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Curug Seribu is a 330 ft tall waterfall located at Mt. Salak, an active volcano in West Java. Mt. Salak is considered to be a mystic place by the locals since there have been many people who died there. Earlier this year a Russian jetliner fell and all 46 passengers and crews died. Furthermore, there had been 6 more airplanes fallen in this area in the past 10 years. And in this particular waterfall, there were 4 people drowned last year; their bodies were found 2 days later at 33ft deep under the falls.
I took some shots and then quickly went on my way out of that area :)
EXPLORED #226 - THANK YOU ALL AND OUR AMAZING GOD . . .
I love the late afternoon sun or the early morning sun but because I am not usually out of bed early, then this is my favourite time as by the time I crawl out in the morning the sun has beaten me up and the lovely golden light has been replaced by a more hard white kind of light rather than this golden light.
And so, as the day came to a close, I was presented with this beautiful scene. God, in all His glory and those God's Fingers are magnificent in their beauty. I love the reflections on the water too.
This bay was sown from the air today. I watched two planes working today. Both planes today are Ayres Turbo Thrush and designed for this sort of work. They can also be used to spray or to water dump too!!!
And as the golden sun sinks down below the horizon, it is time for me to slip quietly off to bed to rest my weary head and dream of tomorrow and what is has to bring.
Thank you God for the beauty you have brought to me, for the unexpected gifts that have arrived in this form, and for a great camera to catch them . . . I am extremely blessed as is Rosey too.
God bless you all and may your dreams come true God Willing . . .
The Guffey Bridge is Idaho’s largest historic artifact and was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. It started as a railroad crossing over the Snake River but has been converted to a pedestrian path. (Celebration Park DSC_1318.jpg)
Sumerang is blessed with more than 5 uninhabited islets which arc 180 degrees around the bay. Some are rock flats but at least two are soaring limestone karst cliffs that seem to be sentinels of the blue waters. As for now, there are no signs of tourists. Talk about an undiscovered gem that is not even identified in any commercial map.
the bay of Sumerang, Lombok Timor (East Lombok), Indonesia
more of the heavenly beaches of East Lombok in colloidfarl.blogspot.com/
EXPLORED! Highest position: 147 on Thursday, July 9, 2009
Still busy, these next two weeks will probably be even worse...
Getting stronger, on Thursday they scheduled me the final job interview (already succesfully passed through two) for a really interesting opportunity.
I will be meeting the General Manager of the company. Sounds good!
The shot
Another sunrise from my April Tuscany trip. Taken some minutes before "Tuscany Sunrise @75mm". Tighter crop, less contrasty.
I'm in love with that place.
The Processing
Photoshop: (SINGLE EXPOSURE)
- Duplicated the background layer, switched to soft light mode and applied a gradient mask (sky only)
- Switched to LAB mode and applied two curves to improve contrast and tones
- Back to RGB, added a vibrance layer to boost up minor tones
- Used color balance tool to improve colors
- Duplicated the background layer, switched to linear add and applied a gradient mask (foreground only)
- Created an Overlay layer to adjust light
- Resized
- Run Noise Ninja to reduce Noise
- Sharpening (Smart Sharpen + more accurate)
- Framing and signature.
Take a look at it, LARGE on Black :
The best is yet to come, on Black
@ You all
Comments, faves and critiques are always welcomed!
I wish you all a splendid sunday and a marvellous week ahead.
I will be checking your streams out tonight.
www.spurnpoint.com/Spurn_Point.htm
Spurn is a very unique place in the British Islands. Three and a half miles long and only fifty metres wide in places.
Extending out in to the Humber Estuary from the Yorkshire coast it has always had a big affect to the navigation of all vessels over the years. Help to some and a danger or hindrance to others. This alone makes Spurn a unique place.
Spurn is made up of a series of sand and shingle banks held together with mainly Marram grass and Seabuckthorn. There are a series of sea defence works built by the Victorians and maintained by the Ministry of Defence, till they sold Spurn to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust in the 1950s. The defences are in a poor state, breaking down and crumbling. This is making Spurn a very fragile place wide open to the ravages of the North Sea.
One of the most striking features of Spurn is the black and white lighthouse near to the end of Spurn. Now just an empty shell not used since it was closed down at dawn on the thirty first of October 1986.
There have been many Lighthouses on Spurn over the years the first recorded at around 1427. The present light was built from 1893 TO 1895. The small tower on the beach on the Estuary side was originally the low light. It was built and put in to operation at around 1852. This light was no longer needed when the present lighthouse was opened in 1895.At a later date the light was removed and it was used as a store for explosives and later as a water tower. The tank can still be seen on the top. When it was operational there was a raised walkway from the shore to the lighthouse so it could be reached at all stages of the tide.
The present lighthouse was built to replace an old lighthouse that was positioned just to the south of the present one. You can still see the round perimeter wall surrounding the old keepers cottages and the base of the old lighthouse which had to be demolished due to it settling on it's foundations making it unsafe.
The only light on Spurn today is a flashing green starboard light on the very end of the point and the fixed green lights marking the end of the Pilots jetty.
Because of Spurns ever moving position there have been many Lighthouses over the years. There is a very good book by George.de.BOAR, called History of the Spurn Lighthouses, produced by the East Yorkshire Local History Society. This is one of a series of books on local history.
www.spurnpoint.com/Around_and_about_at_Spurn.htm
Around and about there are plenty of places to eat and drink. Starting from the north of Spurn at Kilnsea there is the Riverside hotel offering good quality food drink and accommodation. Coming south towards Spurn and still in Kilnsea there is the Crown and Anchor pub. A welcoming place serving bar meals fine beers and offering bed and breakfast at very reasonable rates. At the crossroads before you turn towards Spurn there is the Spurn heritage coast visitors centre. Where there is a small cafe and exhibition. At the entrance Spurn point nature reserve is an information centre and bird observatory selling books pamphlets, etc., and the last toilet on Spurn.
Past the lighthouse is the last car park. Two hundred metres further on you find the Humber Lifeboat and Pilot stations. Near the houses is a Small caravan selling tea, coffee, cold cans, hot and cold food, crisps and sweets.
All are open all year round apart from the heritage centre which is open thought the season.
BIRD WATCHING.
Is a very popular pastime as Spurn is internationally famous for birds. There are up to two hundred species recorded at spurn every year. Some of which are extremely rare. The Marmora's Warbler seen at Spurn In June 1992 was only the third recorded in Britain.
SEA FISHING.
The beaches of Spurn provide some of the best sea fishing in the area, with Cod and Whiting and Flats being caught through the winter and Skate, Flats and Bass through the summer. There is sport to be had all the year.
At the very end of Spurn is deep water ideal for Cod but this only fishes best two hours either side of low water, the tide is to strong at other times. All along the seaward side of Spurn is good for all species of fish at all times though over high water being the better. The riverside of Spurn is very shallow and only produces Flats and the bass over high water.
THE BEACH.
The beaches at Spurn are of soft sand and shingle. Whichever way the wind is blowing you can just pop over the dunes to the outer side. There are fossils and all manners of things to find beach combing. Swimming is not safe any were near the point end as there are very strong tides at up to six knots at times. But in side Spurn around the point car park is perfect at high water. The beach does not shelf to fast and very little tide. You can have the place to your self at times, as Spurn is never really busy weekdays.#
A very popular pastime at Spurn is Fossil hunting. There is a good abundance of fossils to be found in amongst the pebbles and shingle.
The Shark Trust has a very interesting PDF file tell you all about Shark Skate and rays the mermaids purses you find on the beach are egg shells from sharks and Rays. Click the link to down load the Shark Trust Brochure.
WALKING.
Walking or strolling at spurn is very easy, as there are no hills. There are various sign posted paths up and down the point. For the fit a complete walk round the whole point is about 8 miles, taking in all the point round the point end and back to the "warren" information place at the start of Spurn. You will need good footwear, as much of the paths are sand. There is limited access for disabled, but not to the point end, as you have to go via the beach.
You can park your car at the point car park and walk round the point end and back to the car park about a mile, or just stroll around the point were you choose. The only place you are not allowed to go are down the pilot's jetty and the centre square of the Lifeboat houses.
In spring and early summer Spurn is covered with a large amount of wild flowers of all species.
There are common to the not so common; from Orchids to bluebells. I must remind you Spurn is a nature reserve and the picking of all flowers is prohibited. When visiting please enjoy Spurn, as it is a very beautiful place and leave only your footprints.
Horse Riding.
There is riding available nearby at the North Humberside Riding Centre. The stables are ideally located with rides along quiet country lanes, by-ways, plus miles of sandy beach and riverbanks. The cross-country course offers a variety of fences for both the novice and the more experienced rider.
www.spurnbirdobservatory.co.uk/
A Brief History of Spurn Bird Observatory
Following visits to Spurn by several members of the Yorkshire Naturalists' Union in the late 1930's, a communal log for ornithological observations was instituted in 1938. This included a roll-call of species, the beginnings of a recording system, which later became standard in bird observatories. Realising the potential of the Spurn peninsula for the regular observation of bird migration a group of enthusiasts, notably Ralph Chislett, George Ainsworth, John Lord and R.M. Garnett, had the idea of setting up a bird observatory, with the Warren Cottage at the northern end of the peninsula as an ideal headquarters. Unfortunately the outbreak of war forced them to put their plans on hold but shortly after hostilities ceased a lease for Warren Cottage was obtained from the War Department and the observatory was established shortly afterwards under the auspices of the Y.N.U. with the four members mentioned above forming the first committee. A preliminary meeting was held in September 1945 to decide on the site for a Heligoland trap, work on which was begun almost immediately and the first bird (a Blackbird) was ringed on November 17th. The first minuted committee meeting was held on March 9th 1946 and the observatory was opened to visitors at Whitsuntide that year.
Initially coverage was limited to the main migration seasons, being extended to winter weekends in the early 1950's to trap and ring some of the large numbers of Snow Buntings which used to occur at that time of year and gradually coverage was increased (whenever possible) to cover the late spring and summer. In 1959 there was an important development when the Yorkshire Naturalists' Trust (now the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust) became the owners of the peninsula and thus the observatory's landlord. In 1960 a full time warden was appointed by the Trust, and although having no official connection with the observatory the fact of having an observer on the peninsula year-round inevitably helped to improve the ornithological coverage. This was especially the case from 1964 when the current warden, Barry Spence, was appointed, in conjunction with the fact that an interest in birds and their migrations was steadily growing and more bird-watchers were staying at the observatory, often for longer periods.
When the observatory opened there was accommodation for seven visitors in Warren Cottage and facilities included two chemical toilets, the Warren Heligoland trap and an ex-army hut as a ringing hut. Over the next ten years a further five Heligoland traps were constructed along the peninsula, although today only three remain in existence. In 1959 the observatory gained the use of the Annexe, one of two ex W.D. bungalows built at the Warren during the early 1950's, thus increasing the accommodation capacity to seventeen and providing much improved toilet facilities. Over the years the accommodation and facilities have been gradually improved to try to make the visitor's stay at Spurn as comfortable as possible. Other improvements have also taken place, in 1968 part of one of the derelict buildings at the Point was converted into a ringing laboratory ready for the first B.T.O. Ringing Course, held in autumn of that year and in 1971 part of one of the derelict buildings at the Warren was also converted into a ringing laboratory. The other part of this building became a laboratory for the use of students of Leeds University but this also became available to the observatory in the mid 1980's when the University no longer had a use for it. Subsequently it was converted into a self-contained accommodation unit for two, complete with kitchen facilities, and although officially known by the somewhat unimaginative name of Room F (the rooms in the Annexe being known as Rooms A, C, D & E, - whatever happened to Room B?), it was somewhat irreverently christened "Dunbirdin" by regular visitors to Spurn.
In 1965 a sea-watching hut was erected east of the Warren beyond the line of the former railway track. Due to coastal erosion it became necessary to move this in late 1974, when it was hoped that it would last at least as long as it had in its first position. Alas this was not to be, as the rate of erosion increased dramatically in the mid 1970's, necessitating a further move in early December 1977. In that year a clay bank had been built across the field behind Warren Cottage (Clubley's field) to prevent the flooding of arable land by wind-blown sea water, but on January 11th 1978 Spurn suffered its worst flooding ever when a strong to gale-force north-westerly wind combined with a spring tide. In late 1981 due to extensive construction works at Easington a large quantity of boulder clay became available and this was used to build up and extend the bank across Clubley's field, south towards Black Hut and north beyond Big Hedge to join up with an existing bank (which had been built in 1974) behind the scrape. In 1982 the sea-watching hut was repositioned on top of this bank, where it remained until the bank itself was washed away in the early 1990's.
A number of other changes to the observatory recording area began to take place from the early 1970's, including extensive building operations at the Point, commencing in 1974, with the construction of a new jetty for the Humber Pilot boats, new housing for the Spurn Lifeboat crew and the conversion and renovation of various existing buildings for use by the Coastguard and the Pilots. In 1978 following damage to the existing road south of the Warren area a new tarmac road was laid to the west of the original one, this lasted until 1988 when a second "new road" loop had to be laid, followed in 1991 by the construction of the existing loop road running along the Humber shore from just south of the Warren to just beyond Black Hut. The construction of this road resulted in the destruction of the actual Black Hut, although the area still bears the name. In 1981 the lines of wartime concrete anti-tank blocks running from the seashore to the Canal Zone were removed to fill in a breach at the Narrow Neck. This resulted in the southward extension of the Scrape field by the farmer up to Big Hedge and the start of a gradual decline in the condition of this hedge and its attractiveness to birds. In 1982 a local resident excavated a pond for shooting purposes in the wet area adjoining the Canal Zone. This never really proved successful and the land was later purchased by the Y.W.T. and the pond enlarged to become what is now known as Canal Scrape. In 1984 a famous Spurn landmark, the Narrows "Hut", a wooden migration watch shelter which had stood at the Narrow Neck for twenty-three years, was set fire to by person or persons unknown and completely destroyed, it was replaced the following year by a more solid construction made from breeze-blocks.
A period of considerable change began in 1988 when the Spurn peninsula was designated as part of the Spurn Heritage Coast. Projects undertaken include the enlargement of the Canal Scrape mentioned above and the erection of a hide overlooking it, a hide overlooking the Humber wader roost at Chalk Bank, a public sea-watching hide alongside the observatory one, provision of additional car-parking space, the restoration of the short-turf habitat in the Chalk Bank area, provision of footpaths, etc. A major project was the renovation of the Blue Bell in Kilnsea for use as offices, an information centre and a small cafe, which became fully operational in 1995. Another fairly recent project has been the creation of another scrape/pond on Clubley's field.
In 1996 the observatory celebrated its fiftieth anniversary, and for the first time in its history SBO employed a full time seasonal warden. This position has since been expanded and the observatory now enjoys the services of a year- round warden. In 1998, with a view to the future, a small bungalow in Kilnsea was purchased with money bequeathed by the late John Weston, a long time committee member, who regrettably died in 1996. This was followed in 1999 by the purchase of a strip of land adjacent to the property and is now known as the ‘Church Field’, this is planted with a sacrificial crop every year, and has also had several groups of trees planted and a feeding station placed in the north-east corner. Access to this field is available by becoming a member of ‘Friends of Spurn Bird Observatory’, a venture set up in 2003 to eventually help with the building of a new observatory when the old one falls way to the sea.
This is the final video (which you can watch here: youtu.be/n-ttuRpVqjo) part of last week's outing, a stroll around M&S at Bluewater in those lovely seamed stockings. I did, though, change my skirt for one slightly longer for this walk.
“Oh, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet, Till Earth and Sky stand presently at God’s great Judgment Seat; But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth, When two strong men stand face to face, tho’ they come from the ends of the earth!”
-Rudyard Kipling
This is the estuary of the Han River with the uncompleted 12.5km Incheon Bridge still waiting for the East section to be connected to the West section. More information can be had here:
www.newcivilengineer.com/archive/korean-colossus-incheon-...
The estuary of the Han River in South Korea
Trip35 Fuji200
2008
Although downtown Portland, Maine is not historic, 2-foot territory, there are some distinct advantages to this location for the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Co. & Museum. Unlike most Maine railroads, this one is definitely not a tree-tunnel. Although only 1.3 miles long, this line is quite scenic, with beautiful views of Portland's harbor, and on hot summer days, the passengers enjoy cool breezes as well. In this frame, the former Bridgton & Saco River #7, a 33-ton, 2-4-4T built in 1913, takes her passenger consist railroad east toward the Cutter Street Crossing, perhaps a quarter mile ahead.
Trying for a wee bit more natural look.Just a little foundation and lippy, might even feel confident stepping out like this ❤️
India is still under a huge pall of Covid 19 pandemic with the highest death and infection fevers. People are not dying so much because of the disease but because of lack of facilities and non vaccination of the populace. Democracy skews sometimes and brings forth leaders who are popular but are totaly unfit to think rationally.
Continuing this series on the Elephant at Work in one of the Saw Mills in Fort Kochi.
The tiny shifts and maneuvers that the elephant makes to move such heavy loads is a case in point in this series. The deft way with which the trunk is being used to pull the tree can be seen here. Not much body effort either.
The elephant is a gentle giant and has been to a certain extent used extensively in Kerala for ceremonial parades for Hindu temples.
The non temple elephants also work on per hour basis in timber yards moving tree trunks, stacking and unstacking.
Other than that elephants used to be the bulwark of the armies of the Indian kings as they fought off the invasions coming from the Khyber Pass into the rich fertile plains of India. That worked for some time but then the horses and guns changed that.
_DSC9219 nef 21 retouch jpeg
The amazing Millau bridge on a very cold, very windy day.
Completed in 2004 across the gorge valley of the Tarn.
As of September 2020, it is the tallest bridge in the world, having a structural height of 336.4 metres (1,104 ft). The P2 pier of the Viaduct is the tallest structure in France, taller even than the Eiffel tower.
I was about to take this shot when the person with the red coat came along and stood in exactly the right place!
Her name is Yoyo, my new dollie Yeolume <3. She is a present from Ars Gratia Artis (AGA) ＾∇＾I'm so happy!!!! :D
- Tomorrow more pics!! ^^
Spinalonga (Greek: Σπιναλόγκα) is an island located in the Gulf of Elounda in north-eastern Crete, in Lasithi, next to the town of Plaka. The island is further assigned to the area of Kalydon. It is near the Spinalonga peninsula ("large Spinalonga") – which often causes confusion as the same name is used for both. The official Greek name of the island today is Kalydon.
According to Venetian documents, the name of the island originated in the Greek expression στην Ελούντα stin Elounda (meaning "to Elounda"). The Venetians could not understand the expression so they familiarized it using their own language, and called it spina "thorn" longa "long", an expression that was also maintained by the locals. The Venetians were inspired for this expression by the name of an island near Venice called by the same name and which is known today as the island of Giudecca.
The island was subsequently used as a leper colony from 1903 to 1957. The last inhabitant, a priest, did not leave the island till 1962, in order to maintain the Greek Orthodox tradition of commemorating a buried person 40 days, 6 months, 1 year, 3 years, and 5 years after their death. There were two entrances to Spinalonga, one being the lepers entrance, a tunnel known as "Dante's Gate". This was so named because the patients did not know what was going to happen to them once they arrived. However, once on the island they received food, water, medical attention and social security payments. Previously, such amenities had been unavailable to Crete's leprosy patients, as they mostly lived in the area's caves, away from civilization.
After the leper colony was dissolved, Spinalonga sank into oblivion; interest in it was revived by the work of people like Maurice Born.
Spinalonga was one of the last active leper colonies in Europe; others that have survived Spinalonga include Tichileşti in eastern Romania, Fontilles in Spain and Talsi in Latvia. As of 2002, few lazarettos remain in Europe.
Today, the uninhabited island is a popular tourist attraction in Crete. In addition to the abandoned leper colony and the fortress, Spinalonga is known for its small pebble beaches and shallow waters. The island can easily be accessed from Plaka, Elounda and Agios Nikolaos. Tourist boats depart from all three towns on a daily basis (every 30 minutes from Elounda). Since there is no accommodation on Spinalonga, the tours last only a few hours.
Spinalonga is under consideration to become a World Heritage Site.
Text courtesy of Wikipedia.
This is another lake from Beartooth Pass Scenic Byway. This byway is east of Yellowstone National Park and there are nearly a thoursand lakes throughout this area. (Check out the map that I've tagged!)
It was really smoky due to all the forest fires in the area, but I think this image still turned out really well considering.
is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large and often prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. Most species are native to the Northern Hemisphere and their range is temperate climates and extends into the subtropics. Many other plants have "lily" in their common names, but do not belong to the same genus and are therefore not true lilies. True lilies are known to be highly toxic to cats.[4]
Missy is sent to pick up things for clients on occasion. This summer I want her out and about in public in basically nothing ever but her maid uniform. She has to see that every time she catches her reflection in glass or a mirror, and know everyone everywhere knows of her permanent daily job.
She told me she is having trouble remembering anything but her maid identity and is seeing herself as having been only a maid as her job . Sounds like she is blocking out her past to be able to cope with this fulltime image and position in life that is all she every experiences now
A grab shot (the original is rather lop-sided) of 31116 propelling empty wagons towards Dunstable at Luton Bute Street on 7 January 1988. The working is unknown, but possibly for scrap material to be picked up at Vauxhall Motors. This was the last year of operation, with the exception of a final railtour in 1989 and a weed-killing train in 1990 (2 x class 20s, did anyone photograph that one?!).
About the only thing still surviving in this picture is the pub, which has been boarded up and derelict for years now. All else has been swept away; the Luton Bus Leyland National, the bridge, 31116 and Green Shield stamps!
Pentax K1000/50mm
Ilford FP4
Antigua is a small city surrounded by volcanoes in southern Guatemala. It’s renowned for its Spanish colonial buildings, many of them restored following a 1773 earthquake that ended Antigua’s 200-year reign as Guatemala’s colonial capital. Architectural landmarks include baroque La Merced church, noted for its ornate yellow-and-white facade. It's integral to the city’s famous Semana Santa, a holy week with parades and rituals.
And that is what it is , the Grandstand at Epsom Downs Racecourse - home of the Derby . Come June this place will be heaving with people here to watch the races .
The first race at Epsom Downs was recorded in 1661 and the predominantly flat course was mentioned in the diary of Samuel Pepys. Similarly, Charles II was said to be a regular attender of races. Epsom houses the third largest racehorse training facility in the country and the course featured heavily in the 1952 film ‘Derby Day’. Epsom Downs is situated on the largest remaining public space south of London, and as it is a public area people can watch the Derby for free – a race that used to be the most attended sporting event of the year.
With an overall course capacity of 120,000, Epsom also opened a new Duchess’s stand in 2009, which holds 11,000 people and cost a total of £23.5 million to build. Just a few minutes down the road from Epsom town centre, Epsom Downs is extremely easy to get to by car, accessible by coming off Junction 9 of the M25.
During the racing season AA signs direct racegoers from the motorway to the course. If travelling by train, there are three stations all with very good access to the track. Epsom train station is just a ten-minute taxi or bus ride away, with a shuttle bus service available on Derby day. Epsom station is well served by services from London Waterloo and London Victoria. Alternatively, Tattenham Corner station is a half mile walk from the course, with Epsom Downs station slightly further away.
The grade 1 course at Epsom Downs is one of the best in the country as you would expect of a track that hosts two Classics. Shaped like a horseshoe and measuring 1m4f in circumference, Epsom hosts flat racing only.
The grandstand is positioned to the left of the open end of the left-handed horseshoe which is stiff and undulating in nature. Although the home straight at Epsom is 3½f in length, a chute coming off Tattenham Corner allows for 5f straight races to take place. There are two other chutes that allow for six and seven furlong contests with a slight left bend prior to the reasonably sharp left turn onto the home stretch. There is a minor elevation on the right hand side but the hint of bias is largely cancelled out by the slightly better ground usually being on this side of the course.
Horses at Epsom have to deal with the difficult undulations, with a rise of 105ft in the first 5f of the course alone. The second last turn goes into an incredibly steep downhill, with a 92ft decline spread out over 3½f. This makes the final part of the course exceptionally fast paced with the result being exceptionally exciting finishes in tightly contested events.
An absences of long distance races means that this is far from an uncommon sight either. As there’s no complete circuit at Epsom, the course cannot hold races greater than a mile and a half.
Five Furlongs at a Rapid Pace
The straight 5f course at Epsom is virtually downhill all the way, bar the final 100 yards, making it the fastest of its kind anywhere in the world. The high-standing of the course also allows it to attract some very talented sprinters, ensuring some rapid times are posted for minimum distance races.
In 2012, this was something officially recognised in the Guinness World Records as Stone of Folca won the Epsom Dash in an incredible time of 53.69s. Some still believe that the course record belongs to Indigenous though, who clocked 53.60s in June 1960 but this was prior to the introduction of electronic timing. Stone of Folca was a 50/1 outsider when storming to a record-breaking win. He started from stall number two, trailed by Desert Law and Catfish who began out in gates 16 and 15 respectively.
There aren’t a huge number of contests over the minimum distance. A lack of five furlong races means it’s hard to get a real sense if there’s any bias but from the little info we do have, a spot away from the middle appears to be preferable.
This didn’t always used to be the case as research published in 1983 found that for the preceding seven years, there were three times as many winners from the top four stalls than the bottom four stalls. Whether the drainage has trained or this was just a statistical anomaly is unclear but for now there isn’t much bias over the straight five furlong course.
In terms of races over six to eight furlongs, once again there is little in the way of bias. Whilst there is a left-handed turn to contend with, there have been a number of wins for horses with high draws, suggesting the vagaries of the going tend to equal things out.
An Ultimate Thoroughbred Test
When looking at shape, distance and undulations, Epsom has certain similarities with Brighton but there’s nothing else that really compares with the test the Surrey course offers. Its turns, hills and cambers mean that horses must work every muscle when competing here. A fine sense of balance is an absolutely essential trait too, as is plenty of raw speed in the shorter races as those setting the early pace often end up being difficult to catch on the downhill finish.
The stiffness of the test produces shocks here and there (see 50/1 Qualify in the 2014 Oaks) but, ultimately, Epsom is a course that continues to identify some of the best colts and fillies around. A long list of truly great names have claimed glory on the switchback course and this will continue to be the case.
The biggest race every year at Epsom is without doubt the Epsom Derby. Scheduled to run each June, the Derby was first contested in 1780 and runs over a distance of 1m4f. Widely known as Britain’s richest race, the Derby is the most prestigious of the five ‘Classics’, and is the middle leg of the Triple Crown.
Trainer Aidan O’Brien has seen his horses win the previous three, becoming the first person to train three consecutive winners at the Derby (2012-2014). Two other famous races also run at Epsom every June are the Epsom Oaks and the Coronation Cup. The Oaks was established in 1779 and measures 1m4f, whilst the Coronation cup wasn’t run until 1902, and measures the same distance.
HTT Folks
Deadwool is taking part in this new round of the Chapter Four with the new Venice crop top.
Special price: only 90L.
-100% original mesh
- 8 different colors available
TheChapterFour: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Compotista/171/38/3250
In-world store: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Isola%20Gavia/43/129/23
Facebook: www.facebook.com/deadwool?fref=ts
June's dream is to tell stories.
June Arunga is currently a self-described seeker. Her ultimate destination is unclear, but she says that she has found tidbits of key elements in economics, anthropology, history, science, life, people, and "everything in between and beyond". Her family is from Kenya and she has been formally educated in the UK. She speaks in an engaging and excited royal tone, quickly looking up and down the canal, analyzing everything. She asks me a lot of strange questions and quickly processes the answers.
Looks Best: Large on Black
This is picture 20 of my Dream Portrait set
Thanks all! For you, here are the most Popular Pictures you dig from my stream. Thanks again!
Canon EOS 50D, Canon EF 100-400mm f/4-5.6 L IS, development in Lightroom.
Calla palustris - Marsh Calla - Bog Arum - Sumpf-Calla - Slangenwortel - Calla des marais - Missne - Czermień błotna - ...
Wikipedia (Edited): "Białowieża Forest is a forest on the border between Belarus and Poland. It is one of the last and largest remaining parts of the immense primeval forest that once stretched across the European Plain. The forest is home to 800 European bison, Europe's heaviest land animal. UNESCO . . . designated the Polish Biosphere Reserve Białowieża in 1976 and the Belarusian Biosphere Reserve Biełavieskaja pušča in 1993. . . .
Large-scale logging started in 2017. 190 000 m³ of wood (160 000 to 180 000 trees) was felled, the largest volume of logging since 1988. The Polish government has ignored pleas from UNESCO to stop logging the old-growth parts of the forest, as well as a court order of the European Court of Justice to halt the logging activities. The final verdict fell on 17 April 2018, ruling that EU law has been infringed."
These photographs were taken in 2009; I shall not be revisiting, given the situation. UNESCO is monitoring: "The World Heritage Committee, Having examined Document WHC/21/44.COM/7B.Add,
Recalling Decision 43 COM 7B.14, adopted at its 43rd session (Baku, 2019),
Notes with satisfaction that forest management activities in the property, including logging, have remained at a very low scale, and only limited to the active management zone, as recommended by the 2018 Reactive Monitoring mission; . . . " whc.unesco.org/en/decisions/7816 (accessed 2023.06.20)
It is with great sadness that I learned that long-time friend and noted rail photographer Dave Augsburger passed away yesterday afternoon. I find that as I process the photos that I post here, I think more about the friends that I was with as well as circumstances and incidents that accompanied the outing than I do the train itself. Dave comes to mind frequently. Beside photography, Dave and I shared interests in history of the Lehigh & New England and other anthracite railroads, prewar American Flyer trains, and Pennsylvania Dutch (German) culture and language.
Here, in happier days, Dave and I were out for the day, and had gone in futile search for an infrequent Conrail train that served the cement mill in Evansville, Pennsylvania, With the day coming to a close, we decided to stop by the Wanamaker, Kempton, & Southern in Kempton. Seeing an opportunity, I had the most prolific photographer of the Lehigh & New England pose next to one of the WK&S’ L&NE gondolas. Dave is now with many of his contemporary friends who have passed in recent years, including Dick Samsel and Neil Shankweiler. I will miss Dave and treasure the many memories of him for years to come.
The famous Sheesh Mahal is also called Palace of Mirrors and is located in the north-east corner of the Lahore fort (Shahi Qilla). This is the most beautiful palace in the Royal fort and is decorated with small mirrors of different colours set.
Sheesh Mahal was constructed by Shah Jahan in 1631. This is the luxurious place of resort particularly during summer months with rest rooms of a long hall at its either end, opening on to the brilliantly dazzling Veranda that looks at the marble paved quadrangle with a fountain in the middle side.
The mirror reflects the stars and the bedrooms presents, in its ceiling, the panorama of a star lit Sky. The exterior wall of the Sheesh Mahal presents the beautiful mosaic paintings that depict everyday sport of the Mughal princes for the enjoyment of the people who used to gather below the fort not only to have a view of the emperor sitting in the Jharokha, but also to admire the brilliance of colours on the wall.
To view more of my images, of Orford, in Suffolk, please click "here"!
I would be most grateful if you would refrain from inserting images, and/or group invites; thank you
Orford is a small town in Suffolk, England, within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB. Like many Suffolk coastal towns it was of some importance as a port and fishing village in the Middle Ages. It still has a fine mediaeval castle, built to dominate the River Ore. The main geographical feature of the area is Orford Ness, a long, wide shingle spit at the mouth of the Ore. Orford Ness has in the past been used as an airstrip testing facility and in the early 1970s it was the site of a powerful radar station as part of the Cold War defences against low flying attacking aircraft; today it is a nature reserve run by the National Trust. Orford provides the only point of access to the nature reserves of Orford Ness and Havergate Island. Both sites can only be accessed via ferry boat from Orford quay. The Orford Ness ferry runs on selected days between April and October and the Havergate Island ferry on selected Saturdays. The population of Orford greatly increases during the summer months due to its flourishing sailing club. As well as the Castle, Orford's attractions include river cruises, three pubs, a traditional post office which sells fresh bread, a traditional bakery, a smokehouse and a restaurant; the Butley-Orford Oysterage.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is from my archives, going to be digging or mining the archive for a few days as my arthritis has flared up in my knees up badly enough that I can't walk more than a few steps. Hopefully by the weekend things will settle down.
Thank-you one and all for your visits and very gracious comments, all are very much appreciated.
This is a pen & ink drawing on mould-made pape. The sheets are approximately 5 x 7 inches each and quite thick. The surfaces are quite soft and making erasures causes damage. I tried doing just that at the right and messed up the drawing which I can’t fix.
This is not a cave! Han and Leya escape before the Millennium Falcon is digested by the space slug.
I'm participating in vignweek hosted by RebelLUG, a contest where you have to build a vignette every day for a week. The theme for the fifth day is to build a space scene, so here's my entry!
This is but a generic, non-prototypical LEGO toy train.
The squarish, belpaire like firebox sort of suggests a PRR K4 or L1, but I was also looking at New York Central Mohawks for a general character. The wheel arrangement is not congruous to any of these. This is in part due to my wanting exaggerate the cross head and combination lever for kinetic impression.
This model test or furthers trials for a few things, such as odd-spaced wheels (4.5 studs between axles) and a vertically mounted L motor, which permits clearance for a supporting truck under the firebox.
It is listed for its architecture. The most distinctive feature on the outside of the house was that its roof was made to look like an English Cottage thatched roof. As can be seen in the photos taken in January, 2009, the roof has been covered with modern asphalt shingles and the house sported a "For Sale by Owner" sign. The Mercer fireplace in the first floor living room, customary in Ward Wellington Ward houses, is an exceptionally impressive one depicting St. George and the Dragon.
In January 2011, the Garrett House was purchased by a private buyer and is currently in the beginning stages of being restored.
Garrett House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location:110 Highland St., Syracuse, New York
Built:1913
Architect:Ward Wellington Ward
Architectural style:Other, Tudor Revival
Governing body:Private
MPS:Architecture of Ward Wellington Ward in Syracuse MPS
NRHP Reference#:97000080
Added to NRHP:February 14, 1997
Garrett House, also known as the Garrett Residence, in Syracuse, New York, was built in 1913.
well i was college visiting in the morning so i didn't really want to take a pic of that....so this is what i came up with instead, at first i was gonna like throw this sheet in the air...nope.
was not happening
yipess!! just realized that i only have 30 pics left until i gotta buy pro...but i cant get pro for 3 weeks so i might have to skip out on a few so flicker doesn't have a heart attack on me.
will comment tomorrow, so sorry guys!
just looked myself up...not really keen on what i found...only like a billion websites with my pictures on them?? they gave me credit but it still freaks me out
Two colour images in a row! I must be ill. It happens from time to time. Hopefully it will pass quickly.
I is for Ice Planet 2002
This mech/speeder is based on the alphabet starfighter project that my son and I began last year. (see feed for the rest of the ships)
This this the second attempt at an I-Wing. While the first one was fun, I used inspiration from the Ice Planet 2002 Lego theme from 1994 for this color scheme and wanted to include a transforming function that was sturdy enough for a 4.5 year old to manage. The resulting construction mech is designed for terraforming an ice planet with laser cutting fingers, multiple skis and a transforming ski-speeder mode.
Backstory:
One cold weekend afternoon, I was looking for something to do with my four year old in the house. We went to our Lego room, "What do you want to build?", "A spaceship," Star Wars obsessive Elliot answered, "an E-Wing!" I knew that the Lego fan site From Bricks to Bothans held a letter based starfighter contest years before, but I was willing to give it our own try.
As the project progressed the builds became more and more complex and the rules became more flexible. We finished the letters of Elliot's first and middle names and now we are working our way through the remaining letters.
this is the hot creek area just below mammoth lakes on a very cold day. i'm not sure what mountain is behind there.
sorry to all of my flicker friends and contacts, i've been out of touch lately.
This is a revision of an image from last February. Thanks to a modestly improved understanding of what Lightroom can do, I was able to get the color closer to what I remember.
That's ice there, folks. Off the surface of Lake Charlevoix, with no manipulation other than standing it up so you could see the sunset through the bubble. That's why I put waders on and walk around in the freezing waters--it ain't gonna walk up to ME.
*****
Update, November 2014: so excited that "Iris" will appear on the cover of Willy Porter's upcoming album Human Kindness, due out practically any minute. (Well, as soon as I get the layout finished.) Woot!
++++ from WIKIPEDIA ++++++
Abruzzo (UK: /æˈbrʊtsoʊ/,[5] US: /ɑːˈbruːtsoʊ, əˈ-/; Italian: [aˈbruttso]; Abbrùzze [abˈbruttsə], Abbrìzze [abˈbrittsə] or Abbrèzze [abˈbrɛttsə] in Neapolitan Abruzzese; Aquilano: Abbrùzzu) or Abruzzi is a region of Southern Italy with an area of 10,763 square km (4,156 sq mi) and a population of 1.3 million. It is divided into four provinces: L'Aquila, Teramo, Pescara, and Chieti. Its western border lies 80 km (50 mi) east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east. Geographically, Abruzzo is divided into a mountainous area in the west, which includes the Gran Sasso d'Italia, and a coastal area in the east with beaches on the Adriatic Sea.
Abruzzo is considered a region of Southern Italy in terms of its culture, language, history and economy, although geographically it may also be considered central.[8] The Italian Statistical Authority (ISTAT) also deems it to be part of Southern Italy, partly because of Abruzzo's historic association with the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
Abruzzo is known as "the greenest region in Europe" as almost half of its territory, the largest in Europe,[9] is set aside as national parks and protected nature reserves. There are three national parks, one regional park, and 38 protected nature reserves. These ensure the survival of 75% of Europe's living species, including rare species such as the golden eagle, the Abruzzo (or Abruzzese) chamois, the Apennine wolf and the Marsican brown bear.[10] Abruzzo is also home to Calderone, Europe's southernmost glacier.
The visiting nineteenth-century Italian diplomat and journalist Primo Levi (1853–1917) said that the adjectives "forte e gentile" (strong and kind) best describe the beauty of the region and the character of its people. "Forte e gentile" has since become the motto of the region and its inhabitants.
Provinces and politics
Abruzzo provinces
Provinces
Abruzzo is divided into four administrative provinces:
Province Area (km2) Population Density (inh./km2)
Chieti 2,588 396,190 153.1
L'Aquila 5,034 308,876 61.3
Pescara 1,225 318,701 260.1
Teramo 1,948 308,769 158.5
Politics
History
Human settlements in Abruzzo have existed since at least the Neolithic times. A skeleton from Lama dei Peligni in the province of Chieti dates back to 6,540 BC under radiometric dating.[13] The name Abruzzo appears to be derivative of the Latin word "Aprutium". In Roman times, the region was known as Picenum, Sabina et Samnium, Flaminia et Picenum, and Campania et Samnium.[14] The region was known as Aprutium in the Middle Ages, arising from four possible sources: it is a combination of Praetutium, or rather of the name of the people Praetutii, applied to their chief city, Interamnia, the old Teramo.
Many cities in Abruzzo date back to ancient times. Corfinio was known as Corfinium when it was the chief city of the Paeligni, and later was renamed Pentima by the Romans. Chieti is built on the site of the ancient city of Teate, Atri was known as Adria. Teramo, known variously in ancient times as Interamnia and Teramne, has Roman ruins which attract tourists.
After the fall of the Roman Empire, a string of invasions and rulers dominated the region, including the Lombards, Byzantines, and Hungarians. Between the 9th and 12th centuries, the region was dominated by the popes. Subsequently, the Normans took over, and Abruzzo became part of the Kingdom of Sicily, later the Kingdom of Naples. Spain ruled the kingdom from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. The French Bourbon dynasty took over in 1815, establishing the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, and ruled until Italian unification (also known as the Risorgimento) in 1860.
Until 1963, Abruzzo was part of the combined Abruzzi e Molise region. The term Abruzzi (plural of Abruzzo) derives from the time when the region was part of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. The territory was administered as Abruzzo Citeriore (nearer Abruzzo) and Abruzzo Ulteriore I and II (farther Abruzzo I and II) from Naples, the capital of the kingdom.[14] Abruzzo Citeriore is now Chieti province. Teramo and Pescara provinces now comprise what was Abruzzo Ulteriore I. Abruzzo Ulteriore II is now the province of L'Aquila.
In the twentieth century, war had a great impact on the region. During the Second World War, Abruzzo was on the Gustav Line, part of the German's Winter Line. One of the most brutal battles was the Battle of Ortona. Abruzzo was the location of two prisoner of war camps, Campo 21 in Chieti,[18] and Campo 78 in Sulmona. The Sulmona camp also served as a POW camp in World War 1; much of the facility is still intact and attracts tourists interested in military history.
Geography
Geographically, Abruzzo is located in central Italy and southern Italy, stretching from the heart of the Apennines to the Adriatic Sea, and includes mainly mountainous and wild land. The mountainous land is occupied by a vast plateau, including Gran Sasso, at 2,912 metres (9,554 ft) the highest peak of the Apennines, and Mount Majella at 2,793 metres (9,163 ft). The Adriatic coastline is characterized by long sandy beaches to the North and pebbly beaches to the South. Abruzzo is well known for its landscapes and natural environment, parks and nature reserves, characteristic hillside areas rich in vineyards and olive groves, and one of the highest densities of Blue Flag beaches.
Climate
The Abruzzo region has two types of climate that are strongly influenced by the Apennine Mountains, dividing the climate of the coastal and sub-Apennine hills from the interior's high mountain ranges. Coastal areas have a Mediterranean climate with hot dry summers and mild winters and rainy hills with a sublittoral climate where temperatures decrease progressively with increasing altitude and precipitation with altitude. Precipitation is also strongly affected by the presence of the Apennines mountain ridges of the region; it increases with the proportion being more abundant in the field and on the slopes exposed to the west, instead of decreasing towards the east and east-facing slopes. Often the Adriatic coast are sidelined rainfall from the west to the barrier effect of the Apennines undergoing the action of gentle winds descending from it (or Libeccio).[21] The minimum annual rainfall, however, is found in some inland valleys, sheltered from much disturbance to the blocking action of mountain ridges, such as the Peligna Valley, or the valley of the river Tirino, which in some places (Ofena, Capestrano) showed barely 500 millimetres (19.7 inches), and not along the coast where it never falls below 600 millimetres (23.6 inches); for if Teramo is relatively little watered by rain (Teramo less than 800 millimetres (31.5 inches)), the metre is exceeded in Chieti, reaching maximum levels in the Adriatic, while between Ortona and Vasto in Costa dei Trabocchi decrease again.[21] The highest rainfall occurs in upland areas on the border with Lazio; they are especially vulnerable to Atlantic disturbances. Around 1,500 to 2,000 millimetres (59 to 79 inches) of precipitation is typical (Pescara in 2010 showed a value close to 2,800 millimetres (110.2 inches)).
Flora and fauna
As with many Mediterranean regions, Abruzzo's vegetation is characterized by different Mediterranean ecosystems. The coast and the surrounding areas are characterized by the presence of typical plants of Mediterranean shrubland, such as myrtle, heather and mastic, while in the hilly areas other species grow, including olive, pine, willow, oak, poplar, alder, arbutus, broom, acacia, capers, rosemary, hawthorn, licorice and almond trees, interspersed with oak trees. At elevations between 600 and 1,000 metres (2,000 and 3,300 ft) there is sub-montane vegetation, mainly characterized by mixed forests of oak and turkey oak, maple and hornbeam; shrubs include dog rose and red juniper. Elevations between 1,000 and 1,900 metres (3,300 and 6,200 ft) are dominated by beech trees. In the Apennine Mountains at elevations above 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) species include alpine orchid, mountain juniper, silver fir, black cranberry and the Abruzzo edelweiss.
The fauna of Abruzzo is highly varied, including the region's symbol, the Abruzzo chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica ornata), which has recovered from near-extinction. Animals typical of this region include: marsican brown bear, along with Italian wolf, deer, lynx, roe deer, snow vole, fox, porcupine, wild cat, wild boar, badger, otter, and viper.
The natural parks of the region include the Abruzzo National Park, the Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park,[24] the Maiella National Park and the Sirente-Velino Regional Park, as well as many other natural reserves and protected areas.
Economy
Until a few decades ago, Abruzzo was a region of poverty in Southern Italy; over the past decades, however, it has developed to such an extent that it has escaped from the spiral of underdevelopment to become the 'first' region of the 'Italian Mezzogiorno'. This confirms its pivotal role in the national economic system. Since the 1950s, Abruzzo has had steady economic growth. In 1951, Abruzzo per capita income or GDP was 53% of that of Northern Italy, the nation's richest region. By 1971, Abruzzo was at 65% and, by 1994, per capita income was at 76% of Northern Italy's per capita income, giving Abruzzo the highest per capita GDP of Southern Italy and surpassing the growth of every other region of Italy. The construction of autostrade (motorways) from Rome to Teramo (A24) and Rome to Pescara (A25) opened Abruzzo to easy access. State and private investment in the region increased, and Abruzzo attained higher per capita education levels and greater productivity growth than the rest of the South. As of 2003, Abruzzo's per capita GDP was €19,506 or 84% of the national average of €23,181 and well outpacing that of the South (€15,808). The region's average GDP per capita was approximately 20,100 EUR.
The 2009 L'Aquila earthquake led to a sharp economic slowdown. However, according to statistics at the end of 2010, it seems that the economy of Abruzzo is recovering, despite the negative on regarding employment.[28] In fact, at the end of 2010, Abruzzo's growth was 1.47%, which placed it fourth among the Italian regions with the highest annual growth rates after Lazio, Lombardy and Calabria.[30] In 2011 Abruzzo's economic growth was +2.3%, the highest percentage among the regions of Southern Italy.[31] The region is also the richest region of Southern Italy, with a GDP per capita of €25,700.[21]
Travel poster from the 1920s.
Abruzzo's industrial sector expanded rapidly, especially in mechanical engineering, transportation equipment and telecommunications. The structure of production in the region reflects the transformation of the economy from agriculture to industry and services. Although industry has developed strongly, it retains weak points due to the existence of only a few large businesses alongside a huge fabric of small and medium-sized businesses. Both pure and applied research are carried out in the region, where there are major institutes and factories involved in research in the fields of pharmaceutics, biomedicine, electronics, aerospace and nuclear physics. The industrial infrastructure is spread throughout the region in industrial zones. The most important of these are: Val Pescara, Val Sangro, Val Trigno, Val Vibrata and Conca del Fucino. A further activity worthy of note is seaside and mountain tourism, which is of considerable importance to the economy of the region.[33] Agriculture, involving small holdings, has succeeded in modernising and offering high-quality products. The mostly small, agricultural holdings produce: wine, cereals, sugar beet, potatoes, olives, vegetables, fruit and dairy products. Traditional products are saffron and liquorice. Most famous in the world is Abruzzo's wine Montepulciano d'Abruzzo; in the late 20th and early 21st century, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo earned a reputation as being one of the most widely exported DOC classed wine in Italy.[34]
In the past decade, tourism has increased, in particular by internal and European arrivals. Abruzzo is world-famous for its wildlife parks (Abruzzo National Park, Gran Sasso and Monti della Laga National Park, Maiella National Park) and regional park (Sirente Velino), and 38 protected areas between oasis, regional reserves, and state reserves. The inland mountainous region contains several ski resorts, and coastal tourism is also well-developed, in particular, the Trabocchi Coast. Abruzzo's castles and medieval towns, especially around the town of L'Aquila, have earned it in some quarters the nickname of "Abruzzoshire", by analogy with the "Chiantishire", nickname sometimes used to refer to the Chianti area of Tuscany, but Abruzzo is still off the beaten path for most visitors to Italy.[35]
Chieti
Although the population density of Abruzzo has increased over recent decades, it is still well below the Italian national average: in 2008, 123.4 inhabitants per km2, compared to 198.8. In the provinces, the density varies: as of 2008 Pescara is the most densely populated with 260.1 inhabitants per km2, whereas L'Aquila is the least densely populated with 61.3 inhabitants per km2, although it has the largest area. After decades of emigration from the region, the main feature of the 1980s is immigration from third world countries. The population increase is due to the positive net migration. Since 1991 more deaths than births were registered in Abruzzo (except for 1999, when their numbers were equal).[36] In 2008, the Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated that 59,749 foreign-born immigrants live in Abruzzo, equal to 4.5% of the total regional population.
The most serious demographic imbalance is between the mountainous areas of the interior and the coastal strip. The largest province, L'Aquila, is situated entirely in the interior and has the lowest population density. The movement of the population of Abruzzo from the mountains to the sea has led to the almost complete urbanization of the entire coastal strip especially in the province of Teramo and Chieti. The effects on the interior have been impoverishment and demographic aging, reflected by an activity rate in the province of L'Aquila which is the lowest among the provinces in Abruzzo – accompanied by geological degradation as a result of the absence of conservation measures. In the coastal strip, however, there is such a jumble of accommodations and activities that the environment has been negatively affected. The policy of providing incentives for development has resulted in the setting-up of industrial zones, some of which (Vasto, Avezzano, Carsoli, Gissi, Val Vibrata, Val di Sangro) have made genuine progress, while others (Val Pescara, L'Aquila) have run into trouble after their initial success. The zones of Sulmona and Guardiagrele have turned out to be more or less failures. Outside these zones, the main activities are agriculture and tourism.
Main settlements
L'Aquila is both the capital city of the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila and second largest city (pop. 73,000). L'Aquila was hit by an earthquake on 6 April 2009, which destroyed much of the city centre. The other provincial capitals are Pescara, which is Abruzzo's largest city and major port (pop. 123,000); Teramo (pop. 55,000) and Chieti (pop. 55,000). Other large municipalities in Abruzzo include the industrial and high tech center Avezzano (pop. 41,000), as well as three important industrial and touristic centers such as Vasto (pop. 40,636), Lanciano (pop. 36,000), and Sulmona (pop. 25,000).
Transport
Airports
Abruzzo International Airport is the only international airport in the region. Open to civilian traffic since 1996, the number of passengers has increased over the years because of low-cost air carriers' use of the facility. Today, the airport has a catchment area of over 500,000 passengers annually and connects the city of Pescara and the entire region with many Italian and Europe destinations.
L'Aquila-Preturo Airport is located in the nearby village of Courts and was recently renovated and modernized to accommodate presidential flights for G8 activities.
Ports
There are four main ports in Abruzzo: Pescara, Ortona, Vasto and Giulianova.
Over the years the Port of Pescara became one of the most important tourist ports of Italy and the Adriatic Sea. Heavily damaged in World War II, it underwent some sixty years of major restoration and was reborn as a modern marina with advanced moorings and shipbuilding facilities. It has been honored with the European Union's blue flag for the quality of services offered. The port of Pescara has lost passenger traffic because of its shallowness and silting, but its fishery and aquaculture activities are thriving.[38]
Railways
There is a significant disparity between the railways of the Abruzzo coast and the inland areas, which badly need modernization to improve the service, in particular, the Rome-Pescara line.
Existing railway lines:
Adriatic railway runs through the whole of Italy from north to south, along the Adriatic Sea.
Train Rome – Sulmona – Pescara
Sulmona – Carpinone
Sulmona–Terni railway
Avezzano railroad – Roccasecca
Giulianova – Teramo
Sangritana (Lanciano – Castel di Sangro)
Highways
There are three highways that serve the region:
Highway A24 Rome – L'Aquila – Teramo, was built in the 1970s and connects Rome with Lazio and more specifically to the Abruzzo Teramo via L'Aquila. It performs an important liaison function of the region, both Tyrrhenian to the Adriatic, due to the presence of several interchanges of connecting roads and highways. The Gran Sasso tunnel, the longest road tunnel entirely on Italian territory, was opened in 1984. It connects L'Aquila and Teramo on the A24 making the northern Abruzzo coast reachable within two hours from Rome.
Highway A25 Turin – Avezzano – Pescara makes the connection between Rome and Pescara. The road running out of Turin begins its journey where it branches off the A24, runs into the Conca del Fucino, crosses the Abruzzo Apennines, comes to the valley of Peligna, and ends at the exit for Pescara-Villanova to join the A14.
Motorway A14 Bologna – Taranto known as the A14 "Adriatica", includes 743 km (461.68 mi) of road, including lengths in the cities of Bologna and Taranto. Opened to traffic in 1965, it is now a major tourist road, running through the coastal towns of Emilia Romagna, Marche, Abruzzo, Molise, and Apulia.
Culture
Castel del Monte, one of Abruzzo's little-known hill towns
Gabriele d'Annunzio from Pescara
Abbazia di San Liberatore a Majella (Serramonacesca)
Ovid from Sulmona
Cathedral of San Giustino (Chieti)
Fishing trabucco of San Vito Chietino
The museum Museo Archeologico Nazionale d'Abruzzo in Chieti houses the famed warrior statue Warrior of Capestrano which was found in a necropolis from 6th century B.C. Of cultural importance are: Teramo Cathedral, its archeological museum and Roman theater, the Castello della Monica, the Collurania-Teramo Observatory, the famous L'Aquila Basilica of Santa Maria di Collemaggio (which holds the remains of Pope Celestine V), the Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo, Santa Maria del Suffragio, the Forte Spagnolo, the Fountain of 99 Spouts, Gabriele D'Annunzio's house in Pescara, Campli's Scala Sancta and its church, the church of Santissima Annunziata in Sulmona, the cathedrals of Chieti, Lanciano, Guardiagrele, Atri and Pescara along with the castles of Ortona, Celano and Ortucchio.
Every 28–29 August, L'Aquila's Santa Maria di Collemaggio commemorates the Perdonanza Celestiniana, the indulgence issued by Pope Celestine V to any who, "truly repentant and confessed" would visit that Church from the Vespers of the vigil to the vespers of 29 August.[39] Sulmona's Holy Week is commemorated with traditional celebrations and rituals, such as 'La Madonna che Scappa in Piazza', where a large statue of the Madonna, carried by a group of Sulmonesi part of Confraternities, is taken through the square towards her resurrected Son.[40] Cocullo, in the province of L'Aquila, holds the annual 'Festa dei serpari' (festival of snake handlers) in which a statue of St. Dominic, covered with live snakes, is carried in a procession through the town; it attracts thousands of Italian and foreign visitors. In many Abruzzo villages, Anthony the Great's feast is celebrated in January with massive and scenic bonfires.[41] In the past, the region of Abruzzo was well known for the transumanza, the migratory movement of sheep principally south to the region of Puglia during the cold winter months.[42] The Feast of St. Biagio, protector of wool dealers, is the most widespread in Abruzzo. On the third of February in Taranta Peligna every year since the sixteenth century an evocative ritual is carried out, entailing the distribution of panicelle, which are small loaves made of flour and water, in the shape of a blessing hand, which are distributed to the faithful.
Historical figures include: the Roman orator Asinius Pollio; Latin poets Sallust and Ovid, who were born in L'Aquila and Sulmona respectively, Gaius Cassius Longinus, Roman senator and leading instigator of the plot to kill Julius Caesar; and Pontius Pilate, who was born in the province of Teramo and is best known for authorizing the crucifixion of Jesus. Abruzzo's religious personalities include Saint Berardo; John of Capistrano, who led a crusade against the Ottoman Empire; Thomas of Celano, author of three hagiographies about Saint Francis of Assisi; and Alessandro Valignano, who introduced Catholicism to the Far East and Japan. The Polish Pope John Paul II loved the mountains of Abruzzo, where he would retire often and pray in the church of San Pietro della Ienca. When he died, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, gave the local Abruzzo community some of the late pontiff's blood as a token of the love he had felt for the mountainous area.[43] The greatest Italian poet of the 20th century Gabriele D'Annunzio was from Pescara; other notable Abruzzo personalities in the field of humanities include: poet Ignazio Silone, director Ennio Flaiano who co-wrote La dolce vita, philosopher Benedetto Croce, composer Sir Paolo Tosti and the sculptor Venanzo Crocetti.
American artists and celebrities such as: Madonna, Dean Martin, Bradley Cooper, Perry Como, Henry Mancini, Nancy Pelosi, Rocky Marciano, Rocky Mattioli, Bruno Sammartino, Mario Batali, John and Dan Fante, Tommy Lasorda, Dan Marino, Mario Lanza, Garry Marshall, Penny Marshall, Al Martino, Ariana Grande and Canadian Michael Bublé have Abruzzo origins.
Some international movies shot in Abruzzo include The American, Jean-Jacques Annaud's The Name of the Rose, Fellini's La Strada and I Vitelloni, Schwarzenegger's Red Sonja, Ladyhawke, King David, Francesco, Keoma, The Barbarians, The Fox and the Child and Krull.
Medieval and Renaissance hill towns
The fortress of Civitella is the most visited monument in Abruzzo
For most of its history, a large number of the Abruzzese people have been hill people, often working as shepherds in mountainous areas, or establishing hill towns, especially in the parts of Abruzzo further from the Adriatic coast.[citation needed] Before the 2009 earthquake, Abruzzo was the region with the highest number of castles and hill towns in Italy, but it still holds many of Italy's best-preserved medieval and Renaissance hill towns, twenty-three of which are among The Most Beautiful Villages in Italy.[44] These awards are not only for aesthetic beauty but also for art and culture, historical importance and livability.
The abrupt decline of Abruzzo's agricultural economy in the early to mid-20th-century saved some of the region's historic hill towns from modern development. Many lie entirely within regional and national parks. Among the most well preserved are Castel del Monte and Santo Stefano di Sessanio, which lie in the Gran Sasso National Park on the edge of the high plain of Campo Imperatore and nestled beneath the Apennines' highest peaks. Both hill towns, which were ruled by the Medicis for over a century-and-a-half, have relatively little tourism. Between the two towns sits Rocca Calascio, the ruin of an ancient fortress popular with filmmakers. Both Monteferrante and Roccascalegna are two of the most representative Abruzzo villages in the province of Chieti. Within the Gran Sasso National Park is also found Castelli, an ancient pottery center whose artisans produced ceramics for most of the royal houses of Europe.
Civitella del Tronto played a crucial role in the history of the unification of Italy. The fortress of Civitella is the most visited monument in the Abruzzo region today.[45] Other medieval hill towns located fully within Abruzzo's park system are Pacentro in the Maiella National Park and Pescasseroli in the Abruzzo National Park. Pacentro, which features a 14th-century castle with two intact towers, has been little touched by modernisation. The Shrine of Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows, in the province of Teramo, which attracts some two million visitors per year, is one of the 15 most-visited sanctuaries in the world.[46] Capestrano, a small town in the province of L'Aquila, is the hometown of Saint John of Capistrano, Franciscan friar and Catholic priest, as well as the namesake of the Franciscan missions San Juan Capistrano in Southern California, the mission Mission San Juan Capistrano (Texas) and the city of San Juan Capistrano in Orange County. Giulianova is a notable example of a Renaissance "ideal city."
The proximity to Rome, the protected natural reserves and landscapes which make the region one of the greenest in Europe, the presence of some of the most beautiful Italian villages, its rich and heterogeneous gastronomy, along with a long history of deep-rooted local tradition and authentic Italian culture, make Abruzzo fifth among Italian regions for tourist visits after Calabria, Marche, Sardinia and Trentino. In 2010, visitors included 6,381,067 Italians and 925,884 foreign tourists.
In 2015, the American organization Live and Invest Overseas included Abruzzo on its list of World's Top 21 Overseas Retirement Havens. The study was based on such factors as climate, infrastructure, health care, safety, taxes, cost of living and more. In 2017 the Chamber of Commerce of Pescara presented Abruzzo region to the Annual conference of Live and Invest Overseas in Orlando (USA). One year later, in October 2018, Live and Invest Overseas held its first conference in Abruzzo.
Universities
There are three universities in the Abruzzo region:
University of L'Aquila
D'Annunzio University of Chieti–Pescara
University of Teramo
Harvard University bases an intensive summer Italian language and culture program in Vasto, a resort town on Abruzzo's southern coast.
Science
Between the province of Teramo and L'Aquila, under the Gran Sasso Tunnel, is the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS) of the INFN, one of the three underground astroparticle laboratories in Europe.
The Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell'Abruzzo e del Molise "Giuseppe Caporale", which conducts research in veterinary and environmental public health, is located in Teramo.
The Gran Sasso Science Institute, located in L'Aquila, is an advanced research institute which offers doctorates in astroparticle physics, computer science, and mathematics as well as urban studies and regional science, and which also conducts scientific research.
Sports
Interamnia World Cup, the largest international youth handball competition worldwide, takes place yearly in Teramo.[51]
There are several football clubs in Abruzzo. Delfino Pescara 1936 is a Serie B club; based in Pescara, its home stadium is Stadio Adriatico – Giovanni Cornacchia.
Dialects
The regional dialects of Abruzzo include Teramano, Abruzzese Orientale Adriatico and Abruzzese Occidentale. The first two form part of the dialect of southern Italy also known simply as "Neapolitan" since the region has been part of the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, while Aquilano is related to the Central Italian dialects including Romanesco. The dialects spoken in the Abruzzo region can be divided into three main groups:
Sabine dialect, in the province of L'Aquila (central Italian dialects)
Abruzzo Adriatic dialect, in the province of Teramo, Pescara and Chieti, that is virtually abandoned in the province of Ascoli Piceno (southern Italian dialects)
Abruzzo western dialect, in the province of L'Aquila (southern Italian dialects)
Cuisine
Renowned for its variety and richness due to the heterogeneity of its territory, Abruzzo's cuisine is among the best in Italy. In 2013 an Italian organization Confesercenti survey of foreign tourists showed that Abruzzo is the best Italian region to eat in. Both the agricultural and coastal aspects of Abruzzo have contributed to its cuisine. Due to the mountains, much of Abruzzo was isolated from international influence until the 20th century. As a result, the region's cuisine remained unique.
Popular dishes
One of the most popular regional dishes is spaghetti alla chitarra which is made by pressing or cutting pasta through a chitarra, an implement to form long thin noodles similar to spaghetti. The pasta is served with a tomato-based sauce, often flavored with peppers, pork, goose, or lamb. This dish is complemented by regional side dishes, such as the bean and noodle soup, sagne e fagioli. This soup is traditionally flavored with tomatoes, garlic, oil, and peperoncini. In terms of common ingredients, cuisine in Abruzzo often includes:
Lamb and mutton, primarily in the mountains.[54] Sheep's milk (or ricotta) is an important source of Abruzzese cheese, and lamb intestines are used as sausage casing or for stuffed meat rolls.[54][55] Mountain goat meat is also common in Abruzzo.
Truffles and mushrooms, particularly wild mushrooms from the forests and hills
Garlic, especially red garlic
Rosemary
Hot chili pepper or peperoncini, regionally known as diavolilli or diavoletti, is common in Abruzzese cuisine and often used to add spice to dishes. Abruzzo residents are well known for frequently adding peperoncini, or hot peppers, to their meals.
Vegetables such as lentils, grasspeas and other legumes, artichoke, eggplant, and cauliflower[54][55][56][57]
Other popular dishes include:
Gnocchi carrati, flavored with bacon, eggs and pecorino cheese
Scrippelle, a rustic French-style crêpe served either mbusse (a type of soup) or used to form a sort of soufflé with some ragù and stuffed with chicken liver, meatballs, hard-boiled eggs, and cheese
Pastuccia, a polenta stew with sausage, eggs, and cheese
Across the region, roast lamb is enjoyed in several variations. Some of these variations include:
Arrosticini, a skewered lamb dish
Pecora al cotturo, lamb stuffed with a variety of mountain herbs and cooked in a copper pot
Lamb cooked whole in a bread oven
Agnello cacio e ovo, a lamb-based fricassee
Mazzerella: lamb intestines stuffed with lamb, garlic, marjoram, lettuce, and spices
Le virtù: a soup from Teramo filled with legumes, vegetables and pork, usually eaten in the spring at celebrations
Timballo abruzzese: lasagna-like dish with pasta sheets (scrippelle) layered with meat, vegetables and rice; often served for Christmas and Easter[58]
Porchetta abruzzese: moist boneless-pork roast, slow-roasted with rosemary, garlic, and pepper[58]
Seafood is also popular, especially in coastal areas. The variety of fish available to the area has resulted in several fish-based Brodetti (broths), coming from such places as Vasto, Giulianova, and Pescara. These broths are often made by cooking fish, flavored with tomatoes, herbs, and peperoncino, in an earthenware pot. Rustic pizzas are also very common. Some of these are:
Easter Pizza, a rustic cake with cheese and pepper from the Teramo area
Fiadoni from Chieti, a dough of eggs and cheese well risen, cooked in the oven in a thin casing of pastry
A rustic tart pastry filled with everything imaginable: eggs, fresh cheeses, ricotta, vegetables, and all sorts of flavorings and spices.
Also from Teramo are the spreadable sausages flavored with nutmeg, and liver sausages tasting of garlic and spices. The ventricina from the Vasto area is made with large pieces of fat and lean pork, pressed and seasoned with powdered sweet peppers and fennel all encased in the dehydrated stomach of the pig itself. Atri and Rivisondoli are famous for cheeses. Mozzarella, either fresh or seasoned, is made from ewe's milk, although a great number of lesser known varieties of these cheeses can be found all over Abruzzo and Molise.
Sweets
The Abruzzo's sweets are world-famous and include:
Confetti, sugar-coated almonds, from Sulmona
Torrone Nurzia, a chocolate nougat from L'Aquila
Parrozzo , a cake-like treat made from a mixture of crushed almonds, and coated in chocolate.
Ferratelle (also known as Pizzelle). A wafer cookie, often flavored with anise
Croccante, a type of nougat made from almonds and caramelized suger, often flavored with lemon[59]
A Montepulciano d'Abruzzo wine labelled as being made from old vines.
Olive oil
The extra-virgin olive oil produced in Colline Teramane (Teramo hills) is marked by the DOP.[60]
The region has several cultivars that includes Carboncella, Dritta (Dritta Francavillese and Dritta di Moscufo), Gentile del Chieti, Nostrana (Nostrana di Brisighella), and Sargano olive cultivars.[61]
Wines and liquors
Renowned wines like Montepulciano DOCG and Trebbiano d'Abruzzo DOC are judged to be amongst the world's finest.[62] In 2012, a bottle of Trebbiano d'Abruzzo ranked No. 1 in the top 50 Italian wine awards.[63] In recent decades these wines have been joined, particularly, by wines from lesser known (heritage) white grapes, such as, Pecorino, Cococciola, Passerina, Montonico Bianco and Fiano.[64]
The region is also well known for the production of liquors such as Centerbe, Limoncello, Ratafia and Genziana.
Ashford-in-the-Water is a village in the Derbyshire Peak District, England. The village is situated on the River Wye, 2 miles (3 km) north-west of Bakewell.[1] It is known for the quarrying of Ashford Black Marble[2] (a form of limestone), and for the maidens' garlands made to mark the deaths of virgins in the village until 1801. Some of these are preserved in the parish church.[3] The civil parish population (including Sheldon) taken at the 2011 Census was 559.[4]
The name Ashford derives from the Old English æsc and ford, and means a ford where ash-trees grow. In 926 the village was known as Æscforda and in the Domesday Book of 1086 it was Aisseford. The addition of "in-the-Water" occurred in the late 17th century, and reflected the proximity of the village to meanders of the River Wye.[5]
In the Domesday Book Ashford was described as one of the locations in the area where lead was refined.[6]
In 1786, Ashford had mills for carving and polishing the local black marble. By 1848, it had 950 inhabitants.[7]
The village passed to the Cavendish family in the 16th century (from the Nevilles) and finally sold off in the 1950s to pay death duties.
Culture
The tradition of well-dressing continues in Ashford as in many other villages in the Peak District. Each year slabs of clay are decorated by village volunteers using petals, leaves and other plants to create a picture. The finished designs are then displayed at the six wells around the village and the event is marked by a church service and procession through the village to bless the wells. The event takes place around Trinity Sunday.
Transport
The village is bypassed by the A6 road.
Notable buildings
Within Ashford's civil parish are 62 structures that are listed by Historic England for their historic or architectural interest. None is listed as Grade I but there are two structures (Ashford Hall and Sheepwash Bridge) that are Grade II*. All the others, including Thornbridge Hall and the parish church, are Grade II.[8]
Ashford Hall dates from 1785, though alterations were made in about 1840. It is a five-bay, three-storey building of gritstone and ashlar, with a balustered parapet around its slate roof. It has an early-19th-century conservatory.[9]
Sheepwash Bridge
The Sheepwash Bridge, which dates from the 17th century, is a packhorse bridge with an attached stone sheepwash: lambs were placed in the pen on one side of the river and the ewes swam across the river to get to them, while being pushed underwater by the shepherds to clean the fleece before shearing. Large trout inhabit the waters of the Wye around the bridge. It is a Scheduled Monument as well as a listed building.[10][11][12]
Ashford's parish church of the Holy Trinity was mostly rebuilt in 1868–70 but has a partly 13th-century tower, a 14th-century north arcade and a recovered Norman tympanum above the south doorway.[2] In the churchyard lies the base and stump of a Grade-II-listed churchyard cross, variously dated to the 14th[13] or 15th century.[14] Behind the church are traces of a moat, all that remains of a fortified house which was the home of Edmund Plantagenet, brother of Edward II.[15]
Thornbridge Hall dates from the 18th century but was enlarged in 1871 and radically altered in a neo-Tudor style in 1897.[16]
Demography
In the 2011 census, Ashford-in-the-Water was 99.5% White, and 0.2% Asian.
Notable people
Robert Armitage Sterndale, naturalist, artist, writer and statesman who worked in India before becoming Governor-general of St. Helena, was born in the village.
Santorini is very proud of its local wine, and it would be rude not to sample a bottle (or three!) at one of the many fine dining establishments in Fira. The vines here are crafty little plants - because of the scorching heat endured throughout most of the day, there's very little moisture available to them. As such they survive only on the water vapour which descends from the sky in the form of dew at dusk and dawn. Not being a sommelier, I don't know all the details ... but am led to believe that there's something about this process which yields dry grapes with delicious flavours of sweet lemon and stone fruits.