The Inns of Court

 

When I was in London back in 2016, I spent quite a bit of time wandering around the areas of London where the legal profession congregates.  The area encompasses  the "Inns of Court", four professional organizations for English barristers.  The four are Gray's Inn, Lincoln's Inn and Middle and Inner Temple. All barristers must belong to one of these four organizations and many professional offices or chambers are housed in this area.  Above is Wildy & Sons who sell and publish law books.

If you've ever watched any British television shows that feature lawyers, you might recognize some of the scenes in my photos.  They have been used as backdrops in many television and movie productions.

In enjoyed a break from all my walking in this spot and I enjoyed watching all the professionals walking back and forth carrying files and books.  I hoped to see one rushing by in their 'robes' but I didn't spot any.  

I was thrilled to find the "undercroft" below the Lincoln's Inn Chapel.  It is another area I had seen in many movies and shows.  

In the window of one building was a scene advertising the barrister and judicial wigs that are made by Ede & Ravenscroft, tailors to the legal profession.  I did a post about that store here.

I totally enjoyed this area of London and the next time I visit, I'll walk around here again.  It's a great place to people watch.  I was impressed with the numerous gardens all around these professional buildings.  Next week I'll have a post about those beautiful gardens.  

The Colors of Fall

 

Last year at this time I took a trip to Flagstaff Arizona in the northern part of the state.  The trip was to visit Lowell Observatory which I posted about here.  However, because it was mid-October it was a perfect time to see some fall colors.  

There is an area north of Flagstaff known as "the snow bowl" where Arizonans hungry for some winter sports go to ski during the winter months.  

Along the road to that ski area you can find some of the most beautiful aspen groves in the state.  The destination is popular with people from all over the state but when the aspen show their fall colors, it becomes even more popular.

Once the car was safely parked, I was able to walk around some of the trails.  It was a wonderful feeling, like being embraced by these tall and colorful trees.

The weather was perfect for these explorations.  Crisp fall air but with the warmth of the sun on my back.  

I do love living in a desert area but from time to time, I long to see the way the seasons change in other parts of the country.  Looking at these photos was like a breath of fresh air.  

Roadside Attractions

 

Last year at this time, I took a road trip to New Mexico to tour the Very Large Array, the National Radio Astronomy Observatory.  I did a post about it here.  The array is located along a very remote stretch of  U.S. 60, a relatively quiet stretch of highway.  After my tour, I headed back west toward Arizona and as I passed through Pie Town (yes that really is the town's name), a very tiny little community I saw some strange contraptions near the road.

It looked like a graveyard for farm equipment, mostly windmills. So I pulled over to the side of the road to get a closer look and to take a few photos.  It wasn't long before another car pulled over behind me a woman got out with exactly the same curiosity I had.  So there we were, two curious women with cameras in hand snapping a few photos before we headed on our way.

There was no sign or anything else to identify what this place was so after I had snapped these photos, I drove on.  Recently I did some internet searching and I found a blog site that did a post about this very place back in 2018.  That post even had a photo of the sign for a place called DanCyn' Windmill Museum.  You see that post here.  I wonder what happened to that sign because I didn't see one when I was there.  The museum may have been gone but the windmills were still there.

The next town I came to was another tiny place called Quemado New Mexico.  That's where I saw this wonderful old Spanish style mission-like church.  The sign in front calls it the Sacred Heart Church with mass at 9:00 AM. 

I love a good road trip especially on roads less traveled where you can see so much more.  I might have taken this trip for one purpose but I came home with lots of different memories.  

  

Flying Out of the Venice Airport

 

On a trip to Italy several years ago, I flew into Rome and returned home from Venice.  I wisely chose a window seat for that flight home.  When the long flight is all daylight, I like to be able see things out the window.  

The Venice airport is not as massive as airports in major hubs but it had everything you would expect to see before boarding a long flight.  Duty free shops, snack bars and souvenirs.  

As we rolled out to the runway, I didn't expect to see boats running along side us.  

As the plane lifted off the ground, it was easier to see the swamp-like land below.  

And then, suddenly I saw something familiar.  It looked like we were flying right over the city.

I had a perfect view.  I could see the train station where I had arrived days before.  I could see the grand canal as it snaked its way through the city and I could see St. Mark's Square and the U-shaped Doges Palace shining brightly.

I found myself zooming in on certain areas to get a closer look.  I remembered when I emerged from that train station to stand front and get my first look at this magnificent city.  My very first thought was "the water is right there".  

Then the plane started to bank and head west and it was time for me to say goodbye to Venice for a second time.  A friend who used to fly in and out of this airport often told me that it was rare to get such a clear view.  I was lucky that this day was a clear one.

The Walt Disney Concert Hall

 

I feel like great architecture rivals great art in its ability to impress, inspire and exhilarate.  

When I was in Los Angeles during the summer of 2018, I made a point of locating the Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles.  I'm a huge fan of Frank Gehry's work ever since I saw the Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis and the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago.  His designs seem to defy logic but in a way that is alluring and charismatic.

I remember driving into the downtown area and wondering how such an architecturally challenging building could exist among all the skyscrapers all around me.  Then I saw it sitting on a corner and thoroughly dominating the scene.  Can you see how the name "Walt Disney Concert Hall" has been subtly etched into the stainless steel to the right of the entrance?

Gehry designs provide the viewer (and the photographer) with an endless supply of abstract view points.  

I recently discovered that Gehry designed a skyscraper in New York City that I haven't seen.  That will be on my list along with a clinic in Las Vegas that looks fascinating in the photos I've seen.  A Frank Gehry tour around the world would be a great objective.  If only there was the time and money!

It Won't Be the Same Without Her

 

Back in 2015, I did a post about a wonderful opportunity I had to actually see the oral arguments for a case before the United Sates Supreme Court.  You can see that post here.  I actually got see how tiny and frail Ruth Bader Ginsburg looked behind that huge desk.  Her body may have taken on a look of frailty but her mind was as sharp and clear as ever.

Her strength, determination and legal prowess will be missed on our nation's highest court.  

Windmills and Castles

 

Back in the early 70's, I took a road trip with my parents back to Illinois to visit some family.  On the way, we took a slight detour through Iowa to see this windmill that I had read about. 

It's located in Elk Horn Iowa and is the only working Dutch windmill in the United States.  I thought it was beautiful and since I hadn't yet started traveling to Europe, I thought it might be the only one I'd ever see.

Later that same evening our car was headed east toward the border with Illinois when we rolled into the town of Anamosa Iowa.  It was dark but we could see what looked like a huge, dimly lit castle.

We found the hotel we were looking for and quickly made the decision to go back in the morning and find out what that huge building could be.

It turned out to be the Anamosa State Penitentiary.  I don't think I had ever seen such an elaborate building as a prison.

As of 2016, it was housing 855 inmates and an additional 175 in a segregated area.

The prison was built between 1875 and 1899 and was originally called the Iowa Men's Reformatory.  The building itself in on the National Registry of Historic places.  

We decided our little detour through Iowa was well worth the extra miles.  We went in search of windmills and discovered a castle too.  

These three photos seem to be the only ones I have of the place.  They are from that group of slides I recently found and scanned.  If you would like to see more photos of this beautiful building, this link will take you to the Google image page.  There are some great photos there.

EveryTraveler Has One of These Stories

Back in 1986, I attended a National Convention in Seattle and since I was that far north, I took the opportunity to go to the World Expo in Vancouver Canada.  (I did a short post about the Expo here.)

I was accompanied by three others who had also attended the convention.  We asked a travel agent known to us to make the arrangements which she said would be no problem.  However, we didn't get the arrangements sorted until the last day of the convention and even then they weren't complete.  The agent told us we would be staying on a ship that was moored on what I believe was the Frasier River.  We were told that all the hotels were full but that several cruise ships had been commissioned to accommodate the overflow of visitors.

That sounded sort of exciting until we arrived and saw that the ships in question were pretty haggard looking. There were two aged ships docked together, the Princess Patricia where we checked in and were served lunch and the Prince George where our actual rooms were located.

The cabin I shared with one of my friends had just enough room to pass by one another if we stood sideways.  That's my camera laying on the top bunk.  I bumped my head getting in and out of that bunk every time.  It's actually a good thing that our cabin was so small because there was no heat on the boat.  Our body heat was all we had to keep the room warm enough.  However, showering in the morning was a truly awakening experience.

I found this photo among those old slides that I recently discovered.  It sums up the experience perfectly.  The condition of those deck chairs paints a pretty clear picture of the state of these accommodations.

The good news is that we thoroughly enjoyed visiting the World Expo for two days and now we can laugh about this rather challenging travel experience.  It's fun to have colorful travel stories to relate to friends and this one has been told many times.

I've left out quite a few of the frustrations we encountered getting our itinerary and tickets to the Expo.  Suffice it to say that we never used that particular travel agent again.

Bigger Than I Imagined

I only have four photos today from my 1985 trip to Germany.  The first major stop on that trip was to Cologne to see the cathedral I had read about.  I had heard that it was huge but even with that knowledge, I wasn't prepared for the massive size of it.

There was not a single spot where I could get a photo that captured the whole thing.  I needed a wide angle lens, something I didn't have at that time.

I was certainly not the only tourist wanting to see this place.  There were tour buses parked everywhere around the front of the cathedral.

When I finally got past all the parked buses and cars, I was so close to the front of the church that it was filling my view finder. I was only capturing about a quarter of the whole front.  Look how tiny the people look compared to cathedral.

There is no doubt that the Cologne Cathedral is a giant in the world of grand churches.  Do you suppose it's massive size was planned to make humans feel small in the scope of things?

I did a Google search to see if there were any better photos and the image results speaks volumes.  It's not an easy place to photograph unless you are in the air.