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A different background this time, a short eared owl, again. I finally saw one catch a vole today, I'm terrified they're gonna leave at any moment, just praying the voles will last.
Sissinghurst Castle Garden, at Sissinghurst in the Weald of Kent, England was created in the early 1930s by Vita Sackville-West, poet and gardening writer, and her husband Harold Nicolson, author and diplomat. It is among the most famous gardens in England and is designated a Grade I listed structure. The garden comprises a series of "rooms", amounting to ten in number, and was one of the earliest examples of this gardening style. The castle, garden, and wider estate are now owned and maintained by the National Trust. It is one of the Trust's most popular properties, receiving nearly 200,000 visitors in 2017.
Rise, decline, collapse: 1300s to 1930
The site is ancient; "hurst" is the Saxon term for an enclosed wood. A manor house with a three-armed moat was built here in the Middle Ages. In 1305, King Edward I spent a night here. It was long thought that in 1490 Thomas Baker, a man from Cranbrook, purchased Sissinghurst, although there is no evidence for it. What is certain is that the house was given a new brick gatehouse in the 1530s by Sir John Baker, one of Henry VIII's Privy Councillors, and greatly enlarged in the 1560s by his son Sir Richard Baker, when it became the centre of a 700-acre (2.8 km2) deer park. In August 1573 Queen Elizabeth I spent three nights at Sissinghurst. After the collapse of the Baker family in the late 17th century, the building had many uses: as a prisoner-of-war camp during the Seven Years' War; as the workhouse for the Cranbrook Union; after which it became homes for farm labourers.
Harold and Vita: 1930-1968
Nicolson's diary entry for 4 April 1930, records, "Vita telephones to say she has seen the ideal house - a place in Kent, near Cranbrook, a sixteenth-century castle".[2] Sackville-West was a writer on the fringes of the Bloomsbury Group who found her greatest popularity in the weekly columns she contributed as gardening correspondent of The Observer, which incidentally—for she never touted it—made her own garden famous.[3]
For Sackville-West, Sissinghurst and its garden rooms[4] came to be a poignant and romantic substitute for Knole,[5] reputedly the largest house in Britain, which as the only child of Lionel, the 3rd Lord Sackville she would have inherited had she been a male, but which had passed to her cousin as the male heir.
Sackville-West and Nicolson found Sissinghurst in 1930 after concern that their property Long Barn, near Sevenoaks, Kent, was close to development over which they had no control. Although Sissinghurst was derelict, they purchased the ruins and the farm around it and began constructing the garden we know today. The layout by Nicolson and planting by Sackville-West were both strongly influenced by the gardens of Gertrude Jekyll and Edwin Lutyens; by the earlier Cothay Manor in Somerset, laid out by Nicolson's friend Reginald Cooper, and described by one garden writer as the "Sissinghurst of the West Country";[6] and by Hidcote Manor Garden, designed and owned by Lawrence Johnston, which Sackville-West helped to preserve. Sissinghurst was first opened to the public in 1938.
During the Second World War, Sissinghurst saw much of the Battle of Britain, which was mainly fought over the Weald of Kent and the English Channel. Harold's diaries for 2 September 1940 reads, "a tremendous raid in the morning and the whole upper air buzzes and zooms with the noise of aeroplanes. There are many fights over our sunlight fields".[7]
Vita died in her bed at Sissinghurst on 2 June 1962. Her husband recorded her passing in his diary, "Ursula is with Vita. At about 1.5 she observes that Vita is breathing heavily, and then suddenly is silent. She dies without fear or self-reproach. I pick some of her favourite flowers and lay them on her bed".[8] Nicolson died of a heart attack in his bedroom at Sissinghurst on 1 May 1968
In 1954, Nigel Nicolson had raised the possibility of giving Sissinghurst to the National Trust. Vita was violently opposed.[10] The National Trust took over the whole of Sissinghurst, its garden, farm and buildings, in 1967.[11] The garden epitomises the English garden of the mid-20th century. It is among the Trust's most popular properties, receiving nearly 200,000 visitors in 2017.[12] In 2009, BBC Four broadcast an eight-part television documentary series called Sissinghurst, describing the house and garden and the attempts by Adam Nicolson and his wife Sarah Raven, who are 'Resident Donors', to restore a form of traditional Wealden agriculture to the Castle Farm. Their plan is to use the land to grow ingredients for lunches in the Sissinghurst restaurant. A fuller version of the story can be found in Nicolson's book, Sissinghurst: An Unfinished History (2008). The castle and its garden are listed Grade I with many other structures within the garden having their own listings.[13]
Description
The garden itself is designed as a series of 'rooms', each with a different character of colour and/or theme, the walls being high clipped hedges and many pink brick walls.[14] The rooms and 'doors' are so arranged that, as one enjoys the beauty in a given room, one suddenly discovers a new vista into another part of the garden, making a walk a series of discoveries that keeps leading one into yet another area of the garden.[15] Nicolson spent his efforts coming up with interesting new interconnections, while Sackville-West focused on making the flowers in the interior of each room exciting.
Hi! If you are planning to use my photographs for personal or public use then stop this now as i wont allow it ,I work hard with my photographs and I hope you respect my work and my thoughts.
This is the back view of the South Barn. Very different from what it looks like from the front.
It is taking me a long time to post a few more photos taken at the Coutts Centre for Western Canadian Heritage, near Nanton, Alberta. This was a visit with my daughter on 15 July 2025. I am adding the description that I posted under previously photos taken on the same day.
The late Jim Coutts talks about his connection to the land and his vision for the future of the Coutts Centre. Copyright University of Lethbridge.
"The South Barn was built in 2014, created from salvaged plants from another site. When plants were brought in, there was no telling what color the blooms would be on the lilies, irises or holly hocks, and we were pleasantly surprised in 2015 with an explosion of yellows and pinks. It is a very quaint little garden that adds a lot of color to the South Barn area.
The South Barn is the original Tapp Barn that was brought to the property in 2006 and has been renovated over the years into a unique looking building that is great for holding workshops, classes, field trips or receptions." From the Coutts Centre website.
Four of the five photos posted were taken on 15 July 2025, when my daughter and I visited the Coutts Centre. I had emailed the Centre ahead of time to check if it would be alright if we could visit on 15 July. The red barn was taken not far from the Centre.
My daughter had never been, but I had been to the Centre in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2010 with naturalist Gus Yaki and just a few botany friends. I always wanted to go back again, but it just didn't happen till yesterday. I had also been on several hikes that were led by Jim Coutts, including climbing up to the top of the cliffs at Williams Coulee, walking along the top to look for wildflowers, and then having to cautiously climb down the rocky, challenging slope. On another occasion, at the Coutts Centre, we felt honoured when Jim invited us into his house for a cup of tea and cookies. All wonderful memories!
"Launched in June 2011 thanks to a generous gift from the late Dr. Jim Coutts (LLD ’12), the Coutts Centre for Western Canadian Heritage preserves and celebrates the diverse heritage that is central to the spirit of the west, honouring both its namesake and the land he so admired.
Just east of Nanton, AB, the Coutts Centre is comprised of a quarter section of land on the more than 100-year-old property that once belonged to Jim’s grandfather. The quarter section of land includes the original homestead, extensive gardens and restored outbuildings.
This unique property is a living testament to Jim’s family history and his own legacy as a community-driven Albertan. The Centre supports community involvement with artist residencies, festivals, weekend brunches and live music, and encourages community use through rentals and event bookings." From the Centre's website.
Our late winter break in Tenerife was a bit different this year. The weather was forecast to break the day we arrived – and it did! Rain wasn’t the problem it was gale force winds – the same winds that caused the dust storms in Africa that caused the pollution and sand in the UK. We have witnessed gales in Tenerife before but this was worse than we’d seen it in the past . The palm trees were bending, the sand drifting like snow and the sea was raging. We usually walk around 150 miles on a ten day break but for five days we just walked with a brief spell on the beach, then the gales came back. We covered 22 miles some days and totalled 192 miles, not bad for a beach holiday. In some of the photos it looks stunning but look at the tops of the palm trees, like inside out umbrellas, the beach beds are empty and the waves were up to ten feet high and smashing thirty feet in the air. For five days everyone stood taking photos of the sea. For two days all boats stayed in harbour, only the big ferries sailed, there wasn’t a thing at sea, not even the surfers, we’ve never known that happen before. To add to this jellyfish in their hundred were washing up on shore and there was a severe risk of a burn from them. Even when red flags were flying and flags warning about the jellyfish were up the occasional nutter would go in the water and some people took staggering risks with their children including one couple with a baby, dangling it over the waves, just to get a photo, playing chicken as monster waves crashed in.
One day I had to catch my club sandwich as it went flying from my plate in the wind, empty glasses slid off the table and seat cushions went cartwheeling down the pavement. A couple of days were dull and cool but the menacing clouds made impressive photos, the sea was like a boiling cauldron. We did have days of beautiful weather as well, the second half of the holiday was normal sunny Tenerife. I haven’t hired a car for ages on Tenerife, it adds a degree of hassle to – what is supposed to be – a sun and relax holiday so again we didn’t go up El Teide. Next time perhaps. I took my racing bike once just to cycle from sea level to 8000 feet nonstop – twice! it’s a seventy mile round trip and a long drag to the top. On the way home we had to make an emergency landing in Dublin, fire tenders with foam jets pointing at us, unfortunately I was facing the setting sun and couldn’t take photos as the sun was shining straight through the window. Seven and a half hours on the plane, not much fun.
To see more about the history of J B Schofield & Sons Ltd and their plant and vehicles look here: www.jbschofieldandsons.co.uk/
Photos from the Civil Society Program: Engaging with the IMF - Learning from Different Experiences at IMF Headquarters during the 2017 IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington, DC. October 9, 2017.©IMF Photo
There are things to learn in every activity if you do the activity in a way that you wouldn't normally do it. For instance, writing with your right hand wouldn't normally teach you very much but writing with your left hand, after a bit of practice, would yield ambidexterity!
In much the same way, I want this picture of me cooking naked to be about learning and thinking differently. At first I was very uncomfortable with the idea. I did not want to be seen naked in a more public area of the house. Compromise: wear an apron. Good. But what if somebody sees me?! Concentrate on cooking! In the end, this activity was more enjoyable for me because there was an added twist. Like dying your hair blond or like trying a new type of drink. But there is also something to be gained when pushing your limits beyond your comfort zone. Like skydiving, like going to school in a different country, or like taking an art course with sexually explicit material...or just by cooking naked. This is my idea of pushing my limits, and learning from it.
Slightly different pose from the color version.
Slightly different light sources as well.
Scanned from the Polaroid Type55 positive.
In this video I show two models with different curve:
(Curved Structural Folding. Combined the straight and curved folds. Ball Cylinder Star)
1) Paper Fold with Reduced Curved
2) Paper Fold with Extended curved
Virtual 3D Model
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tx7y27Vg9OI
I found it difficult to design and fold these models. Excuse the wrinkles in the models. Working with a larger scale are obtained fewer wrinkles. But this scale is the limit of what can be folded with my hands and materials.
Me resulto difícil diseñar y doblar estos modelos, no estoy acostumbrado a los pliegues curvos. Disculpen las arrugas en los modelos. Al Trabajar con una escala mayor se obtienen menos arrugas, pero esta escala es el límite de lo que puedo doblar con mis manos y los materiales que dispongo. Ahora en base a este patrón si se incrementa las secciones de pliegue de 6 a 8 se puede obtener una forma más fluida pero no sé si sería fácil de plegar el modelo, en el futuro espero poder comprobar esto.
Strong west winds took our flight way out over Lake Michigan before turning back west toward Midway Airport in Chicago, IL on March 8, 2017. I've learned to put the iPhone in "Airplane mode" rather than shutting it down, and on this flight it paid dividends!
Motionless In White
Fearless Friends Tour
December 5th, 2011
The Plaza LIVE!
Orlando, Florida
Photographed \ Edited by Bryce Hall
© Copyright 2011 WheresBryce. Do not use without permission for any publication with out consent
Tacks, macro.
People tend to express/interpret messages in their own ways; different ways. Communication under such situation will never be easy.
各唱各的調.
* Quiz - with one external flash, how to create shadows in different directions like this?
Fatehpur Sikri (Hindi: फ़तेहपुर सीकरी, Urdu: فتحپور سیکری) is a city and a municipal board in Agra district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. The city was founded in 1569 by the Mughal emperor Akbar, and served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1571 to 1585. After his military victories over Chittor and Ranthambore, Akbar decided to shift his capital from Agra to a new location 37 km WSW on the Sikri ridge, to honor the Sufi saint Salim Chishti. Here he commenced the construction of a planned walled city which took the next fifteen years in planning and construction of a series of royal palaces, harem, courts, a mosque, private quarters and other utility buildings. He named the city, Fatehabad, with Fateh, a word of Arabic origin in Persian, meaning "victorious." it was later called Fatehpur Sikri. It is at Fatehpur Sikri that the legends of Akbar and his famed courtiers, the nine jewels or Navaratnas, were born. Fatehpur Sikri is one of the best preserved collections of Indian Mughal architecture in India.
According to contemporary historians, Akbar took a great interest in the building of Fatehpur Sikri and probably also dictated its architectural style. Seeking to revive the splendours of Persian court ceremonial made famous by his ancestor Timur, Akbar planned the complex on Persian principles. But the influences of his adopted land came through in the typically Indian embellishments. The easy availability of sandstone in the neighbouring areas of Fatehpur Sikri, also meant that all the buildings here were made of the red stone. The imperial Palace complex consists of a number of independent pavilions arranged in formal geometry on a piece of level ground, a pattern derived from Arab and central Asian tent encampments. In its entirety, the monuments at Fatehpur Sikri thus reflect the genius of Akbar in assimilating diverse regional architectural influences within a holistic style that was uniquely his own.
The Imperial complex was abandoned in 1585, shortly after its completion, due to paucity of water and its proximity with the Rajputana areas in the North-West, which were increasingly in turmoil. Thus the capital was shifted to Lahore so that Akbar could have a base in the less stable part of the empire, before moving back to Agra in 1598, where he had begun his reign as he shifted his focus to Deccan. In fact, he never returned to the city except for a brief period in 1601. In later Mughal history it was occupied for a short while by Mughal emperor, Muhammad Shah (r. 1719 -1748), and his regent, Sayyid Hussain Ali Khan Barha, one of the Syed Brothers, was murdered here in 1720. Today much of the imperial complex which spread over nearly two mile long and one mile wide area is largely intact and resembles a ghost town. It is still surrounded by a five mile long wall built during its original construction, on three sides. However apart from the imperial buildings complex few other buildings stand in the area, which is mostly barren, except of ruins of the bazaars of the old city near the Naubat Khana, the 'drum-house' entrance at Agra Road. The modern town lies at the western end of the complex, which was a municipality from 1865 to 1904, and later made a "notified area", and in 1901 had a population of 7,147. For a long time it was still known for its masons and stone carvers, though in Akbar time it was known and 'fabrics of hair' and 'silk-spinning'. The village of Sikri still exists nearby.
ARCHITECTURE OF FATEHPUR SIKRI
Fatehpur Sikri sits on rocky ridge, 3 kilometres in length and 1 km wide, and palace city is surrounded by a 6 km wall on three side with the fourth being a lake at the time. Its architect was Tuhir Das and Dhruv Chawla and was constructed using Indian principles. The buildings of Fatehpur Sikri show a synthesis of various regional schools of architectural craftsmanship such as Gujarat and Bengal. This was because indigenous craftsmen were used for the construction of the buildings. Influences from Hindu and Jain architecture are seen hand in hand with Islamic elements. The building material used in all the buildings at Fatehpur Sikri, palace-city complex, is the locally quarried red sandstone, known as 'Sikri sandstone'. It is accessed through gates along the five-mile long fort wall, namely, Delhi Gate, the Lal Gate, the Agra Gate, Birbal's Gate, Chandanpal Gate, The Gwalior Gate, the Tehra Gate, the Chor Gate and the Ajmere Gate.
Some of the important buildings in this city, both religious and secular are:
Buland Darwaza: Set into the south wall of congregational mosque, the Jama Masjid at Fatehpur Sikri, this stupendous piece of architecture is 55 metre high, from the outside, gradually making a transition to a human scale in the inside. The gate was added some five years later after the completion of the mosque ca. 1576-1577 as an 'victory arch', to commemorate the Akbar's successful Gujarat campaign. It carries two inscriptions in the archway, one of which reads: "Isa, Son of Mariam said: The world is a bridge, pass over it, but build no houses on it. He who hopes for an hour may hope for eternity. The world endures but an hour. Spend it in prayer, for the rest is unseen".
The central portico comprises three arched entrances, with the largest one, in the centre, is known locally as the Horseshoe Gate, after the custom of nailing horseshoes to its large wooden doors for luck. Outside the giant steps of the Buland Darwaza to left is deep well.
Jama Masjid: It is a Jama Mosque meaning the congregational mosque, and was perhaps one of the first buildings to come up in the complex, as its epigraph gives AH 979 (AD 1571-72) as the date of its completion, with a massive entrance to the courtyard, the Buland-Darwaza added some five years later. It was built in the manner of Indian mosques, with iwans around a central courtyard. A distinguishing feature is the row of chhatri over the sanctuary. There are three mihrabs in each of the seven bays, while the large central mihrab is covered by a dome, it is decorated with white marble inlay, in geometric patterns.
Tomb of Salim Chishti: A white marble encased tomb of the Sufi saint, Salim Chisti (1478–1572), within the Jama Masjid's sahn, courtyard. The single-storey structure is built around a central square chamber, within which is the grave of the saint, under an ornate wooden canopy encrusted with mother-of-pearl mosaic. Surrounding it is a covered passageway for circumambulation, with carved Jalis, stone pierced screens all around with intricate geometric design, and an entrance to the south. The tomb is influenced by earlier mausolea of the early 15th century Gujarat Sultanate period. Other striking features of the tomb are white marble serpentine brackets, which support sloping eaves around the parapet.
On the left of the tomb, to the east, stands a red sandstone tomb of Islam Khan I, son of Shaikh Badruddin Chisti and grandson of Shaikh Salim Chishti, who became a general in the Mughal army in the reign of Jahangir. The tomb is topped by a dome and thirty-six small domed chattris, and contains a number of graves, some unnamed, all male descendants of Shaikh Salim Chisti.
Diwan-i-Aam : Diwan-i-Am or Hall of Public Audience, is a building typology found in many cities where the ruler meets the general public. In this case, it is a pavilion-like multi-bayed rectangular structure fronting a large open space. South west of the Diwan-i-Am and next to the Turkic Sultana's House stand Turkic Baths.
Diwan-i-Khas: the Diwan-i-Khas, or Hall of Private Audience, is a plain square building with four chhatris on the roof. However it is famous for its central pillar, which has a square base and an octagonal shaft, both carved with bands of geometric and floral designs, further its thirty-six serpentine brackets support a circular platform for Akbar, which is connected to each corner of the building on the first floor, by four stone walkways. It is here that Akbar had representatives of different religions discuss their faiths and gave private audience.
Ibadat Khana: (House of Worship) was a meeting house built in 1575 CE by the Mughal Emperor Akbar, where the foundations of a new Syncretistic faith, Din-e-Ilahi were laid by Akbar.
Anup Talao: A ornamental pool with a central platform and four bridges leading up to it. Some of the important buildings of the royal enclave are surround by it including, Khwabgah (House of Dreams) Akbar's residence, Panch Mahal, a five-storey palace, Diwan-i-Khas (Hall of Private Audience), Ankh Michauli and the Astrologer's Seat, in the south-west corner of the Pachisi Court.
Hujra-i-Anup Talao: Said to be the residence of Akbar's Muslim wife, although this is disputed due to its small size.
Mariam-uz-Zamani's Palace: The building of Akbar's Rajput wives, including Mariam-uz-Zamani, shows Gujarati influence and is built around a courtyard, with special care being taken to ensure privacy.
Naubat Khana: Also known as Naqqar Khana meaning a drum house, where musician used drums to announce the arrival of the Emperor. It is situated ahead of the Hathi Pol Gate or the Elephant Gate, the south entrance to the complex, suggesting that it was the imperial entrance.
Pachisi Court: A square marked out as a large board game, the precursor to modern day Ludo game where people served as the playing pieces.
Panch Mahal: A five-storied palatial structure, with the tiers gradually diminishing in size, till the final one, which is a single large-domed chhatri. Originally pierced stone screens faced the façade, and probably sub-divided the interior as well, suggesting it was built for the ladies of the court. The floors are supported by intricately carved columns on each level, totalling to 176 columns in all.
Birbal's House: The house of Akbar's favorite minister, who was a Hindu. Notable features of the building are the horizontal sloping sunshades or chajjas and the brackets which support them.
Recent excavation done by ASI in 2000 led to unearthing of an ancient jain city very near to the fort complex.
Other buildings included Taksal (mint), 'Daftar Khana (Records Office), Karkhanas (royal workshop), Khazana (treasury), Turkic styled Baths, Darogha's Quarters, stables, Caravan sarai, Hakim's quarters etc.
DEMOGRAPHICS
Fatehpur Sikri has a population of 28,757. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Fatehpur Sikri has an average literacy rate of 46%, lower than the national average of 74%: male literacy is 57%, and female literacy is 34%. In Fatehpur Sikri, 59% of the population is under 6 years of age.
ADMINISTRATIVE ESTABLISHMENT
Fatehpur Sikri is one of the fifteen Block headquarters in the Agra district it has 52 Gram panchayats (Village Panchayat) under it.
The Fatehpur Sikri, is a constituency of the Lok Sabha, Lower house of the Indian Parliament, and further comprises five Vidhan Sabha (legislative assembly) segments:
Agra Rural
Fatehpur Sikri
Kheragarh
Fatehabad
Bah
In all there are 12 villages of Sisodia Rajputs near Fatehpur Sikri fort in Agra district. These are Daultabad, Nayavas, Satha, korai, Behrawati, Byara, Undera, Kachora, Singarpur, Vidyapur, Onera, Arrua.
TRANSPORT
Fatehpur Sikri is about 39 km. from Agra. The nearest Airport is the Agra Airport (also known as Kheria Airport), 40 km from Fatehpur Sikri. The nearest railway station is the Fatehpur Sikri Railway Station, about one km. from the city centre . It is suitably connected to Agra and neighbouring centres by road, where regular bus services of UPSRTC ply, apart from Tourist buses and taxies.
WIKIPEDIA
be different than the others..
be brighter..
more creative ..
let everyone know that ur around them..
Different view at Lydney Harbour with the new lock gates on the outer basin. Theres also a big drop behind the gates when the tide is out! Sanigar Farms are visible on the opposite bank.