The Soysambu Conservancy includes much of Lake Elementaita and borders Lake Nakuru National Park to the west. It covers 190 square km (48,000 acres). It was created on the grounds of the Soysambu Ranch in 2007 to conserve the flora, fauna, and scenery of the Soysambu Ranch; it offers a home to over 450 bird species and 45 mammal species, including the critically endangered Rothschild (or Nubian) giraffe. The land of the ranch was appropriated by Hugh Cholmondeley, 3rd Baron Delamere, in 1906. The ranch still is owned and operated by the Delamere family.

Lake Elementaita is shallow a soda lake located on the floor of Kenya's Great Rift Valley 20 km southeast of the city of Nakuru at an altitude of 1,776 meters. Its surface are is 18 square kilometers (6.9 sq miles). Its deepest point is 1.9 meters; much of the lake is less than one meter deep. 450 bird species can be found here; it is an important stop for migratory birds. The lake is designated as Ramsar Site and as Important Bird Area (IBA). Lake Elementaita Wildlife Sanctuary encompasses the whole of Lake Elementaita and its riparian land; it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Kenya Lake System in 2011.

More from the 72nd Members' Meeting, Goodwood.

This oval puzzle of 251pc includes some line cutting of the figures in the cart.

A recent puzzle hand-cut by Howard Smeeton of HS Puzzles from 3mm 3-ply. Howard has developed a beautiful cutting style with even-sized pieces in fantastical long-arm shapes.

A chocolate-box image which comes straight out of the pages of Thomas Hardy. Unfortunately I don't know the name of the artist.

I have six of Howard's puzzles to date (all bought on ebay) and plan to commission some more from him directly. This is the third I have assembled, and was the easiest. I think the pieces are a little larger than in the other two. which you can see below.

The National Museum of Anthropology's collections include the Stone of the Sun, giant stone heads of the Olmec civilization that were found in the jungles of Tabasco and Veracruz, treasures recovered from the Mayan civilization, at the Sacred Cenote at Chichen Itza, a replica of the sarcophagal lid from Pacal's tomb at Palenque and ethnological displays of contemporary rural Mexican life. It also has a model of the location and layout of the

former Aztec capital Tenochtitlan, the site of which is now occupied by the central area of modern-day Mexico City.

The permanent exhibitions on the ground floor cover all pre-Columbian civilizations located on the current territory of Mexico as well as in former Mexican territory in what is today the southwestern United States. They are classified as North, West, Mayan, Gulf of Mexico, Oaxaca, Mexico, Toltec, and Teotihuacan. The permanent expositions at the first floor show the culture of Native American population of Mexico since the Spanish colonization.

The Peafowl include two Asiatic bird species (the blue or Indian peafowl originally of India and Sri Lanka and the green peafowl of Myanmar, Indochina, and Java) and one African species (the Congo peafowl native only to the Congo Basin) of bird in the genera Pavo and Afropavo of the Phasianidae family, the pheasants and their allies, known for the male's piercing call and, among the Asiatic species, his extravagant eye-spotted tail covert feathers which he displays as part of a courtship ritual. The term peacock is properly reserved for the male; the female is known as a peahen, and the immature offspring are sometimes called peachicks.

This pretty much sums up the weather today - another mostly rainy one

This is a photograph from the Forest Marathon festival 2013 which was held in the beautiful Coillte forest of Portumna in Co. Galway, Ireland on Saturday 15th June 2013. The event includes a 10k, a full marathon, a half marathon and two ultra-running events - a 50k and 100k race. The races started at 08:00 with the 100KM, the 50KM at 10:00, and subsequent races at two hour intervals onwards. All events started and finished within the forest with the exception of the half marathon and marathon which started outside of the forest. All events see participants complete 5KM loops of the forest which start and end at the car-park/amenity end of the forest. There is an official Refreshment/Handling Zones at this point on the loop.

The event was organised by international coach Sebastien Locteau from SportsIreland.ie and his fantastic team of volunteers from Galway and beyond. Congratulations to Seb on organising a very professionally run event and an event which is growing bigger and more prestigious with each passing year. There was an incredible atmosphere amongst the runners, the spectators, and the organisers. Hats off to everyone involved.

The marathon, 50KM, and 100KM events are sanctioned by Athletics Ireland and AIMS (the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races). The event has also achieved IAU (International Association of Ultrarunners) Bronze Label status for 2013.

Electronic timing was provided by RedTagTiming: www.redtagtiming.com/

Energy Bars, Gels, Drinks etc were provided by Fuel4Sport: www.fuel4sport.ie/

This is a set of photographs taken at various points on the 5KM loop in the Forest and contains photographs of competitors from all of the events except the 10KM race.

Viewing this on a smartphone device?

If you are viewing this Flickr set on a smartphone and you want to see the larger version(s) of this photograph then: scroll down to the bottom of this description under the photograph and click the "View info about this photo..." link. You will be brought to a new page and you should click the link "View All Sizes".

Overall Race Summary

Participants: Approximately 600 people took part across all of the events which were staged: 10km, half marathon, marathon, 50km, and 100KM.

Weather: The weather was unfortunately not what a summer's day in June should be like - there was rain, some breeze, but mild temperatures.

Course: This is a fast flat course depending on your event. The course is left handed around the Forest and roughly looks like a figure of 8 in terms of routing.

Location Map: Start/finish area on Google StreetView [goo.gl/maps/WWTgD] are inside the parklands and trails

Refreshments: There are no specific refreshments but the race organizers provide very adequate supplies for all participants.

Some Useful Links

Official Race Event Website: www.forestmarathon.com/

The Boards.ie Athletics Forum Thread for the 2013 Event: www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056874371

A GPS Garmin Trace of the Course Profile (from the 50KM event) connect.garmin.com/activity/189495781

Our Flickr Photographs from the 2012 Events: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157630146344494/

Our Flickr Photographs from the 2011 Events: www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157626865466587/

Title Sponsors Sports Ireland Website: sites.google.com/a/sportsireland.ie/welcome-sports-irelan...

A VIDEO of the Course: www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=2FLxE...

Google StreetView of the Entrance to Portuma Forest: goo.gl/maps/MX62O

Wikipedia: Read about Portumna and Portumna Forest Park: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portumna#Portumna_Forest_Park

Coilte Ourdoors Website: www.coillteoutdoors.ie/?id=53&rec_site=115

Portumna Forest on EveryTrails: www.everytrail.com/guide/portumna-forest-park-woodland-tr...

More about the IAU Bronze Label: www.iau-ultramarathon.org/index.asp?menucode=h07&tmp=...

How can I get a full resolution copy of these photographs?

All of the photographs here on this Flickr set have a visible watermark embedded in them. All of the photographs posted here on this Flickr set are available offline, free, at no cost, at full image resolution WITHOUT watermark. We take these photographs as a hobby and as a contribution to the running community in Ireland. Our only "cost" is our request that if you are using these images: (1) on social media sites such as Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, Twitter,LinkedIn, Google+, etc or (2) other websites, web multimedia, commercial/promotional material that you provide a link back to our Flickr page to attribute us. This also extends the use of these images for Facebook profile pictures. In these cases please make a separate wall or blog post with a link to our Flickr page. If you do not know how this should be done for Facebook or other social media please email us and we will be happy to help suggest how to link to us.

Please email petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com with the links to the photographs you would like to obtain a full resolution copy of. We also ask race organisers, media, etc to ask for permission before use of our images for flyers, posters, etc. We reserve the right to refuse a request.

In summary please remember - all we ask is for you to link back to our Flickr set or Flickr pages. Taking the photographs and preparing them for online posting does take a significant effort. We are not posting photographs to Flickr for commercial reasons. If you really like what we do please spread the link around your social media, send us an email, leave a comment beside the photographs, send us a Flickr email, etc.

If you would like to contribute something for your photograph(s)?

Many people offer payment for our photographs. As stated above we do not charge for these photographs. We take these photographs as our contribution to the running community in Ireland. If you feel that the photograph(s) you request are good enough that you would consider paying for their purchase from other photographic providers we would suggest that you can provide a donation to any of the great charities in Ireland who do work for Cancer Care or Cancer Research in Ireland.

I ran in the race - but my photograph doesn't appear here in your Flickr set! What gives?

As mentioned above we take these photographs as a hobby and as a voluntary contribution to the running community in Ireland. Very often we have actually ran in the same race and then switched to photographer mode after we finished the race. Consequently, we feel that we have no obligations to capture a photograph of every participant in the race. However, we do try our very best to capture as many participants as possible. But this is sometimes not possible for a variety of reasons:

     ►You were hidden behind another participant as you passed our camera

     ►Weather or lighting conditions meant that we had some photographs with blurry content which we did not upload to our Flickr set

     ►There were too many people - some races attract thousands of participants and as amateur photographs we cannot hope to capture photographs of everyone

     ►We simply missed you - sorry about that - we did our best!

You can email us petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com to enquire if we have a photograph of you which didn't make the final Flickr selection for the race. But we cannot promise that there will be photograph there. As alternatives we advise you to contact the race organisers to enquire if there were (1) other photographs taking photographs at the race event or if (2) there were professional commercial sports photographers taking photographs which might have some photographs of you available for purchase. You might find some links for further information above.

Don't like your photograph here?

That's OK! We understand!

If, for any reason, you are not happy or comfortable with your picture appearing here in this photoset on Flickr then please email us at petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com and we will remove it as soon as possible. We give careful consideration to each photograph before uploading.

I want to tell people about these great photographs!

Great! Thank you! The best link to spread the word around is probably www.flickr.com/peterm7/sets

The band, Ragweed, on stage at Sticky Mike's Frog Bar in Brighton

www.reverbnation.com/ragweedrock

Our products include micro-sprinkler system,drip irrigation system,filter system,fertilizer system,garden watering kit, tubing abd their fitting ect which are all per fectly manufactured by the advanced technology and good quanlity materials , widely apply in agricultural irrigation , landscape , famliy garden , greenhouse and sport course so on.

3 Capris lead the pack around Madgwick during the Gerry Marshall Trophy race at the Goodwood 73rd Member's Meeting

This fisherman was happy to show me his catch at the World Dab Championships. Unfortunately, these are Rockling, so they don't count

The Motherland Calls (Russian: Родина-мать зовёт!, romanized: Rodina-mat' zovyot!) is a colossal neoclassicist and socialist realist war memorial sculpture on Mamayev Kurgan in Volgograd, Russia. Designed primarily by sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich with assistance from architect Yakov Belopolsky, the concrete sculpture commemorates the casualties of the Battle of Stalingrad, and is the predominant component of a larger monument complex, which includes several plazas and other sculptural works. Standing 85 metres (279 ft) tall from the base of its pedestal to its peak, the statue was the tallest in the world upon its completion in 1967, and is the tallest statue in Europe if excluding the pedestal. The statue, along with the rest of the complex, was dedicated on 15 October 1967, and has been listed as a tentative candidate for UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites since 2014.

The sculpture depicts a female personification of Russia, commonly referred to as Mother Russia. She wears a windswept shawl resembling wings, and holds a sword aloft in her right hand. Her left hand is extended outward, as she calls upon the Soviet people to battle. The statue was originally planned to be made of granite and to stand only 30 metres (98 ft) tall, with a design consisting of a Red Army soldier genuflecting and placing a sword before Mother Russia holding a folded banner, but was changed in 1961 to be a large concrete structure at nearly double the height, a decision that was subject to criticism from Soviet military officials and writers. It was inspired by the Winged Victory of Samothrace, an ancient Greek sculpture of the goddess of victory, Nike.

The construction of The Motherland Calls began in 1963, and was led by structural engineer Nikolai Nikitin. The project faced numerous challenges, including the assembly of the statue's framework and its intricate features, which were compounded by the statue's size. Delays were caused by cold weather and unforeseen geological issues, necessitating extensive foundation reinforcement and relocation of water systems. Additional complications arose with the statue's sword, which was required to be redesigned due to problems with wind resistance. Despite these obstacles, the memorial was completed in 1967 for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution.

After its dedication, the sculpture underwent numerous alterations and restoration attempts. In 1972, the statue's sword was replaced with a higher-grade steel alloy version to reduce wind resistance, and by 1986, it had tilted significantly from its original axis. Concerns about the statue's structural integrity arose by the early 21st century, with the statue in disrepair and at risk of collapsing. Comprehensive restoration efforts began later in the century, and by 2020, the monument had undergone extensive restoration, although post-renovation critiques and new structural issues have since arisen.

The Battle of Stalingrad was a major conflict between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany on the Eastern Front of World War II, fought over six months from July 1942 to February 1943. The battle resulted in a decisive Soviet victory but came at a tremendous cost, with over a million estimated Soviet deaths. The battle was quickly mythologised in Soviet culture, and was widely referred to as the turning point in the war in Soviet history textbooks.

The idea of commemorating the Soviet victory in the Battle of Stalingrad originated in the final years of the war. Soviet politicians and artists had considered designs for monuments to the battle prior to the war's end, and the first museum honoring the Great Patriotic War was established as early as March 1943. In 1944, the publication Arkhitektura SSSR issued a number of articles detailing possible designs for memorials. Following the end of the war in 1945, several small-scale obelisks and commemorative plaques were erected across the Soviet Union; however, larger plans for monuments were curtailed by leader Joseph Stalin, who sought to refocus attention on emerging Cold War conflicts, virtually prohibiting all public observation of the war by 1948.

In 1948, sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich, a member of the Academy of Arts of the Soviet Union, began discussing plans for a monument for the Battle of Stalingrad with architect Yakov Belopolsky, whom he had previously collaborated with on the development of the Soviet War Memorial in Berlin's Treptower Park.[6] The project was intended to be built atop Mamayev Kurgan, a burial mound that was the site of intense conflict during the battle. Vuchetich started petitioning high-ranking Soviet officials for permission to design the monument in the early 1950s, including Politburo member Georgy Malenkov.[8] In a letter to Malenkov dated December 1951, Vuchetich claimed that he had received multiple inquiries from veterans and family members of those who died in the war about the absence of a memorial on Mamayev Kurgan.

After Stalin's death in March 1953, plans for a memorial on Mamayev Kurgan were revitalised. In March 1954, the Council of Ministers announced a competition for the design of a "State Museum of the Defense of Tsaritsyn-Stalingrad", which would include a large panoramic painting depicting the battle; by this time, Vuchetich and Belopolsky had already finalised drafts for the project's structural designs. On 23 January 1958, the Council of Ministers declared that the construction of "a memorial-monument in the city of Stalingrad commemorating victory over the German fascist force" would be overseen by a committee led by Vuchetich and comprising Belopolsky and Anatoly Garpenko, an artist and Red Army veteran.

Vuchetich and Belopolsky's initial designs for the project were ambitious and took much of their inspiration from the memorial at Treptower Park. The entrance to the monument was planned to feature a triumphal arch that led into a granite staircase, followed by a brick staircase in an avenue of Lombardy poplar trees. A second granite staircase would lead to a circular plaza, with a large granite statue of a Russian man titled Stand To the Death!. Behind the statue, a final granite staircase would lead to a plaza with an entrance to an underground complex called the "Panorama". A cupola-shaped hall would include an eternal flame to memorialise the heroes of Stalingrad, a sculpture of a man shaping a sword into a ploughshare, and walls engraved with the names of those who died in the battle. An exit at the end of the hall led to a second observation platform with a panoramic painting depicting a prosperous post-war Stalingrad.

The principal component of the project was to be a colossal statue at the top of Mamayev Kurgan; at the statue's base, a foyer would be built in order to allow visitors to honor the dead with commemorative gifts. The statue was designed according to the principles of neoclassicism and socialist realism, both artistic styles that Vuchetich specialised in. The original plan for the sculpture was to have it constructed entirely of granite, with a design featuring a Red Army soldier genuflecting and placing a sword before a female personification of Russia, commonly referred to as Mother Russia, holding a folded banner; this was later changed to be a concrete statue of a lone Mother Russia wearing a windblown shawl resembling wings and holding a sword aloft in her right hand, with her left hand extended outward as she calls upon the Soviet people to fight against the enemy. The design was inspired by the Winged Victory of Samothrace, an ancient Greek sculpture of the goddess of victory, Nike. Committee members initially suggested that the sculpture should be dressed in traditional Russian clothing. Vuchetich objected to the proposition, arguing that a traditional costume would diminish the idea of the battle as an "international event" and defy the neoclassical style he had envisioned for the statue. The sculpture was initially planned to be 30 metres (98 ft) tall from its pedestal to its peak; however, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev ordered it to be taller than the 46 metres (151 ft) tall Statue of Liberty in a display of dominance over the United States, their geopolitical rival during the Cold War. The height of the statue alone was increased to 52 metres (171 ft), nearly double the originally planned height, a decision that further increased the project's cost, which had already substantially overrun its budget. Valentina Izotova, a 26-year-old waitress at a local restaurant, was chosen by Vuchetich to be the model for the sculpture, while the face of the statue is believed to have been based on that of Vuchetich's wife.

The choice to make The Motherland Calls the primary feature of the monument complex was met with derision from Soviet military officials, including generals Andrey Yeryomenko and Mikhail Shumilov, who believed the statue's design would detract from the importance of the Panorama, which they thought to be the only structure that could faithfully represent the extent of the soldiers' experiences. Vuchetich rationalised the decision by asserting that the monument should reflect the widespread recognition of the Battle of Stalingrad as the turning point of the war, and marketed the project as one part of a sculptural triptych that would encompass the memorial at Treptower Park and a planned monument in Moscow. The planned sculpture also attracted criticism from Soviet writers, including author Viktor Nekrasov, who claimed that the monument would defile the historic site.

While construction on the rest of the monument complex began in 1961, work on The Motherland Calls did not start until late 1962. Vuchetich's final design for the sculpture was approved by the artist committee in December of 1962, and on 23 January 1963 the Council of Ministers ordered the development of blueprints for the statue. The process of building of the monument would prove to be more complicated than anticipated by its developers, primarily due to its size and the complexity of its details. After the Sculptural Group of the Artistic Fund requested to be relieved of their construction duties and the construction firm Volgogradgidrostroi expressed reservations about taking over the project, structural engineer Nikolai Nikitin was appointed to lead the construction efforts.

In 1963, Nikitin's design team began planning the construction process for the monument, finalizing their designs by August. Nikitin began his role as head of the team by emphasizing unresolved issues, specifically the lack of geological and hydrological studies that had been recommended earlier in the year. In a report to the Ministry of Culture made in September, he insisted that these studies were crucial due to the extensive construction already completed and the need to ensure the foundation's durability and stability, particularly given the presence of mellite clays on Mamayev Kurgan; the hill could only support the structure if the moisture of its soil remained low. Nikitin noted that the foundation, initially designed for a statue half the height, required thorough investigation to confirm its suitability. Almost immediately following his report, the Ministry sent a team to Volgograd to thoroughly investigate the issues.

Construction on The Motherland Calls commenced in November 1963. The statue, made entirely of reinforced concrete, used a special hydrostatic cement mixture that had been developed for the construction of the Ostankino Tower in Moscow. The statue's structure featured an internal framework of vertical and horizontal diaphragms forming cells that were 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide, 3 metres deep, and 4 metres (13 ft) tall, extending from its 2-metre (6.6 ft) pedestal to its neck. The external surface was a reinforced concrete membrane varying in thickness from 25 to 60 centimetres (9.8 to 23.6 in). Construction involved pouring concrete in 50-centimetre (20 in) increments into the forms shaping the vertical diaphragms, allowing each layer to harden before proceeding. Workers used small vibrators to settle the concrete, eliminate air pockets, and ensure even pours, working manually due to the tight spaces. Each 4-metre-high section was capped with a horizontal diaphragm, serving as the foundation for the next section. The statue's head, arms, and scarf were cast separately and attached using cantilevered junctions and large steel bolts, with the metal sword anchored in the right hand. Its stability was ensured by a complex system of steel tension cables to counteract wind forces, monitored by seismographic and meteorological instruments inside the structure. A radio transmitter was installed in the statue's head in order to transmit data on ground vibrations, surface temperatures, and humidity. Passageways within the statue were built to allow for interior inspections, while the exterior would be visually examined.

Initially, crews focused on assembling the metal framework designed to support the internal diaphragms, followed by welding the rebar for the external membrane and creating the plaster molds for the statue's surface. The concrete pedestal was poured, and by the end of 1963, the shawl pieces and the empty hand had been made and attached to the framework. However, the arrival of subfreezing temperatures halted further concrete pouring, which could not resume until the spring; plans were set to complete this phase of the construction by 1 July 1965. The statue's head and sword hand were then mounted, with the metal sword set to be installed later. During this period, the construction of other components of the memorial, such as the "Wall Ruins" and parts of the "Square of Heroes", progressed significantly.

Despite initial forecasts for a November 1965 opening, the construction timeline was extended into the late summer of 1966. This delay was partly due to emerging issues with the sculpture's foundation and the stability of the surrounding soil, prompting geological investigations that uncovered several critical deficiencies in the initial surveys. For instance, examinations of Mamayev Kurgan's substrata were only carried out to a depth of 9 metres (30 ft), rather than the necessary depth of at least 46 metres (151 ft). Additionally, there had been no measurement of the soil's compression under the statue's weight, nor was there any consideration of how the expansion of waterlogged clay could impact the foundation. No comprehensive assessment was made of potential groundwater sources, and no tests to evaluate the stability of the mound's slope were conducted. Addressing these issues required significant effort and expense; in early 1966, officials concluded that the only solution involved relocating all water supply pipes and reservoirs buried within the mound to a distance of at least 273 metres (896 ft) from the statue's base in order to improve drainage around the structure. The statue's foundation was reinforced, and several thousand cubic metres of extra earth were backfilled to create a levee around the pedestal. However, these adjustments necessitated the removal of several graves previously located at the hill's summit and a reduction in the size of the plaza where the Grief of the Motherland statue and the Pantheon, which had replaced the Panorama due to issues with the latter's foundation, were situated. These remedial efforts continued into 1967.

In May 1966, crews hoisted and secured the 14-ton, 28-metre-long (92 ft) sword into the statue's right hand. The sword was constructed from stainless steel and bolstered by plates made from titanium. However, by late August, strong winds revealed that the sword and its anchoring structure were subjected to lateral forces that had not been accurately accounted for. The sword's tip was observed wavering by nearly 1 foot (0.30 m) in either direction, posing a risk to the integrity of the joint connecting the arm to the metal framework. This movement resulted in visible cracks in the concrete surface around the area. A committee was formed to investigate further, who concluded that the existing sword needed replacement; temporary measures were applied, included cutting holes in the current sword and reinforcing the joint until a permanent fix could be implemented.

In February 1967, the Council of Ministers mandated that all remaining work on the memorial complex be completed by 15 October for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. Laborers worked throughout the spring and summer to meet this deadline, completing the earthen levee surrounding the main monument's pedestal, relocating the remaining leaking irrigation pipes and reservoirs, reinforcing the sword, installing sound and lighting systems across the complex, and setting in place the final sculptural and landscaping elements. The last major obstacle arose from complications with the Pantheon; as crews applied the mosaics to the Pantheon's interior walls in early 1967, they discovered inconsistencies in the glass tiles. With only four months until the scheduled opening, Vuchetich urgently sought intervention from officials to expedite a solution. Supplementary glass was quickly produced and delivered, and several hundred soldiers from a local garrison were enlisted to aid in construction. The crews worked diligently, completing the Pantheon's mosaic walls in under a month for the complex's opening. Once finished, the full sculpture stood 85 metres (279 ft) tall from the base of the pedestal to the top of the sword, and was the tallest statue in the world upon its completion; it remains the tallest statue in Europe.

The dedication of the memorial occurred on 15 October 1967. The event drew tens of thousands of people to Mamayev Kurgan, along with reporters from official press outlets, including Izvestia and Pravda, who wrote extensively on the memorial's scale and significance, describing the statue as a tribute to the heroism of Stalingrad's defenders. Vuchetich, along with the engineers and construction workers, were lauded for their contributions to the project, with reporters drawing parallels between their efforts and those of the soldiers who defended the city.

The opening ceremony featured speeches from party leaders and military representatives, who highlighted various themes such as the valor of those who fought in the battle, the importance of remembering past sacrifices, and the role of the Red Army in defeating fascism. Premier Leonid Brezhnev's keynote address framed the monument as a testament to Soviet unity and postwar recovery, while also emphasizing the USSR's commitment to peace and culture in contrast to American actions during the Vietnam War. The speeches collectively stressed the significance of the memorial in preserving the memory of the war and its heroes, and praised the Soviet people's enduring loyalty to the Communist Party and its Central Committee.

The years after the statue's dedication were primarily marked by alterations and several attempts at restoration. A year after the monument's opening, cracks had already started to form on the statue's surface. In order to preserve the monument, the head and hands of the sculpture were treated with a waterproofing agent once a year. In 1972, the statue's sword was replaced with a higher-grade steel alloy version featuring jalousie-like slits to reduce wind resistance. The sculpture's surface received a maintenance inspection in 1986; by this time, it had tilted 60 millimetres (2.4 in) from its original vertical axis since its initial assessment in 1966.

Between 2008 and 2009, a comprehensive safety and reliability program for the statue was developed and approved by the Russian Ministry of Culture. However, by 2009, concerns had been raised about the structural integrity of the structure; the statue's foundation was not anchored but held in place by its own weight, and was subsiding as a result of rising water levels. By this time, pieces of concrete had already begun to fall off the statue, nearly injuring passersby, and it had tilted approximately 20 centimetres (7.9 in), with further tilting risking collapse. Estimated costs to repair the structural issues were over 7 million USD (equivalent to $9,664,521 in 2023); however, efforts to secure funding for restoration were complicated by the Great Recession, and previous attempts to allocate government funds for restoration had been undermined by misappropriation. Large-scale restoration work on the sculpture funded by the federal budget began in 2010. Initial steps included replacing the piezometric network (a system for measuring pressure) to allow for hydrogeological monitoring, studying the reinforced concrete's condition, and analyzing cracks and other defects.

In 2014, the sculpture, along with the surrounding complex, was listed as a tentative candidate for UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites. Following the 70th anniversary of the Soviet victory in the Great Patriotic War in 2015, the statue was set to undergo further renovation, with 99 of its 117 steel cables requiring replacement. By 2017, the cables had not yet been replaced, though plans were made to address the replacement along with other maintenance needs, with additional restoration efforts set to be conducted after the end of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which was held in Russia. In late 2018, the construction company Glavzarubezhstroy completed preparations for the external restoration of the sculpture, which included creating access for special equipment, fencing off the area for material storage and worker camps, installing a two-metre fence around the sculpture, removing the lawn, setting up external lighting for the duration of the work, and digging trenches around the statue's base. In early 2019, the observation deck at the foot of the statue was closed off to visitors until March of the following year in order to allow for additional restoration work to its pedestal, surface, and framework. In May, the sculpture had begun to be covered in scaffolding, and the granite slabs at the pedestal were removed. Restoration on the external features of the monument continued from July to November, including cracks being filled in and the surface being painted with white lead. In November, the scaffolding and the pedestal's slabs were removed, with internal renovations to be finished before Victory Day on 9 May 2020, the 75th anniversary of the end of the battle. The restoration of the monument was completed in March 2020; however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the reopening ceremony that had originally been planned for Victory Day was postponed. A virtual tour of the structure and the surrounding complex was made available online in lieu of public visitations.

The monument complex was reopened on 24 June 2020, with a ceremony hosted by Volgograd governor Andrey Bocharov and Russian Minister of Culture Olga Lyubimova. In total, the cost of renovating the sculpture alone cost approximately 750 million rubles (equivalent to $11,296,607 USD in 2023). In August, Russian designer Artemy Lebedev criticised the statue's post-renovation appearance, arguing that the statue was in a worse condition than it had been before its restoration; his comments received criticism from residents of Volgograd, who insisted that he be punished for insulting the memory of those who died in the Battle of Stalingrad. By early 2021, dark spots and more cracks were noticed on the surface of the statue, prompting the filing of an application with a Moscow arbitration court requesting for Glavzarubezhstroy, which had not fulfilled its warranty obligations, to declare bankruptcy. Glavzarubezhstroy later filed for bankruptcy, was sued by the Battle of Stalingrad Museum-Reserve, and listed on a national registry of "unscrupulous suppliers". In a poll conducted by Bloknot Volgograd in March, a majority of Volgograd residents surveyed responded negatively to the question of whether the sculpture looked better after its restoration, with some calling on those who worked on the project to "restore it themselves, with their own money". An assessment of the reliability and safety of the structure was planned to be conducted in 2023. As of 2024, the dark spots on the statue were still noticeable.

The Motherland Calls is featured on the coat of arms and flag of Volgograd Oblast. Postage stamps and postcards depicting the sculpture were issued in the Soviet Union for the 20th anniversary of the founding of the International Federation of Resistance Fighters in 1971 and the 30th anniversary of the Battle of Stalingrad in 1973; a postcard with the statue was issued in Russia to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the battle in 2002. The sculpture also appears on a commemorative 100-ruble coin issued by the Central Bank of Russia in 2013, and a 3-ruble coin issued in 2015. There is a replica of the statue in the city of Manzhouli in Inner Mongolia, China, near the border between Russia and China.

Mamayev Kurgan (Russian: Мама́ев курга́н) is a dominant height overlooking the city of Volgograd (formerly Stalingrad) in Southern Russia. The name in Russian means "tumulus of Mamai". The formation is dominated by a memorial complex commemorating the Battle of Stalingrad (August 1942 to February 1943). The battle, a hard-fought Soviet victory over Axis forces on the Eastern Front of World War II, turned into one of the bloodiest battles in human history. At the time of its installation in 1967 the statue, named The Motherland Calls, formed the largest free-standing sculpture in the world.

Battle

When forces of the German Sixth Army launched their attack against the city centre of Stalingrad on 13 September 1942, Mamayev Kurgan (appearing in military maps as "Height 102.0") saw particularly fierce fighting between the German attackers and the defending soldiers of the Soviet 62nd Army. Control of the hill became vitally important, as it offered control over the city. To defend it, the Soviets had built strong defensive lines on the slopes of the hill, composed of trenches, barbed-wire and minefields. The Germans pushed forward against the hill, taking heavy casualties. When they finally captured the hill, they started firing on the city centre, as well as on the city's main railway station under the hill. They captured the Volgograd railway station on 14 September 1942.

On the same day, the Soviet 13th Guards Rifle Division commanded by Alexander Rodimtsev arrived in the city from the east side of the river Volga under heavy German artillery fire. The division's 10,000 men immediately rushed into the battle. On 16 September they recaptured Mamayev Kurgan and kept fighting for the railway station, taking heavy losses. By the following day, almost all of them had died. The Soviets kept reinforcing their units in the city as fast as they could. The Germans assaulted up to twelve times a day, and the Soviets would respond with fierce counter-attacks.

The hill changed hands several times. By September 27, the Germans again captured half of Mamayev Kurgan. The Soviets held their own positions on the slopes of the hill, as the 284th Rifle Division defended the key stronghold. The defenders held out until January 26 1943, when the counterattacking Soviet forces relieved them. The battle of the city ended one week later with an utter German defeat.

When the battle ended, the soil on the hill had been so thoroughly churned by shellfire and mixed with metal fragments that it contained between 500 and 1,250 splinters of metal per square meter. The earth on the hill had remained black in the winter, as the snow kept melting in the many fires and explosions. In the following spring the hill would still remain black, as no grass grew on its scorched soil. The hill's formerly steep slopes had become flattened in months of intense shelling and bombardment. Even today, it is possible to find fragments of bone and metal still buried deep throughout the hill.

Memorial Complex

After the war, the Soviet authorities commissioned the enormous Mamayev Kurgan memorial complex. Vasily Chuikov, who led Soviet forces at Stalingrad, lies buried at Mamayev Kurgan; this makes him the only Marshal of the Soviet Union to be buried outside Moscow. 34,505 soldiers who were defenders of Stalingrad are buried there; sniper Vasily Zaytsev was also reburied there, in 2006.

Avenue of Poplars; Stand To the Death!

Mamayev Kurgan is accessible by a flight of stairs leading to the Avenue of Poplars, flanked on either side by poplar trees. From there, a second flight of steps leads to the statue of a muscular and shirtless Russian soldier. This statue, named Stand To the Death!, is carved from rock and surrounded by a large pool of water; it bears the inscription ...And not a step back!

Symbolic Ruined Walls; Square of Heroes

From Stand To the Death!, a third flight of stairs leads between the Symbolic Ruined Walls; these represent the ruins of Stalingrad, while immortalizing the Soviet heroes who defended the city. Carved into the walls are faces of numerous soldiers, their eyes closed to indicate death in battle. Also inscribed on the walls are numerous quotes from actual defenders of Stalingrad; these words were originally carved, by the soldiers themselves, upon the sides of various ruined buildings throughout the city.

Atop the steps, past the walls, is the Square of Heroes; this is dominated by another large pool of water. On one side of the pool is a wall bearing this inscription: With an iron wind blowing straight into their faces, they were still marching forward; and fear seized the enemy. Were these people who were attacking? Were they even mortal at all? On the other side of the pool are six sculptures, the first of which bears the inscription: "We've stood out and defeated death." The second and third sculptures commemorate military nurses and, respectively, sea soldiers. The fourth sculpture is dedicated to the officers who led the battle to protect Stalingrad. The fifth sculpture tells the story of "Saving the Banner". The sixth sculpture commemorates the eventual triumph of the Russian army over the Germans.

Hall of Military Glory

Past the Square of Heroes is the Hall of Military Glory, whose outer façade is decorated with Russian artwork of Soviet soldiers celebrating the war's end...and with the inscription "Our people will keep alive their memory of the greatest battle in the history of warfare, within the walls of Stalingrad."

An indoor flight of stairs leads to the Hall's circular main chamber; at the chamber's center is the Eternal Flame, a large sculpture of a hand holding a torch. The Eternal Flame is constantly under armed guard, which is changed every hour. The main chamber is considered sacred ground, with mournful music being played on a loop; out of respect, visitors are strongly discouraged from speaking aloud. The chamber's walls are covered in glass-foil mosaics; these bear the names of 7,200 Russian soldiers who died in the battle for Stalingrad. Around the ceiling of the chamber is the following inscription: "...Yes, we were mere mortals, and few of us survived (the German siege). But we all fulfilled our patriotic duty to our sacred Motherland."

Mother's Sorrow

The hall's upper exit leads to the base of a pathway, which in turn zigzags uphill to the Mother Russia Is Calling! statue itself. Also at the hill's base is a third shallow pool, this one surrounding a stone monument named Mother's Sorrow.

The hill itself is an unmarked grave for over 34,500 Russian troops killed at Stalingrad; even this is a tiny percentage of the overall Soviet casualties from the battle. The grass on the hill is considered sacred, and visitors are forbidden to step on it. The top of the hill gives a panoramic view of the city of Volgograd.

Mamayev Kurgan is open to the public 24 hours a day, and there is no charge for admission.

Background

The monumental memorial was constructed between 1959 and 1967, and is crowned by a huge allegorical statue of the Motherland on the top of the hill. The monument, designed by Yevgeny Vuchetich, has the full name The Motherland Calls! (Russian: Родина-мать зовёт! Rodina Mat Zovyot!). It consists of a concrete sculpture, 52 meters tall, and 85 meters from the feet to the tip of the 27-meters sword, dominating the skyline of the city of Stalingrad (later renamed Volgograd).

The construction uses concrete, except for the stainless-steel blade of the sword, and is held on its plinth solely by its own weight. The statue is evocative of classical Greek representations of Nike, in particular the flowing drapery, similar to that of the Nike of Samothrace.

From a quick visit to Sheffield Park (NT), to view the Autumn colours before they disappeared. Not the right light for wide views, so I went for a mainly macro approach

More from the Historic Masters Festival, Brands Hatch

More rally car action from Firle Beacon

Many Spanish festivals include costumed figures known as gigantes y cabezudos, roughly, “Giants and Big-Heads”, or, in Catalan, gegants i capgrossos. The main feature of these figures is typically their papier maché head; bodies are covered in clothing matching the costume's theme. These figures are particularly omnipresent in festivals of Catalonia, where many cities and towns have their own gegants i capgrossos, used in the cercavila and in conjunction with other local dances (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gigantes_y_cabezudos).

City Palace, Jaipur, which includes the Chandra Mahal and Mubarak Mahal palaces and other buildings, is a palace complex in Jaipur, the capital of the Rajasthan state, India. It was the seat of the Maharaja of Jaipur, the head of the Kachwaha Rajput clan. The Chandra Mahal palace now houses a museum but the greatest part of it is still a royal residence. The palace complex, which is located northeast of the centre of the grid patterned Jaipur city, incorporates an impressive and vast array of courtyards, gardens and buildings. The palace was built between 1729 and 1732, initially by Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber. He planned and built the outer walls, and later additions were made by successive rulers right up to the 20th century. The credit for the urban layout of the city and its structures is attributed to two architects namely, Vidyadar Bhattacharya, the chief architect in the royal court and Sir Samuel Swinton Jacob, apart from the Sawai himself who was a keen architectural enthusiast. The architects achieved a fusion of the Shilpa Shastra of Indian architecture with Rajput, Mughal and European styles of architecture.

The palace complex lies in the heart of Jaipur city, to the northeast of the very centre. The site for the palace was located on the site of a royal hunting lodge on a plain land encircled by a rocky hill range, five miles south of Amber (city). The history of the city palace is closely linked with the history of Jaipur city and its rulers, starting with Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II who ruled from 1699-1744. He is credited with initiating construction of the city complex by building the outer wall of the complex spreading over many acres. Initially, he ruled from his capital at Amber, which lies at a distance of 11 kilometres from Jaipur. He shifted his capital from Amber to Jaipur in 1727 because of an increase in population and increasing water shortage. He planned Jaipur city in six blocks separated by broad avenues, on the classical basis of principals of Vastushastra and other similar classical treatise under the architectural guidance of Vidyadar Bhattacharya, a man who was initially an accounts-clerk in the Amber treasury and later promoted to the office of Chief Architect by the King.

Following Jaisingh's death in 1744, there were internecine wars among the Rajput kings of the region but cordial relations were maintained with the British Raj. Maharaja Ram Singh sided with the British in the Sepoy Mutiny or Uprising of 1857 and established himself with the Imperial rulers. It is to his credit that the city of Jaipur including all of its monuments (including the City Palace) are stucco painted 'Pink' and since then the city has been called the "Pink City". The change in colour scheme was as an honour of hospitality extended to the Prince of Wales (who later became King Edward VII) on his visit. This colour scheme has since then become a trademark of the Jaipur city.

Man Singh II, the adopted son of Maharaja Madho Singh II, was the last Maharaja of Jaipur to rule from the Chandra Mahal palace, in Jaipur. This palace, however, continued to be a residence of the royal family even after the Jaipur kingdom merged with the Indian Union in 1949 (after Indian independence in August 1947) along with other Rajput states of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Bikaner. Jaipur became the capital of the Indian state of Rajasthan and Man Singh II had the distinction of becoming the Rajapramukh (present day Governor of the state) for a time and later was the Ambassador of India to Spain.

Includes Slide-latch quick release fittings

The Lower Trout Lake Bathhouse Complex and Contact Station includes five Mid-Century Modern resources, located on

two separate land parcels, in the same section of the Bald Mountain Recreation Area in Orion Township. The Lower Trout Lake Bathhouse Complex and Contact Station was designed in the mid-1960s by internationally renowned Michigan

architect Gunnar Birkerts. The larger of the two parcels of land contains a bathhouse complex of four closely spaced circular buildings – Men’s and Women’s Bathhouses, a Concession Stand, and a Pump House – all grouped within a large

circular pad of concrete pavement set back from the beach at Lower Trout Lake. The nomination also includes a small round Contact Station or “control booth” located about 4,600 feet away on the entrance road into this southern section of

the Bald Mountain Recreation Area. The buildings are closely related by their circular forms, concrete construction, and,

before vandals stripped them, copper roofs.

The Lower Trout Lake Bathhouse Complex and Contact Station is significant under criteria A and C. It is a set of Park

Service Modern buildings inspired by the nationwide Mission 66 program. The buildings were designed by world renowned architect Gunnar Birkerts who is known for his high-style modern structures. The Lower Trout Lake Bathhouse Complex and Contact Station’s structures are examples of two complimentary forms of mid-century modern design; one, a style of park building known as Park Service Modern, made popular by the National Park Service and the Mission 66 program architects; the other, the distinctive architectural style produced by Gunnar Birkerts at the time, during the beginning of the busiest point in his career. The buildings are less than fifty years old, yet because of their unique design, association with a

nation-wide program, and were designed by a master architect; they are eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places at the National level.

The Lower Trout Lake Bathhouse Complex and

Contact Station was listed in the National Register of HIstoric Places on September 3, 2013.

The portrait includes the saint's severely broken nose, which healed asymmetrically

The "most realistic" portrait of the saint who became Santa Claus has been produced at a Liverpool university.

Saint Nicholas was a 4th Century bishop who liked to give gifts secretly. His relics lie in Bari Cathedral in Italy.

The image of him has been created using a facial reconstruction system and 3D interactive technology by Liverpool John Moores University's Face Lab.

Professor Caroline Wilkinson said it was based on "all the skeletal and historical material" available.

The saint, who died in 343, was the Greek bishop of Myra. The town, now known as Demre, lies on the southern coast of Turkey.

He was said to have left secret gifts, such as putting coins in shoes that were left out for him, leading him to be the model for Father Christmas.

A spokeswoman for the university said the new depiction uses "the most up-to-date anatomical standards, Turkish tissue depth data and CGI techniques".

It also includes Saint Nicholas' severely broken nose, which she said had "healed asymmetrically, giving him a characteristic nose and rugged facial appearance".

Revealing the portrait on the saint's feast day, 6 December, Prof Wilkinson said it was "thrilling to be able to show the face of this famous bishop".

A major aspect of ensuring government effectiveness includes investigation into how it is run, and where fraud, abuse, or waste can be identified and redressed. Congressional oversight is key to this process, given Congress’ constitutional roles and responsibilities. In keeping with this, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is constantly working to hold government accountable to taxpayers. Recent major issues taken up by the committee include examining the U.S. Secret Service, reviewing national security issues such as the effectiveness of Homeland Security and the Transportation Security Administration, as well as participating in the ongoing debate over the Keystone Pipeline.

On January 7, the Center for 21st Century Security and Intelligence at Brookings hosted an event focused on government oversight. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, was interviewed by Brookings Senior Fellow Michael O’Hanlon, and author of “The Future of Land Warfare” (Brookings Institution Press, 2015).

The Frost Centre Institute campus includes 20 buildings on 40 acres nestled in the beautiful Haliburton Highlands, just South of Dorset, Ontario. With 2,500 feet of lake frontage on Lake St. Nora and direct access to groomed hiking (or skiing) trails located on 58,000 acres of crown land adjacent to the campus, the Centre offers a truly one-of-a-kind environment for experiential learning and outdoor education.

This High Dynamic Range 360° panorama was stitched from 93 bracketed photographs with PTGUI Pro, tone-mapped with Photomatix, and touched up in Aperture.

Original size: 18206 × 9103 (165.7 MP; 196 MB).

Location: Frost Centre Institute, Lake St. Nora, Ontario, Canada

Includes an integrated Square card reader cut, and card slot on right hand side.

This is the first of several versions I am developing, and will likely sell on Etsy. I would like to design/build one from a high quality plywood as well. I just like the material.

Build photos are at the end of the set

Flowers include Crocosmia 'Lucifer' (Montbretia 'Lucifer'), Astilbe chinensis, Cosmos bipinnatus, Phlox, Leucanthemum (Shasta daisy) and Agapanthus (African lily) .

In the background is our small 'summerhouse' with a roof that we had recently re-felted. Subsequently we turned the new looking roof into an established looking moss garden; we will soon post photos of the roof moss-garden work in progress.

Action from the 74th Members' Meeting, Goodwood

Buildings include the Alumni Memorial Residences I, Homewood House, & the Playshop. ca. 1923

The Ferdinand Hamburger Archives, The Sheridan Libraries, The Johns Hopkins University

Sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders or shorebirds. They include many species called sandpipers, as well as those called by names such as curlew and snipe. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. Different lengths of bills enable different species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food.

Sandpipers have long bodies and legs, and narrow wings. Most species have a narrow bill, but otherwise the form and length are quite variable. They are small to medium-sized birds, measuring 12 to 66 cm (4.7–26.0 in) cm in length. The bills are sensitive, allowing the birds to feel the mud and sand as they probe for food. They generally have dull plumage, with cryptic brown, grey, or streaked patterns, although some display brighter colours during the breeding season.

Most species nest in open areas, and defend their territories with aerial displays. The nest itself is a simple scrape in the ground, in which the bird typically lays three or four eggs. The young of most species are precocial

Includes:

1 x Mouthpiece

1 x Glass Globe

1 x Elips Battery

1 x Atomizer

1 x USB Charger

potterest.com/pin/source-micro-globe-vape-pen-kit-wax-vap...

To include his GTI Fahrenheit, his cat Ralphie and his shirt of the day. It's like going green but a little cooler.

Tokyo Dome City (formerly known as Big Egg City prior to January 1, 2000) is an entertainment complex in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan.

It includes the world's largest roofed baseball stadium known as Tokyo Dome (nicknamed "Big Egg"), an amusement park known as Tokyo Dome City Attractions (formerly Kōrakuen Yūenchi), and Korakuen Hall. In May 2003, a spa resort known as LaQua opened for business near Tokyo Dome City Attractions. It also hosts character shows for the Super Sentai series.

The Tokyo Dome City contains the Tokyo Dome Hotel, a 43-story hotel that is easily visible from the street and from the Tokyo Subway Suidobashi Station, which is only two blocks away.

The park that includes this volcano covers 2309 hectares, its highest point being 3432 meters (approxim. 10,300 feet) above sea level. There are two theories for the name “Irazu”, one being that it’s a combination of “ara” (point) and “tzu” (thunder), and the other being that it’s named after “Istaru”, a 16th century Indian palisade built in the nearby town of Cot. The park is remarkable because of its surreal lunar landscape. There are two main craters, one is called the “Diego de la Haya” crater that contains a strangely colored lake (some days it’s light green and others it’s red) and the other is 300 meters (900 feet) deep.

City of London. Includes three of the seven tallest buildings in the UK at the time of the photo. Tower 42 (183m), 30 Mary Axe (180m) and Broadgate (161m)

©Copyright Notice

This photograph and and all those within my photostream are protected by copyright. They may not be reproduced, copied, transmitted or manipulated without written permission.

The giant sized effigy of a swashbuckling buccaneer guarding Shoreham's Crown & Anchor Pub

Taken on the phone - it did a much better job than attempts on my compact, due to the big aperture/low ISO combination

Kevin the Widewater Kestrel looking for a snack,

This is a photograph from the finish of the 6th annual Kinnegad 5KM Road Race and Fun Run 2015 which was held in the town of Kinnegad, Co. Westmeath, Ireland on Wednesday 8th July 2015 at 20:00. This race has firmly estbalished itself on the local race calender and yet again the race got wonderful support from local clubs and runners. The race is flat and fast and takes runners on traffic free route which includes 3KM on the local road 'Boreen Bradach'. The finish is on the famous main street of Kinnegad in front of Harry's Hotel. Over 200 people took part and the results by Premier Timing Systems are available here [www.premiertimingsystems.ie/]. Our full set of photographs from tonight's race is available here www.flickr.com/photos/peterm7/sets/72157653300652864

The race is organised by Coralstown Kinnegad GAA Club with proceeds from the race going towards the development of the club.

USING OUR PHOTOGRAPHS - A QUICK GUIDE AND ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS

Can I use these photographs directly from Flickr on my social media account(s)?

Yes - of course you can! Flickr provides several ways to share this and other photographs in this Flickr set. You can share directly to: email, Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Tumblr, LiveJournal, and Wordpress and Blogger blog sites. Your mobile, tablet, or desktop device will also offer you several different options for sharing this photo page on your social media outlets.

BUT..... Wait there a minute....

We take these photographs as a hobby and as a contribution to the running community in Ireland. We do not charge for our photographs. Our only "cost" is that we request that if you are using these images: (1) on social media sites such as Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, Twitter,LinkedIn, Google+, VK.com, Vine, Meetup, Tagged, Ask.fm,etc or (2) other websites, blogs, web multimedia, commercial/promotional material that you must provide a link back to our Flickr page to attribute us or acknowledge us as the original photographers.

This also extends to the use of these images for Facebook profile pictures. In these cases please make a separate wall or blog post with a link to our Flickr page. If you do not know how this should be done for Facebook or other social media please email us and we will be happy to help suggest how to link to us.

I want to download these pictures to my computer or device?

You can download this photographic image here directly to your computer or device. This version is the low resolution web-quality image. How to download will vary slight from device to device and from browser to browser. Have a look for a down-arrow symbol or the link to 'View/Download' all sizes. When you click on either of these you will be presented with the option to download the image. Remember just doing a right-click and "save target as" will not work on Flickr.

I want get full resolution, print-quality, copies of these photographs?

If you just need these photographs for online usage then they can be used directly once you respect their Creative Commons license and provide a link back to our Flickr set if you use them. For offline usage and printing all of the photographs posted here on this Flickr set are available free, at no cost, at full image resolution.

Please email petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com with the links to the photographs you would like to obtain a full resolution copy of. We also ask race organisers, media, etc to ask for permission before use of our images for flyers, posters, etc. We reserve the right to refuse a request.

In summary please remember when requesting photographs from us - If you are using the photographs online all we ask is for you to provide a link back to our Flickr set or Flickr pages. You will find the link above clearly outlined in the description text which accompanies this photograph. Taking these photographs and preparing them for online posting takes a significant effort and time. We are not posting photographs to Flickr for commercial reasons. If you really like what we do please spread the link around your social media, send us an email, leave a comment beside the photographs, send us a Flickr email, etc. If you are using the photographs in newspapers or magazines we ask that you mention where the original photograph came from.

I would like to contribute something for your photograph(s)?

Many people offer payment for our photographs. As stated above we do not charge for these photographs. We take these photographs as our contribution to the running community in Ireland. If you feel that the photograph(s) you request are good enough that you would consider paying for their purchase from other photographic providers or in other circumstances we would suggest that you can provide a donation to any of the great charities in Ireland who do work for Cancer Care or Cancer Research in Ireland.

Let's get a bit technical: We use Creative Commons Licensing for these photographs

We use the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License for all our photographs here in this photograph set. What does this mean in reality?

The explaination is very simple.

Attribution- anyone using our photographs gives us an appropriate credit for it. This ensures that people aren't taking our photographs and passing them off as their own. This usually just mean putting a link to our photographs somewhere on your website, blog, or Facebook where other people can see it.

ShareAlike – anyone can use these photographs, and make changes if they like, or incorporate them into a bigger project, but they must make those changes available back to the community under the same terms.

Above all what Creative Commons aims to do is to encourage creative sharing. See some examples of Creative Commons photographs on Flickr: www.flickr.com/creativecommons/

I ran in the race - but my photograph doesn't appear here in your Flickr set! What gives?

As mentioned above we take these photographs as a hobby and as a voluntary contribution to the running community in Ireland. Very often we have actually ran in the same race and then switched to photographer mode after we finished the race. Consequently, we feel that we have no obligations to capture a photograph of every participant in the race. However, we do try our very best to capture as many participants as possible. But this is sometimes not possible for a variety of reasons:

     ►You were hidden behind another participant as you passed our camera

     ►Weather or lighting conditions meant that we had some photographs with blurry content which we did not upload to our Flickr set

     ►There were too many people - some races attract thousands of participants and as amateur photographs we cannot hope to capture photographs of everyone

     ►We simply missed you - sorry about that - we did our best!

You can email us petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com to enquire if we have a photograph of you which didn't make the final Flickr selection for the race. But we cannot promise that there will be photograph there. As alternatives we advise you to contact the race organisers to enquire if there were (1) other photographs taking photographs at the race event or if (2) there were professional commercial sports photographers taking photographs which might have some photographs of you available for purchase. You might find some links for further information above.

Don't like your photograph here?

That's OK! We understand!

If, for any reason, you are not happy or comfortable with your picture appearing here in this photoset on Flickr then please email us at petermooney78 AT gmail DOT com and we will remove it as soon as possible. We give careful consideration to each photograph before uploading.

I want to tell people about these great photographs!

Great! Thank you! The best link to spread the word around is probably http://www.flickr.com/peterm7/sets

Friday morning at the Goodwood Revival

There was a "closure" on part of the Kirkstone pass today due to a "bike race". Turned out to be the Helvellyn Triathlon - one of the world's toughest, a swim in Ullswater, the cycle part included the ascent of the "struggle" and finally the run up Helvellyn itself

www.trihard.co.uk/events/helvellyn-triathlon/

HUD include:

SUIT

Mesh - 5 standard sizes

alpha layer

change 4 textures

here -->

marketplace.secondlife.com/p/BG-Womens-Mesh-Suit-Alice-Fl...

or

maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Saint%20Pengo/203/101/23

karreekloofsafarilodge.co.za - The Lodge offers a variety of stylish accommodation, which includes seven en-suites rooms, two self-catering units, one unit with two rooms and one unit with three rooms.

Our beautifully new furnished rooms are equipped with tea and coffee facilities, a room safe and hair dryer. All rooms are air-conditioned and have international plug adapters for your comfort. Daily laundry services are available upon request.

Lodge have large comfortable dining areas and outdoor barbecues areas.

You can relax in the lounge area in front of the fireplace. Please make use of our well-stocked bar and satellite TV. You can also feel comfortable with free WIFI and cell phone reception. The beautiful swimming pool offers cool relaxation after a sunny day.

Facilities:

7 En-suite bedrooms

2 Self-catering units

Large and comfortable dining areas

Outdoor barbecue area

Lounge area with fireplace

Well stocked bar and satellite TV

Swimming pool

Amenities:

Tea and coffee facilities

Room safe

Hair dryers

Air-conditioning

International plug adapters

Daily laundry service upon request

Karreekloof Safari Lodge | Strydenburg | South Africa - We offer you a luxury eco-lodge accommodation in the Northern Cape.

Office Telephone: 087 135 3404

GPS Information: 29° 48' 48.0'' S 23° 23' 01.7'' E

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The Norooz holiday season includes several symbolic and meaningful celebrations and rituals begining with the last Wednesday of the year, called the Chahar Shanbe Soori (translation yields "Wednesday Fire").On Tuesday evening (the night before the last Wednesday) every family celebrates the Chahar Shanbe Soori.

At the center of this traditional celebration is giving thanks for the fortune of having made it through another healthy year and to exchange any remaining paleness and evil with the life and warmth of the fire. Chahar Shanbe Soori is deeply rooted in Iranians' Zoroastrian past (Persian people's dominant religion prior to Islam). The part of this night especially popular with the youngsters is the bonfire. Every family gathers several piles of wood or brush to be lit shortly after the sunset.

All family members line up and take turns jumping safely along (and over) the burning piles, singing to the fire:

"Sorkheeyeh toe az man; zardeeyeh man az toe."

This translates to:

"Your redness (health) is mine; my paleness (pain) is yours."

Although a recent addition and generally against the law in the urban areas, the sights and sounds of fireworks are very common to this night.

Another routine of the Chahar Shanbe Soori festival is the Iranian version of Trick or Treating associated with the Western Halloween night. Flocks of often young trick or treaters, hidden under a traditional Chador (veil) go from door to door banging a spoon against a metal bowl asking for treats or money.

Another old and almost obsolete Chahar Shanbe Soori ritual is Falgoosh (fortune hearing!) This ritual was carried out usually by young women wanting to know their chances of finding the "Mr. Right" in the coming year. Falgoosh is the act of standing in a dark corner spot or behind a fence and listening to the conversations of the passers by and trying to interpret their statements or the subject of their dialogue as an answer to one's question(s)! This is analogous to calling a psychic reader to find out your fortune!!!

In the past several decades falgoosh has gradually become an almost unacceptable and "politically incorrect" ritual and is seldom practiced in the major urban areas.

Looking back at the 2019 Goodwood Festival of Speed

Ulster Rugby has teamed up with children's charity Include Youth for a two-year official charity partnership.

Pictured left to right: Wiehahn Herbst; Andon Shqypi (18), Give & Take Belfast participant; Paddy Mooney, Director at Include Youth; Jemma Monteith (18), Give & Take Ards participant; John McKibbin, IRFU (Ulster Branch) President; Tommy Bowe; and Rodney Ah You.

Picture credit: John Dickson / DICKSONDIGITAL

Includes one with a faithful reproduction of the paintjob on Janice Joplin's Porsche. Frame 1577

Pic Blanc (Envalira), Encamp, Vall d'Orient, Andorra, Pyrenees

Pic Blanc includes the technical infrastructure of legendary "Radio Andorra", a famous private music emitter of 20th century 1939-1981. Very nostagic via the announcer "Aquí Radio Andorra!“. Editorial work had been done in Encamp. Will it come back? Check our actual "Radio Andorra" image results: www.flickr.com/search/?user_id=8013880%40N06&sort=dat...

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Includes a new dog/jackal head

Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae. There are six to seven species of swan in the genus Cygnus; in addition there is another species known as a swan, the Coscoroba Swan, although this species is no longer considered related to the true swans. Swans usually mate for life, though 'divorce' does sometimes occur, particularly following nesting failure. The number of eggs in each clutch ranges from three to eight.

The word "swan" is derived from Old English swan, akin to the German Schwan and Dutch zwaan, in turn derived from Indo-European root *swen (to sound, to sing), whence Latin derives sonus (sound).[1] Young swans are known as cygnets, from the Latin word for swan, cygnus. An adult male is a cob, from Middle English cobbe (leader of a group); an adult female is a pen.

The swans are the largest members of the duck family Anatidae, and are amongst the largest flying birds. The largest species, including the mute swan, trumpeter swan, and whooper swan, can reach length of over 60 inches and weigh up to 50 pounds. Their wingspans can be almost 10 ft (3 m). Compared to the closely related geese they are much larger in size and have proportionally larger feet and necks.[2] They also have a patch of unfeathered skin between the eyes and bill in adults. The sexes are alike in plumage, but males are generally bigger and heavier than females.

The Northern Hemisphere species of swan have pure white plumage but the Southern Hemisphere species are mixed black and white. The Australian Black Swan (Cygnus atratus) is completely black except for the white flight feathers on its wings; the chicks of black swans are light grey in colour, and the South American Black-necked Swan has a black neck.

The legs of swans are normally a dark blackish grey colour, except for the two South American species, which have pink legs. Bill colour varies: the four subarctic species have black bills with varying amounts of yellow, and all the others are patterned red and black. The Mute Swan and Black-necked Swan have a lump at the base of the bill on the upper mandible.

Whooper Swans migrate from Iceland, Scandinavia and northern Russia to Europe, Central Asia, China and JapanThe swans are generally found in temperate environments, rarely occurring in the tropics. Four (or five) species occur in the Northern Hemisphere, one species is found in Australia and New Zealand and a final species is distributed in southern South America. They are absent from tropical Asia, Central America, northern South America and the entirety of Africa. One species, the Mute Swan, has been introduced to North America, Australia and New Zealand.

Several species are migratory, either wholly or partly so. The Mute Swan is a partial migrant, being resident over areas of Western Europe but wholly migratory in Eastern Europe and Asia. The Whooper Swan and Tundra Swan are wholly migratory, and the Trumpeter Swans are almost entirely migratory.[2] There is some evidence that the Black-necked Swan is migratory over part of its range, but detailed studies have not established whether these movements are long or short range migration.

Swans feed in the water and on land. They are almost entirely herbivorous, although small numbers of aquatic animals may be eaten. In the water food is obtained by up-ending or dabbling, and their diet is composed of the roots, tubers, stems and leaves of aquatic and submerged plants.

Mute Swan's nest with two unhatched eggsSwans form monogamous pair bonds that last for many years. In many cases these pair bonds can last for life, but 'divorces' between pairs do occur.[4] Modern genetic techniques are starting to reveal that these divorces are more common than previously thought.[5] These bonds are maintained year round, even in gregarious and migratory species like the Tundra Swan, which congregate in large flocks in the wintering grounds.[6] The nest is on the ground near water and about a metre across. Unlike many other ducks and geese the male helps with the nest construction. Average egg size (for the mute swan) is 113 x 74 mm, weighing 340 g, in a clutch size of 4 to 7, and an incubation period of 34–45 days.[7] With the exception of the whistling-ducks they are the only anatids where the males aid in incubating the eggs.

Mute swans have been observed to display homosexual or transgender behavior.

All evidence suggests that the genus Cygnus evolved in Europe or western Eurasia during the Miocene, spreading all over the Northern Hemisphere until the Pliocene. When the southern species branched off is not known. The Mute Swan apparently is closest to the Southern Hemisphere Cygnus (del Hoyo et al., eds, Handbook of the Birds of the World); its habits of carrying the neck curved (not straight) and the wings fluffed (not flush) as well as its bill color and knob indicate that its closest living relative is actually the Black Swan. Given the biogeography and appearance of the subgenus Olor it seems likely that these are of a more recent origin, as evidence shows by their modern ranges (which were mostly uninhabitable during the last ice age) and great similarity between the taxa.

Cigno è il nome comune di alcuni grandi, bianchi uccelli acquatici dal lungo collo flessuoso, facenti parte del genere Cygnus della famiglia degli Anatidi.

Presente con varie specie e sottospecie in tutto il mondo. Le rive dello specchio d'acqua devono essere in lieve pendio per consentire ai cigni d'entrare ed uscire agevolmente dall'acqua. Inoltre il terreno dev'essere dotato d'un prato verde dove i cigni possano "pascolare" allegramente.

Grigi alla nascita, diventano bianchi solo da adulti. Il cigno reale (Cygnus olor) si può osservare in Italia, con la sua notevole apertura alare di 200-240 cm. Il cigno selvatico (Cygnus cygnus) è presente nel Nord-Europa e sverna anche sulle coste orientali dell'Adriatico. Le dimensioni sono praticamente uguali a quelle del cigno reale. La Finlandia lo ha scelto come effigie sulle nuove monete da un Euro. Il cigno minore (Cygnus colombianus, con la sottospecie bewickii) è presente solo in Nord-Europa. Come suggerisce il nome, è più piccolo delle due specie precedenti (ca. 20% più piccolo).

Non sporca, non arreca alcun fastidio, non emette suoni se non un lieve sibilo che s'ode appena (tanto che in passato si riteneva che fosse muto). Se nel laghetto vi sono pesci, non li molesta. Difficile è invece, la sua convivenza con i consimili (come le anatre) perché ha un carattere litigioso e dispotico.

I cigni formano coppie che restano unite tutta la vita: nidificano tra i canneti, dove la femmina cova per circa un mese da 4 a 8 uova azzurrognole, mentre il maschio fa la guardia al nido. Alla nascita e fino al raggiungimento dell'età adulta i giovani cigni mantengono un piumaggio assai poco attraente (in genere d'un colore grigiastro simile a quello d'un uccello bianco passato attraverso un camino sporco di fuliggine) ma assai più mimetico - ed utile quindi alla sopravvivenza - di quello, bello ma vistoso, degli adulti.

I cigni sono uccelli essenzialmente erbivori, infatti, si nutrono in prevalenza di piante acquatiche e palustri che strappano dal fondo con il becco. Mentre la maggior parte degli uccelli acquatici deve tuffarsi sott'acqua alla ricerca del cibo, il cigno può tranquillamente esplorare la vegetazione sottostante fino ad un metro di profondità, grazie al suo lunghissimo collo. A volte "pascolano" sulla terraferma e lungo le rive cibandosi di erbe, radici e semi. In realtà la loro dieta non è strettamente vegetariana: infatti, insieme alle erbe ingurgitano anche un buon numero di piccoli animaletti acquatici ad esse associati (crostacei, larve d'insetti e lumachine). Sono poi dei grandi opportunisti, ghiotti di pane (soprattutto se inzuppato nel latte, pastoni per le anatre o destinati ad altri animali, farina d'orzo, riso cotto, biscotti, mais, patate cotte, frutti, crusca, verdure (soprattutto crude), ortaggi vari e perfino carne in minuscoli bocconi mescolati al pastone. In cattività spesso il cibo viene servito in un capiente contenitore di legno e plastica che può essere posato in terra oppure messo a galleggiare sull'acqua.

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After the snow and ice, things got a bit foggy when this NASCAR appeared - 76th Members' Meeeting, Goodwood.

From Supercar Sunday - the theme of May's Goodwood Breakfast Club. The nose of a Ferrari 458 Speciale

Aristoteles: De historia animalium [Greek]. Includes nineteen tracts of Aristotle, some not genuine, and five of Theophrastus. Edited by Aldus Manutius with the assistance of Franciscus Caballus. Venice: Aldus Manutius, Romanus, 29 Jan. 1497. Front cover of binding: England, 18th-century gold-tooled red morocco, bound by Christopher Chapman. On both covers double fillets form a frame, within which is an ornamental roll (Nixon, ‘Harleian bindings’, pl. 14, Chapman roll 5); the lozenge-shaped centre-piece frequently found on the covers of Harleian bindings is absent. The head and tail of the spine are decorated with Nixon, ‘Harleian bindings’, pl. 14, Chapman roll 2, and the spine compartments are decorated with several individual tools including Nixon, ‘Harleian bindings’, pl. 15, Chapman no. 8; the edges and turn-ins are decorated with Chapman roll 2; marbled endpapers; edges of leaves left plain. Although associated with Chapman, this copy is not identifiable with the Harleian copy of the Aldine Aristotle, since it does not match Thomas Osborne’s description “foliis deaurat. & Lineis rubris” in his Catalogus bibliothecae Harleianae, vol. 1 (1743) no. 5373, and vol. 3 (1744) no. 935. Size: 322 x 220 mm. Sp Coll Old Library Bh10-d.11.