful in all directions.
Even time for some quick sketches for future, hopefully larger, paintings.
These watercolours are all just 8 by 5 inches in size and quickly painted after taking some photos, or recalling previous Provence scenery.
I hope you enjoy them as much as I have in painting them.
If you have read the guide books on another page of this blog you will know that we are very familiar with this enchanting part of France. The local wines, predominantly Rose but also some light and fruity Reds are a great complement to some really good restaurants, some of which we visited again on this trip. If you are ever in Fayence do go to Table d’Yves , one of the finest restaurants we have found in this part of the region.
Happy travelling and if the sun is out where you are enjoy that too!
Brian
Sunset over the Vineyard
Antibes
House in Provence
The Esterel Mountains near Agay
Lavender fields in Haut Provence
Farm and Vineyard
The Castle at La Napoule
Sailing boats off the Esterel Coast
