Essaouira: Morocco’s seaside gem

May 24, 2020September 10, 2020 / mikeosbornphoto / 8 Comments

I was lucky enough to visit Morocco in February, before the coronavirus pandemic brought international travel to an abrupt halt.

My trip took me to the country’s Atlantic coastline with its warm winter sunshine. I spent a day in the town of Essaouira, which I can strongly recommend.

The old town’s ramparts are perched next to the lively ocean, and it’s full of colourful, rustic little streets to explore. Essaouira is very blue, including the boats of the bustling fishing port (pungent but well worth a look). Hungry gulls circle in clusters looking for morsels. There’s also a broad strip of beach away from the medina.

I came here in 2011 as part of a grand tour of Morocco and was charmed by it then. My opinion hasn’t altered and I could have spent several days there, watching people and taking more photographs. Read more beneath the gallery

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I thought long and hard about publishing a travel blog in a world where tourism has been severely curtailed.

Morocco is in lockdown until at least June 10th, while some European countries and airlines are planning to restart for the summer.

The UK’s ban on all but essential travel remains in place and a great deal remains uncertain. Essaouria and Morocco may be a consideration for your travel bucket list, whenever that may be possible.

The Chiswick stretch

February 22, 2015February 22, 2015 / mikeosbornphoto / 24 Comments

The west London suburb of Chiswick has a long high street lined with smart little shops and cafes. It has some grand houses and a smattering of celebrity residents. I forget that it possesses its very own stretch of the River Thames, which meanders up to Kew Bridge. It includes the wooded haven of Oliver’s Island and a smattering of quaint pubs and cottages.

A man and his dog were paddling as we walked, while the gulls were in fine form. Past the river you find the incredibly tall and ornate Kew Bridge water tower. As we pressed on, there was a less attractive encounter with the vast Chiswick roundabout and its flyover – this London neighbourhood has it all…

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: An old sign on Chiswick roundabout

: Beneath the traffic flyover

The feathered on film

July 18, 2012August 19, 2016 / mikeosbornphoto / 4 Comments

I’m no wildlife photographer. For a start, it’s pretty thin on the ground here in west London and it isn’t one of my favourite photographic subjects.

But from time to time, birds make their way into a frame – and some are quite captivating. For me, it’s mostly the gulls along the Thames along with the odd cormorant with its wings outstretched, and the wild fowl that inhabit my home town of Maldon in Essex.

Of course I can’t forget the majestic swan bobbing along in the city parks and rivers where I find myself with camera in hand. In this set there is a gull looking out to sea in Redcliffe, a coastal suburb of Brisbane in Australia. It’s the one bird capture which had human essence…