View allAll Photos Tagged Driving
Driving Licence Eater.
My 12 year old SUV went in for a standard service this week. "Leave it with us Sir. Be ready in 2 hours for you".
Only there was a problem. They had to order a part and it wouldn't arrive until the next day.
Major problem for me as I had a journey of 80 miles planned that very evening. "No problem Sir. Let me see what I can do for you".
"We do have a car you can borrow overnight Sir. It's a six speed, racing red, turbo charged sports car. Would that be acceptable to you?".
I swallowed hard and managed to say, "That will do nicely thank you."
I folded myself into the low slung beastie and have never had such a big grin on my face. The car was fantastic and exhilarating to drive. I only had one problem with it. If I owned it, I would lose my licence in a week.
The lightest touch on the accelerator pedal (compared to my ancient, automatic SUV) would send it screaming like a red and black demonic banshee into the dark night. It was fabulous and it was a huge treat.
Strangely, my boringly planned, "there and back" journey of 80 miles suddenly became 120 miles of exhilarating driving pleasure and mysterious detours on twisty, winding roads.
This curvy, little red demon went round corners like she was on rails.
I reluctantly returned the keys the following day (grinning from ear to ear) and put that one down to a red letter day experience to be repeated ad nauseum in the Old Folks Home, when that day finally comes to me.
Like Jenny Joseph, who sadly died this week, I'm going to "wear purple" when that time of my life eventually comes a'calling.
Jenny Joseph's poem - "WARNING".
When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we've no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I'm tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people's gardens
And learn to spit.
You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.
But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.
But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.
Jenny Joseph wrote this poem when she was 29 years old.
While driving down the backroads of southern Wyoming, on my way to the backroads of northern Utah, I spotted this shepherd's camp, snapped a shot, then decided to go up and introduce myself. Just like the good 'ol days, this gentleman was kind and welcoming and was proud to show me his operation, shepherding hundreds of sheep, seen in the distance. The harmonic relationship of land, animals, and humans carries on still today.
I believe the road is now Potash Road. I'm not certain, but think that is right. This would not be a good section to be on if there is a heavy rain. The road is actually where the water would flow.
It is a fun road, and I really enjoyed driving it. Wished I wasn't under a time constraint.
Ook te krijgen via iljakalle.werkaandemuur.nl/
100 pictures in 2013, #79 dark
113 pictures in 2013, #33 night time
I love my bike and i drive a lot auf time with the bike.
This two bike i found in a shop and in this moment i saw the picture for my eys .
Autoretrato manejando, fijé la camara con el tripode en la parte de atras del carro, y disparaba con el control remoto
I was driving home on Wednesday night and the sky looked amazing. Much better than my photos. I took these whilst driving along the M8!
Excerpt from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choi_Hung_Estate:
Choi Hung Estate (彩虹邨; lit. 'rainbow estate') is a public housing estate in Ngau Chi Wan, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It was built by the former Hong Kong Housing Authority (屋宇建è¨å§”員會) and is now managed by the current Hong Kong Housing Authority. It received a Silver Medal at the 1965 Hong Kong Institute of Architects Annual Awards.
Choi Hung Estate is located in Ngau Chi Wan and is surrounded by several of eastern Kowloon Peninsula's major roads. To the north is Lung Cheung Road; to the south Prince Edward Road East; to the west Kwun Tong Bypass and to the east Clear Water Bay Road.
The Hong Kong government granted the land to the Hong Kong Housing Authority to build a large housing estate in 1958. The blocks of the estate were completed between 1962 and 1964. An opening ceremony was held in 1963 with the presence of then Hong Kong Governor, Sir Robert Brown Black. A signboard commemorating the ceremony is located in the estate's Lam Chung Avenue.
Accommodating nearly 43,000 people, it was the largest public housing estate at the time.
In November 2023 it was reported that Choi Hung Estate was earmarked for redevelopment meaning that 43,000 residents will require rehoming.
In October 2024, the redevelopment plan was revealed in the Wong Tai Sin District Council. It was proposed to demolish Tan Fung House, Pik Hoi House, Kam Pik House, Market and two former Sheng Kung Hui primary schools buildings in between 2028 and 2029 as the first phase, residents in the three blocks will be settled to the new blocks in Mei Tung Estate. Once the first phase is expected to complete in between 2035 and 2036, the blocks will settle the residents in Pak Suet House, Hung Ngok House, Kam Wan House and Kam Wah House when the next phase begins. The final phase is expected to begin in between 2042 and 2043, the residents in the last remaining blocks (Chi Mei House, Luk Ching House, Chui King House and Kam Hon House) will be settled to the new blocks in the second phase. The number of units will be increased to 9200 once the entire redevelopment plan is completed in between 2048 and 2049.
The estate has 11 residential blocks, one car park, and five schools, with various shops and restaurants on the ground floor of each block. Roads in the estate connect the blocks to each other and to major roads.
According to the 2016 by-census, Choi Hung Estate had a population of 18,435. The median age was 48 and the majority of residents (96 per cent) were of Chinese ethnicity. Cantonese was the predominant usual spoken language (93 per cent), followed by other varieties of Chinese excluding Mandarin (4.5 per cent), non-English and non-Chinese languages (2 per cent), Mandarin (0.5 per cent), and English (0.3 per cent).
The average household comprised 2.5 persons. The median monthly household income of all households (i.e. including both economically active and inactive households) was HK$15,290.
The estate is photogenic and has become a tourism hot-spot. The most photographed view of the estate includes the basketball court and rainbow apartments behind. Some journalists and researchers have been vocal against the growing Instagram popularity of the area, criticising that it is a shallow view of the complex social history of the council estate in Hong Kong, as well as driving away locals who want to use the space. Though some locals have also begun selling photos for profit to tourists. It has been suggested that the location is popular not only for the aesthetics, but also because it allows the photographers and selfie-takers to feel as if they are in the middle of the world - compared to the more detached equally-aesthetic Hong Kong skyline shots. In 2017, a photograph of the building was shortlisted for the Arcaid Award, an architecture photography prize.
While "Which side of the road you will want to be?" will read funny, this photo, when captured had sent a shiver down my spine!
Coastline and road (northbound) at the Basque Corniche, a portion of the Basque Coast Trail, with the towns of Ciboure and Saint-Jean-de-Luz in the distance, Pays Basque Region, France
Some background information:
The Basque Coast Trail is coastal path starting at Erretegia beach in Bidart and ending at Hendaye, 25 kilometres away. It can be explored in several ways, but it’s best to always walk towards Hendaye in order to have the view of the mountains. The Basque Corniche, a portion of this coastal path is characterised by jagged cliffs, fern-covered moors and impressive views over the ocean. It stretches alongside the coastal road "Route de la Corniche" between the muncipalities of Ciboure and Hendaye at the Spanish border.
The trail is lined with gorse, bringing the visitor from one vista to the next and presenting many pretty views over the Atlantic Ocean, which batters the rocks. The northern part of the Basque Corniche around the towns of Ciboure and Urrugne is only sparsely urbanised, while the southern part around Hendaye near the Spanish border is populated denser. However, also the preserve of Abbadia is located in the southern part. It is a natural reserve of 65 hectares (160,618 acres) around the neo-Gothic castle of Abbadia, which also houses an observatory with a meridian telescope from 1880. Both castle and nature reserve are visited by more than 150,000 people each year.
Since 1989, the domaine d'Abbadia also hosts the collection of fruit trees of the department of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, containing more than 100 varieties of apples and 50 varieties of cherries, but also a number of different plum and medlar trees. The Basque Corniche provides a great diversity of landscapes and atmospheres. The colour of the cliffs alternates between grey, blue and rose and shows different layers of sediments and their vertical tectonic movements.
Aero haline grass clings to the windy cliffs, accompanied by Phragmites grasses and invasive pampas grass on top of the cliffs, while the coast’s back country is dominated by mountains such as La Rhune or the Jaizkibel mountain range. The cliff coast is always intermitted by sandy or pebble beaches, which are a surfer’s paradise. And the beautiful coastal towns and villages with their traditional, often timber-framed houses in the Labourdine style invite the guest to stay. But see for yourself: The Basque Country is really worth visiting.
Ciboure and Saint-Jean-de-Luz are neighbouring harbour towns, which are just seperated by the Nivelle River that pours into the Bay of Biscay at this point. In the distance on the right sight of the street you can catch a glimpse of the Fort de Socoa in Ciboure, a fortification built in 1627 under the reign of the French King Louis XIII to protect the region from the Spanish. In 1686, the famous French military engineer Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban strenghtened the fort. Also visible in this photo are the lighthouse Phare de Socoa on the left of the fort and the Sémaphore de Socoa in the centre of the picture, which is a meteorological station that also controls the maritime traffic by using optical signals.
Ciboure has more than 6,200 while Saint-Jean-de-Luz has even more than 14,000 residents. The former wealth of Saint-Jean-de-Luz is associated with both fishing and its own Basque corsaires resp. pirates, who used to capture many trading vessels. In the 16th and 17th centuries, English sailors even called Saint-Jean-de-Luz the "Viper's Nest".
Saint-Jean-de-Luz is known for its royal wedding connection. In 1659, the Treaty of the Pyrenees between France and Spain was signed, one clause of which was the marriage of Louis XIV to Maria Theresa, the Infanta of Spain. Saint-Jean-de-Luz and its church were chosen to host the royal wedding in 1660. The marriage is one of the most important political marriages in history that brought an end to a bitter war.
Today, visitors of the cathedral can see that the main door is bricked off. Two legends circulate this oddity: First, it has been said that the door the couple passed through was later closed to represent the closing of the troubles between France and Spain. A more popular theory among the locals is that the king, Louis XIV, ordered the door to be closed off, so no other couple could walk into the church to be married in his footsteps.
At the end of the nineteenth century, Saint-Jean-de-Luz became a popular beachside resort town for the surrounding high-society. Like Biarritz, Saint-Jean-de-Luz was particularly appreciated by the French and Spanish aristocracy. The French composer Maurice Ravel, a native of Ciboure, frequently vacationed at Saint-Jean-de-Luz from Paris, where he was centered for almost his entire life.
While we were exploring the region we stayed at a little boutique hotel directly at Ciboure’s seaside promenade, nearby the town’s lighthouse Phare de Ciboure. It was a very pleasant stay and I can highly recommend Ciboure or Saint-Jean-de-Luz as a basis for your trips in the Basque country. The Atlantic Ocean, the Pyrenees and also Spain are so near.
large on black, white, stream on black, white, interestingness, white (generated by [darckr])
Playing unfocus in action, driving my old Renault 4 (4L), back home at night. For the fun of telling a story.