Fiery Sunset

Earlier in October, the sky seemed to be on fire one evening. I never saw such forms and colors before. I think it's perfect for Beverly's Pink Saturday.

What a sight that was!

Brewery and bakery in Aying

On October 10th, the brewery in Aying opened its doors to the public once again. The last time I visited that place was in 2008 and you can read all about that here. Back then I wrote: "I guess I took photos of every single beer bottle in the huge room." Yup, the same happened this time -- it's such an interesting place.

Steampunk?

So many beer bottles waiting their turn to be filled with beer.

Inside, it was warm and humid. Outside, it was sunny but cool.

On the pennant you see the logo of Ayinger brewery.

The bottles travel at high speed.

It's very loud. This time I thought of recording a short clip, so that you get a better impression.

Outside the window you see the colorful fall leaves.

One last photo of the bottles before leaving this part of the brewery.

In another building there was this wall full of tin signs of different beer brands.

I like the contrast of the past and present -- the family photo from 1906 in the background and the modern technology coordinating the brewing processes in the foreground.

So shiny!

Near the brewery, a new bakery was build. It had also opened its doors that Sunday.

That's how yummy bread is made!

The best thing was that you could taste and buy lots of the products.

Here's a closeup of one bread variety -- so delicious!

I feel your presence everywhere

Digital Whisper shared the photo of a fall leaf for its challenge this week. Somehow, that made me think of lost love. I came up with this digital collage:

From All Corners

My friend Tracy from South Dakota had a great idea. Together with some other friends she created a photography blog called From All Corners: "A group of gals from all corners of the world sharing their photos on a chosen topic." Now that sums up what this blog is all about. I am honored to have been invited to be part of the fun. The first prompt was FRESH:

Then came TRAIL:

The most recent one is OCTOBER:

I am already looking forward to seeing with which photos the other girls come up!

Countdown to Halloween

It's October -- the countdown to Halloween has begun! In September, I saw a couple of ceramic pumpkins at a garden center a bit outside Munich. That was a first reminder that Halloween isn't all that far away.

Magical moon

I had seen Practical Magic Blog Party buttons on many of my favorite blogs, yet I wasn't sure if I could come up with something special for that event. Anyway, finally I thought of some photos I had taken last month. I was ready to go to bed, but first looked out of the window to take a breath in the cool night air. The full moon was standing over the roof of the neighbors' house. It was shining so brightly, so beautifully. There were lots of clouds in the sky, passing very quickly. It was such a fascinating sight. Of course, I immediately brought my camera and took a couple of photos. When I looked at them more closely, I could make out faces and shapes. Let's see if you have the same gift of imagination.

Sally Owens: "And I don't want them [her children] dancing naked under the full moon!"
Aunt Jet Owens: "No, of course. The nudity is entirely optional. As you well remember!"



Can you make out anything on the photo above? No? Well, it is a difficult one for sure. I can see the big black eyes of an alien left and right from the moon. Let's have a look at the next photo:


I see a man's face. His dark eye is right above the moon. I can also make out his nose, full lips, and the ear. He reminds me of Jimmy Angelov, Gillian's boyfriend. Dark and unnatural.


Do you also see a monster here? It looks like a flame monster to me -- its two eyes are right above the moon.


Here's another cloud picture of Jimmy. One of his dead eyes is starring right ahead -- a bit above the moon. It's scary...


Here I see the blurred features of a man's face -- but it's a friendly face.

Young Sally Owens: "He will hear my call a mile away. He will whistle my favorite song. He can ride a pony backwards."
Young Gillian Owens: "What are you doing?"
Young Sally Owens: "Summoning up a true love spell called Amas Veritas. He can flip pancakes in the air. He'll be marvelously kind. And his favorite shape will be a star. And he'll have one green eye and one blue."
Young Gillian Owens: "Thought you never wanted to fall in love."
Young Sally Owens: "That's the point. The guy I dreamed of doesn't exist. And if he doesn't exist, I'll never die of a broken heart."

Here I see him more clearly -- he is even smiling.

I couldn't believe it when I discovered a raccoon in the clouds. Do you also see his masked furry face?


Another scary one. The cloud formation reminds me of a gargoyle with an open mouth.


Here I see a giant's face. His eyes are above the moon, and he has a big, broad nose. However, the best photo comes last but certainly not least. So -- what do you see?


Do you also see a witch riding on her broom? She is flying so fast through the night sky that I only managed to get this blurred picture. So -- keep on seeing magical things in clouds both at day and night! Always keep in mind what aunt Frances Owens said to Sally:

"My darling girl, when are you going to realize that being normal is not necessarily a virtue? It rather denotes a lack of courage!"

Gorgeous September sunset

Tonight we had a gorgeous sunset.

Well, maybe the colors weren't as spectacular as they look on these photos, but, hey, that's how I perceived the sunset.

Colorful. Wild. Romantic. Free. Breathtaking.

Fall already

Can it be that it's fall already? Well, time to focus on the joys of fall such as a hearty apple cake made by my mom.

There are mushrooms growing in the garden.

This little fellow -- a Grey Dagger moth caterpillar (the German name is Pfeileule -- Arrow Owl) -- was crawling on the wall of the house.

I just love sunflowers.

These flowers look a lot like sunflowers, too.

Just as these flowers!

The sun was shining brightly today -- a splendid fall Sunday.

A little visitor enjoying the flowers.

Matchbox shrine and notebook

I recently made a matchbox shrine for a friend.

I used a star ornament on the top.

"Friends are like stars --
you don't always see them,
but you know they're always there."

---Hulali Luta


Inside is a bit of magic.


"Magic is believing in yourself,
if you can do that,
you can make anything happen."

-- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


There's also the moon.

"May you have warm words on a cold evening,
a full moon on a dark night
and a smooth road all the way to your door."

-- Irish Blessing


Moreover, I bought a purple notebook for my friend.


Purple is her favorite color.


I hope she loves the design as much as I do.


I certainly love notebooks. This one has a lovely inside design, too.


I tucked a paper flower ...


... and a felt heart between the pages.


"Friendship isn't a big thing --
it's a million little things."

-- Anonymous