Monday, July 09, 2012

Garden of the Gods - The name says it all

Garden of the Gods - The name says it all. What a spectacular scenic splendor, beautiful and mythological and full of grandeur and color!
This natural wonder of uplifted sandstone formations near Colorado Springs contains narrow bands of red (and white) Lyons sandstone inclined at 90°, surrounded by lush vegetation of a contrasting deep green color. The red monolithic rocks that shoot up toward the sky, some rising to heights of 300 feet, are quite eroded, forming several lines of thin, jagged peaks poking out of the ground like the plates of a stegosaurus.
In the afternoon of June 26, 2012 a firestorm fueled by dry timber and brush and fanned by 65 mile per hour winds swept off the Rampart Range into the northwest suburbs of Colorado Springs. The Garden of the Gods was just to the south of the rampaging fire. Luckily the fire pushed northeast and spared the ancient rocks from damage.

Saturday, July 07, 2012

The Peaks - Where earth meets heaven

The San Francisco Peaks, known locally as simply The Peaks, are a volcanic mountain range located in north central Arizona, just north of Flagstaff. They collectively represent six summits that circle the caldera of a now quiet volcano. Humphreys Peak, at 12,633 feet, is the tallest in Arizona. Agassiz Peak soars to 12,356 feet, and Fremont Peak climbs to 11,969 feet.
Most volcanoes form near the edges of the tectonic plates that make up the Earth's crust. However, Arizona is located far from the boundary of the North American Plate. It is believed that a trapped area of molten rock deep beneath Northern Arizona, called a "hot spot", occasionally rises up and creates volcanoes as the plate moves slowly west. The most recent volcanic eruption was nearly 1,000 years ago at nearby Sunset Crater. The Peaks were formed between 500,000 to 1 million years ago and the inner basin has been quiet ever since.
Once the fiery center of one of Arizona's most explosive volcanoes, the summits surrounding the now dormant inner core stand guard, protecting land that the native people of Arizona consider to be so sacred - it is where earth meets heaven. The Navajo consider them to be the most sacred in all the West. The Hopi believe the Kachina spirits live at the top of the mountain, gracefully moving through the clouds from summit to summit.
The Peaks tower so dramatically against the desert landscape of Flagstaff and surrounding area that they are visible from many miles away, and when standing on top of one of these giants on a clear day, one can see the North Rim of the Grand Canyon over eighty miles away as the eagle flys.

Thursday, July 05, 2012

Zion National Park - A Picturesque Wonderland

Utah's oldest and most visited national park, Zion National Park, is located in southwestern Utah. It presents a diverse collection of nature's wonders that include such features as the towering and magnificent 2,200-foot Great White Throne, the park's most famous landmark; the Court of the Patriarchs; the Sentinel; the Watchman; Checkerboard Mesa; Kolob Arch, at 310 feet the world's largest known natural span; and the Narrows of the Virgin River, where a person can walk upstream to places so narrow that both sides of the canyon walls can almost be touched with one's outstretched hands.

The Zion Canyon area has witnessed many changes in landscape and climate. At times it was covered by the sea; at other times broad rivers traversed its surface; at still other times it was swept by desert winds. Many of the rocks were laid down by water as gravel, sand, mud, and limy ooze. These were consolidated into conglomerates, sandstones, shales, and limestones by the weight of layers above them and by the lime, silica, and iron that cemented the grains.

Although human use of the Zion National Park landscape dates back to at least 6,000 B.C. the magnificence of the area was only known by a privileged few Native American Indians and early Mormon pioneer settlers prior to the completion of a Federal Land Survey in 1908. Today Zion's beauty has gained worldwide recognition and Zion National Park sees more than 1,000,000 visitors annually.

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Tuesday, July 03, 2012

St. George in Snow - Freising Bavaria Germany

Beer aficionados and admirers of stunning architecture alike flock to Freising, a quaint and lively town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It lies along the Isar River, north-northeast of Munich, and is the oldest town between Regensburg in northern Bavaria and Bolzano in South Tyrol (Italy). It was the site of a castle in the 8th century, and, after the missionary bishop Korbinian came there in 724 and St. Boniface established the bishopric in 739, it became the ecclesiastical and cultural centre of old Bavaria in the early Middle Ages, long before the ducal towns of Munich and Landshut.

Many historic buildings and works of art serve as reminders of Freising's rich and important cultural past. The greatest collection of ecclesiastical art in Germany is presented in a museum: the Diözesanmuseum houses paintings, textiles and goldsmith works of nine centuries. The most famous exhibits are of paintings and sculptures by Erasmus Grasser, Ignaz Günther, Peter Paul Rubens and the Lukasbild, a Byzantine St. Mary's icon. In the center of town, just off the Marienplatz or market square, is the massive 15th century late-Gothic Catholic Parish Church St. George, built in 1440 by an unknown architect, with its magnificent baroque tower. And on the hill, known as Domberg, or “Cathedral Hill,” regular tours showcase the Romanesque architecture of St. Mary’s Cathedral.

Freising is also home to the oldest working brewery in the world: Weihenstephan. The lounge in the Weihenstephaner beer garden, on the grounds of the world famous Weihenstephan University - which is where beer scholars from all over the world come to learn the fine art of beer brewing - is well worth a visit throughout the year. So is The Weihenstephan abbots' former courtyard. Nowadays the yard is looked after by the Staatliche Versuchsanstalt für Gartenbau, the state research institute for horticulture. The research institute is also in charge of the plantation of the herbaceous perennials, which is known to be the best of its kind in Germany.

With stunning views of the majestic Bavarian Alps, Freising has become a favorite of Germans and travelers looking for an affordable alternative to Munich. Simultaneously modern and historic, the picturesque old town captures the hearts of visitors by maintaining keen attention on its cultural heritage, while encouraging a modern take on art and elegance.

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Saturday, June 30, 2012

Antique doors in Budweis

In 1265 Bohemian King Přemysl Otakar II chose the confluence of the large South Bohemian Rivers Vltava and Malše (Moldau and Maltsch) to found the city of České Budějovice to strengthen his position of power in South Bohemia. Thanks to the king’s favour and good position for long-distance trading routes, České Budějovice soon came to flourish economically so that two beautiful churches were completed and solid fortified walls erected around the city by the turn of the 14th century. During the turbulent times of the 15th century, the Catholic city of České Budějovice became a strong place of support against the Hussite movement. Commander Jan Žižka recognised only too well just had strong the city’s fortifications were and did not even attempt to invade it. Over the centuries České Budějovice, home of the famous Budweiser Beer, grew into a true economic and cultural capital of South Bohemia, but heavy, hundreds of years old wooden doors still open to cozy, restful interiors in old burghers' houses in quiet streets.

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Budweis - Home to the Beer of Kings

České Budějovice is a beautiful old city in the south of Bohemia. Its name is worldwide known for its famous beer - the Budweiser Bier, which has been brewed in Budejovice ever since the 14th century. However, when the Czech brewer wished to start exporting his Budweiser Bier into the markets beyond those of the Old Continent he found out that another Budweiser already existed, and that Anheuser-Busch already had the trademark registered in the United States. "Budweiser" means the beer of the Budweis region, same as Champagne in France describes the wine of the Champagne wineries. Logically, the Czechs claim to have the right to the name from long before the Americans (Anheuser Busch) even started beer brewing, but after returning to the USA from a tour of Europe in the 1870s, German immigrant Carl Conrad, who was a drinks salesman in St. Louis, attempted, at home, to reproduce certain beers that he had come across on his trip, particularly those that he sampled in what is now the Czech Republic. When he was happy with the beer that mimicked the one that he had tasted in Budweis, he asked his brewer friend, fellow German immigrant Adolphus Busch, to brew it commercially for him. Adolphus ran the brewery for his father-in-law, Eberhard Anheuser. From a taste point of view there is no contest between the genuine Budweiser Budvar and Anheuser Busch's (A-B) Budweiser. On draught, the Czech Republic "Budweiser Budvar" is a truly wonderful drink. Beers from Budweis were the "Beers of Kings". But even this expression was adapted by the American brewery for its main beer and then registered as their trademark: "King of Beers". This is an absolute joke, since the US concoction does not come close to true Budweiser beers when it comes to what really matters: taste. But then, what would one expect from a brew in which a large proportion of the mash was rice, compared to 100% malt for the Czech product? Then there is the prestigious Saaz hops used in the Czech beer, the much longer conditioning (lagering) time, etc, etc. Knowing the sad history of Budweiser Beer it's not surprising that the centre of České Budějovice is remarkably poorly served for pubs. The main square - which you would expect to be lined with boozers - only has a couple. Of those few pubs in the center, very few sell beer from the two local breweries. As in the rest of the Czech Republic, SABMiller in the form of Pilsner Urquell and Inbev with Staropramen, dominate. I couldn't find a single outlet for the town's smaller and less well-known Měšťanský Pivovar brewery.

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Saturday, June 23, 2012

Budweis - Namesti Premysla Otakara II

České Budějovice (also known as Budweis in German and English) is in South Bohemia, in the Czech Republic. It is the home of the REAL Budweiser beer (Budvar beer in Czech), not the poor American Anheuser-Busch (A-B) copy. This prosperous and lively town was founded in 1265 by the Czech King Premysl Otakar II on the confluence of the Vltava and Malse Rivers. During the communist era the town used to be gritty and industrial, and served mainly as a gateway to southern Bohemia. It is amazing to see how the town has been renewed and cleaned up after the fall of the Iron Curtain. České Budějovice's medieval grid plan leads inevitably to the town's showpiece, the magnificent náměstí Přemysla Otakara II. This perfectly quadratic cobblestone market square is one of the largest squares in central Europe. It is lined with magnificent, supremely elegant baroque buildings that are testifying to the last three centuries of German burgher power, but it's the square's 18th-century arched and barrel-vaulted arcades, its magnificent Baroque radnice (town-hall), whose clock tinkles out tunes, and the octagonal baroque Samson's Fountain – once the only tap in town – that make the greatest impression. Nearby you can find the famous erratic boulder. It is the last remains of the original paving and it is said to mark the place where executions were held. The wooden benches around the Fountain of Samson are the usual meeting place for the people of Budejovice. Watching them is a great way to see a slice of everyday life in the Czech Republic.

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Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Prague - Mysteriously Beautiful

Prague is like a good flirt - she only reveals as much leg as you need to see to keep you interested, but the anticipation and the eventual sublimation is always worth the wait.
She's a labyrinth of streets, alleys, passages, staircases, yellow streetlights, background sounds, cigarette smoke and drunken voices.
This is no New York City with its 42nd Streets and numeric grids. The other day I drank red wine in a cellar next to an Irish pub in Old Town; I do not know if I will ever be able to find my way back there again, and I like that. New streets and pubs and bookstores and people and suspicious smells are turning up daily and nightly.
Prague is one of the few cities I've been to - no, the ONLY city I've been to - that really knows how to light its architecture. At night, the castle is floodlit and it glows iridescent above the Vlatava and Charles Bridge like some ethereal anachronism, but it is completely accessible and night walks through it have become a routine.
In contrast to Los Angeles, where it's a pleasant surprise to find a building older than my father, being able to sit on a fountain at one in the morning and look up at St. Vitus, the very Gothic church within the castle walls, gives me a sense of place and history, because Prague is a city in a country that has been in the middle of myriad empires, wars, rebellions, atrocities and struggles for national identity. Living in a city where all this can be felt like mist after rain is offsetting and a good slap in the face, since members of our generation usually (and sadly) think of George Lucas when they hear about empires and rebel armies.
If there were two words I had to choose when describing Prague it would be 'mysterious' and 'beautiful'.

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Sunday, June 17, 2012

I Walked the Streets of Prague

Walking through Prague today, it is hard to imagine the horrors of the Prague Spring and the Soviet occupation, and harder still to bring to the mind's eye the reign of the Nazis when it was under the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. They say 'time heals all wounds', and this city's wounds, if not healed, are well faded. And maybe that's not a bad thing. Prague demands to be wandered through to find the soul of the city in your own way. Walking Prague, one is suddenly assaulted by a feeling that the boundaries between the past and the present are dissolving. Wandering these Gothic medieval cobblestone streets is breathtaking and every moment becomes precious.

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Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Die Moldau - Prague

Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, lives around Vltava river (Moldau in German and many other Germanic languages, Moldva in Hungarian, unrelated to the Moldova river of Romania). Those who like architecture of old towns go for a walk along the river, starting at the Dancing House, continuing to the Rudolfinum, enjoying beautiful views of Prague's castle and bridges and all its stunning historic building on the other side.
Between 1874 and 1879 the Czech composer Bedøich Smetana composed a set of six symphonic poems called 'Má vlast' (traditionally translated as 'My Country', though more strictly meaning 'homeland'). One of these pieces is 'Vltava' also known by its German name 'Die Moldau'. It is Smetana's most famous tune, about 12 minutes long and written in E minor.
Smetana used tone painting to evoke the sounds of one of Bohemia's great rivers. In his own words: The composition describes the course of the Vltava, starting from the two small springs, the Cold and Warm Vltava, to the unification of both streams into a single current, the course of the Vltava through woods and meadows, through landscapes where a farmer's wedding is celebrated, the round dance of the mermaids in the night's moonshine, on the nearby rocks loom proud castles, palaces and ruins aloft. The Vltava swirls into the St John's Rapids; then it widens and flows toward Prague, past the Vyšehrad, and then majestically vanishes into the distance, ending at the Labe (or Elbe, in German).
The symphonic poem is an adaptation of the melody 'La Mantovana', attributed to the Italian renaissance tenor Giuseppe Cenci (also known as Giuseppino), which, in a borrowed Moldovan form, was also the basis for the Israeli national anthem, Hatikvah. The tune also appears in major in an old folk Czech song 'Koèka leze dírou '("The Cat Crawls Through the Hole") and Hans Eisler used it for his "Song of the Moldau".

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Monday, June 11, 2012

Vltava river in Prague - Tricky laziness

The Vltava (Moldau) is the longest river in the Czech Republic, running north from its source near the Austrian Border in Šumava through Èeský Krumlov, Èeské Budìjovice, and Prague, merging with the Elbe at Mìlník. As it runs through Prague the river is crossed by 18 bridges. It covers 31 km within the city. The Vltava has long been seen as an industrial dumping ground in Prague. After 1989, that slowly began to change. The Vltava is now safe for swimming, fishermen say new species are returning to the river, and once again Prague lives around Vltava, both banks showing beautiful buildings embracing the river. But flood protection kept being neglected. With good reason both the Czech name Vltava and the German name Moldau originate from the old Germanic words 'wilt ahwa' ("wild water"). The river's calm, langourous journey through the city belies the raging torrents that can be produced when floodwaters hit from further upriver. In August 2002 a cathastrophic flood of the Vltava killed several people and caused massive damage and disruption along its length. From that destruction, however, came a rebirth and a commitment by the city of Prague to protect its riverside areas by building a flood barrier, fixed walls and embankments as well as mobile walls.

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Saturday, June 09, 2012

Prague - A story told by rooftops

Many cities have stunning landmarks that help to make them famous. Tourists busy themselves with such landmarks as the skyline of New York, Hong Kong or Buenos Aires and forget all about the city's humble or imperial rooftops.
Built on seven hills more than 1000 years ago, Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic in the heart of Europe, has one of the most impressive roof lines in the world which can be viewed from many points in the city. One of them is Petrín Hill in the Castle area where you can take a break from the bustling city below and enjoy an incredible vista of the city.
Prague is a magical town with rooftops as storytellers. It has innumerable sites of unbelievable beauty that tourist guides can only aspire to describe. Few of them will say anything about the rooftops, but the roof tops are worth contemplating because by doing so, one can also glimpse a little of Prague's history and begin to understand its plight in the 20th century.

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Thursday, June 07, 2012

Titans battling outside Prague Castle

There are three different entrances to Prague Castle. If you start at the main gate on Hradèany Square, you'll pass through a gate flanked by two huge Titan statues, each with a giant sword and big hulking stick for whacking enemies under foot. These stone giants have dominated the First Courtyard since Empress Maria Theresa asked Ignatz Platzer to sculpt them in 1770, but the one's present today are copies made in 1912.

I imagine the message to visiting dignitaries was along the lines of: "Watch your manners or we will stomp you into the ground."

In Greek mythology, the Titans were the first generation of deities that ruled during the Golden Age. They were all childen of Uranos (The Heaven) and Gaia (The Earth). The Titans were later overthrown by a race of younger gods, the Olympians, led by Zeus in what is called the Titanomachy (War of the Titans).

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Wednesday, May 30, 2012

The folly of windows in Prague

Unlike anywhere else the combination of politics, religion, windows and defenestation plays an important role in Prague's long history. Defenestration is the act of throwing someone or something out of a window. Bohemia and Prague saw quite a few of those; Two of them are of historical importance, triggering prolonged conflicts within Bohemia and beyond. The First Defenestration involved the killing of seven members of the city council by a crowd of radical Czech Hussites on 30 July 1419 after the town council members had refused to exchange their Hussite prisoners. The mob stormed the town hall and threw the judge, the major, and some thirteen members of the town council out of the window into the street, where they were killed by the fall or dispatched by the mob. King Václav IV (Wenceslas in English, Wenzel in German), upon hearing this news, was so stunned that he died a little time after, supposedly due to the shock. The Second Defenestration is known as "THE Defenestration of Prague" (Prager Fenstersturz). On 23 May 1618, four Catholic Lord Regents, responsible for persuading King Matthias to write a letter which ultimately removed Protestant religious freedoms that had been granted earlier by King Rudolf II, were thrown out a third floor window along with the Regents' secretary. They fell 70 feet (21 metres), landed on a large pile of manure in a dry moat and survived. Roman Catholic Imperial officials claimed that the men survived due to the mercy of angels assisting the righteousness of the Catholic cause. Protestant pamphleteers asserted that their survival had more to do with the horse manure in which they landed than the benevolent acts of angels. This Defenestration was unsuccessful in its immediate motives, but served to precipitate the Bohemian Revolt and the Thirty Years' War.

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Monday, May 28, 2012

A Cross on St Vitus Cathedral Prague

The Treasury of St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, the largest church treasury in the Czech Republic and one of the most extensive in Europe, traces its beginnings back to the early Middle Ages. It suffered major losses during the Hussite wars and was plundered many times in subsequent periods of social tumult and economic shortages.
Even so, Prague's St. Vitus Cathedral still boasts a huge collection of precious artefacts that is breathtaking in its extent. Among the finest masterpieces is the golden coronation cross as well as a cross with a fragment of Christ's loincloth, the reliquary of St. Catherine, a crystal jug holding the tablecloth from the Last Supper, a diamond-studded monstrance, the guilded tomb of St Wenceslas; There are examples of goldsmiths' art dating from the 19th century as well as panel paintings with vera icons believed to be impressed images of Christ's true appearance.
Even in its hidden corners and winding stairways the cathedral houses tens of thousands of secrets: Icons, ancient relics, walls with inlaid gem stones, wall paintings showing Christ's passion, gilded stucco, the shadow of screaming gargoyles and the crypt of kings under the cathedral containing the remains of Charles IV himself. Those secrets, incredible riches - and more - you'll have to discover on your own.

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