The Loire Valley and especially Blois
The Taj Mahal did not disappoint. Tears came to my eyes as I stood and looked at this mythical palace of love commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (reigned 1628–1658), to house the tomb of his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal who died giving birth to her 14th child. Le Taj Mahal ne nous …
Continue reading “Postcard from India – the Taj Mahal in the Early Morn”
This amazing structure is Buland Darwaza or the “Gate of Magnificence” built in 1601 by the great Mughal emperor, Akbar, at Fatehpur Sikri, to commemorate his victory over Gujarat. The Buland Darwaza is the highest gateway in the world (53.63 m high) and an astounding example of Mughal architecture. Ce bâtiment étonnant s’appelle Buland Darwaza ou …
I was amused to see see this hotel in Queenscliff on the Bellarine Peninsula in Victoria called Vue Grand. It might have a grand view, but the French version isn’t quite correct. It was built in 1881. J’étais amusée de voir cet hôtel à Queenscliff sur la péninsule de Bellarine dans l’état de Victoria qui …
The Shrine of Remembrance inaugurated in 1934 is one of Melbourne’s main landmarks and affords a spectacular view of the city in every direction. The photographs below show the city taken from the terrace on the front façade then looking left. The flowers are part of the Greek National Day Commemoration. Le monument aux morts inauguré en …
Continue reading “Postcard from Australia: Melbourne – the Shrine”
Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour was proclaimed a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010 . It was a convict penal settlement from 1839 to 1869 and one of Austalia’s biggest shipyards, operating between 1857 and 1991 with the first of its two dry docks built by convicts. L’île de Cockatoo dans la baie de Sydney …
Continue reading “Postcard from Australia – Cockatoo Island”
After the Harbour Bridge yesterday, here is Sydney’s second icon – the Opera House. Après le pont “Harbour” ici, voici le deuxième icône de Sydney : l’Opéra.
Jama Masjid (great mosque), the biggest in India, was built in 1650 in the middle of Old Delhi and can welcome 25,000 people in front of the main building. The three domes made of white marble striated with black offer a striking contrast with the pink sandstone of the rest of the mosque.. La Jama Masjid (grande mosqué), …
Today, thanks to “Blois Insolite et Secret” by Pascal Nourisson and Jean-Paul Sauvage (Editions Sutton 2013), we discovered that there used to be an electric tram between Blois and Amboise that opened in 1913. Unfortunately, due to the many technical difficulties with this type of tram, it was abandoned in 1933. A couple of buildings …
This, my friends, is of greater significance that it looks. It’s part of a rampart from the time of the Gauls. Built from 400 to 50 BC, is made of clay, wooden posts and a 10 m deep ditch. The presence of pebbles shows that it was added to at different periods of time to make it …
The original bishop’s house in Blois is now the Town Hall (1698 to 1704), a much grander building. The separation of church and State in 1905 forced the bishop to find a new home. A parishioner, Germaine Marcandier donated her house just a stone’s throw away, at n° 2 rue Porte Clos Haut. Although it was probably …