If you, like me, are bigger fans of summer than winter, I think this will make you dream a bit:
Summer, sea, mountains (in HD 1080p)
This picture was taken last summer in Croatia. There are more from that trip. Check them all out here. And stay tuned for more 
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No, there is no ‘the’ missing in the title. It refers to the cit of Split, in Croatia. Here are a few night pictures from the tourist promenade.
TIP 1: DO NOT eat there. Incredibly bad food (!) to compensate for the location.
TIP 2: get a cab, ask the guy to take you to where he would take his friends. There are some great restaurants ‘hidden’ from the tourists.
Split by Night
Split by Night
Split by Night
If you like these pictures OR are interested in Croatia, stick around (use the RSS feed or subscribe to get free email updates) . They are a part of a longer series about Croatia that will be published gradually. Here’s what has already been published.
On January 24th 2010, I joined the X3M Offroad Valcea crew for a relaxing cruise in the mountains near Valcea. We took a 7 hour, 50 kilometers long stroll in a completely untouched area. As you will see, the snow was pure, clean and shiny white. “The warm sun” we enjoyed refers to the white balance only, because the highest temperature we encountered was -8 degrees Celsius.
I will start off with a few pictures of ‘action’ but will end this post with much more pictures of the beautiful winter scenery we were lucky to encounter:
The official thread of this trip is posted here.
As you have probably noticed, some photos are in the 1080p full-HD format. I would be honored if you used them as wallpapers.
By now, any visitor of this blog should already be aware of the existence of technical methods to automatically receive new posts: the RSS feed or via email.
Actually, it’s more like 2+9 . Have a look for yourself:
Extra Reason to visit Dubrovnik #2
Extra Reason to visit Dubrovnik #1
Balancing the need to not discriminate with my inability to actually observe good looking men was tough, so I apologize to the female readers of this post, but the ‘actual’ list is sensibly longer:
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #9
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #8
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #7
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #6
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #5
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #3
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #2
Reason to visit Dubrovnik #1
PS 1: I know I generally show the inanimate beauties of the places I visit, but I somehow feel that everyone will agree that the lively atmosphere is a great point of attraction to Dubrovnik .
PS 2: There are more posts about Dubrovnik coming next week, so be sure to stay tuned (via RSS or email)
Great photographers wake up when others sleep, remain on location when others go home, go out when others stay in. So on January 1st, i just HAD to be out taking photos. This post shows that just going out when others stay in does not make you a great photographer 
. On the bright side, I do have some very awkward photos to show :
During A.D. 2009 the powers that be decided to asphalt Transalpina. Letting aside the discussions on the real (hidden) reasons, the practicality of the idea (given the fact that snow is meters high from November until May !!), what this means for us is THE END of Transalpina as we knew it.
Transalpina used to be this hidden gem of a national road, higher than Transfagarasan, but unpopulated by the famous Romanian Buffalo . It used to be a road for ‘aficionados’, for people that love the adventure and nature, beyond the love for their cars or their image. You would see Fiat Pandas, Citroen BXs, Daewo Matizes et al trying their best not to fatally hit the underparts of their cars, just to be able to enjoy the extraordinary landscapes. It was not a road for SUVs (I have not seen X5s, GLs and the likes), for manelists and barbecue eaters.
All that is gone now, with the advent of asphalt and ‘civilization’ . I have personally vouched to search for alternative roads for those who would appreciate them (there are rumors about a passage between Curmatura Oltetului and Vaideeni). But until I find them, we do still have one option in the area: the Strategic road.
Like Transalpina this was built by ‘ze Germans’ during the second World War. It is approximately 60kilometers long, on the top of the Latoritei mountains. It is perpendicular on Transalpina, which it crosses in the Saua Stefanu. That is one end of the Strategica. The other is in Valea Macesului, between Brezoi and Voineasa. This end is well hidden, as well it should be:
Where from
When you see this sign, stop the car and start looking for an un-obvious ascent into the forrest:
Hidden Gem
Hidden Gem
In my opinion this is were your adventure should start, because the first 4 kilometers are literally tough for ‘normal cars’ (non offroaders). So I’d rather have the difficult part in the beginning of the day, with gas, energy and time ahead of me. For real offroad cars, when dry, it’s a walk in the park. If rainy, it could become tricky (lateral inclination, no trees, ruts, mud, etc).
When dry, the ascent has been done with cars as ‘low’ (offroad-wise speaking) as the Audi Allroad or the Subaru Outback. They DID however struggle (had to push, burn the clutch, etc). Enough with the small talk already, let’s look at some pictures:
Plaiul Poienilor, Obstea Mosnenilor
Plaiul Poienilor, Obstea Mosnenilor
This is the reason you want to get on this road: it’s so high that you actually look DOWN on eagles:
Where eagles dare
I made an inspired “stop” :
How Land Cruisers are meant to be used
and what I mean by “Inspired Stop” is that I chose the best damn place to take this LC picture, toghether with the fact that I did actually stop 3 meters from the abyss:
View from the top
You can notice the road from Valea Macesului to the Galbenul and Petrimanul lakes on the bottom on the valley!
After this, the road is easy, clear and simple (you can make mistakes, but they are correctable: if the road disappears or becomes to difficult, you took a wrong turn )
As you can see, somebody is taking care of this road:
Clear Road
This is the biggest danger to offroad cars on this road:
Very Useful to have MT tyres
which means that there is a lot to enjoy on this road:
Busy Bee
Real Help
There are some ugly things going on in the area, like the forest clearing on the road from the lakes to Curmatura Oltetului:
Say WHAAAT?
Forest Clearing
Forest Clearing
These photos are a dedication to those who say that offroad cars disturb the environment…
Oh, since we are having a parenthesis about destruction, here’s how the Muntinu Stairs died:
Say Whaaatt, take 2
“shooting works”
If anyone is still not convinced to make this trip, I end this post with a bang (actually what I hope to be a memorable photo of the area):
What you can see
PS 1: I have to mention the fact that the road passes through two peasant yards. So you have to stop the car, get out, open the gate, pass, get back out and close the gate, so that the animals don’t get out…
PS2: if you like these photos, and trust me when I say there are more coming about beautiful and interesting places in the world, then you might want to stay tuned (via RSS or email )
Shot on the newly asphalted Transalpina 
Avensis Photo Shoot
Chosen-One
There is a saying that in nature, everything that has color, has it for a purpose. And that big colorful mushrooms are poisonous. I have no clue, but I was afraid to eat this:
Red means Danger
This photo was taken during an autumn’s trip to Transalpina and Strategica roads in the Parang and Latoritei Mountains. There are more to come, so be sure to watch the RSS feed or to get email updates .
I will not rant about this monahal retreat in the Buila Vanturarita mountains. I will only point you to it’s official site to get more info, and I will show you a few pics I shot in the area:
The face of Jesus
Jesus and the Candles
Ladies and gentlemen, I am sure this is the shot you’ve been waiting for for some time now, so with no further ado, by popular request:
Return of the infamous shot
In this area of retreat, one tree stood very different :
Yellow Willow
Yes, it’s a willow in the mountains, at 1500 meters altitude (!).
I strongly suggest you visit this quiet lonely place. As well as the whole Valcea county, which has hidden churches gallore. If you want to go to Pahomie in the autumn you will need a 4×4, as the road is muddy and becomes very bad because of tree cutters (big trucks) :
Also, keep in mind that pictures are coming from all over the world, covering travel sights and offroad adventures, so be sure not to miss any posts (use the RSS or email)
