Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Tower City Center (formerly known as Cleveland Union Terminal) is a large mixed-use facility located on Public Square in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. The facility is composed of a number of interconnected office buildings, including the landmark Terminal Tower, a shopping mall, a casino, two hotels, and the main hub of Cleveland's four rapid transit lines. On March 17, 1976, the tower was added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Union Terminal Group...

 

The Cleveland Union Terminal was built by the Van Sweringen brothers as a terminal for all trains coming into Cleveland via the various railroad lines in a concept similar to New York City's Grand Central Terminal. The facility also included a number of retail stores and restaurants. Original designs for the complex show that at first the brothers did not plan on building an office tower within the complex. However, they eventually decided to build the 52-story Terminal Tower on the northeast side of the complex facing Public Square. From its completion until 1964, the Terminal Tower was the tallest building in North America outside of New York City. Cleveland Union Terminal also served as the downtown station for the Van Sweringens' new Shaker Heights Rapid Transit Line...

 

The Union Terminal served all rail lines – except for the Pennsylvania Railroad and initially the Erie Railroad – from completion until 1973. It was never particularly popular with the railroads, however. It required deviating from the quicker route along Lake Erie. As the city would not allow trains to operate under steam power near the downtown area, trains were forced to switch from steam to electric power at a suburban rail yard when heading inbound and then reverse on the way out at another yard. As a result, some lines began to bypass the station entirely, heading along the lake route, and some trains stopped serving the city altogether. In addition, national passenger rail travel had already passed its peak and was starting its gradual decline in favor of the automobile and, later, the airplane. The Erie RR, owned by the Van Sweringens, could not afford the electric transfer and continued to use its own nearby station until 1948, when it replaced steam with diesel locomotives and was able to serve the Union Terminal under its own power.

 

In 1968, the Cleveland Transit System line finished its extension through Cleveland's west side to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and Cleveland became the first North American city with direct rapid transit access from downtown to an airport.

 

More info about Tower City Center at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_City_Center.

 

And this:

 

Oris Paxton Van Sweringen (April 24, 1879 – November 22, 1936) and Mantis James Van Sweringen (July 8, 1881 – December 12, 1934) were brothers who became railroad barons in order to develop Shaker Heights, Ohio. They are better known as O. P. Van Sweringen and M. J. Van Sweringen, or by their collective nickname, the Vans. The brothers came from a farming area near Wooster, Ohio. Their father was for a time an engineer in the oil fields of Pennsylvania, fought in the Civil War and was wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg. The family moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in about 1890.

 

Neither brother married; the two shared a common bedroom in their 54-room mansion, Roundwood Manor, on the grounds of their estate, Daisy Hill, in Hunting Valley, Ohio. During their lifetimes, they seldom gave interviews or made appearances in public; however, when they did, it was always together. An overview of their accomplishments cannot be done separately as the two were inseparable during their lives.

 

- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Sweringen_brothers

 

I found Tower City Center an interesting place to visit, but not particularly photogenic. (The casino was particularly sad-looking.)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Earth Designs Garden Design and Build were asked to created a landscape and propose garden design in Loughton, Essex*. Here are the details of the project

 

The Perspex Garden in Loughton, Essex IG10 4QP

 

This design takes inspiration from 1960s motifs, seeking to divide the garden into three separate areas with a recurring circular theme throughout.

 

Flooring in the space will take the form of three interconnected rectangular sections. Each section will be edged with black limestone setts laid in a stretcher pattern (end-to-end) and will contain a mixture of black limestone paved circles and hoggin circles of various sizes, to create an ornate and visually stimulating focal point to the garden. Each circle will be edged with black limestone setts to create clear definition to the design. The space around the limestone and hoggin circles will be planted with creeping thyme, that will spread to over time to create a soft sea of colour and fragrance around the hard surface areas. The paved areas will also benefit from three stunning stainless steel sphere water features (3 different sizes). Each sphere will be installed with a black sett circle edge to surround and finished with a mulch of blue glass chips around its base.

 

The garden will be given a sense of privacy and intrigue with the addition of 6 bespoke screens installed at intervals around the patio areas. Constructed from blue perspex panels installed on timber posts, these screens will create an impressive and colourful backdrop to the space. The timber pergola will be given additional screening with a series of funky ’70s disco-inspired hangings installed on the overhead beams. The pergola will further benefit from a suspended 60s styled rattan ball chair.

 

Lush, tropical planting will help screen the garden from the houses beyond. A large cordyline australis in a tall zinc planted will take pride of place in the centre of the large hoggin circle. Three 80cm box balls will continue the circular theme through the planting beds, interspersed with tall grasses and a selection of herbaceous perennials.

 

If you dig this and would like to find out more about this or any of other of our designs, please stop by our web-site and have a look at our work.

 

Earth Designs is a bespoke London Garden Design and build company specialising in classic, funky and urban contemporary garden design.

 

Our Landscape and Garden build teams cover London, Essex and parts of South East England, while garden designs are available nationwide.

Please visit www.earthdesigns.co.uk to see our full portfolio. If you would like a garden designer in London or have an idea of what you wan and are looking for a landscaper London to come and visit your garden, please get in touch.

 

Follow our Bespoke Garden Design and Build and Blog to see what we get up to week by week, our free design clinic as well as tips and products we recommend for your garden projects www.earthdesigns.co.uk/blog/.

 

Earth Designs is located in East London, but has built gardens in Essex, Hertfordshire and all over the South East. Earth Designs was formed by Katrina Wells in Spring 2003 and has since gone from strength to strength to develop a considerable portfolio of garden projects. Katrina, who is our Senior Garden Designer, has travelled all over the UK designing gardens. However we can design worldwide either through our postal garden design service or by consultation with our senior garden designer. Recent worldwide projects have included garden designs in Romania. Katrina’s husband. Matt, heads up the build side of the company, creating a unique service for all our clients.

 

If you a not a UK resident, but would like an Earth Designs garden, Earth Designs has a worldwide design service through our Garden Design Postal Design Vouchers. If you are looking for an unique birthday present or original anniversary present and would like to buy one of our Garden Design Gift Vouchers for yourself or as a present please our sister site www.gardenpresents.co.uk. We do also design outside of the UK, please contact us for details.

The Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast (known as the Malabar Coast) of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range.

 

The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways, and sometimes compared to the American Bayou. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. National Waterway No. 3 from Kollam to Kottapuram, covers a distance of 205 km and runs almost parallel to the coast line of southern Kerala facilitating both cargo movement and backwater tourism.

 

The backwaters have a unique ecosystem - freshwater from the rivers meets the seawater from the Arabian Sea. In certain areas, such as the Vembanad Kayal, where a barrage has been built near Kumarakom, salt water from the sea is prevented from entering the deep inside, keeping the fresh water intact. Such fresh water is extensively used for irrigation purposes.

 

Many unique species of aquatic life including crabs, frogs and mudskippers, water birds such as terns, kingfishers, darters and cormorants, and animals such as otters and turtles live in and alongside the backwaters. Palm trees, pandanus shrubs, various leafy plants and bushes grow alongside the backwaters, providing a green hue to the surrounding landscape.

 

Vembanad Kayal is the largest of the lakes, covering an area of 200 km², and bordered by Alappuzha (Alleppey), Kottayam, and Ernakulam districts. The port of Kochi (Cochin) is located at the lake's outlet to the Arabian Sea. Alleppey, "Venice of the East", has a large network of canals that meander through the town. Vembanad is India’s longest lake.

 

HOUSE BOATS

The kettuvallams (Kerala houseboats) in the backwaters are one of the prominent tourist attractions in Kerala. More than 2000 kettuvallams ply the backwaters, 120 of them in Alappuzha. Kerala government has classified the tourist houseboats as Platinum, Gold and silver.

 

The kettuvallams were traditionally used as grain barges, to transport the rice harvested in the fertile fields alongside the backwaters. Thatched roof covers over wooden hulls, 30 m in length, provided protection from the elements. At some point in time the boats were used as living quarters by the royalty. Converted to accommodate tourists, the houseboats have become floating cottages having a sleeping area, with western-style toilets, a dining area and a sit out on the deck. Most tourists spend the night on a house boat. Food is cooked on board by the accompanying staff – mostly having a flavour of Kerala. The houseboats are of various patterns and can be hired as per the size of the family or visiting group. The living-dining room is usually open on at least three sides providing a grand view of the surroundings, including other boats, throughout the day when it is on the move. It is brought to a standstill at times of taking food and at night. After sunset, the boat crew provide burning coils to drive away mosquitoes. Ketuvallams are motorised but generally proceed at a slow speed for smooth travel. All ketuvallams have a generator and most bedrooms are air-conditioned. At times, as per demand of customers, electricity is switched off and lanterns are provided to create a rural setting.

 

While many ketuvalloms take tourists from a particular point and bring them back to around the same point next morning there are some specific cruises mostly in the Alappuzha area, such as the one night cruise from Alappuzha to Thotapally via Punnamada Lake two nights cruise from Alappuzha to Alumkavadi,[8] one night cruise from Alappuzha to Kidangara, and one night cruise from Alappuzha to Mankotta. There are numerous such cruises.

 

Beypore, located 10 km south of Kozhikode at the mouth of the Chaliyar River, is a famous fishing harbour, port and boat building centre. Beypore has a 1,500 year-tradition of boatbuilding. The skill of the local shipwrights and boat builders are widely sought after. There is a houseboat-building yard at Alumkadavu, in Ashtamudi Kayal near Kollam.

 

FERRY SERVICES

Regular ferry services connect most locations on both banks of the backwaters. The Kerala State Water Transport Department operates ferries for passengers as well as tourists. It is the cheapest mode of transport through the backwaters.

 

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

Connected by artificial canals, the backwaters form an economical means of transport, and a large local trade is carried on by inland navigation. Fishing, along with fish curing is an important industry.

 

Kerala backwaters have been used for centuries by the local people for transportation, fishing and agriculture. It has supported the efforts of the local people to earn a livelihood. In more recent times, agricultural efforts have been strengthened with reclamation of some backwater lands for rice growing, particularly in the Kuttanad area. Boat making has been a traditional craft, so has been the coir industry.

 

Kuttanad is crisscrossed with waterways that run alongside extensive paddy fields, as well as fields of cassava, banana and yam. A unique feature of Kuttanad is that many of these fields are below sea level and are surrounded by earthen embankments. The crops are grown on the low-lying ground and irrigated with fresh water from canal and waterways connected to Vembanad lake. The area is similar to the dikes of the Netherlands where land has been reclaimed from the sea and crops are grown.

 

WIKIPEDIA

 

St John the Baptist Church

Religious Place In Stockton on Tees, North Yorkshire

 

An 11th Century Church in the village of Egglescliffe

 

St John the Baptist Church is an Anglican church in the village of Egglescliffe, Stockton-on-Tees. It is a perpendicular church, built in the Norman style. The perpendicular style was part of the English Gothic movement that was popular from the 14th to 17th century. There has been a church on the site for at least 900 years, however the original date of construction is unknown. There is a theory that the origin of the name “Egglescliffe” means “the church on the cliff”.

 

There is a piece of a carved cross in the entrance porch to the church which was found on site and dated at over 1000 years old which may suggest Christianity was practiced at this site for even longer than thought.

 

The earliest surviving parts of the church date from the 12th century, including the nave, chancel, and west tower. The church was extensively rebuilt in the 14th and 15th centuries, and the current Perpendicular style was largely completed in the 16th century.

 

The church has a number of notable features, including a 15th-century font, a 16th-century pulpit, and a number of stained glass windows. The most famous window is the East Window, which was designed by William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones in 1878. The window depicts the Tree of Jesse, a biblical genealogy of Jesus Christ.

 

There are also some quite unusual things to keep an eye out for when you visit the church. When you arrive at the main door you will no doubt see the sundial above it, this is a 1963 replica of the 1779 original and the Latin inscription translates to “be mindful of death”. One thing you might not spot, however, are a series of grooves in the door jamb. These are thought to be marks from where villages used the stone to sharpen their knives.

 

The box pews in St John the Baptist Church date from around 1633 and are irregular in size as each one was made to fit the family who paid for them. There is a Priests door in the southern wall of the church which would have been used in the middle ages by the rector to access the church to maintain it. It is very small, although the floor levels have been raised over the years.

 

My favourite little detail at the church was pointed out to me by one of the volunteers present during my visit and it involves a beautifully decorated memorial plaque behind the lectern. The memorial is for a man from Newsham (a nearby village) who died in 1611, but it wasn't erected until 1663, perhaps because it took his son that long to be able to afford it. If you look closely, however, you will spot that the sculptor missed the “S” out of Newsham and had to add it in later!

 

St John the Baptist Church is a Grade I listed building and is open to the public for worship and for tours, there was a coffee morning about to start when we visited on a Wednesday.

 

Egglescliffe is a village and civil parish in County Durham, England. Administratively it is located in the borough of Stockton-on-Tees.

 

The civil parish is in the Teesdale with a population of 8,559 at the 2011 Census. In the 2021 census the group of interconnected villages in the parish and Preston-on-Tees had a population of 10,250, in the larger village to small town classification. It has Egglescliffe School (secondary and sixth-form), an light industrial estate, two railway stations and golf club. Villages in the parish include Eaglescliffe, Urlay Nook, Sunningdale, Orchard and a development on the former Allens West MOD site.

 

The village is on top of a hill with the River Tees at the bottom, overlooking Yarm on the other bank. It had a 2001 population of around 595, There is a Church of England primary school, small kids play area, farms, allotments and a public house (called the Pot and Glass).

 

North of the River Tees was not recorded in the 1068 Domesday Book. The parish church is dedicated to St John the Baptist and there has been a place of worship on the site since the twelfth century.

 

Bishop Skirlaw of Durham built a stone bridge, across the Tees in 1400 which still stands. An iron replacement was built in 1805, but it fell down in 1806.

 

It was in the palatinate of Durham (the prince-bishop of Durham's domain) from its establishment until 1836 when it became a standard type of county. 1974 reforms lead to Egglescliffe being placed under the Stockton district of Cleveland county. The district became a unitary authority in 1996 and a part of the ceremony county Durham.

 

Egglescliffe has been characterised by Victor Watts as "a difficult name".  The name is first attested in an 1172 copy of a 1085 charter, as Eggasclif; forms containing l in the earlier part of the name, such as Egglesclif, are first attested in the 1190s, but are rarer in the Middle Ages.  The second element of the name is certainly from Old English clif, "steep slope", presumably referring to the slope from Egglescliffe down to the River Tees.

 

The consensus among authorities in the twentieth century was that the first element came from Latin ecclesia "church" via Brittonic (where the borrowing of ecclesia is represented today by Welsh eglwys). If so, the name once meant "church-slope".  However, by 2007 Victor Watts had noted that Egglescliffe is distant from other examples of more reliably attested "Eccles" names, and that the l is usually absent from the first element in medieval sources. He concluded that Egglescliffe originated with the personal name Ecgwulf, which had the nickname form Ecgi. Thus the place was routinely known both as "Ecgwulf's slope" (producing forms like Egglesclif) and as "Ecgi's slope" (producing forms like Eggasclif), until the former type eventually became dominant.

 

Egglescliffe gave its name to their neighbouring Eaglescliffe, whose name is simply a variant of Egglescliffe produced by folk-etymological adaptation of the unfamiliar Eggles- to the familiar Eagles-

 

The parish is divided by railway lines, such as the Tees Valley line and Northallerton–Eaglescliffe line. Vehicles can only get from the east to west of the parish to its far south or via the A66 road.

 

The parish includes the villages of Egglescliffe, Eaglescliffe, Sunningdale and Orchard. Urlay Nook and the former Allens West site are in development. There is also an industrial estate which includes the former Whitley Springs farm buildings.

 

The main road through eastern parish is the A135 Yarm Road which was part of the old route of the A19 until the 1970s when it was diverted east of Thornaby. The A67 runs through the west of the parish. Nearby large towns include Stockton-on-Tees (north), Middlesbrough (north east), Darlington (west) and Hartlepool (north east).

 

County Durham, officially simply Durham is a ceremonial county in North East England. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne and Wear to the north, the North Sea to the east, North Yorkshire to the south, and Cumbria to the west. The largest settlement is Darlington, and the county town is the city of Durham.

 

The county has an area of 2,721 km2 (1,051 sq mi) and a population of 866,846. The latter is concentrated in the east; the south-east is part of the Teesside built-up area, which extends into North Yorkshire. After Darlington (92,363), the largest settlements are Hartlepool (88,855), Stockton-on-Tees (82,729), and Durham (48,069). For local government purposes the county comprises three unitary authority areas—County Durham, Darlington, and Hartlepool—and part of a fourth, Stockton-on-Tees. The county historically included the part of Tyne and Wear south of the River Tyne, and excluded the part of County Durham south of the River Tees.

 

The west of the county contains part of the North Pennines uplands, a national landscape. The hills are the source of the rivers Tees and Wear, which flow east and form the valleys of Teesdale and Weardale respectively. The east of the county is flatter, and contains by rolling hills through which the two rivers meander; the Tees forms the boundary with North Yorkshire in its lower reaches, and the Wear exits the county near Chester-le-Street in the north-east. The county's coast is a site of special scientific interest characterised by tall limestone and dolomite cliffs.

 

What is now County Durham was on the border of Roman Britain, and contains survivals of this era at sites such as Binchester Roman Fort. In the Anglo-Saxon period the region was part of the Kingdom of Northumbria. In 995 the city of Durham was founded by monks seeking a place safe from Viking raids to house the relics of St Cuthbert. Durham Cathedral was rebuilt after the Norman Conquest, and together with Durham Castle is now a World Heritage Site. By the late Middle Ages the county was governed semi-independently by the bishops of Durham and was also a buffer zone between England and Scotland. County Durham became heavily industrialised in the nineteenth century, when many collieries opened on the Durham coalfield. The Stockton and Darlington Railway, the world's first public railway to use steam locomotives, opened in 1825. Most collieries closed during the last quarter of the twentieth century, but the county's coal mining heritage is remembered in the annual Durham Miners' Gala.

 

Remains of Prehistoric Durham include a number of Neolithic earthworks.

 

The Crawley Edge Cairns and Heathery Burn Cave are Bronze Age sites. Maiden Castle, Durham is an Iron Age site.

 

Brigantia, the land of the Brigantes, is said to have included what is now County Durham.

 

There are archaeological remains of Roman Durham. Dere Street and Cade's Road run through what is now County Durham. There were Roman forts at Concangis (Chester-le-Street), Lavatrae (Bowes), Longovicium (Lanchester), Piercebridge (Morbium), Vindomora (Ebchester) and Vinovium (Binchester). (The Roman fort at Arbeia (South Shields) is within the former boundaries of County Durham.) A Romanised farmstead has been excavated at Old Durham.

 

Remains of the Anglo-Saxon period include a number of sculpted stones and sundials, the Legs Cross, the Rey Cross and St Cuthbert's coffin.

 

Around AD 547, an Angle named Ida founded the kingdom of Bernicia after spotting the defensive potential of a large rock at Bamburgh, upon which many a fortification was thenceforth built. Ida was able to forge, hold and consolidate the kingdom; although the native British tried to take back their land, the Angles triumphed and the kingdom endured.

 

In AD 604, Ida's grandson Æthelfrith forcibly merged Bernicia (ruled from Bamburgh) and Deira (ruled from York, which was known as Eforwic at the time) to create the Kingdom of Northumbria. In time, the realm was expanded, primarily through warfare and conquest; at its height, the kingdom stretched from the River Humber (from which the kingdom drew its name) to the Forth. Eventually, factional fighting and the rejuvenated strength of neighbouring kingdoms, most notably Mercia, led to Northumbria's decline. The arrival of the Vikings hastened this decline, and the Scandinavian raiders eventually claimed the Deiran part of the kingdom in AD 867 (which became Jórvík). The land that would become County Durham now sat on the border with the Great Heathen Army, a border which today still (albeit with some adjustments over the years) forms the boundaries between Yorkshire and County Durham.

 

Despite their success south of the river Tees, the Vikings never fully conquered the Bernician part of Northumbria, despite the many raids they had carried out on the kingdom. However, Viking control over the Danelaw, the central belt of Anglo-Saxon territory, resulted in Northumbria becoming isolated from the rest of Anglo-Saxon Britain. Scots invasions in the north pushed the kingdom's northern boundary back to the River Tweed, and the kingdom found itself reduced to a dependent earldom, its boundaries very close to those of modern-day Northumberland and County Durham. The kingdom was annexed into England in AD 954.

 

In AD 995, St Cuthbert's community, who had been transporting Cuthbert's remains around, partly in an attempt to avoid them falling into the hands of Viking raiders, settled at Dunholm (Durham) on a site that was defensively favourable due to the horseshoe-like path of the River Wear. St Cuthbert's remains were placed in a shrine in the White Church, which was originally a wooden structure but was eventually fortified into a stone building.

 

Once the City of Durham had been founded, the Bishops of Durham gradually acquired the lands that would become County Durham. Bishop Aldhun began this process by procuring land in the Tees and Wear valleys, including Norton, Stockton, Escomb and Aucklandshire in 1018. In 1031, King Canute gave Staindrop to the Bishops. This territory continued to expand, and was eventually given the status of a liberty. Under the control of the Bishops of Durham, the land had various names: the "Liberty of Durham", "Liberty of St Cuthbert's Land" "the lands of St Cuthbert between Tyne and Tees" or "the Liberty of Haliwerfolc" (holy Wear folk).

 

The bishops' special jurisdiction rested on claims that King Ecgfrith of Northumbria had granted a substantial territory to St Cuthbert on his election to the see of Lindisfarne in 684. In about 883 a cathedral housing the saint's remains was established at Chester-le-Street and Guthfrith, King of York granted the community of St Cuthbert the area between the Tyne and the Wear, before the community reached its final destination in 995, in Durham.

 

Following the Norman invasion, the administrative machinery of government extended only slowly into northern England. Northumberland's first recorded Sheriff was Gilebert from 1076 until 1080 and a 12th-century record records Durham regarded as within the shire. However the bishops disputed the authority of the sheriff of Northumberland and his officials, despite the second sheriff for example being the reputed slayer of Malcolm Canmore, King of Scots. The crown regarded Durham as falling within Northumberland until the late thirteenth century.

 

Following the Battle of Hastings, William the Conqueror appointed Copsig as Earl of Northumbria, thereby bringing what would become County Durham under Copsig's control. Copsig was, just a few weeks later, killed in Newburn. Having already being previously offended by the appointment of a non-Northumbrian as Bishop of Durham in 1042, the people of the region became increasingly rebellious. In response, in January 1069, William despatched a large Norman army, under the command of Robert de Comines, to Durham City. The army, believed to consist of 700 cavalry (about one-third of the number of Norman knights who had participated in the Battle of Hastings), entered the city, whereupon they were attacked, and defeated, by a Northumbrian assault force. The Northumbrians wiped out the entire Norman army, including Comines, all except for one survivor, who was allowed to take the news of this defeat back.

 

Following the Norman slaughter at the hands of the Northumbrians, resistance to Norman rule spread throughout Northern England, including a similar uprising in York. William The Conqueror subsequently (and successfully) attempted to halt the northern rebellions by unleashing the notorious Harrying of the North (1069–1070). Because William's main focus during the harrying was on Yorkshire, County Durham was largely spared the Harrying.

 

Anglo-Norman Durham refers to the Anglo-Norman period, during which Durham Cathedral was built.

 

Matters regarding the bishopric of Durham came to a head in 1293 when the bishop and his steward failed to attend proceedings of quo warranto held by the justices of Northumberland. The bishop's case went before parliament, where he stated that Durham lay outside the bounds of any English shire and that "from time immemorial it had been widely known that the sheriff of Northumberland was not sheriff of Durham nor entered within that liberty as sheriff. . . nor made there proclamations or attachments". The arguments appear to have prevailed, as by the fourteenth century Durham was accepted as a liberty which received royal mandates direct. In effect it was a private shire, with the bishop appointing his own sheriff. The area eventually became known as the "County Palatine of Durham".

 

Sadberge was a liberty, sometimes referred to as a county, within Northumberland. In 1189 it was purchased for the see but continued with a separate sheriff, coroner and court of pleas. In the 14th century Sadberge was included in Stockton ward and was itself divided into two wards. The division into the four wards of Chester-le-Street, Darlington, Easington and Stockton existed in the 13th century, each ward having its own coroner and a three-weekly court corresponding to the hundred court. The diocese was divided into the archdeaconries of Durham and Northumberland. The former is mentioned in 1072, and in 1291 included the deaneries of Chester-le-Street, Auckland, Lanchester and Darlington.

 

The term palatinus is applied to the bishop in 1293, and from the 13th century onwards the bishops frequently claimed the same rights in their lands as the king enjoyed in his kingdom.

 

The historic boundaries of County Durham included a main body covering the catchment of the Pennines in the west, the River Tees in the south, the North Sea in the east and the Rivers Tyne and Derwent in the north. The county palatinate also had a number of liberties: the Bedlingtonshire, Islandshire and Norhamshire exclaves within Northumberland, and the Craikshire exclave within the North Riding of Yorkshire. In 1831 the county covered an area of 679,530 acres (2,750.0 km2) and had a population of 253,910. These exclaves were included as part of the county for parliamentary electoral purposes until 1832, and for judicial and local-government purposes until the coming into force of the Counties (Detached Parts) Act 1844, which merged most remaining exclaves with their surrounding county. The boundaries of the county proper remained in use for administrative and ceremonial purposes until the Local Government Act 1972.

 

Boldon Book (1183 or 1184) is a polyptichum for the Bishopric of Durham.

 

Until the 15th century, the most important administrative officer in the Palatinate was the steward. Other officers included the sheriff, the coroners, the Chamberlain and the chancellor. The palatine exchequer originated in the 12th century. The palatine assembly represented the whole county, and dealt chiefly with fiscal questions. The bishop's council, consisting of the clergy, the sheriff and the barons, regulated judicial affairs, and later produced the Chancery and the courts of Admiralty and Marshalsea.

 

The prior of Durham ranked first among the bishop's barons. He had his own court, and almost exclusive jurisdiction over his men. A UNESCO site describes the role of the Prince-Bishops in Durham, the "buffer state between England and Scotland":

 

From 1075, the Bishop of Durham became a Prince-Bishop, with the right to raise an army, mint his own coins, and levy taxes. As long as he remained loyal to the king of England, he could govern as a virtually autonomous ruler, reaping the revenue from his territory, but also remaining mindful of his role of protecting England’s northern frontier.

 

A report states that the Bishops also had the authority to appoint judges and barons and to offer pardons.

 

There were ten palatinate barons in the 12th century, most importantly the Hyltons of Hylton Castle, the Bulmers of Brancepeth, the Conyers of Sockburne, the Hansards of Evenwood, and the Lumleys of Lumley Castle. The Nevilles owned large estates in the county. John Neville, 3rd Baron Neville de Raby rebuilt Raby Castle, their principal seat, in 1377.

 

Edward I's quo warranto proceedings of 1293 showed twelve lords enjoying more or less extensive franchises under the bishop. The repeated efforts of the Crown to check the powers of the palatinate bishops culminated in 1536 in the Act of Resumption, which deprived the bishop of the power to pardon offences against the law or to appoint judicial officers. Moreover, indictments and legal processes were in future to run in the name of the king, and offences to be described as against the peace of the king, rather than that of the bishop. In 1596 restrictions were imposed on the powers of the chancery, and in 1646 the palatinate was formally abolished. It was revived, however, after the Restoration, and continued with much the same power until 5 July 1836, when the Durham (County Palatine) Act 1836 provided that the palatine jurisdiction should in future be vested in the Crown.

 

During the 15th-century Wars of the Roses, Henry VI passed through Durham. On the outbreak of the Great Rebellion in 1642 Durham inclined to support the cause of Parliament, and in 1640 the high sheriff of the palatinate guaranteed to supply the Scottish army with provisions during their stay in the county. In 1642 the Earl of Newcastle formed the western counties into an association for the King's service, but in 1644 the palatinate was again overrun by a Scottish army, and after the Battle of Marston Moor (2 July 1644) fell entirely into the hands of Parliament.

 

In 1614, a Bill was introduced in Parliament for securing representation to the county and city of Durham and the borough of Barnard Castle. The bishop strongly opposed the proposal as an infringement of his palatinate rights, and the county was first summoned to return members to Parliament in 1654. After the Restoration of 1660 the county and city returned two members each. In the wake of the Reform Act of 1832 the county returned two members for two divisions, and the boroughs of Gateshead, South Shields and Sunderland acquired representation. The bishops lost their secular powers in 1836. The boroughs of Darlington, Stockton and Hartlepool returned one member each from 1868 until the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885.

 

The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 reformed the municipal boroughs of Durham, Stockton on Tees and Sunderland. In 1875, Jarrow was incorporated as a municipal borough, as was West Hartlepool in 1887. At a county level, the Local Government Act 1888 reorganised local government throughout England and Wales. Most of the county came under control of the newly formed Durham County Council in an area known as an administrative county. Not included were the county boroughs of Gateshead, South Shields and Sunderland. However, for purposes other than local government, the administrative county of Durham and the county boroughs continued to form a single county to which the Crown appointed a Lord Lieutenant of Durham.

 

Over its existence, the administrative county lost territory, both to the existing county boroughs, and because two municipal boroughs became county boroughs: West Hartlepool in 1902 and Darlington in 1915. The county boundary with the North Riding of Yorkshire was adjusted in 1967: that part of the town of Barnard Castle historically in Yorkshire was added to County Durham, while the administrative county ceded the portion of the Borough of Stockton-on-Tees in Durham to the North Riding. In 1968, following the recommendation of the Local Government Commission, Billingham was transferred to the County Borough of Teesside, in the North Riding. In 1971, the population of the county—including all associated county boroughs (an area of 2,570 km2 (990 sq mi))—was 1,409,633, with a population outside the county boroughs of 814,396.

 

In 1974, the Local Government Act 1972 abolished the administrative county and the county boroughs, reconstituting County Durham as a non-metropolitan county. The reconstituted County Durham lost territory to the north-east (around Gateshead, South Shields and Sunderland) to Tyne and Wear and to the south-east (around Hartlepool) to Cleveland. At the same time it gained the former area of Startforth Rural District from the North Riding of Yorkshire. The area of the Lord Lieutenancy of Durham was also adjusted by the Act to coincide with the non-metropolitan county (which occupied 3,019 km2 (1,166 sq mi) in 1981).

 

In 1996, as part of 1990s UK local government reform by Lieutenancies Act 1997, Cleveland was abolished. Its districts were reconstituted as unitary authorities. Hartlepool and Stockton-on-Tees (north Tees) were returned to the county for the purposes of Lord Lieutenancy. Darlington also became a third unitary authority of the county. The Royal Mail abandoned the use of postal counties altogether, permitted but not mandatory being at a writer wishes.

 

As part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England initiated by the Department for Communities and Local Government, the seven district councils within the County Council area were abolished. The County Council assumed their functions and became the fourth unitary authority. Changes came into effect on 1 April 2009.

 

On 15 April 2014, North East Combined Authority was established under the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 with powers over economic development and regeneration. In November 2018, Newcastle City Council, North Tyneside Borough Council, and Northumberland County Council left the authority. These later formed the North of Tyne Combined Authority.

 

In May 2021, four parish councils of the villages of Elwick, Hart, Dalton Piercy and Greatham all issued individual votes of no confidence in Hartlepool Borough Council, and expressed their desire to join the County Durham district.

 

In October 2021, County Durham was shortlisted for the UK City of Culture 2025. In May 2022, it lost to Bradford.

 

Eighteenth century Durham saw the appearance of dissent in the county and the Durham Ox. The county did not assist the Jacobite Rebellion of 1715. The Statue of Neptune in the City of Durham was erected in 1729.

 

A number of disasters happened in Nineteenth century Durham. The Felling mine disasters happened in 1812, 1813, 1821 and 1847. The Philadelphia train accident happened in 1815. In 1854, there was a great fire in Gateshead. One of the West Stanley Pit disasters happened in 1882. The Victoria Hall disaster happened in 1883.

 

One of the West Stanley Pit disasters happened in 1909. The Darlington rail crash happened in 1928. The Battle of Stockton happened in 1933. The Browney rail crash happened in 1946.

 

The First Treaty of Durham was made at Durham in 1136. The Second Treaty of Durham was made at Durham in 1139.

 

The county regiment was the Durham Light Infantry, which replaced, in particular, the 68th (Durham) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry) and the Militia and Volunteers of County Durham.

 

RAF Greatham, RAF Middleton St George and RAF Usworth were located in County Durham.

 

David I, the King of Scotland, invaded the county in 1136, and ravaged much of the county 1138. In 17 October 1346, the Battle of Neville's Cross was fought at Neville's Cross, near the city of Durham. On 16 December 1914, during the First World War, there was a raid on Hartlepool by the Imperial German Navy.

 

Chroniclers connected with Durham include the Bede, Symeon of Durham, Geoffrey of Coldingham and Robert de Graystanes.

 

County Durham has long been associated with coal mining, from medieval times up to the late 20th century. The Durham Coalfield covered a large area of the county, from Bishop Auckland, to Consett, to the River Tyne and below the North Sea, thereby providing a significant expanse of territory from which this rich mineral resource could be extracted.

 

King Stephen possessed a mine in Durham, which he granted to Bishop Pudsey, and in the same century colliers are mentioned at Coundon, Bishopwearmouth and Sedgefield. Cockfield Fell was one of the earliest Landsale collieries in Durham. Edward III issued an order allowing coal dug at Newcastle to be taken across the Tyne, and Richard II granted to the inhabitants of Durham licence to export the produce of the mines, without paying dues to the corporation of Newcastle. The majority was transported from the Port of Sunderland complex, which was constructed in the 1850s.

 

Among other early industries, lead-mining was carried on in the western part of the county, and mustard was extensively cultivated. Gateshead had a considerable tanning trade and shipbuilding was undertaken at Jarrow, and at Sunderland, which became the largest shipbuilding town in the world – constructing a third of Britain's tonnage.[citation needed]

 

The county's modern-era economic history was facilitated significantly by the growth of the mining industry during the nineteenth century. At the industry's height, in the early 20th century, over 170,000 coal miners were employed, and they mined 58,700,000 tons of coal in 1913 alone. As a result, a large number of colliery villages were built throughout the county as the industrial revolution gathered pace.

 

The railway industry was also a major employer during the industrial revolution, with railways being built throughout the county, such as The Tanfield Railway, The Clarence Railway and The Stockton and Darlington Railway. The growth of this industry occurred alongside the coal industry, as the railways provided a fast, efficient means to move coal from the mines to the ports and provided the fuel for the locomotives. The great railway pioneers Timothy Hackworth, Edward Pease, George Stephenson and Robert Stephenson were all actively involved with developing the railways in tandem with County Durham's coal mining industry. Shildon and Darlington became thriving 'railway towns' and experienced significant growths in population and prosperity; before the railways, just over 100 people lived in Shildon but, by the 1890s, the town was home to around 8,000 people, with Shildon Shops employing almost 3000 people at its height.

 

However, by the 1930s, the coal mining industry began to diminish and, by the mid-twentieth century, the pits were closing at an increasing rate. In 1951, the Durham County Development Plan highlighted a number of colliery villages, such as Blackhouse, as 'Category D' settlements, in which future development would be prohibited, property would be acquired and demolished, and the population moved to new housing, such as that being built in Newton Aycliffe. Likewise, the railway industry also began to decline, and was significantly brought to a fraction of its former self by the Beeching cuts in the 1960s. Darlington Works closed in 1966 and Shildon Shops followed suit in 1984. The county's last deep mines, at Easington, Vane Tempest, Wearmouth and Westoe, closed in 1993.

 

Postal Rates from 1801 were charged depending on the distance from London. Durham was allocated the code 263 the approximate mileage from London. From about 1811, a datestamp appeared on letters showing the date the letter was posted. In 1844 a new system was introduced and Durham was allocated the code 267. This system was replaced in 1840 when the first postage stamps were introduced.

 

According to the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1911): "To the Anglo-Saxon period are to be referred portions of the churches of Monk Wearmouth (Sunderland), Jarrow, Escomb near Bishop Auckland, and numerous sculptured crosses, two of which are in situ at Aycliffe. . . . The Decorated and Perpendicular periods are very scantily represented, on account, as is supposed, of the incessant wars between England and Scotland in the 14th and 15th centuries. The principal monastic remains, besides those surrounding Durham cathedral, are those of its subordinate house or "cell," Finchale Priory, beautifully situated by the Wear. The most interesting castles are those of Durham, Raby, Brancepeth and Barnard. There are ruins of castelets or peel-towers at Dalden, Ludworth and Langley Dale. The hospitals of Sherburn, Greatham and Kepyer, founded by early bishops of Durham, retain but few ancient features."

 

The best remains of the Norman period include Durham Cathedral and Durham Castle, and several parish churches, such as St Laurence Church in Pittington. The Early English period has left the eastern portion of the cathedral, the churches of Darlington, Hartlepool, and St Andrew, Auckland, Sedgefield, and portions of a few other churches.

 

'Durham Castle and Cathedral' is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site. Elsewhere in the County there is Auckland Castle.

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

The Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast (known as the Malabar Coast) of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range.

 

The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways, and sometimes compared to the American Bayou. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. National Waterway No. 3 from Kollam to Kottapuram, covers a distance of 205 km and runs almost parallel to the coast line of southern Kerala facilitating both cargo movement and backwater tourism.

 

The backwaters have a unique ecosystem - freshwater from the rivers meets the seawater from the Arabian Sea. In certain areas, such as the Vembanad Kayal, where a barrage has been built near Kumarakom, salt water from the sea is prevented from entering the deep inside, keeping the fresh water intact. Such fresh water is extensively used for irrigation purposes.

 

Many unique species of aquatic life including crabs, frogs and mudskippers, water birds such as terns, kingfishers, darters and cormorants, and animals such as otters and turtles live in and alongside the backwaters. Palm trees, pandanus shrubs, various leafy plants and bushes grow alongside the backwaters, providing a green hue to the surrounding landscape.

 

Vembanad Kayal is the largest of the lakes, covering an area of 200 km², and bordered by Alappuzha (Alleppey), Kottayam, and Ernakulam districts. The port of Kochi (Cochin) is located at the lake's outlet to the Arabian Sea. Alleppey, "Venice of the East", has a large network of canals that meander through the town. Vembanad is India’s longest lake.

 

HOUSE BOATS

The kettuvallams (Kerala houseboats) in the backwaters are one of the prominent tourist attractions in Kerala. More than 2000 kettuvallams ply the backwaters, 120 of them in Alappuzha. Kerala government has classified the tourist houseboats as Platinum, Gold and silver.

 

The kettuvallams were traditionally used as grain barges, to transport the rice harvested in the fertile fields alongside the backwaters. Thatched roof covers over wooden hulls, 30 m in length, provided protection from the elements. At some point in time the boats were used as living quarters by the royalty. Converted to accommodate tourists, the houseboats have become floating cottages having a sleeping area, with western-style toilets, a dining area and a sit out on the deck. Most tourists spend the night on a house boat. Food is cooked on board by the accompanying staff – mostly having a flavour of Kerala. The houseboats are of various patterns and can be hired as per the size of the family or visiting group. The living-dining room is usually open on at least three sides providing a grand view of the surroundings, including other boats, throughout the day when it is on the move. It is brought to a standstill at times of taking food and at night. After sunset, the boat crew provide burning coils to drive away mosquitoes. Ketuvallams are motorised but generally proceed at a slow speed for smooth travel. All ketuvallams have a generator and most bedrooms are air-conditioned. At times, as per demand of customers, electricity is switched off and lanterns are provided to create a rural setting.

 

While many ketuvalloms take tourists from a particular point and bring them back to around the same point next morning there are some specific cruises mostly in the Alappuzha area, such as the one night cruise from Alappuzha to Thotapally via Punnamada Lake two nights cruise from Alappuzha to Alumkavadi, one night cruise from Alappuzha to Kidangara, and one night cruise from Alappuzha to Mankotta. There are numerous such cruises.

 

Beypore, located 10 km south of Kozhikode at the mouth of the Chaliyar River, is a famous fishing harbour, port and boat building centre. Beypore has a 1,500 year-tradition of boatbuilding. The skill of the local shipwrights and boat builders are widely sought after. There is a houseboat-building yard at Alumkadavu, in Ashtamudi Kayal near Kollam.

 

FERRY SERVICES

Regular ferry services connect most locations on both banks of the backwaters. The Kerala State Water Transport Department operates ferries for passengers as well as tourists. It is the cheapest mode of transport through the backwaters.

 

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

Connected by artificial canals, the backwaters form an economical means of transport, and a large local trade is carried on by inland navigation. Fishing, along with fish curing is an important industry.

 

Kerala backwaters have been used for centuries by the local people for transportation, fishing and agriculture. It has supported the efforts of the local people to earn a livelihood. In more recent times, agricultural efforts have been strengthened with reclamation of some backwater lands for rice growing, particularly in the Kuttanad area. Boat making has been a traditional craft, so has been the coir industry.

 

Kuttanad is crisscrossed with waterways that run alongside extensive paddy fields, as well as fields of cassava, banana and yam. A unique feature of Kuttanad is that many of these fields are below sea level and are surrounded by earthen embankments. The crops are grown on the low-lying ground and irrigated with fresh water from canal and waterways connected to Vembanad lake. The area is similar to the dikes of the Netherlands where land has been reclaimed from the sea and crops are grown.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Property Name: Northern District Police Station

Date Listed: 12/28/2001

Inventory No.: B-1339

Location: 3355, Keswick Rd., Baltimore, Baltimore City

 

Description: The Northern District Police Station is a complex of interconnected buildings designed in the late Victorian/French Renaissance style consisting of a three-story main station house with a hipped roof and dormers. A two story building which had originally housed the cellblock connects to the rear of the station house. The main building is in turn attached to a pair of hipped roof garages which were originally used as livery buildings. They are in turn connected to an L-shaped building consisting of the original clerestoried stable and flat roofed garage. Along with another separate garage on the southern edge of the lot, the buildings encircle a courtyard which is now used as a parking lot. It is accessed from West 34th Street through an arched entry between the two livery buildings. The walls are brick with a granite base and brownstone trim and the hipped roofs are sheathed in slate with wrought iron finials and ridge cresting. The unattached garage is built in brick with a flat roof. The main façade, which fronts on Keswick Road, is symmetrical in design with identical two-story slate roofed turrets at each end. The detailing includes stained glass transoms set in keystoned brownstone arches and carved brownstone bases that seat brick pilasters. The interior consists mainly of plastered walls with wood wainscoting and pressed tin ceilings and wood stripped floor now covered with vinyl tile. The original wrought iron stair is still intact. The original gymnasium on the third floor is still used.

 

Significance: The Northern District Police Station is architecturally significant as an outstanding example of late 19th century Victorian eclectic design in Baltimore’s public buildings. It’s massing and impressive architectural detailing demonstrate the high degree of regard that governments of the period in American cities gave aesthetics when it came to the design of important civic structures. The building embodies the distinctive characteristics of the French Renaissance chateauesque style, which was a strain of late 19th century Victorian eclecticism, with its detailing and palette of red brick and brownstone, using such materials as stained glass, pressed tin ceilings, wainscoting, and central steel and wrought iron stair. This is probably the best and most intact example of this style in Baltimore. The Northern District Police Station was designed by Henry Brauns, one of the founding members of the Baltimore Chapter of the AIA in 1870. The building is also significant for the important role it played in the category of government and law for over 100 years, serving Baltimoreans in the northern section of the city which almost doubled in size from land taken in by annexation from 1888 to 1917. The building chronicles the evolution of police work from the Late Victorian era to the present. Out of the city’s three remaining stations from this period, the Northern District is the most intact and is the only one used in its original function.

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

The Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast (known as the Malabar Coast) of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range.

 

The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways, and sometimes compared to the American Bayou. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. National Waterway No. 3 from Kollam to Kottapuram, covers a distance of 205 km and runs almost parallel to the coast line of southern Kerala facilitating both cargo movement and backwater tourism.

 

The backwaters have a unique ecosystem - freshwater from the rivers meets the seawater from the Arabian Sea. In certain areas, such as the Vembanad Kayal, where a barrage has been built near Kumarakom, salt water from the sea is prevented from entering the deep inside, keeping the fresh water intact. Such fresh water is extensively used for irrigation purposes.

 

Many unique species of aquatic life including crabs, frogs and mudskippers, water birds such as terns, kingfishers, darters and cormorants, and animals such as otters and turtles live in and alongside the backwaters. Palm trees, pandanus shrubs, various leafy plants and bushes grow alongside the backwaters, providing a green hue to the surrounding landscape.

 

Vembanad Kayal is the largest of the lakes, covering an area of 200 km², and bordered by Alappuzha (Alleppey), Kottayam, and Ernakulam districts. The port of Kochi (Cochin) is located at the lake's outlet to the Arabian Sea. Alleppey, "Venice of the East", has a large network of canals that meander through the town. Vembanad is India’s longest lake.

 

HOUSE BOATS

The kettuvallams (Kerala houseboats) in the backwaters are one of the prominent tourist attractions in Kerala. More than 2000 kettuvallams ply the backwaters, 120 of them in Alappuzha. Kerala government has classified the tourist houseboats as Platinum, Gold and silver.

 

The kettuvallams were traditionally used as grain barges, to transport the rice harvested in the fertile fields alongside the backwaters. Thatched roof covers over wooden hulls, 30 m in length, provided protection from the elements. At some point in time the boats were used as living quarters by the royalty. Converted to accommodate tourists, the houseboats have become floating cottages having a sleeping area, with western-style toilets, a dining area and a sit out on the deck. Most tourists spend the night on a house boat. Food is cooked on board by the accompanying staff – mostly having a flavour of Kerala. The houseboats are of various patterns and can be hired as per the size of the family or visiting group. The living-dining room is usually open on at least three sides providing a grand view of the surroundings, including other boats, throughout the day when it is on the move. It is brought to a standstill at times of taking food and at night. After sunset, the boat crew provide burning coils to drive away mosquitoes. Ketuvallams are motorised but generally proceed at a slow speed for smooth travel. All ketuvallams have a generator and most bedrooms are air-conditioned. At times, as per demand of customers, electricity is switched off and lanterns are provided to create a rural setting.

 

While many ketuvalloms take tourists from a particular point and bring them back to around the same point next morning there are some specific cruises mostly in the Alappuzha area, such as the one night cruise from Alappuzha to Thotapally via Punnamada Lake two nights cruise from Alappuzha to Alumkavadi,[8] one night cruise from Alappuzha to Kidangara, and one night cruise from Alappuzha to Mankotta. There are numerous such cruises.

 

Beypore, located 10 km south of Kozhikode at the mouth of the Chaliyar River, is a famous fishing harbour, port and boat building centre. Beypore has a 1,500 year-tradition of boatbuilding. The skill of the local shipwrights and boat builders are widely sought after. There is a houseboat-building yard at Alumkadavu, in Ashtamudi Kayal near Kollam.

 

FERRY SERVICES

Regular ferry services connect most locations on both banks of the backwaters. The Kerala State Water Transport Department operates ferries for passengers as well as tourists. It is the cheapest mode of transport through the backwaters.

 

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

Connected by artificial canals, the backwaters form an economical means of transport, and a large local trade is carried on by inland navigation. Fishing, along with fish curing is an important industry.

 

Kerala backwaters have been used for centuries by the local people for transportation, fishing and agriculture. It has supported the efforts of the local people to earn a livelihood. In more recent times, agricultural efforts have been strengthened with reclamation of some backwater lands for rice growing, particularly in the Kuttanad area. Boat making has been a traditional craft, so has been the coir industry.

 

Kuttanad is crisscrossed with waterways that run alongside extensive paddy fields, as well as fields of cassava, banana and yam. A unique feature of Kuttanad is that many of these fields are below sea level and are surrounded by earthen embankments. The crops are grown on the low-lying ground and irrigated with fresh water from canal and waterways connected to Vembanad lake. The area is similar to the dikes of the Netherlands where land has been reclaimed from the sea and crops are grown.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Copyrightvermelding: Stad Gent | Martin Corlazzoli

 

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All images in this database are protected by copyright. They are the property of Stad Gent.

When using an image you must mention copyright © Stad Gent as well as the author of the image.

Please send a copy or digital file of the publication in which the images are used to beeld@stad.gent

The image shall not be modified, altered or misused. If you wish to modify the image, you must first request permission to do so.

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This pub is TINY. Enterprise, the PubCo, wanted 90K initially on the assumption that the pub was taking 20K a week. The interior is three small interconnected rooms, each about the size of a modestly sized domestic bathroom. The idea that a place this size could do 20K a week, even in the shadow of Old Bailey and the Appeal Courts, and it being rammed twelve hours a day with loaded silks, is preposterous.

 

Below is Article from Morning Advertiser.

 

An award-winning lessee has won in arbitration after her pubco tried to double her rent.

 

Enterprise Inns proposed increasing rent at the Seven Stars, in Holborn, London, from £39,500 to £79,975.

 

Lessee Jenny Silver – known as Roxy Beaujolais – was advised by consultant Ken Newton that a more realistic rent for the free-of-tie pub would be between £50,000 and £55,000.

 

Newton made an offer of £50,500, which was rejected by Enterprise – the pubco proposed £59,500.

 

After further negotiations failed, an arbitrator was appointed and settled on £52,500.

 

Newton argued that “Roxy” was the key to success at the “tiny” pub.

 

The Seven Stars has a trading space of less than 500sq ft and is located in an area where trade is traditionally quiet at weekends.

 

Silver and husband Nathan have spent about £100,000

 

on the interior since taking over the 400-year-old listed pub in 2001.

 

They increased the number of days it opens from five to seven, revamped its food offer and increased covers from four to 20.

 

Since 2001, it has been named Pub of the Year by Time Out and London’s Best Dining Pub by the Good Pub Guide.

 

Newton said: “The pub is doing well as a result of Roxy’s efforts. There were only five years left on the lease and Enterprise wanted to double the rent, because it has apparently been under-trading all these years. That is unacceptable.”

 

Roxy was “horrified” by the proposed rent hike.

 

She said: “It would have been very difficult to trade with that rent. There would have been no profit.”

 

Enterprise was ordered to pay costs of about £10,000, plus Newton’s expenses of £2,000.

 

This is because Silver’s final offer of £52,050 was nearer the arbitrator’s ruling than Enterprise’s final proposal of £55,000.

 

Enterprise not unhappy

 

Enterprise chief operating officer Simon Townsend said: “We are not unhappy with the result.

 

“There has been a fair process, leading to a fair decision. We originally over-estimated trade in what is a free-of-tie house, which meant we did not have ‘line of sight’. So, unsurprisingly, our first offer was rejected.

 

“But after careful consideration and exchange of information with the lessee, we were able to take a more informed decision, and we’re happy with this result.”

   

Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness suspended below a fabric wing consisting of a large number of interconnected baffled cells. Wing shape is maintained by the suspension lines, the pressure of air entering vents in the front of the wing and the aerodynamic forces of the air flowing over the outside.Despite not using an engine, paraglider flights can last many hours and cover many hundreds of kilometres, though flights of 1–2 hours and covering some tens of kilometres are more the norm. By skilful exploitation of sources of lift the pilot may gain height, often climbing to altitudes of a few thousand metres.Paragliders are unique among soaring aircraft in being easily portable. The complete equipment packs into a rucksack and can be carried easily on the pilot's back, in a car, or on public transport. In comparison with other air sports this substantially simplifies travel to a suitable takeoff spot, the selection of a landing place and return travel.Paragliding can be of local importance as a commercial activity.Paid accompanied tandem flights are available in many mountainous regions, both in the winter and in the summer. In addition there are many schools offering courses, and guides who lead groups of more experienced pilots exploring an area. Finally there are the manufacturers and the associated repair and after sales services.

 

Il parapendio è il mezzo da volo libero più semplice e leggero esistente, derivato dai paracadute da lancio pilotabili.La storia del Parapendio comincia nel 1965 con la messa a punto della Sailwing da parte di Dave Barish. Egli chiamò questa nuova disciplina slope soaring (volo di pendio). Parallelamente a questa invenzione, Domina Jalbert creò un paracadute dotato di cassoni da utilizzarsi al posto del paracadute parabolico: il parafoil.Dave Barish e Dan Poynter effettuarono, nel 1966 e nel 1968 numerose dimostrazioni di slope soaring su di un trampolino da Salto con gli sci. Numerosi alpinisti cominciarono ad interessarsi a questa pratica, vedendovi un modo rapido ed efficace, e non ultimo divertente, di planare dopo un'ascensione.Nel 1978, tre paracadutisti francesi (Jean Claude Bétemps, Gérard Bosson e André Bohn) decollarono con i paracadute rettangolari dal monte Pertuiset, presso Mieussy in Alta Savoia (F). Furono solo i primi di molti paracadutisti che cominciavano ad interessarsi al volo di pendio.Laurent de Kalbermatten inventò nel 1985 il Randonneuse, il primo parapendio concepito specificamente per il volo. Era un mezzo più efficiente, più facile da gonfiare e dalle maggiori prestazioni dei paracadute di allora. Il parapendio non cesserà più di evolversi, tanto come materiali utilizzati che come tecniche di costruzione, divenendo un sport a se stante.Il primo campionato del mondo di parapendio si tenne nel 1987 a Verbier, mentre il primo campionato del mondo di acrobazia si è tenuto nell'agosto del 2006 a Villeneuve.

 

Font : Wikipedia

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Inspired by Francis Ow: Four stripe modules 60.8x8.8cm (8.8cm overlap length)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Design Thinking creates positive 'decision windows' to help us move towards an interconnected whole.

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Palace Gardens under Prague Castle (Palácové zahrady pod Pražským hradem)

 

This complex of interconnected historical gardens (Ledeburg, Small and Large Palffy, Kolovrat and Small Fürstenberg Garden) is situated on the southern slopes below Prague Castle. All of these palatial terrace gardens have a rich architectural decoration, decorative staircases, balustrades, scenic terraces, garden-houses and pavilions carefully integrated into the vegetation to create a picturesque whole. Concerts and social events are often held here.

The Southern slopes under the Prague Castle premises above Valdštejnská Street are the location of terrace Baroque gardens established in place of vineyards or Renaissance gardens by the spectacular noble palaces. In the direction from the square Valdštejnské náměstí towards Klárov, there are the following gardens: Ledeburg Garden, Lesser and Greater Pálffy Gardens, Kolowrat Garden, Lesser and Greater Fürstenberg Gardens. All the gardens have been restored and newly replanted. The Langweil’s model of Prague from 1826 - 1836 (today situated in the Museum of the Capital City of Prague) served as a very good model for the restoration of the gardens, as it documented their appearance most completely. All the palace terrace gardens have rich architectural decorations, decorative staircases, balustrades, observation terraces, gloriettes and pavilions composed into picturesque units together with the vegetation. During the summer seasons, they are opened for public in their representative state. Concerts and different social events are held in these gardens.

Ledeburg Garden

is located behind the Ledeburg Palace, house No. 162, and spreads on 0.18 hectares, 205 - 230 m high above sea level. It is also called the Trautmannsdorf Garden, after its founders, Marie and Leopold Trautmannsdorf. The garden was established in 1697 during a reconstruction of the palace carried out by Giovanni Santini Aichl or Giovanni Battista Alliprandi. In 1787 it was acquired by the Kolowrats, and it was modified in Baroque style by Ignác Jan Palliardi.

The garden is divided into two parts. The lower part is situated on a plane, spreading as wide as the palace, and the upper part has half the width and the slant terrain has been modified into five terraces, permeated via an extended steep staircase, terminated via a small octagonal pavilion - a gloriette, built in 1787 at the time of Josef Kolowrat. There is a sala terrena in the lower, parterre part of the garden at the Western front, which used to be decorated by wall paintings. Today, the sala terrena serves the purposes of a concert venue. On the opposite Eastern side, there is a scenery wall with a double staircase and a fountain with a statue of Hercules fighting a several-headed hydra (probably a copy of the original sculpture from the first quarter of the 18th century). There is another fountain in the central part of the green parterre area. The garden is decorated with a female act named Fertility (Plodnost) by Jan Štursa from 1920. There is a supporting wall between the lower parterre and the terraced part, which was originally decorated with Reiner’s fresco. One sundial has been preserved in the garden. By the supporting walls, there are wooden brackets with grapevine and climbing roses, and further on, there are cut evergreen hems, summer annual flowers, as well as plants in terracotta pots.

In the 1950s, there was a complete reconstruction of the garden according to a project of V. Kříž. From 1977 on, the garden was closed for emergency reasons. The last reconstruction was initiated in 1989. Over the years, several professionals participated in the project documentation regarding the garden’s rehabilitation. Their preparation resulted in a project of architect Karel Císař and his team, and the team of a garden architect Květoslav Vlček. Upon the completion of the constructional, technical, restoring and silvicultural works, the garden was festively opened for public in full glory on the 14th June 1995.

Lesser and Greater Pálffy Gardens

Both the terrace gardens of Baroque origin above the Pálffy Palace in Valdštejnská Street No. 158 were established in place of a Renaissance garden of Italian type after Jan Josef of Valdštejn united and re-built two burgess houses with gardens into a palace in 1712 - 1720. After 1731, the property was owned by the Fürstenbergs. The terrace gardens were established in 1751 by Marie Anna of Fürstenberg; we do not know the authors of the project. In 1881, the palace and the gardens were purchased by Eduard Pálffy of Erdöd, hence the name of the gardens. Both the gardens underwent significant reconstruction in the 1950s, but later they had to be modified and relieved of some unsuitable elements.

Lesser Pálffy Garden (0.07 ha) rises up above the former service wing of the palace. It was extensively rehabilitated in the years 1988 - 95 according to the project of architect Josef Lešetický and ing. Václav Pína. Agricultural restoration was realized by ing. Božena Mackovičová. Seven terrace levels of the garden are interconnected via a staircase. At the level of the lowest and the highest terraces, there is an interconnection with the neighbouring gardens - Ledeburg and Greater Pálffy Gardens. The garden has a utility character; the terraces are planted with pear-trees, apple-trees and sour cherry-trees. Grapevine climbs upon the upper supporting wall. Behind the steep staircase in the upper part, there is a small garden with medicinal plants. The Lesser Pálffy Garden was festively opened together with the Ledeburg Garden on the 14th June 1995.

Greater Pálffy Garden spreads in 8 height levels, interconnected in an axis of staircases, alternatively tunnelled and open. In the middle of the lowest terrace, there is a Baroque portal with round pool decorated with a statue of a blowing Triton. On the second terrace, there is a sundial within a Baroque portal. Underneath the clock, there is an inscription on a band: Claret in orbe dies, ac teatras, hora pete umbras - let a clear day in the world scare the gloomy shadows away. Red letters of the inscription, read as Roman numerals, give the year 1751.

There used to be a skittle alley in the garden. As Josef Dobrovský or František Palacký mention, it was a popular place for walks. In place of the original connection with the premises of Prague Castle, there is an oval marble desk, which reads that rehabilitation of the palace gardens was realized with a contribution of the Prague Heritage Fund, under the patronage of President Václav Havel and His Royal Highness Prince Charles. It was in the years 1995 - 1997 according to a project of Václav Girsa and Miloslav Hanzl; the garden modifications were carried out by Irena Bartošová. Greater Pálffy garden was festively opened on the 9th September 1997, and it was added to the observation round of the Ledeburg and the Lesser Pálffy Gardens.

Kolowrat Garden spreads on a steep hill behind the Kolowrat Palace No. 154 on an area of 0.07 hectares. It was established on the bailey of the former medieval ramparts, strengthened by supporting walls, as a terrace with fruit trees. The axis is formed by a narrow, straight staircase connecting seven terraces. In the Eastern part, there is a Baroque fountain with a gargoyle head. The garden is planted with medlars, pear-trees and apricot-trees. The garden was opened for public on the 30th August 2000, following rehabilitation according to projects of architect Václav Jirsa and Miloslav Hanzl, and silvicultural arrangements realized by architect Irena Bartošová.

Lesser Fürstenberg Garden (also the Lesser Černín Garden or the Černín Terraces) used to be a part of the lesser Fürstenberg, former Černín House, No. 155. In the mid-18th century, there used to be a Baroque terrace garden of an Italian type. When it became the property of countess Marie Barbora of Černín, born Schaffgotsche, the house went through an extensive reconstruction carried out by Ignác Jan Palliardi in the years 1784 - 88, which gave the house its current appearance, and at the same time, the architect rebuilt an older Baroque garden into an impressive Rococo terrace garden. It takes up a narrow, but long strip of the slope on the castle hill. The axis has a form of an formidable staircase leading from the gloriette to the observation pavilion, intersected by supporting walls, terraces and balustrades. The gloriette on the ground level, originally containing a bath as well, is painted with grisaille motives with a central genre painting named Swings in the nature (Houpačky v přírodě) and with allegoric paintings of four seasons in the year (perhaps by Ignác František Platzer). There are symmetrically spread orangeries on the second terrace. The staircase is terminated under the Castle’s enclosure wall by a three-piece sala terrena, an observation terrace with a loggia and with plastic stucco articulation, the front of which contains the coats of arms of the Černín and the Schaffgotsch Families. The balustrade is decorated with putti and decorative vases. The staircase leads from here to the observation pavilion with a cylindrical tower, in which Countess of Černín had her bathroom. The last landing of the staircase by the tower allows for access into the Prague Castle Southern Gardens. The garden is characteristic for its climbing roses.

Despite the relatively small extent of the garden, the combination of architectural, sculptural and painting elements with the vegetation on the terraces and the exotic plants in the orangeries provides the best possible effectiveness for the visitors. It is specifically the location under the Castle with a unique view of the town what contributes to the garden’s excellence. In 1997 - 2000, the garden was completely rehabilitated according to the project of architect Václav Jirsa and Miloslav Hanzl, with the silvicultural modifications realized by architect Irena Bartošová. The garden has been accessible for public since the 30th August 2000.

Greater Fürstenberg Garden is situated by the Fürstenberg Palace (Palace of Berka of Dubá, Netolický Palace). It was established by an unknown architect in place of the former vineyards in the 1st half of the 18th century. It consists of two parts - lower plane and rear terraces, intersected via a staircase terminated by a triaxial summer house from the mid-18th century. Modifications were made in 1790 by I. G. Palliardi, and at this time, the fountain with Neptune was founded. In 1822, the garden together with the adjoining palace was purchased by the Fürstenberg Family, and around 1860 they had architect Josef Leibl transforming it into an English park. At the same time, the lower part of the garden was also arranged, in place of the former dumping place, and a fountain was installed here with a sculpture of a boy playing with a stork. The lower plane went through a reconstruction in the 20th century, which was related to the transformation for the Polish Embassy, and the modern modifications were rather of a maintenance character. The upper terraces dilapidated due to lack of care. It was only renewed during reconstruction in the years 2006 - 2008.

The garden spreads on the surface area of 1.55 hectares, it is 130 m wide and the overall height of the ten terraces from the bottom plane amounts to 35 m. It was planted with over 3,500 flowers, 8,500 woody plants, and 2,200 roses. The newly installed lighting allows for evening visits.

www.prague.eu/en/object/places/497/palace-gardens-under-p...

 

ASIS Europe 2023 – From Risk to Resilience

 

Today’s enterprise is connected, complex and global. Securing innovation and competitive advantage requires simultaneously protecting people, information, products, and property. Rapid, interconnected change, and shifting perceptions of risk and value are key challenges for security practi-tioners. ASIS Europe programme is designed to provide unique insights to help you, your teams and your organisation. We will examine evolving security challenges from the perspective of leaders tasked with protecting their organi-sation’s reputation and most precious assets in a manner that drives business, organisational and cultural goals. | Foto © Charles Batenburg

River landscape's from the rivers Merwede and Waal.

  

Merwede

  

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

The Merwede (etymology uncertain, possibly derived from the ancient Dutch (Merwe or Merowe) word meaning "wide water") is the name of several interconnected stretches of river in The Netherlands, all part of the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt delta. The Meuse river joins the Waal at Woudrichem to form the Boven Merwede (Upper Merwede). A few kilometers downstream it splits into the Beneden Merwede (Lower Merwede) on the right and the Nieuwe Merwede (New Merwede) on the left. All these rivers are tidal. The Nieuwe Merwede joins the Bergse Maas near Lage Zwaluwe to form the Hollands Diep estuary, and separates the Island of Dordrecht from the Biesbosch National Park. The Beneden Merwede splits into the Noord River and Oude Maas near Papendrecht.

 

[edit] History

 

In medieval times there was no such distinction. The Merwede (or "Merwe" in Middle Dutch) was the name of a continuous stretch of river, considered to be the lower part of the river Waal (being a major distributary branch of the Rhine). Although the name Merwede is currently only used between the towns of Woudrichem and Papendrecht, during its early history it carried on his name all the way to the sea - including the rivers currently named Noord river and Nieuwe Maas.

 

The situation changed during the later Middle Ages, when a major flood forced the Meuse river to shift its main course towards the Merwede as well. From that moment on, several stretches of the original Merwede were named Meuse instead and served as the primary outflow of that river. These are currently known as the Oude Maas and Nieuwe Maas. However, during another series of severe floods (such as the St. Elizabeth flood) the river Meuse (and, to a lesser extent, the river Rhine as well) found an additional path towards the sea, resulting in the creation of the Biesbosch and Hollands Diep. Because of this, the influence of the river Meuse on its former estuary branches slowly diminished. In recent centuries the influence of the Meuse has decreased even further, to the point that the major stretches of river called Oude Maas and Nieuwe Maas were essentially cut off from the river Meuse completely.

 

From that moment on, both the current Merwede and all of its former lower stretches (containing the name Meuse or not) are only part of the delta of the Rhine, while the Meuse has been giving its own artificial mouth Bergse Maas and the two rivers Rhine and Meuse are now mostly separated to reduce the risk of flooding.

 

The Merovingian Dynasty probably derived its name from this river. See Emil Rückert [1]

  

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merwede

The Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast (known as the Malabar Coast) of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range.

 

The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways, and sometimes compared to the American Bayou. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. National Waterway No. 3 from Kollam to Kottapuram, covers a distance of 205 km and runs almost parallel to the coast line of southern Kerala facilitating both cargo movement and backwater tourism.

 

The backwaters have a unique ecosystem - freshwater from the rivers meets the seawater from the Arabian Sea. In certain areas, such as the Vembanad Kayal, where a barrage has been built near Kumarakom, salt water from the sea is prevented from entering the deep inside, keeping the fresh water intact. Such fresh water is extensively used for irrigation purposes.

 

Many unique species of aquatic life including crabs, frogs and mudskippers, water birds such as terns, kingfishers, darters and cormorants, and animals such as otters and turtles live in and alongside the backwaters. Palm trees, pandanus shrubs, various leafy plants and bushes grow alongside the backwaters, providing a green hue to the surrounding landscape.

 

Vembanad Kayal is the largest of the lakes, covering an area of 200 km², and bordered by Alappuzha (Alleppey), Kottayam, and Ernakulam districts. The port of Kochi (Cochin) is located at the lake's outlet to the Arabian Sea. Alleppey, "Venice of the East", has a large network of canals that meander through the town. Vembanad is India’s longest lake.

 

HOUSE BOATS

The kettuvallams (Kerala houseboats) in the backwaters are one of the prominent tourist attractions in Kerala. More than 2000 kettuvallams ply the backwaters, 120 of them in Alappuzha. Kerala government has classified the tourist houseboats as Platinum, Gold and silver.

 

The kettuvallams were traditionally used as grain barges, to transport the rice harvested in the fertile fields alongside the backwaters. Thatched roof covers over wooden hulls, 30 m in length, provided protection from the elements. At some point in time the boats were used as living quarters by the royalty. Converted to accommodate tourists, the houseboats have become floating cottages having a sleeping area, with western-style toilets, a dining area and a sit out on the deck. Most tourists spend the night on a house boat. Food is cooked on board by the accompanying staff – mostly having a flavour of Kerala. The houseboats are of various patterns and can be hired as per the size of the family or visiting group. The living-dining room is usually open on at least three sides providing a grand view of the surroundings, including other boats, throughout the day when it is on the move. It is brought to a standstill at times of taking food and at night. After sunset, the boat crew provide burning coils to drive away mosquitoes. Ketuvallams are motorised but generally proceed at a slow speed for smooth travel. All ketuvallams have a generator and most bedrooms are air-conditioned. At times, as per demand of customers, electricity is switched off and lanterns are provided to create a rural setting.

 

While many ketuvalloms take tourists from a particular point and bring them back to around the same point next morning there are some specific cruises mostly in the Alappuzha area, such as the one night cruise from Alappuzha to Thotapally via Punnamada Lake two nights cruise from Alappuzha to Alumkavadi,[8] one night cruise from Alappuzha to Kidangara, and one night cruise from Alappuzha to Mankotta. There are numerous such cruises.

 

Beypore, located 10 km south of Kozhikode at the mouth of the Chaliyar River, is a famous fishing harbour, port and boat building centre. Beypore has a 1,500 year-tradition of boatbuilding. The skill of the local shipwrights and boat builders are widely sought after. There is a houseboat-building yard at Alumkadavu, in Ashtamudi Kayal near Kollam.

 

FERRY SERVICES

Regular ferry services connect most locations on both banks of the backwaters. The Kerala State Water Transport Department operates ferries for passengers as well as tourists. It is the cheapest mode of transport through the backwaters.

 

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

Connected by artificial canals, the backwaters form an economical means of transport, and a large local trade is carried on by inland navigation. Fishing, along with fish curing is an important industry.

 

Kerala backwaters have been used for centuries by the local people for transportation, fishing and agriculture. It has supported the efforts of the local people to earn a livelihood. In more recent times, agricultural efforts have been strengthened with reclamation of some backwater lands for rice growing, particularly in the Kuttanad area. Boat making has been a traditional craft, so has been the coir industry.

 

Kuttanad is crisscrossed with waterways that run alongside extensive paddy fields, as well as fields of cassava, banana and yam. A unique feature of Kuttanad is that many of these fields are below sea level and are surrounded by earthen embankments. The crops are grown on the low-lying ground and irrigated with fresh water from canal and waterways connected to Vembanad lake. The area is similar to the dikes of the Netherlands where land has been reclaimed from the sea and crops are grown.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Palace Gardens under Prague Castle (Palácové zahrady pod Pražským hradem)

 

This complex of interconnected historical gardens (Ledeburg, Small and Large Palffy, Kolovrat and Small Fürstenberg Garden) is situated on the southern slopes below Prague Castle. All of these palatial terrace gardens have a rich architectural decoration, decorative staircases, balustrades, scenic terraces, garden-houses and pavilions carefully integrated into the vegetation to create a picturesque whole. Concerts and social events are often held here.

The Southern slopes under the Prague Castle premises above Valdštejnská Street are the location of terrace Baroque gardens established in place of vineyards or Renaissance gardens by the spectacular noble palaces. In the direction from the square Valdštejnské náměstí towards Klárov, there are the following gardens: Ledeburg Garden, Lesser and Greater Pálffy Gardens, Kolowrat Garden, Lesser and Greater Fürstenberg Gardens. All the gardens have been restored and newly replanted. The Langweil’s model of Prague from 1826 - 1836 (today situated in the Museum of the Capital City of Prague) served as a very good model for the restoration of the gardens, as it documented their appearance most completely. All the palace terrace gardens have rich architectural decorations, decorative staircases, balustrades, observation terraces, gloriettes and pavilions composed into picturesque units together with the vegetation. During the summer seasons, they are opened for public in their representative state. Concerts and different social events are held in these gardens.

Ledeburg Garden

is located behind the Ledeburg Palace, house No. 162, and spreads on 0.18 hectares, 205 - 230 m high above sea level. It is also called the Trautmannsdorf Garden, after its founders, Marie and Leopold Trautmannsdorf. The garden was established in 1697 during a reconstruction of the palace carried out by Giovanni Santini Aichl or Giovanni Battista Alliprandi. In 1787 it was acquired by the Kolowrats, and it was modified in Baroque style by Ignác Jan Palliardi.

The garden is divided into two parts. The lower part is situated on a plane, spreading as wide as the palace, and the upper part has half the width and the slant terrain has been modified into five terraces, permeated via an extended steep staircase, terminated via a small octagonal pavilion - a gloriette, built in 1787 at the time of Josef Kolowrat. There is a sala terrena in the lower, parterre part of the garden at the Western front, which used to be decorated by wall paintings. Today, the sala terrena serves the purposes of a concert venue. On the opposite Eastern side, there is a scenery wall with a double staircase and a fountain with a statue of Hercules fighting a several-headed hydra (probably a copy of the original sculpture from the first quarter of the 18th century). There is another fountain in the central part of the green parterre area. The garden is decorated with a female act named Fertility (Plodnost) by Jan Štursa from 1920. There is a supporting wall between the lower parterre and the terraced part, which was originally decorated with Reiner’s fresco. One sundial has been preserved in the garden. By the supporting walls, there are wooden brackets with grapevine and climbing roses, and further on, there are cut evergreen hems, summer annual flowers, as well as plants in terracotta pots.

In the 1950s, there was a complete reconstruction of the garden according to a project of V. Kříž. From 1977 on, the garden was closed for emergency reasons. The last reconstruction was initiated in 1989. Over the years, several professionals participated in the project documentation regarding the garden’s rehabilitation. Their preparation resulted in a project of architect Karel Císař and his team, and the team of a garden architect Květoslav Vlček. Upon the completion of the constructional, technical, restoring and silvicultural works, the garden was festively opened for public in full glory on the 14th June 1995.

Lesser and Greater Pálffy Gardens

Both the terrace gardens of Baroque origin above the Pálffy Palace in Valdštejnská Street No. 158 were established in place of a Renaissance garden of Italian type after Jan Josef of Valdštejn united and re-built two burgess houses with gardens into a palace in 1712 - 1720. After 1731, the property was owned by the Fürstenbergs. The terrace gardens were established in 1751 by Marie Anna of Fürstenberg; we do not know the authors of the project. In 1881, the palace and the gardens were purchased by Eduard Pálffy of Erdöd, hence the name of the gardens. Both the gardens underwent significant reconstruction in the 1950s, but later they had to be modified and relieved of some unsuitable elements.

Lesser Pálffy Garden (0.07 ha) rises up above the former service wing of the palace. It was extensively rehabilitated in the years 1988 - 95 according to the project of architect Josef Lešetický and ing. Václav Pína. Agricultural restoration was realized by ing. Božena Mackovičová. Seven terrace levels of the garden are interconnected via a staircase. At the level of the lowest and the highest terraces, there is an interconnection with the neighbouring gardens - Ledeburg and Greater Pálffy Gardens. The garden has a utility character; the terraces are planted with pear-trees, apple-trees and sour cherry-trees. Grapevine climbs upon the upper supporting wall. Behind the steep staircase in the upper part, there is a small garden with medicinal plants. The Lesser Pálffy Garden was festively opened together with the Ledeburg Garden on the 14th June 1995.

Greater Pálffy Garden spreads in 8 height levels, interconnected in an axis of staircases, alternatively tunnelled and open. In the middle of the lowest terrace, there is a Baroque portal with round pool decorated with a statue of a blowing Triton. On the second terrace, there is a sundial within a Baroque portal. Underneath the clock, there is an inscription on a band: Claret in orbe dies, ac teatras, hora pete umbras - let a clear day in the world scare the gloomy shadows away. Red letters of the inscription, read as Roman numerals, give the year 1751.

There used to be a skittle alley in the garden. As Josef Dobrovský or František Palacký mention, it was a popular place for walks. In place of the original connection with the premises of Prague Castle, there is an oval marble desk, which reads that rehabilitation of the palace gardens was realized with a contribution of the Prague Heritage Fund, under the patronage of President Václav Havel and His Royal Highness Prince Charles. It was in the years 1995 - 1997 according to a project of Václav Girsa and Miloslav Hanzl; the garden modifications were carried out by Irena Bartošová. Greater Pálffy garden was festively opened on the 9th September 1997, and it was added to the observation round of the Ledeburg and the Lesser Pálffy Gardens.

Kolowrat Garden spreads on a steep hill behind the Kolowrat Palace No. 154 on an area of 0.07 hectares. It was established on the bailey of the former medieval ramparts, strengthened by supporting walls, as a terrace with fruit trees. The axis is formed by a narrow, straight staircase connecting seven terraces. In the Eastern part, there is a Baroque fountain with a gargoyle head. The garden is planted with medlars, pear-trees and apricot-trees. The garden was opened for public on the 30th August 2000, following rehabilitation according to projects of architect Václav Jirsa and Miloslav Hanzl, and silvicultural arrangements realized by architect Irena Bartošová.

Lesser Fürstenberg Garden (also the Lesser Černín Garden or the Černín Terraces) used to be a part of the lesser Fürstenberg, former Černín House, No. 155. In the mid-18th century, there used to be a Baroque terrace garden of an Italian type. When it became the property of countess Marie Barbora of Černín, born Schaffgotsche, the house went through an extensive reconstruction carried out by Ignác Jan Palliardi in the years 1784 - 88, which gave the house its current appearance, and at the same time, the architect rebuilt an older Baroque garden into an impressive Rococo terrace garden. It takes up a narrow, but long strip of the slope on the castle hill. The axis has a form of an formidable staircase leading from the gloriette to the observation pavilion, intersected by supporting walls, terraces and balustrades. The gloriette on the ground level, originally containing a bath as well, is painted with grisaille motives with a central genre painting named Swings in the nature (Houpačky v přírodě) and with allegoric paintings of four seasons in the year (perhaps by Ignác František Platzer). There are symmetrically spread orangeries on the second terrace. The staircase is terminated under the Castle’s enclosure wall by a three-piece sala terrena, an observation terrace with a loggia and with plastic stucco articulation, the front of which contains the coats of arms of the Černín and the Schaffgotsch Families. The balustrade is decorated with putti and decorative vases. The staircase leads from here to the observation pavilion with a cylindrical tower, in which Countess of Černín had her bathroom. The last landing of the staircase by the tower allows for access into the Prague Castle Southern Gardens. The garden is characteristic for its climbing roses.

Despite the relatively small extent of the garden, the combination of architectural, sculptural and painting elements with the vegetation on the terraces and the exotic plants in the orangeries provides the best possible effectiveness for the visitors. It is specifically the location under the Castle with a unique view of the town what contributes to the garden’s excellence. In 1997 - 2000, the garden was completely rehabilitated according to the project of architect Václav Jirsa and Miloslav Hanzl, with the silvicultural modifications realized by architect Irena Bartošová. The garden has been accessible for public since the 30th August 2000.

Greater Fürstenberg Garden is situated by the Fürstenberg Palace (Palace of Berka of Dubá, Netolický Palace). It was established by an unknown architect in place of the former vineyards in the 1st half of the 18th century. It consists of two parts - lower plane and rear terraces, intersected via a staircase terminated by a triaxial summer house from the mid-18th century. Modifications were made in 1790 by I. G. Palliardi, and at this time, the fountain with Neptune was founded. In 1822, the garden together with the adjoining palace was purchased by the Fürstenberg Family, and around 1860 they had architect Josef Leibl transforming it into an English park. At the same time, the lower part of the garden was also arranged, in place of the former dumping place, and a fountain was installed here with a sculpture of a boy playing with a stork. The lower plane went through a reconstruction in the 20th century, which was related to the transformation for the Polish Embassy, and the modern modifications were rather of a maintenance character. The upper terraces dilapidated due to lack of care. It was only renewed during reconstruction in the years 2006 - 2008.

The garden spreads on the surface area of 1.55 hectares, it is 130 m wide and the overall height of the ten terraces from the bottom plane amounts to 35 m. It was planted with over 3,500 flowers, 8,500 woody plants, and 2,200 roses. The newly installed lighting allows for evening visits.

www.prague.eu/en/object/places/497/palace-gardens-under-p...

 

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Paradisium (detail) by Dave Keane and Folly Builders

 

Paradisium is an interactive grove of geometric trees built primarily out of reclaimed lumber and trees burnt in the CZU Lighting Complex fire in Santa Cruz. An interconnected canopy creates shadow art on the playa floor, and meandering pathways lead to an opening in the center. Climbable trees and various walkways among the canopy will afford elevated perspective. Just like a real forest, the grove will have its seasons and 24-hour cycles. Paradisium provides a space for respite and reflection while fostering a sense of community and an investment in our shared future.

 

URL: www.follybuilders.com/paradisium

Contact: info@follybuilders.com

River landscape's from the rivers Merwede and Waal.

  

Merwede

  

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

The Merwede (etymology uncertain, possibly derived from the ancient Dutch (Merwe or Merowe) word meaning "wide water") is the name of several interconnected stretches of river in The Netherlands, all part of the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt delta. The Meuse river joins the Waal at Woudrichem to form the Boven Merwede (Upper Merwede). A few kilometers downstream it splits into the Beneden Merwede (Lower Merwede) on the right and the Nieuwe Merwede (New Merwede) on the left. All these rivers are tidal. The Nieuwe Merwede joins the Bergse Maas near Lage Zwaluwe to form the Hollands Diep estuary, and separates the Island of Dordrecht from the Biesbosch National Park. The Beneden Merwede splits into the Noord River and Oude Maas near Papendrecht.

 

[edit] History

 

In medieval times there was no such distinction. The Merwede (or "Merwe" in Middle Dutch) was the name of a continuous stretch of river, considered to be the lower part of the river Waal (being a major distributary branch of the Rhine). Although the name Merwede is currently only used between the towns of Woudrichem and Papendrecht, during its early history it carried on his name all the way to the sea - including the rivers currently named Noord river and Nieuwe Maas.

 

The situation changed during the later Middle Ages, when a major flood forced the Meuse river to shift its main course towards the Merwede as well. From that moment on, several stretches of the original Merwede were named Meuse instead and served as the primary outflow of that river. These are currently known as the Oude Maas and Nieuwe Maas. However, during another series of severe floods (such as the St. Elizabeth flood) the river Meuse (and, to a lesser extent, the river Rhine as well) found an additional path towards the sea, resulting in the creation of the Biesbosch and Hollands Diep. Because of this, the influence of the river Meuse on its former estuary branches slowly diminished. In recent centuries the influence of the Meuse has decreased even further, to the point that the major stretches of river called Oude Maas and Nieuwe Maas were essentially cut off from the river Meuse completely.

 

From that moment on, both the current Merwede and all of its former lower stretches (containing the name Meuse or not) are only part of the delta of the Rhine, while the Meuse has been giving its own artificial mouth Bergse Maas and the two rivers Rhine and Meuse are now mostly separated to reduce the risk of flooding.

 

The Merovingian Dynasty probably derived its name from this river. See Emil Rückert [1]

  

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merwede

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

The Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast (known as the Malabar Coast) of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range.

 

The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways, and sometimes compared to the American Bayou. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. National Waterway No. 3 from Kollam to Kottapuram, covers a distance of 205 km and runs almost parallel to the coast line of southern Kerala facilitating both cargo movement and backwater tourism.

 

The backwaters have a unique ecosystem - freshwater from the rivers meets the seawater from the Arabian Sea. In certain areas, such as the Vembanad Kayal, where a barrage has been built near Kumarakom, salt water from the sea is prevented from entering the deep inside, keeping the fresh water intact. Such fresh water is extensively used for irrigation purposes.

 

Many unique species of aquatic life including crabs, frogs and mudskippers, water birds such as terns, kingfishers, darters and cormorants, and animals such as otters and turtles live in and alongside the backwaters. Palm trees, pandanus shrubs, various leafy plants and bushes grow alongside the backwaters, providing a green hue to the surrounding landscape.

 

Vembanad Kayal is the largest of the lakes, covering an area of 200 km², and bordered by Alappuzha (Alleppey), Kottayam, and Ernakulam districts. The port of Kochi (Cochin) is located at the lake's outlet to the Arabian Sea. Alleppey, "Venice of the East", has a large network of canals that meander through the town. Vembanad is India’s longest lake.

 

HOUSE BOATS

The kettuvallams (Kerala houseboats) in the backwaters are one of the prominent tourist attractions in Kerala. More than 2000 kettuvallams ply the backwaters, 120 of them in Alappuzha. Kerala government has classified the tourist houseboats as Platinum, Gold and silver.

 

The kettuvallams were traditionally used as grain barges, to transport the rice harvested in the fertile fields alongside the backwaters. Thatched roof covers over wooden hulls, 30 m in length, provided protection from the elements. At some point in time the boats were used as living quarters by the royalty. Converted to accommodate tourists, the houseboats have become floating cottages having a sleeping area, with western-style toilets, a dining area and a sit out on the deck. Most tourists spend the night on a house boat. Food is cooked on board by the accompanying staff – mostly having a flavour of Kerala. The houseboats are of various patterns and can be hired as per the size of the family or visiting group. The living-dining room is usually open on at least three sides providing a grand view of the surroundings, including other boats, throughout the day when it is on the move. It is brought to a standstill at times of taking food and at night. After sunset, the boat crew provide burning coils to drive away mosquitoes. Ketuvallams are motorised but generally proceed at a slow speed for smooth travel. All ketuvallams have a generator and most bedrooms are air-conditioned. At times, as per demand of customers, electricity is switched off and lanterns are provided to create a rural setting.

 

While many ketuvalloms take tourists from a particular point and bring them back to around the same point next morning there are some specific cruises mostly in the Alappuzha area, such as the one night cruise from Alappuzha to Thotapally via Punnamada Lake two nights cruise from Alappuzha to Alumkavadi, one night cruise from Alappuzha to Kidangara, and one night cruise from Alappuzha to Mankotta. There are numerous such cruises.

 

Beypore, located 10 km south of Kozhikode at the mouth of the Chaliyar River, is a famous fishing harbour, port and boat building centre. Beypore has a 1,500 year-tradition of boatbuilding. The skill of the local shipwrights and boat builders are widely sought after. There is a houseboat-building yard at Alumkadavu, in Ashtamudi Kayal near Kollam.

 

FERRY SERVICES

Regular ferry services connect most locations on both banks of the backwaters. The Kerala State Water Transport Department operates ferries for passengers as well as tourists. It is the cheapest mode of transport through the backwaters.

 

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

Connected by artificial canals, the backwaters form an economical means of transport, and a large local trade is carried on by inland navigation. Fishing, along with fish curing is an important industry.

 

Kerala backwaters have been used for centuries by the local people for transportation, fishing and agriculture. It has supported the efforts of the local people to earn a livelihood. In more recent times, agricultural efforts have been strengthened with reclamation of some backwater lands for rice growing, particularly in the Kuttanad area. Boat making has been a traditional craft, so has been the coir industry.

 

Kuttanad is crisscrossed with waterways that run alongside extensive paddy fields, as well as fields of cassava, banana and yam. A unique feature of Kuttanad is that many of these fields are below sea level and are surrounded by earthen embankments. The crops are grown on the low-lying ground and irrigated with fresh water from canal and waterways connected to Vembanad lake. The area is similar to the dikes of the Netherlands where land has been reclaimed from the sea and crops are grown.

 

WIKIPEDIA

The Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast (known as the Malabar Coast) of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range.

 

The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways, and sometimes compared to the American Bayou. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. National Waterway No. 3 from Kollam to Kottapuram, covers a distance of 205 km and runs almost parallel to the coast line of southern Kerala facilitating both cargo movement and backwater tourism.

 

The backwaters have a unique ecosystem - freshwater from the rivers meets the seawater from the Arabian Sea. In certain areas, such as the Vembanad Kayal, where a barrage has been built near Kumarakom, salt water from the sea is prevented from entering the deep inside, keeping the fresh water intact. Such fresh water is extensively used for irrigation purposes.

 

Many unique species of aquatic life including crabs, frogs and mudskippers, water birds such as terns, kingfishers, darters and cormorants, and animals such as otters and turtles live in and alongside the backwaters. Palm trees, pandanus shrubs, various leafy plants and bushes grow alongside the backwaters, providing a green hue to the surrounding landscape.

 

Vembanad Kayal is the largest of the lakes, covering an area of 200 km², and bordered by Alappuzha (Alleppey), Kottayam, and Ernakulam districts. The port of Kochi (Cochin) is located at the lake's outlet to the Arabian Sea. Alleppey, "Venice of the East", has a large network of canals that meander through the town. Vembanad is India’s longest lake.

 

HOUSE BOATS

The kettuvallams (Kerala houseboats) in the backwaters are one of the prominent tourist attractions in Kerala. More than 2000 kettuvallams ply the backwaters, 120 of them in Alappuzha. Kerala government has classified the tourist houseboats as Platinum, Gold and silver.

 

The kettuvallams were traditionally used as grain barges, to transport the rice harvested in the fertile fields alongside the backwaters. Thatched roof covers over wooden hulls, 30 m in length, provided protection from the elements. At some point in time the boats were used as living quarters by the royalty. Converted to accommodate tourists, the houseboats have become floating cottages having a sleeping area, with western-style toilets, a dining area and a sit out on the deck. Most tourists spend the night on a house boat. Food is cooked on board by the accompanying staff – mostly having a flavour of Kerala. The houseboats are of various patterns and can be hired as per the size of the family or visiting group. The living-dining room is usually open on at least three sides providing a grand view of the surroundings, including other boats, throughout the day when it is on the move. It is brought to a standstill at times of taking food and at night. After sunset, the boat crew provide burning coils to drive away mosquitoes. Ketuvallams are motorised but generally proceed at a slow speed for smooth travel. All ketuvallams have a generator and most bedrooms are air-conditioned. At times, as per demand of customers, electricity is switched off and lanterns are provided to create a rural setting.

 

While many ketuvalloms take tourists from a particular point and bring them back to around the same point next morning there are some specific cruises mostly in the Alappuzha area, such as the one night cruise from Alappuzha to Thotapally via Punnamada Lake two nights cruise from Alappuzha to Alumkavadi,[8] one night cruise from Alappuzha to Kidangara, and one night cruise from Alappuzha to Mankotta. There are numerous such cruises.

 

Beypore, located 10 km south of Kozhikode at the mouth of the Chaliyar River, is a famous fishing harbour, port and boat building centre. Beypore has a 1,500 year-tradition of boatbuilding. The skill of the local shipwrights and boat builders are widely sought after. There is a houseboat-building yard at Alumkadavu, in Ashtamudi Kayal near Kollam.

 

FERRY SERVICES

Regular ferry services connect most locations on both banks of the backwaters. The Kerala State Water Transport Department operates ferries for passengers as well as tourists. It is the cheapest mode of transport through the backwaters.

 

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

Connected by artificial canals, the backwaters form an economical means of transport, and a large local trade is carried on by inland navigation. Fishing, along with fish curing is an important industry.

 

Kerala backwaters have been used for centuries by the local people for transportation, fishing and agriculture. It has supported the efforts of the local people to earn a livelihood. In more recent times, agricultural efforts have been strengthened with reclamation of some backwater lands for rice growing, particularly in the Kuttanad area. Boat making has been a traditional craft, so has been the coir industry.

 

Kuttanad is crisscrossed with waterways that run alongside extensive paddy fields, as well as fields of cassava, banana and yam. A unique feature of Kuttanad is that many of these fields are below sea level and are surrounded by earthen embankments. The crops are grown on the low-lying ground and irrigated with fresh water from canal and waterways connected to Vembanad lake. The area is similar to the dikes of the Netherlands where land has been reclaimed from the sea and crops are grown.

 

WIKIPEDIA

 

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QQ 1762686428

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

State Heritage listed Hart’s Mill of 1855 – the oldest building in the complex.

 

Harts Mill is a complex of interconnected buildings and structure. The earliest is the prominent limestone building on the corner of Mundy Street, built by Captain Hart in 1855.

He was a significant figure in the young colony of South Australia. He was three times Premier of South Australia and an instigator of much of the development of Port Adelaide.

 

The former Adelaide Milling Company mill site at Port Adelaide is the longest continuously serving flour milling enterprise in South Australia, operating from 1855 to 1980. The two major buildings constitute an important landmark in the Port.

 

The building was the largest and most technologically advanced mill in South Australia and at the time was claimed to be the best in the southern hemisphere. It was designed to create an export market for the State's produce, and successfully shipped flour around the world.

 

The iconic tall red brick building was constructed in 1884, at which time the Adelaide Milling Company was owner of the mill. The building was completed to the design and supervision of Henry Simon and Co, milling engineers in England who also equipped the building. The interior was severely damaged by fire in 1905: following the insurance payout of £10,357 the mill was rebuilt and re-equipped, again by Henry Simon. It continued to operate until 1980.

 

Obituary

John Hart, mariner, merchant and parliamentarian, was born on 25 February 1809 in England. He went to sea at 12 and visited Hobart Town in September 1828 as a seaman in the ‘Magnet’. In November 1829 as second mate in the ‘Britannia’ he went to Western Australia and then became well acquainted with the southern coast from Perth to Sydney. In 1832 he was master of the ‘Elizabeth’, owned and built by John Griffiths at Launceston, and often visited Kangaroo Island to land and pick up sealers and collect seal and wallaby skins and salt.

 

Hart retired from the sea in 1846 and settled in Adelaide. He bought and leased land in various parts of the colony, ran cattle and acted as agent for absentees. He also invested in copper mines at the Burra, Paringa and Montacute in 1845, Princess Royal and Mount Remarkable in 1846 and Yorke's Peninsula in 1848. He was also a director of the Forest Iron Smelting and Steam Sawing Co at Cox's Creek and a copper-smelting venture at Port Adelaide but lost heavily on mineral land at North Kapunda.

 

In 1849 he had helped to form the short-lived Adelaide Marine Association Co and the company intending to build a railway from Adelaide to the port: later he bought shares in the National and the Union Banks.

 

Perhaps his best-known achievement was at Port Adelaide where in 1855 he built a flourmill with twice the grinding capacity of any other in the province, believing that South Australia was to be the granary of the continent.

 

Hart was elected in 1851 to the Legislative Council for the district of Victoria, resigned in 1853 to visit England and was re-elected in 1854. In the House of Assembly he represented Port Adelaide in 1857-59 and 1862-66, Light in 1868-70 and the Burra in 1870-73. He was treasurer under Baker in 1857, Hanson in 1857-58, (Sir) Henry Ayers in 1863 and in 1864, and (Sir) Arthur Blyth in 1864-65. He was chief secretary under Francis Dutton in July 1863 and led his own ministries in 1865-66, 1868 and 1870-71 when he introduced the title of premier.

 

While Hart was in office he planned George Goyder's survey expedition and carried the bill for the overland telegraph to Darwin although he criticized its route through Port Augusta.

He was appointed CMG in 1870 and died suddenly on 28 January 1873 while chairing a meeting in Adelaide. He was survived by his wife and a large family, to whom he left an estate valued at more than £50,000. A son, John, represented Port Adelaide in the House of Assembly in 1880-81.

 

Ref: Australian Dictionary of Biography Vol 4, (MUP), 1972 article by Sally O’Neill.

 

The Jeita Grotto (Arabic: مغارة جعيتا‎) is a system of two separate, but interconnected limestone caves spanning 5.6 miles. Visitors can walk through the upper cave, but the lower cave contains an underwater river and lake. It is only accessible in summer and then only by boat.

These pictures were all taken in water filled lower cave. The water flows through at 1–2 m3/s, providing drinking water for 1.5 million people in Beirut. Cameras are normally taken and secured from visitors while in the caverns. These photos were taken with special permission.

Paradisium by Dave Keane and Folly Builders

 

Paradisium is an interactive grove of geometric trees built primarily out of reclaimed lumber and trees burnt in the CZU Lighting Complex fire in Santa Cruz. An interconnected canopy creates shadow art on the playa floor, and meandering pathways lead to an opening in the center. Climbable trees and various walkways among the canopy will afford elevated perspective. Just like a real forest, the grove will have its seasons and 24-hour cycles. Paradisium provides a space for respite and reflection while fostering a sense of community and an investment in our shared future.

 

URL: www.follybuilders.com/paradisium

Contact: info@follybuilders.com

The Kerala backwaters are a chain of brackish lagoons and lakes lying parallel to the Arabian Sea coast (known as the Malabar Coast) of Kerala state in southern India. The network includes five large lakes linked by canals, both manmade and natural, fed by 38 rivers, and extending virtually half the length of Kerala state. The backwaters were formed by the action of waves and shore currents creating low barrier islands across the mouths of the many rivers flowing down from the Western Ghats range.

 

The Kerala Backwaters are a network of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets, a labyrinthine system formed by more than 900 km of waterways, and sometimes compared to the American Bayou. In the midst of this landscape there are a number of towns and cities, which serve as the starting and end points of backwater cruises. National Waterway No. 3 from Kollam to Kottapuram, covers a distance of 205 km and runs almost parallel to the coast line of southern Kerala facilitating both cargo movement and backwater tourism.

 

The backwaters have a unique ecosystem - freshwater from the rivers meets the seawater from the Arabian Sea. In certain areas, such as the Vembanad Kayal, where a barrage has been built near Kumarakom, salt water from the sea is prevented from entering the deep inside, keeping the fresh water intact. Such fresh water is extensively used for irrigation purposes.

 

Many unique species of aquatic life including crabs, frogs and mudskippers, water birds such as terns, kingfishers, darters and cormorants, and animals such as otters and turtles live in and alongside the backwaters. Palm trees, pandanus shrubs, various leafy plants and bushes grow alongside the backwaters, providing a green hue to the surrounding landscape.

 

Vembanad Kayal is the largest of the lakes, covering an area of 200 km², and bordered by Alappuzha (Alleppey), Kottayam, and Ernakulam districts. The port of Kochi (Cochin) is located at the lake's outlet to the Arabian Sea. Alleppey, "Venice of the East", has a large network of canals that meander through the town. Vembanad is India’s longest lake.

 

HOUSE BOATS

The kettuvallams (Kerala houseboats) in the backwaters are one of the prominent tourist attractions in Kerala. More than 2000 kettuvallams ply the backwaters, 120 of them in Alappuzha. Kerala government has classified the tourist houseboats as Platinum, Gold and silver.

 

The kettuvallams were traditionally used as grain barges, to transport the rice harvested in the fertile fields alongside the backwaters. Thatched roof covers over wooden hulls, 30 m in length, provided protection from the elements. At some point in time the boats were used as living quarters by the royalty. Converted to accommodate tourists, the houseboats have become floating cottages having a sleeping area, with western-style toilets, a dining area and a sit out on the deck. Most tourists spend the night on a house boat. Food is cooked on board by the accompanying staff – mostly having a flavour of Kerala. The houseboats are of various patterns and can be hired as per the size of the family or visiting group. The living-dining room is usually open on at least three sides providing a grand view of the surroundings, including other boats, throughout the day when it is on the move. It is brought to a standstill at times of taking food and at night. After sunset, the boat crew provide burning coils to drive away mosquitoes. Ketuvallams are motorised but generally proceed at a slow speed for smooth travel. All ketuvallams have a generator and most bedrooms are air-conditioned. At times, as per demand of customers, electricity is switched off and lanterns are provided to create a rural setting.

 

While many ketuvalloms take tourists from a particular point and bring them back to around the same point next morning there are some specific cruises mostly in the Alappuzha area, such as the one night cruise from Alappuzha to Thotapally via Punnamada Lake two nights cruise from Alappuzha to Alumkavadi,[8] one night cruise from Alappuzha to Kidangara, and one night cruise from Alappuzha to Mankotta. There are numerous such cruises.

 

Beypore, located 10 km south of Kozhikode at the mouth of the Chaliyar River, is a famous fishing harbour, port and boat building centre. Beypore has a 1,500 year-tradition of boatbuilding. The skill of the local shipwrights and boat builders are widely sought after. There is a houseboat-building yard at Alumkadavu, in Ashtamudi Kayal near Kollam.

 

FERRY SERVICES

Regular ferry services connect most locations on both banks of the backwaters. The Kerala State Water Transport Department operates ferries for passengers as well as tourists. It is the cheapest mode of transport through the backwaters.

 

ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

Connected by artificial canals, the backwaters form an economical means of transport, and a large local trade is carried on by inland navigation. Fishing, along with fish curing is an important industry.

 

Kerala backwaters have been used for centuries by the local people for transportation, fishing and agriculture. It has supported the efforts of the local people to earn a livelihood. In more recent times, agricultural efforts have been strengthened with reclamation of some backwater lands for rice growing, particularly in the Kuttanad area. Boat making has been a traditional craft, so has been the coir industry.

 

Kuttanad is crisscrossed with waterways that run alongside extensive paddy fields, as well as fields of cassava, banana and yam. A unique feature of Kuttanad is that many of these fields are below sea level and are surrounded by earthen embankments. The crops are grown on the low-lying ground and irrigated with fresh water from canal and waterways connected to Vembanad lake. The area is similar to the dikes of the Netherlands where land has been reclaimed from the sea and crops are grown.

 

WIKIPEDIA

I took this shot from the park of Karađorđe (Карађорђев парк) near Hotel Crna Gora on a beautiful sunny may morning.

Oceanus of Ephesus and Zeus of Gaza in the background at Istanbul Archaeology Museum.

 

The World Ocean interconnected system of the Earth's oceanic waters comprises the bulk of the hydrosphere, covering almost 71% of the Earth's surface. The unity and continuity of the World Ocean is of fundamental importance to oceanography. A global ocean has existed in one form or another on Earth for eons, billions of years, and the notion dates back to classical antiquity.

 

In classical antiquity, Oceanus was believed to be the world-ocean, which the ancient Romans and Greeks considered to be an enormous river encircling the world. In Greek mythology, this world-ocean was personified as a Titan, a son of Uranus and Gaia ... More...

 

More at ancient-anatolia.blogspot.com

Duckmanton North Junction was one of four interconnected junctions. The others were Duckmanton East Junction at the extreme left of this shot, Duckmanton South Junction (half a mile south on the main line, see next photo) and Arkwright Town Junction; all four were usually collectively referred to as Duckmanton Junction or Duckmanton Junctions. They were a huge White Elephant installed in a fit of exuberance when the GCR absorbed the impecunious LDECR in 1907.

 

Duckmanton North Junction,, shown here, enabled traffic to travel E-N and was originally double track. By the time of this journey its sole traffic was to and from Arkwright Colliery to get to which trains had to undertake two reverses.

 

Nevertheless, that traffic outlasted the GC Main Line on which I was trravelling.

 

On 28th February 1965 I undertook a trip specifically to travel a route in terminal decline - the Great Central Main Line, especially the part north of Nottingham, which I knew best.

 

Manchester Central-Sheffield Victoria-Marylebone expresses had finished in 1959/60 and local passenger services north of Rugby Central had finished on 5th March 1963.

 

The only daytime passenger service between Nottingham Victoria and Sheffield Victoria was the York-Bournemouth (Newcastle-Bournemouth in Summer) which laft Sheffield Victoria southbound at 11:37, as it had for as long as anyone could remember. The return train also travelled in daylight.

 

I therefore researched how far south on the GCR I could travel and be able to cross the platform and travel back on the return working. The answer was Rugby Central with a comfortable time there in case of delays and to explore the place.

 

Interestingly, when I phoned to double-check the lady in the Booking Office at Sheffield Victoria did her best to redirect me to travel to and from Sheffield Midland. When it came to it on the day the ticket clerk had to hand write Rugby Central on my ticket, which to my immense regret, I lent to a 'friend' some years later; I have not seen it since.

 

The day was classic February, cool and grey, but mercifully not raining. I spent the entire journey from Sheffield to Nottingham hanging out of door windows catching familiar locations from a vantage point likely to vanish forever. I was out of the windows again through subsequent stations.

 

At a virtually deserted Rugby Central I wandered the station and the site. After a while a pleasant voice called me from the signalbox and invited me up. I didn't need asking twice.

 

A magical day.

Duckmanton South Junction was one of four interconnected junctions. The others were Duckmanton East Junction, Duckmanton North Junction (half a mile north on the main line, see previous photo) and Arkwright Town Junction; all four were usually collectively referred to as Duckmanton Junction or Duckmanton Junctions. They were a huge White Elephant installed in a fit of exuberance when the GCR absorbed the impecunious LDECR in 1907.

 

Duckmanton South Junction,, shown here, enabled traffic to travel E-S, the other side of the junction allowed traffic to travel S-E, curving up and over the main lines in what would today be called a 'Flying Junction'. As can be seen, by the time of this journey all E-S tarffic had ceased and th eline had been lifted, as had its counterpart S-E flyover line.

 

Remarkably, the tracks on which my train is travelling were eventually lifted, but were subsequently relaid and a sort of reborn Duckmanton South Junction was reinvented in the late 1970s Alas it was all to be short lived. The Wikipedia entry ably tracks and shows this complex history.

 

On 28th February 1965 I undertook a trip specifically to travel a route in terminal decline - the Great Central Main Line, especially the part north of Nottingham, which I knew best.

 

Manchester Central-Sheffield Victoria-Marylebone expresses had finished in 1959/60 and local passenger services north of Rugby Central had finished on 5th March 1963.

 

The only daytime passenger service between Nottingham Victoria and Sheffield Victoria was the York-Bournemouth (Newcastle-Bournemouth in Summer) which laft Sheffield Victoria southbound at 11:37, as it had for as long as anyone could remember. The return train also travelled in daylight.

 

I therefore researched how far south on the GCR I could travel and be able to cross the platform and travel back on the return working. The answer was Rugby Central with a comfortable time there in case of delays and to explore the place.

 

Interestingly, when I phoned to double-check the lady in the Booking Office at Sheffield Victoria did her best to redirect me to travel to and from Sheffield Midland. When it came to it on the day the ticket clerk had to hand write Rugby Central on my ticket, which to my immense regret, I lent to a 'friend' some years later; I have not seen it since.

 

The day was classic February, cool and grey, but mercifully not raining. I spent the entire journey from Sheffield to Nottingham hanging out of door windows catching familiar locations from a vantage point likely to vanish forever. I was out of the windows again through subsequent stations.

 

At a virtually deserted Rugby Central I wandered the station and the site. After a while a pleasant voice called me from the signalbox and invited me up. I didn't need asking twice.

 

A magical day.

Lolita Dark

 

Lolita Dark is an Epic

Rock band with roots in Southern California and Japan formed in 2012. Their sound weaves together crunching guitar riffs, progressive bass lines, lush harmonies, and complex melodic structures in songs that reflect both angst and optimism in an increasingly interconnected world of disconnected residents.

 

2012 年に結成。米国・カリフォルニアを拠点とする日米双方にルーツを持つ個性派ロックバンド。壮大なハーモニーと複雑なメロディのアンサンブルを特徴的な激し いギターやプログレッシブなベースラインに乗せることにより、幻想的で独創性溢れる世界観を生み出している。バンドのフロントマンであるRay は闇と光、怒りと喜び、過去と現在、東洋と西洋など、現世に存在しうる全ての相反する事象や矛盾の「融合」を音楽を通じて表現しているという。

 

Fronted by Shibuya-born singer/songwriter Rayko, Lolita Dark provides the soundtrack and visuals of a world where light intersects dark, east meets west, and the past overlaps the present, depicting the, seemingly, redundant circles of our lives and universe.

 

The core of Lolita Dark is formed by singer/ songwriter / guitarist / multi-instrumentalist Rayko (Ray), Bassist Rain Balen, and Drummer Joey Felix who are also members of the Los Angeles rock band "Dig Jelly", and Okinawan vocalist and keyboardist Machiko (May), and guitarist Patrick Cabrera of prog metal band False Empire.

 

LD はバンドの中核を担うリーダー・Rayを筆頭に、苦楽を共に過ごした地元の音楽仲間であるRain Balen(Bs)、Joey Felix(Dr)、Patrick Cabrera(Gtr).沖縄出身のMay(Keys/Vocal)の移住の後、北海道出身のK−Luを加えた国際的なバンド構成。

 

Their first album, “Tokyo Status” was released in 2012 and featured a wide range of intensely personal, yet universal meditations on love, addiction, promise, and despair. It blazed new territory with a sonic landscape that fused Shibuya glam, European symphonic-rock, and American metal. Lolita Dark's debut CD explored the themes of Salvation, Redemption, Sanctuary, and displayed some of Rayko's internal anguish after the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami ravaged her homeland.

 

Lolita Dark has performed at various venues including Bar Sinister, House of Blues, J-Pop events hosted by "Tune in Tokyo", and Rayko's on going event “Tokyo Status” .Lolita Dark has also performed at Anime Expo, Nan Desu Kan, Anime Los Angeles, and Pacific Media Expo, where they opened for Japanese artists BACK-ON (Avex) and D (Avex, Universal Music). Lolita Dark was also invited by NAMM 2015 to host a panel to talk about their success in finding a niche in independent music market.

Lolita Dark is working on their third release while they perform as an opener to national acts from Japan, and headlines local clubs and anime convention circuits.

 

全米最大の日本ポップカルチャー祭典であるAnime Expoでの鮮烈のデビューを飾る。これを期にバンドは本格始動し、ローカル誌などで多く取り上げられるようになる。Anime Expoでのライブを皮切りにBar Sinister Hollywood、Roxy、House of Blues等、数々の有名ライブハウス公演をも成功させている。また、デビュー後は矢継ぎ早 に Nan Desu Kan (Co)、Katsukon (D.C/Maryland)、Zenkaikon (PA)といった多様なコンベンション・ツ アーも取り組まれ、多くの会場での演奏を経験する。

 

“Mad Times”, from the "Tokyo Status" album, has been chosen for the in-production Steampunk web series “Tinker". “Wounded Angel”, the recently released song by Lolita Dark, has become the official theme song for Anime California 2014. Lolita Dark's second album, “Queen's Decade”, was released in the spring of 2014 at their opening performance for Gacharic Spin (Universal Music) at Tekko 2014.

 

Lolita Dark's albums and new single "Wounded Angel" are available now on iTunes and CDBaby.

 

Lolita Dark signed a 5 year recording/distribution contract for East Asia including Japan, Korea, and China in July 2015.

 

itunes.apple.com/us/artist/lolita-dark/id586389170

 

www.cdbaby.com/Artist/LolitaDark

 

Official Lolita Dark website: www.lolitadark.com/

 

Rayko official website: rayko.com/

 

2012年にはデビューアルバム「Tokyo Status」をリリース。

リリースから現在に至るまで、州外へも精力的に赴き本格的なライブ活動を行っている。このアルバムは全曲メッセージ性が強く、Rayの強烈な想いが反映されている。特に「Mad Times」というトラックは東日本大震災で被災された方々への追悼の意を込めた楽曲であり、Rayの故郷が崩壊されたことに対する悲しみや虚しさなどの感情を色濃く表現している。また、同曲は現在アメリカで制作 中の 「TINKER」というスティームパンクを題材としたウェブTVシリーズの主題歌として起用されている。(www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttWXSVs_4iI）

 

また、「Tokyo Status」リリース翌年の3月からはアルバムと

同名儀のファッション・ロックショーケース・イベントも月１で開催している。(www.facebook.com/TokyoStatus)

River landscape's from the rivers Merwede and Waal.

  

Merwede

  

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

     

The Merwede (etymology uncertain, possibly derived from the ancient Dutch (Merwe or Merowe) word meaning "wide water") is the name of several interconnected stretches of river in The Netherlands, all part of the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt delta. The Meuse river joins the Waal at Woudrichem to form the Boven Merwede (Upper Merwede). A few kilometers downstream it splits into the Beneden Merwede (Lower Merwede) on the right and the Nieuwe Merwede (New Merwede) on the left. All these rivers are tidal. The Nieuwe Merwede joins the Bergse Maas near Lage Zwaluwe to form the Hollands Diep estuary, and separates the Island of Dordrecht from the Biesbosch National Park. The Beneden Merwede splits into the Noord River and Oude Maas near Papendrecht.

 

[edit] History

 

In medieval times there was no such distinction. The Merwede (or "Merwe" in Middle Dutch) was the name of a continuous stretch of river, considered to be the lower part of the river Waal (being a major distributary branch of the Rhine). Although the name Merwede is currently only used between the towns of Woudrichem and Papendrecht, during its early history it carried on his name all the way to the sea - including the rivers currently named Noord river and Nieuwe Maas.

 

The situation changed during the later Middle Ages, when a major flood forced the Meuse river to shift its main course towards the Merwede as well. From that moment on, several stretches of the original Merwede were named Meuse instead and served as the primary outflow of that river. These are currently known as the Oude Maas and Nieuwe Maas. However, during another series of severe floods (such as the St. Elizabeth flood) the river Meuse (and, to a lesser extent, the river Rhine as well) found an additional path towards the sea, resulting in the creation of the Biesbosch and Hollands Diep. Because of this, the influence of the river Meuse on its former estuary branches slowly diminished. In recent centuries the influence of the Meuse has decreased even further, to the point that the major stretches of river called Oude Maas and Nieuwe Maas were essentially cut off from the river Meuse completely.

 

From that moment on, both the current Merwede and all of its former lower stretches (containing the name Meuse or not) are only part of the delta of the Rhine, while the Meuse has been giving its own artificial mouth Bergse Maas and the two rivers Rhine and Meuse are now mostly separated to reduce the risk of flooding.

 

The Merovingian Dynasty probably derived its name from this river. See Emil Rückert [1]

  

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merwede