Uploads from jensvins

Guardians of Casa Milà

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Tue, 14 May 2013 12:29:06 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

From Wikipedia:
Casa Milà, better known as La Pedrera, meaning the 'The Quarry', is a building designed by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí and built during the years 1906–1912. It is located at 92, Passeig de Gràcia in the Eixample district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
In 1984, it was declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO.

I think the visual design guys who worked with Star Wars Episode 4 - A New Hope must have been here. I saw Mos Eisley, stormtroopers and even Boba Fett on that roof :-)

Anemone Hepatica

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sun, 12 May 2013 14:11:55 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

The Anemone Hepatica is late in Oslo this year.
This was shot in gray and cloudy weather with a hand held flash at 1/32.

Starship Gaudí

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sat, 11 May 2013 14:52:09 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

Does this look like a docking port on an alien spaceship to you?
If it does, we've probably seen some of the same movies :-)

It's really a skylight in Casa Batlló at 43 Passeig de Gràcia, Barcelona. Designed by Antoni Gaudí.

Pride of a Nation

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sun, 05 May 2013 13:02:57 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

Volvo used to be the pride of Sweden and her people.

This particular Volvo, a PV444 from between 1947 and 1958, has been rotting in the Värmland woods for a long time now.

From Wikipedia:
The auto manufacturer considers itself officially founded on 14 April 1927, when the first car, the Volvo ÖV 4 series, affectionately known as "Jakob", rolled out of the factory in Hisingen, Gothenburg.
In 1999, Volvo sold its car division Volvo Cars to Ford Motor Company for $6.45 billion. In August 2010, Ford completed its sale of Volvo to the parent of Chinese motor manufacturer Geely Automobile for $1.8 billion.

Coot fight

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Thu, 02 May 2013 13:33:58 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

Two male Eurasian Coot fighting over a female in Østensjøvannet lake, Oslo.
She was paying close attention for a long time, but neither of the males won.
She eventually left them both!

The Vagabond

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:58:51 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

Some of the sad and melancholic cars in this place seemed to
have gained in personality some of what they have lost in beauty and function.

Perhaps not entirely unlike the kind of people Robert Louis Stevenson had in mind,
when he wrote this:

The Vagabond

Give to me the life I love,
Let the lave go by me,
Give the jolly heaven above
And the byway nigh me.
Bed in the bush with stars to see,
Bread I dip in the river -
There's the life for a man like me,
There's the life for ever.

Let the blow fall soon or late,
Let what will be o'er me;
Give the face of earth around
And the road before me.
Wealth I seek not, hope nor love,
Nor a friend to know me;
All I seek, the heaven above
And the road below me.

Or let autumn fall on me
Where afield I linger,
Silencing the bird on tree,
Biting the blue finger.
White as meal the frosty field -
Warm the fireside haven -
Not to autumn will I yield,
Not to winter even!

Let the blow fall soon or late,
Let what will be o'er me;
Give the face of earth around,
And the road before me.
Wealth I ask not, hope nor love,
Nor a friend to know me;
All I ask, the heaven above
And the road below me.

Chrome Defiance

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:37:01 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

That radiator grille looked so convincingly healthy and defiant I almost expected to hear an oily rumble from the engine behind the shiny chrome as the dinosaur (probably an MG Magnette) slowly woke, found grip with its rear wheels, and grindingly tore itself free from the harsh shrubbery that has embraced and entombed it over the decades.

But there was nothing but silence.

Traffic Jam

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 12:12:12 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

"Have patience", they said.
"The road will be cleared soon", they said.

Procreation on Ice

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 13:30:34 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

When the ice finally starts melting on Østensjøvannet lake in Oslo, creating patches of open water,
the birds react with a burst of activity. Fighting, quarreling, and mating.

Spring is a wonderful time for everyone who have endured the harsh winter.
These black-headed gulls are trying hard to reproduce, and they don't bother getting a room when the slushy ice will do just fine.

This image has been manipulated and is not presented as an accurate representation of reality

Black-headed Gull - Manga Style

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 13:51:28 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

I like gulls.
This one sat quietly on his pole at Østensjøvannet lake in Oslo until I came along.

UPDATE:
Based on feedback received, let me clarify: this is one gull, in 3 subsequent shots.

This image has been manipulated and is not presented as an accurate representation of reality

Arches in Park Güell

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 13:22:14 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

From Wikipedia:
Park Güell (Catalan: Parc Güell [ˈparɡ ˈɡweʎ]) is a garden complex with architectural elements situated on the hill of El Carmel in the Gràcia district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was designed by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí and built in the years 1900 to 1914. It has an extension of 17.18 ha (0.1718 km²), which makes it one of the largest architectural works in south Europe. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Works of Antoni Gaudí".

Darth 86

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 11:21:34 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

This is my Toyota GT86. There are many like it, but this one is mine.

I named it Darth 86 because... well... it's black, and it looks kind of angry.
Almost like it's going to wheeze "You don't know the power of the Dark Side" at me.

I know it's juvenile to post a photo basically saying "look at my new caaaaar!"
- but I'm having a small mid-life crisis here, all right, so please be gentle?

Font màgica de Montjuïc

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 13:43:59 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

From Wikipedia:

The Magic Fountain of Montjuïc (Catalan: Font màgica de Montjuïc, Spanish: Fuente mágica de Montjuic) is a fountain located at the head of Avenida Maria Cristina in the Montjuïc neighborhood of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.

The fountain, like most of the surrounding developments, was constructed for the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition.

The Magic Fountain was designed by Carles Buigas, who had designed illuminated fountains as early as 1922. Buigas submitted his design a year before the exhibition, with many calling the plan too ambitious, with too little time to complete. The construction project utilized over 3000 workers. The first show took place on May 19, 1929, the day before the start of the Exposition.

The fountain was badly damaged in the Spanish Civil War and did not operate until 1955, after Buigas oversaw needed repairs.

In the 1980s, music was incorporated with the light show and the fountain, along with the Museu Nacional, was completely restored prior to the 1992 Summer Olympics, held at Montjuïc. Performances include film, classical, and modern music, such as The Godfather, The Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, a Spanish zarzuela movement, and "Barcelona" by Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé.

See where this picture was taken. [?]

Forest of Sagrada Família

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 07:42:27 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

I have always had a passion for design and architecture, and have been fortunate enough to visit many of the grand cathedrals in Europe.
This, however, is something completely different from anything I have ever seen before.
It is pure joy, laughter, love and serenity combined and preserved in stone.

I highly recommend a visit to Antoni Gaudí's unfinished masterpiece,
the Basílica i Temple atori de la Sagrada Família in Barcelona.
My photos will not do it justice, not even close.

Gaudí intended the columns and ceiling to resemble trees.

Gaudí Swirl

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 14:28:07 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

Antoni Gaudí undoubtedly had fun while designing the swirly ceiling in this apartment in Casa Batlló at 43 Passeig de Gràcia, Barcelona, Spain.
So I figured I could have some fun with the result.

See where this picture was taken. [?]

Midt i fruktfatet

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 10:58:44 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

La Boqueria

The Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria is a large public market in the Ciutat Vella district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain and one of the city's foremost tourist landmarks, with an entrance from La Rambla, not far from the Liceu, Barcelona's opera house. The market has a very diverse selection of goods.
(From Wikipedia)

The title is a Norwegian idiom and can be - quite safely - ignored if you belong to the 99,93% majority of the human race who don't use that rather exclusionary language.

Angles of Barcelona

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 14:59:51 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

Having lunch in a small square behind Santa Maria del Pi in Barcelona, and shooting façades while waiting for the soup.

The roof of Casa Batlló

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 08:12:42 -0700

jensvins posted a photo:

Casa Batlló at 43 Passeig de Gràcia, Barcelona is regarded as one of Antoni Gaudí’s masterpieces.

In my opinion Gaudí must have been completely insane. As in raving mad and completely bonkers.
Or slightly peculiar by Catalonian standards.

Which, of course, means I totally adore his work, as it is some of the most fascinating architecture I have ever seen.

So, after a rather long absence from flickr - for which I apologize to my friends and contacts - I will post a few snapshots of Gaudí's work along with other impressions from Barcelona.

Happy New Year

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 16:17:56 -0800

jensvins posted a photo:

Best wishes for the new year to one and all!

The Game

nobody@flickr.com (jensvins) — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 09:09:38 -0800

jensvins posted a photo:

One from the archive.

They're playing Nine Men's Morris, and the guy to the left seems to be winning.