Autumn colours have just started to arrive in our valley

How pretty! :)

Lovely scene,Gattina..and I like your visitor on the roof :o)

Not so very far behind us then Gattina.....Very pretty

No, we aren't far behind, but as you may remember, P, a couple of hundred metres further up the mountain, Autumn had arrived about a month ago. There is now visible snow on the the highest Appennines.
Yes, Bloomer, the duck is rather aloof, and deigns to spend time with her fellows down in the muddy courtyard. She's there night and day. I'm sure she must get lonely. Their owner, our neighbour Gianni, is too lazy to spend time clipping their wings, so if they discover they can actually fly, away they go. Not too far from the daily feed, though.

This is almost like naive painting! No, Dutch countryside painting. Sooo B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L.

You don't get many ducks in Dutch paintings, Katarina!
I particularly like the old roof tiles - I think I might try painting them one day - the textures and colours are amazing.

Hope you do decide to paint again,Gattina..that would be lovely to see :o)

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dutch_Painting_in_the_19th_Century_-_Willem_Maris_-_Ducks_in_their_Element.png

I stand corrected and I bow to your superior knowledge, Katarina! I don't know Willem Maris's work at all. I only ever think of Dutch art being that of the 17th century - Rembrandt, Pieter de Hooch, etc..

You sure you didn't take that photo in our valley? Apart from the Muscovy on the roof I can match it for trees, rocks, leaf colour and roof tops. We just get wandering cows gazing into our side window and the village dogs barking at me while perched on OUR wall, for daring to be in MY OWN house doing MY ironing in MY room!

They'd have trouble looking into this window - it's our bathroom and it's three floors up! We get geese getting stroppy at us for using our own gate into our own road. I've got the measure of them now - I wave my arms and hiss at them. Shocked the life out of the guy from the water company the other day who'd come to read the meter just round the corner.

Beautiful photo gattina.

I treat the dogs the same way - not yet been caught snarling and showing my teeth at them, but you can bet it's on the cards! ;o)

Send me a preview invitation - I HAVE to be there for that!

lol