Author: David

Probably Belgium’s most famous statue, and often clothed in fancy dress. This seasonal costume was some years ago, but may be an annual occurrence.

There’s a bear on the flag of Berlin, and even a theory that the city is so named because there were lots of bears in the area when it was founded. So bears were the city’s obvious choice when the decorated statue fashion was at its height some years ago. The pair here with the raised arms are a small sample of what were (and possibly still are) scattered across the city.

The one in Christmas clothing was one an up-market shopping street in Berlin. Together with elves, reindeer and Santas, they’re prone to pop up in any German Christmas Market, Birmingham included.

A small flock of goats in an unfenced meadow by the River Ammer on the outskirts of Overammergau. The river was flowing fast with snowmelt, back in the spring of 2008.

Capri in the season is routinely uncomfortably densely crowded by overtourism. But only a few minutes walk away from the hotspots, it can get quiet enough for nervous creatures like these lizards to rest unconcerned, sunning themselves on garden walls.

Views of the Faraglioni rocks and the eastern end of Capri island which the day trappers don’t get to see: with darkening sky after sunset, and the increasing light of the pre-dawn.

Swallows gathering mud for their nests. Herculaneum, with the muddy ground in the area which had been the town’s harbour before Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD.