I found this month’s theme for A ‘lil HooHaa’s Photo Blogging Challenge challenging. I’m not one to make myself the center of attention. And as I think is the case for many women my age, I don’t often put myself first either. Instead, my default is to first consider what other family members / friends would most prefer and then check that I’m okay with that.

So in the end, I decided my best approach would be to photograph things / activities that I like. So here goes!

1. UNESCO Sites

Whenever we travel, we try to take in any UNESCO World Heritage Sites and creative cities in the area. For most of September, we explored Ireland – both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom). The island and its surrounding tiny islands are home to four UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Brú na Bóinne, Sceilg Mhichil (aka Skellig Michael, made popular by two Star Wars movies), Giant’s Causeway, and Gracehill Moravian Church Settlement.

Ireland’s UNESCO Creative Cities include Dublin (a City of Literature), Galway (a City of Film) and Belfast (a City of Music). The Burren and Cliffs of Moher comprise a UNESCO Global Geopark; Flaggy Shore oyster farmers in the area also have the right to use UNESCO’s GEOfood branding.

Our Ireland trip itinerary included Dublin, Belfast, Brú na Bóinne, Giant’s Causeway and Skellig Michael, as well as the Burren and Cliffs of Moher. I’ll write about all of these experiences as time permits. Meanwhile, here’s a photo of one of the many dolphins we saw on our way to Skellig Michael. We knew they were around because our boat Captain’s dogs, Watson and Luna, bark and point when they smell a dolphin nearby!!

Skellig Michael is on the left in the distance, while Sceilg Bheag is center right. The swell was several meters making photography very challenging.

2. Quality Dark Chocolate

Ever since our oldest introduced us to bean-to-bar chocolate, we keep a sharp eye out for opportunities to sample and purchase quality dark chocolate (ideally around 70%). Before departing for Ireland I placed orders for delivery to our Dublin and Belfast hotels. We are still making our way through the mix of single origin and infused bars (such as seaweed, lavender, Irish soda bread and Aran Islands sea salted).

We also had the opportunity to receive a lesson in chocolate making, from Benoit Lorge, founder and creator behind Lorge Chocolatier in Kenmare, Co. Kerry. Not only did Mr GeoK win the marzipan chocolate dipping contest, we came home with critical information about the chemistry of tempering chocolate AND a goody bag filled with some of the chocolates we made during our lesson. We also learned that quality dark chocolate has associated health benefits, so long as you limit yourself to no more than 3 or 4 small squares per day. Thanks Benoit, for permission to continue to enjoy quality dark chocolate daily! And for the lesson. 🙂

3. Biking, Hiking and Other Adventures

From my perspective, biking and hiking highlights this month included our final ride of the year on the Bow Valley Parkway in Banff, a long-anticipated return to hike in the Lake O’Hara region of Banff National Park, and three walks in Ireland: Giant’s Causeway Coastal Walk, Sliabh Liag and Knocknarea. In the “Other Adventures” category, I’d include crossing the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, night kayaking among bioluminescence and falconry. I’ll blog about the Ireland stuff as time permits. For now, here’s a photo of Mr GeoK with Charlie, a Harris Hawk.

And bonus pictures someone took of me with a White-faced Scops owl named Professor (of Algebra) and of Mr GeoK with a Peregrine falcon.

4. Art and Architecture Photography

While not the primary focus of our trip to Ireland, Mr GeoK and I went with a list of potential photography targets, mainly public art and architecture. We hoped for colourful night lighting of some of the architecture (based on Google Images) but came away slightly disappointed because we weren’t there on a “special” occasion that warrants coloured lighting. Even so, I think this phone photo of the Titanic Museum in Belfast turned out well.

5. Time in Nature

I have been VERY inconsistent with my Nearby Nature Project blog posts. Even so, any long-time reader of this blog will know how much I value spending time in and with Nature. Mr GeoK got lucky in the lottery for Lake O’Hara bus tickets this year, so the last day of September we rode the Parks Canada bus up the 11 km access road and set out to hike portions of the Lake O’Hara Alpine Circuit.

The weather did not care about photography. We did our best to compensate for overcast skies most of the day, along with intermittent snow pellet squalls. For most of the Yukness Ledges stretch of the Circuit, I was breaking trail. Four to five cm (~ 2 inches) of snow doesn’t sound like much unless you consider how challenging it makes crossing an extended boulder field and navigating narrow ledges!

We came away with lots of “passable but not great” photos. This is one of my favourites. You can see by Mr GeoK’s face that his pack is getting heavier every time he shrugs it on! 🙂

Okay, enough of me being in the spotlight. Time to head on over to host PJ’s blog to see how everyone else handled the challenge of this month’s theme.

And please, consider joining our small and friendly community of bloggers. All you need each month are five photographs and a blog site. There are several no- and low-cost options. Leave a comment if you’d like some input. PJ includes the next month’s theme at the bottom of his post each month.