Chiemsee, Bavaria, Germany
copyright: charles kenwright/ http://www.openmind-images.com
Chiemsee is south of Munich and forms part of the Chiemgauer Alps. It has a rich landscape with lakes and pleasant rolling mountains. It really is an area that I should get to know better! I´ve already posted one shot of Chiemsee, a boathouse, but this one is somewhat different. I took it down amongst the reeds and wetlands on the shores of the lake.
I wanted to post the ornate toilet, but my memory is better than the reality, the picture is just not good enough – so I´ve canned it, a fitting end for it!
Steps, Liverpool, UK
copyright: charles kenwright/ http://www.openmind-images.com
These steps are part of an old school in Liverpool 8. I like the way they´ve weathered, the colours of the bricks, the sandstone and the hand rail are so rich. Plus there are traces of paint there too which add to the charm. The steps have been worn down in the middle by the countless people who have gone up and down them over the years.
Gents Toilets, Munich Airport, Germany
copyright: charles kenwright/ http://www.openmind-images.com
My last post concerned the spiritual side of man, this, most certainly, the bodily side. I´ve snapped a few toilets in various places – you do have to be quick so as not to give people the wrong idea and with the related danger of maybe ending up in a urinal! I tend to do a lot of quick looking to see if the coast is clear and then a few hurried shots. But I also don´t want people in the shots anyway, I like the emptiness of the room. This is a very slick and functional toilet, tomorrow I´ll post a more ornate one!
St. Jodok Church Tower, Landshut
copyright: charles kenwright/ http://www.openmind-images.com
I had a bit of a wander around the town this afternoon. St.Jodok is one of my favourite churches here in Landshut. It was built in the 14th Century and is in the Freyung, a large open square of houses just outside of the historical town centre. This is one of the most pleasant parts of Landshut and itself dates back to the 14th century. The area in front of the church is used for the Christmas Fair.
View of Landshut from the Carossahoehe
copyright: charles kenwright/ http://www.openmind-images.com
A while ago I posted this view of Landshut and yesterday evening I was back up there with my camera. This vantage point is called the Carossahöhe and from here you get a wonderful view of the old part of the town and it´s surrounding landscape. It was a beautiful evening with the sun shining on and warming the stone wall that borders the steep wooded ridge above the River Isar valley. I often come up here either as part of a run I do, or to relax and watch the sun going down. Which reminds me, a couple of winters ago I photographed a timelapse sequence here which I should put online! Hans Carossa (1878 – 1956) was a German author and lyricist. In Landshut he is also remembered in that his former school has been renamed after him – the “Hans Carossa Gymnasium”.
Slipping back into nature, Landshut
copyright: charles kenwright/ http://www.openmind-images.com
I saw this shot literally out of the corner of my eye. I was on my way to check out a scene down at the river Isar. It´s been on my “to do” list for a long time, and as I walked down towards the river bank I saw the overgrown remains of a small building about 10 meters off the path. I registered it and continued down to my main target. When I got there, well, the light was wrong, the time of day was wrong and, for this shot, probably the time of year was off too. So, after taking a number of photo-sketches for future reference, I turned back to this scene.
I love the richness of the greens in it, how the rough scrub is reclaiming and slowly breaking up this ruin. But also, and I found this visually quite odd, it looks like this piece of the building´s plinth was actually emerging from the undergrowth and not being consumed by it.
It´s a shame, but this building is about to go under the breakers ball. This is the former Liverpool HQ of Harland and Wolff, shipbuilders of Belfast. They probably built the most famous shipin history at their Belfast shipyard – The Titanic – which was commissioned for the Liverpool White Star Line.
Harland and Wolff, Liverpool, UK.
copyright: charles kenwright/ http://www.openmind-images.com
It stands on Regent Road, down in the Bootle Docks. The owners of the building say that it´s too dangerous to renovate. The transport cafe, The White Star Line, which has been occupying the ground floor is also doomed. It seems a shame that this fine old historical building can´t be saved. As an aside the Titanic had two sister ships, The Olympic and The Britannic. The Olympic had a long career from 1911 to 1935 but the Britannic, like the Titanic was also fated. She was used as a hospital ship in the First Wold War when, in 1915, she hit a mine off the Greek island of Kea and sank.
