Tag Archives: lights

A Narrow Passage.

A narrow walkway at night, Zaragoza, Spain.
“A Narrow Passage.” — A narrow walkway at night, Zaragoza, Spain

One of our pleasures when we travel is just plain wandering. While we do hit some of the “must see” sites, we also just go out and walk, sometimes without any specific goal. We think this is one of the best ways to get a feel for a city — to plunge in and go where the locals are, even if lack of language skills and cultural familiarity may us feel a bit awkward. That is more or less how I ended up in this spot.

This is an interesting street (walkway? passage?) in Zaragoza. It is very narrow, rivaling some of the remarkably narrow passageways in Venice. It was almost deserted — a few people passed by before I made the photograph. But that wasn’t because it was late — it was because it was too early! In Zaragoza the restaurant and bars that line this walkway open late, well after our familiar American dinner hour. A bit later these shuttered businesses would open and people would populate the scene.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” from Heyday Books, is available directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Mercado de Navidad, Plaza Mayor

Mercado de Navidad, Plaza Mayor, Madrid.
“Mercado de Navidad, Plaza Mayor” — Crowds at the Christmas market at Plaza Mayor, Madrid.

One of the great things about travel is that you get to enjoy being naive. No, really. When you go to new places, it is completely normal to not understand everything you see, every tradition, every experience, every norm. It happens in different ways, both major and minor. It happened on this late 2024 trip to parts of Germany, France, and Spain. We knew that we would visit German Christmas markets, but they we learned that Germany has no monopoly on these seasonal events, and they are popular everywhere.

The market in Madrid’s Plaza Mayor was one of the larger ones we encountered in that city. We intended to mostly avoid this tourist magnet, but we ended up there for several reasons after all. First, it seemed to us that we were seeing a lot of Spanish people there — not just international tourists. Second, it was quite impressive to see the place decked out in holiday lights.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” from Heyday Books, is available directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Holiday Lights, Mercado de San Miguel

Holiday Lights, Mercado de San Miguel
“Holiday Lights, Mercado de San Miguel” — Night photograph of Madrid’s Mercado de San Miguel with holiday lights.

Yes, the Mercado de San Miguel is a tourist hub, and yes it is right next door to another hub, the Plaza Mayor. While you probably don’t want to spend your entire time in Madrid at such places, this mercado is kind of fun and has a lot to offer. Our favorite vendor sells vermut and skewered treats built around fascinating variations on the traditional gilda. If you go, embrace the crowdedness and enjoy the food.

On this evening we passed by a bit later — we were not there to eat, but instead were on a walk to some other locations. Surprisingly the crowds had diminished a bit, and we were able to enjoy the holiday decorations on the building as we walked along.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” from Heyday Books, is available directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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El Madroño, Madrid

El Madroño, Madrid
“El Madroño, Madrid” — El Madroño, Madrid

Madrid was filled with people celebrating the holiday season when we visited in December. Every evening thousands of people filled the streets in the area where we were staying, and holiday lights were everywhere. There was a big Christmas market at the Plaza Mayor and smaller ones elsewhere. We did not go to Madrid specifically for the holiday events, but we got into the spirit once we saw what was going on.

But none of that is visible in this photograph, made at night not far from where the big crowds were. We were exploring the area, wandering this way and that and turning up interesting lanes. I spotted this building across the street — nothing all that special about the place, but I love photographing night scenes with varied lighting sources, especially when a bit of moisture makes the streets and sidewalks glow and reflect the light.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.