Nikki

I returned late Saturday night from a three week trip to Europe. The first week was spent traveling through Portugal and Spain with my husband. Then we met our two daughters and spent two weeks at a house exchange in France.

No trip report yet, but I have gotten the pictures from the first week in some semblance of order. This was my first outing with my new digital SLR (a Canon Digital Rebel XTi). My first outing with digital of any kind, actually. So I'm still figuring it out.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=...&y=-9tois1

rkkwan

Very nicely done!

I noticed a few of the pictures have the wrong white balance. That happened to me on my first trip last year to China with my XTi when I accidentally bumped the WB setting. Very hard to get it fixed completely.

That's one of the reasons I shoot RAW only these days. White balance is done on my home computer.

Nikki

Yup, I hadn't quite figured out the white balance thing yet, and I didn't want to shoot in RAW for my first outing. But I decided I liked the effect enough to include the pictures anyway. Blue is my favorite color.

isabel

Hi Nikki - great pictures, makes me miss Portugal. Can't wait to see the ones of France. Where were you in France? I'm thinking possibly of doing south of France next year. But for now no trips- sigh. I'll have to console myself with visiting Boston alot, my daughter just moved there last weekend. I read somewhere that Boston is the "most European of U.S. cities".

moolyn

Nikki, thanks for sharing your wonderful photos of Spain and Portugal! I'm looking forward to your eventual trip report.

The only trouble is that you are fanning the flames of the DSLR envy that toedtoez started when I met her in Niagara Falls last week. She let me fondle her Digital Rebel and showed me some of the amazing photos she had already taken on her trip.

Nikki

Isabel, we were just north of the Pyrenees, between the city of Tarbes and the town of Trie sur Baise. I'm working on the pictures now. Then the trip report.

Give a shout when in Boston.

Moolyn, I'd been feeling DSLR envy for several years now. The other digital cameras I fondled were not satisfying for various reasons, and it took a while for me to justify the expense of the DSLR. Still learning the techniques, but glad I've finally entered the digital age.

Katie_H

I really like the shot with the white church with the blue trim. I've been thinking of purchasing a Rebel too.

Nikki

Thanks Katie. As I already mentioned, I like blue.

lobo_mau

Beautiful pictures. DH looks great.
I'm glad to see that you made it to Monsaraz.
KR

Nikki

Lobo, yes, Monsaraz was really nice, and there is great stuff in the surrounding area. You said that compared to Monsaraz, Obidos looks like Disneyland. Well, compared to Terena, Monsaraz looks like Disneyland.

And I think you just admire Alan's taste in clothes.

cigalechanta

Great Photos!!!! Thank You and welcome back.

BeniciaChris

Thank you for the wonderful pictures-I am looking forward to our trip to Portugal Sept 08. Where was that cozy room with the arched door??? The room looked inviting. Blue is also my favorite color-Chris

Sher

Nikki. I almost missed this as I haven't been on lately and that would have been a shame.

Loved the pictures. I have been waiting for you to write.

It looked pretty warm?

Sherry

Nikki

Cigale, merci.

Chris, that is the living room at the Casa de Terena, a bed and breakfast inn where we stayed in the Alentejo.

Sherry, it was warm in Portugal but not really hot. Perfect. The weather went sharply downhill the next week, when we were in France.

Sher

I know you have lots to do but remember, trip report.

lreynold1

Beautiful pictures, Nikki. We stayed at the Casa de Terena several years ago and really liked it -- is it still run by the British/S.African (?) expat couple? Our breakfast was really good, with lots of local fruit and cheese. Did you make it to the local cheesemaker by any chance? The owners recommended a trip to Juromenha, and I see you made it there, too.

I'm glad that I have finally been able to see the dolmen/menhirs around Monsaraz thanks to your camera. On two separate occasions we have tried to follow instructions published by some local tourist office and both times we got ridiculously lost and gave up. If you have good directions that you can post, I'd really appreciate it. Did you do one of the circle routes?

sorry, I guess I've bombarded you with questions. Laurie

Nikki

Laurie, Casa de Terena is still run by the South African couple, Jeremy and Stella. Wonderful breakfast, as you remember. Didn't get to the cheesemaker, just another reason to go back, I suppose.

Jeremy mapped out a route for us. I am looking at the map we used, and it appears that the menhir and the dolmen we found were both just off the road between Monsaraz and S. Pedro do Corval. There were signs pointing to them from that road. Once you drove off the main road, there were no more signs. They were just out there, in the middle of the fields and olive groves.

Don't worry about bombarding me with questios; that's what I get for posting the pictures before I write the trip report.

ComfyShoes

Interesting shots and so different from where I live (States) underscoring, in a way, the reality for all of us is similar (thankfully) and yet so different (thankfully again!).

Two questions on the last shot. What is it called, and do you start eating that from the top?

TRSW

Great photos Nikki. Looks like you had some great weather. Makes me want to go to Spain now.

Tom

Nikki

Thank you so much for the nice comments. It's especially nice to hear from those whose pictures I admire so much myself.

Comfy Shoes, that last shot was what they brought us when we said we didn't want dessert, so we didn't see what it is called in Spanish.

Us country folk from Massachusetts, we call that thing a cookie. You eat it whichever way it crumbles.