CDP Theme Day: Stylish

It's the first of the month, theme day on the City Daily Photo calendar. This month the topic is "stylish." That, thank heavens, rules out selfies on this blog.

Close call between these two recent pictures. The first was at Earth Day, the second at the People's Joy Parade. Fortunately for the ladies in the top photo it was a beautiful day. Imagine the outfit on the left in the rain. The one on the right could be a pretty good lightening rod. And as for the one below, well, puuuurrrrrr. 

Check out styles worldwide on other CDP members' blogs here.                        

What Feeds Beneath

While on an expedition at Todos Santos in south Baja California, Mexico, Alejandro Prieto was searching for big predators—such as marlins, sharks, or tuna—feeding on sardine bait balls, but instead he found this Hawaiian petrel feeding on crustaceans. “Luckily I was able to capture the moment it submerged its head to feed on the tiny food source,” Prieto writes.

June 2015 Theme Day: Stylish

Dieses Haus thront förmlich an, oder besser über, der Neuen Weinsteige. Und es sieht wirklich schmuck aus.

This house is positively enthroned at (or better above) the street named Neue Weinsteige and it really looks pretty.

Click here to view all participants of this theme day,

June City Daily Photo Theme Day: Stylish

 

June... Hopefully sunnier and warmer than May was here though as you can see, this last Saturday was a lovely day! It's the first of the month and Theme Day in the City Daily Photo blogging community. On Saturday afternoon, Henri Buffetaut (whose website 'my little shooting' is this way) was busy photographing model Coline Rabiosa who, standing outside Saint-Louis cathedral, was wearing an absolutely delightfully ethereal, elegant and very stylish wedding gown by Versailles boutique 'Le Dressing Club'! To see all participants in this month's Theme Day, click here. Happy June!

Juin... on espère que ce mois sera plus ensoleillé et surtout plus chaud que ne le fut mai, quoique samedi dernier il a fait beau ! C'est le premier du mois et cela signifie journée de thème dans la communauté des blogueurs City Daily Photo. Vous l'aurez compris en lisant le titre du billet, le thème est "stylé, élégant". Henri Buffetaut, photographe dont la page web est par ici était en train de photographier Coline Rabiosa sur les marches de la cathédrale Saint-Louis. Elle porte une robe aérienne, élégante et stylée du "Dressing Club" ! Pour voir toutes les interprétations du thème dans des villes du monde entier, c'est par là ! VDP vous souhaite un bon mois de juin !

 

 During the shooting, VDP had a look at the book. Isn't that hat by miliner Diane Bonte rather stylish too? 

Pendant la séance de photos, VDP a jeté un oeil sur le book. Le chapeau, création de la modiste Diane Bonte, n'est pas mal non plus...

Orthodox Pentecost today and a video

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The Orthodox and Eastern Churches are celebrating Pentecost this weekend.
(Catholic and Protestant Pentecost was last Sunday.)
Here in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre the clergy's red vestments bring to mind the red tongues of fire of the first Pentecost in Jerusalem.

The prostration is because of the liturgy of the day.

The Greek Orthodox have three sets of kneeling prayers for Pentecost.
The first is a prayer of great repentance; the second prayer is a call to the Holy Spirit to help the faithful follow the right path during their life; and the third prayer is to remember those who have gone before.

Some selected lines from the liturgy:
DEACON: For those who incline their hearts as well as the knee before the Lord, let us pray to the Lord.
CANTOR: Lord, have mercy.

DEACON: That He will accept our act of kneeling as incense before Him, let us pray to the Lord.
CANTOR: Lord, have mercy. . . .

DEACON: Again, on bended knees, let us pray to the Lord.
CANTOR: Lord, have mercy. Kyrie eleison.

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My photos are from 2009 but not much changes from year to year.

Wishes for a joyous feast day to all the Orthodox Christians!

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Sister  Dr. Vassa Larin, an American of the Russian Orthodox Church, has eleven minutes of good insights about Pentecost/Descent of the Holy Spirit in this new video (Episode 50!):

(You can also follow her meditations and world travels on her Facebook page, Vassa Larin.)

(Linking to inSPIRED Sunday.)

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Theme Day - Stylish

Left: The bell for 133; Right: Mansions between Bent and Bridge Street in 1859 (SL-NSW)

Throughout the 19th century, Macquarie Street, on the eastern most ridge of the city, was regarded as the most fashionable of streets with stylish three and four storey terraces nestling along its western side.

Left: The attic windows on 133; Right: View north somewhere between 1867 and 1877

W. S. Jevons, an English economist, conducted a survey of Sydney housing which concluded that successful merchants, shopkeepers and professional men lived in mansions or villas, naming Macquarie Street as a favoured location. Politicians, and pastoralists established town-houses there. Medical Practitioners, attracted by the nearby Sydney Hospital (1816), also took up residence.

Left: The green plaque and detail at 133; Right: Looking south from Bridge Street during the 1870s

The first (stone) residence was constructd in Macquarie Street in 1819, for D'Arcy Wentworth. It was adjacent to the Hyde Park racecourse, and served for a time as the Parsonage for St James Church. It was demolished in 1888. Burdekin built his fabled, porticoed town-house there in 1842. It was demolished to make way for the connection of Martin Place through from George Street, all the way to Macquarie Street in 1933. Two of the original eight 1842 Horbury Terraces still grace the street, as does the mansion at 145, built for John Fairfax, of Sydney Morning Herald fame. For many years now, this mansion has housed the Royal Australian College of Physicians.

Left and Right: History House at 133 Macquarie Street today

There are not many of the original, stately mansions left. I have chosen to show you the mansion built in 1871 for George Oakes, politician and pastoralist, at 133. It is now known as "History House", and has been the home of the Royal Australian Historical Society since 1971. Its location would have enhanced its reputation, as it is opposite the Royal Botanic Gardens, and the very site where the Garden Palace burnt to the ground in 1881, returning the glorious view of the harbour to these most stylish of town-houses.

Lookin SW across Macquarie Street from the dome of the ill-fated Garden Palace in 1881, shortly before the fire.

This is a contribution to the City Daily Photo Monthly Theme Day. The Theme for June is "Stylish". To see what other CDP bloggers have chosen to represent the theme, click here.

Ted is gripped by Jamie

Visitor To The Gateway Geyser

The Gateway Geyser has been on the blog a few times. (Some older pictures here and here.) It's the giant water jet across from the Arch in East St. Louis, Illinois, that pops up exactly as high as the Arch itself (633 feet/192 meters) if the wind isn't too high. You can see what happens if it's gusty.

This was taken under the Arch, on top of the stairs down to the Mississippi. The picture would have been okay but then this brilliant bird photobombed my shot.

That contraption on the left looks like part of a chemical plant. It's actually the suction/blower mechanism that takes grain from river barges back and forth to a big set of storage elevators off to the left of the frame.                                             

The Power of Few

“The night before this photo, we tried all day to get a good photo of the endangered white rhino,” writes Stefane Berube, who captured this shot at the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary in Uganda. “Skulking through the grass carefully, trying to stay 30 feet away to be safe, didn't provide me the photo I was hoping for. In the morning, however, I woke up to all three rhinos grazing in front of me.” Berube used a 50mm lens rather than a wide-angle lens or telephoto “because of its sharpness and similarity to how our eyes perceive depth in real life.”

Créations élégantes

Tomorrow is Theme Day in the City Daily Photo blogging community and the theme is 'stylish', so VDP thought an appetiser would be in order. Christiane Schmitt is miliner. Actually, some of her hats appeared on this blog in 2011 when they were on show at the town hall, it was here. Despite having seen her shop in the antiques district dozens of times, VDP had yet to enter. The hats and wedding dresses are all custom handmade in Versailles by Christiane and her daughter and VDP thinks they are rather stylish! To visit Christiane Schmitt's website, click here and to visit her daughter's page, click here!

Demain, c'est le 1er juin et donc jour de thème dans la communauté des blogueurs City Daily Photo et le thème sera "stylé, élégant" VDP s'est dit qu'un dimanche, on pouvait commencer par un apéro ! Christiane Schmitt est modiste. Ses chapeaux divins ont déjà fait une apparition sur ce blog, c'était ici en 2011, à l'occasion du salon des métiers d'art. Bien qu'étant passée des dizaines de fois devant sa boutique dans le quartier des antiquaires, VDP n'était jamais encore entrée. Les chapeaux et les robes de mariées, sont tous faits main à Versailles. Pour se rendre sur le site web de Christiane Schmitt, c'est par ici et pour celui de sa fille, c'est ici qui ça se passe !

Hagen Dazs

One more reason to visit Lake Sumter Landing in The Villages!

The ferry "Alexander"

"Alexander" pulls into King Street Wharf #4 in Darling Harbour. I took this shot from Wharf 7, Pyrmont, and then hoofed it around to ride the "Alexander" from Casino Wharf back to Circular Quay.

Where Do We Shop?

Bosnian Business

They say there are about 70,000 Bosnians in our area. I've had a number of Bosnian clients and it would be hard to find a nicer, harder working group of people. They are go-getters.

So, of course, they have opened many businesses. These are just a couple of examples in the Bevo neighborhood. The entrance to the store on top has a strange design. It looks like it could have been the entrance to an old movie theater but the building behind did not look big enough to hold a screen. Another architectural mystery.                             

Model Behavior

“I was in Kingston, Jamaica, volunteering at an HIV ward at Missionaries of the Poor and trying to learn how to do fashion photography,” writes Justin Anantawan. Working with amateur models, Anantawan spent the day near an abandoned fort at a beach in Port Royal, capturing this shot at sunset. “The shoot was very simple—I just bought some striped fabric and chiffon from a store in downtown Kingston, wrapped it around the men, and then let the scenery and ocean breeze do the rest of the work. The man on the right held up the chiffon, and I took around ten shots before I captured the fabric at the just the perfect moment.”

Le bassin de Latone début mai 2015

What a difference! Latona is back, looking towards the Grand Canal again! These early May photos were taken by VDP's friend Atelier Choco Turquoise The public was invited to come and see on the palace's closing day (Mondays) but VDP was at work. So, what do you prefer? Before or after? Anyone interested in the historic restoration of Latona fountain should browse the palace's website dedicated to it. It's packed with information about techniques, history, mythology and a timeline of the restoration project! It's this way! VDP hasn't had a chance to go see it with water flowing yet, but should you so want to, check out VDP's mate's photos on his website, Pierrick Daul Photographie. They are gorgeous! VDP had introduced you to Pierrick here.

Quelle différence ! Latone est de retour ! Ces photos de début mai ont été prises par l'amie de VDP, l'Atelier Choco Turquoise. Le public était invité à observer, un lundi matin, jour de fermeture du château, mais VDP travaillait. Vous préférez avant ou après ? Le site du château dédié à la restauration du bassin est extrêmement bien fait pour toute personne intéressée par les techniques, l'histoire, la mythologie et l'évolution du chantier. Il est par ici. VDP n'a pas encore eu le loisir de se rendre au château depuis, mais si vous souhaitez voir de magnifiques photos du bassin restauré, en eau, faites un détour par le site web du pote de VDP,  Pierrick Daul Photographie ! VDP vous avait présenté Pierrick ici !

Rapelling in Makhtesh Ramon

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This instructor and those religious girls were about to go over the cliff of Makhtesh Ramon.

 Enlarge this photo with two separate clicks and you can see where they are headed.
It is just a ledge a few dozen meters down.
NOT the whole 500 meters down to the makhtesh floor.

There they go!

The Israel Nature and Parks Authority sign has all the instructions for this rappelling site
Even the number to call at the Visitors Center if you come across damaged clamps in the stone (!).

The ropes, the pack.
Oi, I'm glad it's not my kids down there.
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(Linking to SkyWatch Friday.)
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Robb's Ride 2015 Grand Forks

Land Banking

This is 82 Sussex Street. It last traded in 2003 for about $3 million. Today it is valued at between $11 million and $13 million. But it sits there. Empty. Abandoned. Prey to the elements. Prey to graffitists. Prey to squatters. Who would do this? Why would they do this?

Who would do this is not the point. Not really. They are an elderly couple who own about $100 million of property like this, all over the city. But WHY they do it is instructive. Properties - usually land, but often commercial properties - are left vacant, while the value increases year upon year. Take 82 Sussex Street: from $3m to $13m in 12 years. That's about $830,000 pa. And the downside is the council rates. Speculation.

The Last Strum

The Kinks, the Rolling Stones, the Sex Pistols, Elton John, just a few of the bands who used the recording studios in this street during the 60's and 70's.  The clubs, the publishing houses, most already gone.  A few music stores and eateries but mostly closed doors now.  Denmark St is the other rise of the block in yesterdays post.