Photo Challenge – Page 209

A Lingering Look at Windows: Week 16

This weekly challenge is hosted by Dawn from ‘The Day After’ who invites participants to post pictures of any windows that they find curious, inviting, photogenic, or in some way tell a story. Visit her blog to see more windows and/or to join in with the challenge.

Union Station in San Diego, California, much more commonly known as the Santa Fe Depot, is a train station built by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway to replace the small Victorian-style structure erected in 1887 for the California Southern Railroad Company. The massive arch of the front entrance is flanked by twin campaniles, each topped by a colourful tile-covered dome and displaying Santa Fe’s blue “cross” emblem on all four sides.

It’s quite difficult to get a good shot of the exterior of this building due to the numerous palm trees surrounding it, except from above.

The Spanish Colonial Revival style station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its architecture, particularly the signature twin domes, is often echoed in the design of modern buildings in Downtown San Diego. The magnificent complex was designed by San Francisco architects Bakewell and Brown as a “monumental reminder” of California’s Spanish heritage.

The grand interior space of the depot features natural redwood beam ceilings, highlighted by walls covered with a brightly coloured ceramic tile wainscot. Not forgetting the beautifully curved windows.

The glazed faience tile used in the wainscot was manufactured by the California China Products Company of nearby National City. Elaborate Hispano-Moorish designs are executed in green, yellow, blue, white, and black and the bottom and top edges are finished with a frieze of stylised ziggurats

The structure draws much more heavily from the architecturally distinctive Spanish, Moorish, and Mexican lines exhibited by the Mission San Luís Rey de Francia (located in the town of Oceanside in north San Diego County) than it does from the nearby Mission San Diego de Alcalá, some nine miles (14 km) away.

The historic depot is located in Centre City (Downtown San Diego) and is still an active transportation center, providing services to Amtrak, the San Diego Coaster, the San Diego Trolley, and the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System bus system.

And though the station is beautifully designed both inside and out, the warning on the door windows is somewhat frightening.

Source: Wikipedia

A Stroll Around Ludlow Castle

” And so they came to Ludlow, which some say is the fairest country town in England. In the twelfth century its walls were pierced with seven gates of which only one now remains, but everything else about it today is overshadowed by its magnificent castle, a memorial to the days when its courtyards echoed to the ring of steel and armoured knights rode over the drawbridge to fight the marauding Welsh.” Malcolm Saville, 1958

(click on an image to enlarge)

Start in the castle gardens

Choose a pathway

Looking back

Last Monday the weather was so good that I popped out for a stroll around Ludlow Castle. This is a ruin, but quite an interesting one, and it dominates the skyline from the river side of the town. It has a combination of architecture from Norman, Medieval and Tudor times. Parts date from the 11th century when built by Walter de Lacy.

It was enlarged by Roger Mortimer in the 14th century and has been in the hands of the Earls of Powis since 1811. The castle was a seat of government for Wales for a time and it was involved in the Wars of the Roses. Often events are held in the castle such as the Christmas Medieval Fayre (late November) and the Ludlow Festival held in the summer which features an open-air production of Shakespeare.

Red cars seem popular

Always look up

Welsh Harp

Starting in the castle gardens at the end of Castle Square (where the open market is held at least three times a week) , this walk takes you down Dinham, past a few Georgian houses and this timber-framed example which must have been a public house once as there is a Welsh Harp hanging outside. Then exit right through the outer castle wall.

Through the arch

Sheltered Walk

Towards the other arch

After leaving the path next to the outer wall you find yourself above the River Teme and Dinham Bridge. With the castle behind you, turn right along a dirt track which leads around the base of the castle. This leads to a lovely bench where you can rest and admire the beautiful views.

Turn right

Follow the track

And find the seat

And admire the views and the river below

Unless you have the feet of a goat, and I don’t, you need to turn round here and head back to the archway, then make your way down hill and around the castle on a lower level path.

Looking back at the castle and arch

On the lower path

This way leads down to the river and Dinham Bridge

The path splits and you can head even further down to the river and the Dinham bridge and a lovely café where you can have lunch, or tea and cake or simply an ice-cream. But we are going to carry on up the hill and make our way around the castle back to the square.

Carry on up the hill

The imposing castle ruins

This way?

This is a very short walk, but it can take a while, if like me, you stop to look at the views, take photos and sit and enjoy the sun. At then end of the walk, near the square you’ll find another bench to rest your feet, before completing the loop.

The end is near

Maybe another rest?

And a quick peek through the gates.

Have a final glimpse of the castle through the gates. If you want to enter it will cost £5 per adult or more for special events like Knight Jousting or the Food Festival. There’s lots to explore inside the grounds and you can climb the towers for spectacular views over the town and countryside. Maybe another time 🙂

I’m combining Cee’s Which Way Challenge with Jo’s Monday Walk this week as they seem to complement each other.

Join in with Cee’s challenge and view other ‘Which Ways’.
and take a look at Jo’s Monday Walks over on Restlessjo’s blog where you are in for a treat.

O for OBECNÍ DŮM

frizztext hosts a weekly A – Z Challenge

Event Type: General Blogging

Start Date: Tuesdays, recurring weekly

Description: Every Tuesday I offer the “A to Z challenge”, walking step by step through the alphabet.

If you would like to join in then please click here

OBECNÍ DŮM / The Municipal House / Prague, Czech Republic

is Prague’s most prominent Art Nouveau building. It is a civic building and concert hall and located on Náměstí Republiky 5 next to the Powder Gate. It is a beautiful building from all aspects. The outside has intricate stonework, gold trimmings, frescos and stained glass windows.

The Smetana concert hall is an architectural masterpiece, a mix of carved white stone and gold, illuminated by hundreds of lights, and with frescos by Karel Spillar adorning the walls. It is home to the Czech National Symphony Orchestra.

A couple of restaurants and an American bar can also be found inside the building though many of the rooms are closed to the public and open only for guided tours. Unfortunately we didn’t manage to time it right, so only had a glimpse of what lies inside.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Monument

Homecoming

The work, “Unconditional Surrender” by Seward Johnson II, is based on a famous Life magazine photo by Alfred Eisenstaedt taken in Times Square on Aug. 14, 1945, the day the Japanese announced their surrender. In response to copyright issues, Johnson states that he used a similar photograph of the kissing couple taken by Victor Jorgensen, which is still in the public domain

The statue represents what is an incredible moment in any service member’s life.

This more than life size statue made of a foam core with a urethane outer layer was a temporary exhibit on the San Diego harbour park, near to the Midway until May 2012. It was criticised for being “kitsch” but many couples liked to imitate the pose, and in a navy town it is most appropriate. Wikipedia

Apparently it has been replaced with a bronze statue though I don’t know of its size. Maybe you have seen the new statue?

If you would like to see what others have come up with for this challenge then go to the Daily Post @ WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge

Travel Theme: Clean

Ailsa of “Where’s My Backpack?” is concerned about clean air and is choosing CLEAN for the theme this week. If you would like to join in with her challenge then please do. Everyone is welcome.

My personal bugbear is that of clean water. We take it for granted that we can turn on a tap and have water so good we can drink it, let alone wash in it or clean our clothes in it. Sadly this isn’t the case in a lot of the world.

In Slovenia in the Vintgar Gorge flows some of the clearest water I have ever seen. The 1.6 km long Vintgar gorge carves its way through the vertical rocks of the Hom and Bort hills and is graced by the Radovna with its waterfalls, pools and rapids.

Discovered in 1891 by Jakob Žumer and Benedikt Lergetporer, the gorge was soon after equipped with wooden observation walkways and bridges, and was opened to the public on August 26, 1893. Wikipedia

On a hot day there is nothing better than walking through this gorge in the shade with the sound of the water beside you.

Where is the clearest, cleanest water you have seen?