Nicolas Mertens' photos

© Nicolas Mertens. All Rights Reserved. Menorca: First Tourists of the Year—The Algaiarens and Es Tancats Beaches. Less crowded on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans, photography, & Nicolas Mertens, editing. All Rights Reserved. Menorca: Sant Tomàs Beach. Farther away on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Nicolas Mertens. All Rights Reserved. ... between sea and sky. Menorca: Cala Morell. Bluer on black: press Z (or click the photo :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (editing). All Rights Reserved. Mallorca: the Cabrera Islands seen from the cliffs of Cala Pi. Extensive history in es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isla_de_Cabrera . Great performance of Nemo at the Eurovision, yesterday. I guess he deserved to win, but my favorite was Bambie Thug: www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMq8ofCstMQ :) More tempestuous on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (editing). All Rights Reserved. Mallorca: Cala Molins. More bubblious on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Nicolas Mertens. All Rights Reserved. Open to interpretations! More metaphorical on black: press Z (or click the photo :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (edition). All Rights Reserved. ... somewher in Riga, Latvia. More veloce on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (edition). All Rights Reserved. Menorca: Alaior—Our friendly neighbor. More amicable on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (edition). All Rights Reserved. This is not Antonio Bay. This is Alaior, Menorca, where a fog appears once in a blue moon. John Carpenter's movie (1980) was on TV the other day, hence this goofy play on the subject. The lettering is from one of the movie's many posters and DVD covers. I could not find the name of the artist. More playful on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (edition). All Rights Reserved. Menorca: Alaior—Days of Flowers and Gastronomy & Menorca Wines. More bacchanalian on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (edition). All Rights Reserved. ... except the beard. The beard is taking another route and comes out through the ears. And don't be afraid to say it frankly: the mustache is now coming out through the nose! More disgusting on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

I found this at the local mini mart. 10 €. I wonder how much it is down there. Any South African in ipernity? Anyway, it was really good, well-chilled, over poached salmon :) And I love the label! Makes you dream... More exotic on black: press Z (or click the photo :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (editing). All Rights Reserved. Latvia: Riga—The National Library of Latvia (Gunnar Birkerts, arch.) In case you saw Stephan Rick's pathetic movie, The Good Neighbor (2022), this is NOT the terminal of Riga's International Airport! Wiser on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

Laurent de Brunhoff often said that, Babar, c'est moi. . I learned only today that he died on March 22. Babar is one of those characters we grew up with, not only in the Francophonie but also in the rest of world. Fortunately for all the kids everywhere, les aventures de Babar le petit éléphant were translated in many languages, just like Spirou, Tintin, and many others...

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens, editing). All Rights Reserved. Latvia: Ventspils and the Venta River. The left bank was being renovated when this picture was taken. It seems that the cranes and structures on the right bank were also given a fresh coat of paint. If you have access to Google's Street View, see how pretty it is now. More dressed up on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (editing). All Rights Reserved. Latvia: Mangaļsala at the mouth of the Daugava River. The beach, the pier, the beacon, and the seagulls... More breathable on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (edition). All Rights Reserved. Latvia: the Daugava River in Riga, seen from the Vanšu Bridge. The pretty thing in the middle of the picture is the Riga Radio and Television Tower ( Rīgas radio un televīzijas tornis, ) a.k.a. Zaķusala Television Tower (Zaķusalas televīzijas tornis ) for the name of the island where it sits. The tower on the right is a bank. More illusionary on black: press Z (or click the picture :)

© Lilita Meirans (photography) & Nicolas Mertens (edition). All Rights Reserved. Czechia: Prague—The Astronomical Clock ( Pražský orloj. ) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prague_astronomical_clock More apostolic on black: press Z (or click the picture :) Note. The big picture on the left does not correspond exactly to reality. First of all, the tower is the result of merging three disparate photos that were not intended to be merged in the first place (see the thumbnail). Then, the façades on the left and right sides of the tower are totally fake, being the result of Photoshop's "generative filling" engine. It's impressive but unreal. Finally, I added a cloudy sky that corresponds more or less to the real sky seen on the photo of the Old Town Square. In spite of "generative AI filling," I do not consider this montage as completely AI-generated because, 1) it was not generated through verbal or written input, and 2) it is far from being completely fantastic and/or phantasmagorical.