Palace Water Feature

Many Americans have a fascination with European royalty. This view of one of the water features at the Spanish Kings' Summer Palace in La Granja de San Ildefonso graphically illustrates the difference between the royalty and us common folk. This is just one of the parts of a vast garden that covers 1,500 acres. If you want to read more about the palace and gardens, here is a link to the Wikipedia article. 

Perspective

There are few places I have been where the vanishing point of the perspective is so perfectly illustrated. The perspective here also gives you some idea of the massive size of this aqueduct in Segovia, Spain. We walked from the starting point of this structure to this point where interestingly, it goes underground when it hits the hill on this side of the plaza. There is no access to the structure itself so that is not something you can do, but behind where this photo was taken is a steep staircase leading up to an observation area.

Walking in Segovia, Spain

The old walled cities in Spain are surrounded by modern subdivisions and shopping areas but the older cities, such as Segovia, are very conservatively maintained within the original city walls. Many of the streets are shared between cars, trucks, and walking people, but when the pedestrian traffic reaches a certain level, the streets are turned over almost completely to pedestrians. Segovia is a "tourist" city with its historic structures but it is surrounded, outside the wall, with modern shopping areas and other businesses. The inner city is mainly preserved for pedestrian traffic except for some major streets.

The Bridge over the Moat

One of the remarkable things about traveling to different countries is that some of your perspectives change. In this case, my ideas about moats underwent a complete revision. A moat such as this one was a formidable obstacle to any attempt at storming the castle. I keep remembering back through all the movies I have seen with castles to see if I can remember ever seeing a moat as large as this one. Most of the iconic movies castles are high on a hill reminiscent of Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. I went through a whole gallery of photos of movie castles and did not see one with a similar moat to my image above. 

Nesting Structures

Unlike the deer around my house in Utah, in Spain, the storks are given first-class accommodations. Their nests on tall structures are not only tolerated, but they are also encouraged. This pair are White Storks, the most common kind. I understand that the same couple return year after year to the same location after migrating to Africa. The White Storks play an important part in the culture, religion, and folklore of Europe.

A Matter of Perspective

As I travel around the world, I am reminded that I am still Walking Arizona. I am still seeing all the patterns, colors, and textures in the world that make for such a rich experience. This particular pond shot was taken in Segovia, Spain but it could just as easily have been in a multitude of other locations around the world. What is the difference between traveling as a photographer and traveling as a tourist? I do take a reasonable number of photos of me and my family standing next to things, but then I also try to see what is really happening around me. I never tire of the world. There is always something strange, beautiful, lovely, or interesting to photograph.

Royal Garden in La Granja de San Ildefonso

This huge Royal Garden is associated with the Royal Palace in La Granja de Ildefonso, Spain. Here is a short explanation of the Garden from Wikipedia: Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso.

Extending over 1,500 acres (6.1 km2), the gardens around the palace are one of the best examples of 18th-century European garden design in the Jardin à la française style in Spain. [7] The French designer from the official French royal offices of Robert de Cotte was René Carlier,[8] who used the natural slope of the site in the palace grounds design, for enhancing axial visual perspectives, and to provide sufficient head for water to shoot out/up from the twenty-six sculptural fountains in the formal gardens and landscape park. 

Sculptors arrived from Paris to execute designs on the site. They included: René Frémin (1672–1744, at La Granja until 1738), to whom the execution of many vases and sculptures was attributed in 18th-century inventories; Jean Thierry; and others who are little more than names in archival references.

This is one of the largest such gardens I have ever seen. I could have spent days and weeks visiting each part of the garden and seeing the huge variety of plants and trees.