In the last few days I've trying to decide for myself, "Was 2021 a shitty year or not?"

I am still unable to decide. Of course, it had its ups and downs. I love photography, I love to travel. This year, 2021, I had an anniversary. It was not possible to celebrate it the way I would usually do that. I didn't have that long awaited photo-travel to that amazing photographic destination I was planning. I had to replace it with another, just to have something, better than nothing!

It seems Nature agrees with me on that one, it was a shitty year in some regards; it also seems everybody was under pressure:

Well, life wasn't easy. We all agree!
I hope you see the humor in that photo above that I took near the salt-pans in Pomorie, a lovely town at Black Sea.

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Retrospectively though, with a hand on my heart, I am grateful for so many things of 2021. I was in good health. As I am an introvert (mostly) I didn't have any mental breakdowns. I had that one special person to share the lockdown days with and we had the chance to travel together few times this year too, with our cameras and the desire to discover and rediscover places we heard of and been before in new ways.

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The "substitute" travel on my birthday, for instance, brought us to an amazing church with unique history where I made that picture, with my favorite play of light diffraction:

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Returning to the Devil's Bridge over Arda river was a pleasant experience, a lovely evening and a magical moment as I met there a fairy who was learning how to fly at that time:

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To visit the beautiful dam called Zhrebchevo (in English that would be something like: called after steeds) was another photo-trip I was planning and postponing several times. Some ideas executed successfully and few new ones are waiting now to be executed too:

We were lucky to go there at a moment when the level of the water is low, otherwise the church could only be accessed with boats, you may see the dark bottom part of the building identifying where the water level usually is:

And few random folks helping me tell my story:

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We visited one strange place this year too, called Beglictash, an occult place with formations of huge rocks. The legend says if one has too many sins, s/he remains stuck between those huge rocks. Come, help this guy off :)))

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Another unforgettable event was the prom of the daughter of one of my cousins. It was like yesterday when she was s small pack in the arms of her parents and now she is almost taller than me, and trust me, I am a tall guy!

Here she is, one gorgeous young lady, dancing with her father and her guests at the party.

Happy and joyful moments.

I have to admit, it felt a bit strange, after the social isolation to feel "normal"-ish for a weekend!

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I am so grateful for those two photo-trips we had by the shores of Black Sea. One in the spring and one if the late autumn. I hate going to the sea in the active holiday season, from mid-June to the beginning of September, when it is overpopulated, it is hard to breathe and the seascapes and landscapes are dull.

I know I can only enjoy those places and moments without crowds around me:

See the setting sun through the eye of a sailing pirate:

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It was good to see I am not the only one who enjoys walks by the sea and the scenery views:

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One place that totally surprised me, few photos from a short visit in Burgas, the second largest city in Bulgaria on Black Sea, was its sea port and the life near the new buildings there, so artistic:

As the façade is tilted, it gives the base of a bit abstract shots:

To walk there and feel, and smell the sea, was simply awesome!

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A nice finding was this defensive bunker from World War II along the shore turned into a piece of art by graffiti artists:

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Am I deranged too? I don't know, it is not for me to say. But truth is, I start to see crypto everywhere :)))

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One final question, though. Is there light in the end of the tunnel?
I suppose the answer is positive, at least while there are people, paying tribute to artists like this, at places like that below:

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Let me tell you here, these were not my best photos from 2021. However, these are the photos that mean a lot to me, from places and moments that touched me and I will remember them all. I really hope you enjoyed my short recollection of 2021, inspired by the "Photography Lovers End of Year Contest" by @derangedvisions and with the kind support of the "Photography Lovers" community, @badge-696969.

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At the end, it seems 2021 wasn't a bad year after all, was it? :)

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My photo site: https://hadjiyvanov.com/

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Copyright: Light Captured
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Have a great day, stay safe, stay strong and let your muse be always on your shoulder!