Alba Estela - Not far from home.

Within the Field

A different view
of the familiar.

A few days off, and the possibility of going somewhere new. Alba had imagined heading into the mountains, leaving the everyday behind for a while. But life had been busy. The days drew closer, and nothing had been organised.

So she stayed close to home.

In Girona, where the mountains and the coast are within reach, that still leaves plenty of room to explore. What begins as a change of plan becomes a chance to look again. At the places she knows. At the way she spends her time. At what it means to be able to move.

At home

Room for a slower morning.

There is coffee, music, and time to let the morning take shape. A map to look over. A run to plan. A book to return to. Without a journey to organise or a fixed itinerary to follow, there is room to pay attention to what is already around her.

The days are still her own, even if she has stayed in the place where she usually spends them. Familiar surroundings make space for a different pace. She begins rediscovering the places nearby, rather than looking further away for somewhere worth going.

There is more than enough here. It takes a few unplanned days to notice it again.

Moving again

The need to move.

For Alba, the appeal of movement lies in exploring her own capacity. That takes different forms: strength built through CrossFit, longer days on the trails, or the patience of learning to read a wave. Her curiosity keeps her returning, each experience giving her a better understanding of what she can do.

Months of illness and injury have changed that relationship. An inflamed Achilles tendon forced Alba to slow down for months. Wanting to move and being able to move are no longer things she can take for granted. Coming back takes time. The patience required is part of the return, even on the days when she would rather be doing more.

The wooded path follows the River Ter out of Girona towards the surrounding villages. A short run here can now feel special. The distance matters less than the simple fact that she can be out there again. There is room for ambition, but also an appreciation of what her body allows her to do today.

She still likes pushing her own limits. She is learning to recognise the days when progress asks her to slow down.

“These days, even a short run through the forest feels special.”

Alba

First light

A place she knows.
A morning she hasn’t seen.

Some of her favourite moments begin before sunrise. On Bastiments, in the Vallter area, she walks uphill with a headlamp lighting the way, wondering what will be waiting at the top. She may know the route. The morning is still an unknown.

Clear skies, a sea of clouds, the first light reaching the mountains. A familiar summit offers something different each time. Returning gives her the chance to notice those changes, to see how much a place can hold when she gives it more than one visit.

There is effort in getting there, and time spent moving before the view reveals itself. These are the moments she keeps coming back for. Close to home, but with enough space to feel removed from the everyday.

Through Alba’s lens

In her photographs, we see where she stopped to look.

Alba is also a photographer. Her love of photography is closely connected to the time she spends outdoors. Walking with a camera gives her a reason to look more closely: at the first light on a ridge, the shapes of the landscape, or a moment that might otherwise pass unnoticed.

Taking the photograph is one part of that process. Editing gives her time to return to it, working with light, colour and tone to preserve something of how it felt to be there.

By the sea

Time to wait.

At L’Estartit, the rhythm changes. The sea asks something different of her.

Surfing leaves room for preparation, but there is only so much she can decide. She can be ready, board in hand, and still spend more time waiting than riding. The waves arrive in their own time.

She has learned to enjoy the waiting too. Watching the horizon. Feeling the water. Letting her attention settle on what is happening around her, without needing the next thing to arrive.

After an injury has asked her to be patient with her body, the sea gives that patience another setting. There is something to take from the time between waves as well as the moments when she catches one.

Already here

Back to everyday life.

Alba grew up in Menorca, and it will always feel like home. Girona has become home in a different way. It is where she has built her everyday life, with the mountains and the coast close enough to become part of it.

Back at her desk, the days outside return on the screen.
A summit, a stretch of forest, the light on the water. She spends time grading the photographs, adjusting colour and contrast, shaping the tones and bringing the atmosphere of each moment into the image. Photography gives the experience a second rhythm: first out in the landscape, then in the quiet concentration of editing at home.

Then Monday comes. She puts on her doctor’s coat, picks up her stethoscope, and returns to work. The mornings in the mountains, the time by the sea, the photographs and her work all belong to the same life.

She still wants to travel, discover new places, and take on new challenges. These days have reminded her how much there is to find nearby.
Sometimes what she needs is a mountain at sunrise. Sometimes it is the sea. Sometimes it is simply a quiet morning at home.

There is still so much to discover. Much of it is already here.