Connections

While reading the news online this evening I saw an article about the Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, in Holten, the Netherlands, paying tribute to the Canadians who paid with their lives to liberate that country 70 years ago. That reminded me of an event far back in my own history, when I was too young to realize its significance. That was the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands.

I received the commemorative cup illustrated below as an innocent youngster in kindergarten. My recollection of that event is that the cup was filled with candy. Little did I know then that within 2 years I would emigrate to the country that was primarily responsible for the liberation of the Netherlands.

My mother safeguarded this cup for many years until it could be entrusted to me. Since then it has stood tucked inside a cabinet from where I would occasionally take it and ponder it in silence. It reminds me of the connection I have with these two countries - one of my birth and the second which adopted me.

Amazing the significance something of such little monetary value can hold.

A small piece of history

A place on the Rideau Canal was my destination this past weekend. I've been here before but there's a real quiet at this time of year before the canal opens and the boating season gets underway. The canal was built in the early 1830's and a lot of the lock mechanisms are original.

"The timber swing bridge crossing Upper Nicholsons lock is one of four such heritage bridges remaining along the canal. In the 1850s a petition was signed by the local residents requesting a drawbridge at the site. If a bridge was built over the lock, the petitioners promised to build one over the river. The government refused but in 1863 the municipalities of Wolford and Merrickville offered to build the bridge at their own expense. The government readily gave them permission. The Andrews brothers built a swing bridge over the upper lock the following year. They also built a fixed bridge across the river to complete the crossing. Since then the bridge has been replaced numerous times, the most recent being in 1971." (from Parks Canada website)

Note: we will be out of town for a wedding and hope to be back late Sunday. I suspect my access to the internet may be sporadic so I may not be able to post, respond, or visit until we return. Have a great week all, and thank you for your visits and comments !

(10-22mm  f11  1/50 sec  ISO100)

Nostalgia

One of the benefits of having company is that you go to places you might not visit on your own. Case in point was a visit to the automotive past that I made last month with a brother-in-law. I lost track of how much time we spent there ogling cars from our youth that we couldn't afford then and likely can't afford now, however, I do recall that we had both breakfast and lunch there.

I could post dozens of photos I made there but I chose these two. All of you car buffs will recognize this classic and if you don't you can blow up the 2nd photo and read the sign in the window. While you look at them you can listen to this. And for more info on this model, have a look here.

(both photos made with a 10-22mm lens at f11, ISO400 and shutter speeds of 1/4 and 1/2 sec)

Moment of glory

It's a little-known fact that Kingston, Ontario was briefly (1841-1844) the capital of what was the fore-runner of the nation of Canada, then known as the United Province of Canada (Upper Canada - Ontario, and Lower Canada - Quebec). This period prompted a building boom, and many fine buildings of limestone were constructed. Kingston became known as the 'Limestone City'.

In 1842 a competition was held to choose a design for the city hall. The cornerstone was laid in June 1843, and by December 1844, the building was completed at a cost of 25,000 pounds vs an estimate of 10,000 pounds (some things never change). Over the years, fires damaged some parts of the building (e.g. the cupola was rebuilt in 1909). Although Kingston is an important regional centre and boasts a world class university and medical research facilities, it never gained the prominence once envisioned by many. While it has all the conveniences of a large modern city, it has retained its small town atmosphere.

(18-55mm  f8.0  1/200 sec  ISO200)

End of the dream

I discovered this place on one of my forays into the countryside near our place a couple of years ago. As I wandered around the abandoned property I tried to imagine the lives of the people who built this home, had children, and tried to make a go of the farm.

I made some photos here in b&w but I found the colour contrast significant. Perhaps as one of their last acts as the dream was crumbling around them, they tried to put a fresh face on the inevitable. Who knows ...

(18-55mm  f4.5  1/50 sec  ISO200)

Incongruous ?

I've been preoccupied lately with putting together a photo book of our Rhodes vacation, or actually 2, since I couldn't get my selection of photos to fit into 1 (I have something like 2,200 to whittle down from). So from time to time when I haven't been able to get out with my camera, I've been posting a shot from that collection. As I was reviewing some today, I came across this one. I can usually recall exactly where I was when I made a particular photo - on this occasion my wife had ducked into a shop, and as I was looking around I spotted something bright down an alleyway.

Over 6,000 people live in medieval old town Rhodes. It may be a huge tourist draw (and a fascinating place I would unreservedly recommend to visit), but life also goes on.

(10-22mm  f11  1/500 sec  ISO200)

(Day 281 ) One-at-a-time bridge

On my travels around the countryside over the past week or so I criss-crossed the Rideau River a few times and I visited some out of the way places. Some of the roads didn't look like they had changed much from the pioneer days. Today I went back to a place that once was a thriving community built around a mill on the river, as so many communities were - Andrewsville, self-named by the Andrews brothers in the 19th century.

When the canal was pushed through in 1832, the road and bridge needed to accommodate only horse and wagon. I'm sure if the community had continued to grow, both the road and bridge would have been widened to handle more and larger traffic. When the railway bypassed Andrewsville, sealing its fate, the narrow road and single lane bridge continued to handle the traffic, which to this day remains light.

(10-22mm  f20  1/50 sec  ISO200)

(Day 275) Where solemn vows are made

Saturday Oct. 2, 2010

I was unable to post an entry yesterday since we had to travel 450km/280mi to the wedding of the daughter of good friends. The weather started out beautifully when we left home but got progressively uglier as we neared our destination. Low-lying clouds scudded seemingly right over the tree tops, dampening the ground but not the spirits of the wedding party or the guests.

The ceremony itself was conducted in this beautiful building - the Grace Anglican Church, built in 1856, although the congregation has a 180-year history. I managed to make this photo before too many of the guests had arrived.

(10-22mm  f8  1/3 sec  ISO800)

(Day 266) Friends, Rhodians, countrymen ...

Thursday Sept. 23, 2010

... lend me your ears. Well, the geography might be a bit off, and the quote is paraphrased but perhaps similar words were spoken here, or similar plays acted out. This beautiful amphitheatre is on a hilltop in Rhodes town called Monte Smith (I didn't have much internet access so haven't been able to google it yet). The 26 rows of seats appear to be marble. We had to visit this, and the nearby ancient acropolis on our last full day on Rhodes. It was stunning, and my mind tried to imagine what things might have been like those many hundreds, or thousands, of years ago as I walked in places where people had also walked so long ago.

(10 - 22mm  f11  1/320 sec  ISO100)

(Day 255) The strife is over

Sunday Sept. 12, 2010

We're told that the harbour at Rhodes was the site of one of the wonders of the ancient world - the Colossus of Rhodes - a giant statue which stretched across the harbour mouth. The Knights of St. John also built fortifications, visible at the right in the photo. We were here today to enjoy the beauty, and serenity (once we found this secluded spot). No wars plague this area now and the former fortifications only serve as reminders of a strife-filled past. May it remain that way.

(18-55mm  f11  1/1250 sec  ISO800)

(Day 254) Where knights once trod

Saturday Sept. 11, 2010

We visited the fortress at Feraklos this morning - apparently one of the best fortified back in the 1300's. Unlike the acropolis at Lindos, there was no apparent path to the top, and we followed a goat path most of the way. Along the 'route', however, the goat path gives way to these steps, hand-hewn from the rock almost 700 years ago. It was a difficult route for us, with a precipitous cliff on one side, and we were carrying nothing more than a camera pack and a bottle of water. I can't imagine that knights, perhaps at times wearing heavy armour, could climb their way regularly up this route. I think they were made of stern stuff.

(18-55mm  f8  1/160 sec  ISO200)

(Day 252) No room to spare

Thursday Sept. 9, 2010

After 6 days on the beautiful island of Rhodes, we're certainly no experts on Greek habits. But I think I can make some observations on their driving habits, since we now have 6 days' experience with that. Life may be running a little slower than in North America, but you wouldn't know it on the roads. Speed limits are treated like guidelines - for tourists that is; Greeks seem to ignore them altogether. Passing can be done wherever there's a foot or two to spare, or perhaps not - this may be the reason there are lots of small roadside shrines to those who departed this world while behind the wheel.

Village streets were obviously not laid out with autos, buses, or trucks in mind. Streets that we would consider 'tight' in North America, are 2-lane roads with locals barely slowing as they pass each other, and with cars parked willy-nilly. A tourist is quickly spotted under these circumstances. Today's photo shows the village of Archangelos, site of another medieval fortress. In the apparent jumble of houses and other buildings, streets run in all directions - space is at a premium but is well-utilized.

(18-55mm  f11  1/400 sec  ISO200)

(Day 251) Dust to dust

Wednesday Sept. 8, 2010

Today we travelled to the town of Lindos, site of the acropolis and the temple of Lindian Athena dating back to the 6th century BC, and earlier. The Knights of St. John built the walls of the fortification which surround the acropolis in the 14th century AD. Even today they are very impressive, and they served the Knights well for over two hundred years.

The large columns of the temple are lying in giant pieces, scattered throughout the area. The walls of the fortifications are crumbling into dust. Efforts are underway to restore the site as best as possible using the remaining pieces. Who knows, when the builders were building these originally, if they gave much thought to how long they would last. They too are long gone, returned to the dust where from they also came. And such is the destiny of all, mighty and small.

(18-55mm  f11  1/500 sec  ISO200)

(18-55mm  f11  1/100 sec  ISO200)

(Day 229) A foot on two continents

You may have heard a few sayings about the Dutch, some of which are self-deprecating - "wooden shoes, wooden head, would'n listen!" which describes their at times stubborn nature, and the other side of the coin - "if you're not Dutch, you're not much" which can be ascribed to their national pride. Well, I am, or was, or maybe to some extent still am, one of them.

I was born in Holland and emigrated to Canada at the age of 6 with my family. Certainly the Dutch, as many European immigrants did, assimilated quickly into North American life and culture. However, like many immigrants, there were always little ties back to 'the old country' as it quickly became known. Some of these were related to food (you wouldn't believe some of the things the Dutch put on their bread!), or customs, language, or expressions. But for the most part, you'd be hard-pressed to pick a Dutch immigrant out of a crowd of Canadians (until the World Cup is underway perhaps).

While my feet are firmly planted on this side of the big pond, I've learned a lot about, and take pride in, my heritage. Today's photo is of a little reminder, that we have hanging by the front porch, of that heritage. Known as 'klompen', I can still recall wearing them as a young lad in Holland - they weren't fancy like these though.

(70-200mm  f11  1/40 sec  ISO200)

(Day 227) Rained out - but not all is lost

It's been a while since we've gone on a picnic so we decided to go after church today. The sky looked overcast and we'd had a brief sprinkle in the morning, but things didn't look too bad. We packed a lunch and the dog and set off. We had picked out a spot along the Rideau system that we had briefly visited a number of years ago. Along the way I noted an interesting bridge in Lyndhurst and made a mental note that I should come back some time to make some photos around the area.

All was going well - we reached our destination, grabbed our things and the dog and found a lovely spot by the water, under some trees. We enjoyed our lunch, but as we were sheltered by the trees we hadn't noticed that a light rain had started. But it stopped again by the time we were finished lunch. Off we went to watch the lockmaster at work guiding a couple of boats into the locks. Once the operation was well under way we decided to walk over a wooden bridge towards some boats moored on the far side of the river. A soft rain started again so we ducked under a large tree to stay dry - poor choice. This time the rain didn't let up but intensified - within minutes it was dripping off the leaves onto us. We ran to the nearby restaurant and got under a broad overhang.

Well, we waited for a break in the downpour and at a quick pace made our way back to the car some half mile away. The sky didn't look like it would relent, so reluctantly we elected to head back home. And wouldn't luck have it that as we neared the stone bridge again the rain slackened off to a light drizzle. Just enough time to dash out and make a few photos of the oldest stone bridge in the province, dating back to 1856-57.

(18-55mm  f6.3  1/80 sec  ISO200)

(18-55mm  f6.3  1/25 sec  ISO200)

Oops, for the second week, I forgot to add my Sunset Sunday contribution. So I've edited this (already-published) post to add one that was shot a few days ago in Merrickville:

(18-55mm  f11  1/100 sec  ISO200)

(Day 148) A look at the past

We are lucky to live within a 15-minute drive of 'Canada's most beautiful village' - Merrickville (no, I didn't make that up - it's official), situated on the Rideau River. I went there today to make a few photos of some of the relics of yesteryear's industry. The earliest setllement there dates back to 1791 (fairly 'modern' compared to Europe). With abundant power from the river, over 50 industries thrived in Merrickville in the 19th century. Today, the oldest foundry in Eastern Canada, dating back to 1840, still crafts metal products. Hope you don't mind a bit of history.

(18-55mm  f5.6  1/1250 sec  ISO200)

wall of the old mill; inscription reads 'S. H. Mirick  1848'

(18-55mm  f5.6  1/320 sec  ISO200)

'interior' of mill

(18-55mm  f8  1/160 sec  ISO200)

old turbine mfg'd by Northern Electric

(18-55mm  f8  1/100 sec  ISO100)


current resident

(18-55mm  f8  1/60 sec  ISO200)

old abandoned boiler

 (18-55mm  f18  1/6 sec  ISO100)

the Rideau water that drove industry

(Day 80) Just remember and say thank you

On the eastern outskirts of the village of Lyn, Ontario stands the Veterans Memorial, overlooking Lyn Cemetery. What is especially notable about the memorial, dedicated in 2006, is that it incorporates the original millstone from the Lyn Mill (see Day 79 post).

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

"For the Fallen" by Laurence Binyon (1869-1943)

(18-55mm  f8  1/250 sec  ISO200)

(Day 79) A bit of local history

Many communities in Ontario were centred around waterways. These provided means of transportation as well as the necessary power to operate machinery, especially in the days before electricity. Usually one of the first establishments was a mill. Pictured below is the waterway that powered the Lyn Mill, which was built around 1784 by United Empire Loyalists. It was fed by local lakes, and the water supply for the mill was controlled by a number of dams. The mill went out of business in 1934 after a 150-year existence.

(18-55mm  f22  1/8 sec  ISO100)