I find Genova quite the magic city. I suspect I could go walking here, every single day, and find something quietly exquisite.
Sometimes it's an object, other times it's the light.
I had never noticed this part of the fountain before. And I have photographed the fountain, so many times. It was the light I think.
I saw the reflection first, then climbed up onto the edge of the fountain and chased the image created by the buildings in reflection.
There were more ...
On my Love Notes to Genoa Facebook page, I wrote: 'Today, as I wandered the centro storico with my camera, I understood something. People don't photograph the world reflected in puddles because they understand ... they would seem insane.
Mmmhmmm, but it is, quite often, a beautiful way of seeing the world. A storm passed through this afternoon and left behind some beautiful puddles.'
I love this city reflected, after rain. The tiles on the pavements often create something quite magical.
And then there are the gaps in the ancient stones ...
It was a good day. A rather exquisite 24 hours, actually.
I recently spent a couple of hours photographing the family of this divine little man.
We played in the room with the most light and I took a variety of images, capturing light in ways that surprised even me. Later we wandered outside in a cool London morning and voila, the light was so absolutely perfect.
But here, he discovers his reflection.
This stay in the city has involved quite some rain. Just as New Zealand seems to be waiting for summer to actually arrive, Genova is waiting for the rain to stop falling.
I flew in after some serious flooding had happened here in the city but the rain hadn't quite stopped ... and so it was that I discovered the only boots that I brought with me had holes in them.
But who does that! One pair of shoes in Italy?! I can hear my cousin, Julie's, disbelief from here :-)
However having to replace those boots on my last full day here in the city ... that is going to make it all okay. And no one will see that my feet have become webbed, like a duck's.
There is nothing like owning a good pair of boots made here in Italy.
The very serious shoe-shop owner actually laughed when my lovely friend, Barbara, asked him if he might keep the plastic bags I was wearing over my socks, inside my boots (as a basic water-proofing measure) a secret ... as I was attempting to appear elegant while here in Italy.
Mmmhmmm, but then again, if all was simple in my life perhaps it would bore me.
The day ended with more laughter, as Alessandra, Barbara and I discussed 'but which wine?!' while accidentally blocking the wine aisle in COOP. Oh yes, that was us.
And so, proof from this exquisite but watery city I have spent these last two weeks wandering ... another reflection. I do love finding them here.
Long ago and far-away I fell in love with a reflected world. I was a child traveling State Highway 1, heading south on the flood-free, passing Henley. Destination Invercargill and Nana's house.
There were swamp-lands next to the highway and a creek that offered the most stunningly clear reflections I've ever seen.
I used to imagine another world, an upside-down world, there in the creek as we passed by in those days when I was a kid in the back seat, dreaming my kid-dreams.
Genova has made me fall in love with reflections all over again. I love when there is just enough rain to make puddles here on the cobblestones.
Today there was just enough rain to give me a glimpse of that other world.
Here's another view of Antwerp's city cathedral - Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal.
I discovered it reflected in a puddle out on Groenplaats one day. And loved it. And quite possibly looked insane as I stalked the puddle edges, searching for the best angle to capture the reflection at ... but I was compelled to.