Monastery | Mark Simms Photography

Mosteiro Dos Jeronimos 6

A few shots from inside the magnificent monastery church in Lisbon’s Mosteiro Dos Jeronimos:

© Mark Simms Photography (2018)

Mosteiro Dos Jeronimos 5

A couple of shots of what used to be the refectory hall at the Mosteiro Dos Jeronimos in Lisbon:

© Mark Simms Photography (2018)

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A few shots of some of the architectural details that adorn the cloisters of the Mosteiro Dos Jeronimos in Lisbon:

© Mark Simms Photography (2018)

On a sunny day, the light that floods into the corridors of a cloister quadrangle can be spectacular, casting dramatic shadows and illuminating details……..even when fellow tourists fail to get out of the way of my shot……;0).

© Mark Simms Photography (2018)

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The magnificent two tier cloisters taken from both the lower and upper levels:

© Mark Simms Photography (2018)

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Built in the early 16th Century to celebrate Vasco de Gama’s safe return from his inaugural voyage to India in 1498, the Mosteiro Dos Jeronimos was my favourite of all the places we visited in Lisbon. The shot below is the only one I took of the exterior:

© Mark Simms Photography (2018)

Kloster Andechs

The hilltop Benedictine monastery of Andechs was founded in the 10th century. Although it’s undeniably impressive, the overly ornate Baroque style interior is not to everyone’s taste………including mine I’m afraid. I find these type of elaborate, richly decorated interiors very difficult to photograph, as the subject/composition is almost always too busy to work effectively. For this reason I much prefer the simpler more austere Gothic form of church.

A pleasant surprise was to find that the remains of Carl Orff are interred at Andechs monastery. Orff composed one of my favourite pieces of classical music….the wonderfully dramatic Carmina Burana.

© Mark Simms Photography (2017)

Chester Cathedral Exterior

I’m ashamed to say that although I have visited Chester many times (living most of my life within fairly easy reach of the city) it was only a few weeks ago that I properly explored it’s Cathedral for the first time.

Originally the abbey church of an 11th Century Benedictine monastery dedicated to St Werburgh, the Cathedral has been extensively modified and restored over the subsequent 900 or so years. Here are a few shots of the exterior, which include the Garden of Remembrance for the Cheshire Regiment which sits within the Cathedral grounds:

© Mark Simms Photography (2014)

Osuna

For our week in Andalucia we based ourselves in the town of Osuna, about half-way between Seville and Granada. Because it’s not really part of the main tourist trail, Osuna offers visitors the chance to sample a quieter, more “authentic” Andalucian experience. However because it’s fairly central, most of the region’s main tourist attractions are within fairly easy reach. It was the perfect place to stay, especially as it wasn’t without charms of its own, as I hope the following images demonstrate:

Although not strictly necessary, given that we visited in September, the shady canopies hanging above the streets did offer some welcome relief from the strong Andalucian sun. To the locals it probably wasn’t strong at all….but to pale-faced North Europeans it was hot enough thank you very much.