We recently traveled back up to New Jersey to attend the wedding of our nephew Kevin McDonald to Becca Lipke. The wedding had actually been scheduled for 2020, but due to the Covid pandemic, it was postponed for a year. With things finally opening up, the wedding went forward.
The ceremony took place at Hudson House on Port Liberte. It overlooks the Hudson River, with spectacular views Manhattan’s downtown skyline, including Freedom Tower and the Statue of Liberty.
While we were in Jersey City we took a walk through the Newport section and then the Hoboken train station. Here (below) are some photos from Jersey City and the train station.
JFB
A photo of the downtown New York City skyline as seen from Jersey City on a summer morning.A wide angle photo of buildings on the Jersey City waterfront.A wide angle photo of a walking path along the Hudson River in the Newport section of Jersey City.Hoboken, NJ, USA — June 19, 2021. A red headed woman walks in a streak of light in the Hoboken train station in New Jersey.Hoboken, NJ, USA — June 19, 2021. Commuters walk through the inside of the Hoboken train station in NJ.Washington Blvd, Jersey City, USA — June 19, 2021. A wide angle photo of outdoor dining spots along Washington Blvd in Jersey City, NJ.
Tallinn may be the most beautiful city you’ve never heard of. The capital of Estonia, Tallinn is a small city in a small country with a turbulent history, particularly with respect to relations with Russia. On our walking tour of the city our guide noted that for Estonia, “NATO is everything”.
There are about 1.5 million citizens of Estonia, and about 435,000 people who live in Tallinn. Located on the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has close historic ties with Helsinki, Stockholm and St Petersburg.
The city proper dates back to the first half of the 13th century, but humans settlements are estimated go back 5,000 years. The first recorded claim for the land was made by Denmark in 1219 after a successful raid. After a couple of centuries of fighting between Scandinavian and Teutonic rulers, Tallinn became an important commercial hub because of its strategic location.
Tallinn is one of Europe’s best preserved medieval cities and is counted as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has the largest number of star-ups in Europe, and is the birthplace of Skype. It houses the EU’s IT agency and is the home of NATO’s Cyber Defense Center of Excellence. It is also ranked as one of the world’s top 10 digital cities.
We went on a walking tour of the city with a local guide and took lots of photos in the process. A few are posted below.
JFB
Tallinn, Estonia — July 23, 2019. A photo looking down on Tallin from a limestone hill overlooking the town square.Tallin, Estonia — July 23, 2019. A vertical shot of a side street in Tallin, Estonia with the domes of Alexander Necsky Cathedral rising in the background.Tallinn, Estonia — July 23, 2019. A tourist makes a donation to street musicians playing in a shopping area.Tallinn, Estonia — July 23, 2019. Photo of a juice cart vendor giving the thumbs up sign in Tallin, Estonia.Tallinn, Estonia — July 23, 2019. Photo of a side street in Tallin, Estonia.
Well, here we are in Key West, Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, also known as the Conch Republic. It is quite a scene. In some respects, it bears a faint resemblance to Nashville’s honky-tonk scene. There are lots of bars and restaurants with working musicians playing guitars looking for a break. Like Jimmy Buffet. But Key West is far more upscale.
Welcome Booth
Located in the Straits of Florida, Key West (Cayo Hueso in Spanish) is an island city at the Southernmost point of the North American Continent. It is closer to Cuba than it is to Miami. He island is very small—only 1 mile long and 4 miles wide. If you walk the length of Duval Street (the main street) you will have walked from the Gulf of Mexico at one end to the Florida Straits and the Atlantic Ocean on the other.
The permanent population is about 25,000, and tourism is a very big deal here. And the tourists arrive by plane, auto, ferry and cruise ship. In the first three months of 2018 alone, cruise ships brought about 275,000 tourists to the island and airplanes brought about 120,000.
Key West is (or was) home to quite a few notables, including Earnest Hemmingway, John Dos Passos, Tennessee Williams, John Dewey, Winslow Homer and Calvin Klein to name a few.
Anyway, Key West is a more than a bit bohemian with an independent streak and a live-and-let live attitude that is kind of refreshing. More than refreshing, actually. There may be a lesson here.
Here (below) are some photos taken during our too short stay.
Located on the western bank of the Guayas River, Guayaquil is Ecuador’s largest city (pop 2.7 million) and its main port. It was founded in 1538 by Spanish Conquistador Francisco de Orellana. The city suffered a series of attacks and looting by French and English pirates over the years. By the 19th century Ecuador won its independence from Spain and became a sovereign country.
Ecuador is currently on a drive to attract tourism and international business—just like everybody else. Part of the project involves the apparently successful creation of a waterfront promenade in Guayaquil complete with restaurants, offices and hotels. Guayaquil also has a thriving arts community with an Arts district in the city that houses and galleries. We visited both places–some photos are below.
Large Ferris Wheel Juts out from the Promenade
One of the problems Ecuador is attempting to deal with is the flow—becoming a flood—of refugees from Venezuela. To no one’s surprise (excepting Noam Chomsky) the worker’s paradise founded by Chavez, now presided over by Maduro, has been a crashing failure just like all the others. And so people are exiting for Ecuador, Columbia and Peru in an attempt to find food and medicine and other necessities. Venezuela’s neighbors have now shut their borders. Unfortunately, it looks like it’s going to get worse before it gets better.
Iquique, a town of 181,000 people, is located in northern Chile on the Pacific coast. Originally part of Peru, it had a large Chilean population. But as a result of the War of the Pacific (1879—1883) Peru ceded it to Chile where is has remained since.
The town developed rapidly with the discovery of mineral riches in the Atacama Desert during the 19th century. Mining saltpeter was particularly lucrative for a while, but eventually a way was discovered to make it synthetically, and that spelled doom for many mining towns, the remnants of which can be seen today in the desert—which is the driest hot desert on the planet.
After docking at Iquique, we went out to see Humberstone, about 30 miles away. It is one of the abandoned “ghost towns” that dot the landscape. Actually, desert scape is probably a better way to describe the town, which was designated a UNESCO cultural heritage sight in 2005.
Humberstone Ghost Town, a UNESCO world heritage site
Abandoned Buildings in Humberstone
After making our way back to Iquique proper we went to an opulent club off the town square to have some Pisco sours, after which we looked around the very attractive town square, saw a demonstration, and headed back to the ship.
Protestors Demonstrating in Iquique
The Iquique Town Square–note the mountains in the background
Iquique is the last port if call in Chile for us, so we are now headed off for Peru to see what awaits is there. Some photos from Iquique and Humberstone are below.
Before turning to the city of Nelson, New Zealand, a piece of news. We published an article in Apogee, an online photo magazine, that recounts some of our Safari in South Africa. The article can be seen at this link:http://www.apogeephoto.com/glamping-photo-safari-africa/
Now–back to Nelson.
Nelson, the second-oldest city in New Zealand, is on the eastern shore of the Tasman Bay. The city is also known by its Maori name of Whakatu. The Maori settlements in what is now Nelson came about 700 years ago, beating Captain Hook to the punch by a couple of hundred years. The city, with a current population of about 50,000 was established as Nelson in 1841. It is named for Admiral Horatio Nelson who defeated the French and Spanish fleets at the battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Not Ricky.
It is a charming and laid-back city with a museum, lots of shops, the Queen’s Gardens and a pleasant vibe. It is worth noting that in this regard Nelson is not the exception: all the cities of former members of the Empire have gardens and buildings commemorating the royals.
Shopping, bars and restaurants in Nelson
Sidewalk Cafe
Captain Hook, who visited New Zealand 3 times, is credited with discovering it (for the West) around 1769 – 70. The Maori have a different perspective about this. Britain declared sovereignty based on the Treaty of Waitangi in February of 1840. The treaty signers were the chiefs of the major tribes of the north island and representatives of the British Crown. Parts of the treaty are still in dispute, and representatives of the Maori people and the New Zealand government have been working for years to reconcile their differences over the treaty and arrive at a final resolution.
That aside there is evidence that suggests that Arabs had discovered New Zealand even earlier, perhaps around the 13th or 14th centuries. Regardless, New Zealand’s is now an independent state whose independence nevertheless came in fits and starts instead of in one fell swoop. The Queen of England, though, is still formally the head of state.
We spent a quick—too quick—couple of days in Lyon, France’s second largest city. According to Journal des Arts it is the second city for culture in France, coming in just behind Paris. The capital of the Lyon Metropolitan region, the city is a festival of museums, restaurants, cafes and historic architecture. We stayed in Vieux Lyon—the Old City—where we had stunning views of the town and could easily make our through the old streets to do some sightseeing. A quick ride in a funicular and we arrived at the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourviere, which overlooked the city.
Lyon, the gastronomical capital of France, is positioned between the Rhone and Saone Rivers, making it extraordinarily picturesque. In addition, Lyon is a college town. It is home to many well-regarded universities, and is ranked 34th in the world by students for desirability.
If you travel to France, it’s well worth a visit.
There are a few photos below of Lyon, taken in the Old City. Collections of photos taken in both Lyon and Paris are available in the galleries section. Licenses are available at www.evocativephotos.com
JFB
Lyon, France–November 6, 2017–Dwellings around the Old City section of Lyon. The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourviere is at the top of the hill. Editorial Use Only.
Lyon, France — November 5, 2017 — People, cars and colorful buildings on the bank of the Saone River in Lyon, France. Editorial Use Only.
Lyon, France–November 6, 2017–Shops and Restaurants clustered in the Old City section of Lyon. Editorial Use Only.
Looking down the Saone River in Lyon, France, at dusk.
A beautiful summer morning—just right for a photo walk with Michael and Beverly Miller in Asbury Park. We started at Convention Hall early when we had the pale morning light, and wandered around taking photos as the sky brightened and the beach and boardwalk began to fill up.
Summer has arrived, if not officially, at least in spirit. The brand new Marina Grill opened for business in Belmar—and it was packed. The tent houses in Ocean Grove are being readied for the summer season, and the rides at Jenkinson’s Pavilion on the boardwalk at Point Pleasant are open for business on the weekends.
JFB
Point Pleasant, NJ USA — May 14, 2017 Adults and children riding the “Wave Swing” at Jenkinsons Pavilion on the boardwalk.
Riders wave thier arms as they go around the bend
Ocean Grove, NJ USA — May 12, 2017 — Tent houses are set up for the summer season in Ocean Grove, NJ.
