Autumn in Taiwan

Autumn : central mountain regions of Taiwan. Automne, les montagnes de Taiwan.

Montaigu Landscapes

Month : November. Weather : sunny. Hiking around some local villages gave a chance to take these 2 pictures. Randonnée en novembre ; météo : ensoleillée. Paysages sous le ciel méditerranéen.

Domes!!

Nothing but domes. Istanbul is the city of domes. Des coupoles, encore et encore.

The Bosphorus

Bosphorus cruise. European and Asian shores. Mansions and fishing villages. And heavy cargo ships moving through the channel. Une croisière sur le Bosphore entre l’Europe et l’Asie. Sur les rivages – des palais, des villages de pecheurs. Sur l’eau – des porte-conteneurs, des remorqueurs et … des navires de guerre.

Saint Saviour in Chora

An incredible set of mosaics of Byzantine vintage in this former Byzantine church somewhat off the beaten track in Istanbul.

The Ishtar gate,

Several brick and tile images of lions, aurochs, etc taken from the Ishtar Gate in Babylon are to be found in the Museum of the Ancient Orient in Istanbul. A small and superb museum -just the right size for a comfortable visit – no sensory overload and very interesting artefacts. More about the Ishtar gate…

Dolmabahce Palace

A late Ottoman period palace on the shores of the Bosphorus.  Almost looks like a European palace from outside. Too bad about the crane.

Haghia Sophia and the Underground Palace

Aya Sofya, Haghia Sofia. Saint Sophie.   All the same place.  Once the great church of the Byzantine Emperor, then the mosque of the Ottoman Empire, now a museum. Still impressive. And an underground cistern dating from Byzantine times – i.e. about 1500 years ago.

Istanbul

The Topkapi.  Once the palace of the Ottoman Emperors – today a museum.   Great position on some high ground overlooking the Bosphorus, the Sea of Marmara and the Golden Horn. Topkapi : Autrefois le palais de la sublime Porte, aujourd’hui un musée. Position magnifique sur un promontoire dominant le Bosphore, la mer de Marmara et…

Barbegal

A ruined aqueduct in harsh autumn light. This aqueduct carried water to the flour mill at Barbegal. The mill (now ruined) is thought to have had the capacity to feed the entire roman city of Arles. Aqueduc en ruine, sous la lumière crue de l’automne méditerranéenne. Cet aqueduc acheminant l’eau au moulin (egalement ruiné) de…

Les Concluses

Near Lussan in the Gard department of France, there is a limestone plateau about 15 sq km in size. Rivers flow off the plateau through ravines and sometimes through underground channels. One of these ravines is called the Concluses. During most of the year it is impossible to take the picture below due to water flowing through…

St Croix de Caderle

The view from the Ste Croix de Caderle temple courtyard.  Foreground  is the “rocher de Tinaou”.  Further in the distance, the cliffs of Generargues.

St Croix de Caderle

A small mountain village called Ste Croix de Caderle : In this village they have just renovated an old  church, now converted to a protestant temple.  The temple is on the edge of a plateau at about 1700 feet in the local mountains.  According to the notices in the temple, the site has been in use…