Morpeth Camera Club: Margaret’s eye-catching images from her travels

Her presentation entitled ‘The Year before the New Normal’ included stories and photographs when on her travels to Jordan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan in 2019.

She began by explaining the history of Kazakhstan and its past links with Russia before showing images of its capital Astana, a surprisingly modern 20th Century city with its stunning Peace Palace designed by Norman Foster, sparkling mosques, the Palace of Independence and National Museum.

Then onward to Kyrgyzstan, which in contrast to Kazakhstan is a less affluent area, with old trolley buses, street stalls and cobblers and rustic rural villages showcased.

Margaret described having a meal with a local household and showed landscapes of an eye-catching area with its red soil and dramatic rock formations shaped by wind erosion.

She then took members on a photographic trip to Jordan – firstly to the Jerash ruins of Jordan, said to be the best preserved Roman ruins outside of Italy.

A visit to the ancient city of Petra, on the trade route from Damascus to Saudi Arabia, followed.

A visit to Wadi Rum, or Valley of the Moon, concluded Margaret’s presentation, with images of huge rock formations forming gorges, arches and vibrant red sand dunes, travelling on to the Dead Sea with its salt formed cauliflower-shaped creations which contrasted with the azure coloured waters.