CANBERRA, BY THE LAKE

Lake Burley Griffin is an artificial lake in the centre of Canberra, the capital of Australia. It was completed in 1963 after the Molonglo River—which ran between the city centre and Parliamentary Triangle—was dammed. It is named after Walter Burley Griffin, the American architect who won the competition to design the city of Canberra.

This post is part of the Weekend Reflections meme,

and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.

SUNRISE IN THE PARKLANDS

Darebin Parklands, in Fairfield/Alphington/Ivanhoe, is a pocket of natural bushland that is unique given it is only 7 km from the Melbourne CBD. There are hidden treasures within the park including remnant orchards and crops that were grown on the fringe of a growing city during the mid-1800s. A dairy farm, vineyard, quarry and tip site were all at times active industries within the bounds of the park, and clues of this can still be found if one knows where to look. Sunrise there is quite magical.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Saturday Silhouettes meme,
and also part of the Weekend Reflections meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.

SUNSET FROM MY WINDOW

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Saturday Silhouettes meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.

HORSES AT SUNDOWN

This post is part of the Saturday Silhouettes meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme,
and also part of the Saturday Critters meme,
and also part of the Camera Critters meme.

DUTCH SILHOUETTE

A photo I took when I was living in Holland, after an afternoon bicycle ride to Katwijk from Leiden. A magical moment I am glad I preserved on film.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Saturday Silhouettes meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.

CHURCH OF SAVIOUR, ST PETERSBURG

The Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood (Russian: Церковь Спаса на Крови, Tserkovʹ Spasa na Krovi) is one of the main sights of St. Petersburg, Russia. Other names include the Church on Spilt Blood (Russian: Церковь на Крови, Tserkov’ na Krovi) and the Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ (Russian: Собор Воскресения Христова, Sobor Voskreseniya Khristova). This Church was built on the site where Emperor Alexander II was severely wounded and died in March 1881.The church was built from 1883 till 1907. The construction was funded by the imperial family.

Construction began in 1883 during the reign of Alexander III. The church was dedicated to be a memorial to his father, Alexander II. Estimates suggest that the construction cost 4.5 million rubles. The construction was complete during the reign of Nicholas II in 1907. Funding was provided by the Imperial family with the support of many private donors. The Church is prominently situated along the Griboedov Canal; paved roads run along both sides of the canal. On March 13, 1881 (Julian date: March 1), as Tsar Alexander's carriage passed along the embankment, a grenade thrown by an anarchist conspirator exploded. The tsar, shaken but unhurt, got out of the carriage and started to remonstrate with the presumed culprit. A second conspirator took the chance to throw another bomb, killing himself and mortally wounding the tsar. The tsar, bleeding heavily, was taken back to the Winter Palace where he died a few hours later.

Architecturally, the Cathedral differs from St. Petersburg's other structures. The city's architecture is predominantly Baroque and Neoclassical, but the Saviour on Blood harks back to medieval Russian architecture in the spirit of romantic nationalism. It intentionally resembles the 17th-century Yaroslavl churches and the celebrated St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow. The Church contains over 7500 square meters of mosaics (according to its restorers, more than any other church in the world).

The interior was designed by some of the most celebrated Russian artists of the day, including Viktor Vasnetsov, Mikhail Nesterov and Mikhail Vrubel. The church's chief architect, Alfred Alexandrovich Parland, was relatively little-known (born in St. Petersburg in 1842 in a Baltic-German Lutheran family). Perhaps not surprisingly, the Church's construction ran well over budget, having been estimated at 3.6 million rubles but ending up costing over 4.6 million. The walls and ceilings inside the Church are completely covered in intricately detailed mosaics — the main pictures being biblical scenes or figures — but with very fine patterned borders setting off each picture.

This post is part of the Scenic Weekends meme,
and also part of the Spiritual Sundays meme,

and also part of the inSPIREd Sunday meme.

OUTBACK AUSTRALIA

The Outback is the vast, remote, arid area of Australia. The term "the outback" is generally used to refer to locations that are comparatively more remote than those areas named "the bush" which, colloquially, can refer to any lands outside the main urban areas. Because of the low and erratic rainfall over most of the outback, combined with soils which are usually not very fertile, inland Australia is relatively sparsely settled. More than 90 percent of Australians live in urban areas on the coast.

The total population of the Outback in Australia declined from 700,000 in 1996 to 690,000 in 2006. Largest decline was noted in Outback NT, while Kimberley and Pilbara showed population increase during the same period. The sex ratio is 104 males for 100 females and 17% of the total population is indigenous.

Other than agriculture and tourism, the main economic activity in this vast and sparsely settled area is mining. Owing to the complete absence of mountain building and glaciation since the Permian (in many areas since the Cambrian) ages, the outback is extremely rich in iron, aluminium, manganese and uranium ores, and also contains major deposits of gold, nickel, iron, lead and zinc ores. Because of its size, the value of grazing and mining is considerable.

There is much beauty within the Outback, with vast, unspoilt tracts of land, desert and scrubland, hidden oases and watercourses, striking rock formations, unusual vegetation, striking soil and mineral colours, our native animals, and amazing vistas at sunrise and sunset. There is terror also, with droughts, bushfires, floods and other natural disasters...

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Saturday Silhouettes meme,
and also part of the Weekend Reflections meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.

HINT OF SPRING

This post is part of the Scenic Weekends meme,
and also part of the Weekend in Black and White meme.

HA LONG BAY - VIETNAM

Ha Long Bay, situated in the Gulf of Tonkin, includes some 1600 islands and islets forming a spectacular seascape of limestone pillars. Because of their precipitous nature, most of the islands are uninhabited and relatively unaffected by human influence.  The bay is located 160 km away east of Hanoi and it takes about 3 – 3.5 hours to get there by car or minibus. 

Ha Long literally means “descending dragon” and according to local myth, long ago when their forefathers were fighting foreign invaders from the north, the gods from heaven sent a family of dragons to help defend their land. This family of dragons descended upon what is now Ha Long Bay and began spitting out jewels and jade. Upon hitting the sea, these jewels turned into the various islands and islets dotting the seascape and formed a formidable fortress against the invaders. The locals were able to keep their land safe and formed what is now the country of Vietnam. The Dragon family fell so much in love with this area for its calm water and for the reverence of the people of Vietnam that they decided to remain on earth. This is a perfect day trip out from Hanoi.

On the way to Ha Long, one passes many small towns and villages around which are market gardens and many rice paddies.

Rice cultivation requires much back-breaking work, most of it done by women.

We stopped at an embroidery and craft workshop where many young people were working, once again, mainly women.

A sample of the women's handiwork.

The harbour at Ha Long, with numerous vessels that take the tourists on trips out on the bay.

Sailing out on the bay in a beautiful old wooden boat.

We had a tasty, traditional Vietnamese lunch on board the boat.

On the 28 April 1962 Ha Long Bay was established as a historical and cultural relic and national scenic spot under Decision No. 313/VH VP, issued by the Minister of Culture in Vietnam and is

on the Unesco World Heritage List.

The Junks, are built in Vietnam using local materials and the handiwork of skilled shipbuilders, craftsmen and artists. As in the days of old they are built entirely of wood.

 One of the floating villages in the bay. A community of around 1,600 people live on Hạ Long Bay in four fishing villages: Cửa Vạn, Ba Hang, Cống Tàu and Vông Viêng in Hùng Thắng commune, Hạ Long city. They live on floating houses and are sustained through fishing and marine aquaculture.

Another beautiful junk negotiating its way between the rocky crags of the islets.

The floating villages are supported somewhat by tourist-oriented activities such as selling crafts and fruit or renting out kayaks.

A fruit vendor near one of the floating villages.

The scenery is truly spectacular!

Many of the islands are associated with local myths and legends and have been given specific names, e.g. "Kissing Rocks", "Turtle Island", "Cat Island", etc.

Many of the islands have limestone grottoes and we visited one of the most famous ones, Thien Cung. The sign says it all.

A causeway and several flights of steep stairs up the cliff lead to the entrance of the cave.

The grotto is enormous and has some spectacular formations in it.  Local legend has it, that beautiful young lady named Mây (cloud), caught the eye of the Dragon Prince and he fell in love with her. They were betrothed, and their wedding lasted seven days and seven nights in the very centre of the grotto. In honour of the wedding, small dragons flew about through the stalactites and stalagmites, elephants danced together happily, snakes twined themselves around trees and two stone lions danced with their manes flowing in the wind. A large elephant, smartly dressed, waited for the bride and the groom. The genies of the south and north stars also came to attend the banquet, and the atmosphere was definitely animated and lively. All these scenes have been turned to stone in the grotto. 

It is very hard to not take many many photographs in this grotto!

The enormous scale of this chamber is indicated by the tiny figures of the people in the lower centre of the picture.

Last one!

It's a popular place! Junks waiting to take the visitors back to Ha Long City.

We had to pass through 4-5 junks that were moored next to each other to get to our own!

We made a stop at a roadside café and trading centre. This beautiful tropical lily was growing in the garden. Does anybody know what it is called?

Fruit for sale, beginning for the apples and going anticlockwise: Peaches, sugar bananas, pomelos, large and small mangoes and in the centre, dragonfruit.

I rather like this slightly impressionistic shot taken from onboard the bus.