Saint Petersburg ~ Church of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ ~ Church of the Savior on the Spilled Blood
Church of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is known to Petersburgers as the Church of the Savior on the Spilled Blood – or even just the Church on the Blood – as it marks the spot where Alexander II was fatally wounded in an assassination attempt on March 1, 1881. Designed by Alfred Parland in the style of 16th and 17th-century Russian churches, the Church of the Resurrection provides a stark (some would say jarring) contrast to its surroundings of Baroque, Classical and Modernist architecture.
Alexander II died of wounds inflicted in an attack by the terrorist group People’s Will. Immediately, his heir, Alexander III, declared his intention to erect a church on the site in his father’s memory, and moreover to have this church built in “traditional Russian” style – in distinction to what he saw as the contaminating Western influence of Petersburg.
http://www.saint-petersburg.com/cathedrals/church-resurrection-jesus-christ.asp
SAVIOR ON THE SPILLED BLOOD
Savior on the Spilled Blood is an architectural landmark of central St Petersburg, and a unique monument to Alexander II the Liberator.
It features Russia’s largest collection of mosaics (over 7,000 sq.m.), Italian coloured marbles, decorative stones from the Urals and Altai region, as well as a collection of Russian heraldic mosaics.
http://eng.cathedral.ru/spasa_na_krovi/
Hedgehog Cacti in Bloom
Photographer: Kathleen Kiefer; Kathleen’s Web site
Summary Author: Kathleen Kiefer
The photo above shows hedgehog cacti blooming in the Ancient Lakes area of Washington State. I had always wanted to see the illusive crimson to cherry colored blooms of the “hedgehog,” which grow on rocky hillsides and flat lands, usually in lithosol areas. Because collectors have been known to dig them up, even though seldom survive under propagation, they’ve become increasingly rare where they were once common. The ones above were found in a rather secluded part of the Columbia Basin, pictured against a backdrop of lichen-covered rocks, larkspur, phlox, and sulphur lupine. Photo taken on April 13, 2013.
Photo details: Top – Camera Model: Canon EOS 7D; Lens: EF-S10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM; Focal Length: 22.0mm; Aperture: f/25.0; Exposure Time: 0.0016 s (1/640); ISO equiv: 1250; Software: Adobe Photoshop CS4 Macintosh. Inset – Same except: Lens: EF-S18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS; Focal Length: 52.0mm.
Tonle Sap Lake ~ Cambodia
Entire Communities Living on a Lake, Going to School on Stilts
Photo of the Day: May 19, 2013. An Editors’ Pick from our 2013 Photo Contest.
Photo and caption by Steve Wallace (Oceanside, CA); Photographed February 2011, Tonle Sap Lake, Cambodia
Temples of the Angkor Complex in Cambodia ~ here
Misty Morning ~ Louisiana
The Greenwood Plantation’s Oak Alley on a Misty Morning
Photo of the Day: April 19, 2013. An Editors’ Pick from our 2012 Photo Contest.
Photo by Bonnie Marquette (Wakefield, LA); Photographed February 2012, St. Francisville, LA
Night Sky Observed from Paros Island, Greece
Photographer: Stavros Hios
Summary Authors: Stavros Hios; Jim Foster
The image above shows a view of an illuminated, old sailing ship and the glow of the Milky Way as observed from the island of Paros, Greece, in the Aegean Sea. Since the Moon was in the new phase and because this area (southernmost point of Paros) is quite isolated, the night sky was nearly pitch black. The camera is facing in the direction of the constellation of Sagittarius — toward the center and densest portion of the Milky Way. Sagittarius has more Messier objects than any other constellation. The brightest of these is the Lagoon Nebula (Messier object M8), visible with the naked eye — at top. Just above M8 is the Trifid Nebula (M 20). Photo taken on July 15, 2012.
Photo details: NIKON D7000 camera; F/5; 70mm lens; ASTROTRACK
Rakher Upabas at Loknath Temple at Barodi
Hindu Devotees Celebrating Rakher Upabas at Loknath Temple at Barodi
Photo of the Day: March 30, 2013. An Editors’ Pick from our 2012 Photo Contest.
Photo and caption by Md. akhlas Uddin (Sylhet, Bangladesh); Photographed November 01, 2012, Sonargaon, Narayanganj, Bangladesh
Devotion for God by K M Asad
In Bangladesh Hindu religions people it calls Rakher Upabas. During the ritual of Rakher Upabas (fast) people from Hindu community observe this three-day in every evening long ritual by lighting a lamp and keep fast until the lamp burns out. Loknath Dham is a praying and worshiping center of the follower and believer of “Baba Loknath”. He is one of the greatest saints in the Hindu religion and preached to his followers
“When ever you are in danger, Remember Me, I will save you.”
This worshiping ceremony starts from the evening time and continues for two or three hours. The devotees pray with spiritual concentration for fulfilling their good wishes.
February 24, 2013 Eruption of Sakurajima
Photographer: Marc Szeglat
Summary Author: Marc Szeglat
Shown above is an impressive fusillade from Sakurajima volcano, on the island of Kyushu, Japan, as viewed on the night of February 24, 2013. Throughout the past four years, Sakurajima has been in a state of elevated activity. During the first two months of 2013, approximately 200 explosive events were recorded. On occasion, an eruption is accompanied by lightning. As can be seen on the picture, the lightning seems to emanate from near the crater rather than from a cloud above the volcano’s 3,665 ft (1,117 m) summit. This phenomenon isn’t fully understood. Our small exploration group (Richard Roscoe, Martin Rietze and Marc Szeglat) noticed that the flashes appeared in the first seconds following very powerful explosions. Scoria and very fine-grained volcanic ash were observed during such eruptions. For five consecutive nights we were stationed in front of the volcano and saw two eruptions with lightning. Photo taken on February 24, 2013.
Yo vengo de la Habana ;)
Seaside, Havana
Photograph by Paolo Pellegrin
This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Magazine Features
The century-old stone wall of the Malecón, Havana’s famous oceanside esplanade, shields the city—imperfectly—from the battering of roiling seas. On calmer nights people come out to stroll on the street.
See more pictures from the November 2012 feature story “Cuba’s New Now.”
Go behind the words with a podcast from the story’s author »
Take a visual tour of Cuba »
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Tutti siami rei ~ le lacrime sono la miglior preghiera
Kyrgyz Girls, Afghanistan
Photograph by Matthieu Paley, National Geographic
This Month in Photo of the Day: National Geographic Magazine Features
After a hailstorm, nomadic Kyrgyz girls venture outside their mud hut beside the Aksu River in a remote part of Afghanistan. The nomads sometimes stop here for a few weeks between migratory seasons if grass for their herds is too scarce at the summer or winter camps.
See more pictures from the February 2013 feature story “Stranded on the Roof of the World.”
Double Pink Rainbow Over Glen Ashley, South Africa
Photographer: Jacques Joubert; Jacques’s Web site
Summary Authors: Jacques Joubert; Jim Foster
The photo above showing a high-arching pink rainbow was captured at sunset near Durban, South Africa. The camera is facing toward the anti-solar point. Like the setting Sun, the rainbow colors we’re familiar with acquire red or pink hues once the Sun dips close to the horizon. This is because as the Sun sets (or rises) the increased path length sunlight takes through the atmosphere acts to scatter out the green, blue and violet colors from our view. The partially formed secondary bow having a radius of approximately 51 degrees can be seen about 9 degrees outside of the primary bow. Note the dim anticrepuscular rays (right side of primary and secondary bows) as well as the collection of reddened light near the center of the primary bow. Photo taken on October 22, 2012.
Photo details: Canon 5d MKII camera; 16-35mm lens; f/2.8; ISO 200; 1/2 sec. exposure; photo taken at 5:54 p.m.
- Glen Ashley, South Africa Coordinates: -29.765551, 31.062727
~ Frozen Misurina Lake, Veneto, Italy ~
Photographer: Marco Zante; Marco’s Web site
Summary Authors: Marco Zante; Jim Foster
The photo above shows Misurina Lake in Veneto, Italy covered with snow and ice. The light conditions this foggy morning lent an ethereal look to the wintry landscape. Snow depths in wooded areas ranged from approximately 15-20 in (38-50 cm); the average thickness of the ice on Misurina Lake was perhaps 12 in (30 cm). Actually, when the ice thickness approaches 24 in (60 cm), polo is occasionally played on the frozen surface. Note the incremental contours that show patterns of ice formation and, in some cases, patterns of ice disturbance. Forest trees include, silver fir (Abies alba), Swiss stone pine (Pinus cembra), larch (Larix deciduas), black pine (Pinus nigra), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and Norway spruce (Picea abies).
Photo details: Camera Model: Canon EOS 1100D; Lens: EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II; Focal Length: 35mm; Aperture: f/14.0; Exposure Time: 0.0025 s (1/400); ISO equiv: 100; Software: Adobe Photoshop CS6 (Windows).
- Misurina Lake, Italy Coordinates: 46.5819, 12.2539
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Codfish Vicenza-style
Time ~3 hours and 30 minutes
Ingredients
Servings 4
- 1 lb stockfish
- ½ lb milk
- 3 ½ oz onion
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 oz salted anchovies
- a pinch of parsley
- 2 oz all-purpose flour
- grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese to taste
- salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
30 minutes preparation + 3 hours cooking
Step 1
Soak the codfish for 24 hours. Remove the spinal bone and the other fish bones. In a casserole with oil, brown the onion, add a little salt.
Step 2
Add crushed anchovies and chopped parsley.
Step 3
Cut the codfish into chunks, flour the chunks then sprinkle grated cheese on them.
Step 4
Add a little milk to the casserole, keep on low heat, add codfish and cook.
Step 5
Add more milk if necessary, season with a little salt and pepper and cook till ready.
Chef’s Tips
The casserole with the codfish should never have the lid on because this will make the fish turn dark. There should be abundant oil, low heat, as it should not fry but cook lightly. Do not stir with a ladle as the fish tends to come apart, simply move the casserole in a clockwise direction.
more recipes @ original link Academia Barilla
//www.academiabarilla.com/italian-recipes/step-step-recipes/codfish-vicenza-style.aspx
Al-Naba Watermill…Previous Vital Source of Flour and a Living Witness to Roman Age
HAMA, (SANA)- The most famous among the forty stone watermills that used to pump life into Abo Qbeiss valley in Hama is al-Naba (fountain) watermill, which survived among the rest to stand as living witnesses to previous civilizations.
According to the head of Abu Qbeiss town council, Mohammad Ali Abdullah, what most characterizes al-Naba watermill is its location at the top of Abu Qbeiss fountain that runs through high mountains with white karst edges.
This location at the most exuberant point of the fountain has made al-Naba watermill the most active among other watermills in the region since hundreds of years, Abdullah said in a statement to SANA.
“It used to be a vital source on which people of Abu Qbeiss area depended for securing flour till the end of last century,” he added.
People in the areas between Sahal al-Ghab and Mysiaf were depended on this watermill till the first 80s of last century when it stopped working by the time flour was secured in profusion by mechanical mills.
Abdullah highlighted that, in addition to being a source of flour, al-Naba watermill is considered an important cultural and archeological monument that adds to the many touristically attractive ruins the town is rich with, including castles and churches that date back to the old Roman period.
Many believe, said Abdullah, that al-Naba watermill has stood its ground over hundreds of years with all main parts of its work are in the shape they were first designed in, including millstones and channels.
Speaking of its parts, Abdullah noted that al-Naba watermill consists of two 1 diameter basalt wheels that are connected via vertical axle with iron blades which move by the force of the falling water causing the wheels to rotate.
The watermill is fed by two stockrooms that can be filled with wheat or barley. Water pumps into the watermill directly from the fountain through two channels, 15 m long each, which are engraved into black basalt stone.
H. Said
Exploring Niger, Africa
self explain (sorry i could not find full length documentary, for some reason it is gone from their website …. hmmm eh
February 19, 2013 Eruption of Mount Etna ~ Sicily
Photographer: Marco Restivo; Marco’s Web site
Summary Authors: Marco Restivo; Jim Foster
Mount Etna, on the island of Sicily, Italy, has long been one of Europe’s most active volcanoes — eruptions have been observed here for approximately 3,500 years.
The most recent series of eruptions were initiated during the early morning hours of February 19, 2013, when glowing fountains of lava erupted from Mount Etna’s southeast crater.
Four separate outbursts were recorded within about a 48-hour period. Even though eruptions of Etna (about 10,900 ft or 3,325 m) occur quite frequently, it hasn’t exploded with successive episodes such as this since at least 2000.
Photo details: Camera Model: Canon EOS 7D; Lens: EF70-200mm f/4L USM; Focal Length: 200mm; Aperture: f/4.0; Exposure Time: 0.067 s (1/15); ISO equiv: 400; Software: Adobe Photoshop CS5 Windows.
- Mount Etna Coordinates: 37.750000, 15.000000
Mount Etna, on the island of Sicily, Italy, has long been one of Europe’s most active volcanoes — eruptions have been observed here for approximately 3,500 years.
The most recent series of eruptions were initiated during the early morning hours of February 19, 2013, when glowing fountains of lava erupted from Mount Etna’s southeast crater.
Four separate outbursts were recorded within about a 48-hour period. Even though eruptions of Etna (about 10,900 ft or 3,325 m) occur quite frequently, it hasn’t exploded with successive episodes such as this since at least 2000.
Photo details: Camera Model: Canon EOS 7D; Lens: EF70-200mm f/4L USM; Focal Length: 200mm; Aperture: f/4.0; Exposure Time: 0.067 s (1/15); ISO equiv: 400; Software: Adobe Photoshop CS5 Windows.
- Mount Etna Coordinates: 37.750000, 15.000000
Arno River, Florence ~ Italy
Arno River, Florence
Photograph by Heather Anne Campbell, My Shot
This Month in Photo of the Day: Your Photos
Spending the holidays traveling means fewer tourists and more clouds. This photo was taken on Christmas in Florence, Italy. Very few people were walking around, and the air was very still.
(This photo and caption were submitted to My Shot.)
What Makes This a Photo of the Day? This photograph has a delicate, painterly quality, which is lovely. The soft, gray light and the choice to show more sky above the bridge than water below reinforces the stillness of the day the photographer describes. —Alexa Keefe
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Collection of Florentine Recipes ~ one of my favorites
Carciofi ripieni
Carciofi ripieni = Artichokes filled with bread and….
Artichokes (two per person)
One bunch of parsley
Garlic (3 coves)
Olive oil
Breadcrumbs
Salt and pepper
Clean the artichokes cutting off the stalk and the tough leaves.
Grind the parsley and the garlic together, in a bowl place: a cup of breadcrumbs, add water, salt a little oil, the parsley and the garlic and mix all (the breadcrumbs will soak up about 1 or two glasses of water).
Open the leaver of the artichokes and with a tea spoon insert the mixture among the leaves. Place the filled artichokes in a saucepan so that they are standing one near the other. Cook (adding some water if necessary) until they are tender (test with a fork).
dip leaves into seasoned olive oil or melted butter with garlic
more florentine recipes @ link
Fisherman, Satkhira, Bangladesh
Photo of the Day: January 20, 2013. An Editors’ Pick from our 2012 Photo Contest.
Photo and caption by Md. Khalid Rayhan Shawon (Dhaka, Bangladesh); Photographed July 01, 2012, Satkhira, Bangladesh
Tornadic Waterspouts off the Island of Rhodes, Greece
Photographer: Stratos Koufos
Summary Authors: Stratos Koufos; Jim Foster
The photo above shows twin tornadic waterspouts sweeping across the Mediterranean Sea between Rhodes and southwestern Turkey. During the winter season, there’s occasionally a strong southerly flow (winds from the southern quadrant) in the eastern Mediterranean. On this January day in 2002, the winds were blowing especially hard (9 on Beaufort Scale). Just before the funnels descended, however, winds shifted to the north and rain began to fall. Tornadic waterspouts are tornadoes that happen to form over water, or move from land to water. Unlike the weak “fair weather” spouts that sometimes occur over water bodies on hot, humid summer days with light winds, tornadic waterspouts are associated with powerful thunderstorms. Fortunately, there were no reports of deaths or injuries from these twisters. Photo taken on January 15, 2002.
- Rhodes, Greece Coordinates: 36.1667, 28.0000
Cheetah Mother and Cubs, Tanzania
Cheetah Mother and Cubs, Tanzania
Photograph by Frans Lanting, National Geographic
This Month in Photo of the Day: Animal Pictures
A young cheetah mother named Etta by researchers scans the Serengeti for signs of danger while her four 12-week-old cubs wrestle. A long-running study has found that the majority of cubs here are raised by a small group of cheetah supermoms.
See more pictures from the November 2012 feature story “Cheetahs on the Edge.”
A Walk Among Sudan’s Nubian Pyramids
Sudanese ride through the ancient pyramids at Meroe in the Republic of Sudan. The Sudan pyramids have been there for thousands of years., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.
A walk among Sudan’s Nubian pyramids
Mohammed Elrazzaz, Monday 21 Jan 2013
Ahram Online
Does Sudan have more pyramids than Egypt? In this series, we explore the splendours of the ancient Kingdom of Kush and the legacy it left behind in the land of the Black Pharaohs
The Island of Meroe
Following the Nile as it flows north, some 200 kilometres from Khartoum, one comes close to the last capital of the Kushite Kingdom, one of ancient Africa’s most prominent cultures. The site, known as the Island of Meroe, is no island at all, but rather an expanse of land that stretches between the Nile and the Atbara River. One of two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Sudan, the archaeological sites of Meroe includes Meroe itself, Naga and Musawwarat es-Sufra.
Visitors to these isolated sites will find pyramids, temples, relics of residential buildings and irrigation infrastructure dating from as far back in time as the eighth century BC.
The Kingdom of Kush, which was heavily influenced by Ancient Egyptian culture, built its own pyramids, over two hundred of them. Whether at Meroe, El-Kurru or Nuri, the unique architecture of these pyramids is self-evident.
Unlike their Egyptian counterparts, the Nubian pyramids are much smaller in size (a base no broader than eight metres), very steep (an angle of seventy degrees) and rather elongated (no higher than thirty metres). Before delving into more details, we start with the first site.
Naga, at the Hall of Natakamani
A monumental pylon looms at a distance. As we came closer, we could decipher the bas-reliefs: the King Natakamani and his wife and co-regent Queen Amanitore appear grasping their enemies by the hair and beating them triumphantly.
This first-century temple is dedicated to a local god: Apedemak, the Kushite lion-headed warrior deity. On the sidewalls, Natakamani is accompanied by Apedemak, Horus, and the ram-headed Amun, while a curious image of Apedemak as a lion-headed snake emerging from a lotus flower never fails to grasp attention.
Back to the pylon, one can easily understand why many visitors like to think of this temple (and other Sudanese ones) as Pharaonic, while, in reality, they are only of Pharaonic inspiration.
These monuments are all Kushite, and a closer look would reveal artistic features typical of their culture: the Queen has clear African features, and the same goes to the broad-shouldered King with his round head and his necklace of large beads. Moreover, the Queen is depicted as the same size as the King, something symbolic of an equally important role.
A stone’s throw from the temple is an interesting kiosk with a hybrid style that fuses Egyptian, Greek and Roman elements. No interpretation whatsoever is offered. Not far from here is yet another temple, a big temple dedicated to Amun, also commissioned by the King Natakamani.
In addition to the hypostyle plan and the colonnades, the Temple of Amun has its own avenue of rams, reminiscent of the one in Karnak, Luxor.
Musawwarat es-Sufra
The Great Enclosure, dating from the Napatan Period, is the name given to an architectural ensemble comprising three temples, all with courtyards, chapels and ramps. Why ramps? The answer comes from a funny-looking statue of an elephant.
Other reliefs of elephants here and in the nearby Lion Temple led many Egyptologists to conclude that the Great Enclosure served –among other things- as a place for training elephants for battles.
As for the Lion Temple, it is a compact and elegant structure dedicated to Apedemak by the King Arnekhamani. Dating from the third century BC, it is one of the earliest Merotic monuments, and its interior presents a fantasy world of elephants, lions, sphinxes and griffon-like creatures depicted on the walls and the columns. The temple in its current state is a reconstruction dating from 1969.
Pyramids
“Clearly visible from the Khartoum-Atbara highway, the pyramids of the Royal Cemetery of Meroe stand alone on a sandy ridge like a row of broken teeth,” Paul Clammer, the Bradt Travel Guide – Sudan.
These teeth were broken (or better said, these pyramids were decapitated) by Western explorers and treasure-hunters in search for gold. Giuseppe Ferlini is probably the one name responsible for most of the damage.
Someone once said that the pyramids were archeologically significant but visually unimpressive. As we approached the Royal Pyramids of the Northern Cemetery (one of three pyramid fields of Meroe), we quickly came to realise that that was wrong.
The landscape in this pyramid field, dominated by the perfect harmony of the massive yellow sand dunes and the reddish hue of over thirty pyramids, is made even more serene by the absolute absence of tourists and touts tying to sell you a papyrus roll or a camel ride.
The site has a melancholic feel, and the clustering of so many pyramids in such compact a space only adds to the magic. The pyramids here have funerary chapels attached to their eastern side, something that cannot be seen in Egypt. Some thirty kings, eight queens and numerous princes were buried here, with the oldest burials dating to the third century BC, and continuing all the way to the fourth century AD.
Several construction styles are visible, and can be classified into types: stepped stone courses, smooth surfaces, moulded corners, hybrids; the examples are many. As we silently roamed between these pyramids, we came to wonder about the fate of Meroe, which came to an end with the rise of Axum in Ethiopia and the vandalism of the Bedouins, among other factors.
My travel companion and friend Ahmed Yehia, who has a graduate degree in cultural management, summed it up nicely: “Meroe is a place where you not only see the history in front of you…you also feel it. I couldn’t have believed that such a place existed with all these pyramids around you…I’m sure people in Egypt don’t know about this amount of pyramids in our sister country Sudan.”
Our words were swallowed by the looming silence. A slight breeze carried the sand westwards, towards the direction of our next destination: Jebel Barkal and the land of the Black Pharaohs.
Dawn at the Rip
Photographer: Phil Thomson; Phil’s Web site
Summary Authors: Phil Thomson; Stu Witmer
Seen above, the setting gibbous Moon creates a short glitter path at Point Lonsdale on the Bellarine Peninsula of Victoria, Australia, while the Sun rises on the opposite side of the sky and reflects off the rocks and sand dunes. It’s low tide and the camera looks southwest toward Ocean Grove and Barwon Heads. This spot is called “The Rip”. It’s one of the most treacherous passages of water in all of Australia and perhaps the world. The tidal flow is terrific here where the water of comparatively tranquil Port Phillip Bay must pass through a narrow channel with a high rocky seabed to join the rougher water of Bass Strait. The Rip is the sole passage for ships into Port Phillip and Melbourne. The passage is so dangerous that ships take on local pilots who are expert at navigating these extreme conditions. Note the corona around the Moon. Photo taken on November 12, 2011.
- Bellarine Peninsula, Australia Coordinates: -38.27389, 144.65944
Cow and Shepherd, India
Photograph by Kuntal Joisher, My Shot
This Month in Photo of the Day: Animal Pictures
A young bovine finds safety and solace with her shepherd father. She was very nervous and tentative when I was taking pictures of the surroundings nearby, and sensing my presence she gradually moved toward the comfort of the shepherd.
(This photo and caption were submitted to My Shot.)
L'amore e forte come la morte 