Jakesprinter Sunday Post

Sunday Post : Splendid

Would you believe it, he’s got me singing again!  Jakesprinter that is.  His theme for this week’s Sunday Post is Splendid.  So what was I singing?  “Love is a many splendoured thing”, of course.  Quite appropriate as it’s my wedding anniversary this week.

Splendour is a wonderfully old fashioned word.  It suggests to me churches and ornate beauty.  Splendid is maybe a little more casual?

Durham Cathedral and Cloisters

Wawel Cathedral in Krakow

St. Elizabeth’s Chapel, Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Wroclaw

Oratorium in Wroclaw University

Ruined Whitby Abbey

Silk panelled walls in Newstead Abbey

The Moors understood the concept of splendid extremely well.

The Lion Courtyard, Alhambra Palace, Granada

A room with a view (Sacromonte, from the Alhambra)

Gardens of the Real Alcazar, Seville

As usual, I had great fun with this.  What will Jake come up with for me to sing along to next week?  You’ll have to come back to find out.  Better still, why not join in the challenge yourself?  Follow the links or click on the flying dragon logo for details.

Don’t forget to check out some of the other great and varied entries:

http://cyclingrandma.wordpress.com/2012/06/05/monet-at-the-ny-botanical-garden/

http://cuoreq.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/sunday-post-splendid/

http://imagesoftheheart.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/sunday-post-splendid/

http://bopaula.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/sunday-post-splendid/

http://drieskewrites.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/sunday-post-splendid/

http://canoecommunications.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/splendid-lines-of-waterfalls/

http://36beauty5.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/sunday-post-splendid/

http://nprimopiano.wordpress.com/2010/01/10/white-stars/

http://africatoalgarve.blogspot.pt/2012/08/splendid.html

http://jobryantnz.wordpress.com/2012/08/06/sunday-post-splendid/

http://shareandconnect.wordpress.com/2012/08/06/weekly-photo-challenge-splendid/#comment-1017

http://francineinretirement.wordpress.com/2012/08/06/sunday-post-splendid-2/#comment-6505

http://piecesofstarlight.wordpress.com/2012/08/06/late-sunday-afternoon-post-splendor/#comment-1525

Sunday Post : Road

Why is it that whenever I see Jakesprinter’s new challenge, a song comes into my head?  This week’s topic Road had the same effect, and I’ve found myself singing McCartney’s “The Long and Winding Road” at intervals all week.  Surely a hint, and time to put pen to paper.

The road I had in mind was my long and sometimes deviating road through life.  Slightly crazy in my youth, I guess I haven’t really changed as much as I might think.  Mellowed, shall we say?

I imagined taking you on a photographic oddessy through my life, but I’ve settled instead for an illustration of one of it’s many twists.  This week I am escorting my lovely Polish niece, Basia, around England’s north east.  Lively Newcastle-on-Tyne, and Durham’s inspiring Castle tour both scored hits.  Even the spell on the roof of Durham Cathedral, clutching umbrellas damply, didn’t spoil our enthusiasm.  But it was in historic York that I had to marvel at the ability of some of England’s roads to adapt and survive.

York Minster, the Cathedral

Stonegate is at the heart of the walled city of York, which was founded by the Romans in 71AD.  Six feet below its pavement lies the Via Praetoria, which connected the Roman fortress to the civilian settlement of Eboracum (York) across the River Ouse.  The name Stonegate is thought to derive from the quantity of stone transported along it during the building of York Minster.

In the Middle Ages the road fell under the jurisdiction of the Minster, and was home to goldsmiths, printers and glassmakers, trades related to the Cathedral.  Today Stonegate is a pedestrianised hub of tourism.

A touch of whimsy as the “statue” pedals down Stonegate

So many shops to choose from

Some a little strange

Some, not so strange

Some, more traditional

But the antiquity cannot be denied

Fashioning gold and painting glass must have been thirsty work

Such a stylish emporium!

A little fashion?

With a hint of refinement, even at Sale time

I can’t help liking them all.

This road has certainly withstood the test of time.

I am again indebted to Jakesprinter for hosting his Sunday Post.  Follow the links or the dragon logo to see other interpretations of this weeks challenge.  What does the word road conjure for you?  Why not join in, if not now, then next week?

Sunday Post : Collectibles

Having just returned from Wrocław with over 300 photos, you could say that I collect photographs!  However it’s wonderful of Jake to unexpectedly present me with the opportunity to display some of them with his theme for this week, Collectibles.

My uncle Włodek lives in the Polish town of Zgorzelec, snuggled so closely to the border with Germany that it has a counterpart across the River Neisse, in Gorlitz.  The two are one, but divided by language and a boundary.  On Saturday morning when we went to explore this curiosity, it transpired that there was a large market in process, and the following caught my eye.

Don’t you love this pottery?

Or maybe this style?

With a tealight? Delicious!

Motyli – butterflies.  I don’t know what they are in German?

Something more for the garden?

 

Or maybe him? He’s looking pensive.

 

While the horse looks patiently on.

I have to confess, I love pottery and spent happy minutes just browsing.  When it comes to collecting, though, my real vice is postcards.  I filled a suitcase with them, and when it was overflowing, decided enough was enough.  But I still gaze longingly at postcard stands.

So much “stuff” we collect!  One of my nieces came back to England with me and we were looking in the local museum yesterday.  The teddy bear collection was everybody’s favourite.  Winnie the Pooh and Paddington Bear -what would life be without them?

Many thanks again to Jake for presenting yet another opportunity to share my world.  I’m late this week (for good reason) but maybe you’d like to join in next week?  The details are all on Jakesprinters home page.

Sunday Post : Solid

It needs to be quick thinking for Jakesprinter’s challenge this week, because, like the dragon, I’m up and gone tomorrow.  Solid is my subject matter, and as I hightailed it along the road to zumba class, I couldn’t stop the song, singing in my head.  You’ve guessed it!  “Solid as a rock”. (Ashford and Simpson, 1984)

Not even a song I particularly like, but it’s from my era, and it irresistibly draws me back to my Valuable post, completed for Jake’s challenge two weeks ago.  “Solid as a rock” describes how we would all like our partnerships to be.

This is my husband’s definition of an artistic shot?

Taken by him on the beach at Robin Hood’s Bay.

And this is mine. Spot the difference?

Where am I?  Madeira’s north coast, and that’s a pretty solid hunk of rock.

My brain makes strange connections sometimes, and as I marched on down the road, I found myself singing “The churches one foundation is Jesus Christ, Our Lord”.  Quietly, of course.  I’m not given to hymn singing, at full blast, in the street, though there are many worse things to do.

The foundation stone of many of our lives- can anything be more solid?

Igreja de Sao Joao Batista, Tomar

Monastery at Alcobaca

Convento do Christo, Tomar

Carmo Church, Tavira, at one of its many celebrations

Many thanks, as ever, to Jake, for giving us this opportunity to share our lives.  Please do join in the challenge.  Follow the link or click on the flying dragon for full details.  See you next time?

Sunday Post : Silence

My friend Jake has come up with the theme of Silence for this week’s Sunday Post challenge.  Hush!  I’m searching for the sound.

How rare is silence!  At home, with the TV and radio turned off, still there’s that intermittent ping of the fridge, a gurgle from the central heating, or the steady breathing of my laptop.  Walking down the street, my head buzzes with thoughts and words, never mind the rumbling of the traffic.

So where do you find silence?  For me, the gentle Algarve countryside is peace and quiet itself.  Bird song, or maybe the rustle of the eucalyptus, is all of the sound.

Rio Arade, with Silves in the far distance

Even the Algarve villages can be a place of refuge and silence.

Looking out from the village of Salir

A quiet corner in the village

Empty beaches on the Ria Formosa, with sandbars that stretch for miles, have no lapping tide to disturb the stillness.

Ria Formosa at Cacela Velha

Wide, open spaces characterise the west coast, but peace there can often be disturbed by the crash of the waves.

Still, there’s always an empty cove to be found, at the right time of the day.

The beach at Burgau

And as the day ends, sunlight, glinting on the water, carries no sound.

Algar Seco, near Carvoeira

Cliff tops have always held appeal for me.  High above the water, I revel in the silence.

Clifftop near Staithes, North Yorks

Far from the Algarve, the North York moors owe their restorative powers to the stillness of their ridges and valleys.

Ruggedly beautiful, the Moors can be a bit of a scramble

But so worth it!

Roseberry Topping in the far distance

And when the colours roll in…

August’s riotous colours

…there’s no place like it.  Even the bees hum quietly.

So where do you go to find your silence?  It’s something to be treasured.  Something that all of us need.

Jake has given so much pleasure in providing this opportunity to look at and experience our world.  Many thanks to him.  You will always be welcomed to Jakesprinter’s world.  Please, just follow the link.

Sunday Post : Famous movies

Jakesprinter’s theme of Motion Pictures this week had me dipping into the memory banks, not to mention an old photograph album or two.  That’s always a pleasurable experience, so thank you, Jake.  Now, as the song goes, “Let me entertain you”.

As far back as I can remember, there have been Star Wars films.  My daughter loved them with a passion, and I have to admit, I found Han Solo’s brusque style quite compelling.  Nineteen years later when my son came along (yes, it was a bit of a gap) the Star Wars saga was still unfolding, and trips to the cinema became a regular feature.

My daughter married and left home, but was always pleased to be able to entertain her baby brother.  So it was that, one Easter, they were both to be found in our garden, transforming paste eggs into Star Wars characters.  It’s an image that never fails to make me smile.

When James was a little older, a Sorrento based holiday gave us the opportunity to catch the train (another passion!) north to the Caserta Palace.  The reason?  Nothing to do with the fabulous Baroque architecture of this 18th century palace.  Oh no!  James wanted to hide from the Storm Troopers in the spacious palace grounds, and possibly help rescue Queen Amidala.  I confess to looking furtively over my shoulder as I mounted the iconic staircase.

Caserta Palace- from Wikipedia Commons

The Caserta Palace was used for filming in Star Wars Episode 1 : Phantom Menace, and then in Star Wars Episode 2 : Attack of the Clone Wars.  I’m sure we had some photos of the Palace somewhere.  Maybe the Storm Troopers confiscated them?

Thanks Jake!  I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my trip to the movies with you.  I wonder what next week’s Sunday Post challenge will bring?  To join in, follow the link or click on Jake’s dragon logo.

Sunday post : Water H20

Once again it’s a privilege to take part in Jakesprinter’s weekly challenge.  As I pointed out to Jake, I’m a water sign, so this one’s irresistible.

So, I’m going to take you from the mountains to the sea, and where better to do that than Portugal?

Looking down on the River Guadiana

Rio Arade on it’s way to Silves

Cascades at Pego do Inferno

Rio Gilao at Tavira

Slipping round the coast to Isla Canela in Spain

Ria Formosa, the lagoon at Cacela Velha

Praia de Odeceixe on the west coast

Above Praia de Marinha

The stacks at Marinha

And down on Marinha beach

Barril beach, the water rushing to shore

What could be lovelier, or more essential, than water?  I can’t imagine my life without it.

Many thanks to Jake for the opportunity to share these photos.  I hope you like them, and I’d be delighted to see yours if you decide to join in.  You can view all of the entries and instructions for joining the challenge at Jakesprinter Sunday Post.  Hope to see you there.