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A view towards St Mary"s

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 13:43:55 -0700

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The view towards St Mary's cathedral from my hotel room in Sydney, Australia.

St Mary’s Cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, dedicated to “Mary, Help of Christians”, Patron of Australia. Although its not the tallest it is the largest in the country. 107 meters long and 24.3 wide at the Nave, it's ceiling is 22.5 metres high with the height of the central tower at 46.3 metres. The front tower and spires are 74.6 metres high.

With its foundation stone set in 1821 it burnt down in 1865 when it began to be rebuilt. The northern section was added in 1882, the central tower in 1900 and the Nave in 1928, and between 1998 and 2000 the Spires were added.

Balloons from the Terrace Watchtower

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 02:22:19 -0700

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Balloons flying over the city viewed by a couple from the Terrace Watchtower in Warsaw, Poland.

A balloon is a flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide or air. Early balloons were made of dried animal bladders. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene or a nylon fabric.

The first balloon was invented by Brazilian-born Portuguese priest, Bartolomeu de Gusmão, and the first public exhibition was to the Portuguese Court on August 8, 1709, in the hall of the Casa da India in Lisbon. The rubber balloon was invented by Michael Faraday in 1824. The more familiar latex balloons of today were first manufactured in London, 1847, by J.G. Ingram but mass production did not occur until the 1930s.

The word balloon was originally derived from the French word ballon, meaning large ball. This was in turn probably from the latin ballone, but another possible source for it was balla, meaning ball, from Old High German. And viewed large you can read 'taras widokowy' the Polish for 'Terrace Watchtower'.

Barcelona views

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 02:43:02 -0700

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Close up view atop of the building opposite the street to my (rental) apartment in Barcelona.

Room with a view

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 11:11:37 -0700

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One of the many structures at the Al-Hambra palace in Andalucia, Spain. The residential annexe was built for subordinates, who still, by the looks of it had a fantastic view!

The intricate work on the window frame is just fantastic!

A panoramic view of London

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 21:42:03 -0700

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Starting on the far left with the National Gallery, Trafalguar Square, Whitehall, the London Eye, the Foreign Office, Horseguards Parade, Downing Street, and to the far right, the Houses of Parliament.

You can comfortably walk this popular area in a day stopping for photos, the best of which can be taken whilst seated on one of the lions at Trafalguar Square facing Parliament!

End of a long day

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 03:53:42 -0700

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Looking out onto La Defense from the steps of the Grand Arche at sunset in Paris, France.

La Défense is a major business district for the city of Paris bordering Neuilly-sur-Seine, west of the city itself. Around its 100-meter high Grande Arche and esplanade ("le Parvis"), the district holds many of the Paris urban area's tallest high-rises including 14 above 150 meters. With 150,000 daily workers and 3.5 million square metres of office space, La Défense is one of Europe's largest Business District.

Naulakha Pavilion

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 00:18:59 -0800

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One of the all marble balconies with intricate wooden carved windows, in an all marble courtyard at Lahore Fort, Pakistan.

The Naulakha pavilion was built in 1631 A.D. by the Mughal emperor Shahjahan, it cost Rs.900,000, an exorbitant amount at the time. It is called Naulakha because in Urdu, that word means 'worth 9 lakhs' (one lakh equals 100,000). The pietra dura ornamentation in the pavilion is considered among the finest in the world. And the Pakistani embassy in Washington D.C. is modelled on the Naulakha pavilion.

Lahore Fort is locally referred to as the Shahi Qila citadel of the city of Lahore.. The fort is 1,400 feet long and 1,115 feet wide. In 1981, the fort was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Shish Mahal Annexe View

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 02:21:04 -0700

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The view from the window of the annexe, one of the side rooms, of the shish mahal at Lahore fort which can be seen here

1,400 feet long and 1,115 feet wide the fort traces its history back before the 10th century with some estimates dating the original fort back to 1200 BC. Throughout the centuries it was controlled by different groups, and in 1846 it was occupied by the British. It was returned to the Dept of Archeology in 1927 after the British demolished one of the fortification walls, thus defortifying the fort.

The high outer walls are decorated with blue kashi tiles of Persian origin. The fort has two distinct sections: the 'private', palatial section, and the administrative section, including areas for royal audiences. The residential section is arranged in courts along the northern half of the fort, and is accessed by the Hathi Pol, or 'elephant gate'. The northeastern section, which includes red sandstone buildings, is the oldest part of the residences, and was built in Akbari times. The Bari Khwabgah, or 'large bedroom', is attributed to Jahangir, and the Choti Khwabgah, in white marble, is a later addition by Shah Jahan. The Mussaman Burj, Naulakha Pavilion, and the Shish Mahal, known as the 'hall of mirrors', also by Shah Jahan, are examples of the ornate architecture in fine white marble work he brought to the Fort.

Domes of the Blue Mosque

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 04:07:44 -0700

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The imposing domes of the Sultan Ahmed (Blue Mosque) in Istanbul, Turkey.

Completed in 1617, the mosque is unique having 6 minarets and with there courtyards surrounded by a high stone wall. This photo is taken in the main courtyard just inside the outer wall gate. The structure in the foreground is the top half of the ablution area.

The central dome rests on four pointed arches which are in turn set upon four large round and fluted piers, 1.60 m in diameter. Four semi-domes, one to each side of the central dome, and small cupolas in the corners complete the roof-system of the mosque. This is my favorite mosque...

Hang drum opposite Al-Hambra

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 00:23:34 -0800

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'Jamming' with some local musicians playing the hang drum on the hill opposite the Al-Hambra palace in Granada, Spain.

The hang drum (pronounced "hung or hong") was the result of many years of research into percussion instruments from around the world, developed in Switzerland. It has seven to nine notes (depending on size) and a central note in the middle. As its name suggests, it is played with the hands :)

Listen to the sounds they made here

Overlooking Taipei

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Mon, 30 Oct 2006 01:20:43 -0800

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A view of Taipei city from the Grand Hotel in Taiwan.

Built to look like a traditional temple (pagoda) the hotel has an old world ambience i.e. it looks good, smells bad. It is located on Yuan Shan Hill overlooking the city and the tall building dominating the skyline is Taipei 101, the tallest building in the world since 2004.

Houses of Parliament

nobody@flickr.com (Swamibu) — Sun, 08 Oct 2006 02:22:37 -0700

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Evening function at the Houses of Parliament, London. Photo taken along the river view terrace which is on the east side of the building, about 200 meters long and 10 meters wide. The front of the terrace is decorated with various statues and coats of arms of British kings and queens ranging from William the Conqueror to Queen Victoria.