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“Pic of the Week”, August 16, 2019: Fashion Week, Milan
Milan Fashion Week was founded in 1958 and is held twice a year– once in the spring, and once in fall. We were surprised to find ourselves in the middle of the fall show during our recent visit to the city, especially notable in the Brera and Duomo neighborhoods.
Fashion Week is a clothing trade show spread over multiple events and venues, including the stereotypical models on runways, models and their photographers on the streets, promotion of clothes and such. Fashion Week is run by a non-profit association which coordinates and promotes Italian Fashion, both male and female.
Milan’s is one of four important international Fashion Weeks, the others being held in Paris, London and New York.
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge, right …
.All Trips / Europe / Sl;ovenia / Slovenia
Signs of Slovenia
I like to share some of the signs I encounter during my travels. They are often entertaining, many being quite clever, and frequently reflect the local culture and customs in some way.
Here are some of the signs I saw in Slovenia. Many of the signs we encountered during our travels were in Slovenian and make little sense to me, so these aren’t included. But these photos are representative of what we saw, most originating in the capital of Ljubljana.
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge, right arrow to advance slideshow)
.All Trips / Eastern Canada / North America / Ontario
Rambling around Ottawa
Canada’s capital city of Ottawa is one I’d highly recommend for a visit. It’s small (even if including its twin city of Gatineau across the Ottawa River), has many interesting museums and sites for tourists to visit, is home to some fine restaurants and a great market, and is very easy to explore on foot. It makes an excellent long weekend get-away destination.
My most recent visit to Ottawa was my third so I had a pretty good sense of the city and where I was going. I was traveling with my brother and cousin, both less familiar with Ottawa than I was, but we all had a great time wandering and exploring and catching up with what’s happening in each …
“Pic of the Week”, August 9, 2019: Scenes from the Batticaloa Waterfront
Situated on Sri Lanka’s east coast, the small city of Batticaloa was all but neglected by tourists until the country’s Civil War ended a few years ago. Fortunately for the region, that’s changing and valuable tourist dollars are flowing in.
Most people who visit Batticaloa go to see its historic fort, which I’ve previously discussed. The city is situated on the Indian Ocean, to which it is connected by a series of lagoons, and there are many great scenes to enjoy from the water.
Below are some scenes from the city’s waterfront, including of its harbor including fishermen bridges and the city’s lighthouses….
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge and right arrow to advance)
.All Trips / Car Culture / Europe / Italy
Great Cars along the Highway! Ferrari, near Venice
The Autostrada has excellent rest/food/gas stops placed at regular intervals, and it was at one of these stops close to Venice that we spotted this beautiful Ferrari. We were not the only ones to admire this lovely machine. A tour bus had pulled up beside it and seems like everyone was having their photo taken beside this car.
I don’t know enough about Ferraris to tell you with authority which model this is, although some research indicates it likely is a Ferrari F430 Challenge. Only 142 units were built between 2006 – 2010, so it is not only beautiful to look at but of rare vintage.
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge, right arrow to advance)
Tagged Autostrada, Ferrari, Ferrari F430 Challenge
.All Trips / Asia / Sri Lanka
Around Nuwara Eliya
Nuwara Eliya is unlike most of the destinations you’re likely to visit in Sri Lanka. Situated in the Hill Country at an altitude of 1,868 m (6,128 ft) , the city is at the heart of Sri Lanka’s important tea growing industry. It’s also the country’s most important center for vegetable growth. In fact, the farm land on which vegetables are grown is more expensive than much of the land in nation’s capital of Colombo.
Nuwara Eliya
The city was developed by the British during the period of Colonial occupation in the 19th century. Besides its importance as a tea growing area to the British, the cool temperate climate appealed to them as it was similar to that back home. Nuwara Eliya …
Tagged British Colonial, farming, Nuwara Eliya, tea, vegetables
“Pic of the Week”, August 2, 2019: Saskatchewan Sunset
When I was driving across Saskatchewan last summer, I saw darkening clouds on the distant horizon which got progressively closer with each passing mile. It was dusk, and I thought the light of the setting sun quite lovely against the storm clouds. I stopped several times and snapped some photos along the drive.
Fortunately it stayed dry into the early night, until I’d checked into my hotel. After that, the heavens opened for quite a downpour.
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge, right arrow to advance slideshow)
.All Trips / Europe / Italy
A Visit to the Leonardo da Vinci National Science and Technology Museum, Milan
The da Vinci Science Museum is spread over 40,000 m2 and is in three separate buildings, one of which was a 16th century monastery. There are more than 15,000 pieces in the museum’s collection, so trying to see everything is like taking everything at the Louvre — an impossibility in a week, much less in a single day.
It’s hard for anyone with a love of science not to be drawn to a museum with the great Leonardo da Vinci’s name in it. I wish I could gush about what a wonderful museum this was, but that would mostly be untrue. There were a few aspects to the museum that were quite imaginative and interesting, but overall it was a rambling unfocused collection …
Tagged Da Vinci, Leonardo da Vinci, Milan, museum, Science
