Went sightseeing (pics)



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Topic: Sociology > Depression
User: "neoholistic"
Date: 15 Sep 2004 09:45:31 PM
Object: Went sightseeing (pics)
x-no-archive: yes
I was feeling suicidal this afternoon, so I went to town, with nothing
planned. I took a (shitty) camera with me, though, expecting to at least
find something worth taking a shot of. I went to the Old Quarters, it's
kept to a large degree the atmosphere from the mediaeval times, with its
narrow, warping streets, and a seemingly disorganised structure that has
an "organic" feel I like.
A BIG mistake on my part: it was nearly 19:30 in the afternoon when I
started taking pics, so most streets were in the shadow, and in addition
this camera has a CRAPPY luminical response (I later found it has a
nocturnal mode; I found it too late damn it). The result: the pics are
dark, so dark you can't tell hair from faces in people in many of
them. Sorry, my bad (many pics came out totally unusable).
I started in Santa Cruz, which is the old Jewish Quarter (before they
were "invited" (ahem) to leave). I can't see why it's always so packed
with tourists, because there isn't much to see, except for some very
narrow streets. There are some nice(ish) buildings, though, like this
one, Murillo's (a painter) home, nowadays a museum:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1456.jpg
An example of the typical narrow streets (this one would benefit from
some paint work):
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1459.jpg
From there you arrive to Plaza de los Reyes, which is right in front
of the Cathedral and the Giralda (the cathedral's bell tower, originally
the minaret of a muslim mosque).
This is the palace of the Archbishop, next to the Cathedral:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1460.jpg
This is the Giralda:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1461.jpg
And this is the Cathedral. It's the third largest in the world,
and the largest gothic one:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1467.jpg
From there I walked to the nearby Plaza de San Francisco, right
behind the City Townhall.
I like the buildings here:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1468.jpg
This is the Townhall, built somewhere in the 1500s:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1469.jpg
A closer look:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1473.jpg
All nearby streets are cramped with shops, as this is a mostly
touristical and commercial part of town. But there are some quite
interesting buildings here. As you know, Seville used to be a Roman
(later Visigoth) city (Hispalis), until the Arabs took it. It was
conquered back from them in the 1200s, and most of the muslim
architecture was demolished. However in the 1800s it became fashionable
to use "arabesque" motifs in the architecture, often intermixed with
designs based on western styles. The result is a little bit phony
looking, but I find it aesthetically pleasing. Note that these
buildings do NOT date from the muslim period! (But there are enough
authentic ones left to please anyone, fear not).
Example of an "arabic-inspired" facade (the title, "City of London",
refers to the shop in the ground floor, not the building):
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1477.jpg
Many streets in the Old City are too narrow for cars, but as soon as a
street is wide enough, you find traffic (unfortunately):
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1479.jpg
In this same street, another arabic-inspired style building:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1480.jpg
From this street you can enter directly into a very popular, and usually
very crowded street, called Sierpes (Snakes). It's closed to
motorised traffic, thank goodness. The shops there are top notch, and
there's some nice architecture too:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1482.jpg
There was a string quartet performing in the street (OK, actually they
were rehearsing while I passed by), and I took a short video of them.
They stopped, though, either because of me or the pack of loud kids
that came behind me. I'm posting it anyway so you can get an idea what
the place looks and sounds like.
Caveat: this is a 3 meg file:
http://www.neoholistic.org/videos/misc/imgp1483.avi
I tend to dislike advertising, but this is an exception: an old ad from
Studebaker cars, from the 1920s, made from tiles. Sooner or later they
will have to cover it with some transparent, protecting material, or
else it won't last another 80 years. That stupid girl had to cross in
front of me right when I was taking the pic (I didn't notice her):
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1484.jpg
Speaking of advertising, this is new: these sunblinds are extended
during the summer, to protect passer-bys (sp?) from the fierce heat,
but I had never noticed this Coca Cola logo. At least they could have
had the decency to choose a local brand...
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1485.jpg
This is again in front of the Townhall (looking in a different
direction). It was getting dark pretty fast:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1489.jpg
Notice the domed building:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1490.jpg
Same building:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1491.jpg
This is a long avenue, worth taking pics of, but it was quite
dark already, and they don't look right. BTW, I was stopped by an
agent of the secret police. Do I look like a terrorist???
I exited the Old Quarters by the "Sherry Gate" (Puerta de Jerez).
Even though it was dark, I took another pic. That large building is
an hotel:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1494.jpg
I took quite a number of pics, but they didn't come out right. Until
I discovered the nocturnal mode setting. I was at the Plaza de España
by then. It's under extensive repairs, so it doesn't look too good.
There's a small channel, with birds and hire boats, that runs under the
bridges and connects the inner ring with the outer one, but it's dry
now. I shot it anyway; this place is shown in Star Wars Episode II,
right after Anakin and Padmé arrive in Naboo (it looks better in
daylight):
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1507.jpg
This is a more recently built part of town, very different from the
former. I took a couple pics to show the contrast. Unfortunately this
stupid "smart" camera focused on the closest object (the railing), so
they look blurry.
Looking east:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1514.jpg
Looking west:
http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1516.jpg
And then I took the bus back home. I was feeling a lot better... never
underestimate the therapeutic effect of going out.
--
Please keep the 'x-no-archive: yes' header.
To reach me by email: transform my account name like IBM -> HAL.
.

User: "Gayle"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 16 Sep 2004 07:18:50 AM


And then I took the bus back home. I was feeling a lot better... never
underestimate the therapeutic effect of going out.

Cool! I think there's therapeutic effect from looking at pics
someone takes when they go out. Thanks, Neo.
Gayle
.

User: "Teilhard Knight"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 16 Sep 2004 12:30:18 AM
Fascinating. Thanks for showing so much of that wonderland you are
surrounded with. One day I will follow your example and will go touristing
here in Mexico.
--
Teilhard Knight
The Extraterrestrial
Change "privacy" for "softhome" if you want to intrude my inbox
"neoholistic" <ekqbwpo@terra.es> wrote in message
news:2qscl7F12sa0fU1@uni-berlin.de...

x-no-archive: yes

I was feeling suicidal this afternoon, so I went to town, with nothing
planned. I took a (shitty) camera with me, though, expecting to at least
find something worth taking a shot of. I went to the Old Quarters, it's
kept to a large degree the atmosphere from the mediaeval times, with its
narrow, warping streets, and a seemingly disorganised structure that has
an "organic" feel I like.

A BIG mistake on my part: it was nearly 19:30 in the afternoon when I
started taking pics, so most streets were in the shadow, and in addition
this camera has a CRAPPY luminical response (I later found it has a
nocturnal mode; I found it too late damn it). The result: the pics are
dark, so dark you can't tell hair from faces in people in many of
them. Sorry, my bad (many pics came out totally unusable).

I started in Santa Cruz, which is the old Jewish Quarter (before they
were "invited" (ahem) to leave). I can't see why it's always so packed
with tourists, because there isn't much to see, except for some very
narrow streets. There are some nice(ish) buildings, though, like this
one, Murillo's (a painter) home, nowadays a museum:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1456.jpg

An example of the typical narrow streets (this one would benefit from
some paint work):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1459.jpg

From there you arrive to Plaza de los Reyes, which is right in front
of the Cathedral and the Giralda (the cathedral's bell tower, originally
the minaret of a muslim mosque).

This is the palace of the Archbishop, next to the Cathedral:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1460.jpg

This is the Giralda:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1461.jpg

And this is the Cathedral. It's the third largest in the world,
and the largest gothic one:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1467.jpg

From there I walked to the nearby Plaza de San Francisco, right
behind the City Townhall.

I like the buildings here:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1468.jpg

This is the Townhall, built somewhere in the 1500s:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1469.jpg

A closer look:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1473.jpg

All nearby streets are cramped with shops, as this is a mostly
touristical and commercial part of town. But there are some quite
interesting buildings here. As you know, Seville used to be a Roman
(later Visigoth) city (Hispalis), until the Arabs took it. It was
conquered back from them in the 1200s, and most of the muslim
architecture was demolished. However in the 1800s it became fashionable
to use "arabesque" motifs in the architecture, often intermixed with
designs based on western styles. The result is a little bit phony
looking, but I find it aesthetically pleasing. Note that these
buildings do NOT date from the muslim period! (But there are enough
authentic ones left to please anyone, fear not).

Example of an "arabic-inspired" facade (the title, "City of London",
refers to the shop in the ground floor, not the building):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1477.jpg

Many streets in the Old City are too narrow for cars, but as soon as a
street is wide enough, you find traffic (unfortunately):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1479.jpg

In this same street, another arabic-inspired style building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1480.jpg

From this street you can enter directly into a very popular, and usually
very crowded street, called Sierpes (Snakes). It's closed to
motorised traffic, thank goodness. The shops there are top notch, and
there's some nice architecture too:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1482.jpg

There was a string quartet performing in the street (OK, actually they
were rehearsing while I passed by), and I took a short video of them.
They stopped, though, either because of me or the pack of loud kids
that came behind me. I'm posting it anyway so you can get an idea what
the place looks and sounds like.

Caveat: this is a 3 meg file:

http://www.neoholistic.org/videos/misc/imgp1483.avi

I tend to dislike advertising, but this is an exception: an old ad from
Studebaker cars, from the 1920s, made from tiles. Sooner or later they
will have to cover it with some transparent, protecting material, or
else it won't last another 80 years. That stupid girl had to cross in
front of me right when I was taking the pic (I didn't notice her):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1484.jpg

Speaking of advertising, this is new: these sunblinds are extended
during the summer, to protect passer-bys (sp?) from the fierce heat,
but I had never noticed this Coca Cola logo. At least they could have
had the decency to choose a local brand...

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1485.jpg

This is again in front of the Townhall (looking in a different
direction). It was getting dark pretty fast:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1489.jpg

Notice the domed building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1490.jpg

Same building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1491.jpg

This is a long avenue, worth taking pics of, but it was quite
dark already, and they don't look right. BTW, I was stopped by an
agent of the secret police. Do I look like a terrorist???

I exited the Old Quarters by the "Sherry Gate" (Puerta de Jerez).
Even though it was dark, I took another pic. That large building is
an hotel:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1494.jpg

I took quite a number of pics, but they didn't come out right. Until
I discovered the nocturnal mode setting. I was at the Plaza de España
by then. It's under extensive repairs, so it doesn't look too good.
There's a small channel, with birds and hire boats, that runs under the
bridges and connects the inner ring with the outer one, but it's dry
now. I shot it anyway; this place is shown in Star Wars Episode II,
right after Anakin and Padmé arrive in Naboo (it looks better in
daylight):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1507.jpg

This is a more recently built part of town, very different from the
former. I took a couple pics to show the contrast. Unfortunately this
stupid "smart" camera focused on the closest object (the railing), so
they look blurry.

Looking east:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1514.jpg

Looking west:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1516.jpg

And then I took the bus back home. I was feeling a lot better... never
underestimate the therapeutic effect of going out.

--
Please keep the 'x-no-archive: yes' header.

To reach me by email: transform my account name like IBM -> HAL.

.
User: "neoholistic"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 16 Sep 2004 01:34:50 AM
x-no-archive: yes
Teilhard Knight wrote:

Fascinating. Thanks for showing so much of that wonderland you are
surrounded with. One day I will follow your example and will go touristing
here in Mexico.

That would be cool, because I don't get to travel a lot lately! ;)
--
Please keep the 'x-no-archive: yes' header.
To reach me by email: transform my account name like IBM -> HAL.
.


User: "JohnM"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 15 Sep 2004 09:47:48 PM
Thanks this was really neat.
"neoholistic" <ekqbwpo@terra.es> wrote in message
news:2qscl7F12sa0fU1@uni-berlin.de...

x-no-archive: yes

I was feeling suicidal this afternoon, so I went to town, with nothing
planned. I took a (shitty) camera with me, though, expecting to at least
find something worth taking a shot of. I went to the Old Quarters, it's
kept to a large degree the atmosphere from the mediaeval times, with its
narrow, warping streets, and a seemingly disorganised structure that has
an "organic" feel I like.

A BIG mistake on my part: it was nearly 19:30 in the afternoon when I
started taking pics, so most streets were in the shadow, and in addition
this camera has a CRAPPY luminical response (I later found it has a
nocturnal mode; I found it too late damn it). The result: the pics are
dark, so dark you can't tell hair from faces in people in many of
them. Sorry, my bad (many pics came out totally unusable).

I started in Santa Cruz, which is the old Jewish Quarter (before they
were "invited" (ahem) to leave). I can't see why it's always so packed
with tourists, because there isn't much to see, except for some very
narrow streets. There are some nice(ish) buildings, though, like this
one, Murillo's (a painter) home, nowadays a museum:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1456.jpg

An example of the typical narrow streets (this one would benefit from
some paint work):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1459.jpg

From there you arrive to Plaza de los Reyes, which is right in front
of the Cathedral and the Giralda (the cathedral's bell tower, originally
the minaret of a muslim mosque).

This is the palace of the Archbishop, next to the Cathedral:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1460.jpg

This is the Giralda:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1461.jpg

And this is the Cathedral. It's the third largest in the world,
and the largest gothic one:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1467.jpg

From there I walked to the nearby Plaza de San Francisco, right
behind the City Townhall.

I like the buildings here:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1468.jpg

This is the Townhall, built somewhere in the 1500s:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1469.jpg

A closer look:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1473.jpg

All nearby streets are cramped with shops, as this is a mostly
touristical and commercial part of town. But there are some quite
interesting buildings here. As you know, Seville used to be a Roman
(later Visigoth) city (Hispalis), until the Arabs took it. It was
conquered back from them in the 1200s, and most of the muslim
architecture was demolished. However in the 1800s it became fashionable
to use "arabesque" motifs in the architecture, often intermixed with
designs based on western styles. The result is a little bit phony
looking, but I find it aesthetically pleasing. Note that these
buildings do NOT date from the muslim period! (But there are enough
authentic ones left to please anyone, fear not).

Example of an "arabic-inspired" facade (the title, "City of London",
refers to the shop in the ground floor, not the building):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1477.jpg

Many streets in the Old City are too narrow for cars, but as soon as a
street is wide enough, you find traffic (unfortunately):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1479.jpg

In this same street, another arabic-inspired style building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1480.jpg

From this street you can enter directly into a very popular, and usually
very crowded street, called Sierpes (Snakes). It's closed to
motorised traffic, thank goodness. The shops there are top notch, and
there's some nice architecture too:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1482.jpg

There was a string quartet performing in the street (OK, actually they
were rehearsing while I passed by), and I took a short video of them.
They stopped, though, either because of me or the pack of loud kids
that came behind me. I'm posting it anyway so you can get an idea what
the place looks and sounds like.

Caveat: this is a 3 meg file:

http://www.neoholistic.org/videos/misc/imgp1483.avi

I tend to dislike advertising, but this is an exception: an old ad from
Studebaker cars, from the 1920s, made from tiles. Sooner or later they
will have to cover it with some transparent, protecting material, or
else it won't last another 80 years. That stupid girl had to cross in
front of me right when I was taking the pic (I didn't notice her):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1484.jpg

Speaking of advertising, this is new: these sunblinds are extended
during the summer, to protect passer-bys (sp?) from the fierce heat,
but I had never noticed this Coca Cola logo. At least they could have
had the decency to choose a local brand...

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1485.jpg

This is again in front of the Townhall (looking in a different
direction). It was getting dark pretty fast:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1489.jpg

Notice the domed building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1490.jpg

Same building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1491.jpg

This is a long avenue, worth taking pics of, but it was quite
dark already, and they don't look right. BTW, I was stopped by an
agent of the secret police. Do I look like a terrorist???

I exited the Old Quarters by the "Sherry Gate" (Puerta de Jerez).
Even though it was dark, I took another pic. That large building is
an hotel:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1494.jpg

I took quite a number of pics, but they didn't come out right. Until
I discovered the nocturnal mode setting. I was at the Plaza de España
by then. It's under extensive repairs, so it doesn't look too good.
There's a small channel, with birds and hire boats, that runs under the
bridges and connects the inner ring with the outer one, but it's dry
now. I shot it anyway; this place is shown in Star Wars Episode II,
right after Anakin and Padmé arrive in Naboo (it looks better in
daylight):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1507.jpg

This is a more recently built part of town, very different from the
former. I took a couple pics to show the contrast. Unfortunately this
stupid "smart" camera focused on the closest object (the railing), so
they look blurry.

Looking east:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1514.jpg

Looking west:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1516.jpg

And then I took the bus back home. I was feeling a lot better... never
underestimate the therapeutic effect of going out.

--
Please keep the 'x-no-archive: yes' header.

To reach me by email: transform my account name like IBM -> HAL.

.

User: "Whiskers"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 17 Sep 2004 06:44:45 PM
X-No-Archive: Yes
On Thu, 16 Sep 2004 04:45:31 +0200, neoholistic wrote:
snip

I took a (shitty) camera with me, though, expecting to at least
find something worth taking a shot of. I went to the Old Quarters, it's
kept to a large degree the atmosphere from the mediaeval times, with its
narrow, warping streets, and a seemingly disorganised structure that has
an "organic" feel I like.

A BIG mistake on my part: it was nearly 19:30 in the afternoon when I
started taking pics, so most streets were in the shadow, and in addition
this camera has a CRAPPY luminical response (I later found it has a
nocturnal mode; I found it too late damn it). The result: the pics are
dark, so dark you can't tell hair from faces in people in many of them.
Sorry, my bad (many pics came out totally unusable).

snip
I think the pictures are very atmospheric, you have a 'good eye' - and the
camera has done a pretty good job too, in my opinion. Of course, having
a good subject is always helpful, and Seville is certainly that!
I've saved the pictures so that I can look at them at my leisure. It took
a long time to download them all with my dial-up so I want to get some
more enjoyment out of them :)) They make a good 'slide show'.
(Most professional and good amateur photographers, never show most of
their pictures; choosing which to share, and learning from the 'rejects',
are the main reasons they get the reputation for being good photographers!)
--
-- ^^^^^^^^^^
-- Whiskers
-- ~~~~~~~~~~
.
User: "neoholistic"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 19 Sep 2004 05:06:18 PM
x-no-archive: yes
Whiskers wrote:

X-No-Archive: Yes

snip


I think the pictures are very atmospheric, you have a 'good eye' - and the
camera has done a pretty good job too, in my opinion. Of course, having
a good subject is always helpful, and Seville is certainly that!

I've saved the pictures so that I can look at them at my leisure. It took
a long time to download them all with my dial-up so I want to get some
more enjoyment out of them :)) They make a good 'slide show'.

Sorry about that. I should have edited them into a smaller size for
people with dial-up. Actually I intended to do precisely that, but I
was tired and I wanted to upload them to my webspace right after I got
to my flat, while they were still 'fresh'.
Glad you liked them, because I enjoyed going out and taking them ;)
A city I intend to visit again, this time with a good camera, is London.
Last time I was there I was in a rush, and the old camera I was carrying
wasn't cooperating. That's a city worth taking your time, with no
hurries. I was sad I had to leave having seen too litle of it...
--
Please keep the 'x-no-archive: yes' header.
To reach me by email: transform my account name like IBM -> HAL.
.
User: "Alan Harding"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 20 Sep 2004 01:32:29 PM
In message <2r6dp4F14l1qlU1@uni-berlin.de>, neoholistic
<ekqbwpo@terra.es> writes


A city I intend to visit again, this time with a good camera, is London.
Last time I was there I was in a rush, and the old camera I was carrying
wasn't cooperating. That's a city worth taking your time, with no
hurries. I was sad I had to leave having seen too litle of it...

Lived in London for fifteen years, and have no pictures of it. I have
pictures of people (and a cat) in London, but none of the places in it.
--
The opinions given above may be mine. They might also
just be what I feel like saying right now, okay?
.

User: "Whiskers"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 20 Sep 2004 03:02:56 PM
X-No-Archive: Yes
On Mon, 20 Sep 2004 00:06:18 +0200, neoholistic wrote:
snip

They make a good 'slide show'.



Sorry about that. I should have edited them into a smaller size for people
with dial-up. Actually I intended to do precisely that, but I was tired
and I wanted to upload them to my webspace right after I got to my flat,
while they were still 'fresh'.

Not really a huge problem, and it's nice to get the high quality.

Glad you liked them, because I enjoyed going out and taking them ;)

Good :))

A city I intend to visit again, this time with a good camera, is London.
Last time I was there I was in a rush, and the old camera I was carrying
wasn't cooperating. That's a city worth taking your time, with no hurries.
I was sad I had to leave having seen too litle of it...

There are certainly plenty of photogenic bits; it's always changing too.
Like any city :)) When you're 'in the groove', there are picture
opportunities wherever you are. I've been struggling for years to get
'it' back.
--
-- ^^^^^^^^^^
-- Whiskers
-- ~~~~~~~~~~
.



User: "lisa in mass."

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 15 Sep 2004 10:00:46 PM
thanks for sharing- i enjoyed the tour!
-lisa
.

User: "John"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 15 Sep 2004 11:43:59 PM
x-no-archive: yes
I enjoyed this enormously.
Ole Seville is very beautiful.
It makes me want to visit.
"neoholistic" <ekqbwpo@terra.es> wrote in message
news:2qscl7F12sa0fU1@uni-berlin.de...

x-no-archive: yes

I was feeling suicidal this afternoon, so I went to town, with nothing
planned. I took a (shitty) camera with me, though, expecting to at least
find something worth taking a shot of. I went to the Old Quarters, it's
kept to a large degree the atmosphere from the mediaeval times, with its
narrow, warping streets, and a seemingly disorganised structure that has
an "organic" feel I like.

A BIG mistake on my part: it was nearly 19:30 in the afternoon when I
started taking pics, so most streets were in the shadow, and in addition
this camera has a CRAPPY luminical response (I later found it has a
nocturnal mode; I found it too late damn it). The result: the pics are
dark, so dark you can't tell hair from faces in people in many of
them. Sorry, my bad (many pics came out totally unusable).

I started in Santa Cruz, which is the old Jewish Quarter (before they
were "invited" (ahem) to leave). I can't see why it's always so packed
with tourists, because there isn't much to see, except for some very
narrow streets. There are some nice(ish) buildings, though, like this
one, Murillo's (a painter) home, nowadays a museum:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1456.jpg

An example of the typical narrow streets (this one would benefit from
some paint work):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1459.jpg

From there you arrive to Plaza de los Reyes, which is right in front
of the Cathedral and the Giralda (the cathedral's bell tower, originally
the minaret of a muslim mosque).

This is the palace of the Archbishop, next to the Cathedral:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1460.jpg

This is the Giralda:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1461.jpg

And this is the Cathedral. It's the third largest in the world,
and the largest gothic one:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1467.jpg

From there I walked to the nearby Plaza de San Francisco, right
behind the City Townhall.

I like the buildings here:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1468.jpg

This is the Townhall, built somewhere in the 1500s:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1469.jpg

A closer look:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1473.jpg

All nearby streets are cramped with shops, as this is a mostly
touristical and commercial part of town. But there are some quite
interesting buildings here. As you know, Seville used to be a Roman
(later Visigoth) city (Hispalis), until the Arabs took it. It was
conquered back from them in the 1200s, and most of the muslim
architecture was demolished. However in the 1800s it became fashionable
to use "arabesque" motifs in the architecture, often intermixed with
designs based on western styles. The result is a little bit phony
looking, but I find it aesthetically pleasing. Note that these
buildings do NOT date from the muslim period! (But there are enough
authentic ones left to please anyone, fear not).

Example of an "arabic-inspired" facade (the title, "City of London",
refers to the shop in the ground floor, not the building):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1477.jpg

Many streets in the Old City are too narrow for cars, but as soon as a
street is wide enough, you find traffic (unfortunately):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1479.jpg

In this same street, another arabic-inspired style building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1480.jpg

From this street you can enter directly into a very popular, and usually
very crowded street, called Sierpes (Snakes). It's closed to
motorised traffic, thank goodness. The shops there are top notch, and
there's some nice architecture too:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1482.jpg

There was a string quartet performing in the street (OK, actually they
were rehearsing while I passed by), and I took a short video of them.
They stopped, though, either because of me or the pack of loud kids
that came behind me. I'm posting it anyway so you can get an idea what
the place looks and sounds like.

Caveat: this is a 3 meg file:

http://www.neoholistic.org/videos/misc/imgp1483.avi

I tend to dislike advertising, but this is an exception: an old ad from
Studebaker cars, from the 1920s, made from tiles. Sooner or later they
will have to cover it with some transparent, protecting material, or
else it won't last another 80 years. That stupid girl had to cross in
front of me right when I was taking the pic (I didn't notice her):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1484.jpg

Speaking of advertising, this is new: these sunblinds are extended
during the summer, to protect passer-bys (sp?) from the fierce heat,
but I had never noticed this Coca Cola logo. At least they could have
had the decency to choose a local brand...

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1485.jpg

This is again in front of the Townhall (looking in a different
direction). It was getting dark pretty fast:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1489.jpg

Notice the domed building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1490.jpg

Same building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1491.jpg

This is a long avenue, worth taking pics of, but it was quite
dark already, and they don't look right. BTW, I was stopped by an
agent of the secret police. Do I look like a terrorist???

I exited the Old Quarters by the "Sherry Gate" (Puerta de Jerez).
Even though it was dark, I took another pic. That large building is
an hotel:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1494.jpg

I took quite a number of pics, but they didn't come out right. Until
I discovered the nocturnal mode setting. I was at the Plaza de España
by then. It's under extensive repairs, so it doesn't look too good.
There's a small channel, with birds and hire boats, that runs under the
bridges and connects the inner ring with the outer one, but it's dry
now. I shot it anyway; this place is shown in Star Wars Episode II,
right after Anakin and Padmé arrive in Naboo (it looks better in
daylight):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1507.jpg

This is a more recently built part of town, very different from the
former. I took a couple pics to show the contrast. Unfortunately this
stupid "smart" camera focused on the closest object (the railing), so
they look blurry.

Looking east:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1514.jpg

Looking west:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1516.jpg

And then I took the bus back home. I was feeling a lot better... never
underestimate the therapeutic effect of going out.

--
Please keep the 'x-no-archive: yes' header.

To reach me by email: transform my account name like IBM -> HAL.

.

User: "lyssa"

Title: Re: Went sightseeing (pics) 16 Sep 2004 11:22:59 PM
x-no-archive: yes
neoholistic wrote:

x-no-archive: yes

I was feeling suicidal this afternoon, so I went to town, with nothing
planned. I took a (shitty) camera with me, though, expecting to at least
find something worth taking a shot of. I went to the Old Quarters, it's
kept to a large degree the atmosphere from the mediaeval times, with its
narrow, warping streets, and a seemingly disorganised structure that has
an "organic" feel I like.

A BIG mistake on my part: it was nearly 19:30 in the afternoon when I
started taking pics, so most streets were in the shadow, and in addition
this camera has a CRAPPY luminical response (I later found it has a
nocturnal mode; I found it too late damn it). The result: the pics are
dark, so dark you can't tell hair from faces in people in many of
them. Sorry, my bad (many pics came out totally unusable).

I started in Santa Cruz, which is the old Jewish Quarter (before they
were "invited" (ahem) to leave). I can't see why it's always so packed
with tourists, because there isn't much to see, except for some very
narrow streets. There are some nice(ish) buildings, though, like this
one, Murillo's (a painter) home, nowadays a museum:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1456.jpg

An example of the typical narrow streets (this one would benefit from
some paint work):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1459.jpg

From there you arrive to Plaza de los Reyes, which is right in front
of the Cathedral and the Giralda (the cathedral's bell tower, originally
the minaret of a muslim mosque).

This is the palace of the Archbishop, next to the Cathedral:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1460.jpg

This is the Giralda:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1461.jpg

And this is the Cathedral. It's the third largest in the world,
and the largest gothic one:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1467.jpg

From there I walked to the nearby Plaza de San Francisco, right
behind the City Townhall.

I like the buildings here:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1468.jpg

This is the Townhall, built somewhere in the 1500s:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1469.jpg

A closer look:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1473.jpg

All nearby streets are cramped with shops, as this is a mostly
touristical and commercial part of town. But there are some quite
interesting buildings here. As you know, Seville used to be a Roman
(later Visigoth) city (Hispalis), until the Arabs took it. It was
conquered back from them in the 1200s, and most of the muslim
architecture was demolished. However in the 1800s it became fashionable
to use "arabesque" motifs in the architecture, often intermixed with
designs based on western styles. The result is a little bit phony
looking, but I find it aesthetically pleasing. Note that these
buildings do NOT date from the muslim period! (But there are enough
authentic ones left to please anyone, fear not).

Example of an "arabic-inspired" facade (the title, "City of London",
refers to the shop in the ground floor, not the building):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1477.jpg

Many streets in the Old City are too narrow for cars, but as soon as a
street is wide enough, you find traffic (unfortunately):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1479.jpg

In this same street, another arabic-inspired style building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1480.jpg

From this street you can enter directly into a very popular, and usually
very crowded street, called Sierpes (Snakes). It's closed to
motorised traffic, thank goodness. The shops there are top notch, and
there's some nice architecture too:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1482.jpg

There was a string quartet performing in the street (OK, actually they
were rehearsing while I passed by), and I took a short video of them.
They stopped, though, either because of me or the pack of loud kids
that came behind me. I'm posting it anyway so you can get an idea what
the place looks and sounds like.

Caveat: this is a 3 meg file:

http://www.neoholistic.org/videos/misc/imgp1483.avi

I tend to dislike advertising, but this is an exception: an old ad from
Studebaker cars, from the 1920s, made from tiles. Sooner or later they
will have to cover it with some transparent, protecting material, or
else it won't last another 80 years. That stupid girl had to cross in
front of me right when I was taking the pic (I didn't notice her):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1484.jpg

Speaking of advertising, this is new: these sunblinds are extended
during the summer, to protect passer-bys (sp?) from the fierce heat,
but I had never noticed this Coca Cola logo. At least they could have
had the decency to choose a local brand...

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1485.jpg

This is again in front of the Townhall (looking in a different
direction). It was getting dark pretty fast:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1489.jpg

Notice the domed building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1490.jpg

Same building:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1491.jpg

This is a long avenue, worth taking pics of, but it was quite
dark already, and they don't look right. BTW, I was stopped by an
agent of the secret police. Do I look like a terrorist???

I exited the Old Quarters by the "Sherry Gate" (Puerta de Jerez).
Even though it was dark, I took another pic. That large building is
an hotel:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1494.jpg

I took quite a number of pics, but they didn't come out right. Until
I discovered the nocturnal mode setting. I was at the Plaza de España
by then. It's under extensive repairs, so it doesn't look too good.
There's a small channel, with birds and hire boats, that runs under the
bridges and connects the inner ring with the outer one, but it's dry
now. I shot it anyway; this place is shown in Star Wars Episode II,
right after Anakin and Padmé arrive in Naboo (it looks better in
daylight):

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1507.jpg

This is a more recently built part of town, very different from the
former. I took a couple pics to show the contrast. Unfortunately this
stupid "smart" camera focused on the closest object (the railing), so
they look blurry.

Looking east:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1514.jpg

Looking west:

http://www.neoholistic.org/fotos/misc/imgp1516.jpg

And then I took the bus back home. I was feeling a lot better... never
underestimate the therapeutic effect of going out.

i feel like i just did :)
thanks for posting these
what a cool place you live in
.


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