Wednesday, November 25, 2009
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About Me
- Mark
- I'm a professional historian, though my real passions lie in the art of photography and the freedom of travel. Armed with camera and backpack, I've visited all fifty of the US states ... and a total of 65 countries on six continents.
Also see ...
It finally occured to me to check your other "daily"....
ReplyDeleteThese spires completely fascinate me. I can't decide if they are dreadfully beautiful or beautifully dreadful. I don't remember ever seeing a photograph of them with this much color!
Yep, this blog's not getting much attention ... from me either, I'm afraid. I"ll keep it going for a while longer, but I'm not sure how long.
ReplyDeleteAnd that cathedral was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen! Often when I've traveled, I've gotten to a famous site and actually been a little disappointed in it, because there was no way it could ever live up to the hype. But St. Basil's just blew me away.
Hey, Mark; have you read any of Tony Horwitz' books? I'm just starting one he wrote about what happened in the New World, before the Puritans, and he said Plymouth Rock was MUCH less impressive than everyone expected.
ReplyDeleteI've travelled vicariously through books and blogs like yours, but have only been to Canada and quite a few states. I'll come visit here, as long as you write it! And play catch-up this weekend...
I agree, St Basil's is a truly spectacular sight on a sunny day. You doubtless know the story that Czar Ivan the Terrible, who commissioned it, then had the architect's eyes gouged out so that he could never design another building to rival it.
ReplyDeleteTony Horwitz? Nope ... I confess I haven't. I feel bad about it, but I don't read anywhere near as much as I used to; my excuse is that I spend most of my workday reading, but really that's just an excuse.
ReplyDeleteAnd though I wanted to travel my whole life, I'd barely traveled at all until a dozen or so years ago ... I thought it was too expensive, and too scary. Then one day I finally managed to convince myself of what I'd been saying for years: life is short, and you need to experience it. That day I bought a plane ticket to Istanbul, and I was hooked on travel. And I don't regret it at all!
Chris, I have heard that story ... and confess that I'd always wondered if it was apocryphal, or not. Knowing what I do of Russia, though, I suppose I could believe it.
ReplyDeleteSt. Basil's was definitely the highlight of Moscow for me ... if you don't count the subways, at least! Otherwise, I greatly preferred St. Petersburg. Both places, though, made me want to visit more of Russia someday ...