Lost on the Streets of Venice… Sea Ports of the Mediterranean

March 20, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 9 Comments

Walking through Venice allowed us to enjoy what was unique about the city, such as this lamp.

I have always felt the best way to learn about a city is to walk its streets. (I feel the same way about a forest.) Fortunately, I was travelling in Europe with companions who also loved to walk. For the most part, we skipped the tours recommended by the cruise line. It isn’t that the tours were bad… we enjoyed the ones we did, but they are regimented and expensive. There is no wandering off on your own, or taking longer to enjoy a particular site than the tour leader allows.

Venice is a great walking city… if you don’t mind getting a little lost. Streets have a tendency to take you somewhere you weren’t planning to go and come to abrupt ends. Street signs are rare. What the city does do, however, is post signs that will eventually lead to major monuments. And of course, you are on a relatively small island. How lost can you get?

A good map is an important tool when walking off the beaten path (or main tourist routes). We didn’t always agree on where we were or the proper route to take, however… and we all considered ourselves experts in map reading. Our companions caught many photos of us studying and ‘discussing’ maps. This was in Venice. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

Common sense is important. Wandering down dark, lonely alleys can be risky at times, regardless of where you are. But in restricting your journey to major streets and walkways, you limit your opportunities to have adventures and develop a true sense of the communities you are visiting.

It is important to look around and notice the small as well as the large, the seemingly insignificant as well as what is featured in the guidebooks. Photography helps, I believe, once you get beyond ‘we were there snap shots’ and allow your mind to feast on the wonderful variety that any area offers. It teaches you to see new things and to seek out what is unique. Following are various locations and objects that Peggy and I found of interest.

This photo provides a good example of our wandering off the main tourist routes of Venice.

Peggy Mekemson knocks on a door in the back streets of Venice.

Of course, you can always stop and ask for directions…

We found this open air market just off of the Rialto Bridge. Even on a cold, rainy day, it was packed with people. I suspect there was a fair amount of Christmas shopping going on since it was mid-December.

I don't remember where I came upon this friendly looking, gargoyle-type of lion, but he was definitely worth a photo.

I don’t remember where I came upon this friendly looking, gargoyle-type of lion in Venice, but it was definitely worth a photo.

Venice street scene showing colorful buildings and flower boxes.

I felt this photo captured the colorful buildings and flower boxes of Venice streets. Also note the green pharmacy sign and green pharmacy lamp on the lower left.

Window flower boxes are common in Venice, Italy.

One thing you find much more of in Europe than in the US are flower boxes. I can depend on Peggy to photograph them. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

Another example of window flower boxes in Venice. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

I captured this colorful shot of a window flower box in Venice.

The Hotel Iris is definitely not one of your more swank hotels in Venice… and it knows it. I looked it up online and its website headline proclaimed: Hotel Iris: A Cheap hotel in Venice. Cheap was capitalized by the hotel. I consider that truth in advertising. In the US it would be “affordable lodging.”

Starry roman numeral 24 hour clock found off of St. Marks Square in Venice Italy.

One of the advantages of a telephoto lens is it allows you to capture detail you can’t normally see. I doubt I would have spotted the Winged Lion of St. Mark in the center of this starred 24 hour roman numeral clock found off of St. Mark’s Square. Note the wild minute hand. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

I am always intrigued by what I consider as invitations, such as this stairwell in Venice. It’s saying “Come and climb up. See what’s up here.” Unfortunately, the locked iron fence said something else.

Speaking of iron fences in Venice, was this one saying “Take my picture.” or “Don’t even think about climbing over!”?

NEXT BLOG: Window shopping in Venice. Think Masks.

The Intriguing Canals and Bridges of Venice… Sea Ports of the Mediterranean

March 18, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 12 Comments

I shot this photo from the Rialto Bridge looking down on the Grand Canal.

It is impossible to think of Venice without thinking of canals and romantic gondolas with singing gondoliers. Or possibly your vision of Venice is of fast boats with roaring engines and good guys/bad guys chasing each other with guns blazing as depicted in any number of movies.

A gondolier works his boat on cold, rough waters in the Grand Canal as his passengers enjoy the ride, bundled up in warm clothes.

We were on off-season, however. Only a few hardy tourists braved the cold for gondola rides and no movies were being made. The canals had reverted to their primary role as transportation corridors, a role which they have played for a thousand years.

This is a sight you wouldn’t see during the summer when these gondolas would be filled with tourists. I thought of the gathered gondolas as a gondola parking lot.

Luxury accommodations gondola style.

Peggy took this photo of parked gondolas looking from Venice proper across at the island of La Giudecca. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

We chose to walk on the carless streets that parallel the canals and cross over them on bridges that have as much personality of the canals and provide intriguing glimpses of life along the canals. The highlight of our journey was the famous Rialto Bridge and the Grand Canal but the smaller canals, known as rivers, provided more intimate views.

This photo shows the famed Rialto Bridge that served for centuries as the only bridge across the Grand Canal, which snakes its way through Venice as the major transportation corridor.

The more recent Accademia Bridge across the Grand Canal has a totally different look and construction. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

I took this photo from the other side of the Accademia Bridge to capture the parked gondolas and the boat taxi that is crossing under the bridge.

Smaller canals, known as rivers in Venice, provide a more intimate view of life in the city. The buildings here were built by wealthy Venetians when Venice was a major world power controlling trade between the East and the West. Houses then, as now, were a symbol of wealth and power.

Peggy captured this interesting entrance way. I assume it would have been taller in the early years before sinking and global warming.

Flower/plant boxes are found throughout the city. I liked how these were next to the canal.

I’ll conclude with this reflection shot. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

NEXT BLOG: Having fun getting lost in Venice.

Venice: Winged Lions and A Pork Barrel Saint… Sea Ports of the Mediterranean

March 15, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 4 Comments

St. Mark’s Basilica is a beautiful church that dominates St. Marks Square in Venice.

Being eager to begin our exploration of Venice we picked up a water taxi from the cruise port. It retraced our earlier route from a sea-level perspective and deposited us near a large statue of Victor Emmanuel. He served as the first king of Italy when the various Italian city-states were united in the mid 1800s.

I took this photo of King Emmanuel charging into battle with his sword raised and horse’s tail flying.

Another photo of Emmanuel’s imposing horse in the waterfront monument in Venice.

In addition to an imposing horse and Victor, the statue features Venice, represented as a woman, and St. Mark, represented as a winged lion, book-ending the monument. On one end, the lion bites through the chains of Austrian oppression while Venice looks on in a tattered dress with one breast hanging out; on the other end he roars in victory and Venice is fully clothed in an expensive dress.

While St. Mark the lion chews through the chains of Austrian oppression,Venice looks depressed and disheveled in this photo of the Victor Emmanuel statue in Venice. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

St. Mark, with his representational lion, is the protector of Venice. The lion can be found almost everywhere. Mark, of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, supposedly came through the region when it was a swamp and gave his blessing. This justified two Venetian merchants turning into grave robbers and stealing the body from Alexandria in 828 AD. They slipped Mark into a pork barrel for transport. Moslems consider pork unclean so the barrel was unlikely to be checked by the local officials.

Mark made it safely to Venice in his smelly container, was presented to the Doge of Venice, and was subsequently buried under what would become St. Mark’s Basilica located on St. Mark’s Square, which was our objective for the day.

Along the way we would pass by the Bridge of Sighs and the Doge’s Palace. We would also walk on water. Actually we walked on tables that are placed in the square to help people avoid the Adriatic Sea, which is a regular visitor. Between Venice sinking some nine inches per century, high tides, and global warming, floods have become a serious problem for the city.

Peggy, Kathi Saage and Frances Dallen pose in front of the Bridge of Sighs. They aren't sighing but they are cold. A gondola lurks in the background. I suspect he was cold as well.

Peggy, Kathi Saage and Frances Dallen pose in front of the Bridge of Sighs. They aren’t sighing but they are cold. A gondolier lurks in the background. I suspect he was cold as well.

The Bridge of Sighs was so named because prisoners, condemned in the Doge’s Palace, could have their last look at freedom as they crossed the bridge from the Palace to the prison. Supposedly they sighed. It took a poet, Lord Byron, to give the bridge its name.

The Doge's Place once served as the center of government for Venice and was home of the Doge, the most powerful man in Venice at the time and therefore one of the most powerful men in the western world. Today the palace is a museum filled with magnificent art.

The Doge’s Palace once served as the center of government for Venice and was home of the Doge, the most powerful man in Venice at the time and therefore one of the most powerful men in the western world. Today the palace is a museum filled with magnificent art. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

A rather furry Neptune, symbol of Venice’s sea power, welcomes visitors to the Doge’s Palace.

A view of the inner courtyard of the Doge’s Palace in Venice.

St. Mark's Basilica with its domed top is almost Byzantine in appearance.

St. Mark’s Basilica, located next to the Doge’s Palace is Byzantine in appearance. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

An evening view of the colorful St. Marks Basilica in Venice. The bronze horses on the upper right were stolen from Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade when Venice was supposed to be helping Constantinople, not plundering it. But then, if your church is built on the stolen bones of a Saint, why not? (grin)

St. Mark’s Basilica and street lamps by night.

The Campanile is a prominent St. Mark’s Square and Venice landmark. In 1902 it came tumbling down and had to be replaced.

This clock tower is another prominent land mark. Note the winged lion and the digital clock with Roman Numerals.

This clock tower is another well-known land mark in St. Mark’s Square. Note the winged lion and the digital clock with Roman Numerals. The bronze bell ringers on top and the astrological clock at the bottom are also impressive.

As I mentioned, Venice is subject to frequent floods. Global warming has added to this problem. This shot, taken just below the Clock Tower in St. Mark’s Square, shows people using the table walkways and walking through the water.

I'll close with this flood photo I took in St. Mar's Square that reflects both lamp posts and walls located in the Square.

I’ll close with this flood photo I took in St. Mark’s Square that reflects both lamp posts and walls located in the Square.

NEXT BLOG: The striking and practical canals of Venice.

A Crow’s Nest View of Venice… Sea Ports of the Mediterranean

March 13, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 6 Comments

Perched on the top deck of the Crown Princess, it was easy to see that Venice is an island, a relatively small island. Plopped down on a marsh, it is sinking into the sea at about 9 inches per century. Vivaldi, BTW, once offered music lessons at the Hotel Metropole on the right.

Perched on the top deck of the Crown Princess, it was easy to see that Venice is an island, a relatively small island. Built on a marsh, it is sinking into the sea at about 9 inches per century. Vivaldi, BTW, once offered music lessons at the Hotel Metropole on the right.

We approached Venice by sea, as mariners have for the past thousand years. I was perched on the top deck of the Crown Princess looking down on the fabled island city with a sea gull’s perspective. Icy winds turned my traveler’s curiosity into a minor act of courage. A warm bar beckoned. But I was strong. There were photos to be taken and adventures to plan. We would be in Venice for the next day and a half and there was much to see. My next five blogs will be devoted to the city. Today’s blog is on my crow’s nest view. I will then write about visiting the area around St. Mark’s Square, admiring the city’s famed canals, getting “lost” among Venice’s confusing streets, and going window shopping.

Venice is justly famed for its canals… and for the bridges over the canals. Each seems to have a different personality.

Altogether, there are some 25 miles of canals. Each one invites exploration. The building just visible on the right is the city’s naval museum. Venice was once one of the world’s greatest sea powers.

The presence of gondolas suggested we were getting near the center of Venice’s greatest tourist attraction…

And we arrived. The building on the right is the Doge’s Palace. Next to it is the beginning of St. Mark’s Square… the center of Venice.

Looking down on St. Mark's Square. The Campanile is on the left, St. Mark's Basilica is on the right behind the Doges Palace.

Looking down on St. Mark’s Square. The Campanile is on the left and St. Mark’s Basilica is on the right, behind the Doge’s Palace. Snow capped mountains are in the distance.

I found this building, the Emporio Dei Sali, interesting. Once it housed salt. Now it is home to one of Venice’s best rowing clubs.

This photo looks back toward the Campanile. The opening on the right is the beginning of the Grand Canal. The church is La Salute, which was built as an offering of thanks at the end of the plague of 1630 when one third of the City's population died.

This photo looks back toward the Campanile. The opening on the right is the beginning of the Grand Canal. The church with the onion dome is La Salute, which was built as an offering of thanks at the end of the plague of 1630 when one-third of the City’s population died.

A final view from my crow’s nest perspective. The hotel Pensione Calcina was once home to limestone sellers.

NEXT BLOG: The many attractions of St. Mark’s Square as it floods beneath the Adriatic Sea.

Glamorous, Glitzy and Tacky Las Vegas … On the Road

March 11, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 13 Comments

Wandering down the Las Vegas Strip at night can be a jaw-dropping experience. This is the Excalibur Casino, an adult Disneyland.

Gambling interests in Nevada will make around a billion dollars in profit this month, so it is no surprise they can afford to build the massive pleasure palaces that line Las Vegas Boulevard. A walk down the Strip, as it is known, can be a jaw dropping experience, especially at night. Even McDonald’s has a sparkling sign. A recent article in the Smithsonian Magazine noted that Las Vegas is lit up by over 15,000 miles of neon tubes.

The New York, New York Casino. The line snaking across the front of it is a towering roller coaster that adds screams to Las Vegas Boulevard.

New York, New York on the Las Vegas Strip,also features an imposing Statue of Liberty.

New York, New York Casino on the Las Vegas Strip,also features an imposing Statue of Liberty.

Not to be outdone, the Paris Casino features the Eiffel Tower.

The Paris Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.

Even McDonalds adds a touch of glitz on the Strip.

Even McDs adds a touch of glitter on the Strip.

A stroll down Las Vegas Boulevard during the day also brings impressive sights, such as this one of the Wynn Hotel and Casino.

Wandering through the various casinos can also provide a day’s entertainment. The Venetian Casino in Las Vegas features canals, gondolas, and gondoliers who sing. The sky is fake.

And there is glamour… some of the world’s top entertainers perform in Las Vegas. We took in Zarkana, the latest acrobatic Cirque du Soleil extravaganza, and two musicals.

Las Vegas been a glitzy kind of place ever since gambling was legalized in Nevada and the first mobsters set up shop in the town during the 40s, 50s and 60s. Those were the days when the Rat Pack roamed the streets and Frank Sinatra introduced John Kennedy to Judith Exner, a mistress the President shared with Mob Boss Sam Giancana.

The excellent Mob Museum in the older part of Las Vegas shares this and many other stories about the history of the mob in America. It is well worth a visit. Peggy and I, along with our friends Ken and Leslie Lake, spent three hours in the museum. We also took advantage of its location to wander down Fremont Street and experience Las Vegas as it once was before the Strip took over.

Among the three floors of displays in the Mob Museum is this electric chair.

Among the three floors of displays in the Mob Museum in Las Vegas is this electric chair.

A trip down Fremont Street is a trip down Memory Lane. At one time, this would have been one of Las Vegas’s top casinos.

I confess to liking the old neon signs of Las Vegas as much as I like the glitzy neon of the strip.

This old Binion Cadillac is a fitting companion to the neon sign above. The Benion of Binion's Casino was one of the early casino owners with close ties to the mob.

This old Binion Cadillac with its Wild West theme is a fitting companion to the neon horse above. The Binion of Binion’s Casino was one of the early casino owners with close ties to the mob.

In addition to being glamorous and glitzy, Las Vegas can also be tacky. Souvenir shops line the streets. Hustlers push everything from “free” drinks to nude women. People dressed up in dozens of costumes ranging from Bat Man to Sponge Bob and Darth Vader invite you to have photos taken with them… for a fee, of course.

My friend Ken Lake chose to pose with these “show girls” over Sponge Bob. It cost him a couple of bucks. I figured the least I could do was feature him in my blog.

I am not sure this display at the Hilton fits tacky but it was amusing.

Peggy, in another life, may have been a palm reader. Alas Ms. Laurie was out, so Peggy is still wondering about her future.

Peggy also modeled for me in the pawn shop where the popular TV program Pawn Stars is filmed.

I’ve saved my last two photos for those of you who have clown phobias. This guy is outside the Circus Circus Casino.

We were walking back to our hotel one evening when I turned around and the Circus Circus clown was staring at us over a building. Does evil fit?

NEXT BLOG: I leave Las Vegas and return to my tour of Mediterranean Ports. Venice is up next.

Beauty vs. Glitz: A Break from Las Vegas at Red Rock Canyon… On the Road

March 8, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 11 Comments

Red Rock Canyon with its beauty and silence is just a few minutes a away from Las Vegas.

Red Rock Canyon with its beauty and silence is just a few minutes away from Las Vegas.

I was going to blog about glitzy Las Vegas today but we took a detour. Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area is a few miles to the west of the Strip and it’s billion dollar pleasure palaces. Nothing could provide a greater contrast. Glitz and noise are replaced by beauty and silence. And, unlike Las Vegas, the park is not dedicated to separating you from your money. I could make the $7 dollar per vehicle entrance fee disappear into a video poker machine faster than it took the park ranger to collect it.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Park features one of the most impressive visitor centers I have seen in my decades of visiting State and National Parks across the United States.

I took this desert tortoise photo at the Visitor Center for the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.

This human size silver lizard was one of several sculptures at the Red Canyon Visitors’ Center.

Peggy is standing next to a sculpture resenting air.

Peggy is standing next to a sculpture representing air. Note the rabbit ears in the background.

Ken Lake, dressed up in his SF Giants memorabilia, demonstrates the proper se of the rabbit ears.

Ken Lake, dressed up in his SF Giants memorabilia, demonstrates the proper use of the rabbit ears.

We spent an hour with our friends Ken and Leslie Lake checking out the Visitor Center and then another three hours on a leisurely tour of the 13-mile drive through the park. We could have easily spent all day had we taken advantage of the numerous trails along the way.

A view of the mountains and their distinctive ribbon of red from the Red Rock Canyon Visitors's Center.

A view of the mountains and their distinctive ribbon of red from the Red Rock Canyon Visitor’s Center. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

Another view of the mountains in Red Rock Canyon taken by Peggy.

I liked the contrasting rock colors provided by this photo on our 13 mile drive through Red Rock Canyon.

The erosive forces of wind and water were at work here. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

Peggy captured this jumble of rocks which reminded me of Bryce Canyon.

Peggy captured this jumble of highly eroded rocks, which reminded me of Bryce Canyon.

Numerous trails and canyons along the way invited further exploration. Both springs and Indian Rock Art are found hidden away in the canyons. Next time…

NEXT BLOG: I will do the blog on Las Vegas glitz that I was going to do today.

UFOs, Savage Bears and Cat Houses… On the Road in Nevada

March 6, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 6 Comments

Guests are greeted by a grizzly when they enter Tonopah Station on Highway 95 in Nevada.

We rolled the dice at Tonopah Station to see if we would win a free room. It’s been a tradition at the old motel for as long as Peggy and I have been travelling up and down Highway 95 through western Nevada. Neither of us came up with the required three matches so we forked over 60 bucks.

We rolled the dice at Tonopah Station. Three matches meant a free room. Lady Luck looked the other way.

The motel is filled with memorabilia of the Wild West including the grizzly bear above. It is also filled with the characters that live in the old mining town and stop by to gamble, have a drink or eat at the Café… where Missy waited on us.

Betty Boop, the Mona Lisa, and this wooden Indian were all part of the decorations at the Tonopah Station.

As was the old ad for a radiator shop.

But towns are an exception for Nevada. Most of the land is made up of the Big Empty. There is raw beauty hiding out in the deserts. It’s available to anyone who is willing to wander. Most people zip through the state on freeways at 70 MPH plus on their way somewhere else (anywhere else) or spend their time in Las Vegas or Reno investing hard-earned cash in Nevada’s economy.

A common view in Nevada of empty roads and distant vistas, which are often quite scenic. But where’s the UFO?

This photo includes a view of the Sierra Nevada Mountains from Highway 95.

Over the years I have travelled over most of Nevada’s (paved) back roads. I’ve even ridden across the state on a bicycle. It’s wide-open country filled with mountains, valleys and distant vistas. Much of the state is made up of government-owned lands with a substantial share dedicated to military purposes like bombing jackrabbits.

Once upon a time, Nevada was even used for atom bomb tests. I can still remember getting up at 4 am in the 1950s at our home in the Sierra Nevada foothills and watching as the whole eastern sky was lit up by an atomic bomb blast. Those days are long gone, however. Today Nevada is fighting against becoming the nation’s nuclear waste dumpsite.

Driving down Highway 95 provides other views besides old mining towns, military installations and wild beauty. An occasional cat house makes an appearance… usually consisting of a beat up trailer under a fancy sign. Prostitution is legal in Nevada. The ultimate prize for sightseers however, is an illusive UFO. This is the land of Area 51 and the Extraterrestrial Highway. Peggy and I keep our eyes peeled.

Prostitution is still legal in Nevada and several “cat houses” are located along Highway 95.

An early day gift certificate? Tokens were commonly offered for services at early day Nevada whore houses. I found this sample at the Clark County Museum.

A word of warning about driving down 95; watch your speed when driving through small towns. Our friend Ken Lake, who is traveling with us along with his wife Leslie, made the mistake of speeding up just before the sign that said he could. It cost him BIG. He was grumpy for hours. Ken claims he was following me, which is true, but I drive a pickup truck from Oregon, not a yuppie car from California. (Grin)

Outside of Reno and Las Vegas, trucks rule in Nevada. (I found this one in the ghost town of Ryolite.)

Outside of Reno and Las Vegas, old trucks rule in Nevada. (I found this one in the ghost town of Ryolite.)

NEXT BLOG: Glitzy Las Vegas

Wild and Weird Nevada… On the Road

March 4, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 5 Comments

Three of the ghostly figures in Albert Szukalski’s Last Supper at the Goldwell Open Air Museum near the ghost town of Rhyolite Nevada.

Peggy and I are wandering through Nevada celebrating my birthday so I decided to re-blog an earlier story I did. We had stopped off to check out the ghost town of Rhyolite on our way into Death Valley from the small Nevada town of Beatty.

I was looking around at abandoned mines and contemplating the lonely life of prospectors when I spotted a 30-foot tall naked blond. She caught my attention. Totally by chance, we had stumbled on the Goldwell Open Air Museum.

A 30 foot tall naked blond created by Dr. Hugo Heyrman was my introduction to the Goldwell Open Air Museum on the border of Death Valley National Park.

I couldn’t resist a close up of Blondie. Dr. Heyrman calls his pixellated woman “Lady Desert: The Venus of Nevada.”

Another view of the lady displaying her bubble butt.

The museum had its inception in 1984 when the Belgian artist Albert Szukalski wrapped a number of Beatty residents in wet plaster as models for a ghostly rendition of the Last Supper.

Another view of the Last Supper by Albert Szukalski at the Goldwell Open Air Museum. The dark, cloudy skies add drama.

I once bicycled through Death Valley as part of a 10,000 mile solo bike trip I made around North America. I can empathize with this guy.

Szukalski’s work inspired other well-known Belgian artists. Dr. Hugo Heyrman added the giant naked blond. Dre Peeter carved a female version of the Greek Icarus who flew too close to the sun with wax wings. Fred Bervoets created a metallic sculpture of a gold miner and threw in a penguin for good measure.

Dre Peeter’s carved wood female Icarus flies through the sky on the edge of Death Valley.

It’s understandable that Belgian artist Fred Verboets would create a sculpture of a prospector but what’s with his penguin companion? Verboets explains that’s what he felt like in the desert.

The Swiss/California artist Sofie Siegmann added a sumptuous ceramic couch and titled it “Sit Here.”

Sofie Siegmann’s brightly colored ceramic couch.

Another view of the couch. Long abandoned miners’ shacks in Rhyolite are in the distance.

The Goldwell Museum is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Admittance is free. A large, red barn-like building provides a studio for resident artists.

What’s the wild west without an old cowboy boot. This one was affixed to a telephone pole sculpture that served as a desert lost and found. I flipped it around right side up. You can almost sense it walking.

I even found my own little work of art in an old Rhyolite dump near the Goldwell Open Air Museum. To avoid being sacrilegious I call it the Last Dinner.

Any Old West museum… art or otherwise, has to have a wagon wheel…. and indeed we found one at the Goldwell Open Air Museum.

NEXT BLOG: More on Nevada including ferocious bears, UFOs and ladies of the evening.

Gargoyles and Other Oddities of Dubrovnik… Seaports of the Mediterranean

March 1, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 4 Comments

I found this marvelous gargoyle about a foot off the Stradun connected the the Franciscan Monastery.

I found this marvelous gargoyle about a foot off the Stradun connected the Franciscan Monastery in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Check out the great mustache!

Weird amuses me… and few things are weirder than a gargoyle. During the middle ages, no decent cathedral would be caught without them. In addition to piping water away from the building, they served as reminders to the faithful that evil lurked in the world, an evil that could only be overcome by attending church and donating money. Their cousins, grotesques, were also found on churches. Equally ugly and portentous, they didn’t carry water.

Whenever I get near a gargoyle or grotesque, I can’t help myself; I have to take its photo.

Peggy caught this Dubrovnik gargoyle. Possibly it represents one of the winds.

I took this closeup of the Dubrovnik gargoyle Peggy photographed above. Note the water dribbling down its chin.

We found examples of grotesques in the cloister of the Franciscan Monastery of Dubrovnik on top of columns. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

Dragons were a popular subject for both gargoyles and grotesques. What could be more scary. We found this specimen with his fine set of choppers in the Franciscan Monastery.

I have also found that fountains in Europe often host strange-looking beings. While the wealthy in pre modern times might have water piped into their homes, the common folks obtained their water from community fountains. Dubrovnik built an aqueduct system in the mid 1400s to bring water to the city and then located two public fountains on the Stradun: big Onofrio’s Fountain located near the Pile Gate and little Onofrio’s Fountain found next to the clock tower in Lutz Square.

The top of Little Onofrio’s Fountain with its ferocious looking fish. The fountain is located near the clock tower in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Another view of Little Onofrio’s Fountain. The oranges, BTW, were part of Dubrovnik’s Christmas decorations.

Big Onofrio’s Fountain located near the Pile Gate had 16 sides and each side featured a different mask with a spout coming out of its mouth. This was a cow mask.

Something I find even stranger than gargoyles, grotesques or fountain inhabitants are relics… bits and pieces of saints or other holy items kept around in reliquaries as items of worship. The Dubrovnik Cathedral has a particularly impressive set including a supposedly genuine piece of the Cross of Jesus, Baby Jesus’ swaddling clothes and various body parts of St. Blaise.

All of these items are reputedly capable of performing miracles and it is something of a miracle they exist. How they were obtained is usually rooted in the murky past. Pieces of the swaddling clothes were provided to women having difficult births. No matter how many pieces were cut out of the cloth, so it is said, the cloth returned to its original form.

I came across St. Luke’s finger in the small museum found in the Franciscan Monastery in Dubrovnik. The finger is encased in the gold reliquary. I know people take these items seriously, but I can only find relics strange.

NEXT BLOGS… Next week I will be travelling to Las Vegas to celebrate one of the Big O birthdays. That’s Big O as in Oh S****, I can’t believe I am this old. Anyway… I may opt out of blogging depending on the amount of time I play. If I do get up blogs they will be on the journey through the Nevada desert and the bright lights of the city. Did you know that Las Vegas is lit up with 15,000 miles of neon tubing? Peggy just read that in the Smithsonian Magazine. The following week I will be back with blogs about Venice and Burning Man 2013.

Walking the Streets of Dubrovnik… Seaports of the Mediterranean

February 27, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 6 Comments

The Stradun, Dubrovnik's main thoroughfare, lit up by sun after a rain storm.

The Stradun, Dubrovnik’s main thoroughfare, wet after a rain storm.

Luck was with us… the rain held off while we were on the walls of Dubrovnik and waited for us to descend to the Stradun, the city’s main thoroughfare. Lunch and pizza occupied most of the downpour. Afterwards we were treated to shiny, wet streets.

Our pizza, Croatian style.

In its first life the Stradun had been a winding canal separating Dubrovnik’s Roman and Slav populations. The canal was filled in during the Eleventh Century and brought the two populations together. A devastating earthquake took out most of the town in 1667 and Dubrovnik rebuilt the road to its present straight alignment.

Narrow pedestrian ways shoot off in both directions from the Stradun and invite exploration. Plazas anchor both ends of the street. Since we arrived in December, Dubrovnik was preparing for the holidays. Two Christmas trees competed for our attention in Luza Square. I found one outlined by a window in the old Customs House to be particularly dramatic.

Walkways such as this and the one below branch off from the Stradun in Dubrovnik, Croatia and invite exploration.

Dubrovnik walkway.

We visited Dubrovnik in December and found the city preparing for the holidays. In this picture,a Christmas tree is gracefully outlined by a window in Sponza Palace, the old custom-house.

Another photo of Sponza Palace, the Christmas Tree and Dubrovnik’s clock tower.

The town’s bell tower and clock, St. Blaise’s Church and Orlando’s Column and are also prominent features of Luza Square. Both St. Blaise and Orlando symbolize Dubrovnik’s fierce sense of independence.

A close up of the Dubrovnik clock tower. A digital clock at the bottom adds a touch of modernization.

St. Blaise was an early third century Christian Martyr from Armenia who was so holy that wild animals were said to drop by his cave for a blessing. The Romans used steel combs to flay off his skin and then beheaded him. Since the combs resembled those used for carding wool, Blaise became the Patron Saint of the wool trade. Go figure.

He earned the everlasting gratitude of Dubrovnik by appearing in a vision to a local priest to warn of an imminent invasion by the Venetians in 971. Ever since, the locals have loved St. Blaise and disliked Venice. They celebrate his birthday by parading various parts of his body through the city on February 3.

St. Blaise, the Patron Saint of Dubrovnik, holds a model of the city in his hand. This particular statue is found in the Pile Gate at one of the city’s main entrances. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

Orlando is known as the legendary knight Roland in Northern Europe. The story is that he rescued Dubrovnik from a siege by the Saracens in the Eighth Century. The fact that the dates of Roland’s life don’t match those of Orlando doesn’t seem to matter. He wasn’t from Venice. Also of note… his arm was used as the standard measure of cloth in Dubrovnik.

The Orlando column in Luza Square. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

The Pile Gate, Franciscan Monastery, and Onofrio’s Fountain are located at the other end of the Stradun. The fountain is a subject of my next blog. The Monastery houses a peaceful cloister and a small but interesting museum that features a pharmacy that opened in 1317 and St. Luke’s finger.