Ireland's stone walls are now recognised by UNESCO as an important piece of world culture.
Seen here in various parts of Ireland, from various perieds of history the stone wall is an unmistakable part of the Irish landscape and culture.
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Ireland's stone walls are now recognised by UNESCO as an important piece of world culture.
Seen here in various parts of Ireland, from various perieds of history the stone wall is an unmistakable part of the Irish landscape and culture.
How it feels to work for built heritage 🗝
The Globe Hotel, back in the day 1984, Port Stanley, Falkland Isles. Photo by Tom MacDonald.
A renovation campaign in Beijing’s historic neighborhoods has left a tear in the fabric of urban life. Preservationists, and local residents, are ambivalent about the results.
For decades, the authorities in Beijing seemed bent on demolishing the city’s historical neighborhoods, erasing entire swaths of the single-story warrens of alleyways known as hutongs. Now, they say, they are trying to restore what remains...
Preservationists, though, have greeted the work with ambivalence. Many welcomed improvements to the old neighborhoods, noting that officials have also renovated public bathrooms, which remain primary sanitary facilities for many since most old hutong homes still do not have indoor plumbing.
Others say much of the new work is cosmetic. Instead of using bricks in many places, workers are instead affixing thin gray tiles to exterior walls. That might recreate the historical appearances of hutong homes and temples, but it does nothing to restore them.
Full story: S. Myers, "Historic Preservation or Just Ripping Out a Way of Life in Beijing?" The New York Times, 8 Nov. 2018
Legend says the the town of Amber gets it's name from this incredible 11th Century temple, one of the oldest temple in the city. Built by the Second Kachwaha King Kakil Dev son of Dulha Rai, when he laid the foundation of Amber as the capital of Dhoondar. The temple complex has a variety of smaller temples, with Sheetal Mata and Ganpati to name a few. The Shivling however is much lower to the temple structure and is submerged in water during the monsoon months. It's an incredible space.
A Scottish solstice seeking mid-winter cycling trip
The ‘Kingdom of Fife’ is region on the east coast of Scotland that stretches between the Firth of Tay and Firth of Forth- points at which the region is connected by bridges to the cities of Dundee and Edinburgh. As one of the country’s historic counties, it has a rich cultural and built heritage- with numerous publicly accessible castles, palaces, abbeys and other significant buildings- as well as a range of natural attractions, including beautiful beaches and natural harbours, along its coastline.
Following another recent mid-winter cycling trip to the west coast island of Arran, I spent a few days cycling in Fife, and furthermore onto the town of Stirling as part of my now bi-annual tradition of taking a cycle trip on the winter and summer solstices. Taking the train to the inland village of Ladybank, I cycled to the world renowned coastal town of St Andrews- the home of golf, and also of one of the world’s oldest universities. Cycling to the south along the coast I passed through the picturesque fishing villages of East Neuk- Crail, Anstruther, Pittenweem- before spending some time in the art galleries and other attractions of the main towns of Kirkcaldy and Dunfermline. In what felt like far in time and place from the pace of modern day life in the cities of central Scotland, I then travelled from the recently awarded UNESCO heritage site of the iconic Forth Rail Bridge through the villages of Charlestown and Limekilns, and to the wonderfully preserved medieval village of Culross- a filming location for TV series Outlander. Passing close to the dramatically steep escarpment of the Ochil Hills, I cycled further to the west into the neighbouring county of Clackmannanshire and the town of Alloa- before reaching Stirling, one of Scotland’s historic capitals, for the winter solstice.
I also wrote a version of this trip for Fife Council's 'Welcome to Fife' website, and which provides lots more information and tips if visiting the Fife region: http://www.welcometofife.com/experience/cycling-the-fife-coast/day-1
Stone circles at sunset.
One of my favourite images, it's a slide film image digitised and edited.