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The Yellow Bandana. Yes, Kathy has it on her head to cover her hair. We have discussed this picture on numerous occasions and have always wondered about the Yellow Bandana. We collected bits and pieces of the story and have been able to put together what we consider as the best possible and logical explanation. We were to be going out on a date in the southern Massachusetts area. When Kathy found that I was going to be late getting home, she agreed to come to our house in Wapping and save a fair amount of time from my driving down to get her and then coming back almost to where we started. She had a great idea as she usually did. She was always thinking and some of her thoughts were just about the best ever. Since she had the afternoon off, she was able to come over quite early. My mother had not made it home by the time she arrived and the house was all closed up. It was a very warm day and with the lack of air conditioning in her car, actually it was quite rare to have air conditioning in a car. It was too hot to sit in the car and she got out and headed for the cool shade of one of the apple trees on the side of the property. Since all the neighbors are close, it was not surprising when Mrs. Nova from next door came over to she how she was doing. Now Mrs. Nova was some lady, she was very smart and had grown up on the type of practical experience you can only get from living life to its fullest. She immediately determined that Kathy had a case of what she called farmer’s heat stroke setting in. She had seen a lot of it when she went out into the fields to bring the guys their lunch. It didn’t take much investigation to spot a case like hers from miles away. She was not just a wise lady but she was also a very take charge type person and she knew what had to be done and when. This is pretty much the way she ran her whole life, she wasn’t always in charge but you could sure not prove it by most people in the area when she wanted something done. You did what she said and asked questions later. Besides anybody coming down with the farmer’s heat stoke wasn’t in a good position to do her own thinking. Mrs. Nova told Kathy she had to immediately cool off and the best way to do it was to clear the chickens away and take a nice refreshing dip in the good ole-swimming hole. As Mrs. Nova was in the process of throwing her in, Kathy objected, she didn’t want to get her hair and clothes all wet; well that is how her side of the story goes. In talking to Mrs. Nova later I found that she was responsible for rescuing the clothing, as she was well aware it was her only outfit and one lady to another and the outfit understanding is there. Like the old rule says, do almost anything, but don’t mess up a ladies outfit when she is ready for a date and has already spent hours figuring out the best combination to wear. That was about the only piece of the story that I was able to get from our wonderful neighbor next door, sort of like the code of don’t kiss and tell, she was more don’t make well and tell, just do it, probably where Nike got it’s slogan but that could be another story. Well suffice it to say she kept her clothes dry, but her hair sure got wet. I think that the first dunking got the hair wet, and after about the fifth dunking it was just totally saturated and the water and hair spray mixture must have been something to see. In any event the new look was really something to see. A little bit of skinny-dipping goes a long way in keeping the clothes dry for the approaching date. Once she settled into the water she found it quite relaxing. The whole setting could almost be considered spa-like. The apple trees in the orchard helped freshen the air and with the chickens and rooster making their standard farm sounds and the addition of a few birds it could only be compared to some of the sounds of nature CD’s that spas sell for the extra relaxation step. To say the whole experience bordered on hypnotic would be putting it mildly. As she floated in the water without a care in the world, her thoughts were like the wisps of clouds in the blue sky above, few and far between and nothing serious or requiring any attention. As Mrs’ Nova stood on the shore she knew her job was done and another success it was. She saw the look on Kathy’s face in the water as the sun glistened on her gorgeous (my description) body and she knew that all was right with the world. She straightened her clothes and hung them on natures coat hanger by the side of the pool of comforting water. Mrs. Nova knew she was safe and would not be going anywhere before she got back with a luxuriously soft towel to soak up all of nature’s remedies on this grandly successful day. ,The dunking and the soaking was a smashing success and she cooled right down; you might say her wickedly hot body was now cool to the touch, although nothing can take away the hot that she always has glowing around her. Who knows how long she lounged around in the garden of happiness. It was the place that cooled the body, settled the mind and rejuvenated the spirit, maybe these spas really do know what they are talking about, but this one was all pure nature. From the natural spring fed pool of crystal clear water to the beauty of the sky above and all with the sound of nature playing on God’s own little turntable. Relaxed, boy was she relaxed. Mrs. Nova gave her approval and Kathy was back on track to getting ready for her date. That Mrs’ Nova is one incredible person, as I mentioned she has the wealth of life’s experiences to use as her reference library, a computer like mind with just about any event she ever saw or participated in right on the edge of her mind just waiting for the opportunity to pull out and use. To sit with her under a tree and take the chance to listen would almost guarantee a period of time when the clock stops and the world spins to a totally different drummer; boy could she spin a tale, except in her case the tales were true and more mind grabbing than anything you could find in any novel, even the best of the best top shelf books. Nothing beats real life in it’s adventures and unbelievable acts of everyday actions. Just like Art Linkletter used to say that kids say the darndest things, it is also true that it’s the realty of life itself that never ceases to amaze and entertain the mind. In the earlier times and less frequently today, people would settle back on the ground and look into the night’s sky for the latest Broadway productions, or the best love stories. The stars above held the stories that grasped the hearts and minds of many s the mind allowed itself to be absorbed into the imagination of all time. It was like the serial movies they played in the movie theaters of your grandparents with snippets of action only to stop as the main character reached the edge of a high cliff or other precarious situation, and then pick back up the following week. In this case it was only necessary to looks to the heavens on another night and the story continued, almost the forerunner of today’s Ipod, you could take it with you and watch it from any spot you happened to be, except no batteries required and the only charging was the way it charged and filled your mind with wonderment. I think I might be getting a little far of field here. To summarize, Kathy was hot, still is hot, she was cooled and hypnotized, and placed back into realty. The skinny dipping part is for sure, but keep in mind, Mrs. Nova’s garden of Eden is as private as is beautiful and you could think no different of the skinny-dipping here as compare to skinny-dipping when you take a bath or shower, all pure natural and not the prime element of the story, although as I float through the story and let it entangled my mind, I find that to be one of the areas that paints quite the picture, but nobody else look, that is my story and my picture of happiness. My mother came home and gave her the yellow bandana to cover her hair, pretty much end of story. By the time I got there she was cool as a cucumber and ready to go. We thanked Mrs. Nova for all her help and brought her back a little something from our date. In the interest of time, we did not awaken her soul and the outpouring of her mind on that day, but there were others, I guess that’s what makes the memories, a story shared becomes the memories to pass on, even if they get a little expanded on, after all what is a good fish story without the fish getting a little bigger with each telling. The foundation of the memory never changes but sometimes they just need to be updated with a fresh coat of paint or maybe a little redecorating, all’s fair in love, war and the story of the memory. Everything worked out for the best and we did our best to put the yellow bandana into the back reaches of our minds. This is about the best recollection that we have, and it is entirely possible that it did not happen this way at all. Sometimes you just never know.
Whenever possible, I would commission or buy a sample of writing from the scribes I interviwed for my field work. Here, one of the scribes writes a colophon on a sample of his work that was surplus to another project.
ordering: lea sp. tan +wig (and sleepy head most likely), haru mystic tan +outfit, lumi oe tan fullset (both sets of black wings)
so tempted to get haru in ns too...but wow! too many this time! +cute accessories!! anyone with an extra mystic ns haru head? a girl can dream!!
would really like to put Lumi on the tan SP body too, if anyone wants to plan a trade for later, please let me know. I'm in Australia for shipping, thought I'd mention. update: **pretty sure I've found a trade**
Also, not getting Lumi's tan mystic head, so if anyone wants it, I'd be happy to add it to my order for you. I know I'm already in for a long wait getting one doll fullset! edit: found trades/friends who wanted the rest.
adding a note for easy remembering after a long wait!
Haru wig trade with Claudette for Lumi wig
Haru OE head + lg wings to mimi
Lea's outfit ... waiting to hear
Lumi's 16cm body trade for SP body ... still in the works
Bali is one of the few places on earth made visually stunning by its main economic activity. In no other locale of the island does this hold truer than in the Tabanan District of west Bali where the cascading rice terraces of Jatiluwih are the most striking feature of the agricultural landscape, claiming even slopes that look too formidable to be of any possible use.
Along with majestic Pekerisan River in Gianyar and the stately Taman Ayun Temple in Mengwi, Jatiluwih has been chosen as a new nominee as a World Heritage site. It’s a great honor for Bali to have its natural and cultural wonders included, as the sites will take their place right along side world-famous Borobudur, Prambanan, the Sangiran archaeological site, Ujung Kulon, Lorentz and Komodo national parks, and the tropical rainforests of Sumatra.
The achingly picturesque area of Jatiluwih actually comprises not only rice fields but also forests, lakes, springs, temples and a huge natural mountain reserve scattered over a wide area around the slopes Mount Batukaru, a sacred landscape whose boundaries are defined by a cluster of temples supported by traditional villages and farmlands administered by age-old subak organizations, the local water boards.
This site is among the most striking examples of terraced agriculture in the world and is arguably Bali’s oldest and most complex real-life model of the subak agricultural system which vividly reflects the intertwined, mutually beneficial relationship between the island’s traditional rice growing culture and its Bali Hindu spiritual belief system.
Bali’s terracing and irrigation practices are even more elaborate, sophisticated, and seasonably predictable than those on Java. Though beautiful rice field terraces also can also be found in Sumatra and Sulawesi, there is no irrigation organization in Indonesia comparable to Bali’s water conservation and distribution system. Only the 2000-year-old Ifugao rice terraces of the Philippines can hold a candle to Jatiluwih.
As it exemplifies such effective water usage over centuries, Bali’s famed environmentally friendly subak system itself is being considered for the World Heritage list. The effort to get the subak system listed to World Heritage status is especially urgent in the face of widespread diversion of agricultural lands. Over the past 20 years Bali lost more than 1,500 ha of precious rice fields to make way for the development of tourist resorts, restaurants, housing complexes, road construction and other commercial enterprises.
The Realm of Dewi Sri
Jatiluwih is one big sculpture. Because of the Tabanan area’s superb drainage pattern, the high volcanic ash content, and the island’s equable climate, conditions for traditional sawah cultivation exemplified by Jatiluwih’s terraces are perhaps the most ideal in all of Bali.
Rice growing is practiced as both an art and a science. Bali’s steep and narrow ravines, as typified especially in the western part of Jatiluwih, are not easy to dam. To remedy this problem, the area’s farmers have devised an ingenious system of hand-built aqueducts, small catchments, and underground canals to collect rainwater from Bali’s mountain lakes, spilling each farmer’s precious allotment of water onto tiers of paddy via thousands of tiny waterfalls.
Jatiluwih’s rice fields are irrigated by water that is sometimes channeled by tunnels through solid rock hillsides. Water needs high on the ridges often require tunnels two or three kilometers long. This complex irrigation system, continuously maintained, groomed, and plowed, has been developed over many centuries. The historical manuscript, the Bebetin, records that Balinese farmers have used the Subak system since at least 1071.
Some scholars have postulated that it is due to the expertise of Bali’s rice farmers that the Balinese have been able to support such a refined civilization with such a theatrical and colorful religion. The discipline required to share water and resources has created a remarkably cooperative way of life. Rugged individualists cannot exist in communities where every farmer is utterly dependent on the cooperation of his neighbors.
The word for rice (nasi), a staple of the Balinese diet, is the same word for “meal”. A Balinese cannot imagine a meal without rice. Specialized vocabularies deal with every aspect of rice farming, and a huge amount of time, energy, and money go into petitioning the gods so the rice farmer’s work may yield good results. Popping up everywhere in Jatiluwih’s rice terraces you see small temples dedicated to Dewi Sri, the beloved goddess of rice.
I'm think about updating the BrickUltra layout. I feel it looks more modern and is less cluttered than the previous version. Currently this is a concept design so definitely tell me what you think?
Bridgeport police investigate apparent Santeria curse
Noelle Frampton, STAFF WRITER
Published: 11:17 p.m., Wednesday, April 21, 2010
BRIDGEPORT -- In the latest of several incidents of apparent occult practice in the city, police are investigating what they believe was a Santeria curse against a Derby man -- in the form of dead, headless roosters and other animal parts.
Stuffed with some kind of root and sewn up, the two beheaded roosters were found last week, hanging by their feet about 10 feet up from a tree near the intersection of Housatonic Avenue and Grand Street, according to police and paranormal investigators.
At the base of the tree was a bag containing a black knit cap and a box cutter, and nearby there were three coconut halves in a semi-circle, an apparent sheep's jawbone and a snakeskin, said Nicole Hall, a paranormal investigator with CT Soul Seekers Paranormal Investigations.
Animal control was notified on Wednesday, and a patrol officer was later called to the scene.
The matter is still under investigation and no charges have been filed, said Sgt. James Myers, who is also a paranormal investigator.
Preliminarily, it appears the curse was linked to a dispute between a man who works near the spot where the roosters were found and his ex-girlfriend, according to Hall, who visited the scene and talked to the man's wife.
The disputing pair was due to appear in court soon because the man recently discovered that the teenage son he'd been supporting all of his life wasn't his and is suing for back child support, Hall said.
The ex-girlfriend apparently set up the curse with offerings to a Santerian god and symbols related to money, as well as negative wishes toward the man. She called to inform him of it early last week, Hall said.
Reached at home Wednesday evening, the man, whose name was withheld to protect his privacy, declined comment.
In the past year, the city has seen an upswing in incidents involving occult activity, Myers said, noting numerous times he's gone to city homes and noticed symbolism related to Voodoo and Santeria, a Caribbean religion that combines elements of West African Yoruba and Roman Catholicism.
Last June, officers found a human skull, a beheaded chicken, chickens' blood and other animal parts in a Madison Avenue basement during a drug raid. The next month, there were two human skulls in a circular blanket of loose dirt and bloody papers with names on them at Mountain Grove Cemetery. And just days later, the body of a 2-year-old girl stolen from her Stamford grave showed up in a New Jersey river with chicken bones nearby.
Police believed all three incidents may have involved Santeria or similar religious rituals, but weren't connected.
A police report indicates that the ex-girlfriend, who lives in Bridgeport, may also have been involved in the Mountain Grove ritual.
Myers declined to comment on whether there is a criminal element to the apparent curse, saying that such cases, in general, can be tricky because people have a legal right to freely practice the religion of their choice.
"You have that fine line," he said. "When does it become animal cruelty? When does it become harassment? You have to really, really watch that line. People have Constitutional rights for a purpose."
Due to the apparent increase in occult activity in Bridgeport, Myers is advocating for city police training in occult identification so officers "know what they're actually looking at when they go out into the field."
Hall said the man's wife told her she'd found other evidence of possible curses around their home and "in the past few months or so, they've had nothing but bad luck."
She said the couple has renewed their attendance at a Catholic church and asked that their house be blessed by a priest.
"That's the best thing they can do," she said, adding that she believes people can protect themselves against spiritual curses through their own beliefs.
Marci Fernino, a sensitive with CT Soul Seekers, said the man "doesn't want to put any belief in" the curse, and went as far as to assert that "Somebody can't curse you if you don't believe in it and your faith is strong enough and you don't let that happen."
There is an element of mind-over-matter in such cases, Myers said, but "it really doesn't matter if the person believes or doesn't believe."
Some people don't believe in paranormal or occult activity, he said, but their opinions don't determine whether it is real: "There are things beyond us that we can't explain; it doesn't mean they're not there."
Even so, he said the curse was directed toward a specific goal and should not cause alarm to the general public.
we, the invisibles, November 10-20, 2022, Scene Dock Theatre. ©2022 Photos by Brian Feinzimer/Capture Imaging for the USC School of Dramatic Arts.
Possible Langkawi Island Endemic
Found by Dr Fazley Rahim, UKM
@ 750' above sea level, Gunung Raya, Langkawi Island
Rassemblement de vieux tracteurs à la pointe Saint-Mathieu.
Possiblement de ce type:
Ca pourrait être ce model, mais sans certitude:
www.tracteursanciensdiroise.fr/index.php?option=com_conte...
Technical type :7050
Start :01/03/1960
End : 01/06/1964
Nb build : 17402
www.atr-agri.com/cata_ta.asp?rech=&TypeFiche=&Lib...
En arrière plan et très flou: un Lanz Bulldog (mais un des années 30 40 ou 50?)
www.tract-old-engines.com/old_lanz.htm
www.tracteursanciensdiroise.fr/index.php?option=com_conte... ????
Just a quick render for a Rogue design I made a couple of months ago. The leather jacket is just a recreation of a TLG design (I think it was red hood from Batman 3 game).
for the final figure I would try to find a paint that matches the brown of the jacket to paint the sides of the torso and the arms.
Or I simply use a brown torso...
Is it possible to be happier than when you go home and suddenly you see a super cute package waiting for you?
And when you can tell from miles away that it´s from Sugarelf?
AWW!!! All those incredibly cute things were inside that beautiful little red polka dot box with the elegant black ribbon.
I had to blink and rub my eyes a thousand times to make sure that amount of cuteness was real!
THANK YOU, my beloved Christine, thank you forever and ever! You´ve just made my summer a thousand times better! Only a thousand?!?! No, many, many times more!!! ♥
This is something very strange I found in the RTRC (a Cars rip-off show) episode, "Roary Goes Back to School". Maxi wins a race and Tin Top praises him for winning the race and Cici comes along and praises Maxi too, and she affectionately calls him "Cherie"! Would you say it's a "non-romantic" nickname or a possible hint of attraction? (Not you Roary, Maxi! And Maxi, if you're watching this, DON'T YOU F***ING DARE STEAL ROARY'S GIRL!)
We tend to box fashion into decades as if fashion suddenly changes from one decade to other, just like that. Snap. We must remember that there's a flow of social changes and these changes are mirrored by fashion. So we can recognize what's 20s or 30s.
But we must remember that fashion didn’t change radically in 1919 or 1929. In the case of the 1920s, fashion was brewing some radical changes. Since the 1910s, the world was still rather stiff. Society was quite stable at that point.
But the war in 1914 was a huge engine of change. It changed women, what they did and how they dressed. It changed her role in society. Ladies started working. Fine ladies would to volunteer work during the war. Common ladies were used to work anyway ;)
Anyway, it was a rather timid start but the war years changed people's values. Fashion, that was something specially made to make women look like virginal dolls or beautiful matrons...turned into a way of expression, self-expression and freedom.
We can see this first slide. It shows the beginnings of what we recognize as modern fashion
1920s. Skirts were shorter. Breasts were still important. Women should look like women. Young women still tried to look as angelic and pure as possible.
But then the 1920s brought us this revolution. Was it the beginning of the youth culture? Probably yes. 1920s shapes were simple. Shift dresses - much shorter than anything people used to wear before. Waists were loose. Breasts were flattened. It released women from the corset. That corset that made women look like matrons. Of course we like to think
that women in the 1920s didn’t wear corsets and their bodies were free...well, not exactly.
To achieve this silhouette, ladies had to flatten their boobs and diet a lot! Think of the radical change that happened in such a short period of time! Not long ago women were virgins or mothers. Suddenly women wanted to look young - look like boys! The industrial revolution, tarts in general, all gave plenty of inspiration to fashion...streamlined shapes...the sense of speed...of futurisme...the taste for the exotic. New places that could be reached, places that people could visit and take photos and share them. Aviation was a big novelty.
Everything that was too round was considered old. Foreheads were a big no-no! Cloche hats had to be as close to the eyebrows as possible. It was a defiant look. Girls had to lift their heads to look at people - can you imagine that 20 years before? My old father used to say that the girls in the 20s looked ridiculous. He was very conservative. He used to say that many girls got ran over by trams because they couldn’t look the street when crossing.
Older ladies quickly emulated the looks. But we can say, without any doubt, that 1920s fashion was hugely influenced by the young and their desire for fun, speed. We can say that the 20s and the 30s gave us modern fashion, at least in spirit and freedom. Well, you can see haircuts
how short they became. Suddenly long locks were so old! Girls queued in front of barber shops
they wanted it a la garconne! They wanted it short and boyish, please.
Now, I must remember you, before you think that I’m telling you that everybody went wild in the 1920s - no. This would be a quick assumption. Many women still kept her long locks but they tried to disguise it to look more modern ;) There’s certainly a class factor to be taken into consideration.
Fashion in the 20s was "easy.” Just a shift dress. You could buy patterns and make your own dress at home. It was liberating to a certain extent. It was easy and simple.
Of course, high fashion was there and that shift dress would turn into something exquisitely embroidered, lavishly trimmed with fur, beads, new colour variations and combinations. But
the general idea was of simplicity and movement! Dresses couldn’t be stiff! They had to flow and move and shake. People wanted to dance, they wanted to sparkle!
So we can say that in less than ten years, we jumped from this beginning to a new vision of fashion. Note the stockings. Rayon was getting big. The idea was to look as if you had naked legs. Many stockings were embroidered and embellished.
Another thing that I’d like you to observe: the shadow cast by the hat on the eyes. This was something that defined the make up. Girls wanted smoky eyes, little mouths, big sad eyes full of drama...heavy. Make up was happily applied in public. Wonderful cases for powder had to be shown ;) There was a variety of lipstick colours, too.
Chanel herself in this slide, showing a simple way of being elegant in modern times...pearls, loose silhouette...short hair.
Evening looks were much more elaborate. This beautifully embroidered dress defines the 20s very well.
A bit more of chanel's simplicity - a fashionable look, big eyes, delicate tiny mouth, a touch of futurisme.
This is Asta Nielsen. Early 20s outfit, practically no mouth, wild wild hair.
This is great example of a cocoon coat. Note the collar, very high. Imagine the profile. Very high collar, cloche hat - that was the look !
Berlin, specifically berlin, was incredibly wild. Girls in centres like this - i mean bad girls - wanted to impress. I can even compare their spirit to the 1970s punks. They smoked in public, they went wild on make up, they behaved outrageously. Good family girls didn’t go to these extremes. But you can have an idea of the amount of information that was around - I mean fashion information.
This slide shows a Chanel dress. It exemplifies the modern elegance of the 1920s - for a wealthy lady of course. Note the knees, almost showing. Please, there’s a common misconception that knees and thighs were exposed in the 1920s. This is so wrong. Short hemlines were trendy between 1926 and 1928, then they quickly went down again.
A fantastic coat. Not every woman was a flapper but the flapper influenced every single woman on earth.
Sequins, beads - all very fashionable - as well as oriental prints and silks. By the end of the decade, with depression boiling, times of crisis and changes, fashion started changing again. We can see how a time of excesses started to be replaced by a new interest in old values. Like some old shapes came back and society became a bit more conservative.
Well, if we see Berlin as an example we can see how crisis led society to old ways. But let me change my slide for the 1930s now and we can see how many important changes happened.
The 1930s: the transition of the decades. You can observe the waist coming back to the body. kirt were longer, more feminine. Hair started to be long again. Not short and free but carefully combed and arranged. It’s remarkable how in times of crisis and depression, people try to look important and respectable, isn’t it?
Typical 1930s shape - much longer skirts, waists, the beginning of the shoulders....
fashion industry was much more established. Make up and magazines were not only for the elite. Cinema had a huge impact in how women wanted to look.
The artificiality of the 1920s make up was replaced by the idea of health and beauty. No more sad heavy eyes, no more cabaret vamps. Girls wanted to look healthy, to show their shape.
Lingerie wasn’t there to flatten boobs but to disguise the bad parts ;) Controlling lingerie to build a perfect and healthy body. At the end women never gave up on corsets :)) The cinema divas were inspiring. Marlene, who was once threatened in paris because of cross dressing, was free to cross dress now. Elegant women wanted to look rich and fabulous.
Since Chanel came back from a summer sporting a suntan, people wanted to be tanned and healthy, and work out and go to the beach. The bias cut was perfect to show this new body. The bias cut is not an invention from the 30s but it became characteristic of the time.
Look - naked back, sexy lines, fluid textiles. Women wanted to feel sexy and diva like. Day dresses flowed the same idea of fluidity and femininity. Shoulders were more and more pronounced.
Women felt empowered. Women started working, almost like men.
Jean Harlow here. The perfect 1930s shape.
A Schiaparelli gown, heavily influenced by surrealism. Art entered the fashion world
and the fashion world became very much how it is today. Schiaparelli "glasses"...
surreal. She also had fantastic insect shaped buttons. The famous lobster dress.
1930s ladies. Not so revolutionary anymore, but body conscious and lovely. The world changed dramatically in the 30s. Revolution still existed.
Look at these Schiaparelli shoes.
The 1930s silhouette gave birth to what we now recognize as the 40s. The shoulder became heavy and stiff during the war but pre war people still had them under control.
Vionnet was another master of the 30s. The perfect bias cut. Dresses for goddesses. “As a woman smiles so must her dress smile too,” she used to say.
We all know what happened at the end of the decade and you can clearly understand
why the 1940s were only a recycling of the 30s in terms of fashion. With lack of material, fashion had to recycle ideas and materials so all this luxury remained for another decade
without great changes.
Fashion houses were very active. Big names were recognized all over the world, recognized and imitated.
Comparing the world and the fashion of these 2 decades - 20s and 30s - the changes were enormous and they well reflected society...a world leaving the suffering of the first war...and a world entering another time of war.
i'd like to know if anyone has question?
Bibiche Chant: Who were the creators, without speaking of Chanel?
Sonatta Morales: Well, many important names of the 30s started in the 20s. Lucille in the early 20s, Chanel, Worth, Patou. I can’t think of anybody else now...
Annett Boehme: Poiret?
Sonatta Morales: Poiret was big in the late 10s. Well remembered Annett. He made the transition into the 20s too.
Vegan Outlander: How much did new synthetic materials influence design and ability to develop new styles ? Did it "open doors" or "create options" ?
Sonatta Morales: Man made fibres were a big novelty in the 20s and as they became widespread, they became very important in the 30s.
The last slide shows a vogue cover - the last one before the war. It’s uncanny how it showed what was going to happen - zeitgeist at its best.
Talena Tigerpaw: what did everyday clothes look like in the 20's, please?
Sonatta Morales: Well Talena, as I showed in the first slides, I brought many slides from catalogs, big shops where “normal” people would shop. Overall the same lines. Loose shift dresses, if you were very poor and couldn’t afford high fashion you would try to follow the lines. Any old photo can show you that the lines were the same. The big difference was in materials.
What we must remember from the 20s is the new shorter hemline compared to the 1910s - the loose waist, some emphasis on the hips and hidden foreheads.
Frau Jo Yardley: We have a normal clothes flickr group with our berlin sim: www.flickr.com/groups/1920sfashion/
<A HREF="http://r2ninjaturtle.deviantart.com/">R2NinjaTurtle</A> as Kim Possible. If I remember right, one of many cosplayers too young to know what the Batusi was from either the Batman '66 reference OR the Pulp Fiction reference. What are they teaching the kids in school these days?
PictionID:44942884 - Catalog:14_016129 - Title:Models Details: 1/10 Scale Model Missile; 5 Designs Date: 07/02/1960 - Filename:14_016129.TIF - - - - Image from the Convair/General Dynamics Astronautics Atlas Negative Collection. The processing, cataloging and digitization of these images has been made possible by a generous National Historical Publications and Records grant from the National Archives and Records Administration---Please Tag these images so that the information can be permanently stored with the digital file.---Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum
Today we had AMAZING shooting with the dance couple who is sponsored by me. I made 3 outfits for them over last few months and we never came to shoot them. Today was the day. Wehad 7 hours of non-stop fun! We were shooting in studio and outside. The studio shots are coming too. Bob was better in shooting outside and I think I had a studio day today. it is hardly possible to select just a few for posting here. Overall we are really happy with the results.
Cape Reinga the northwestern most tip of the Aupouri Peninsula, at the northern end of the North Island of New Zealand. Day six of our trip up north, March 2012, NZ.
Cape Reinga is generally considered the separation marker between the Tasman Sea to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east. From the lighthouse it is possible to watch the tidal race, as the two seas clash to create unsettled waters just off the coast. The Māori refer to this as the meeting of Te Moana-a-Rehua, 'the sea of Rehua' with Te Tai-o-Whitirea, 'the sea of Whitirea', Rehua and Whitirea being a male and a female respectively.
The cape is often mistakenly thought of as being the northernmost point of the North Island, and thus, of mainland New Zealand. However, North Cape's Surville Cliffs, 30 km east of Cape Reinga, are slightly further north. Another headland just to the west of Cape Reinga is Cape Maria van Diemen, which was discovered and named by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman during his journey in 1642 and thought of by him to be the northernmost point of the newly-discovered country he named 'Staten Landt'.
According to mythology, the spirits of the dead travel to Cape Reinga on their journey to the afterlife to leap off the headland and climb the roots of the 800 year old tree and descend to the underworld to return to their traditional homeland of Hawaiki, using the Te Ara Wairua, the 'Spirits' pathway'. At Cape Reinga they depart the mainland. They turn briefly at the Three Kings Islands for one last look back towards the land, then continue on their journey.
A spring in the hillside, Te Waiora-a-Tāne (the 'Living waters of Tāne'), also played an important role in Māori ceremonial burials, representing a spiritual cleansing of the spirits, with water of the same name used in burial rites all over New Zealand. This significance lasted until the local population mostly converted to Christianity, and the spring was capped with a reservoir, with little protest from the mostly converted population of the area. However, the spring soon disappeared and only reappeared at the bottom of the cliff, making the reservoir useless.
A comparatively rare working on route 102, normally the preserve of Enviro 400 vehicles. The remaining DLP class in the Arriva London fleet is usually found on route 34. As from 8/11/2014 Metroline take over route 34 and therefore it is possible that DLPs will be withdrawn from the London Bus Services Scene.
Me during the hanging of the *possible* photos for the exhibition @ CUCO - cucina contemporanea in Firenze.
Photo by Beppe (see a different take).
According to legend, the Glastonbury Tor is the The Isle of Avalon, burial site of King Arthur.
Name: St Michael's Church, monastic remains, and other settlement remains on Glastonbury Tor
Overview
Heritage Category:Scheduled Monument
List Entry Number:1019390
Date first listed:24-Apr-1951
County:Somerset
District:Mendip (District Authority)
Parish:Glastonbury
The Diocese of Bath and Wells
National Grid Reference:ST 51198 38597
Heritage Category:Listed Building
Grade:I
List Entry Number:1345475
Date first listed:21-Jun-1950
Reasons for Designation
The complex of settlement remains, graves, building foundations, and standing remains on Glastonbury Tor have been demonstrated by excavation to reveal a lengthy period of occupation on the Tor lasting, with possible gaps, from around the fifth or sixth centuries through to the Dissolution of 1539. The height, shape, and prominence of the Tor in an otherwise flat and once marshy landscape means that it will have attracted attention for its defensive qualities as well as being naturally attractive as a place of spiritual or religious pilgrimage. The high status nature of the pottery and metal finds of the post-Roman period found in excavation suggest the use of the site as a stronghold although an early Christian settlement cannot be ruled out. Certainly, the site supported what appears to be a monastic retreat from at least the tenth century and churches were successively built on the summit. The second medieval church has been shown to have been accompanied by contemporary buildings suggesting that a permanent presence was retained on the Tor in order to attend to pilgrims and enabling mass to be celebrated; the tower of this church, dedicated to St Michael, still stands as a landmark which may be seen from miles around. A number of surviving medieval documents serve to confirm the antiquity of the Tor as a religious centre and it is firmly woven into the ancient and literary traditions surrounding the presence of King Arthur at Glastonbury. The monument will retain important archaeological evidence for the lives and religious beliefs of the populace of the post-Roman period (a period where evidence is otherwise very scarce), the later Saxon period, and the medieval period, the signifigance of the Tor in former times as a place of worship and the relationship between this site and the nearby Glastonbury Abbey.
Details
The monument on Glastonbury Tor includes part of the below ground remains of a post-Roman occupation site dating from the sixth to the seventh centuries AD, part of a monastic settlement probably dating from at least the tenth century, and part of the above and below ground remains of what has been interpreted as a medieval pilgrimage centre for the cult of St Michael. This latter complex includes the foundations of the church of St Michael and its 14th century standing tower which is a Listed Building Grade I. All of these remains are located on the relatively flat summit and the south west shoulder of Glastonbury Tor, a prominent natural conical hill with a 300m long whale- backed ridge sloping away to the south west, just to the south east of Glastonbury. The summit, at 158m above sea level, has commanding views over much of the flat Somerset Levels which surround it and the Tor is traditionally associated with the legendary Isle of Avalon, a reputed resting place of King Arthur. Although artifact finds of earlier periods have been made on the Tor, the earliest evidence of settlement comes from the post-Roman period (the so-called Dark Ages). Excavation carried out in 1964-66 demonstrated the presence of the remains of timber structures, metal working hearths, and pits, on the summit of the Tor to the north east of St Michael's Tower. These remains, which were planned, recorded, and published, were considered by the excavator Philip Rahtz to represent the site of a post-Roman stronghold or settlement centred on the sixth century, but perhaps dating from as early as the fifth century, of secular or possibly early Christian origin. Two graves discovered in association with the earliest recorded remains were considered to be pagan due to their north-south orientation. Post-Roman finds recovered from the excavation were of high quality for the times and included imported Mediterranean pottery associated with either wine or olive oil which are indicative of a surviving trading network in the post-Roman south west; this contrasts with what appears to be the situation in the rest of the country. There is no evidence of continuity between the early settlement and the complex which replaced it but continuity in some form may be considered likely. In excavation, a number of timber buildings set on platforms cut into the rock and including two possible monastic cells and the post-holes for timber uprights of a possible communal building were recorded. These remains have been interpreted as those of a monastic retreat of late Saxon origin which lasted probably into the early Norman period. A cross base found on the summit was believed to be Saxon in date. Although there is no direct reference to a pre-Conquest monastery on the Tor, a 13th century document known as the `charter of St Patrick' names two lay brothers, Arnulph and Ogmar, residing on the Tor in former times. This suggests that in the 13th century there was a strong tradition that there had been a monastic settlement on the Tor. The summit of the Tor is dominated by the standing tower of the church of St Michael. The original stone church, which may have had timber predecessors, has extant foundations believed to date from the 12th century. This church appears to have formed the focus of a monastic complex and this is confirmed by a charter of 1243 which gives permission for the holding of a fair `at the monastery of St Michael on the Tor'. The 12th century church was reportedly destroyed by an earthquake on 11th September 1275. Rebuilding commenced under Abbot Adam of Sodbury in the first half of the 14th century and the base of the standing tower is believed to date from this period; it was restored in 1804 with the north east corner being entirely rebuilt. The tower, which survives to three stories high but is unroofed, has seven canopied niches on its western side. Five of these are vacant but one contains a statue of St Dunstan and another, the base of a statue of St Michael. Flanking the western doorway of the tower, are matching relief carvings, one of an angel watching over the weighing of a soul and one of St Bridget milking her cow; a relief carving of an eagle is set just below the string course of the upper storey. On the east side of the tower the scar of the nave roof may be seen; its foundation walls partly survive below ground and were recorded and left in situ by the excavator. The exposure of the foundations showed the rebuilt medieval stone church to have been 25m in length inclusive of the tower, and 7.5m wide. Revealed in excavation to the south west of the church were the enclosure wall of the churchyard and beyond that the traces of a suite of buildings of 14th to 15th century date which are interpreted as the living quarters of a resident priest in attendance at the church, and a possible bakehouse for the provision of food to pilgrims. If this interpretation is correct it seems likely that pilgrims attracted to Glastonbury Abbey would visit St Michael's on the Tor as well and that the two establishments were almost certainly linked in some way. All of the above ground stonework of St Michael's Church, apart from the tower, was removed in the aftermath of the Dissolution of 1539 probably at the same time that buildings at Glastonbury Abbey were dismantled. The last Abbott of Glastonbury, Michael Whyting, was executed on the Tor in 1539 as part of the political ramifications of the Dissolution and his quartered body distributed to the four Somerset towns of Wells, Bath, Bridgwater, and Ilchester.
Excluded from the scheduling are all fencing, guard rails, and fencing posts, fixed benches, modern steps, bollards, fixed point information boards, and concrete hard standing, although the ground beneath all these features is included.
© Historic England 2020
I searched for the Northern Lights, the Aurora Borealis, which some report to be visible from San Antonio on Friday night, May 10, 2024. My camera caught a hint of a purple/magenta hue over the windmill at Walker Ranch Park. Is it from the Northern Lights/aurora? The upside down Big Dipper can be seen over the windmill. Nikon Z8, 24mm f1.4 at 1/20, ISO 12800. ©2024 Billy Calzada
Cropped image taken with D5300, Samyang 8mm fisheye at f3.5, 13 sec at ISO 2,500.
Due to the distortion on the lens it is difficult to tell if it is a true Ursid. Other opinions welcome.
OK partner, I've decided to use these ("Tea Garden") with some solids (unless you happen to come along and say you don't like them!).
Kuala Lumpur (/ˈkwɑːləˈlʊmpʊər/ or /-pər/; Malaysian pronunciation: [ˈkwalə ˈlumpʊr]) is the national capital and most populous global city in Malaysia. The city covers an area of 243 km2 and has an estimated population of 1.6 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, covering similar area as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.5 million people as of 2012. It is among the fastest growing metropolitan regions in South-East Asia, in terms of population and economy.
Kuala Lumpur is the seat of the Parliament of Malaysia. The city was once home to the executive and judicial branches of the federal government, but they were moved to Putrajaya in early 1999. Some sections of the judiciary still remain in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur. The official residence of the Malaysian King, the Istana Negara, is also situated in Kuala Lumpur. Rated as an alpha world city, Kuala Lumpur is the cultural, financial and economic centre of Malaysia due to its position as the capital as well as being a key city. Kuala Lumpur was ranked 48th among global cities by Foreign Policy's 2010 Global Cities Index and was ranked 67th among global cities for economic and social innovation by the 2thinknow Innovation Cities Index in 2010.
Kuala Lumpur is defined within the borders of the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and is one of three Malaysian Federal Territories. It is an enclave within the state of Selangor, on the central west coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
Since the 1990s, the city has played host to many international sporting, political and cultural events including the 1998 Commonwealth Games and the Formula One Grand Prix. In addition, Kuala Lumpur is home to the tallest twin buildings in the world, the Petronas Twin Towers, which have become an iconic symbol of Malaysia's futuristic development.
In May 2015, Kuala Lumpur was officially recognized as one of the New7Wonders Cities together with Vigan City, Doha, Durban, Havana, Beirut, and La Paz.
HISTORY
Kuala Lumpur means "muddy confluence", although it is also possible that the name is a corrupted form of an earlier but now unidentifiable forgotten name. It was originally a small settlement of just a few houses at the confluence of Sungai Gombak (previously known as Sungai Lumpur) and Sungai Klang (Klang River). The town of Kuala Lumpur was established circa 1857, when the Malay Chief of Klang, Raja Abdullah bin Raja Jaafar, aided by his brother Raja Juma'at of Lukut, raised funds to hire some Chinese miners from Lukut to open new tin mines here. The miners landed at Kuala Lumpur and continued their journey on foot to Ampang where the first mine was opened. Kuala Lumpur was the furthest point up the Klang River to which supplies could conveniently be brought by boat; it therefore became a collection and dispersal point serving the tin mines. The identity of the founder of Kuala Lumpur has however not been confirmed: Raja Abdullah bin Raja Jaafar and his role in founding the city do not appear in the earliest account of the history of Selangor. On the other hand, the Sumatrans Abdullah Hukum and Sutan Puasa, arrived in Kuala Lumpur at least in 1850. Raja Abdullah only came around 1857 and Yap Ah Loy, also regarded as the founding father of Kuala Lumpur, arrived in 1862. In addition, the Chinese men employed under Raja Abdullah worked in Ampang, 64 kilometres away from the main land. Meanwhile, efficient drainage and irrigation systems (bondar saba) were introduced in Kuala Lumpur by the technologically advanced Mandailing, improving the mining industry.
In the early history of Kuala Lumpur, the Minangkabaus of Sumatra were considered to be one of the most important groups of people who involved in trading. Utsman bin Abdullah and Haji Mohamed Taib were influenced tycoon in Kuala Lumpur and surrounding area. Haji Taib, one of the wealthiest figure at that time, was an important person in the early development centre of city: Kampung Baru. Beside as merchants, the Minangkabaus also overwhelmingly on socio-religious figures, such as Utsman bin Abdullah was the first kadi of Kuala Lumpur as well as Muhammad Nur bin Ismail.
Although the early miners suffered a high death toll due to the malarial conditions of the jungle, the Ampang mines were successful, and the first tin was exported in 1859. The tin-mining spurred the growth of the town, and miners later also settled in Pudu and Batu. The miners formed gangs among themselves; there were the Hakka-dominated Hai San in Kuala Lumpur, and the Cantonese-dominated Ghee Hin based in Kanching in Ulu Selangor. These two gangs frequently fought to gain control of best tin mines. The leaders of the Chinese community were conferred the title of Kapitan Cina (Chinese headman) by the Malay chief, and Hiu Siew, the owner of a mine in Lukut, was chosen as the first Kapitan of Kuala Lumpur. As one of the first traders to arrive in Ampang (along with Yap Ah Sze), he sold provisions to the miners in exchange for tin.
In 1868, Yap Ah Loy was appointed the third Chinese Kapitan of Kuala Lumpur. Yap, together with Frank Swettenham, were the two most important figures in the development of Kuala Lumpur in the early days of Kuala Lumpur. In 1880, the state capital of Selangor was moved from Klang to the more strategically advantageous Kuala Lumpur by the colonial administration, and Swettenham was appointed the Resident in 1882. Kuala Lumpur was a small town with buildings made of wood and atap (thatching) that were prone to burn. It suffered from many problems, including the Selangor Civil War which devastated the town; it was also plagued by diseases and constant fires and floods. The war and other setbacks led to a slump which lasted until 1879, when a rise in the price of tin allowed the town to recover.
In 1881, a flood swept through the town, following a fire that had engulfed it earlier. As a response, Frank Swettenham, the British Resident of Selangor, required that buildings be constructed of brick and tile.[33] Hence, Kapitan Yap Ah Loy bought a sprawling piece of real estate to set up a brick industry, which spurred the rebuilding of Kuala Lumpur. This place is the eponymous Brickfields. Hence, destroyed atap buildings were replaced with brick and tiled ones. He restructured the building layout of the city. Many of the new brick buildings mirrored those of shop houses in southern China, characterised by "five foot ways" as well as skilled Chinese carpentry work. This resulted in a distinct eclectic shop house architecture typical to this region. Kapitan Yap Ah Loy expand road access in the city significantly, linking up tin mines with the city, these roads include the main arterial roads of the present Ampang Road, Pudu Road and Petaling Street. As Chinese Kapitan, he was vested with wide powers on par with Malay community leaders. He implemented law reforms and introduced new legal measures. He also presided over a small claims court. With a police force of six, he was able to uphold the rule of law. He built a prison that could accommodate 60 prisoners at any time. Kapitan Yap Ah Loy also built Kuala Lumpur's first school and a major tapioca mill in Petaling Street of which the Selangor's Sultan Abdul Samad had an interest.
A railway line between Kuala Lumpur and Klang, initiated by Swettenham and completed in 1886, increased accessibility which resulted in the rapid growth of the town. The population grew from 4,500 in 1884 to 20,000 in 1890. As development intensified in the 1880s, it also put pressure on sanitation, waste disposal and other health issues. A Sanitary Board was created on 14 May 1890 which was responsible for sanitation, upkeep of roads, lighting of street and other functions. This would eventually became the Kuala Lumpur Municipal Council. Kuala Lumpur was only 0.65 km2 in 1895, but it expanded to 20 km2 in 1903, and by the time it became a municipality in 1948 it had expanded to 93 km2, and then to 243 km2 in 1974 as a Federal Territory. In 1896, Kuala Lumpur was chosen as the capital of the newly formed Federated Malay States. A mixture of different communities settled in various sections of Kuala Lumpur. The Chinese mainly settled around the commercial centre of Market Square, east of the Klang River, and towards Chinatown. The Malays, Indian Chettiars, and Indian Muslims resided along Java Street (now Jalan Tun Perak). The Padang, now known as Merdeka Square, was the centre of the British administrative offices.
During World War II, Kuala Lumpur was captured by the Imperial Japanese Army on 11 January 1942. They occupied the city until 15 August 1945, when the commander in chief of the Japanese Seventh Area Army in Singapore and Malaysia, Seishirō Itagaki, surrendered to the British administration following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Kuala Lumpur grew through the war, the rubber and tin commodity crashes and the Malayan Emergency, during which Malaya was preoccupied with the communist insurgency. In 1957, the Federation of Malaya gained its independence from British rule. Kuala Lumpur remained the capital through the formation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963.
On 13 May 1969, the worst race riots on record in Malaysia took place in Kuala Lumpur. The so-called 13 May Incident refers to the occurrence of violence between members of the Malay and the Chinese communities. The violence was the result of Malaysian Malays being dissatisfied with their socio-political status. The riots resulted in the deaths of 196 people, and led to major changes in the country's economic policy to promote and prioritise Malay economic development over that of the other ethnicities.
Kuala Lumpur later achieved city status in 1972, becoming the first settlement in Malaysia to be granted the status after independence. Later, on 1 February 1974, Kuala Lumpur became a Federal Territory. Kuala Lumpur ceased to be the capital of Selangor in 1978 after the city of Shah Alam was declared the new state capital. On 14 May 1990, Kuala Lumpur celebrated 100 years of local council. The new federal territory Kuala Lumpur flag and anthem were introduced. On 1 February 2001, Putrajaya was declared a Federal Territory, as well as the seat of the federal government. The administrative and judicial functions of the government were shifted from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya. Kuala Lumpur however still retained its legislative function, and remained the home of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (Constitutional King).
GEOGRAPHY
The geography of Kuala Lumpur is characterised by the huge Klang Valley. The valley is bordered by the Titiwangsa Mountains in the east, several minor ranges in the north and the south and the Strait of Malacca in the west. Kuala Lumpur is a Malay term that translates to "muddy confluence" as it is located at the confluence of the Klang and Gombak rivers.
Located in the centre of Selangor state, Kuala Lumpur was previously under the rule of Selangor State Government. In 1974, Kuala Lumpur was separated from Selangor to form the first Federal Territory governed directly by the Malaysian Federal Government. Its location on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, which has wider flat land than the east coast, has contributed to its faster development relative to other cities in Malaysia. The municipality of the city covers an area of 243 km2, with an average elevation of 21.95 m.
CLOMATE AND WEATHER
Protected by the Titiwangsa Mountains in the east and Indonesia's Sumatra Island in the west, Kuala Lumpur has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af), which is warm and sunny, along with abundant rainfall, especially during the northeast monsoon season from October to March. Temperatures tend to remain constant. Maximums hover between 32 and 33 °C and have never exceeded 38.5 °C, while minimums hover between 23.4 and 24.6 °C and have never fallen below 14.4 °C. Kuala Lumpur typically receives minimum 2,600 mm of rain annually; June and July are relatively dry, but even then rainfall typically exceeds 131 millimetres per month.
Flooding is a frequent occurrence in Kuala Lumpur whenever there is a heavy downpour, especially in the city centre and downstream areas. Smoke from forest fires of nearby Sumatra sometimes cast a haze over the region. It is a major source of pollution in the city together with open burning, emission from motor vehicles and construction work.
POLITICS
Kuala Lumpur is home to the Parliament of Malaysia. The hierarchy of authority in Malaysia, in accordance with the Federal Constitution, has stipulated the three branches, of the Malaysian government as consisting of the Executive, Judiciary and Legislative branches. The Parliament consists of the Dewan Negara (Upper House / House of Senate) and Dewan Rakyat (Lower House / House of Representatives).
ECONOMY
Kuala Lumpur and its surrounding urban areas form the most industrialised and economically, the fastest growing region in Malaysia. Despite the relocation of federal government administration to Putrajaya, certain government institutions such as Bank Negara Malaysia (National Bank of Malaysia), Companies Commission of Malaysia and Securities Commission as well as most embassies and diplomatic missions have remained in the city.
The city remains as the economic and business centre of the country. Kuala Lumpur is a centre for finance, insurance, real estate, media and the arts of Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur is rated as an alpha world city, and is the only global city in Malaysia, according to the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network (GaWC). The infrastructure development in the surrounding areas such as the Kuala Lumpur International Airport at Sepang, the creation of the Multimedia Super Corridor and the expansion of Port Klang further reinforce the economic significance of the city.
Bursa Malaysia or the Malaysia Exchange is based in the city and forms one of its core economic activities. As of 5 July 2013, the market capitalisation stood at US$505.67 billion.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for Kuala Lumpur is estimated at RM73,536 million in 2008 with an average annual growth rate of 5.9 percent.[66] The per capita GDP for Kuala Lumpur in 2013 is RM79,752 with an average annual growth rate of 5.6 percent. The total employment in Kuala Lumpur is estimated at around 838,400. The service sector comprising finance, insurance, real estate, business services, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants and hotels, transport, storage and communication, utilities, personal services and government services form the largest component of employment representing about 83.0 percent of the total. The remaining 17 percent comes from manufacturing and construction.
The average monthly household income for Kuala Lumpur was RM4,105 (USD 1,324) in 1999, up from RM3,371 (USD 1,087) four years prior, making it 66% higher than the national average. In terms of household income distribution, 23.5% of households in the city earned more than RM5,000 (USD 1,613) per month compared to 9.8% for the entire country, while 8.1% earned less than RM1,000 (USD 323) a month.
The large service sector is evident in the number of local and foreign banks and insurance companies operating in the city. Kuala Lumpur is poised to become the global Islamic Financing hub with an increasing number of financial institutions providing Islamic Financing and the strong presence of Gulf's financial institutions such as the world's largest Islamic bank, Al-Rajhi Bank and Kuwait Finance House. Apart from that, the Dow Jones & Company is keen to work with Bursa Malaysia to set up Islamic Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs), which would help raise Malaysia's profile in the Gulf. The city has a large number of foreign corporations and is also host to many multi national companies' regional offices or support centres, particularly for finance and accounting, and information technology functions. Most of the countries' largest companies have their headquarters based here and as of December 2007 and excluding Petronas, there are 14 companies that are listed in Forbes 2000 based in Kuala Lumpur.
Other important economic activities in the city are education and health services. Kuala Lumpur also has advantages stemming from the high concentration of educational institutions that provide a wide-ranging of courses. Numerous public and private medical specialist centres and hospitals in the city offer general health services, and a wide range of specialist surgery and treatment that caters to locals and tourists.
There has been growing emphasis to expand the economic scope of the city into other service activities, such as research and development, which supports the rest of the economy of Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur has been home for years to important research centres such as the Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia, the Forest Research Institute Malaysia and the Institute of Medical Research and more research centres are expected to be established in the coming years.
DEMOGRAPHICS
Kuala Lumpur is the most populous city in Malaysia, with a population of 1.6 million in the city proper as of 2010. It has a population density of 6,696 inhabitants per square kilometre , and is the most densely populated administrative district in Malaysia. Residents of the city are colloquially known as KLites. Kuala Lumpur is also the centre of the wider Klang Valley conurbation (covering Petaling Jaya, Klang, Subang Jaya, Shah Alam, Gombak and others) which has an estimated metropolitan population of 7.2–7.5 million as of 2012.
Kuala Lumpur's heterogeneous populace includes the country's three major ethnic groups: the Malays, the Chinese and the Indians, although the city also has a mix of different cultures including Eurasians, as well as Kadazans, Ibans and other indigenous races from East Malaysia and Peninsula Malaysia.
Historically Kuala Lumpur was a predominantly Chinese, but recently the Bumiputra component of the city has increased substantially and they are now the dominant group. Most of Malays who considered as Bumiputra came from Sumatra and other parts of Indonesia archipelago. The majority of them Javanese, Minangkabaus and Buginese began arriving in Kuala Lumpur in the mid 19th century, in addition to Acehnese who arrived in the late 20th century. The population of Kuala Lumpur was estimated to be around three thousand in 1880 when it was made the capital of Selangor. In the following decade which saw the rebuilding of the town it showed considerable increase, due in large part to the construction of a railway line in 1886 connecting Kuala Lumpur and Klang.
A census in 1891 of uncertain accuracy gave a figure of 43,796 inhabitants, 79% of whom were Chinese (71% of the Chinese were Hakka), 14% Malay, and 6% Indian. Another estimate put the population of Kuala Lumpur in 1890 at 20,000. In 1931, 61% of Kuala Lumpur's 111,418 inhabitants were Chinese, and in 1947 63.5%. The Malays however began to settle in the Kuala Lumpur in significant numbers, in part due to government employment, as well as the expansion of the city that absorbed the surrounding rural areas where many Malays lived. between 1947 and 1957 the population of Bumiputras in Kuala Lumpur doubled, increasing from 12.5 to 15%, while the proportion of Chinese dropped. The process continued after Malayan independence with the growth of a largely Malay civil service, and later the implementation of the New Economic Policy which encouraged Malay participation in urban industries and business. In 1980 the population of Kuala Lumpur had reached over a million, with 52% Chinese, 33% Malay, and 15% Indian. From 1980 to 2000 the number of Bumiputras increased by 77%, but the Chinese still outnumbered the Bumiputras in Kuala Lumpur in the 2000 census at 43% compared to Bumiputras at 38%. By the 2010 census, according to the Department of Statistics and excluding non-citizens, the percentage of the Bumiputera population in Kuala Lumpur has reached around 45.9%, with the Chinese population at 43.2% and Indians 10.3%.A notable phenomenon in recent times has been the increase of foreign residents in Kuala Lumpur, which rose from 1% of the city's population in 1980 to about 8% in the 2000 census, and 9.4% in the 2010 census. These figures also do not include a significant number of illegal immigrants. Kuala Lumpur's rapid development has triggered a huge influx of low-skilled foreign workers from Indonesia, Nepal, Burma, Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines, and Vietnam into Malaysia, many of whom enter the country illegally or without proper permits.Birth rates in Kuala Lumpur have declined and resulted in the lower proportion of young people falling below 15 years old category from 33% in 1980 to slightly less than 27% in 2000.[69] On the other hand, the working age group of 15–59 increased from 63% in 1980 to 67% in 2000. The elderly age group, 60 years old and above has increased from 4% in 1980 and 1991 to 6% in 2000.
Kuala Lumpur is pluralistic and religiously diverse. The city has many places of worship catering to the multi-religious population. Islam is practised primarily by the Malays and the Indian Muslim communities. Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism are practised mainly among the Chinese. Indians traditionally adhere to Hinduism. Some Chinese and Indians also subscribe to Christianity.
As of 2010 Census the population of Kuala Lumpur is 46.4% Muslim, 35.7% Buddhist, 8.5% Hindu, 5.8% Christian, 1.1% Taoist or Chinese religion adherent, 2.0% follower of other religions, and 0.5% non-religious.
Bahasa Malaysia is the principal language in Kuala Lumpur. Kuala Lumpur residents are generally literate in English, with a large proportion adopting it as their first language. It has a strong presence, especially in business and is a compulsory language taught in schools. Cantonese and Mandarin are prominent as they are spoken by the local majority Chinese population. Another major dialect spoken is Hakka. While Tamil is dominant amongst the local Indian population, other Indian languages spoken include Telugu, Malayalam, Punjabi and Hindi. Beside the Malay language, there are a variety of languages spoken by Indonesian descent, such as Minangkabau and Javanese.
EDUCATION
According to government statistics, Kuala Lumpur has a literacy rate of 97.5% in 2000, the highest rate in any state or territory in Malaysia. In Malaysia, Malay is the language of instruction for most subjects while English is a compulsory subject, but as of 2012, English is still the language of instruction for mathematics and the natural sciences for certain schools. Some schools provide Mandarin and Tamil as languages of instruction for certain subjects. Each level of education demands different skills of teaching and learning ability.Kuala Lumpur contains 13 tertiary education institutions, 79 high schools, 155 elementary schools and 136 kindergartens.
WIKIPEDIA
I have not been to Vancouver, in any meaningful sense, in five years. By Vancouver I mean the real one, the one that in the states (and only in the states) we append with “B.C.” in order to distinguish it from a suburb of Portland, Oregon. On that first visit, I felt that I had been glimpsing the future, or at least one possible urban future. There was fast, frequent, metropolitan scale transit. There was high-rise transit-oriented development. There were multiple dense nodes throughout the metropolitan region, as well as an intensely developed downtown that mixed both historic and ultra-modern development.
This is not to say that the city had been perfect. Main and Hastings was still an infamous intersection not just of its two namesake streets, but of the heroin trade and urban decay. Gastown—Vancouver’s equivalent of Seattle’s Pioneer Square or Portland’s Old Town—was still a cotton candy and knick-nack ghetto. Despite the cosmopolitan pretensions of the city, you still had a hard time finding non-corporate coffee or a place to eat on the peninsula that wasn’t aimed at high priced businessmen’s lunches and even higher priced tourist and convention-goer fare. Five years on, however, and times have changed.
* * *
WOODWARD’S WAS THERE BACK IN 2009—and I mean the present one, the big red-and-blue condo tower that looms high above to border on the edge of Gastown. Then, the tower had struck me as something out of Niihama from Ghost in the Shell, or an unconventional and futuristic take on the Flatiron Building.
Woodward’s used to mean Vancouver’s big department store, a B.C. based rival to the Hudson’s Bay Company that was roughly equivalent to Sears in the states. In the 1990s, the company went bust, selling out to Hudson’s Bay, and the large facility on the east end of downtown went vacant. Now, though, Woodward’s means the redevelopment that took over the site of the former department store, including a 400-foot high, 43-story tower.
The development trades on its urbanity, a mixture of grit and sophistication that taps into the narrative of authenticity. Indeed the entire building becomes a kind of work of rhetoric, a foil for ideas about what urban living means. The atrium of the facility has, at one end, a large photo-mural mounted on glass, showing a graphic depiction of the 1971 Gastown riot. Policemen on horseback swing billy-clubs against pot-smoking hippies and street people in a crass display of culture warfare turning into the literal kind. Thus a key moment of counter-culture history has become—via the robes of art—a way of branding the Woodward as progressive, urbane, sensitive to the neighborhood and its history.
The photograph, however, was a re-enactment; in a town colloquially known as “Hollywood North,” the real intersection of Abbott Street and Cordova Street, as it appeared in August 1971, was reproduced in the 2008 parking lot of an amusement park out along Highway 1. History was thus recreated, then photographed by artist Stan Douglas, then installed as part of the corporate branding of an upmarket condominium tower.
To quote the Woodward’s slogan, used throughout its media marketing: “Be Bold or Move to Suburbia.”
* * *
MY HOTEL WAS LOCATED AT PENDER AND RICHARDS, the same as it had been five years before. Then, I had selected it because it was affordable, close to downtown, but not too close to Main & Hastings. I had found that it was perfect; fairly quiet, it was located near two used book stores and not far from the Waterfront Skytrain station, letting me get anywhere I needed to go with relative ease. Then, though, there was a slight air of Skid Row to the street; there were cheap diners and dives, marginal looking stores that sold smoking accouterment or travel services or check cashing. It was not far from the edge of Gastown, from where Woodward’s was, when Woodward’s—the tower—was new.
I don’t know why I expected that things would not have changed; after all, change is the natural state of urbanity. Woodward’s—or perhaps the city it represented—had changed much of it. Just around the corner from my hotel, across the street from hole-in-the-wall $2 pizza places and the questionable looking convenience stores, there was now a bar with cocktails, craft beer, handmade gyoza fried in authentic Japanese cast iron pans, and deep, pork-rich ramen soups.
A few blocks away, Save On Meats—a butcher-cum-cafe—had reopened along Hastings, offering classic diner fare. The food is excellent, and if you are worried that this is the bogey-man of gentrification, there is an easy solution. Wooden tokens are available for purchase, redeemable for a breakfast sandwich, no questions asked. If you feel guilty, you can buy one,and give it to someone on the street. Gentrification solved. It’s good food, a welcome addition to the block and the neighborhood, and fraught with all the conflicting questions with no answers that gentrification brings.
Even Gastown itself is not safe. The cotton candy and caramel corn atmosphere is shifting, slowly. There are still homeless here, panhandling from the tourist trade, but many of the gift shops are now gone. Simply put, the tourist has a much harder time finding commemorative Canadian license plate frames or stickers or keychains or jade rings or crystal fragments or 14k gold chains or stuffed Royal Canadian Mounted Police plushies. If you want your Canada in the canned, maple-syrup flavored variety, you will be disappointed with much of Gastown, and may resolve yourself to buying your trinkets at YVR. In the place of these traditional vendors, there are now a half dozen coffee shops, perhaps twice as many bars, places selling “Carolina pulled pork” or “50 beers on tap” or “almost famous fish and chips.” There is even a hat store—not Lids, not some knockoff baseball hat store, but “Hastings Hattery,” a hipster haberdasher. There would not have been a haberdasher on Hastings Street in 2009.
As you walk down Water Street, you’re likely to find as many interior decorating stores as trinket shops, each offering furniture meant to evoke the designs of Charles and Ray Eames without infringing on Herman Miller’s intellectual property rights. Kitsch has been replaced with Kitchen stores, one of which placed upon its window glass a Julia Child quote that, read differently than it was spoken, sums up this sort of lifestyle: “If you’re afraid of butter, use cream.”
* * *
“DISTANCE AVAILS US NOT” SAID WALT WHITMAN, “and place avails not.”
Vancouver in 2009 was exotic, seeming so far in the future that we, in the states, could never catch up. It was a benchmark, a role model, a fantasy to which cities like Seattle and Portland aspired, the cosmopolitan other on the other side of the least exotic and most exotic international border in existence.
Yet walking along the streets of Gastown, Vancouver feels eerily familiar. Sure the details differ. The exact forms of the buildings, their styles, their ages, they all differed. Yet it was hard not to feel, in Gastown, that I was walking through a familiar place, a street very much like, to cite one example, Valencia Street in San Francisco’s Mission District. We in the states—in those cities growing and thriving, in the San Franciscos and Seattles, the Portlands and the Oaklands—have more and more caught up Vancouver, sometimes even surpassing it in our absurdities.
We are now, like Whitman crossing the Brooklyn Ferry, among “the current rushing so swiftly.” As the distance has receded, Vancouver is no longer the exotic, no longer so much the other. Vancouver is less an “ism,” and more a morally opaque and complex organism—more of a city, less of an idea—for all the good and bad that entails.
(Many thanks to UBC’s Elvin Wyly for showing me Save On Meats and telling me the story of the Woodward’s and its mural.)
[DSF3410]
(This piece originally appeared at alexcraghead.com. Additional photos may be seen with the original story.)
Bridgeport police investigate apparent Santeria curse
Noelle Frampton, STAFF WRITER
Published: 11:17 p.m., Wednesday, April 21, 2010
BRIDGEPORT -- In the latest of several incidents of apparent occult practice in the city, police are investigating what they believe was a Santeria curse against a Derby man -- in the form of dead, headless roosters and other animal parts.
Stuffed with some kind of root and sewn up, the two beheaded roosters were found last week, hanging by their feet about 10 feet up from a tree near the intersection of Housatonic Avenue and Grand Street, according to police and paranormal investigators.
At the base of the tree was a bag containing a black knit cap and a box cutter, and nearby there were three coconut halves in a semi-circle, an apparent sheep's jawbone and a snakeskin, said Nicole Hall, a paranormal investigator with CT Soul Seekers Paranormal Investigations.
Animal control was notified on Wednesday, and a patrol officer was later called to the scene.
The matter is still under investigation and no charges have been filed, said Sgt. James Myers, who is also a paranormal investigator.
Preliminarily, it appears the curse was linked to a dispute between a man who works near the spot where the roosters were found and his ex-girlfriend, according to Hall, who visited the scene and talked to the man's wife.
The disputing pair was due to appear in court soon because the man recently discovered that the teenage son he'd been supporting all of his life wasn't his and is suing for back child support, Hall said.
The ex-girlfriend apparently set up the curse with offerings to a Santerian god and symbols related to money, as well as negative wishes toward the man. She called to inform him of it early last week, Hall said.
Reached at home Wednesday evening, the man, whose name was withheld to protect his privacy, declined comment.
In the past year, the city has seen an upswing in incidents involving occult activity, Myers said, noting numerous times he's gone to city homes and noticed symbolism related to Voodoo and Santeria, a Caribbean religion that combines elements of West African Yoruba and Roman Catholicism.
Last June, officers found a human skull, a beheaded chicken, chickens' blood and other animal parts in a Madison Avenue basement during a drug raid. The next month, there were two human skulls in a circular blanket of loose dirt and bloody papers with names on them at Mountain Grove Cemetery. And just days later, the body of a 2-year-old girl stolen from her Stamford grave showed up in a New Jersey river with chicken bones nearby.
Police believed all three incidents may have involved Santeria or similar religious rituals, but weren't connected.
A police report indicates that the ex-girlfriend, who lives in Bridgeport, may also have been involved in the Mountain Grove ritual.
Myers declined to comment on whether there is a criminal element to the apparent curse, saying that such cases, in general, can be tricky because people have a legal right to freely practice the religion of their choice.
"You have that fine line," he said. "When does it become animal cruelty? When does it become harassment? You have to really, really watch that line. People have Constitutional rights for a purpose."
Due to the apparent increase in occult activity in Bridgeport, Myers is advocating for city police training in occult identification so officers "know what they're actually looking at when they go out into the field."
Hall said the man's wife told her she'd found other evidence of possible curses around their home and "in the past few months or so, they've had nothing but bad luck."
She said the couple has renewed their attendance at a Catholic church and asked that their house be blessed by a priest.
"That's the best thing they can do," she said, adding that she believes people can protect themselves against spiritual curses through their own beliefs.
Marci Fernino, a sensitive with CT Soul Seekers, said the man "doesn't want to put any belief in" the curse, and went as far as to assert that "Somebody can't curse you if you don't believe in it and your faith is strong enough and you don't let that happen."
There is an element of mind-over-matter in such cases, Myers said, but "it really doesn't matter if the person believes or doesn't believe."
Some people don't believe in paranormal or occult activity, he said, but their opinions don't determine whether it is real: "There are things beyond us that we can't explain; it doesn't mean they're not there."
Even so, he said the curse was directed toward a specific goal and should not cause alarm to the general public.
(for further pictures or information please go to the end of page and by clicking on the link you will get them as soon as possible!)
The Vienna Prater
Lieblingsnahausflugsziel (favourite nearby excursion destination) in Biedermeier Vienna is the Prater. The season opens with the race of "noble runners" on May 1. The usually before the carriages of the nobility running lackeys on that day line up under high bets to public competition. The main avenue along to the pleasure house (Lusthaus) and back drag the racers to the cheers of the audience. Trumpet-blasts, flags and cash prizes await the winner. Military music they escorts into the first Prater coffee house where them a splendid breakfast is arranged, while the ones having fallen by the wayside are collected. This race is banned in 1848 because of inhumanity. In the afternoon swayed - as from now on every Sunday - people and cars down the hunter line (Jägerzeile - since 1862 Prater Road). The state-carriages of the Court, the nobility and the wealthy bourgeoisie to evening make in a continuous parade the main street with its lofty Prater coffee houses to a "Nobel Prater".
"Bey the public-houses (Inns)" in the Prater.
Coloured engraving, T. Mollo. 1825
The people has fun in the Wurstelprater (Hanswurst, clowning on Vienna stages) in a tangle of guest houses and Prater lodges, puppet booths, calendula games and swings between the Prater harpists, salami sellers and spectacle. Here is the stronghold of the showmen with their monkey theater and flea circus, jugglers and fire-eaters, giants and dwarfs, menageries, panoramas, wax figures and ghostly apparitions. On the "Zirkuswiese" in Circus gymnasticus the popular equestrian companies by Christoph de Bach (? 1808) and Alexander Guerra perform. One camps in the Prater floodplains and waits until at nightfall on the "fireworks meadow" Stuwer (? 1802) lets shoot up his sparkling rockets.
City Chronicle Vienna
Dr. Christian Brandstätter, Dr. Günter Treffer
2000 years in data, documents and images
From the beginnings to the present
Courtesy
Christian Brandstätter Verlag mbH
The publishing service for museums, businesses and public authorities
www.brandstaetter - verlag.at
The historically grown amusement park looks back to a rich history. First documentary references of that area, which originally had jungle-like character, go back to the 12th Century. The former imperial hunting ground in 1766 under the "popular" Austrian Emperor Joseph II was made accessible to the public. Soon after, a number of small entertainment venues (carousels, shooting galleries, food stalls, ...) arrived, entertaining the people and also providing for the physical well-being.
The inhabitants of Vienna enjoyed themselves by riding artfully designed Hutschpferden (swing horses) and by swinging into lofty altitudes. In the process you could with long poles jab into rings. Hence the name carousel. It had been created recreational devices for the general public.
The fireworks of Stuwer and the balloon ascents end of the 18th Century dragged the Viennese from the city to the fairgrounds in the Prater. Following the trend of the times were national artistic institutions (theaters, waxworks museum and people museum - "Präuschers panopticon" with 2,000 objects, Vivarium, Planetarium, ... ) built and connected to the hustle and bustle. Sensations in the old Prater were the Abnormitätenshows (abnormalities) in which Lilliputian, Hirsute men, Siamese twins including "Freaks" (monster, abnormal shape) were to see. The thick Prater-Mitzi or the Russian-born trunk man Kobelkoff, as well as the ghostly magic theater of Kratky Baschik enriched the morphology of the bizarre Prater landscape. With the development of technology and electricity, the entertainment in the Prater was becoming more and more diverse.
In the emerging age of railways, the in Trieste born Basilio Calafati founded the first railway carousel in 1844. In this hut in 1854 the figure of the "big Chinesers" was set up as a mast. Many showmen and technicians from all over the Austrian-Hungarian monarchy, but also from the rest of Europe in the illustrious Viennese amusement park their ideas put into practice.
The Englishman Basset succeeded in 1897 to set up the still existing Ferris wheel in the Prater. This vehicle with a diameter of 61 meters originally had 30 cars. When the first "living pictures", the Cinematography, were born, 1896 the first cinema was opened in the Prater. Electricity in 1898 the first electrically operated Grottenbahn brought in the Prater. This fairytale train was also the first in Europe. On the occasion of the popularity of the airplane in 1911 the first "Aeroplan Carousel" was established. Followed in 1926 the first "Autodrome" and in 1933 the first "ghost train". In 1928, the still running "Liliputbahn", a reduced form of the great steam locomotives was placed in the Prater. 1935 brought a Prater entrepreneur from Chicago the rapid "flight path" in the Prater, a system not running on rails.
The Prater always changed its face, modernized and adapted itself to the trend of times. One attraction always replaced the other. Only few historical venues have been able to transport themselves into the present. Tradition-conscious companies such as the "Pony Carousel" from the year 1887 or the nostalgic slide tower "switchback (Tobogan)" from the 50s fight against the taste of the times and the needs of the visitors. In popularity but the historic Ferris wheel, the "Miniature Train" and of course the restaurant "Swiss House" (specialty: stilt and beer) will never lose.
Rickety ghost trains and sparkling grotto railways, although dusty, will not allow to be pushed out of the Prater. Between the historical venues flash the new, modern, hydraulically operated high-tech fairground rides. 1909-1944 the enormous dimensioned "roller coaster" always was a magnet for the Prater trippers. A reduced form is the after the war built "Neue Wiener roller coaster". Was swallowed entirely by history the magnificent "Venice in Vienna". On the site of the present Emperor's Meadow (Kaiserwiese) was located around the turn of the century the illusory world of the artificially recreated lagoon city. The initiator Gabor Steiner created in 1895 a world in the Prater, in which not only the high society, but also the Bohemian maids and the soldiers of the Austro-Hungarian multinational state amused themselves. In the era of the fin de siècle (= the decadent over-refinement of feeling and taste at the end of the 19th century), in which the Prater flourished, performed the most famous conductors of the time (Strauss, Lanner, Ziehrer).
Characteristic for the Wiener Prater today is also the adjacent green, left in its naturale state Praterau (Prater floodplain). An engaging recreational landscape with trees, meadows and ponds. Through this welcoming and quiet part of the Prater leads the 4.5 km long main avenue, which is lined with old chestnut trees. At the time, colorful flower parades were held there where, inter alia, even the Emperor and Empress and Mayor Lueger showed up. Along the main avenue were situated the now defunct, three famous coffee houses. The1783 built by Canevale "pleasure house" (Lusthaus) at the end of the main avenue, however, is still to be found. Past is the "Vaudeville Light", where for a long time popular movie stars and artists of yesteryear (Aslan, Jeritza, Moser, ... ) entertained the Prater audience.
To the Prater belongs also the fairgrounds. There in 1873 took place the world exhibition. The Rotunda, those proud crowned by a cupola central building in 1937 became a prey to the flames. What in the course of time of historic buildings of facilities in the Prater not had outlived itself, was destroyed in World War II. The most severely battered amusement park but was rebuilt. It established itself again as an integral part of the cultural entertainment of the city of Vienna. The force measuring machine "Watschenmann" is part of the local history of this unique institution, but also the cheeky and defiant "Prater Puppet" characterizes the color of the Vienna Prater.
Academic High School (Vienna)
(Pictures you can see by clicking on the link at the end of page!)
Beethovenplatz
school form - general secondary school (high school humanistic)
Founded in 1553
♁ coordinates 48 ° 12 '5 " N, 16 ° 22 ' 34" OKoordinaten : 48 ° 12 '5 " N, 16 ° 22' 34" E | |
Support public
About 610 students (4 April 2010)
About 60 teachers (4 April 2010)
Website www.akg -wien.at
The Academic Gymnasium in Vienna was founded in 1553 and is the oldest high school in Vienna. The school orientation is humanistic and compared with other traditional high schools of the city rather liberal. The current number of students is about 610 students, divided on 24 classes.
History
16th and 17th Century
At the time of the foundation of the high school, the University of Vienna had the privilege to decide about the estabilishment of educational institutions. In March of 1553, the Jesuits received permission from the university to the founding of the Academic Gymnasium.
The primary objectives of the exclusively Jesuit teaching corps was the provision of religious instruction, the practice of the Catholic faith and the strengthening of the religious attitude of the students. The Academic Gymnasium was located at the time of its inception in the Dominican monastery opposite the then university. The former language was Latin.
18th and 19 Century
The dissolution of the Jesuit order in 1773 by Pope Clement XIV led to a conversion of the teaching staff and educational goals. The new focus was on history, mathematics, German, literature and geography. The management of the school was transferred to the Piarist. Subsequently the school was somewhat cosmopolitan conducted and the spirit of the Enlightenment prevailed both among teachers and among the students. Likewise, new didactic and educational measures, and later the school fees were introduced.
As a result of high school reform in 1849, the eight-year school with the final matriculation examination was developed. The humanistic aspects crystallized out more and more, the focus of the lesson were mainly linguistic-historical, mathematical and scientific aspects not being neglected. The first high school graduates made their final exams at the end of the school year 1850 /51.
Academic High School before the vaulting of the Vienna River (Wienfluß - as small as possible)
Since 1866 the building of the Academic Gymnasium is located on Beethoven place in the first district of Vienna. It was built by Friedrich von Schmidt, who also designed the City Hall, in his typical neo-Gothic style.
The first students (female ones) gratuated in 1886 and 1887 (every year an external student), since the school year 1896/97 there were almost every year high school graduates, a general admission of girls there since 1949 /50.
20th Century
The years following the First World War were extremely distressing for the high school, because there was a very narrow escape for not being closed, the cause was a sharp decline in students. The educational institution was menaced from losing its good reputation and attractiveness.
GuentherZ 2007-02-22 2707 Wr Akad Gym plaque Jewish students and Lehrer.jpg
After the "Anschluss" of Austria in 1938, the Jewish students had to leave the school, they were 28 April 1938 transfered, some of the students but had logged off before this date. The total loss amounted to nearly 50 percent of the students because the school from all Viennese schools was attended most of all of children of Jewish families. Today, several plaques remember on the outer facade of the high school the transfer and the horrors of Nazism. A known victim of that action was the future Nobel laureate Walter Kohn, he had to leave school in the 5th class.
Wolfgang Wolfring (1925-2001) popularized the high school from 1960 as the site of classical Greek drama performances in ancient Greek original language. Annually took place performances of the classical Greek dramatic literature, among them, King Oedipus, Oedipus at Colonus and Philoctetes of Sophocles, the Oresteia of Aeschylus and The Trojan Women and Alcestis of Euripides. Protagonists of these performances were later Lawyers Josef and Eduard Wegrostek, Liliana Nelska, Doris Dornetshuber, Gerhard Tötschinger, but also in smaller roles Gabriel Barylli, Paulus Manker, Konstantin Schenk and others.
Over the years the school acquired the old reputation back and enjoyed high access rates. More and more emphasis has been placed on humanistic education, which has been demonstrated mainly by the wide range of languages, school theater performances at a high level and numerous musical events of the school choir the public in general as well.
21th Century
The focus are still on a broad linguistic foundation, which also includes training in languages such as Latin or Greek. The school offers both French and English from the first grade. The other of the two languages begins as early as the 2nd class.
In addition to this a wide range of projects are organized and voluntary activities offered. The goal of the Academic Gymnasium is the general education, which in turn should prepare for a subsequent university study.
One problem is the shortage of space of the school. Since there's a large demand for school places, the school house for financial reasons and such the monument preservation not expandable, not for all admission solicitors school places are available.
Known students and graduates
The Academic High School has produced a large number of public figures in its history:
Birth year before 1800
Ignaz Franz Castelli (1781-1862), writer
Wilhelm Ritter von Haidinger (1795-1871), geologist
Stanislaus Kostka (1550-1568), Catholic saint
Leopold Kupelwieser (1796-1862), painter
Joseph Othmar Rauscher (1797-1875), Archbishop of Vienna
Franz Schubert (1797-1828), Composer
Johann Carl Smirsch (1793-1869), painter
Birth year 1800-1849
Alexander Freiherr von Bach (1813-1893), lawyer and politician
Moritz Benedikt (1835-1920), a neurologist
Nikolaus Dumba (1830-1900), industrialist and art patron
Franz Serafin Exner (1802-1853), philosopher
Cajetan Felder (1814-1894), Mayor of Vienna
Adolf Ficker (1816-1880), statistician
Anton Josef Gruscha (1820-1911), Archbishop of Vienna
Christoph Hartung von Hartungen (1849-1917), physician
Carl Haslinger (1816-1868), music publisher
Gustav Heider (1819-1897), Art History
Joseph Hellmesberger (1828-1893), Kapellmeister (chapel master)
Hyrtl Joseph (1810-1894), anatomist
Friedrich Kaiser (1814-1874), actor
Theodor von Karajan (1810-1873), German scholar
Alfred von Kremer (1828-1889), orientalist and politician
Kürnberger Ferdinand (1821-1879), writer
Henry of Levitschnigg (1810-1862), writer and journalist
Robert von Lieben (1848-1913), physicist and inventor
Karl Ludwig von Littrow (1811-1877), Astronomer
Titu Maiorescu (1840-1917), Romanian Prime Minister
Johann Nestroy (1801-1862), actor, poet
Ignaz von Plener (1810-1908), Prime Minister of Austria
Johann Nepomuk Prix (1836-1894), Mayor of Vienna
Benedict Randhartinger (1802-1893), Kapellmeister (conductor)
Friedrich Rochleder (1819-1874), chemist
Wilhelm Scherer (1841-1886), German scholar
Anton Schmerling (1805-1893), lawyer and politician
Leopold Schrötter, Ritter von Kristelli (1837-1908) , doctor (laryngologist) and social medicine
Johann Gabriel Seidl (1804-1875), lyricist of the Austrian imperial anthem "God save, God defend our Emperor, our country!" ("may God save and protect our good Emperor Francis")
Daniel Spitzer (1835-1893), author
Eduard Strauss (1835-1916), composer and conductor
Franz von Thun und Hohenstein (1847-1916), Prime Minister of Cisleithania
Joseph Unger (1828-1913), lawyer and politician
Otto Wagner (1841-1918), architect
Birth year 1850-1899
Othenio Abel (1875-1946), biologist
Ludwig Adamovich, senior (1890-1955), President of the Constitutional Court
Guido Adler (1855-1941), musicologist
Plaque for Altenberg, Beer-Hofmann, Hofmannsthal and Schnitzler
Peter Altenberg (1859-1919), "literary cafe"
Max Wladimir von Beck (1854-1943), Austrian Prime Minister
Richard Beer-Hofmann (1866-1945), writer
Julius Bittner (1874-1939), composer
Robert Dannenberg (1885-1942), lawyer and politician
Konstantin Dumba (1856-1947), diplomat
August Fournier (1850-1920), historian and politician
Erich Frauwallner (1898-1974), Indologist
Dagobert Frey (1883-1962), art historian
Albert Gessmann (1852-1920), librarian and politician
Raimund Gruebl (1847-1898), Mayor of Vienna
Michael Hainisch (1858-1940), President of the Republic of Austria
Edmund Hauler (1859-1941), classical scholar
Hugo von Hofmannsthal (1874-1929), playwright
Karl Kautsky (1854-1938), philosopher and politician
Hans Kelsen (1881-1973), lawyer, co-designer of the Austrian Federal Constitution
Franz Klein (1854-1926), lawyer and politician
Arthur Krupp (1856-1938), industrialist
Wilhelm Kubitschek (1858-1936), archaeologist and numismatist
Edward Leisching (1858-1938), director of the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna
Felix from Luschan (1854-1924), doctor, anthropologist, explorer, archaeologist and ethnographer
Eugene Margaretha (1885-1963), lawyer and politician
Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk (1850-1937), founder and president of Czechoslovakia
Alexius Meinong (1853-1920), philosopher
Lise Meitner (1878-1968), nuclear physicist
Ludwig von Mises (1881-1973), economist
Paul Morgan (1886-1938), actor
Max von Oberleithner (1868-1935), composer and conductor
Paul Pisk Amadeus (1893-1990), Composer
Gabriele Possanner (1860-1940), physician
Przibram Hans Leo (1874-1944), zoologist
Przibram Karl (1878-1973), physicist
Josef Redlich (1869-1936), lawyer and politician
Elise Richter (1865-1943), Romance languages
Joseph Baron Schey of Koromla (1853-1938), legal scholar
Arthur Schnitzler (1862-1931), writer, playwright
Julius Schnitzler (1865-1939), physician
Erwin Schrödinger (1887-1961), physicist, 1933 Nobel Prize for Physics
Birth year 1900-1949
Ludwig Adamovich, Jr. ( born 1932 ), President of the Austrian Constitutional Court
Christian Broda (1916-1987), lawyer and politician
Engelbert Broda (1910-1983), physicist, chemist
Thomas Chorherr (*1932), journalist and newspaper editor
Magic Christian ( born 1945 ), magic artist and designer
Felix Czeike (1926-2006), historian
Albert Drach (1902-1995), writer
Paul Edwards (1923-2004), philosopher
Caspar Einem (born 1948), Austrian Minister of Interior, Minister of Transport
Ernst Federn (1914-2007), psychoanalyst
Friedrich Heer (1916-1983), writer, historian
Georg Knepler (1906-2003), musicologist
Walter Kohn (b. 1923), physicist, 1998 Nobel Prize for Chemistry
Paul Felix Lazarsfeld (1901-1976), sociologist
Lucian O. Meysels (1925-2012), journalist and nonfiction author
Liliana Nelska (born 1946 ), actress
Erwin Ringel (1921-1994), physician, advocate of Individual Psychology
Ernst Topitsch (1919-2003), philosopher and sociologist
Milan Turković (*1939), Austrian-Croatian wind blower and conductor
Hans Weigel (1908-1991), writer
Erich Wilhelm (1912-2005), Protestant superintendent in Vienna
Year of birth from 1950
Gabriel Barylli (*1957 ), writer and actor
Christiane Druml (b. 1955), lawyer and bioethicist
Paul Chaim Eisenberg (born 1950), Chief Rabbi of the Jewish Community Vienna
Paul Gulda (b. 1961), pianist
Martin Haselboeck (born 1954), organist
Peter Stephan Jungk (*1952), writer
Markus Kupferblum (b. 1964), director
Niki List (1956 - 2009) , film director
Miki Malör (born 1957), theater maker and performer
Paulus Manker (born 1958), actor and director
Andreas Mailath-Pokorny (* 1959), Vienna Councillor for Culture and Science
Doron Rabinovici (*1961), writer
Clemens Unterreiner (born 1977), opera singer, soloist and ensemble member of the Vienna State Opera
Antwerp (English: /ˈæntwɜrp/ ( listen); Dutch: Antwerpen, [ˈɑntˌʋɛrpə(n)] ( listen); French: Anvers, [ɑ̃vɛʁs]) is a city and municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Antwerp province in Flanders, one of Belgium's three regions. Antwerp's total population is 472,071 (as of 1 January 2008)[1] and its total area is 204.51 km2 (78.96 sq mi), giving a population density of 2,308 inhabitants per km². The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 1,449 km2 (559 sq mi) with a total of 1,190,769 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008.[2] The nickname of inhabitants of Antwerp is Sinjoren, after the Spanish word señor, which means 'mister' or 'gent'. It refers to the leading Spanish noble-men who ruled the city during the 17th century.[3]
Antwerp has long been an important city in the nations of the Benelux both economically and culturally, especially before the Spanish Fury of the Dutch Revolt. It is located on the right bank of the river Scheldt, which is linked to the North Sea by the estuary Westerschelde.
History
[edit]
Origin of the name
According to folklore, and as celebrated by the statue in front of the town hall, the city got its name from a legend involving a mythical giant called Antigoon who lived near the river Scheldt. He exacted a toll from those crossing the river, and for those who refused, he severed one of their hands and threw it into the river Scheldt. Eventually, the giant was slain by a young hero named Brabo, who cut off the giant's own hand and flung it into the river. Hence the name Antwerpen, from Dutch hand werpen—akin to Old English hand and wearpan (= to throw), that has changed to today's warp.[4]
In favour of this folk etymology is the fact that hand-cutting was indeed practised in Europe, the right hand of a man who died without issue being cut off and sent to the feudal lord as proof of main-morte. However, John Lothrop Motley argues that Antwerp's name derives from an 't werf (on the wharf).[5] Aan 't werp (at the warp) is also possible. This 'warp' (thrown ground) would be a man made hill, just high enough to remain dry at high tide, whereupon a farm would be built. Another word for werp is pol (hence polders).
The most prevailing theory is that the name originated in the Gallo-Roman period and comes from the Latin antverpia. Antverpia would come from Ante (before) Verpia (deposition, sedimentation), indicating land that forms by deposition in the inside curve of a river. Note that the river Scheldt, before a transition period between 600 to 750, followed a different track. This must have coincided roughly with the current ringway south of the city, situating the city within a former curve of the river.[6]
[edit]
Pre-1500
Historical Antwerp had its origins in a Gallo-Roman vicus civilization. Excavations carried out in the oldest section near the Scheldt, 1952-1961 (ref. Princeton), produced pottery shards and fragments of glass from mid-2nd century to the end of the 3rd century.
In the 4th century, Antwerp was first named, having been settled by the Germanic Franks.[7] The name was reputed to have been derived from "anda" (at) and "werpum" (wharf).[5]
The Merovingian Antwerp, now fortified, was evangelized by Saint Amand in the 7th century. At the end of the 10th century, the Scheldt became the boundary of the Holy Roman Empire. Antwerp became a margraviate, a border province facing the County of Flanders.
In the 11th century Godfrey of Bouillon was for some years known as the marquis of Antwerp. In the 12th century, Norbert of Xanten established a community of his Premonstratensian canons at St. Michael's Abbey at Caloes. Antwerp was also the headquarters of Edward III during his early negotiations with Jacob van Artevelde, and his son Lionel, the earl of Cambridge, was born there in 1338.
[edit]
16th century
After the silting up of the Zwin and the consequent decline of Bruges, the city of Antwerp, then part of the Duchy of Brabant, became of importance. At the end of the 15th century the foreign trading houses were transferred from Bruges to Antwerp, and the building assigned to the English nation is specifically mentioned in 1510.
Fernand Braudel states that Antwerp became "the center of the entire international economy, something Bruges had never been even at its height."[8] Antwerp was the richest city in Europe at this time.[9] Antwerp's golden age is tightly linked to the "Age of Exploration". Over the first half of the 16th century Antwerp grew to become the second-largest European city north of the Alps by 1560. Many foreign merchants were resident in the city. Francesco Guicciardini, the Venetian envoy, stated that hundreds of ships would pass in a day, and 2,000 carts entered the city each week. Portuguese ships laden with pepper and cinnamon would unload their cargo.
Without a long-distance merchant fleet, and governed by an oligarchy of banker-aristocrats forbidden to engage in trade, the economy of Antwerp was foreigner-controlled, which made the city very cosmopolitan, with merchants and traders from Venice, Ragusa, Spain and Portugal. Antwerp had a policy of toleration, which attracted a large orthodox Jewish community. Antwerp was not a "free" city though, since it had been reabsorbed into the Duchy of Brabant in 1406 and was controlled from Brussels.
Antwerp experienced three booms during its golden age: The first based on the pepper market, a second launched by American silver coming from Seville (ending with the bankruptcy of Spain in 1557), and a third boom, after the stabilising Treaty of Cateau-Cambresis, in 1559, based on the textiles industry. The boom-and-bust cycles and inflationary cost-of-living squeezed less-skilled workers.
The religious revolution of the Reformation erupted in violent riots in August 1566, as in other parts of the Low Countries. The regent Margaret, Duchess of Parma, was swept aside when Philip II sent the Duke of Alba at the head of an army the following summer. When the Eighty Years' War broke out in 1572, commercial trading between Antwerp and the Spanish port of Bilbao collapsed and became impossible. On 4 November 1576, Spanish soldiers plundered the city. During the Spanish Fury 6,000 citizens were massacred, 800 houses were burnt down, and over 2 million sterling of damage was done.
Antwerp became the capital of the Dutch revolt. In 1585, Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, captured it after a long siege and as part of the terms of surrender its Protestant citizens were given two years to settle their affairs before quitting the city.[10] Most went to the United Provinces in the north, starting the Dutch Golden Age. Antwerp's banking was controlled for a generation by Genoa, and Amsterdam became the new trading centre.
17th-19th centuries
The recognition of the independence of the United Provinces by the Treaty of Münster in 1648 stipulated that the Scheldt should be closed to navigation, which destroyed Antwerp's trading activities. This impediment remained in force until 1863, although the provisions were relaxed during French rule from 1795 to 1814, and also during the time Belgium formed part of the Kingdom of the United Netherlands (1815 to 1830). Antwerp had reached the lowest point of its fortunes in 1800, and its population had sunk under 40,000, when Napoleon, realizing its strategic importance, assigned two million[clarification needed] to enlarge the harbor by constructing two docks and a mole and deepening the Scheldt to allow for larger ships to approach Antwerp.[9] Napoleon hoped that by making Antwerp's harbor the finest in Europe he would be able to counter London's harbor and stint English growth, but he was defeated at the Battle of Waterloo before he could see the plan through.[11]
In 1830, the city was captured by the Belgian insurgents, but the citadel continued to be held by a Dutch garrison under General David Hendrik Chassé. For a time Chassé subjected the town to periodic bombardment which inflicted much damage, and at the end of 1832 the citadel itself was besieged by a French army. During this attack the town was further damaged. In December 1832, after a gallant defence, Chassé made an honourable surrender.
Later that century, a ring of fortresses was constructed some 10 kilometers from the city center, as Antwerp was considered vital for the survival of the young Belgian state.
20th century
Antwerp was the first city to host the World Gymnastics Championships, in 1903. During World War I, the city became the fallback point of the Belgian Army after the defeat at Liège. It was taken after heavy fighting by the German Army, and the Belgians were forced to retreat westward.
Antwerp hosted the 1920 Summer Olympics. During World War II, the city was an important strategic target because of its port. It was occupied by Germany in May 1940 and liberated by the British 11th Armoured Division on 4 September 1944. After this, the Germans attempted to destroy the Port of Antwerp, which was used by the Allies to bring new material ashore. Thousands of V-1 and V-2 missiles battered the city. The city was hit by more V-2s than all other targets during the entire war combined, but the attack did not succeed in destroying the port since many of the missiles fell upon other parts of the city. As a result, the city itself was severely damaged and rebuilt after the war in a modern style. After the war, Antwerp, which had already had a sizable Jewish population before the war, once again became a major European center of Haredi (and particularly Hasidic) Orthodox Judaism.
Buildings, landmarks and museums
In the 16th century, Antwerp was noted for the wealth of its citizens ("Antwerpia nummis"); the houses of these wealthy merchants and manufacturers have been preserved throughout the city. However fire has destroyed several old buildings, such as the house of the Hanseatic League on the northern quays in 1891. The city also suffered considerable war damage by V-bombs, and in recent years other noteworthy buildings were demolished for new developments.
▪Antwerp Zoo was founded in 1843, and is home to more than 6,000 animals (about 769 species). One of the oldest zoos in the world, it is renowned for of its high level of research and conservation.
▪Central Station is a railway station designed by Louis Delacenserie that was completed in 1905. It has two monumental neo-baroque facades, a large metal and glass dome (60m/197 ft) and a gilt and marble interior
▪Cathedral of Our Lady. This church was begun in the 14th century and finished in 1518. The church has four works by Rubens, viz. "The Descent from the Cross", "The Elevation of the Cross", "The Resurrection of Christ" and "The Assumption"
▪St. James' Church, is more ornate than the cathedral. It contains the tomb of Rubens
▪The Church of St. Paul has a beautiful baroque interior. It is a few hundred yards north of the Grote Markt
▪Plantin-Moretus Museum preserves the house of the printer Christoffel Plantijn and his successor Jan Moretus
▪The Saint-Boniface Church is an Anglican church and headseat of the archdeanery North-West Europe.
▪Boerentoren (Farmers' Tower) or KBC Tower, a 26-storey building built in 1932, is the oldest skyscraper in Europe[21]
▪Royal Museum of Fine Arts, close to the southern quays, has a collection of old masters (Rubens, Van Dyck, Titian) and the leading Dutch masters.
▪Rubenshuis is the former home and studio of Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640) in Antwerp. It is now a museum.
▪Exchange or Bourse, one of the earliest institutions in Europe with that title, was built in 1872.
▪Law Courts, designed by the Richard Rogers Partnership, Arup and VK Studio, and opened by King Albert in April 2006. This building is the antithesis of the heavy, dark court building designed by Joseph Poelaert that dominates the skyline of Brussels. The courtrooms sit on top of six fingers that radiate from an airy central hall, and are surmounted by spires which provide north light and resemble oast houses or the sails of barges on the nearby River Scheldt. It is built on the site of the old Zuid ("South") station, at the end of a magnificent 1.5 km perspective at the southern end of Amerikalei. The road neatly disappears into an underpass under oval Bolivarplaats to join the motorway ring. This leaves peaceful surface access by foot, bicycle or tram (routes 8 & 12). The building's highest 'sail' is 51 m (167.32 ft) high, has a floor area of 77,000 m2 (828,821.10 sq ft), and cost €130 million.
So I honestly think Gale is one of the best male dolls Mattel has produced in the last 5 years since his sculpt is pretty nice and the screening is great too so I’m pretty chuffed @elizabethplaid gifted him to me. But for some reason his head just looks really big on the pivotal Ken body. So I’m trying to see if he looks good on other bodies or not.
He’s currently on my Declan Wake’s body since I find Declan’s head to be too small for the neck, but I’m not sure if I’m really feeling Gale on this body. It’s definitely more expressive and proportional for Gale but…. yeah.
Hamburg has a „refugee problem“? No, Hamburg has a housing problem. For decades real estate developers and politicians have treated our cities as if mainly high earners inhabited them, as if people with low income and the homeless had no right to the city – and as if the worldwide flows of forced migration weren’t able to reach Europe. The arrival of more than one million refugees fleeing war, poverty and terror has clearified that this way of city-planning is irresponsible. Suddenly it becomes clear that a policy that has constantly feared „ghettoisation“ when it comes to social housing will fail to cope with the historic challenges of our time. The neoliberal city has been unable to develop concepts for good, affordable and sustainable housing, it has turned the social housing scheme into a subsidy-scheme for investors – and all this lapses have come back to bite. Now it’s high time to talk about new ways to continue building our cities.
Thus, on May 28 we call for a parade of choreographed blocks, leading into a public hearing under the motto „A different planning is possible“. We will start at Karolinenplatz / Messehallen, following a suggestion of the Hamburg Chamber of Architects: Why does Hamburg need an exhibition center, unused for most of the year, in such a central location? How about moving it to outskirts and reusing the exhibition site? We end our parade at the square in front of the empty Axel Springer-house – a former editorial building of 90.000 square meter that would make a perfect example for a different kind of planning, the right place for a public hearing to debate on a city in which ‚higher and more’ does not only benefit those who can afford it.
What we need is a planning that includes platforms of access and mediation and brings together the new neighbourhoods, a planning which organises a sustainable form of social housing by bringing cooperatives and new forms of communalisation
into the game – instead of encouraging privatisation of public space for the benefit of the real estate sector under the premise of building new housing for refugees. Last but not least, we need a perspective on housing, where origin and status do not matter.
We will not leave the city to the Not-in-my-Backyard-citizens, who instinctively demonise the planned arrival-quarters as „ghettos“. Furthermore, we don’t believe that the deportation campaign, promoted by the governing Social Democratic and
Green Party – affecting hundreds of people every month – produces any relief. Instead, it is a cruel attempt, doomed to failure, to appease right-wing sentiments. Therefore, we also call for the manifestation „Migration is a Right! Deportation is a Crime!“ that takes place on May 14.
We believe that city has no upper limits. Newcomers don’t remain strange in cities.
Densification is the essence of the city – it produces spaces, provides chances and makes us all smarter.
Right to the City Network & Never Mind the Papers
Netzwerk Recht auf Stadt & Never Mind the Papers
I have no plan with the Kent Church Project, as I call it.
The plan, as it is, is to visit each of the Kent parish churches, and if possible, photograph inside and out.
I could have a list for each area, names and adresses of each church, and details of opening times or points of contact. But I don't.
Mostly its a spur of the moment thing, we're going to a town for something, and we do some churches in the area, and if we're lucky, they're open.
If I would have done my research properly, I would have realised that the largest village between Faversham and Sittingbourne, would have a parish church, and I would have ticked it off over Heritage Weekend.
As it was, I didn't know.
So, late one Friday afternoon, I arrive at the church to find the door open, though the wardens clearing up after the weekend, were not too receptive for a visit, but agreed to stay a "few minutes" to allow me to get some shots.
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An enormous building in an isolated position overlooking farmland. The church is entered under a tower built in the fourteenth century, which completed a westward rebuilding of a thirteenth-century church that boasted very large transepts. The Victorian east window (for which there is a design hanging on the wall) was destroyed in the Second World War and replaced by the present glass to the designs of Hugh Easton. In the north transept are some fragments of fifteenth-century glass. The pulpit is Jacobean. In the south transept are some excellent brasses including one to John Frogenhall (d. 1444), showing him wearing the SS-pattern collar of the Lancastrian cause.
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Teynham
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TENHAM.
TENHAM, called in Saxon, Teynham, and now frequently written so, is the next parish south-eastward from Bapchild, and gives name to the hundred in which it is situated.
THE MANOR, which comprehends the hundred of Tenham, was given by Cenulph, king of Mercia, at the request of archbishop Athelard, by the description of twelve ploughlands, lying at Tenham, to the metropolitan church of our Saviour at Canterbury; and he made this gift chiefly on account of the archbishop's having given to him in recompence, twelve ploughlands lying at Cregesemeline, which king Offa formerly gave to one of his earls, named Uffa; and the king granted this land to the church of Christ, free from all secular service, except the repairing of bridges and the building of castles.
The above place, called Creges Emeline, has been understood to mean the fleet, or pool of water between the islands of Emley and Harty, in Shepey, now and long since called Crogs-depe, which water parts the royalty of the Swale between Tenham and Faversham, and is likewise the bounds of the hundreds of Middleton and Faversham. (fn. 1)
This manor continued part of the possessions of the church of Canterbury when archbishop Lansranc came to the see in the year 1070, being the 5th of the Conqueror's reign: and on the division which he soon afterwards made of the revenues of his church, between himself and his convent, Tenham was allotted to the archbishop and his successors, for their provision and maintenance.
After which the succeeding archbishops so far improved the buildings of this manor-house, as to make it fit for their frequent residence.
Archbishop Hubert Walter, a most magnificent prelate; the expence of whose housekeeping was esteemed nearly equal to that of the king, resided much at Tenham, where he died in the year 1205, and was carried from thence and buried in his own cathedral at Canterbury.
¶Archbishop Boniface, anno 44 Henry III. 1259, obtained both a market and fair for his manor of Tenham, the former on a Tuesday weekly, and the latter to continue for three days yearly at the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Archbishop Walter Reynolds was resident here in the beginning of the winter of the year 1325, one of his instruments being dated from hence. Archbishop John Stratford, who filled the see in the reign of Edward III. entertained that prince here in the month of February, anno 1345, being the 19th of his reign, several of his letters patent bearing date from Tenham in that time.
The manor of Tenham remained part of the see of Canterbury, so far as I have learned, till the reign of queen Elizabeth, (fn. 2) when it was exchanged with the crown for other premises, where it lay till James I. in his 5th year, granted it to John Roper, esq. of the adjoining parish of Linsted, whom he afterwards, in the 14th year of his reign, knighted and created lord Teynham, in whose successors, lords Teynham, the property of this manor has continued down to the Right Hon. Henry Roper, the twelsth lord Teynham, who is the present possessor of it. A court baron is held for this manor.
There are several different customs of the tenants of this manor, principally in the Weald, mentioned in Somner's Gavelkind.
TENHAM is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Ospringe,
The church, which is large, is dedicated to St. Mary. It is built in the form of a cross, and consists of three isles, a high chancel, and a north and south chancel, having a square tower at the west end, in which are four bells. In the south cross or chancel, called the Frognal chancel, from its belonging to that manor, lie buried several of that family; over John Frogenhall, who died in 1444, there still remains a brass on his gravestone, with his figure habited in armour; several of the Clerks, owners of this manor, lie buried likewise in it. The north chancel is called the Hinkley chancel, from a family of that name, one of whom, John Hencliff, of Tenham, died in 1463, possessed of an estate in this parish, called Jonathan's garden, which he devised to his two sons, on condition that they should glaze a long window on the north head of this church. In this chancel is a stone, with an inscription and figure of a man in brass, for William Wreke, obt. 1533; a memorial for John Sutton, vicar, 1468, and Robert Heyward, in 1509. Weever says, there was a memorial in this church for William Mareys, and Joan his wife, but it has been long since obliterated. There are remains of good painted glass in the windows. Several of them have rich gothic canopies of beautiful coloured glass remaining in them, which had no doubt formerly figures of equal beauty, underneath. In the south window of the high chancel, is the portrait of a girl in blue, kneeling and pointing to a book, which is held by a man, who likewise points with his hand to it; at the bottom was an inscription, of which only remains, Sedis aplce pthonotarii. In the north chancel, in two windows near the vestry, is a figure in an episcopal habit, mitred, &c. with these arms, Ermine, three bars wavy, azure. In the window of the vestry room, a mitre and these arms, Per pale and fess, counterchanged, azure, and argent.
¶Archbishop Stephen Langton, in 1227, on account of the slender income of the archdeacontry of Canterbury, and the affection he bore towards his brother Simon Langton, then archdeacon, united to it the churches of Hackington, alias St. Stephen's, and Tenham, with the chapelries of Doddington, Linsted, Stone, and Iwade, then belonging to it, which churches were then of the archbishop's patronage; and this was confirmed by the chapter of the priory of Christchurch directly afterwards; at which time this church was let to farm for one hundred marcs. (fn. 5) In which situation this church has continued to this time, the archdeacon of Canterbury being the present patron and appropriator of it.
The chapels above-mentioned, which are all belonging to the archdeaconry, have long since, excepting the chapel of Stone, become independent parish churches, and as such not subject to any jurisdiction of the church of Tenham.
In the 8th year of Richard II. anno 1384, this church was valued at 133l. 6s. 8d. It is now of the annual value of about two hundred pounds, the yearly rent to the archdeacon is thirty-five pounds.
It is a vicarage, and valued in the king's books at ten pounds, and the yearly tenths at one pound, and is now of the yearly certified value of 63l. 13s. 4d. In 1640 it was valued at sixty pounds. Communicants one hundred.
This vicarage was augmented ten pounds per annum, by lease in 1672, between archdeacon Parker and Sir William Hugessen, of Linsted, lessee of the parsonage.
The family of Furnese were afterwards lessees of the parsonage; Henry Furnese, esq. sold it to Henry, late lord Teynham, who, in 1754, alienated his interest in it to Mr. Kempe, the occupier of it, in whose family it still continues.
There was a chantry in this church, which was suppressed, among other such endowments, by the acts of 37 Henry VIII. and 1 Edward VI. In the 2d year of the latter reign a survey was returned of it, by which it appears, that the land belonging to it lay in Frogenhall manor, then the property of Thomas Green, and that the total yearly value of it was only 18s. 8d.
Angkor Wat or "Capital Temple" is a temple complex in Cambodia and the largest religious monument in the world. It was first a Hindu and later a Buddhist temple. It was built by the Khmer King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century in Yaśodharapura, present-day Angkor, the capital of the Khmer Empire, as his state temple and eventual mausoleum.
Breaking from the Shiva tradition of previous kings, Angkor Wat was instead dedicated to Vishnu. As the best-preserved temple at the site, it is the only one to have remained a significant religious center since its foundation. The temple is at the top of the high classical style of Khmer architecture. It has become a symbol of Cambodia, appearing on its national flag, and it is the country's prime attraction for visitors. Angkor Wat combines two basic plans of Khmer temple architecture: the temple-mountain and the later galleried temple, based on early Dravidian architecture, with key features such as the Jagati. It is designed to represent Mount Meru, home of the devas in Hindu mythology: within a moat and an outer wall 3.6 kilometres long are three rectangular galleries, each raised above the next. At the centre of the temple stands a quincunx of towers. Unlike most Angkorian temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west; scholars are divided as to the significance of this. The temple is admired for the grandeur and harmony of the architecture, its extensive bas-reliefs, and for the numerous devatas adorning its walls.
The modern name, Angkor Wat, means "Temple City" or "City of Temples" in Khmer; Angkor, meaning "city" or "capital city", is a vernacular form of the word nokor (នគរ), which comes from the Sanskrit word nagara (नगर). Wat is the Khmer word for "temple grounds" (Sanskrit: वाट vāṭa ""enclosure").
HISTORY
Angkor Wat lies 5.5 kilometres north of the modern town of Siem Reap, and a short distance south and slightly east of the previous capital, which was centred at Baphuon. It is in an area of Cambodia where there is an important group of ancient structures. It is the southernmost of Angkor's main sites.
According to one legend, the construction of Angkor Wat was ordered by Indra to act as a palace for his son Precha Ket Mealea.
According to the 13th century Chinese traveler Daguan Zhou, it was believed by some that the temple was constructed in a single night by a divine architect. The initial design and construction of the temple took place in the first half of the 12th century, during the reign of Suryavarman II (ruled 1113-C. 1150). Dedicated to Vishnu, it was built as the king's state temple and capital city. As neither the foundation stela nor any contemporary inscriptions referring to the temple have been found, its original name is unknown, but it may have been known as "Varah Vishnu-lok" after the presiding deity. Work seems to have ended shortly after the king's death, leaving some of the bas-relief decoration unfinished.
In 1177, approximately 27 years after the death of Suryavarman II, Angkor was sacked by the Chams, the traditional enemies of the Khmer. Thereafter the empire was restored by a new king, Jayavarman VII, who established a new capital and state temple (Angkor Thom and the Bayon respectively) a few kilometers to the north.
In the late 13th century, Angkor Wat gradually moved from Hindu to Theravada Buddhist use, which continues to the present day. Angkor Wat is unusual among the Angkor temples in that although it was somewhat neglected after the 16th century it was never completely abandoned, its preservation being due in part to the fact that its moat also provided some protection from encroachment by the jungle.
One of the first Western visitors to the temple was António da Madalena, a Portuguese monk who visited in 1586 and said that it "is of such extraordinary construction that it is not possible to describe it with a pen, particularly since it is like no other building in the world. It has towers and decoration and all the refinements which the human genius can conceive of."
In the mid-19th century, the temple was visited by the French naturalist and explorer, Henri Mouhot, who popularised the site in the West through the publication of travel notes, in which he wrote:
"One of these temples - a rival to that of Solomon, and erected by some ancient Michelangelo - might take an honorable place beside our most beautiful buildings. It is grander than anything left to us by Greece or Rome, and presents a sad contrast to the state of barbarism in which the nation is now plunged."
Mouhot, like other early Western visitors, found it difficult to believe that the Khmers could have built the temple, and mistakenly dated it to around the same era as Rome. The true history of Angkor Wat was pieced together only from stylistic and epigraphic evidence accumulated during the subsequent clearing and restoration work carried out across the whole Angkor site. There were no ordinary dwellings or houses or other signs of settlement including cooking utensils, weapons, or items of clothing usually found at ancient sites. Instead there is the evidence of the monuments themselves.
Angkor Wat required considerable restoration in the 20th century, mainly the removal of accumulated earth and vegetation. Work was interrupted by the civil war and Khmer Rouge control of the country during the 1970s and 1980s, but relatively little damage was done during this period other than the theft and destruction of mostly post-Angkorian statues.The temple is a powerful symbol of Cambodia, and is a source of great national pride that has factored into Cambodia's diplomatic relations with France, the United States and its neighbor Thailand. A depiction of Angkor Wat has been a part of Cambodian national flags since the introduction of the first version circa 1863. From a larger historical and even transcultural perspective, however, the temple of Angkor Wat did not become a symbol of national pride sui generis but had been inscribed into a larger politico-cultural process of French-colonial heritage production in which the original temple site was presented in French colonial and universal exhibitions in Paris and Marseille between 1889 and 1937. Angkor Wat's aesthetics were also on display in the plaster cast museum of Louis Delaporte called musée Indo-chinois which existed in the Parisian Trocadero Palace from C. 1880 to the mid-1920s. The splendid artistic legacy of Angkor Wat and other Khmer monuments in the Angkor region led directly to France adopting Cambodia as a protectorate on 11 August 1863 and invading Siam to take control of the ruins. This quickly led to Cambodia reclaiming lands in the northwestern corner of the country that had been under Siamese (Thai) control since 1351 AD (Manich Jumsai 2001), or by some accounts, 1431 AD. Cambodia gained independence from France on 9 November 1953 and has controlled Angkor Wat since that time.
ARCHITECTURE
SITE AND PLAN
Angkor Wat, located at 13°24′45″N 103°52′0″E, is a unique combination of the temple mountain, the standard design for the empire's state temples and the later plan of concentric galleries. The temple is a representation of Mount Meru, the home of the gods: the central quincunx of towers symbolises the five peaks of the mountain, and the walls and moat the surrounding mountain ranges and ocean. Access to the upper areas of the temple was progressively more exclusive, with the laity being admitted only to the lowest level. Unlike most Khmer temples, Angkor Wat is oriented to the west rather than the east. This has led many (including Maurice Glaize and George Coedès) to conclude that Suryavarman intended it to serve as his funerary temple.Further evidence for this view is provided by the bas-reliefs, which proceed in a counter-clockwise direction - prasavya in Hindu terminology - as this is the reverse of the normal order. Rituals take place in reverse order during Brahminic funeral services. The archaeologist Charles Higham also describes a container which may have been a funerary jar which was recovered from the central tower. It has been nominated by some as the greatest expenditure of energy on the disposal of a corpse. Freeman and Jacques, however, note that several other temples of Angkor depart from the typical eastern orientation, and suggest that Angkor Wat's alignment was due to its dedication to Vishnu, who was associated with the west.
A further interpretation of Angkor Wat has been proposed by Eleanor Mannikka. Drawing on the temple's alignment and dimensions, and on the content and arrangement of the bas-reliefs, she argues that the structure represents a claimed new era of peace under King Suryavarman II: "as the measurements of solar and lunar time cycles were built into the sacred space of Angkor Wat, this divine mandate to rule was anchored to consecrated chambers and corridors meant to perpetuate the king's power and to honor and placate the deities manifest in the heavens above." Mannikka's suggestions have been received with a mixture of interest and scepticism in academic circles. She distances herself from the speculations of others, such as Graham Hancock, that Angkor Wat is part of a representation of the constellation Draco.
STYLE
Angkor Wat is the prime example of the classical style of Khmer architecture - the Angkor Wat style - to which it has given its name. By the 12th century Khmer architects had become skilled and confident in the use of sandstone (rather than brick or laterite) as the main building material. Most of the visible areas are of sandstone blocks, while laterite was used for the outer wall and for hidden structural parts. The binding agent used to join the blocks is yet to be identified, although natural resins or slaked lime has been suggested. The temple has drawn praise above all for the harmony of its design. According to Maurice Glaize, a mid-20th-century conservator of Angkor, the temple "attains a classic perfection by the restrained monumentality of its finely balanced elements and the precise arrangement of its proportions. It is a work of power, unity and style." Architecturally, the elements characteristic of the style include: the ogival, redented towers shaped like lotus buds; half-galleries to broaden passageways; axial galleries connecting enclosures; and the cruciform terraces which appear along the main axis of the temple. Typical decorative elements are devatas (or apsaras), bas-reliefs, and on pediments extensive garlands and narrative scenes. The statuary of Angkor Wat is considered conservative, being more static and less graceful than earlier work. Other elements of the design have been destroyed by looting and the passage of time, including gilded stucco on the towers, gilding on some figures on the bas-reliefs, and wooden ceiling panels and doors.
FEATURES
OUTER ENCLOSURE
The outer wall, 1024 by 802 m and 4.5 m high, is surrounded by a 30 m apron of open ground and a moat 190 m wide. Access to the temple is by an earth bank to the east and a sandstone causeway to the west; the latter, the main entrance, is a later addition, possibly replacing a wooden bridge. There are gopuras at each of the cardinal points; the western is by far the largest and has three ruined towers. Glaize notes that this gopura both hides and echoes the form of the temple proper. Under the southern tower is a statue of Vishnu, known as Ta Reach, which may originally have occupied the temple's central shrine.Galleries run between the towers and as far as two further entrances on either side of the gopura often referred to as "elephant gates", as they are large enough to admit those animals. These galleries have square pillars on the outer (west) side and a closed wall on the inner (east) side. The ceiling between the pillars is decorated with lotus rosettes; the west face of the wall with dancing figures; and the east face of the wall with balustered windows, dancing male figures on prancing animals, and devatas, including (south of the entrance) the only one in the temple to be showing her teeth. The outer wall encloses a space of 820,000 square metres, which besides the temple proper was originally occupied by the city and, to the north of the temple, the royal palace. Like all secular buildings of Angkor, these were built of perishable materials rather than of stone, so nothing remains of them except the outlines of some of the streets. Most of the area is now covered by forest. A 350 m causeway connects the western gopura to the temple proper, with naga balustrades and six sets of steps leading down to the city on either side. Each side also features a library with entrances at each cardinal point, in front of the third set of stairs from the entrance, and a pond between the library and the temple itself. The ponds are later additions to the design, as is the cruciform terrace guarded by lions connecting the causeway to the central structure.
CENTRAL STRUCTURE
The temple stands on a terrace raised higher than the city. It is made of three rectangular galleries rising to a central tower, each level higher than the last. Mannikka interprets these galleries as being dedicated to the king, Brahma, the moon, and Vishnu.
Each gallery has a gopura at each of the points, and the two inner galleries each have towers at their corners, forming a quincunx with the central tower. Because the temple faces west, the features are all set back towards the east, leaving more space to be filled in each enclosure and gallery on the west side; for the same reason the west-facing steps are shallower than those on the other sides.
The outer gallery measures 187 by 215 m, with pavilions rather than towers at the corners. The gallery is open to the outside of the temple, with columned half-galleries extending and buttressing the structure. Connecting the outer gallery to the second enclosure on the west side is a cruciform cloister called Preah Poan (the "Hall of a Thousand Gods"). Buddha images were left in the cloister by pilgrims over the centuries, although most have now been removed. This area has many inscriptions relating the good deeds of pilgrims, most written in Khmer but others in Burmese and Japanese. The four small courtyards marked out by the cloister may originally have been filled with water.
North and south of the cloister are libraries.
Beyond, the second and inner galleries are connected to each other and to two flanking libraries by another cruciform terrace, again a later addition. From the second level upwards, devatas abound on the walls, singly or in groups of up to four. The second-level enclosure is 100 by 115 m, and may originally have been flooded to represent the ocean around Mount Meru.
Three sets of steps on each side lead up to the corner towers and gopuras of the inner gallery. The very steep stairways represent the difficulty of ascending to the kingdom of the gods. This inner gallery, called the Bakan, is a 60 m square with axial galleries connecting each gopura with the central shrine, and subsidiary shrines located below the corner towers. The roofings of the galleries are decorated with the motif of the body of a snake ending in the heads of lions or garudas. Carved lintels and pediments decorate the entrances to the galleries and to the shrines. The tower above the central shrine rises 43 m to a height of 65 m above the ground; unlike those of previous temple mountains, the central tower is raised above the surrounding four. The shrine itself, originally occupied by a statue of Vishnu and open on each side, was walled in when the temple was converted to Theravada Buddhism, the new walls featuring standing Buddhas. In 1934, the conservator George Trouvé excavated the pit beneath the central shrine: filled with sand and water it had already been robbed of its treasure, but he did find a sacred foundation deposit of gold leaf two metres above ground level.
DECORATION
Integrated with the architecture of the building, and one of the causes for its fame is Angkor Wat's extensive decoration, which predominantly takes the form of bas-relief friezes. The inner walls of the outer gallery bear a series of large-scale scenes mainly depicting episodes from the Hindu epics the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Higham has called these, "the greatest known linear arrangement of stone carving".
From the north-west corner anti-clockwise, the western gallery shows the Battle of Lanka (from the Ramayana, in which Rama defeats Ravana) and the Battle of Kurukshetra (from the Mahabharata, showing the mutual annihilation of the Kaurava and Pandava clans). On the southern gallery follow the only historical scene, a procession of Suryavarman II, then the 32 hells and 37 heavens of Hindu mythology.
On the eastern gallery is one of the most celebrated scenes, the Churning of the Sea of Milk, showing 92 asuras and 88 devas using the serpent Vasuki to churn the sea under Vishnu's direction (Mannikka counts only 91 asuras, and explains the asymmetrical numbers as representing the number of days from the winter solstice to the spring equinox, and from the equinox to the summer solstice). It is followed by Vishnu defeating asuras (a 16th-century addition). The northern gallery shows Krishna's victory over Bana (where according to Glaize, "The workmanship is at its worst"). and a battle between the Hindu gods and asuras. The north-west and south-west corner pavilions both feature much smaller-scale scenes, some unidentified but most from the Ramayana or the life of Krishna. Angkor Wat is decorated with depictions of apsaras and devata; there are more than 1,796 depictions of devata in the present research inventory. Angkor Wat architects employed small apsara images (30–40 cm) as decorative motifs on pillars and walls. They incorporated larger devata images (all full-body portraits measuring approximately 95–110 cm) more prominently at every level of the temple from the entry pavilion to the tops of the high towers. In 1927, Sappho Marchal published a study cataloging the remarkable diversity of their hair, headdresses, garments, stance, jewelry and decorative flowers, which Marchal concluded were based on actual practices of the Angkor period.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES
The stones, as smooth as polished marble, were laid without mortar with very tight joints that are sometimes hard to find. The blocks were held together by mortise and tenon joints in some cases, while in others they used dovetails and gravity. The blocks were presumably put in place by a combination of elephants, coir ropes, pulleys and bamboo scaffolding. Henri Mouhot noted that most of the blocks had holes 2.5 cm in diameter and 3 cm deep, with more holes on the larger blocks. Some scholars have suggested that these were used to join them together with iron rods, but others claim they were used to hold temporary pegs to help manoeuvre them into place. The monument was made out of millions of tonnes of sandstone and it has a greater volume as well as mass than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. The Angkor Wat Temple consumes about 6 million to 10 million blocks of sandstone with an average weight of 1.5 tons each. In fact, the entire city of Angkor used up far greater amounts of stone than all the Egyptian pyramids combined, and occupied an area significantly greater than modern-day Paris. Moreover, unlike the Egyptian pyramids which use limestone quarried barely half a km away all the time, the entire city of Angkor was built with sandstone quarried 40 km (or more) away. This sandstone had to be transported from Mount Kulen, a quarry approximately 40 km to the northeast. The route has been suggested to span 35 kilometres along a canal towards Tonlé Sap lake, another 35 kilometres crossing the lake, and finally 15 kilometres upstream and against the current along Siem Reap River, making a total journey of 90 kilometres. However, Etsuo Uchida and Ichita Shimoda of Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan have discovered in 2012 a shorter 35-kilometre canal connecting Mount Kulen and Angkor Wat using satellite imagery. The two believe that the Khmer used this route instead.
Virtually all of its surfaces, columns, lintels even roofs are carved. There are miles of reliefs illustrating scenes from Indian literature including unicorns, griffins, winged dragons pulling chariots as well as warriors following an elephant-mounted leader and celestial dancing girls with elaborate hair styles. The gallery wall alone is decorated with almost 1000 square metres of bas reliefs. Holes on some of the Angkor walls indicate that they may have been decorated with bronze sheets. These were highly prized in ancient times and were a prime target for robbers. While excavating Khajuraho, Alex Evans, a stonemason and sculptor, recreated a stone sculpture under 1.2 m, this took about 60 days to carve. Roger Hopkins and Mark Lehner also conducted experiments to quarry limestone which took 12 quarrymen 22 days to quarry about 400 tons of stone. The labor force to quarry, transport, carve and install so much sandstone must have run into the thousands including many highly skilled artisans. The skills required to carve these sculptures were developed hundreds of years earlier, as demonstrated by some artifacts that have been dated to the seventh century, before the Khmer came to power.
ANGKOR WAT TODAY
The Archaeological Survey of India carried out restoration work on the temple between 1986 and 1992. Since the 1990s, Angkor Wat has seen continued conservation efforts and a massive increase in tourism. The temple is part of the Angkor World Heritage Site, established in 1992, which has provided some funding and has encouraged the Cambodian government to protect the site. The German Apsara Conservation Project (GACP) is working to protect the devatas and other bas-reliefs which decorate the temple from damage. The organisation's survey found that around 20% of the devatas were in very poor condition, mainly because of natural erosion and deterioration of the stone but in part also due to earlier restoration efforts. Other work involves the repair of collapsed sections of the structure, and prevention of further collapse: the west facade of the upper level, for example, has been buttressed by scaffolding since 2002, while a Japanese team completed restoration of the north library of the outer enclosure in 2005. World Monuments Fund began conservation work on the Churning of the Sea of Milk Gallery in 2008 after several years of conditions studies. The project restored the traditional Khmer roofing system and removed cement used in earlier restoration attempts that had resulted in salts entering the structure behind the bas-relief, discoloring and damaging the sculpted surfaces. The main phase of work ended in 2012, and the final component will be the installation of finials on the roof of the gallery in 2013. Microbial biofilms have been found degrading sandstone at Angkor Wat, Preah Khan, and the Bayon and West Prasat in Angkor. The dehydration and radiation resistant filamentous cyanobacteria can produce organic acids that degrade the stone. A dark filamentous fungus was found in internal and external Preah Khan samples, while the alga Trentepohlia was found only in samples taken from external, pink-stained stone at Preah Khan. Angkor Wat has become a major tourist destination. In 2004 and 2005, government figures suggest that, respectively, 561.000 and 677.000 foreign visitors arrived in Siem Reap province, approximately 50% of all foreign tourists in Cambodia for both years. The site has been managed by the private SOKIMEX group since 1990, which rented it from the Cambodian government. The influx of tourists has so far caused relatively little damage, other than some graffiti; ropes and wooden steps have been introduced to protect the bas-reliefs and floors, respectively. Tourism has also provided some additional funds for maintenance - as of 2000 approximately 28% of ticket revenues across the whole Angkor site was spent on the temples - although most work is carried out by foreign government-sponsored teams rather than by the Cambodian authorities. Since Angkor Wat has seen significant growth in tourism throughout the years UNESCO and its International Co-ordinating Committee for the Safeguarding and Development of the Historic Site of Angkor (ICC), in association with representatives from the Royal Government and APSARA, organized seminars to discuss the concept of "cultural tourism". Wanting to avoid commercial and mass tourism, the seminars emphasized the importance of providing high quality accommodation and services in order for the Cambodian government to benefit economically, while also incorporating the richness of Cambodian culture. In 2001, this incentive resulted in the concept of the "Angkor Tourist City" which would be developed with regard to traditional Khmer architecture, contain leisure and tourist facilities, and provide luxurious hotels capable of accommodating large amounts of tourists. The prospect of developing such large tourist accommodations has encountered concerns from both APSARA and the ICC, claiming that previous tourism developments in the area have neglected construction regulations and more of these projects have the potential to damage landscape features. Also, the large scale of these projects have begun to threaten the quality of the nearby town's water, sewage, and electricity systems. It has been noted that such high frequency of tourism and growing demand for quality accommodations in the area, such as the development of a large highway, has had a direct effect on the underground water table, subsequently straining the structural stability of the temples at Angkor Wat. Locals of Siem Reap have also voiced concern over the charming nature and atmosphere of their town being compromised in order to entertain tourism. Since this charming local atmosphere is the key component to projects like Angkor Tourist City, local officials continue to discuss how to successfully incorporate future tourism without sacrificing local values and culture. At the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2012, both parties have agreed Borobudur and Angkor Wat to become sister sites and the provinces will become sister provinces. Two Indonesian airlines are considering the opportunity to open a direct flight from Yogyakarta, Indonesia to Siem Reap.
WIKIPEDIA
Ecstatic about the 80F weather we had yesterday, as soon as I came home from work, I loaded Ouzo in the truck and headed to the Cherry Creek dog park, where for almost 2 hours he ran and swam and ran some more.
When I loaded him in the back of the Chevy and was ready to towel dry him, he suddenly started to rub the left side of his face to the truck's interior walls, then seriously leaning into the towel as I was rubbing his head with it. I didn't know what was hurting - his eye, his ear or his snout - thinking that he might have been bitten by something and already imagining him swelling up again and turning into a SharPei. 15 minutes later, as we arrived home, he didn't seem to have any allergic reaction, but noticed that he was blinking fast with his left eye and rubbing his face against the carpet. I looked in his eye (he's been known to have things stuck to his eye ball without noticing or missing a beat until I had to remove the object - usually piece of grass or leaf) and saw a small abrasion, almost like a partial finger print (I swear I didn't stuck my finger in his eye that hard ).
I tried to clean up his eye with a wet cotton ball, and hoped for the best. Later as he was still blinking, I put a drop of Visine antihistaminic, thinking it might alleviate his discomfort - wrong, it obviously stung him like hell, so I cleaned it up with another wet cotton ball. Chris tried other drops at night, but by morning he was still blinking, plus he had some yellow discharge like he never had before.
This morning we put some ophthalmologic ointment that I had from Romania from my mom (kanamicyn sulphate - couldn't find too much info online or an US equivalent) and a few drops of Naphcon A which Chris had used himself. Not sure if this helped, but I repeated the treatment this afternoon.
I called the vet and scheduled an appt. for tomorrow at 11.30 - I know they will prescribe something similar - an antibiotic - drops/or ointment, but I want to make sure there's nothing stuck there that I cannot see. Other than blinking he is the same - ran like a horse outside just an hour ago and he even seemed to keep his eye wider open while he was having fun.
Hamburg has a „refugee problem“? No, Hamburg has a housing problem. For decades real estate developers and politicians have treated our cities as if mainly high earners inhabited them, as if people with low income and the homeless had no right to the city – and as if the worldwide flows of forced migration weren’t able to reach Europe. The arrival of more than one million refugees fleeing war, poverty and terror has clearified that this way of city-planning is irresponsible. Suddenly it becomes clear that a policy that has constantly feared „ghettoisation“ when it comes to social housing will fail to cope with the historic challenges of our time. The neoliberal city has been unable to develop concepts for good, affordable and sustainable housing, it has turned the social housing scheme into a subsidy-scheme for investors – and all this lapses have come back to bite. Now it’s high time to talk about new ways to continue building our cities.
Thus, on May 28 we call for a parade of choreographed blocks, leading into a public hearing under the motto „A different planning is possible“. We will start at Karolinenplatz / Messehallen, following a suggestion of the Hamburg Chamber of Architects: Why does Hamburg need an exhibition center, unused for most of the year, in such a central location? How about moving it to outskirts and reusing the exhibition site? We end our parade at the square in front of the empty Axel Springer-house – a former editorial building of 90.000 square meter that would make a perfect example for a different kind of planning, the right place for a public hearing to debate on a city in which ‚higher and more’ does not only benefit those who can afford it.
What we need is a planning that includes platforms of access and mediation and brings together the new neighbourhoods, a planning which organises a sustainable form of social housing by bringing cooperatives and new forms of communalisation
into the game – instead of encouraging privatisation of public space for the benefit of the real estate sector under the premise of building new housing for refugees. Last but not least, we need a perspective on housing, where origin and status do not matter.
We will not leave the city to the Not-in-my-Backyard-citizens, who instinctively demonise the planned arrival-quarters as „ghettos“. Furthermore, we don’t believe that the deportation campaign, promoted by the governing Social Democratic and
Green Party – affecting hundreds of people every month – produces any relief. Instead, it is a cruel attempt, doomed to failure, to appease right-wing sentiments. Therefore, we also call for the manifestation „Migration is a Right! Deportation is a Crime!“ that takes place on May 14.
We believe that city has no upper limits. Newcomers don’t remain strange in cities.
Densification is the essence of the city – it produces spaces, provides chances and makes us all smarter.
Right to the City Network & Never Mind the Papers
Netzwerk Recht auf Stadt & Never Mind the Papers