Postcard from Japan - Mt Fuji

Mt Fuji has attracted millions of tourists, climbers, artists and poets. How could I capture such an iconic symbol of Japan in a new and interesting way?

For this image I waited for the canoes to move across the lake

I walked a little off to one side, away from the main tourist path. I liked seeing Mt Fuji with the almost bare trees and the city laid out beneath.

A visit to the UNESCO heritage listed village of Oshino. Mt Fuji in the distance, bare branches, reflections of visitors.

Sun setting over Oshino

My favourite image of Mt Fuji sitting at the end of a busy street

Postcard from the Hunza Valley

Beautiful blossoms and snow capped mountains will be my lasting impression of the Hunza Valley

The Hunza valley is in the northern part of Gilgit-Baltistan at an elevation of 2,438 meters.  Afghanistan is to the north and China is to the northeast.  The Hunza River runs through the valley and you can still see remains of the Old Silk Road.  

We visited during spring and the apricot blossom trees were in full bloom.  The air was fresh, villages clean and terraces beautifully ordered.  It was wonderful to walk along nearly deserted paths and hear nothing but the buzz of bees and the occasional motorbike.

In 1933 a novel by James Hilton was released called ‘Lost Horizon’.  In 1937 it was made into a film by Frank Capra.  The book and film are set in Shangri-La, a ‘mystical and harmonious’ valley in Tibet that is isolated and where people live for hundreds of years.  It is thought that Hilton based his novel on the location and people of the Hunza Valley. 

The Hunzakut were rumoured to live exceptionally long lives, to be very fit, to be vegetarian and never get ill.  Unfortunately, this has turned out not to be true.  The Hunzakut are very fit as most must walk to work in the fields, at altitude.  During the summer they do follow a mostly vegetarian diet as the growing season for fresh fruit and vegetables is very short.  Animals are kept for meat for during the long winter months.  As Hunza is very difficult to reach a lot of diseases did not arrive until roads opened up the valley.   As to living very long lives this depends on how you measure age.  Apparently the Hunzakut do not measure age solely by years but also by wisdom.  

If you are ‘wise beyond your years’ you will visit Hunza as it is a beautiful place filled with stunning landscapes and hospitable people.  

Hunza Valley from Altit Fort

Hunza Valley panorama taken from Altit Fort. Hard to give you a sense of being surrounded by mountains

Hunza Valley from Baltit Fort

Snow gives way to barren mountain sides. Those squiggly lines in the middle are roads going up high into the mountains.

The Hunza River runs through the centre of the valley

Blossoms above and below

Poplar trees and patchwork terraces

A man rests and checks his phone

Pink blossoms against a blue sky and white snow capped mountains

Clouds lift and we can see the mountains from our hotel

Delicate apricot blossoms

The day ends, the sun sets, we watch the changing light on the mountains.

Postcard from Islamabad - Fatima Jinnah Park

Photographer in Pakistan

Monument - Fatima Jinnah Park

Islamabad is a planned city, split into different zones. It is an easy city to get around as each sector is given a letter and a number. Each residential sector covers a block, an area of approximately 2km by 2km.

F9 is given over entirely to Fatima Jinnah Park. The park has lots of walking paths through natural grasslands and trees. As I went out early on a cold and foggy morning it was eerily beautiful with dew gathering on leaves and branches, trees and park benches were opaque in the fog.

As it was cold and because the park is large I hardly saw another person. The few people I did see were jogging or walking briskly to keep warm.

I also came across three women cutting firewood. I didn’t speak to them but I am guessing that the firewood will be used for cooking, keeping warm and perhaps some of it will be sold.

I will return to Fatima Jinnah Park, when the weather is a little warmer.

Australian bottlebrush - a beautiful reminder of home

Postcard from Karachi - Clifton Beach

Welcome to my first blog.  I am a photographer and I have recently arrived in Pakistan from Australia.  I’m living in Islamabad but I am hoping that I will have the opportunity to explore many different parts of the country.  One of the first places I was lucky enough to visit was Karachi.

 There is a big difference between my home town of Canberra, Australia and Karachi.  Canberra’s population is nearly 400,000 and is an inland city surrounding by the bush.  Karachi’s population is nearly 15 million and is next to the coast.  I was not ready for the noise, people, and yet more people!

 I was brought up next to the coast in Australia so one of the first places I wanted to visit was Clifton Beach.  Clifton beach is nothing like the beaches I grew up with.  The day I visited was in the middle of summer and the weather was very hot and humid.  The day was overcast and it was almost as if the sand matched the colour of the sea and the sky.  While the sand and sea were grey there was colour and movement everywhere else.  I have never been to a beach where there were so many camels (yes camels!), beach buggies, horses, and food vendors.  A fantastic opportunity for a photographer. 

 I will return to Karachi and would love to know if you live in Karachi or have recently visited and know of places that I should visit the next time I return.