Capture the Color: My favorite colorful shots of Spain

My mother recently asked me why I no longer had any hobbies. Um, sorry Nance, but doesn’t toting my trusty Canon, Camarón, around everywhere, eating my fill of tapas and following my favorite fútbol team count?

Spain is a country known for its natural beauty, colorful folklore and creative food scene, and it’s easy to feel inspired living here. As my friend Hayley said, ‘I’d sooner break my neck’ than leave my camera at home. What’s more, the colors I most associate with Spain – the pueblos blancos, the red jamón ibérico, the clear blue sky – are featured in seemingly every shot.

Last year I participated in Travel Supermarket’s Capture the Color contest, even going as far as to have an editor at Marie Claire Magazine send me a personal email about how much she liked my selection for my blue photograph. The premise is simple: you choose a personal photo in each of the colors selected, upload them to your personal blog and nominate five other bloggers. Winning is a longshot, but when you have this much fun looking for photos, who cares?

Amarillo // Yellow

Seville is immortalized in the song ‘Sevilla tiene un color especial.’ If Seville had a color, it would be the golden yellowish-orange. The sun sets over Triana to the west, sending a burning goodbye to the world.

Read more: Seville’s Golden Hour.

Rojo // Red

A loud, EeeeeeeeeH! erupts through the silent stadium, a life teeters on the fine line of death. Torera Conchi Ríos aims a curved saber at a one-ton bull, hoping her accuracy will result in a swift death for her opponent. The blood-red cape swishes, the toro lunges forward, and his artery is pierced.

The red in Southern Spain is characteristic of life and passion and death, represented by the capa and the crimson rings around the yellow albero of the plaza de toros.

Read more: Death in the Afternoon.

Verde // Green

The descent into Mondeñedo was difficult – the trail was muddy, causing my bad knee to slip around and cause problems. For the first time in 150 kilometers, I felt like I needed to take the bus to the next albergue. The pain was excruciating, and once we’d entered the small village, famous for its seminary and cathedral, I was showing signs of tendonitis. We walked along the perimeter of the pueblo, next to the rows of corn stalks and I remembered that physical pain was part of the experience and part of my Camino for Kelsey, a deceased friend. After a strong coffee, I walked up mountains, literally.

And the corn stalks reminded me of being back home in Illinois and Iowa.

Read more: Why I Walked the Camino de Santiago.

Blanco // White

Alright, I cheated – this one’s not about Spain or set in Iberia. In fact, this lichen-stained church is in the central plaza of Kotor, Montenegro, a UNESCO World Heritage city framed by bay and mountains. We visited Kotor on a road trip around the bay of the same night, marveling at the natural beauty of Europe’s youngest country and how amazingly friendly the locals are – we drank free beer all the time! One of the most memorable was at a smoky bar in the alleyway behind the church, out from a sudden rain storm and relishing in free wi-fi and strong shots of Rakia.

Read more: Road tripping through the Bay of Kotor.

Azul // Blue 

Walking through small hamlets helped mark our days on the Camino de Santiago, even if they did give us the false hope that we’d find an open bar before sunrise. While the scallop shells that mark the way are further between on the coastal route, townspeople often painted yellow arrows on their homes or taped small images of Saint James on their mailboxes to help us along. On our way to Sobrado dos Monxes, where we’d sleep in a 10th century monastery, this blue-eyed kitten stood atop an unofficial road marker.

Read more: Waymarkers Along the Camino de Santiago

I’d love to see your spin on the rainbow, expat blogging friends!

Kaley of Y Mucho Más

Trevor of A Texan in Spain

Christine of Christine in Spain

Kara of Standby to Somewhere

Alex of Ifs, Ands & Butts

Show me what you’ve got!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

About Cat Gaa

As a beef-loving Chicago girl living amongst pigs, bullfighters, and a whole lotta canis, Cat Gaa writes about expat life in Seville, Spain. When not cavorting with adorable Spanish grandpas or struggling with Spanish prepositions, she works in higher education at an American university in Madrid and freelances with other publications, like Rough Guides and The Spain Scoop.

Comments

  1. Some great photos of Spain there, Cat. Beautifully captured. Good luck in #CTC :)
    Marianne recently posted..Cost of Living in Spain: August 2013My Profile

  2. THOSE CAT EYES. Ah won’ eem!!! Love, love, love that picture.

    I’m honored to be tagged by you in this contest…putting together an entry as we speak! 😀
    Trevor Huxham recently posted..Answering Your Questions About Walking Spain’s Camino de SantiagoMy Profile

    • Sunshine and Siestas says:

      Haha, thanks! It was the perfect moment when the cat turned to look at me, and I was shocked at how blue the eyes were! Looking forward to seeing your post, mister!

  3. Some great photos there. Not a massive cat fan, more of a dog lover, but that little kitten reminds me of one we found in the street a couple of years back, ended up giving it to the flat’s cleaner because her Dad lived out in the campo! Great post.
    Barry O’Leary recently posted..What I miss about Thailand…My Profile

    • Sunshine and Siestas says:

      I actually despise cats, but the dogs on the Camino are scary and vicious! This little kitten was the most docile animal we ran across – even the cows were intimidating!

  4. Love your selections – thank you for the tag I will definitely participate. And I love the joke about having no hobbies because that’s one of my most feared questions people ask me – I’m like uh, travel, blogging, and drinking? Oops.
    Alex @ ifs ands & butts recently posted..ice cream peyton shop.My Profile

  5. wow great entries, I loved seeing them all but my favorites are definitely the kitty and the torero, nice job Cat

    I’m inviting you to join us for Travel Photo Mondays, the link runs all week so I hope you can join us for the next installment?
    noel morata recently posted..Touring Mendocino townMy Profile

  6. Gorgeous photos! I like the first one and the last one best.
    bevchen recently posted..My bee-day partyMy Profile

  7. Love these, especially the one in Kotor!

  8. That white picture is stunning! I think you’re allowed to cheat a little with that one. :)

    Nice job, I love the photographs. (And yes, carrying around your Canon at all times counts! For my sake, it has to, too!)
    Sally recently posted..Photoessay: Blue Skies of GermanyMy Profile

    • Sunshine and Siestas says:

      I spilled the secret, but it does’t matter! I couldn’t find anything too white in Spain, save the pueblos blancos, and that just seemed to easy!

  9. Oh, I just love the photo of the cat. Reminds me that we had dinner one night in Cadaques recently at a place called El Gato Azul :-)
    Gayla recently posted..Things to do in Barcelona – Visit Casa BatllóMy Profile

Trackbacks

  1. […] a fellow expat at Sunshines & Siestas, tagged me in the Capture the Color competition. While I am certain I won’t win, I am certain that I […]

  2. […] a fellow expat at Sunshines & Siestas, tagged me in the Capture the Color competition. While I am certain I won’t win, I am certain that I […]

Speak Your Mind

*

CommentLuv badge

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.