The MiG-17 (NATO code: Fresco) was a significant development following the success of the Soviet MiG-15 in the Korean War. The single-seat MiG-17 fighter, with its thinner wings that swept back more sharply, a longer fuselage, and a redesigned tail, was a testament to the Soviet Union's aviation prowess. The Klimov VK-1 engine, equipped with an afterburner, was a game-changer, enabling greater speeds and improved handling.

Variants of the MiG-17, with their impressive maneuverability and legendary cannon armaments, served in approximately 20 air forces around the world. The Soviet Union alone produced more than 6,000 examples of the MiG-17, a testament to its global influence. While the MiG-17s were initially designed for straight-and-level-flying enemy bombers, their combat prowess was proven in the intense dogfights of the Vietnam War.

The MiG-17, with its ability to outmaneuver American missiles and outfly larger, faster American jet fighters, was a force to be reckoned with. Three North Vietnamese pilots achieved ace status while flying the MiG-17, a testament to its combat capabilities. The North Vietnamese Air Force's first MiG-17 unit, established in February 1964, operated the unpainted 'Silver Swallows' and the camouflaged 'Snakes.' The pilots received their training in the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union, further enhancing their skills.

Late in the war, a handful of MiG-17s were modified to carry bombs for use in anti-shipping strikes. This modification was made to enhance the aircraft's versatility and adaptability in different combat scenarios. One mission was launched against the U.S. Navy. Two MiG-17s attacked a U.S. destroyer and a light cruiser, causing only minor damage and no casualties. This aircraft is a Polish-built PZL-Mielec Lim-5, painted in the same camouflage as a MiG-17 of the North Vietnamese Air Force.

Significant Old Oak Tree and one of its younger offspring, taken during a recent snowstorm, growing about 10 minutes from where I live, the girth of this tree must be minimum 5 meters, so I will have to take a tape measure, needless to say the tree is of some age.

Parker's Crossroads is the site of a significant cavalry engagement on December 31, 1862 between the forces of Confederate Brigadier General Nathan Bedford Forrest and Union forces under the command of Colonel Cyrus L. Dunham & Colonel John W. Fuller. The Parker's Crossroads Battlefield is significant under National Register of Historic Places Criterion A for its role in the military history of the Civil War. The battle was the final engagement of Forrest's West Tennessee raid of December 1862, which resulted in the disruption of Major General Ulysses S. Grant's supply lines as his army advanced towards Vicksburg. Forrest's raid and the simultaneous destruction of Grant's supply depot at Holly Springs, Mississippi, caused Grant to end his overland campaign against Vicksburg. The majority of the fighting took place in two separate locations which are now separated by the right-of-way of Interstate 40. With the exception of the interchange area and development along SR 22, the battlefield retains much of its rural character consistent with its appearance in 1862. However, the Battlefield is also significant under NRHP Criterion D for its archaeological potential to yield information concerning the battle. It is likely that the site contains physical remnants of the battle which can provide information concerning troop movements and areas where the primary fighting occurred. The site is also known to contain the remains of soldiers

who were killed during the fighting and other burials may also be present on the property.

The Parker's Crossroads Battlefield was listed on the NRHP on February 22, 1999 and the information above along with much more can be viewed on the documents submitted for listing consideration found here:

npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/AssetDetail/cedb09ad-efb0-4216-999...

Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.

"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11

The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the link below:

www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/

Stave churches are Norway's most significant contribution to architecture. They are the oldest surviving wooden buildings in Norway.

At one time there were almost 1,000 stave churches in Norway. There are only 28 left! I feel very fortunate that I have seen a quarter of them.

Garmo Stave Church was built around 1200. In 1921 it was moved to Maihaugen in Lillehammer. Maihaugen is an outdoor museum with over 200 Norwegian buildings.

The photo shows the notched log wings at the gables.

GOOD RED

•Red letter day - important or significant occasion

•Red carpet treatment - make someone feel special, treat them as if they are a celebrity

•Paint the town red - celebrate, go out partying

•Red eye - an overnight flight

BAD RED

•Seeing red - to be angry

•Red herring - something that deceives or distracts attention from the truth

•Red flag - denotes danger, warning, or an impending battle

PLEASE, View On Black

Room Nr. 18 (“The Tribune”) is one of the most important rooms in the Uffizi Gallery and it exhibits some of the most significant works of the Medici collection. The Tribune was built by Buontalenti (1585-89), and decorated with shells by Pocchetti. In the center is the famous Medici Venus, Roman copy of an original Hellenistic work of the end of the 4th century B.C., found in Hadrian's Villa in Rome. The other statues, also Roman copies of Greek exemplaries, represent: the Knife Whetter, the Wrestlers, and the Dancing Faun. In the niche of the Tribune is a cabinet of ebony with inlaid Florentine mosaic. On the walls are splendid portraits of the Medici; among the most important Cosimo the Elder by Pontormo; Lorenzo the Magnificent, by Vasari; Lucrezia and Bartolomeo Panciatichi, by Bronzino, a refined portrait painter who also painted the portraits of Cosimo I and his wife Eleonor of Toledo, shown with her son Giovanni; by the same artist are the gracious children of Cosimo and Eleonor, don Garcia and Isabella. Also of note in this room is the charming Musical Angel by Rosso Fiorentino.

The Uffizi Gallery (Italian: Galleria degli Uffizi, Italian pronunciation: [ˌɡalleˈria deʎʎi ufˈfittsi]) is a museum in Florence, Italy. It is one of the oldest and most famous art museums of the Western world. The building of the palace started by Giorgio Vasari in 1560 for Cosimo I de' Medici as administration offices — hence the name "uffizi" ("offices"). Construction was continued to Vasari's design by Alfonso Parigi and Bernardo Buontalenti and ended in 1581. Over the years, parts of the palace have gradually evolved into a display place for many of the paintings and sculpture collected by the Medici family or commissioned by them. According to Vasari, who was not only the architect of the Uffizi but also the author of Lives of the Artists, published in 1550 and 1568, artists such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo gathered at the Uffizi "for beauty, for work and for recreation." After the house of Medici was extinguished, the art treasures remained in Florence by terms of the famous Patto di famiglia negotiated by Anna Maria Luisa, the last Medici heiress; it formed one of the first modern museums. The gallery had been open to visitors by request since the sixteenth century, and in 1765 it was officially opened to the public. Because of its huge collection, some of its works have in the past been transferred to other museums in Florence — for example, some famous statues to the Bargello. A project is currently underway to expand the museum's exhibition space in 2006 from some 6,000 metres² (64,000 ft²) to almost 13,000 metres² (139,000 ft²), allowing public viewing of many artworks that have usually been in storage.

Another historically significant jet engine that doesn't get a lot of attention is the Garrett (now Honeywell) TFE731 that is used on many biz jets like this Dassault Falcon 900. The TFE731 design started in 1968 when bizjets were starting to become popular but engine technology of the day restricted their range. Garrett had plenty of turboprop and APU experience; in fact, they were best known then for their APUs. The main business jet engine of the day was the GE CJ610 which was based on the J85 turbojet. Garrett wanted to beat the fuel economy of the CJ610 and for the TFE731, figured the cores of the APUs they built for the DC-10 and 747 were a good basis. Manufacturers that were interested in a more efficient engine for their bizjet designs preferred the higher flow of the 747 APU Garrett designed, so this became the core of the TFE731. A geared front fan was added to the APU core (one of the first if not the first geared turbofans) to create the engine and for the first time, the business jet market had an engine that was not only quieter, but so fuel efficient that for the first time, nonstop transcontinental and transatlantic performance was possible. Continued refinements have the TFE731 still in production today and back in 2008 the 10,000 engine was delivered.

Leopard Trail

Leopard Trail

The Blyde River Canyon, officially the Motlatse Canyon is a significant natural feature of South Africa, located in Mpumalanga, and forming the northern part of the Drakensberg escarpment. Located in the Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve, it is 25 kilometres (16 mi) in length and is, on average, around 750 metres (2,461 ft) deep. The Blyderivierpoort Dam, when full, is at an altitude of 665 metres (2,182 ft). The canyon consists mostly of red sandstone. The highest point of the canyon, Mariepskop, is 1,944 metres (6,378 ft) above sea level, whilst its lowest point where the river leaves the canyon is slightly less than 561 metres (1,841 ft) above sea level. This means that by some measure the canyon is 1,383 metres (4,537 ft) deep.

While it is difficult to compare canyons world-wide, Blyde River Canyon is one of the largest canyons on Earth, and it may be the largest 'green canyon' due to its lush subtropical foliage. It has some of the deepest precipitous cliffs of any canyon on the planet. It is the second largest canyon in Africa, after the Fish River Canyon, and is known as one of the great wonders of nature on the continent.

Possibly the best view in the whole of the Blyde River Canyon is of the "Three Rondavels", huge, round rocks, thought to be reminiscent of the houses or huts of the indigenous people, known as rondavels. This canyon is part of the Panorama Route. This route starts at the town Graskop and includes God's Window, the Pinnacle and Bourke's Luck Potholes.

Blyde means "glad" or "happy" in old Dutch, a name derived from a voortrekkers' expedition. The 'happy river' was thus named in 1844, when Hendrik Potgieter and others returned safely from Delagoa Bay to the rest of their party of trekkers who had considered them dead. While still under this misapprehension they had named the nearby river where they had been encamped, Treurrivier, or 'mourning river'.

In 2005, the Blyde River was renamed to the Motlatse River, and the Mpumalanga Provincial Government announced that the canyon would be renamed as well.

The Blyde River Canyon supports large diversity of life, including numerous fish and antelope species as well as hippos and crocodiles, and every primate species that may be seen in South Africa (including both greater and lesser bushbabies, vervet monkeys and Samango monkeys). The diversity of birdlife is similarly high, including the beautiful and much sought Narina trogon as well as species such as the Cape vulture, black eagle, crowned eagle, African fish eagle, gymnogene, jackal buzzard, white-rumped vulture, bald ibis, African finfoot, Knysna lourie, purple-crested lourie, Gurney's sugarbird, malachite sunbird, cinnamon dove, African emerald cuckoo, red-backed mannikin, golden-tailed woodpecker, olive bush shrike, green twinspot, Taita falcons (very rarely sighted, a breeding pair lives in the nearby Abel Erasmus Pass), Cape eagle owl, white-faced owl, wood owl, peregrine falcon, black-breasted snake eagle, Wahlberg's eagle, long-crested eagle, lanner falcon, red-breasted sparrowhawk, rock kestrel and others.

At 200 metres (660 ft), the Kadishi Tufa waterfall is the second tallest tufa waterfall on earth. A tufa waterfall is formed when water running over dolomite rock absorbs calcium, and deposits rock formations more rapidly than they erode the surrounding rock. In the case of the Kadishi Tufa fall, the formation that has been produced strikingly resembles a face which is crying profusely, and is thus sometimes known as 'the weeping face of nature'.

The canyon and the surrounding Drakensberg escarpment is a very popular tourist region with a well-developed tourism industry supported by good public infrastructure.

(Wikipedia)

Der Blyde River Canyon ist ein 26 Kilometer langer, bis 800 Meter tiefer und hauptsächlich aus rotem Sandstein bestehender Canyon. Er befindet sich an der Panorama Route nordöstlich von Johannesburg und gilt als eines der großen Naturwunder Afrikas.

Durch den Blyde River Canyon, der an den Bourke’s Luck Potholes beginnt, fließt der Fluss Blyde River, der bei 25° 4′ 15,9″ S, 30° 40′ 40,2″ O dem Thaba Chweu entspringt und bei 24° 15′ 18,6″ S, 30° 49′ 50″ O in den Olifantsriver fließt.

Ein von zahlreichen Touristen besuchter Punkt des Canyons sind die drei Rondavels, gewaltige, runde Felsen, die an die runden Hütten der Einheimischen erinnern. Wegen seines Ausblicks vielbesucht ist auch God’s Window.

(Wikipedia)

Significant crop.

The ceiling of the springthorpe memorial ... glorious light

Available for purchase from www.ballaratheritage.com.au

VHR - springthorpe

Statement of Significance

What is significant?

The Springthorpe Memorial within the Boroondara Cemetery (VHR0049)commemorates Annie Springthorpe, and was erected in 1897 by her husband Dr John Springthorpe. It was designed by Harold Desbrowe Annear and includes Bertram Mackennal sculptures. It contains twelve columns of deep green granite from Scotland supporting a Harcourt granite superstructure, and a glass dome roof of lead lighting.

How is it significant?

The Springthorpe Memorial is of historic and architectural significance to the State of Victoria

Why is it significant?

The Springthorpe Memorial is historically important in demonstrating nineteenth century social and cultural attitudes to death, and for reflecting the ideals of the Victorian Garden Cemetery movement which aimed at providing comfort for mourners. The memorial is important in demonstrating uniqueness, no other example being known of such aesthetic composition, architectural design and execution, or scale. It is important in exhibiting good design and aesthetic characteristics and for the richness and unusual integration of features. The Springthorpe Memorial is also important in illustrating the principal characteristics of the work of a number of artists including Desbrowe Annear, Mackennal, the glass manufacturers Auguste Fischer and the bronze work of Marriots.

VHR Statement of Significance

What is significant?

Boroondara Cemetery, established in 1858, is within an unusual triangular reserve bounded by High Street, Park Hill Road and Victoria Park, Kew. The caretaker's lodge and administrative office (1860 designed by Charles Vickers, additions, 1866-1899 by Albert Purchas) form a picturesque two-storey brick structure with a slate roof and clock tower. A rotunda or shelter (1890, Albert Purchas) is located in the centre of the cemetery: this has an octagonal hipped roof with fish scale slates and a decorative brick base with a tessellated floor and timber seating. The cemetery is surrounded by a 2.7 metre high ornamental red brick wall (1895-96, Albert Purchas) with some sections of vertical iron palisades between brick pillars. Albert Purchas was a prominent Melbourne architect who was the Secretary of the Melbourne General Cemetery from 1852 to 1907 and Chairman of the Boroondara Cemetery Board of Trustees from 1867 to 1909. He made a significant contribution to the design of the Boroondara Cemetery

Boroondara Cemetery is an outstanding example of the Victorian Garden Cemetery movement in Victoria, retaining key elements of the style, despite overdevelopment which has obscured some of the paths and driveways. Elements of the style represented at Boroondara include an ornamental boundary fence, a system of curving paths which are kerbed and follow the site's natural contours, defined views, recreational facilities such as the rotunda, a landscaped park like setting, sectarian divisions for burials, impressive monuments, wrought and cast iron grave surrounds and exotic symbolic plantings. In the 1850s cemeteries were located on the periphery of populated areas because of concerns about diseases like cholera. They were designed to be attractive places for mourners and visitors to walk and contemplate. Typically cemeteries were arranged to keep religions separated and this tended to maintain links to places of origin, reflecting a migrant society.

Other developments included cast iron entrance gates, built in 1889 to a design by Albert Purchas; a cemetery shelter or rotunda, built in 1890, which is a replica of one constructed in the Melbourne General Cemetery in the same year; an ornamental brick fence erected in 1896-99(?); the construction and operation of a terminus for a horse tram at the cemetery gates during 1887-1915; and the Springthorpe Memorial built between 1897 and 1907. A brick cremation wall and a memorial rose garden were constructed near the entrance in the mid- twentieth century(c.1955-57) and a mausoleum completed in 2001.The maintenance shed/depot close to High Strett was constructed in 1987. The original entrance was altered in 2000 and the original cast iron gates moved to the eastern entrance of the Mausoleum.

The Springthorpe Memorial (VHR 522) set at the entrance to the burial ground commemorates Annie Springthorpe, and was erected between 1897 and 1907 by her husband Dr John Springthorpe. It was the work of the sculptor Bertram Mackennal, architect Harold Desbrowe Annear, landscape designer and Director of the Melbourne Bortanic Gardens, W.R. Guilfoyle, with considerable input from Dr Springthorpe The memorial is in the form of a small temple in a primitive Doric style. It was designed by Harold Desbrowe Annear and includes Bertram Mackennal sculptures in Carrara marble. Twelve columns of deep green granite from Scotland support a Harcourt granite superstructure. The roof by Brooks Robinson is a coloured glass dome, which sits within the rectangular form and behind the pediments. The sculptural group raised on a dais, consists of the deceased woman lying on a sarcophagus with an attending angel and mourner. The figure of Grief crouches at the foot of the bier and an angel places a wreath over Annie's head, symbolising the triumph of immortal life over death. The body of the deceased was placed in a vault below. The bronze work is by Marriots of Melbourne. Professor Tucker of the University of Melbourne composed appropriate inscriptions in English and archaic Greek lettering.. The floor is a geometric mosaic and the glass dome roof is of Tiffany style lead lighting in hues of reds and pinks in a radiating pattern. The memorial originally stood in a landscape triangular garden of about one acre near the entrance to the cemetery. However, after Dr Springthorpe's death in 1933 it was found that transactions for the land had not been fully completed so most of it was regained by the cemetery. A sundial and seat remain. The building is almost completely intact. The only alteration has been the removal of a glass canopy over the statuary and missing chains between posts. The Argus (26 March 1933) considered the memorial to be the most beautiful work of its kind in Australia. No comparable buildings are known.

The Syme Memorial (1908) is a memorial to David Syme, political economist and publisher of the Melbourne Age newspaper. The Egyptian memorial designed by architect Arthur Peck is one of the most finely designed and executed pieces of monumental design in Melbourne. It has a temple like form with each column having a different capital detail. These support a cornice that curves both inwards and outwards. The tomb also has balustradings set between granite piers which create porch spaces leading to the entrance ways. Two variegated Port Jackson Figs are planted at either end.

The Cussen Memorial (VHR 2036) was constructed in 1912-13 by Sir Leo Cussen in memory of his young son Hubert. Sir Leo Finn Bernard Cussen (1859-1933), judge and member of the Victorian Supreme Court in 1906. was buried here. The family memorial is one of the larger and more impressive memorials in the cemetery and is an interesting example of the 1930s Gothic Revival style architecture. It takes the form of a small chapel with carvings, diamond shaped roof tiles and decorated ridge embellishing the exterior.

By the 1890s, the Boroondara Cemetery was a popular destination for visitors and locals admiring the beauty of the grounds and the splendid monuments. The edge of suburban settlement had reached the cemetery in the previous decade. Its Victorian garden design with sweeping curved drives, hill top views and high maintenance made it attractive. In its Victorian Garden Cemetery design, Boroondara was following an international trend. The picturesque Romanticism of the Pere la Chaise garden cemetery established in Paris in 1804 provided a prototype for great metropolitan cemeteries such as Kensal Green (1883) and Highgate (1839) in London and the Glasgow Necropolis (1831). Boroondara Cemetery was important in establishing this trend in Australia.

The cemetery's beauty peaked with the progressive completion of the spectacular Springthorpe Memorial between 1899 and 1907. From about the turn of the century, the trustees encroached on the original design, having repeatedly failed in attempts to gain more land. The wide plantations around road boundaries, grassy verges around clusters of graves in each denomination, and most of the landscaped surround to the Springthorpe memorial are now gone. Some of the original road and path space were resumed for burial purposes. The post war period saw an increased use of the Cemetery by newer migrant groups. The mid- to late- twentieth century monuments were often placed on the grassed edges of the various sections and encroached on the roadways as the cemetery had reached the potential foreseen by its design. These were well tended in comparison with Victorian monuments which have generally been left to fall into a state of neglect.

The Boroondara Cemetery features many plants, mostly conifers and shrubs of funerary symbolism, which line the boundaries, road and pathways, and frame the cemetery monuments or are planted on graves. The major plantings include an impressive row of Bhutan Cypress (Cupressus torulosa), interplanted with Sweet Pittosporum (Pittosporum undulatum), and a few Pittosporum crassifolium, along the High Street and Parkhill Street, where the planting is dominated by Sweet Pittosporum.

Planting within the cemetery includes rows and specimen trees of Bhutan Cypress and Italian Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens), including a row with alternate plantings of both species. The planting includes an unusual "squat" form of an Italian Cypress. More of these trees probably lined the cemetery roads and paths. Also dominating the cemetery landscape near the Rotunda is a stand of 3 Canary Island Pines (Pinus canariensis), a Bunya Bunya Pine (Araucaria bidwillii) and a Weeping Elm (Ulmus glabra 'Camperdownii')

Amongst the planting are the following notable conifers: a towering Bunya Bunya Pine (Araucaria bidwillii), a Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), a rare Golden Funeral Cypress (Chamaecyparis funebris 'Aurea'), two large Funeral Cypress (Chamaecyparis funebris), and the only known Queensland Kauri (Agathis robusta) in a cemetery in Victoria.

The Cemetery records, including historical plans of the cemetery from 1859, are held by the administration and their retention enhances the historical significance of the Cemetery.

How is it significant?

Boroondara Cemetery is of aesthetic, architectural, scientific (botanical) and historical significance to the State of Victoria.

Why is it significant?

The Boroondara Cemetery is of historical and aesthetic significance as an outstanding example of a Victorian garden cemetery.

The Boroondara Cemetery is of historical significance as a record of Victorian life from the 1850s, and the early settlement of Kew. It is also significant for its ability to demonstrate, through the design and location of the cemetery, attitudes towards burial, health concerns and the importance placed on religion, at the time of its establishment.

The Boroondara Cemetery is of architectural significance for the design of the gatehouse or sexton's lodge and cemetery office (built in stages from 1860 to 1899), the ornamental brick perimeter fence and elegant cemetery shelter to the design of prominent Melbourne architects, Charles Vickers (for the original 1860 cottage) and Albert Purchas, cemetery architect and secretary from 1864 to his death in 1907.

The Boroondara Cemetery has considerable aesthetic significance which is principally derived from its tranquil, picturesque setting; its impressive memorials and monuments; its landmark features such as the prominent clocktower of the sexton's lodge and office, the mature exotic plantings, the decorative brick fence and the entrance gates; its defined views; and its curving paths. The Springthorpe Memorial (VHR 522), the Syme Memorial and the Cussen Memorial (VHR 2036), all contained within the Boroondara Cemetery, are of aesthetic and architectural significance for their creative and artistic achievement.

The Boroondara Cemetery is of scientific (botanical) significance for its collection of rare mature exotic plantings. The Golden Funeral Cypress, (chamaecyparis funebris 'aurea') is the only known example in Victoria.

The Boroondara Cemetery is of historical significance for the graves, monuments and epitaphs of a number of individuals whose activities have played a major part in Australia's history. They include the Henty family, artists Louis Buvelot and Charles Nuttall, businessmen John Halfey and publisher David Syme, artist and diarist Georgiana McCrae, actress Nellie Stewart and architect and designer of the Boroondara and Melbourne General Cemeteries, Albert Purchas.

Copyright - All Rights Reserved - Black Diamond Images

The former Grain Corp silos here at Sheep Hills just north east of Horsham were built in 1938. Melbourne based street artist Adnate from late 2016 had developed a relationship with the Barengi-Gadjin Aboriginal Land Council with the ultimate intention of paying respects to the traditional owners of the land here, although long since usurperd by colonial British white settlers. The colonialists forcefully dispossessed the local peoples of their land clearing it of its indigenous plants, and pushed many species of both animals and plants to the brink of extinction and replacing the vast plains with monocultures of wheat, Barley and Canola as well as sheep and cattle pasturelands.

As one travels around the region out here in Western Victoria little remains of what were numerous thriving aboriginal cultures living in harmony with the land on these vast Wimmera Plains for in excess of 40,000 years.

While this impressive Sheep Hills Silo Art installation is indeed a tribute to the former land owners it should be viewed in the light of the traumatic history suffered by traditional landowners as their land, livelyhood and culture were forcefully taken from them over a very short period of time following British colonialist occupation in the early to mid 1800's.

The Sheep Hills artist Adnate, found inspiration in Wergaia elder Uncle Ron Marks and Wotjobaluk elder Aunty Regina Hood along with the children, Savannah Marks and Curtly McDonald ( Ironically a strong Scottish sounding name) as subjects for the mural.

While all the silo art murals on the Silo Art Trail are impressive this one here at Sheep Hills for me is the most significant as long as one views it form a historical and cultural perspective avoiding the cultural white washing of the areas turbulent past.

Constructed in 1976, 388 George Street was designed by Australian architect John Andrews and formerly known as King George Tower.

Refurbished in 1998 and 2009, the 28-storey office building now has a new tower lobby and state-of-the-art end-of-trip facilities.

The refurbishment delivers 38,364 sqm of A-Grade commercial office space and 2,680 sqm of prime retail space to Sydney’s CBD.

The transformation includes new interconnecting stairs to enhance connectivity and collaboration. Upgrade works also included new ceilings, carpets, bathrooms, lift floor lobbies and on-floor amenities.

Design features include a stone concierge desk carved from solid blocks of London white marble, each weighing 200 kilograms.

The second and final stage of the project will see the delivery of a brand new FJMT-designed mixed-use pavilion to complete the project.

The mixed-use pavilion, due for delivery later this year, will add five-storeys of commercial and retail space, a rooftop bar and flagship retail stores.

“Not only have we added significant value by upgrading the existing commercial tower and developing the new retail podium on a dormant part of the site, we have also enhanced the site’s connectivity to George and King streets,” says Danny Poljak, executive vice president and co-head of Brookfield Properties.

“The development will completely transform this busy city corner and integrate with the newly pedestrianised George Street with a through-site link planned in the next stage linking to King Street.”

The project, which is being delivered by construction partner Multiplex, created over 250 jobs during construction.

Source: Property Council of Australia

As in most examples of basic truthiness, the reverse is also true. That is, it is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man who works in the Botox industry, hardly ever finds himself in need of pickling.

And, as for the bifurcating Duchamps, there is no evidence that they ever met again after 'the split'.

Rumours that they are 'the twins' in 'Finnegans Wake' are dubious, to say the least, in spite of extensive, sadly lost, scholarship cobbled together by de Selby.

You be the judge, and all that palaver:

"^ Of the disorded visage.

* Singlebarrelled names for doubleparalleled twixtytwins.

^ Like pudging a spoon fist of sugans into a sotspot of choucolout. "

Page 286, 'Finnegans Wake', James Joyce

I rest my case, or at least suspend it over a widening knowledge abyss.

AI Overview (Google A.I.)

A human bifurcation is the division of a structure or a system into two branches, occurring in both anatomical structures like the trachea and blood vessels, and in dynamical systems where a small change in a parameter causes a dramatic qualitative change in the system's behavior. In anatomy, these are structural divisions, while in mathematical and biological modeling, they are points where a system's behavior shifts from one state to another, influencing everything from cardiac rhythms to neuronal firing.

Anatomical Bifurcations

Trachea: The windpipe (trachea) bifurcates into two bronchial tubes that deliver air to each lung.

Blood Vessels: Arteries branch into progressively smaller vessels, with the aorta splitting into the common iliac arteries in a significant bifurcation.

Nerves: Nerves also divide into smaller branches to reach different parts of the body.

Nice shirt, all the same.

The first significant snow begins in Guilford - maybe 4 inches today.

See my other Guilford scenes at flic.kr/s/aHsjsx3xaz

..

see other ELLORA CAVE images here.

For half of our party, the climb up and then steep descent down the Paso John Garner presented a significant physical challenge (knee problems were involved). The most unfortunate aspect of the knee problems, aside from the pain itself, was that it meant long hours on the trail, and getting into camp the previous night at Campo Paso right as it was getting dark. One advantage to hiking quickly, and then getting to camp while there's still plenty of light is that one has time to relax, explore, and if one were crazy, spend some time scouting locations for later photo attempts.

Despite my wishful thinking, photo attempts were not really in the cards on this morning, as a small storm had settled in for a spell, and there was a bit of cold rain. The forest along this stretch of the trail is primordial, wild and tumbled with coarse downed logs. As I hiked, Fangorn kept coming to mind, and I expected to see tree shepherds quietly protecting their brethren. For miles, we passed through this forest, up and down ridges, and always right next to the vast flow of ice, slowly making our way along the contours it had carved into the landscape. At irregular intervals the main arterial way was bisected by ravines and gullies, such as this in the photograph. Some of the larger ravines were crossed by long suspension bridges, constructed more or less safely, but in a spartan sort of way that left one feeling somewhat exposed (think large gaps between planks). Crossing one of these bridges, I thought I would stop and photograph the phenomenal yawing space beneath my feet; however, as soon as I let go with one hand to operate the camera, I thought better of it, and kept moving forward. I would have been more comfortable hanging from the end of a climbing rope.

At this particular spot, I found I had some unexpected time on my hands, as my friend was overcome at this location with a commanding urge to defecate. The poor man had been stopped up for the previous four days - I'd never heard of traveler's constipation before - but suddenly it was time, and there would be no real contest about who was going to win that particular argument, no matter how inconvenient the topography, geologic substrate, and vegetative ground cover.

As I waited for the gastrointestinal contretemps to unfold, the way the clouds breached the fangs of the mountain ridge was fascinating, and not long after the rain slackened and became more of an idea than a reality.

Thanks for taking the time to visit and read!

The Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis Railroad Depot, constructed in 1917, is a locally significant example of standardized, functional railroad architecture in Sparta, Tennessee. The depot is associated with a pattern of railroad growth and monopoly that shaped economic and settlement trends in the southeast during the early twentieth century. Between 1902 and 1921, the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, the parent company of the Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis, expanded its miles of track from 3,327 to 5,041 miles, representing an increase of 57%. Some of this new construction took place in White County as the railroad extended its 1884 Bon Air spur line to the new coal towns of Clifty, DeRossett, and Ravenscroft, near the border between White and Cumberland counties, in an attempt to better exploit coal and mineral ores. As historian Maury Klein observed in his study of the Louisville and Nashville, "it is significant that none of the new trackage tried to extend the L & N's territory but rather sought to exploit the existing territory more fully. What might be called a more mature phase of interterritorial strategy had arisen and was flourishing...[in the] cultivation of the sources of coal and ore traffic." (pp. 397-98)

White County was a significant producer of raw materials, especially coal and timber products, during the early twentieth century. After the coal company built an underground shaft at Bon Air in 1902, that single mine produced an average daily tonnage of 350 tons for the next twenty years. The adjacent Eastland Mine also opened in 1902 and produced an average of 350 tons daily for the next thirty years. Demand for raw materials increased even more dramatically during the First World War and great amounts of Cumberland Plateau coal and timber was shipped out of Sparta. White County walnut was especially in demand for use in gun stocks, first in orders from Allied nations and then, in late 1917 and 1918, for the U.S. Army.

Due to the increased traffic and demand for railroad services, the company in 1917 decided to replace the original frame Sparta depot, which housed only an office and freight room, with a new much larger brick depot. The new depot reflected the importance of the railroad, and the county's coal mines, to the economic life of Sparta. As the town's "gateway", it symbolized local prosperity and confidence at the height of the wartime boom in demand for raw materials. Moreover, the depot served Sparta itself as the town's major contact point between the national corporate economy and the local market economy.

The Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis Railroad Depot also embodies a trend in early twentieth century railroad architecture that balanced the cost-saving strategies of the railroads against the demands of a more sophisticated local community. The design achieved economy, functionalism and comfort under one roof. The waiting rooms accommodated more passenger traffic on the line, while the spacious freight room and loading platforms handled the increased volume of timber, mineral, and agricultural products being shipped out of the county. Although a standardized design lay at the heart of the depot's plan, its roof line and minimal Craftsman-style exterior detailing reflected the use of minor architectural features and varying roof shapes to give uniqueness to the building. Particularly distinctive were the wide, overhanging, unbracketed roof eaves. The square bay window of the business office also helped to add variety to the form while the functionally-placed windows on east and west elevations, along with the decorative band of bricks, added rhythm to the building's appearance.

The Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis Railroad Depot is associated with and physically represents the peak of railroad influence in White County during the early twentieth century. Even after a period of decline due to the popularity of the automobile and the building of the Memphis to Bristol Highway, this small-town depot has survived and was added to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on December 7, 1992. All of the information above (and a bit more) was found on the original documents submitted for listing consideration and can be viewed here:

npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/AssetDetail/9ea0e226-5cd8-49c3-9e5...

Three bracketed photos were taken with a handheld Nikon D7200 and combined with Photomatix Pro to create this HDR image. Additional adjustments were made in Photoshop CS6.

"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." ~Jeremiah 29:11

The best way to view my photostream is through Flickriver with the following link: www.flickriver.com/photos/photojourney57/

A story-telling component plays a significant role in my photography. But sometimes the scene is so simple and almost abstract, that I have no thoughts on the subject other than thinking that it is graphically pretty. This composition, probably, falls into this category. I came across it on my walk along Difficult Run in Great Falls National Park. The shape of the rock, and water, flowing over and around it, caught my attention. Working on these subjects is a somewhat relaxing process. Nothing is moving or going away, so you can relax, work on the composition, meter the light, and carefully think about the camera settings. I managed to achieve everything I wanted: a pleasant framing, delicate sharpness of the rock, and proper shutter speed to convey the flowing of the water. The only thing that I missed was to rotate the film back on my camera, and instead of capturing this vertical composition, I made an exposure in landscape orientation. Genius! So I had to spend one more frame to correct that mistake. Later that day, when I scanned the negatives, I discovered that the first composition also has its merits. Maybe I will release that accidental version as well, but not today.

This beautiful little flower is significant for me. Living away from my birthplace for many years - the poppy flower is a reminder of home. In the south of Sweden (were I´m from) the poppy is a common feature found in the summer landscape.

The flower is often used during the celebration of midsummer (an old pagan celebration with viking roots), as decoration on poles (midsummer-pole) covered with different kinds of flowers (there among the poppy) or to be used in wreaths, worn by children, an women during the festivities.

The flowers also has meaning in many other contexts. The blood red flower is a symbol of soldiers fallen - specially for the soldiers who fought and died during the first world war. The poppy is also found in greek mythology - as head wreaths worn by gods (especially Hypnos and Thanatos - the gods of sleep an death).

For me the poppy flower is home. Funny how things work.

A girlfriend I met in Rutgers snapped this scene in the early version of Liberty State Park using my Kodak Pocket Instamatic loaded up with Kodacolor 110 film.

I've added a number of Flickr Notes to this picture. If your browser supports them, please take a look.

This is my third print using the Vandyke Brown process. The first was a disaster, but the second came out ok (flic.kr/p/Pg4aZh). However, I wasn't happy with the colour or contrast. This print was made on Bergger Cot320 paper which is one of the classic papers for alternative process printing. And what a difference it made. This image has a much better tonal range and significantly better detail. The exposure was made @ 14:00 hours for 7 minutes on an intermittently cloudy day, facing south, in the Nagoya area.

A scan from the original 4x5 black and white negative can be seen @ flic.kr/p/tqSzXF

Riding Rocky Mountaineer from Kamloops to Jasper, Canada

Railways have been a significant part of Kamloops' heritage since the 19th century, and the trains continue to appeal to locals and visitors alike. Kamloops is home to Rocky Mountaineer Vacations, which brings over 90,000 guests to the city each year.

These tours make an overnight stop in Kamloops on their awe-inspiring journey through the Fraser Canyon, Thompson River Valley and the Rockies.

The highlights of this trip includes Pyramid Creek Falls with the water crashes over three stair steps style tiers before hitting a layer of bedrock which was thrust sideways that causes the water to fan into a pyramid shape. The other highlight is the Mount Robson which is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site and it also marks the beginning of the Fraser River's 850 miles journey to the Pacific Ocean.

For video, please visit youtu.be/5TsPU3H_7Q8

First significant snow of the year. Hopefully the last. It's beautiful but I'm not a fan of winter...

© All Rights Reserved - No Usage Allowed in Any Form Without the Written Consent the photographer

This is one of the most significant pieces of machinery in the exhibition. Owned by Chris and Vivian Martin (Chris is in shot here preparing the roller for a spin), this black beauty is the only fullsized road steam engine ever built in Tasmania.

The 1910 Salisbury Single Cylinder Steam Roller was built in Launceston. If you enlarge the photograph you can read the maker's plate for yourself. It was built specifically for the Launceston City Council to lay tram tracks when the tramways were established in the early part of the 20th century. Sadly, the trams tracks were pulled up again in the early 1950s in the move to buses.

The colourful miniature engine in the background is what we'll look at next.

In Laos, a significant number of Hmong people fought against the communist nationalist. The terms Hmong and Mong both refer to an Asian ethnic group in the mountainous regions of southern China. There, they remain one of the largest sub-groups in the Miao minzu. Beginning in the 18th century, Hmong groups began a gradual southward migration due to political unrest and to find more arable land. As a result, Hmong currently also live in several countries in Southeast Asia, including northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar-Burma. In Laos, a significant number of Hmong people live in the mountainous regions. The Hmong support themselves with their small vegetable gardens here along various rivers in the forestry nearby Vang Vieng.

This portrait was taken in the forestry nearby Vang Vieng - Laos. A beautiful portrait of a Mong girl nearby the cascading river who's eyes I won't forget. She and girlfriend just took a bath in the clear river on her way home.

De Hmong, Mong of Miao worden door de Fransen ook wel Meo genoemd.

De oorsprong van dit volk ligt in het zuiden van China. Afstammelingen zijn verspreid over Noord- en Centraal-Laos, Zuid-China, Vietnam en Thailand. De meesten wonen in gebieden boven de 1000 meter op bergtoppen of heuvelruggen. Polygamie is toegestaan. De kleding is eenvoudig. Veelal worden zwarte jassen, zwarte pofbroeken en zilveren juwelen gedragen. De vrouwen dragen hun haar meestal in een knot. Een groot deel van de bevolking leeft van de ruilhandel, waarbij ijzer vaak dient als betaalmiddel. Ijzer is een belangrijke grondstof voor het maken van kapmessen en eenvoudige geweren. De voornaamste landbouwproducten zijn Rijst, Graan en Opium.

In Laos, a significant number of Hmong people fought against the communist nationalist. The terms Hmong and Mong both refer to an Asian ethnic group in the mountainous regions of southern China. There, they remain one of the largest sub-groups in the Miao minzu. Beginning in the 18th century, Hmong groups began a gradual southward migration due to political unrest and to find more arable land. As a result, Hmong currently also live in several countries in Southeast Asia, including northern Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar-Burma. In Laos, a significant number of Hmong people live in the mountainous regions. The Hmong support themselves with their small vegetable gardens here along various rivers in the forestry nearby Vang Vieng.

This portrait was taken in the forestry nearby Vang Vieng - Laos. A beautiful portrait of a Mong girl nearby the cascading river. I capture her being in a moment of thoughts. She and girlfriend just took a bath in the clear river on her way home.

De Hmong, Mong of Miao worden door de Fransen ook wel Meo genoemd.

De oorsprong van dit volk ligt in het zuiden van China. Afstammelingen zijn verspreid over Noord- en Centraal-Laos, Zuid-China, Vietnam en Thailand. De meesten wonen in gebieden boven de 1000 meter op bergtoppen of heuvelruggen. Polygamie is toegestaan. De kleding is eenvoudig. Veelal worden zwarte jassen, zwarte pofbroeken en zilveren juwelen gedragen. De vrouwen dragen hun haar meestal in een knot. Een groot deel van de bevolking leeft van de ruilhandel, waarbij ijzer vaak dient als betaalmiddel. Ijzer is een belangrijke grondstof voor het maken van kapmessen en eenvoudige geweren. De voornaamste landbouwproducten zijn Rijst, Graan en Opium.

February marked significant progress for NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, which completed its final functional performance tests at Northrop Grumman in Redondo Beach, California. Testing teams successfully completed two important milestones that confirmed the observatory’s internal electronics are all functioning as intended, and that the spacecraft and its four scientific instruments can send and receive data properly through the same network they will use in space. These milestones move Webb closer to being ready to launch in October.

These tests are known as the comprehensive systems test, which took place at Northrop Grumman, and the ground segment test, which took place in collaboration with the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.

Before the launch environment test, technicians ran a full scan known as a comprehensive systems test. This assessment established a baseline of electrical functional performance for the entire observatory, and all of the many components that work together to comprise the world’s premiere space science telescope. Once environmental testing concluded, technicians and engineers moved forward to run another comprehensive systems test and compared the data between the two. After thoroughly examining the data, the team confirmed that the observatory will both mechanically and electronically survive the rigors of launch.

Image credit: NASA

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Volcano just outside of Cartago Costa Rica. Elevation 11,260 ft

Last significant eruption was in 1963.

Detroit, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 2024

Piquette Avenue is a historically significant street in Detroit, famed for being the birthplace of the automotive mass production era and a key landmark in the history of the Ford Motor Company.

Main Landmark: The street is home to the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant, now known as the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant Museum.

The Birth of the Model T: This plant, built in 1904, was the second home of the Ford Motor Company. It is where Henry Ford and his team designed, developed, and began production of the iconic Ford Model T starting in 1908, using production methods that paved the way for the modern assembly line.

Significance: Piquette Avenue is considered the birthplace of the affordable automobile that changed American society and the global industry.

The District: Piquette Avenue is part of the Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District, an area that reflects the rise of the automobile industry in Detroit in the early 20th century.

Journey with camera and tripod youtu.be/uP7wiqVm_fc

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With all my heart I congratulate everyone who helped me go this way! Thanks to Flickr and enthusiastic photographers, this became possible after 3 goals! THANK! My story.

Thank You for 4.000.000 views!!!

Lahti. Lakhta ?This small village on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, about 15 km northwest of the city, is home to human settlements on the banks of the Neva. It was on the territory of Lakhta that the remains of a man’s parking site of three thousand years ago were found.

In official documents, a settlement named Lakhta dates back to 1500. The name is derived from the Finnish-speaking word lahti - "bay". This is one of the few settlements that has not changed its name throughout its 500-year history. Also known as Laches, Lahes-by, Lahes and was originally inhabited by Izhora. In the last decades of the 15th century, Lakhta was a village (which indicates a significant population) and was the center of the eponymous grand-parish volost, which was part of the Spassko-Gorodensky graveyard of the Orekhovsky district of the Vodskaya Pyatina. In the village, there were 10 courtyards with 20 people (married men). In Lakhta, on average, there were 2 families per yard, and the total population of the village probably reached 75 people.

From the notes on the margins of the Swedish scribe book of the Spassky graveyard of 1640, it follows that the lands along the lower reaches of the Neva River and parts of the Gulf of Finland, including Lakhta Karelskaya, Perekulya (from the Finnish “back village”, probably because of its position relative to Lakhti) and Konduy Lakhtinsky, were royal by letter of honor on January 15, 1638 transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickschulz general Bernhard Sten von Stenhausen, a Dutchman by birth. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted these lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). With the arrival of the Swedes in Prievye, Lakhta was settled by the Finns, who until the middle of the 20th century made up the vast majority of the villagers.

On December 22, 1766, Catherine 2 granted Lakhta Manor, which was then in the Office of the Chancellery from the buildings of palaces and gardens, "in which and in her villages with courtyards 208 souls," her favorite Count Orlov. Not later than 1768, Count J.A. Bruce took over the estate. In 1788, Lakhta Manor was listed behind him with wooden services on a dry land (high place) and the villages Lakhta, Dubki, Lisiy Nos and Konnaya belonging to it also on dry land, in those villages of male peasants 238 souls. On May 1, 1813, Lakhta passed into the possession of the landowners of the Yakovlevs. On October 5, 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered into the possession of the Lakhtinsky estate, which then had 255 male souls. This clan was the owner of the estate until 1912, when its last representative got into debt and noble custody was established over the estate. On October 4, 1913, in order to pay off his debts, he was forced to go for corporatization, and the Lakhta estate passed into the ownership of the Joint Stock Company “Lakhta” of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co.

After the revolution, Lakhta was left on its own for a while, here on the former estate of the counts Stenbock-Fermorov on May 19, 1919, the Lakhta excursion station was opened, which existed there until 1932. In the early 1920s, sand mining began on Lakhta beaches, and the abandoned and dilapidated peat plant of the Lakhta estate in 1922 took over the Oblzemotdel and put it into operation after major repairs. In 1963, the village of Lakhta was included in the Zhdanovsky (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

At the beginning of Lakhtinsky Prospekt, on the banks of the Lakhtinsky spill, there was the village of Rakhilax (Rahilax-hof, Rahila, Rokhnovo). Most likely, under this name only one or several courtyards are designated. There is an assumption that the name of the village was formed from the Finnish raahata - “drag, drag,” because there could be a place for transportation through the isthmus of the Lakhtinsky spill (we should not forget that not only the bridge over the channel connecting the spill with the Gulf of Finland was not yet here, the duct itself was many times wider than the current one). The search book of the Spassko-Gorodensky graveyard of 1573, describing the Lakhta lands, mentions that there were 2 lodges in the “Rovgunov” village, from which we can conclude that we are talking about the village of Rohilaks, which the Russian scribes remade into a more understandable to them Rovgunovo. The village was empty in Swedish time and was counted as a wasteland of the village of Lahta.

On the banks of the Lakhtinsky spill, near the confluence of the Yuntolovka River, from the 17th century there existed the village of Bobylka (Bobylskaya), which merged into the village of Olgino only at the beginning of the 20th century, but was found on maps until the 1930s. It is probably the Search Book that mentions it Spassko-Gorodensky churchyard in 1573 as a village "in Lakhta in Perekui", behind which there was 1 obzh. With the arrival of the Swedes by royal letter on January 15, 1638, the village was transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickshaw General Bernhard Sten von Stenhausen, a Dutchman by birth. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted Lahti lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). On the Swedish map of the 1670s, in the place of the village of Bobylsky, the village of Lahakeülä is marked (küla - the village (Fin.)). The village could subsequently be called Bobyl from the Russian word "bobyl."

The owners of Bobylskaya were both Count Orlov, and Count Y. A. Bruce, and the landowners Yakovlev. In 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered into the possession of the Lakhtinsky estate (which included the village of Bobyl). This family was the owner of the estate until 1913, when the owners, in order to pay off their debts, had to go for corporatization, and the Lakhta estate was transferred to the ownership of the Lakhta Joint-Stock Company of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co. By the middle of the 20th century, the village merged with the village of Lakhta.

The name Konnaya Lakhta (Konnaya) has been known since the 16th century, although earlier it sounded like Konduya (Konduya Lakhtinskaya) or just Kondu (from the Finnish kontu - courtyard, manor). Subsequently, this name was replaced by the more familiar Russian ear with the word "Horse". In the Search Book of the Spassko-Gorodensky Pogost in 1573, it is mentioned as the village "on Kovdui", where 1 obzh was listed, which indicates that there most likely was one yard. On January 15, 1638, together with neighboring villages, it was transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickschulz General Bernhard Steen von Stenhausen, of Dutch origin. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted these lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). In a deed of gift, Konduya Lakhtinskaya is called a village, which indicates a noticeable increase in its population. Later, on the Swedish map of the 1670s, on the site of the present Horse Lahti, the village of Konda-bai is marked (by - village (sv)).

The owners of Konnaya Lakhta, as well as the villages of Bobylskaya and Lakhta, were in turn Count Orlov, Count Ya. A. Bruce, and the landowners Yakovlev. In 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered the possession of the Lakhta estate (which included Konnaya Lakhta. This family was the owner of the estate until 1913, when the owners had to go to corporations to pay off their debts, and the Lakhta estate became the property of Lakhta Joint Stock Company of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co. In 1963, Horse Lahta was included in the Zhdanov (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

As the dacha village of Olgino appeared at the end of the 19th century and initially consisted of both Olgin itself and the villages of Vladimirovka (now part of Lisiy Nos) and Aleksandrovka. In the first half of the 18th century, this territory was part of the Verpelev palace estate, which in the second half of the 18th century was granted to Count G. G. Orlov, then it was owned by the family of landowners the Yakovlevs, in the middle of the 19th century the estate was transferred to the counts of Stenbock-Fermor. In 1905 A.V. Stenbok-Fermor, the then owner of Lakhta lands, divided the lands around Lakhta into separate plots with the intention of selling them profitably for dachas. So there were the villages of Olgino (named after the wife of Olga Platonovna), Vladimirovka (in honor of the father of the owner; the coastal part of the modern village of Lisy Nos) and Alexandrov or Aleksandrovskaya (in honor of Alexander Vladimirovich himself). It is likely that on the site of the village was the village of Olushino (Olushino odhe) - a search book of the Spassko-Gorodensky churchyard in 1573 mentions that there were 1 obzh in the village of Olushkov’s, which suggests that at least one residential the yard. On behalf of Olushka (Olpherius). Most likely, the village was deserted in Swedish time and then was already listed as a wasteland belonging to the village of Lahta. Thus, the name of the village could be given in harmony with the name of the mistress and the old name of the village.

The villages were planned among a sparse pine forest (the layout was preserved almost unchanged), so there were more amenities for living and spending time there than in Lakhta. A park was set up here, a summer theater, a sports ("gymnastic") playground, a tennis court, and a yacht club were arranged.

In the 1910s about 150 winter cottages were built in Olgino, many of which are striking monuments of "summer cottage" architecture. In 1963, the village of Olgino was included in the Zhdanovsky (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

Near Olgino, in the area of ​​the Dubki park, there was a small village Verpeleva (Verpelevo), which consisted of only a few yards. In the first half of the XVIII century. this territory was part of the palace estate "Verpeleva", which in the second half of the XVIII century. It was granted to Count G. G. Orlov, then passed to the Counts of Stenbock-Fermor. The village has not existed for a long time, but the entire reed-covered peninsula (barely protruding above the water of the Verpier-Luda peninsula (Verper Luda (from the Finnish luoto - “small rocky island”)) still existed, and there was another spelling the name of this island is Var Pala Ludo).

Kamenka. The Novgorod scribal book mentions two villages in the Lakhta region with a similar name, referring to the possessions of Selivan Zakharov, son of Okhten, with his son and 5 other co-owners. On the lands of this small patrimony, which, unlike the estate was inherited, peasants lived in 3 villages, including: the village "Kamenka in Lakhta near the sea" in 5 yards with 5 people and arable land in 1,5 obzhi, the village "on Kamenka "in 2 courtyards with 2 people and arable land in 1 obzhu. For the use of land, the peasants paid the owners of the patrimony 16 money and gave 1/3 of the rye harvest. Thus, in the 16th century on the Kamenka River (another name for the Kiviyoki River, which is the literal translation of kivi - "stone", joki - "river") there was one large village of Kamenka near its confluence with the Lakhtinsky spill and the second, smaller, somewhere upstream. On the drawing of Izhora land in 1705, a village under this name is depicted in the area of ​​the modern village of Kamenka. The village of Kamennaya in the middle reaches of Kamenka and on the map of 1792 is designated. Other name options are Kaumenkka, Kiviaja.

In the second half of the 18th century, Kamenka became a vacation spot for Russian Germans. Here in 1865, German colonists founded their "daughter" colony on leased land. Since then, the village has received the name Kamenka Colony (so called until the 1930s). In 1892, a colony near the village of Volkovo "budded" from it. The inhabitants of both colonies belonged to the Novo-Saratov parish and since 1871 had a prayer house in Kamenka, which was visited by 250 people. He maintained a school for 40 students. The house was closed in 1935 and later demolished.

Currently, Kamenka exists as a holiday village, located along the road to Levashovo. Since 1961 - in the city, part of the planning area in the North-West, from the mid-1990s. built up with multi-storey residential buildings and cottages.

Volkovo. The settlement is about southeast of the village of Kamenka - on the old road to Kamenka, on the bank of a stream that flows into Kamenka between the village of Kamenka and the Shuvalovsky quarry. In 1892, a German colony emerged on the territory of the village, "budding" from a nearby colony in the village of Kamenka. The origin of Volkovo is not clear, the village is found only on maps of 1912, 1930, 1939, 1943. and probably appeared no earlier than the 19th century.

Kolomyagi. Scribe books of the XV — XVI centuries and Swedish plans testify that small settlements already existed on the site of Kolomyag. Most likely, these were first Izhora or Karelian, then Finnish farms, which were empty during the hostilities of the late XVII century.

The name "Kolomyag" connoisseurs decipher in different ways. Some say that it came from the "colo" - in Finnish cave and "pulp" - a hill, a hill. The village is located on the hills, and such an interpretation is quite acceptable. Others look for the root of the name in the Finnish word "koaa" - bark - and believe that trees were processed here after felling. Another version of the origin of the name from the Finnish "kello" is the bell, and it is associated not with the feature of the mountain, but with the "bell on the mountain" - a tower with a signal bell standing on a hill.

The owners of Kolomyazhsky lands were Admiral General A.I. Osterman, Count A.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin, a family of Volkonsky. In 1789, the Volkonskys sold these lands to retired colonel Sergei Savvich Yakovlev. On his estate S. S. Yakovlev built a manor and lived in it with his wife and seven daughters. The once-Finnish population of Kolomyag was “Russified” by that time - it was made up of descendants of serfs resettled by Osterman and Bestuzhev-Rumin from their villages in Central Russia (natives of the Volga and Galich) and Ukraine. Then the name "Kellomyaki" began to sound in Russian fashion - "Kolomyagi", although later the old name also existed, especially among local Finns. And not without reason the indigenous Kolomozhites associate their origin with the Volga places, and the southern half of the village is now called “Galician”.

Yakovlev died in 1818. Five years after his death, a division of the territory of the manor was made. The village of Kolomyagi was divided in half between two of his daughters. The border was the Bezymyanny stream. The southeastern part of the village of Kolomyagi beyond Bezymyanny creek and a plot on the banks of the Bolshaya Nevka passed to the daughter Ekaterina Sergeevna Avdulina.

Daughter Yakovleva Elena Sergeevna - the wife of General Alexei Petrovich Nikitin, a hero of the Patriotic War of 1812, who was awarded the highest military orders and twice a gold sword with the inscription "For courage", died early, leaving her daughter Elizabeth. The northwestern part of Kolomyag inherited the young Elizabeth, so this part of Kolomyag was practically inherited by the father of Yakovlev’s granddaughter, Count A.P. Nikitin, who in 1832 became the owner of the entire village. It is his name that is stored in the names of the streets - 1st and 2nd Nikitinsky and Novo-Nikitinsky. The new owner built a stone mansion on the estate’s estate - an excellent example of classicism of the first third of the 19th century, which became his country house and has survived to this day and has been occupied until recently by the Nursing Home. It is believed that this mansion was built according to the project of the famous architect A.I. Melnikov. The severity and modesty of the architectural appearance of the facades and residential chambers of the Nikitin mansion was opposed by the splendor of ceremonial interiors, in particular the two-light dance hall with choirs for musicians. Unfortunately, with repeated alterations and repairs, many details of the decor and stucco emblems of the owners disappeared. Only two photographs of the 1920s and preserved fragments of ornamental molding and paintings on the walls and ceiling show the past richness of the decorative decoration of this architectural monument. The mansion was surrounded by a small park. In it stood a stone pagan woman brought from the southern steppes of Russia (transferred to the Hermitage), and a pond with a plakun waterfall was built. Near the pond there was a "walk of love" from the "paradise" apple trees - it was called so because the bride and groom passed through it after the wedding. Here, in the shadow of these apple trees, young lovers made appointments.

Under the Orlov-Denisov opposite the mansion (now Main Street, 29), the structures of an agricultural farm were erected, partially preserved to this day, and the greenhouse. Behind the farm were the master's fields. On them, as the New Time newspaper reported in August 1880, they tested the reaping and shearing machines brought from America.

In the 19th century, the provincial surveyor Zaitsev submitted for approval the highway called the Kolomyagskoye Shosse. The route was supposed to connect the village, gradually gaining fame as a summer residence of the "middle arm", with St. Petersburg. The construction of the road ended in the 1840s, and then horse-drawn and country-house crafts became the most important articles of peasant income. In addition, peasants either built small dachas in their yards, or rented their huts for the summer. Located away from the roads, surrounded by fields, the village was chosen by multi-family citizens.

The income from the summer cottage industry increased from year to year, which was facilitated by the summer movement of omnibuses that opened on the new highway from the City Council building. They walked four times a day, each accommodated 16 people, the fare cost 15 kopecks. Even when the Finnish Railway with the nearest Udelnaya station came into operation in 1870, the highway remained the main access road through which public carriages pulled by a trio of horses ran from the Stroganov (now Ushakovsky) bridge.

The importance of the highway has decreased since 1893, when traffic began along the Ozerkovskaya branch of the Primorsky Railway, built by the engineer P.A. Avenarius, the founder of the Sestroretsky resort.

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A significant building within Upminster's history, and had originally been a stable block within an estate, then housed the Parish Council in 1924, and then the Parish Fire Brigade until 1936 when it became the towns library. I in fact used the library until it was relocated in 1963 and was a very short walk from my infant and junior school. The building was then turned into flats for elderly people. For the whole of my life, the grounds have included a duck pond which is still as popular today as it was when I was at school.

Mmm, as one of my cards said, I'm now 18 with 52 years experience! Forget the number and act the age you want to be!

Significant cloud build up is evident as 47739 speeds past Battledown flyover near Worting junction hauling the 5Q80 Cricklewood South Sidings to Eastleigh Arlington with unit 360111 for attention. Sun dipped immediately after this shot.

Whilst not a fan of the 47's, stemming from my teenage years when everything seemed to be hauled by a BR blue 47, this livery is particularly attractive

Friday 5 August 2022

The National Theater and Concert Hall: the Eyes of Taiwan

Located in the Boai District in central Taipei, the National Theater and Concert Hall (NTCH) features a traditional Chinese palace-like structure. The gold roofs, overturned edges, Chinese red colonnades and colorful arches demonstrate an elegant and imposing manner. The two buildings and the four adjacent plazas create an interesting and artistic living landscape, becoming one of the most significant landmarks in Taipei. The architectural streamline drawn by the overturned edges of these majestic and classic national art sanctuaries inspires people to imagine the future on the basis of classicism.

1987 is an unforgettable year for Taiwanese people. A bullish stock market advanced the economic development to the climax; the lift of Martial Law guided political reforms towards the path of democracy; and the birth of the NTCH realized the long-term expectations of artists and the people, and proclaimed the inception of the country’s Renaissance. It is not only the best performing arts center in Taiwan, but heralds the internationalization of Taiwan’s performing arts.

When NTCH was first established, it aimed to enhance the national art level by introducing world-famous artists and organizations such as the New York Philharmonic, the Martha Graham Dance Company and the Three Tenors. Gradually, NTCH started to present local art groups such as the Cloud Gate Dance Theater, the Legend Lin Dance Theater, the U Theatre, the Han Tang Yuefu and the NSO (or Philharmonia Taiwan). These locally-nourished groups first gained a footing in Taiwan and shared what they accomplished in terms of art production with the local people. They later got connected with the international community to show the beauty of Taiwan’s art.

It is often said that eyes are the window to the soul. The National Theater and Concert Hall are just like the eyes of Taiwan which fully express the national spirit and culture, encourage creativity internally, and represent Taiwan internationally. The NTCH has attracted many local and international figures to enjoy its excellent performances, helped Taiwanese groups to pursue their international careers, and promoted foreign exchange and communication, raising the visibility of Taiwan’s beauty.

In 1975, the NTCH was designed by Ho-Mou Architect Firm with a total cost of NT$7 billion (US$250 million); a “German and Dutch Team” composed of Germany-based GNH and Holland-based Philips was in charge of hardware facilities such as stereos, stages and lighting. The entire project was completed in 1987, and the managing organization was named the National Chang Kai Shek Cultural Center (or generally known as the National Theater and Concert Hall). During the ten years of construction, the agricultural and commercial society of Taiwan was transformed into an industrial and commercial one and martial law was lifted. The completion of the NTCH proclaimed the inception of a new era of art and culture.

The NTCH features a traditional Chinese-like palace structure with gold glazed roof tiles and Chinese red colonnades. Its appearance is in harmony with that of the CKS Memorial Hall, and its advanced facilities and quality materials conform to the international standard. Among them, the Concert Hall’s organ is claimed to be the largest organ in Asia. The sumptuous and gallant NTCH has attracted many heads of state and foreign dignitaries including former Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew, former President of Costa Rica Rafael Calderon, former first lady of the United States Betty Ford, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Margaret Thatcher, and former President of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev, all of which have contributed to Taiwan’s diplomacy.

As Taiwan’s most significant world-class performance venue, the NTCH has invited, produced, leased and co-organized countless programs. Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras from the Three Tenors, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma are some of the frequent performers; large performance groups such as the New York Philharmonic, the San Francisco Symphony, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, the 12 cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic, the Australian Ballet Company and the Nederlands Dans Theater have performed at the NTCH repeatedly. The late French pantomime Marcel Marceau, dance master Martha Graham, maestros Sergiu Celibidache and Giuseppe Sinopoli, violinist Issac Stern, and pianist Tatiana Nikolayeva have also left with us their precious images in the NTCH’s history.

In 2007, the name of the CKS Memorial Park, which had a political implication, was changed to the National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Park, and the CKS Memorial Hall was renamed the National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall. Along with the fall of the authoritative rule, the NTCH has become more accessible to the public by improving its route connecting the MRT station and facilities. Throughout the journey, the development of Taiwan’s performing arts took off in the 1980s and keeps pace with the world in the 21st century. At its prime of life, the NTCH continues to work hard towards enriching Taiwan’s creativity with a keen and forward-looking vision.

When the NTCH was first established, it was operated as an official agency. With strong advice from the art and culture circles, the center was restructured as the “National CKS Cultural Center on March 1, 2004, and the Executive Juridical Body became the first executive juridical body in Taiwan. Thereafter, the NTCH, possessing both financial protection and autonomous operation, is capable of developing along with international trends and demonstrates Taiwan’s image and power through art and culture.

The only significant light source - the setting moon - was on the other side of the seastack rock, so I "painted" the rock using my flashlight for the 30 seconds exposure time. I like the contrast between the rough rock textures and the smooth deep blue sky.

Bedeutsame Erinnerungen?

The Monolith - Mystic Symbolism by Daniel Arrhakis (2025)

The word derives, through the Latin monolith, from the ancient Greek word μονόλιθος (monólithos), from μόνος (mónos) meaning "one" or "single" and λίθος (líthos) meaning "stone" or "rock".

Basically, a single large stone, generally in the shape of a monument or column, many of which appear vertically and isolated in the landscape.

The term is used to refer to both natural geological formations and man-made structures, which are significant due to their size, solitary nature and even their historical and cultural importance.

Many ancient societies carved monoliths. Perhaps the oldest known in the world are the enormous stone pillars found at the Neolithic archaeological site of Göbekli Tepe in Türkiye. Göbekli Tepe with circular structures containing huge T-shaped stone pillars, were built and occupied around 9,600 to 8,000 BC.

The Aswan area contains many quarries used for magnificent ancient Egyptian stonework, such as the “Unfinished Obelisk” — a huge piece of granite rock that Queen Hatshepsut (1508-1458 BCE) is said to have commissioned, but which was abandoned after cracks appeared in the rock.

Had workers completed this obelisk, it would have stood about 140 feet (42 m) tall and weighed nearly 1,200 tons—far larger than any ancient Egyptian obelisk ever erected.

Many ancient stone monoliths in England and elsewhere in the world were likely astronomical markers, often aligned with the stars or solar cycles, according to new archaeological and other evidence.

However others also served as funerary markers, boundaries, to mark an important event or a sacred area where the Spiritual could be "found" and were therefore originally legitimized for worship.

In the Book of Revelation, stones often symbolize monumental events, divine judgments, and eschatological truths. The Bible recognizes the symbolic power of stones, whether they serve as memorials, as fundamental elements of sacred spaces, or as instruments of divine judgment.

They represent resistance, divine interaction and human remembrance. In other cultures, monoliths are seen as symbols of fertility or abundance.

Many people have compared these monoliths to those in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 science fiction film 2001. In the most literal narrative sense, the Monolith here is a tool, an artifact of an alien civilization, and symbolizes humanity's evolutionary journey.

Arriving at key moments in human history, the monoliths offer humanity a guiding hand for evolution, but they are also a portal to other worlds, to another time or to other civilizations.

In the Ion Mystical World, the Monoliths represent temporal and civilization landmarks, but also spiritual portals and connections with other worlds.

Its distinct shape, size and isolation transport us to a sensitive strangeness as if we were faced with a timeless but at the same time spiritual landmark.

Its isolation and stability in connection with the ground and therefore with the Earth, conveys a sense of strength and a temporal landmark reflected in many generations. But at the same time it transmits a spiritual dimension to us in its connections with the astral cycles and ultimately, with the Universe itself, as if it were a portal to other worlds.

For us they are sacred, unique, timeless and links between the past, the present and the future. Basically a powerful connection between Humanity and Earth, between Human Spirituality and Universal Spirituality.

Like a tower or a solitary tree that resists and stands out in the landscape, the Monoliths remind us that we are not alone in the Universe and invite us to reflect on ourselves, on the ultimate goal of our existence as a civilizational humanity in this immense universe.

Some of these Monoliths may be landmarks of dramatic events, sacred and/or funerary rituals, or even moments in the History of Humanity that had a dramatic impression on the memory of the people and ultimately on the place or region in which they are located. For this reason, they must always be approached and preserved with the respect they are due.

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A palavra deriva, através do latim monolito, da palavra grega antiga μονόλιθος (monólithos), de μόνος (mónos) que significa "um" ou "único" e λίθος (líthos) que significa "pedra" ou "rocha".

No fundo, uma única pedra de grandes dimensões, geralmente em forma de monumento ou coluna, surgindo muitas na vertical e isolada na paisagem.

O termo tanto é utilizado para referir formações geológicas naturais como estruturas feitas pelo homem, sendo significativos devido à sua dimensão, natureza solitária e até pela sua importância histórica e cultural.

Muitas sociedades antigas esculpiram monólitos. Talvez os mais antigos conhecidos no mundo sejam os enormes pilares de pedra que se encontram no sítio arqueológico neolítico de Göbekli Tepe, na Turquia. Göbekli Tepe com estruturas circulares contendo enormes pilares de pedra em forma de T, foram construídos e ocupados por volta de 9.600 a 8.000 a.C.

A área de Assuão contém muitas pedreiras utilizadas para a magnífica cantaria egípcia antiga, como o “Obelisco Inacabado” — um enorme pedaço de rocha granítica que a Rainha Hatchepsut (1508-1458 a.C.) terá encomendado, mas que foi abandonado depois de terem surgido fissuras na rocha.

Se os trabalhadores tivessem terminado este obelisco, este teria medido cerca de 42 m de altura e pesaria quase 1.200 toneladas — muito maior do que qualquer obelisco egípcio antigo alguma vez erguido.

Muitos monólitos de pedra antigos em Inglaterra e noutros locais do mundo eram provavelmente marcadores astronómicos, frequentemente alinhados com as estrelas ou ciclos solares, de acordo com novas evidências arqueológicas e outras.

No entanto outros serviam também como marcadores funerários, limites, para marcar um acontecimento importante ou uma área sagrada onde o Espiritual podia ser "encontrado" e, por isso, eram originalmente legitimados para adoração.

No Livro do Apocalipse, as pedras simbolizam frequentemente acontecimentos monumentais, juízos divinos e verdades escatológicas. A Bíblia reconhece o poder simbólico das pedras, quer sirvam de memoriais, de elementos fundamentais de espaços sagrados ou de instrumentos de julgamento divino.

Eles representam a resistência, a interação divina e a recordação humana. Noutras culturas, os monólitos são vistos como símbolos de fertilidade ou abundância.

Muitas pessoas compararam estes monólitos aos do filme de ficção científica de Stanley Kubrick, 2001, de 1968. No sentido narrativo mais literal, o Monólito aqui é uma ferramenta, um artefacto de uma civilização alienígena e simbolizam a viagem evolutiva da humanidade.

Chegados a momentos-chave da história humana, os monólitos oferecem à humanidade uma direção orientadora para a evolução, mas são também um portal para outros mundos, para outras épocas ou para outras civilizações.

No Mundo Místico de Ion os Monólitos representam marcos temporais e civilizacionais mas também portais espirituais e de conecção com outros mundos.

A sua distinta forma, tamanho e isolamento transportam-nos para uma estranhesa sensitiva como se tivessemos perante um marco intemporal mas ao mesmo tempo espiritual.

O seu isolamento e estabilidade na ligação ao solo e portanto à Terra, transmite uma sensação de força e um marco temporal refletido em muitas gerações.

Mas ao mesmo tempo transmite-nos uma dimensão espiritual nas suas conexões com os ciclos astrais e em ultima análise, com o próprio Universo como se de um portal para outros mundos se tratasse.

Para nós eles são sagrados, únicos, intemporais e elos de ligação entre um passado, o presente e o futuro. No fundo uma ligação poderosa entre a Humanidade e a Terra, entre a Espiritualidade Humana e a espiritualidade Universal.

Como uma torre ou uma árvore solitária que resiste e se destaca na paisagem, os Monólitos lembram-nos que não estamos sós no Universo e convidam-nos a refletir sobre nós próprios, sobre o objetivo final da nossa existência enquanto humanidade civilizacional neste imenso universo.

Alguns destes Monólitos podem ser marcos de acontecimentos dramáticos, de rituais sagrados e ou funerários, ou mesmo momentos na História da Humanidade que tiveram uma impressão dramática na memória dos povos e em ultima análise no local ou região que estão inseridos. Por isso mesmo devem sempre ser abordados e preservados com o respeito que lhes é devido.

A significant piece of hardware for NASA’s Artemis II mission arrived on Aug. 19 to the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to complete final stacking operations. A semitrailer transported NASA’s Orion stage adapter nearly 700 miles from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

NASA Marshall built and tested the Orion stage adapter which connects to the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket’s interim cryogenic propulsion stage to the Orion spacecraft. A diaphragm within the adapter protects Orion from flammable gases, such as hydrogen, generated during launch.

Here, technicians at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida complete routine inspections on the Artemis II Orion stage adapter on Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025. The adapter was unloaded inside the spaceport’s Multi-Payload Processing Facility to undergo CubeSat integration following its arrival from the NASA Marshall.

Credits: NASA/Kim Shiflett

#Artemis #NASAMarshall #Space #NASASLS #NASA #Artemis #ArtemisII

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A significant reason for coming to Vista-Bharati University is the incredible students that I've encountered here. This is Adarsh – mark his name because someday I'm guessing you'll read about him. What an energetic and sharp mind!

2021 represents a significant milestone in the history of the Phoenix Railway-Photographic Circle with the celebration of our 50th anniversary by publishing a book to showcase some of the members work, past and present, from 1971 to the present day. The book contains 14 chapters and 144 pages of photographs depicting the work of over 50 accomplished railway photographers with many differing styles and approaches. It takes an alternative view on photographing the railway scene over the past 50 years. The book, called 50 Years of Phoenix will be published on 14th May 2021 with pre-orders now being taken – click on this link to order your copy: www.mortonsbooks.co.uk/product/view/productCode/15554

Why not take a look at the PRPC web site at www.phoenix-rpc.co.uk/index.html.

In 10 minutes, heavy rain hit my neighborhood. This apparent roll or shelf cloud registered 60 dbZ on radar making it a strong thunderstorm. Winds gusted to 50mph but little lightning was observed.

Four years ago First Scotland undertook significant changes to the Aberdeen coaching unit, disposing of its two most modern vehicles, scaling back work and removing the coach leadership. It was followed by the loss of a number of key contracts.

Fast forward to 2021 and there is a realisation in this changing world that the coaching operation can be an asset rather than a non core part of the business.

It is proposed that the Aberdeen fleet will be modernised by quality second hand coaches, given a new brand name that moves away from using the First name and is then expanded to cover other Scottish depots.

One of the coaches proposed to stay is the unique Sunsundeigo bodied Volvo B9R, 20812. It was a favourite in the coach fleet here bein LG the only coach to remain in use during lockdown. Seen here today parked up between contracts at Footdee.

The Coast Starlight Train 11 which departed Seattle on February 24 had a significant delay in Klamath Falls. Because of this it was running more than 6 hours late when it was passing Alviso. Here we see train 11 with the 163 and 160 (in 50 years Amtrak colors) passing through the Don Edwards Wildlife Refuge. There is major levee work going on, which is visible in the foreground.

The hills are showing winter green, because of the rains we had in the Bay Area in the 2022/2023 winter season.

Just outside of the view point, some mountains have snow near the peaks.

Alviso, CA - 2023-02-25

Having made significant progress on AFOLhood, I have a hard time building a "normal" LEGO set as it is. When I got a 10242 from a good friend in the summer the wheels immediately started ticking, wondering about what I should do with it.

(60.00N, 30.00E)MCMLXXI

ListenwavePhotography

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What does not matter ?

1.What to photograph - Camera.

2.Where to photograph - Place.

3.When to photograph -Time.

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What is important ?

1.Study and tune the camera.

2.Learn where you are going.

3.Study the lighting at different times.

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What's the secret?‍♀️

1.Feel the instrument, hear what it says.

2.Feel the atmosphere of the place, catch the wave.

3.Switch on .Catch the moment!⚡️

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Make a choice!

✨Finding the observer, comes awareness!✨

www.instagram.com/listenwave

m.facebook.com/oleg.pivovarchik.1971

listenwave.smugmug.com. Lahti. This small village on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, about 15 km northwest of the city, is home to human settlements on the banks of the Neva. It was on the territory of Lakhta that the remains of a man’s parking site of three thousand years ago were found.

In official documents, a settlement named Lakhta dates back to 1500. The name is derived from the Finnish-speaking word lahti - "bay". This is one of the few settlements that has not changed its name throughout its 500-year history. Also known as Laches, Lahes-by, Lahes and was originally inhabited by Izhora. In the last decades of the 15th century, Lakhta was a village (which indicates a significant population) and was the center of the eponymous grand-parish volost, which was part of the Spassko-Gorodensky graveyard of the Orekhovsky district of the Vodskaya Pyatina. In the village, there were 10 courtyards with 20 people (married men). In Lakhta, on average, there were 2 families per yard, and the total population of the village probably reached 75 people.

From the notes on the margins of the Swedish scribe book of the Spassky graveyard of 1640, it follows that the lands along the lower reaches of the Neva River and parts of the Gulf of Finland, including Lakhta Karelskaya, Perekulya (from the Finnish “back village”, probably because of its position relative to Lakhti) and Konduy Lakhtinsky, were royal by letter of honor on January 15, 1638 transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickschulz general Bernhard Sten von Stenhausen, a Dutchman by birth. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted these lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). With the arrival of the Swedes in Prievye, Lakhta was settled by the Finns, who until the middle of the 20th century made up the vast majority of the villagers.

On December 22, 1766, Catherine 2 granted Lakhta Manor, which was then in the Office of the Chancellery from the buildings of palaces and gardens, "in which and in her villages with courtyards 208 souls," her favorite Count Orlov. Not later than 1768, Count J.A. Bruce took over the estate. In 1788, Lakhta Manor was listed behind him with wooden services on a dry land (high place) and the villages Lakhta, Dubki, Lisiy Nos and Konnaya belonging to it also on dry land, in those villages of male peasants 238 souls. On May 1, 1813, Lakhta passed into the possession of the landowners of the Yakovlevs. On October 5, 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered into the possession of the Lakhtinsky estate, which then had 255 male souls. This clan was the owner of the estate until 1912, when its last representative got into debt and noble custody was established over the estate. On October 4, 1913, in order to pay off his debts, he was forced to go for corporatization, and the Lakhta estate passed into the ownership of the Joint Stock Company “Lakhta” of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co.

After the revolution, Lakhta was left on its own for a while, here on the former estate of the counts Stenbock-Fermorov on May 19, 1919, the Lakhta excursion station was opened, which existed there until 1932. In the early 1920s, sand mining began on Lakhta beaches, and the abandoned and dilapidated peat plant of the Lakhta estate in 1922 took over the Oblzemotdel and put it into operation after major repairs. In 1963, the village of Lakhta was included in the Zhdanovsky (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

At the beginning of Lakhtinsky Prospekt, on the banks of the Lakhtinsky spill, there was the village of Rakhilax (Rahilax-hof, Rahila, Rokhnovo). Most likely, under this name only one or several courtyards are designated. There is an assumption that the name of the village was formed from the Finnish raahata - “drag, drag,” because there could be a place for transportation through the isthmus of the Lakhtinsky spill (we should not forget that not only the bridge over the channel connecting the spill with the Gulf of Finland was not yet here, the duct itself was many times wider than the current one). The search book of the Spassko-Gorodensky graveyard of 1573, describing the Lakhta lands, mentions that there were 2 lodges in the “Rovgunov” village, from which we can conclude that we are talking about the village of Rohilaks, which the Russian scribes remade into a more understandable to them Rovgunovo. The village was empty in Swedish time and was counted as a wasteland of the village of Lahta.

On the banks of the Lakhtinsky spill, near the confluence of the Yuntolovka River, from the 17th century there existed the village of Bobylka (Bobylskaya), which merged into the village of Olgino only at the beginning of the 20th century, but was found on maps until the 1930s. It is probably the Search Book that mentions it Spassko-Gorodensky churchyard in 1573 as a village "in Lakhta in Perekui", behind which there was 1 obzh. With the arrival of the Swedes by royal letter on January 15, 1638, the village was transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickshaw General Bernhard Sten von Stenhausen, a Dutchman by birth. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted Lahti lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). On the Swedish map of the 1670s, in the place of the village of Bobylsky, the village of Lahakeülä is marked (küla - the village (Fin.)). The village could subsequently be called Bobyl from the Russian word "bobyl."

The owners of Bobylskaya were both Count Orlov, and Count Y. A. Bruce, and the landowners Yakovlev. In 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered into the possession of the Lakhtinsky estate (which included the village of Bobyl). This family was the owner of the estate until 1913, when the owners, in order to pay off their debts, had to go for corporatization, and the Lakhta estate was transferred to the ownership of the Lakhta Joint-Stock Company of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co. By the middle of the 20th century, the village merged with the village of Lakhta.

The name Konnaya Lakhta (Konnaya) has been known since the 16th century, although earlier it sounded like Konduya (Konduya Lakhtinskaya) or just Kondu (from the Finnish kontu - courtyard, manor). Subsequently, this name was replaced by the more familiar Russian ear with the word "Horse". In the Search Book of the Spassko-Gorodensky Pogost in 1573, it is mentioned as the village "on Kovdui", where 1 obzh was listed, which indicates that there most likely was one yard. On January 15, 1638, together with neighboring villages, it was transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickschulz General Bernhard Steen von Stenhausen, of Dutch origin. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted these lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). In a deed of gift, Konduya Lakhtinskaya is called a village, which indicates a noticeable increase in its population. Later, on the Swedish map of the 1670s, on the site of the present Horse Lahti, the village of Konda-bai is marked (by - village (sv)).

The owners of Konnaya Lakhta, as well as the villages of Bobylskaya and Lakhta, were in turn Count Orlov, Count Ya. A. Bruce, and the landowners Yakovlev. In 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered the possession of the Lakhta estate (which included Konnaya Lakhta. This family was the owner of the estate until 1913, when the owners had to go to corporations to pay off their debts, and the Lakhta estate became the property of Lakhta Joint Stock Company of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co. In 1963, Horse Lahta was included in the Zhdanov (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

As the dacha village of Olgino appeared at the end of the 19th century and initially consisted of both Olgin itself and the villages of Vladimirovka (now part of Lisiy Nos) and Aleksandrovka. In the first half of the 18th century, this territory was part of the Verpelev palace estate, which in the second half of the 18th century was granted to Count G. G. Orlov, then it was owned by the family of landowners the Yakovlevs, in the middle of the 19th century the estate was transferred to the counts of Stenbock-Fermor. In 1905 A.V. Stenbok-Fermor, the then owner of Lakhta lands, divided the lands around Lakhta into separate plots with the intention of selling them profitably for dachas. So there were the villages of Olgino (named after the wife of Olga Platonovna), Vladimirovka (in honor of the father of the owner; the coastal part of the modern village of Lisy Nos) and Alexandrov or Aleksandrovskaya (in honor of Alexander Vladimirovich himself). It is likely that on the site of the village was the village of Olushino (Olushino odhe) - a search book of the Spassko-Gorodensky churchyard in 1573 mentions that there were 1 obzh in the village of Olushkov’s, which suggests that at least one residential the yard. On behalf of Olushka (Olpherius). Most likely, the village was deserted in Swedish time and then was already listed as a wasteland belonging to the village of Lahta. Thus, the name of the village could be given in harmony with the name of the mistress and the old name of the village.

The villages were planned among a sparse pine forest (the layout was preserved almost unchanged), so there were more amenities for living and spending time there than in Lakhta. A park was set up here, a summer theater, a sports ("gymnastic") playground, a tennis court, and a yacht club were arranged.

In the 1910s about 150 winter cottages were built in Olgino, many of which are striking monuments of "summer cottage" architecture. In 1963, the village of Olgino was included in the Zhdanovsky (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

Near Olgino, in the area of ​​the Dubki park, there was a small village Verpeleva (Verpelevo), which consisted of only a few yards. In the first half of the XVIII century. this territory was part of the palace estate "Verpeleva", which in the second half of the XVIII century. It was granted to Count G. G. Orlov, then passed to the Counts of Stenbock-Fermor. The village has not existed for a long time, but the entire reed-covered peninsula (barely protruding above the water of the Verpier-Luda peninsula (Verper Luda (from the Finnish luoto - “small rocky island”)) still existed, and there was another spelling the name of this island is Var Pala Ludo).

Kamenka. The Novgorod scribal book mentions two villages in the Lakhta region with a similar name, referring to the possessions of Selivan Zakharov, son of Okhten, with his son and 5 other co-owners. On the lands of this small patrimony, which, unlike the estate was inherited, peasants lived in 3 villages, including: the village "Kamenka in Lakhta near the sea" in 5 yards with 5 people and arable land in 1,5 obzhi, the village "on Kamenka "in 2 courtyards with 2 people and arable land in 1 obzhu. For the use of land, the peasants paid the owners of the patrimony 16 money and gave 1/3 of the rye harvest. Thus, in the 16th century on the Kamenka River (another name for the Kiviyoki River, which is the literal translation of kivi - "stone", joki - "river") there was one large village of Kamenka near its confluence with the Lakhtinsky spill and the second, smaller, somewhere upstream. On the drawing of Izhora land in 1705, a village under this name is depicted in the area of ​​the modern village of Kamenka. The village of Kamennaya in the middle reaches of Kamenka and on the map of 1792 is designated. Other name options are Kaumenkka, Kiviaja.

In the second half of the 18th century, Kamenka became a vacation spot for Russian Germans. Here in 1865, German colonists founded their "daughter" colony on leased land. Since then, the village has received the name Kamenka Colony (so called until the 1930s). In 1892, a colony near the village of Volkovo "budded" from it. The inhabitants of both colonies belonged to the Novo-Saratov parish and since 1871 had a prayer house in Kamenka, which was visited by 250 people. He maintained a school for 40 students. The house was closed in 1935 and later demolished.

Currently, Kamenka exists as a holiday village, located along the road to Levashovo. Since 1961 - in the city, part of the planning area in the North-West, from the mid-1990s. built up with multi-storey residential buildings and cottages.

Volkovo. The settlement is about southeast of the village of Kamenka - on the old road to Kamenka, on the bank of a stream that flows into Kamenka between the village of Kamenka and the Shuvalovsky quarry. In 1892, a German colony emerged on the territory of the village, "budding" from a nearby colony in the village of Kamenka. The origin of Volkovo is not clear, the village is found only on maps of 1912, 1930, 1939, 1943. and probably appeared no earlier than the 19th century.

Kolomyagi. Scribe books of the XV — XVI centuries and Swedish plans testify that small settlements already existed on the site of Kolomyag. Most likely, these were first Izhora or Karelian, then Finnish farms, which were empty during the hostilities of the late XVII century.

The name "Kolomyag" connoisseurs decipher in different ways. Some say that it came from the "colo" - in Finnish cave and "pulp" - a hill, a hill. The village is located on the hills, and such an interpretation is quite acceptable. Others look for the root of the name in the Finnish word "koaa" - bark - and believe that trees were processed here after felling. Another version of the origin of the name from the Finnish "kello" is the bell, and it is associated not with the feature of the mountain, but with the "bell on the mountain" - a tower with a signal bell standing on a hill.

The owners of Kolomyazhsky lands were Admiral General A.I. Osterman, Count A.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin, a family of Volkonsky. In 1789, the Volkonskys sold these lands to retired colonel Sergei Savvich Yakovlev. On his estate S. S. Yakovlev built a manor and lived in it with his wife and seven daughters. The once-Finnish population of Kolomyag was “Russified” by that time - it was made up of descendants of serfs resettled by Osterman and Bestuzhev-Rumin from their villages in Central Russia (natives of the Volga and Galich) and Ukraine. Then the name "Kellomyaki" began to sound in Russian fashion - "Kolomyagi", although later the old name also existed, especially among local Finns. And not without reason the indigenous Kolomozhites associate their origin with the Volga places, and the southern half of the village is now called “Galician”.

Yakovlev died in 1818. Five years after his death, a division of the territory of the manor was made. The village of Kolomyagi was divided in half between two of his daughters. The border was the Bezymyanny stream. The southeastern part of the village of Kolomyagi beyond Bezymyanny creek and a plot on the banks of the Bolshaya Nevka passed to the daughter Ekaterina Sergeevna Avdulina.

Daughter Yakovleva Elena Sergeevna - the wife of General Alexei Petrovich Nikitin, a hero of the Patriotic War of 1812, who was awarded the highest military orders and twice a gold sword with the inscription "For courage", died early, leaving her daughter Elizabeth. The northwestern part of Kolomyag inherited the young Elizabeth, so this part of Kolomyag was practically inherited by the father of Yakovlev’s granddaughter, Count A.P. Nikitin, who in 1832 became the owner of the entire village. It is his name that is stored in the names of the streets - 1st and 2nd Nikitinsky and Novo-Nikitinsky. The new owner built a stone mansion on the estate’s estate - an excellent example of classicism of the first third of the 19th century, which became his country house and has survived to this day and has been occupied until recently by the Nursing Home. It is believed that this mansion was built according to the project of the famous architect A.I. Melnikov. The severity and modesty of the architectural appearance of the facades and residential chambers of the Nikitin mansion was opposed by the splendor of ceremonial interiors, in particular the two-light dance hall with choirs for musicians. Unfortunately, with repeated alterations and repairs, many details of the decor and stucco emblems of the owners disappeared. Only two photographs of the 1920s and preserved fragments of ornamental molding and paintings on the walls and ceiling show the past richness of the decorative decoration of this architectural monument. The mansion was surrounded by a small park. In it stood a stone pagan woman brought from the southern steppes of Russia (transferred to the Hermitage), and a pond with a plakun waterfall was built. Near the pond there was a "walk of love" from the "paradise" apple trees - it was called so because the bride and groom passed through it after the wedding. Here, in the shadow of these apple trees, young lovers made appointments.

Under the Orlov-Denisov opposite the mansion (now Main Street, 29), the structures of an agricultural farm were erected, partially preserved to this day, and the greenhouse. Behind the farm were the master's fields. On them, as the New Time newspaper reported in August 1880, they tested the reaping and shearing machines brought from America.

In the 19th century, the provincial surveyor Zaitsev submitted for approval the highway called the Kolomyagskoye Shosse. The route was supposed to connect the village, gradually gaining fame as a summer residence of the "middle arm", with St. Petersburg. The construction of the road ended in the 1840s, and then horse-drawn and country-house crafts became the most important articles of peasant income. In addition, peasants either built small dachas in their yards, or rented their huts for the summer. Located away from the roads, surrounded by fields, the village was chosen by multi-family citizens.

The income from the summer cottage industry increased from year to year, which was facilitated by the summer movement of omnibuses that opened on the new highway from the City Council building. They walked four times a day, each accommodated 16 people, the fare cost 15 kopecks. Even when the Finnish Railway with the nearest Udelnaya station came into operation in 1870, the highway remained the main access road through which public carriages pulled by a trio of horses ran from the Stroganov (now Ushakovsky) bridge.

The importance of the highway has decreased since 1893, when traffic began along the Ozerkovskaya branch of the Primorsky Railway, built by the engineer P.A. Avenarius, the founder of the Sestroretsky resort. Traffic on this branch ceased in 1919.

Lakhta .This small village on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, about 15 km northwest of the city, is home to human settlements on the banks of the Neva. It was on the territory of Lakhta that the remains of a man’s parking site of three thousand years ago were found.

In official documents, a settlement named Lakhta dates back to 1500. The name is derived from the Finnish-speaking word lahti - "bay". This is one of the few settlements that has not changed its name throughout its 500-year history. Also known as Laches, Lahes-by, Lahes and was originally inhabited by Izhora. In the last decades of the 15th century, Lakhta was a village (which indicates a significant population) and was the center of the eponymous grand-parish volost, which was part of the Spassko-Gorodensky graveyard of the Orekhovsky district of the Vodskaya Pyatina. In the village, there were 10 courtyards with 20 people (married men). In Lakhta, on average, there were 2 families per yard, and the total population of the village probably reached 75 people.

From the notes on the margins of the Swedish scribe book of the Spassky graveyard of 1640, it follows that the lands along the lower reaches of the Neva River and parts of the Gulf of Finland, including Lakhta Karelskaya, Perekulya (from the Finnish “back village”, probably because of its position relative to Lakhti) and Konduy Lakhtinsky, were royal by letter of honor on January 15, 1638 transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickschulz general Bernhard Sten von Stenhausen, a Dutchman by birth. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted these lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). With the arrival of the Swedes in Prievye, Lakhta was settled by the Finns, who until the middle of the 20th century made up the vast majority of the villagers.

On December 22, 1766, Catherine 2 granted Lakhta Manor, which was then in the Office of the Chancellery from the buildings of palaces and gardens, "in which and in her villages with courtyards 208 souls," her favorite Count Orlov. Not later than 1768, Count J.A. Bruce took over the estate. In 1788, Lakhta Manor was listed behind him with wooden services on a dry land (high place) and the villages Lakhta, Dubki, Lisiy Nos and Konnaya belonging to it also on dry land, in those villages of male peasants 238 souls. On May 1, 1813, Lakhta passed into the possession of the landowners of the Yakovlevs. On October 5, 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered into the possession of the Lakhtinsky estate, which then had 255 male souls. This clan was the owner of the estate until 1912, when its last representative got into debt and noble custody was established over the estate. On October 4, 1913, in order to pay off his debts, he was forced to go for corporatization, and the Lakhta estate passed into the ownership of the Joint Stock Company “Lakhta” of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co.

After the revolution, Lakhta was left on its own for a while, here on the former estate of the counts Stenbock-Fermorov on May 19, 1919, the Lakhta excursion station was opened, which existed there until 1932. In the early 1920s, sand mining began on Lakhta beaches, and the abandoned and dilapidated peat plant of the Lakhta estate in 1922 took over the Oblzemotdel and put it into operation after major repairs. In 1963, the village of Lakhta was included in the Zhdanovsky (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

At the beginning of Lakhtinsky Prospekt, on the banks of the Lakhtinsky spill, there was the village of Rakhilax (Rahilax-hof, Rahila, Rokhnovo). Most likely, under this name only one or several courtyards are designated. There is an assumption that the name of the village was formed from the Finnish raahata - “drag, drag,” because there could be a place for transportation through the isthmus of the Lakhtinsky spill (we should not forget that not only the bridge over the channel connecting the spill with the Gulf of Finland was not yet here, the duct itself was many times wider than the current one). The search book of the Spassko-Gorodensky graveyard of 1573, describing the Lakhta lands, mentions that there were 2 lodges in the “Rovgunov” village, from which we can conclude that we are talking about the village of Rohilaks, which the Russian scribes remade into a more understandable to them Rovgunovo. The village was empty in Swedish time and was counted as a wasteland of the village of Lahta.

On the banks of the Lakhtinsky spill, near the confluence of the Yuntolovka River, from the 17th century there existed the village of Bobylka (Bobylskaya), which merged into the village of Olgino only at the beginning of the 20th century, but was found on maps until the 1930s. It is probably the Search Book that mentions it Spassko-Gorodensky churchyard in 1573 as a village "in Lakhta in Perekui", behind which there was 1 obzh. With the arrival of the Swedes by royal letter on January 15, 1638, the village was transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickshaw General Bernhard Sten von Stenhausen, a Dutchman by birth. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted Lahti lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). On the Swedish map of the 1670s, in the place of the village of Bobylsky, the village of Lahakeülä is marked (küla - the village (Fin.)). The village could subsequently be called Bobyl from the Russian word "bobyl."

The owners of Bobylskaya were both Count Orlov, and Count Y. A. Bruce, and the landowners Yakovlev. In 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered into the possession of the Lakhtinsky estate (which included the village of Bobyl). This family was the owner of the estate until 1913, when the owners, in order to pay off their debts, had to go for corporatization, and the Lakhta estate was transferred to the ownership of the Lakhta Joint-Stock Company of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co. By the middle of the 20th century, the village merged with the village of Lakhta.

The name Konnaya Lakhta (Konnaya) has been known since the 16th century, although earlier it sounded like Konduya (Konduya Lakhtinskaya) or just Kondu (from the Finnish kontu - courtyard, manor). Subsequently, this name was replaced by the more familiar Russian ear with the word "Horse". In the Search Book of the Spassko-Gorodensky Pogost in 1573, it is mentioned as the village "on Kovdui", where 1 obzh was listed, which indicates that there most likely was one yard. On January 15, 1638, together with neighboring villages, it was transferred to the possession of the Stockholm dignitary, Rickschulz General Bernhard Steen von Stenhausen, of Dutch origin. On October 31, 1648, the Swedish government granted these lands to the city of Nyuen (Nyenschanz). In a deed of gift, Konduya Lakhtinskaya is called a village, which indicates a noticeable increase in its population. Later, on the Swedish map of the 1670s, on the site of the present Horse Lahti, the village of Konda-bai is marked (by - village (sv)).

The owners of Konnaya Lakhta, as well as the villages of Bobylskaya and Lakhta, were in turn Count Orlov, Count Ya. A. Bruce, and the landowners Yakovlev. In 1844, Count A.I. Stenbok-Fermor entered the possession of the Lakhta estate (which included Konnaya Lakhta. This family was the owner of the estate until 1913, when the owners had to go to corporations to pay off their debts, and the Lakhta estate became the property of Lakhta Joint Stock Company of Count Stenbock-Fermor and Co. In 1963, Horse Lahta was included in the Zhdanov (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

As the dacha village of Olgino appeared at the end of the 19th century and initially consisted of both Olgin itself and the villages of Vladimirovka (now part of Lisiy Nos) and Aleksandrovka. In the first half of the 18th century, this territory was part of the Verpelev palace estate, which in the second half of the 18th century was granted to Count G. G. Orlov, then it was owned by the family of landowners the Yakovlevs, in the middle of the 19th century the estate was transferred to the counts of Stenbock-Fermor. In 1905 A.V. Stenbok-Fermor, the then owner of Lakhta lands, divided the lands around Lakhta into separate plots with the intention of selling them profitably for dachas. So there were the villages of Olgino (named after the wife of Olga Platonovna), Vladimirovka (in honor of the father of the owner; the coastal part of the modern village of Lisy Nos) and Alexandrov or Aleksandrovskaya (in honor of Alexander Vladimirovich himself). It is likely that on the site of the village was the village of Olushino (Olushino odhe) - a search book of the Spassko-Gorodensky churchyard in 1573 mentions that there were 1 obzh in the village of Olushkov’s, which suggests that at least one residential the yard. On behalf of Olushka (Olpherius). Most likely, the village was deserted in Swedish time and then was already listed as a wasteland belonging to the village of Lahta. Thus, the name of the village could be given in harmony with the name of the mistress and the old name of the village.

The villages were planned among a sparse pine forest (the layout was preserved almost unchanged), so there were more amenities for living and spending time there than in Lakhta. A park was set up here, a summer theater, a sports ("gymnastic") playground, a tennis court, and a yacht club were arranged.

In the 1910s about 150 winter cottages were built in Olgino, many of which are striking monuments of "summer cottage" architecture. In 1963, the village of Olgino was included in the Zhdanovsky (Primorsky) district of Leningrad (St. Petersburg).

Near Olgino, in the area of ​​the Dubki park, there was a small village Verpeleva (Verpelevo), which consisted of only a few yards. In the first half of the XVIII century. this territory was part of the palace estate "Verpeleva", which in the second half of the XVIII century. It was granted to Count G. G. Orlov, then passed to the Counts of Stenbock-Fermor. The village has not existed for a long time, but the entire reed-covered peninsula (barely protruding above the water of the Verpier-Luda peninsula (Verper Luda (from the Finnish luoto - “small rocky island”)) still existed, and there was another spelling the name of this island is Var Pala Ludo).

Kamenka. The Novgorod scribal book mentions two villages in the Lakhta region with a similar name, referring to the possessions of Selivan Zakharov, son of Okhten, with his son and 5 other co-owners. On the lands of this small patrimony, which, unlike the estate was inherited, peasants lived in 3 villages, including: the village "Kamenka in Lakhta near the sea" in 5 yards with 5 people and arable land in 1,5 obzhi, the village "on Kamenka "in 2 courtyards with 2 people and arable land in 1 obzhu. For the use of land, the peasants paid the owners of the patrimony 16 money and gave 1/3 of the rye harvest. Thus, in the 16th century on the Kamenka River (another name for the Kiviyoki River, which is the literal translation of kivi - "stone", joki - "river") there was one large village of Kamenka near its confluence with the Lakhtinsky spill and the second, smaller, somewhere upstream. On the drawing of Izhora land in 1705, a village under this name is depicted in the area of ​​the modern village of Kamenka. The village of Kamennaya in the middle reaches of Kamenka and on the map of 1792 is designated. Other name options are Kaumenkka, Kiviaja.

In the second half of the 18th century, Kamenka became a vacation spot for Russian Germans. Here in 1865, German colonists founded their "daughter" colony on leased land. Since then, the village has received the name Kamenka Colony (so called until the 1930s). In 1892, a colony near the village of Volkovo "budded" from it. The inhabitants of both colonies belonged to the Novo-Saratov parish and since 1871 had a prayer house in Kamenka, which was visited by 250 people. He maintained a school for 40 students. The house was closed in 1935 and later demolished.

Currently, Kamenka exists as a holiday village, located along the road to Levashovo. Since 1961 - in the city, part of the planning area in the North-West, from the mid-1990s. built up with multi-storey residential buildings and cottages.

Volkovo. The settlement is about southeast of the village of Kamenka - on the old road to Kamenka, on the bank of a stream that flows into Kamenka between the village of Kamenka and the Shuvalovsky quarry. In 1892, a German colony emerged on the territory of the village, "budding" from a nearby colony in the village of Kamenka. The origin of Volkovo is not clear, the village is found only on maps of 1912, 1930, 1939, 1943. and probably appeared no earlier than the 19th century.

Kolomyagi. Scribe books of the XV — XVI centuries and Swedish plans testify that small settlements already existed on the site of Kolomyag. Most likely, these were first Izhora or Karelian, then Finnish farms, which were empty during the hostilities of the late XVII century.

The name "Kolomyag" connoisseurs decipher in different ways. Some say that it came from the "colo" - in Finnish cave and "pulp" - a hill, a hill. The village is located on the hills, and such an interpretation is quite acceptable. Others look for the root of the name in the Finnish word "koaa" - bark - and believe that trees were processed here after felling. Another version of the origin of the name from the Finnish "kello" is the bell, and it is associated not with the feature of the mountain, but with the "bell on the mountain" - a tower with a signal bell standing on a hill.

The owners of Kolomyazhsky lands were Admiral General A.I. Osterman, Count A.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin, a family of Volkonsky. In 1789, the Volkonskys sold these lands to retired colonel Sergei Savvich Yakovlev. On his estate S. S. Yakovlev built a manor and lived in it with his wife and seven daughters. The once-Finnish population of Kolomyag was “Russified” by that time - it was made up of descendants of serfs resettled by Osterman and Bestuzhev-Rumin from their villages in Central Russia (natives of the Volga and Galich) and Ukraine. Then the name "Kellomyaki" began to sound in Russian fashion - "Kolomyagi", although later the old name also existed, especially among local Finns. And not without reason the indigenous Kolomozhites associate their origin with the Volga places, and the southern half of the village is now called “Galician”.

Yakovlev died in 1818. Five years after his death, a division of the territory of the manor was made. The village of Kolomyagi was divided in half between two of his daughters. The border was the Bezymyanny stream. The southeastern part of the village of Kolomyagi beyond Bezymyanny creek and a plot on the banks of the Bolshaya Nevka passed to the daughter Ekaterina Sergeevna Avdulina.

Daughter Yakovleva Elena Sergeevna - the wife of General Alexei Petrovich Nikitin, a hero of the Patriotic War of 1812, who was awarded the highest military orders and twice a gold sword with the inscription "For courage", died early, leaving her daughter Elizabeth. The northwestern part of Kolomyag inherited the young Elizabeth, so this part of Kolomyag was practically inherited by the father of Yakovlev’s granddaughter, Count A.P. Nikitin, who in 1832 became the owner of the entire village. It is his name that is stored in the names of the streets - 1st and 2nd Nikitinsky and Novo-Nikitinsky. The new owner built a stone mansion on the estate’s estate - an excellent example of classicism of the first third of the 19th century, which became his country house and has survived to this day and has been occupied until recently by the Nursing Home. It is believed that this mansion was built according to the project of the famous architect A.I. Melnikov. The severity and modesty of the architectural appearance of the facades and residential chambers of the Nikitin mansion was opposed by the splendor of ceremonial interiors, in particular the two-light dance hall with choirs for musicians. Unfortunately, with repeated alterations and repairs, many details of the decor and stucco emblems of the owners disappeared. Only two photographs of the 1920s and preserved fragments of ornamental molding and paintings on the walls and ceiling show the past richness of the decorative decoration of this architectural monument. The mansion was surrounded by a small park. In it stood a stone pagan woman brought from the southern steppes of Russia (transferred to the Hermitage), and a pond with a plakun waterfall was built. Near the pond there was a "walk of love" from the "paradise" apple trees - it was called so because the bride and groom passed through it after the wedding. Here, in the shadow of these apple trees, young lovers made appointments.

Under the Orlov-Denisov opposite the mansion (now Main Street, 29), the structures of an agricultural farm were erected, partially preserved to this day, and the greenhouse. Behind the farm were the master's fields. On them, as the New Time newspaper reported in August 1880, they tested the reaping and shearing machines brought from America.

In the 19th century, the provincial surveyor Zaitsev submitted for approval the highway called the Kolomyagskoye Shosse. The route was supposed to connect the village, gradually gaining fame as a summer residence of the "middle arm", with St. Petersburg. The construction of the road ended in the 1840s, and then horse-drawn and country-house crafts became the most important articles of peasant income. In addition, peasants either built small dachas in their yards, or rented their huts for the summer. Located away from the roads, surrounded by fields, the village was chosen by multi-family citizens.

The income from the summer cottage industry increased from year to year, which was facilitated by the summer movement of omnibuses that opened on the new highway from the City Council building. They walked four times a day, each accommodated 16 people, the fare cost 15 kopecks. Even when the Finnish Railway with the nearest Udelnaya station came into operation in 1870, the highway remained the main access road through which public carriages pulled by a trio of horses ran from the Stroganov (now Ushakovsky) bridge.

The H.15 Bulhond is an infantry support tank of the Kalonaser Staatsleger.

1924 had seen the loss of a significant portion of the Top-Kek heavy armored car fleet in the failed Ordenric Expedition ((more on that here)), which left the old Republikeinsleger, and thus the subsequent Staatsleger, without any serious armored capabilities. Various ideas had been thrown around between the High Command as early as 1921 for a heavy infantry tank, but these plans only materialized in 1924 in the form of ~10 TK-47 heavy tanks; these tanks were the first domestic Kalonaser foray into heavy armor, and they were predictably addled with issues. They were slow, hot, cramped, and the A variant was under-armed, sporting only a single 47mm main gun. The B variant attempted to solve this issue by strapping a low velocity 75mm gun into the hull, but this only worsened the cramped, hot conditions. Luckily for their crews, they arrived too late to embark on the Ordenric Expedition, and only a small run had been produced when Grootmaarschalk Barentsz seized power in 1925 and put a stop to their short, useless lives; the newly established Staatsleger finally got something out of them as training vehicles.

The matter of heavy armor, or armor at all, for that matter, was largely shelved during the final quelling of the Spartacist Urpisings in the far north from 1925 to 1926. The Spartacists, though supplied with small arms and instigated by Tongoria to the north, had no armor save for a couple improvised armored cars, and very few anti-armor capabilities. The few Top-Kek armored cars still in service performed their jobs well enough and after the Uprisings had been dealt with once and for all most of them were given to gendarme units across the Kalonaser Staat.

This state of affairs remained largely unchanged until the Battle of Voorst Pass in 1927. The Battle of Voorst Pass was the final culmination of the short but hot Kalo-Tongorian Border War, which for four months up until this point had been purely infantry-on-infantry skirmishes. At the dawn of October 4, the Kalonaser border garrison stationed in and around the area was awakened by a Tongorian infantry battalion rushing up the pass, supported by a section of new Tongorian medium tanks. It was only through the efforts of a very determined artillery company that the advance was halted; luckily, cooler heads prevailed after this crescendo, and peace returned to the border.

Nonetheless, Grootmaarschalk Barentsz knew that proper armor was desperately needed by the Staatsleger if they wanted to stand a chance against any other modern foreign incursion. As usual, a design competition was held, and once again, Top-Kek had the contract stolen out from under them by a small company: this time, by the Hoogovens Steel Works. This would be the beginning of the end for the Top-Kek corporation, who's product quality had fallen far and as a whole served as a reminder of the corrupt Republican Era.

The H.15 Bulhond, the design submitted by Hoogovens Steel, is an infantry tank designed to support the footmen who make up the backbone of the Kalonaser Staatsleger while they march into battle. While a few motorized infantry units do exist, they are by no means common, and so the pedestrian speed the Bulhond sports is no real problem. In return for this lowly pace, the Bulhond sports thick, cast armor, well suited for shrugging off artillery and anti-tank shells and pushing forwards to take out emplacements, and even some armored vehices, with it's low velocity 57mm main gun. It is the most numerous armored vehicle of the Kalonaser Staatsleger, and it promises to be of use for years to come.

Seen here in Kalonaser northern sub-tropical camouflage.

~~~~~

I'm actually super proud of this build. Thanks to Awesome O' Saurus and Ian MacDonald for their help with designing the aft. This interwar stuff is real fun.

FUCK YOU BEAN, CALONACIA RIDES AGAIN WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT