Town & City

Taken outside the little church of Parroquia De Santa Ana in the small village of Altea Le Vella on the Costa Blanca in Spain. This gentleman told me he had come to sit on here every day for the past forty years. We sat bsides him as we ate our picnic. Snapped in 2018 when the world seemed a more restful place. Best viewed full size. Have a great day.

A look at this rather attractive bridge over to the windmill. Maud Foster Windmill is a seven-storey, five sail windmill (one of, hidden behind the mill here) located by the Maud Foster Drain in Skirbeck, Boston, Lincolnshire, from which it is named. It is one of the largest operating windmills in England being 80 feet tall to the cap ball. The tower mill and adjoining granary is a grade I listed building. Enjoy the day in peace. Herb

A first little trip of the year takes us to the small market town of Knaresborough in North Yorkshire. A cloudy start as we stroll along the beautiful river Nidd to and past the wonderful railway viaduct. We are on the steep path to the castle here. Knaresborough is a very old town and is mentioned in the Domesday Book as Chenaresburg. Its castle (which I hope to show you later) is Norman and now belongs to the Queen. Enjoy full screen.

Another view of this splendid spot. This time from the river itself . Enjoy full size.

In the market square of Knaresborough are two benches, each seating a sculpture. This one is 'Blind Jack' (1717-1810) with his surveyor's wheel, a local character. He was the first professional road builder to emerge after the Industrial revolution. Sculptor: Barbara Asquith The second sculpture is 'Mother Shipton'. Born in Knaresborough in the late 15th centaury. A Tudor prophetess believed to have predicted such events as the great Fire of London. Born Ursula Sontheil in a cave near the River Nidd in 1488. Died in 1561 at 80 years. Notice the old pub called 'Blind Jacks' in the background. Sculptor: Chris Kelly. Enjoy full screen.

In celebration of our Queens Platinum Jubilee I share memories of my visit to London in 2010. Here we have the famous Tower Bridge taken in the golden hour. Tower Bridge is a Grade I listed combined bascule and suspension bridge, built between 1886 and 1894, designed by Horace Jones and engineered by John Wolfe Barry with the help of Henry Marc Brunel. Enjoy.

As Britain celebrates our Queens Platinum Jubilee this weekend, I share memories of my visit to London in 2010. Here we have the famous Tower Bridge taken in the golden hour. Tower Bridge is a Grade I listed combined bascule and suspension bridge, built between 1886 and 1894, designed by Horace Jones and engineered by John Wolfe Barry with the help of Henry Marc Brunel. See PiP and last photo for arched view. Enjoy.

As Britain celebrates our Queens Platinum Jubilee this weekend, I share memories of my visit to London in 2010. A familiar if not interesting view of our famous Westminster Bridge landmark.

Dublin, Ireland, the gateway into the Emerald Isle as seen from a Britain-Dublin ferry crossing. The ferry is moving slowly into its berth and it will be soon time for me to take the car onto the solid earth again. We have spent some time in Dublin once before but today, we will take the fast motorway tunnel beneath the city travelling west across this land. Enjoy full screen.

We are now in Northern Ireland and in one of its most historic and interesting cities. So we are walking across this amazing structure. The Peace Bridge is a cycle and foot bridge across the River Foyle. It opened on 25 June 2011, connecting Ebrington Square with the rest of the city centre. It is called the peace bridge because it was thought to help improve relationships of a once very divided community. The largely Unionist 'Waterside' and the largely Nationalist 'City Side' and the bridge joins the two side together over the river. Enjoy full size and enjoy the weekend

Almost looking like it could have been built just a few years go, this is the village view of its high walls and towers. It is still intact and inhabited today and is a very popular tourist destination. Just at the base of the walls near the white van is the village cricket field. Not many chances of broken windows by the cricket ball in that side of the castle. Nice full screen. - Contrast this view with the sand-side PiP view. Have a great day.

On posting my last photo of Manchester's Victoria station I realised that I had never actually posted any of the Manchester Bees here. So here are a few, seen on my trip here with our Ipernity friend David G Johnson in July 2018. It was in that year that a special celebration was to be had in celebration of the Manchester worker Bee. More than a hundred were dotted around Manchester, most painted by local school children in a competition. As you can see there were some splendid ones around. Enjoy full screen. More info: secretmanchester.com/bees-in-manchester

This is part of the area known in the past as Manchester Docks. A large area just off the centre of Manchester but lying in the actual city of Salford. The waters here mainly form part of the Manchester ship canal that brought goods to and from Liverpool (mostly cotton from the deep south of America for our many mills). The Bridgewater canal also runs alongside. Nowadays Salford Quays, as can be seen, is a very up-market area with promenades, shopping malls, theatre, museum and a large media hub for our main TV services. We have just alighted the metrolink tram and we are on our way to the fabulous Lowry Theatre only metres away from this spot. (Two pips included from 2018 of the Quays just around the corner from here.) Enjoy full screen

A look at the Manchester ship canal as it makes its way up into the centre of Manchester at Salford Quays from Liverpool. Across the water we see the modern Media City buildings where our national BBC and ITV broadcasters have northern headquarters. Just by the brightly lit rounded corner sits the Lowry Theatre, our destination. There are a few very nice bridges around here and as can be seen, mostly lit up after dark. The PiP shows the scene around the corner some hours before. The whole capture is quite pleasing to me especially when considered it was hand-held on my phone. Have a good weekend.

A quick trip to the French Island of Corsica and the town of Propriano brings me here. One of many back street scenes that are quite different from the ones I see in Britain. Enjoy full size

The start of our Mediterranean Cruise starts from Palma, Mallorca, Spain. Here we see its cathedral with its mountainous backdrop as we sail by, just as the sun starts to set. The Cathedral of Santa Maria of Palma, more commonly referred to as La Seu, is a Gothic Roman Catholic cathedral. It was begun by King James I of Aragon in 1229 but only finished in 1601. Nice full screen.

An afternoon trip to the mountain village town of Sartene near Propriano brings us to these narrow backstreets, always photogenic to me with these characteristic steps and balconies. Somewhat cooler than the hot squares too. Nice full screen.

Seen in the old town of Piombino; this fellow takes a rest with his electric scooter while he consults his phone. – looking just so Italian - I think! ……. And yes, a great place to visit. Essential full screen