MorseBlog

This summer Vicki, Redington, and I went to the coast of Turkey. We satyed near Bodrum a resort town poplular with Brits. It was in fact too popular and became a base for further exploration of the terrific archaeology in the area. View of Bodrum from our Villa at Night View of Bodrum from our Villa in the Morning We traveled north to places like Miletos, Ephesus, and Priene. This area was occupied in ancient times by a race of the indiginous people called Carians. It was also a part of the ancient Greek empires and colonies. The most famous place we visited was Ephesus famed in Greek, Roman, and Christian history. In a phenomenal condition it was impressive even with the oppressive heat and crowds. The city used to be a port but is now miles from the Agean as the horbor silted over the centuries. Hadrian's Temple A Lintel with Greek Inscription Vicki in Front of the Library of Celsus The Impressive Struture of the Library of Celsus View into the Mithriades Gate View Down the Harbo...

Still on my film rampage. I have shot some B&W film around the UK. There is a lot of B&W film around though some makers like Agfa are out of business. I ordered some Fuji as this is more prevalent in the UK than Kodak. The company sent me a roll of Fomapan as well. Turns out Foma is Czech company from the Soviet days. They make film B&W film the old fashion way. I took the Fomapan to North Yorkshire a few weeks ago when we visited Vicki's parents. On the way home we stopped by Rievaulx Abbey which was a Cisterian Abbey built around 1000 AD. It thrived for a few hundred years but was closed by Henry VIII during his reformation of the Catholic Church. It fell into ruins which are impressive even today. Vicki used to play in the ruins when she was growing up. It is now an English Heritage site. On the ridge above the Abbey there are a series of follies. Here is the Abbey from the Rye river valley floor. It was mostly an overcast day at this point. This is the view from t...

Vicki and I have moved to the Northeast of England near Cambridge. This is an area called the Fens. It is low and flat generally and shares a natural history with Holland in that it once was underwater and has been drained and pumped for 500 years. Indeed it was the Dutch who brought their expertise and technology of claiming land from the sea. Canals and windmills did the work at first followed by steam and now electric and diesel pumps. Here are some photos of what it may have looked like hundreds of years ago. We visited a National Trust property that tries to protect some old Fen land. These pictures were taken during our first house hunting trip. (Mamiya 645 Old School 2) In the heart of the Fens is the town of Ely also known as the Isle of Ely. It is on a small rise and at one time was an island on which is perched a small village and a Cathedral. The town is pronounced (EElee) as the wetlands around were abundant with eels which gave the town its name. The ca...

Last March Vicki and I decided to take a little holiday. What with the stress of having left her old job and the new beginning and fresh start of her new job it seemed the right way to start things off. We flew into the southern end of the island to the town of Vieux Fort and and stayed at Coconut Bay an all-inclusive resort of reasonable expense. These pictures were all taken on my Mamiya (Old School 2) film camera. This was a typical view from the beach. Vicki with some relaxing reading near the lazy river. This was a hill near the hotel entrance. Part of it was being quarried away. The hotel was situated in an old coconut plantation. This is the town of Vieux Fort. The island was contested many times by the French and British so while it has close ties to Britain as a Commonwealth country there are many signs of French influence. There was also a long history of piracy here. The Pitons are two distinctively shaped mountains. They form part of the flag and are featured here on the si...