Manchester city centre, like all big city centres, is now substantially formed of anonymous glass buildings like these, the coating probably not doing much for the insulation, but look at the lovely reflection effect it gives. I like taking pictures of buildings though I am sure all would be better composed if I had a hundred-foot tall crane to lift me up and get the perspective right.
Another day in London, ostensibly to work (well, I did have one meeting), but mainly to fuel my social life. I took the opportunity this afternoon to wander along the Thames and do the tourist thing, and here’s one of its most recognisable buildings — surely everyone in the world could put a location to this shot. These Italians were chilling out by the river, along with thousands of other people.
I was working in Manchester all day, but there it was chilly and grey. Things were much more attractive on my return home to Hebden Bridge, so let’s depict that instead.
It obviously takes a while to get things cleared up after the 9th May Victory Day celebrations: three days later and they’re still at it. But at least it gives me a chance to get a gratuitous shot of St. Basil’s onto the blog again. If you don’t think this is one of the most incredible buildings in the world then I’m sorry, you have no soul and I’m just not your friend any more.
A day spent entirely working on campus here in Moscow, so let’s take this opportunity to check in on the slow decay of the Monument to Corporate Failure; a building which fascinates me and has been depicted on here several times before (example). At least fifteen years this has sat here empty, since the Italian company that 90% built it went bust with it uncompleted and no one has subsequently worked out whether they can safely demolish it or not — or perhaps, no one is bothered. Never used, bits of it periodically seem to fall off, but it does have a certain grandeur, in its own pathetic way.
Seeing as I missed the Victory Day celebrations yesterday let’s pay homage with this shot. The Russian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier lies below the monumental west wall of the Kremlin, at one end of a row of memorials to various Soviet cities, all decorated since yesterday with garlands of flowers. I think we citizens of elsewhere mostly forget that it was the Soviets who lost the most men (and women) of all the countries who fought in World War Two. They have a right to remember the dead. Perhaps not to celebrate them — but to remember them.
it’s the ‘men at work’ post number n+1. All credit to them though, whatever they were doing not a single train through Hebden Bridge station was late this morning, and we have eight an hour in all directions.
The street of New Market makes, I think, its third appearance on this blog, with its transition from well-lit back street to building site to today’s, well, building site having been documented over the last two years. Reduced now to a mere alley, the fence that bounds it on the right is captured, distorted, in the side wall of Boots on the other side. It’s actually quite hard to get a photo of Manchester city centre that doesn’t somehow show it as a building site at this point in time.
A public holiday in the UK today. I still had to work — courtesy of skiving off last Thursday mainly — but the gym didn’t open until 10. I like this shot because of the seemingly random arrangement of quadrilaterals running along the wall to the guy who, like me, was just a minute or two early.
Even on May Day this kind of behaviour is inexcusable. Really, you shouldn’t do this kind of thing in public, guys.
